Silence is Golden

I spent the week prior to the election on a Sierra Club trip in the Florida Keys. Mercifully, the only TV we watched was about Sandy and my phone was silent. Reconnecting with nature, especially in an environment so different from my home turf, was totally refreshing for both body and soul.

In the weeks prior to leaving I, like everyone else in Virginia, had grown weary of the attack ads and phone calls from both sides, but especially those from Romney and his disgusting cohorts like Karl Rove. It is gratifying to know that the billionaires who tried to buy our democracy are POed at their bad investment in the man more responsible than most for dividing America.

Well, I didn't entirely escape the calls and ads. Returning home late on Sunday our voicemail was carpet bombed with a couple dozen messages - only three nonpolitical. There was Restore Our Future, the NRA, the Chamber, and an array of other more shadowy groups spewing lies and hate. Press #3 to delete. And trying to catch up on local news that evening offered more evidence of Sheldon Adelson's $53 million in what turned out to be an expensive bad investment. It is my belief that the volume, tone, lies, and hate blasting into our dens and kitchens actually helped turn the election in favor of President Barack Obama.

On election day I was again shielded from the last round of ads and calls as I counted absentee ballots for my county. It was uplifting (and exhausting) to be part of that experience - fellow citizens of both parties striving to make sure the most essential act of democracy is protected with honesty and integrity. Sure there were long lines and other problems, but Officers of Election and Electoral Boards met the challenges and made sure our voices were heard and accurately counted.

Emerging from the seclusion of this important civic duty at nearly 11:00 PM the radio told me the early signs were good. By the time I got home Ohio and the election had been called for President Obama. Surfing channels I landed on Fox just as Rove was ranting about calling Ohio too early and the fake news network sent Megyn Kelly hiking to its "decision room" to restore a tiny bit of dignity after its living-in-a-bubble pundits and polsters were just plain wrong!


Since then I've been enjoying the splendid fall weather, cleaning up leaves, and catching up around the house. Yesterday I got the opportunity to learn about banding of Saw-whet owls so it was yet another later night. A chilly hike to the ridge top to collect owls followed by lessons on aging, sexing, and understanding their lives and migration. I got home about midnight but once again nature, and the humans who spend time and energy helping to learn more and protect it, inspires.

Mitt's Magical Mystery Tour

Perhaps the best reason to not vote for Mitt Romney is that he doesn't know himself and we can't know him either. More importantly, because of his magical mystery tour through the Republican primaries and his uncanny ability to shift his marketing lines within hours or even minutes, even his supporters are left clueless about what kind of president he would make.

It is a time honored tactic for GOP wannabees to run right during their bizarre run up to the convention. Mitt, who'd been a Massachusetts moderate who collaborated with Ted Kennedy to pass RomneyCare had to make a neck wrenching hard right to get in the same rutted lane as Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. Mitt trashed equality for women and trashed their reproductive and healthcare rights. Even taking the right ditch wasn't really enough, and it was probably Mitt's rich friends enabling him to run a barrage of ads pummeling his opponents that eventually locked the nomination for the Massachusetts chameleon.

As most observers figured would happen, following the nomination Romney solidified his base in the Republican Party, but most suspect that is more about hatred of President Obama than any real love for Mitt. It allowed the one time "moderate" who later sounded like a tea party reactionary to attempt to get all four wheels back on the road with a major assist from his billionaire friends (his top donor, casino mogul Sheldon Adelson donated $34 million,  three times more than Obama's top five combined).

But getting back to the middle of the road has made Mitt a liar on issue after issue. For example, he says he wants to reduce the deficit but his budget math doesn't compute. How can he maintain (or increase) defense spending while honoring his no tax pledge to Grover Norquist? On women's issues he has flipped more than a bass in the bottom of a boat. At times it sounds like he respects women's rights but then he goes into tea party appeasing mode by being blind to pay equity and threatening to eliminate Planned Parenthood, to restrict access to birth control, and to support a scary personhood amendment. This man has his boxers in a binder when it comes to protecting hard won rights of American women.

On foreign policy... do we even want to explore his foot-in-mouth missteps that have already damaged the U.S. overseas? On Libia and other issues Romney has tried to make political hay out of foreign policy and even some of his strongest supporters have reminded him that his extreme makeover political marketing should stop at the water's edge. It his hard to tell where Romney stands because all of his positions are so overtly partisan.

Here is the point -- as Election Day nears Romney's magical mystery tour still leaves most Americans, including many Republicans, wondering where he stands or if he stands for anything. It is one thing to change a position due to changing circumstances, but is is something else entirely to seemingly possess absolutely zero core convictions about anything. Mitt's magical mystery tour offers no compelling reason to vote for him. More importantly, if he happens to actually occupy the White House, it is no way to lead a great country where people hold deep and strongly held convictions.

