[Kukurukakakara]

This youtube video is awesome -- Joe Biden just tears Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin apart for completely ignoring every single major economic issue facing America and for offering nothing but sarcastic personal attacks. Check it out guys

[Kukurukakakara]

[okiedokes]

Thanks for that youtube clip kukuru. Sen. Joe Biden is the real deal. Somehow Gov. Palin seems to be more interested in attacking Sen. Obama. I hope Karl Rove is schooling her on foreign policy issues because the VP debate will be no walk in the park. Being just a "pitbull with lipstick" isn't enough.
Even Sen. McCain's spokesman, Tucker Bounce couldn't give Campbell Brown of CNN one example of Gov. Palin's foreign policy experience.
I'm looking forward to what Sen. Clinton says in Florida to counter Gov. Palin, come monday.

Those posters are horrible...did the McCain campaign see those?

[Sugarplum]

I know this is a little off topic, but I have to put it out there.

Off all the years I've been on Mashada, never have I seen an issue where so many are in agreement.

With that said, let me move on into the topic once again.....

I've been asking myself one question. As unpopular as the Republican party has been, why is there not a wider margin in the polls? Seriously who doesn't want change in the economy and social services?

Someone please answer this question with facts ONLY!

[okiedokes]

Originally Posted by Sugarplum

I know this is a little off topic, but I have to put it out there.

Off all the years I've been on Mashada, never have I seen an issue where so many are in agreement.

With that said, let me move on into the topic once again.....

I've been asking myself one question. As unpopular as the Republican party has been, why is there not a wider margin in the polls? Seriously who doesn't want change in the economy and social services?

Someone please answer this question with facts ONLY!

ha ha...I wish I knew why or the "facts" per se. From what I've read on blogs when polls are taken they call just people with fixed phones. Students, most of whom are in college and have cellphones are not included in the data.
I also think that people are still just now warming up to Sen. Obama. That's why he needs to continue to draw contrasts with Sen. McCain and link McCain to Pres. Bush.

It is a historic moment, so being that he is new and may be the first african-american president, he has much higher expectations to meet. I think independents will play a role in deciding the election outcome. The most important thing is Obama hit 50% for the 1st time this week, and has been in a dead heat with McCain, but never been below McCain in the polls.
There are people who will vote republican regardless of whatever is happening in the country and vice-versa.

What Obama needs is this:
1. huge voter turn out by all democrats
2. register as many new voters as possible(he got 150,000 new donors after Palin's speech)
3. record african-american turn out(he can be competitive in the southern states that have traditionally voted republican or even win some of them, Arizona which is McCain's backyard is competitive now).
4. a good number of Hillary Clinton voters
5. good number of independents
6. young people vote in record numbers(e.g students, educated people like those he got in the primaries)
7. some catholic voters (e.g those who are moderates)
8. the disaffected republicans
9. working class voters(e.g small town people, etc) - most important!
10. avoid Palin altogether, continue preaching the "McCain voted with Bush 90% of the time"l ine that appears to be effective so far.

PS: B/c race is such a sticky subject and Obama has fought the rumors about his patriotism, race, being a muslim, etc fiercely, conservative groups like "swift boat" veterans will be walking a fine line b/c they risk putting people off with such divisive politics. Remember they questioned John Kerry's patriotism and sort of got away with it partly b/c he was white too, but with Obama they risk bringing up race again as an issue in the election.

[Ni_Diambo]

Originally Posted by Sugarplum

I know this is a little off topic, but I have to put it out there.

Off all the years I've been on Mashada, never have I seen an issue where so many are in agreement.

With that said, let me move on into the topic once again.....

I've been asking myself one question. As unpopular as the Republican party has been, why is there not a wider margin in the polls? Seriously who doesn't want change in the economy and social services?

Someone please answer this question with facts ONLY!