UPDATE 10/23/12: Mitt continued on his mystery tour in last night's foreign policy debate as he tried to transform from a saber-rattling neocon and Cheney disciple to a more moderate and pragmatic approach where he agreed with President Obama more often than not. More than substance (Mitt didn't have all that much except to say "I agree with your policies only I'd do it better...), maybe you noticed his arrogant demeanor. Wonder how that will play with our friends and allies?

With apologies to the Beatles whose Magical Mystery Tour touted something Mitt will never be able to do: SATISFACTION GUARANTEED.

Romney/Ryan BS express tanks in Virginia

It is quite telling when the Republican ticket has to campaign heavily in the Shenandoah Valley and other GOP strongholds in the commonwealth. It must be true that Romney's internal polls show the same thing as most published polls - President Obama has a strong lead in Virginia with Democratic coattails helping Tim Kaine.

After Ryan's visit to the Rockingham County Fair Grounds several local Repugs called on the ticket to "get tough." What does "get tough" mean? Call the President a "socialist?" Play the race card? Make up some new lies, a strategy that seems to be boomeranging on Romney/Ryan as the top dog keeps stepping in it?

Or perhaps blame the 47% for dragging America down? Jon Stewart calls out Romney, Ryan, and Hannity (he's the one wearing hip boots covered in sh*t) in "CHAOS ON BULL#%T MOUNTAIN" in the following clip from Wednesday night:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

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Republicans against ballot access

It well known that the GOP is hell-bent on making it more difficult for people to vote. In nearly a dozen states Republicans have passed new voter ID and early voting laws specifically targeted at groups they fear may vote Democratic. Their cries of "voter fraud" are itself a fraud on the American people. Voter fraud is virtually nonexistent in the U.S.A.

Not content with keeping people from voting, Republicans in several states, including Virginia, are working overtime to keep candidates off the ballot. Yesterday, over objections and legal challenges by the Virginia GOP, the State Board of Elections ruled that former congressman and Constitution Party nominee Virgil Goode qualified for the presidential ballot in the commonwealth. The board also certified Libertarian Party and Green Party candidates for the ballot.

With some help from the Green Party in collecting signatures (Greens like his stand on increased spending for passenger rail), Goode submitted over 20,500 signatures to the State Board of Elections. The law requires 10,000 valid signatures of registered voters with a minimum of 400 in each congressional district.

Will Goode's presence on the ballot impact the outcome of the presidential contest in Virginia? Apparently the state GOP believes the former congressman's name recognition and extreme right wing views will be attractive to tea party and xenophobic types that are a major block of GOP support in the commonwealth. There is some evidence to support that point of view. Late spring and early summer polls that included Goode's name showed he might pick up 5-9% of the Virginia vote with nearly all of that coming out of Mitt Romney's political hide. Virgil won't lay that many eggs, but even if he only lays one or two, in battleground Virginia the yoke will be on Romney.

Mitt Romney is the nominee only because $$$ made him the last man standing in a field crowded with wackos. He's flipped and flopped on nearly every issue under the sun. His Mormon religion isn't trusted by the evangelicals in the GOP. The only reason Romney even has a chance is Republican's over-the-top fires of hatred of President Obama that are stoked daily by Karl Rove and the Koch brothers money and slick ads. With their nominee neither liked nor trusted it is no wonder Virginia Republicans are horrified that Virgil Goode is on the ballot - he is everything they want Mitt to be!

We can expect the GOP, with help from the wild man in the Attorney General's office, to keep the challenges going if for no other reason than to raise questions about Goode in voters' minds in hopes it will reduce his appeal. Goode will be their morning-after excuse (couldn't be a crummy nominee or a bankrupt party) when Virginia's 13 electoral votes end up in the Democratic column for the second straight time!

Lies, damn lies and Bob Goodlatte

His nose is growing!

Rep. Bob Goodlatte joins a growing Republican liars' chorus in his recent comments about President Barack Obama being anti-small business. Joined by his crony, Chris Saxman, Bobblehead Bob criticized the president for saying that small businesses owe their success to government.

Thing is, that is not what President Obama said.

Bobblehead Bob and the former delegate deceptively cherry picked President Obama's July 13 speech in Roanoke to make it sound like small businesses can't claim credit for their successes. I guess we might give Bob and Chris a pass - after all their primary source of "news" is probably Fox "News"and it was this propaganda mill that first perpetuated the big lie.

Here is what President Obama actually said with what Fox reported in italics:

[L]ook, if you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own. You didn't get there on your own. I'm always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart. There are a lot of smart people out there. It must be because I worked harder than everybody else. Let me tell you something -- there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.

If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you've got a business -- you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.

The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together. There are some things, just like fighting fires, we don't do on our own. I mean, imagine if everybody had their own fire service. That would be a hard way to organize fighting fires. 

So we say to ourselves, ever since the founding of this country, you know what, there are some things we do better together. That's how we funded the GI Bill. That's how we created the middle class. That's how we built the Golden Gate Bridge or the Hoover Dam. That's how we invented the Internet. That's how we sent a man to the moon. We rise or fall together as one nation and as one people, and that's the reason I'm running for President -- because I still believe in that idea. You're not on your own, we're in this together.