You know the US roughly evenly split between “liberals” and “conservatives” - and I’m using these terms broadly. In between, there’s a sliver of Independents, who are theoretically up-for-grabs. Let me confess: I’m one of those who usually lean to the right. I only identify with Obama because of the historic nature of his candidacy, and of course, his ‘Kenyanness.’ So, I have an idea about the mind-frame on the right.

You can imagine the feelings in the mainstream GOP about Obama:

1. The ‘foreigner’ and racial tags won’t go away. These include the Muslim charges, as though it’s illegal
2. Obama’s openness to groups like gays, and the Pro-Choice Movement is anathema to conservatives

Now, many of Clinton’s people have suddenly joined the Independent category, thus depleting Obama’s (Democratic) natural base.

So, McCain brings in Palin to do the following:

1. Fire up the conservative bed-rock that had been ambivalent towards McCain. (Remember he had clashed with John Hagee and Rod Parsley - major planks in the Evangelical movement). In addition, Palin is to appear firm in major conservative issues such as patriotism, security, family values etc.
2. Pose as a woman, thereby attracting Hillary’s disaffected women
3. Pose as a hockey- or soccer-mom, thereby attracting this critical voter bloc
4. Pose as a working class (white) mother to rope in this critical bloc especially in such places as Pennsylvania and Ohio
5. Act as the unfettered attack-dog. The calculation being that after the Hillary encounter, Obama will not want to viciously engage another woman. Also, that Obama cannot call her ‘inexperienced.’
6. And the big, unstated one: Contrast. On one ticket, ‘traditional’ American values (remember McCain saying of Palin “What a beautiful family!”), while on the other one, liberal (a dirty word among conservatives) reformists.

So, Obama’s big problem is that the number of ‘Independents’ has grown at his (Democratic) expense. On the other hand, McCain is using the Karl Rove approach to consolidate his base and round up this fat Independent voter bloc.

[Type R]

Originally Posted by Type R

But let me guesstimate.

Danger: she may upstage john mccain. for better or for worse.
... [/indent][/i][/indent]this breaks rule #1 of vice presidency: don't overshadow your boss!!!

The McCain's strategy on preventing this is to make sure Palin appears with McCain. They've canceled her solo tours.

McCain-Palin becoming Palin-McCain?

[Kukurukakakara]

[Type R]

Originally Posted by Sugarplum

I've been asking myself one question. As unpopular as the Republican party has been, why is there not a wider margin in the polls? ... Someone please answer this question with facts ONLY!

Race is a major factor, albeit an unspoken one.

The American Debate: It's little discussed, but Obama's race may be decider

Quotes (for those fearful of hyperlinks!!!):

"Let us swing the door ajar and invite the elephant into the room. One big reason Barack Obama is locked in a tight race, rather than easily outdistancing his opponent, is because he is black."

That factor is rarely discussed in polite political conversation. People tend to dance around it, talking instead about Obama's perceived inexperience, or his youth, or his perceived airs, or his liberal voting record. And racist sentiment rarely shows up in the polls, because a lot of people don't want to share their baser instincts with the pollsters; they'll save that instead for the privacy of the voting booth.

"An aging mine electrician from Kentucky is quoted as saying, "I won't vote for a colored man. He'll put too many coloreds in jobs." An elderly woman in a New Jersey hair salon is overheard complaining about Barack and Michelle Obama the other day, about how blacks supposedly have larger bones than whites, and about how she's fleeing America if Obama wins."

"He has to bond somehow with blue-collar whites, yet he cannot show too much passion, because, as Democratic strategist Joe Trippi explained to me, "those whites don't like to see a black guy getting angry, it's a dangerous thing for an African American candidate to do."

There! The chicken has been roasted! Eat!

[Kukurukakakara]

The real Sarah Palin from a confirmed friend and resident of wasila.

Claim: Letter written by a resident of Wasilla, Alaska, offers viewpoint of Governor Sarah Palin.

Click here to read it: snopes.com: A Note to All by Anne Kilkenny