Fox, the Romney campaign, and Bobblehead Bob have so little good to say about GOP candidates, that they are left with a pitiful strategy of lies and intentional distortion. I guess ginning up some controversy is a good way to distract voters from Romney's foot-in-mouth "diplomacy" where he did everything from insulting America's best friend, to offending Palestinians, and eventually going way off  the GOP message by praising Israel's government controlled health care system.

On July 25, in a segment called "Do We Look Stupid? Don't Answer That," Jon Stewart skewered Fox, the Romney campaign, and all the wing nut talking heads for their willful manipulation of facts:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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If, like me, you are sick and tired of Bobblehead Bob either (1) avoiding issues (the last two times I contacted him I got a off-topic form letter response sending the strong message he doesn't give a whit about constituents' views), or (2) marching in lockstep with Republican lies, or (3) just being a crummy representative, you should know there is a better choice for Virginia's Sixth District. A choice who will listen and give you some straight talk for a change. A choice who really believes in "government of the people, by the people, for the people." That choice is Andy Schmookler.

Mitt and Beryl

I am on Tybee Island as I peck on my iPad. Toured the historic district of Savannah yesterday. Dinner at The Old Pink House was simply wonderful. Today we hung out on the island, walking the beach and checking out the neighborhoods. Beryl has been blowing through with lots of sound and fury but not much real impact. Kind of reminds me of Mitt Romney who recently told his paid advertisers at Faux News that " I’m just a kid that wants to make a difference for America...."

Like Beryl, Mitt and friends are mostly gusty blowhards with little to offer the Shenandoah Valley or the nation. A windbag that will change direction and intensity tomorrow. A kid when we all need a grown up. Not right for the United States of America.

Goode Deal

Virgil Goode, the eccentric former congressman from Rocky Mount, Virginia captured the Constitution Party's nomination at its Nashville convention yesterday. James Clymer, a Pennsylvanian who has been the party's chair for more than a decade will be Goode's running mate.

Goode promises to attract disaffected Republicans and Democrats, saying,"Romney's and Obama's positions are not all that different. There's not much distinction. My position would be significantly different from either of them." Mirroring the Constitution Party platform, Goode wants to close the borders and sharply curtail programs like food stamps, foreign aid, and defense. The platform, and presumably Goode, also support life begins at conception laws (like the controversial trans-vaginal ultrasound), repeal of the 17th Amendment, reversing the "surrender" of the canal to Panama, and reestablishing the religious basis of all education. Reading the platform is akin to jumping into a time machine and finding your way into the minds of men such as Edmund Ruffin.

The Constitution Party has qualified for the ballot in just 15 states, but Goode and party officials promise they will be on many more ballots by Election Day. In Virginia Goode will begin circulating petitions - he needs at least 400 valid signatures in each congressional district and 10,000 statewide.

Hopefully Goode will qualify for the Virginia ballot. He will prove attractive to the Fire-Eater types in the tea party who despise President Obama and who, with no other choice, might hold their noses and vote for Romney. With a close race in purple Virginia that could make all the difference for the Commonwealth's electors and the White House. Goode's presence on the ballot could stir the pot in the 5th District congressional race as well.

So Virgil, welcome to the presidential race. May your appeal be irresistible to the birds of a feather now flocking together in the Grand Old Party.

VeepStakes, part one

Barack Obama's selection of Senator Joe Biden as his VP running-mate has many Republicans, even here in the Old Dominion, concerned. Biden has a solid reputation as a straight shooting working class Democrat who will appeal to a broad swath of middle class Americans. Many former Hillary supporters will rally to Biden joining the ticket. His long experience in the Senate and reputation as "big thinker" on foreign and military policy will strengthen the ticket nationally and be a valuable asset in the Obama administration. Like a great president from Illinois, Obama is comfortable with and wants a team of rivals in his inner circle. One last point - Biden sought the presidency, but his age suggests he probably wouldn't run in eight years. Hillary Clinton and her supporters will recognize that her opportunity awaits. I predict that, with his working class roots, his Pennsylvania heritage, and his Catholic upbringing will make Biden a very attractive choice for many Americans. Biden is an excellent choice and one the CCC previously predicted.

As the speculation centered on Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket, Bob Goodlatte was practically begging John McCain to choose a conservative. Goodlatte is smart enough to know that his base in the 6th District is conservative. And those conservatives don't like or trust John McCain. Unless McCain picks someone who will energize this base, many will sit out the election - they won't donate, they won't help, and many won't vote. Locked in his first competitive race in years, Goodlatte is understandably worried. After all, he's holding his nose while running with Jim Gilmore. If the national ticket fails to inspire, Mr. Goodlatte will be hanging out there all alone.

Goodlatte seems especially concerned that McCain will try to pick someone like Joe Lieberman who has been at his side, correcting McCain's numerous misstatements on Iraq and terrorism. Lieberman is a former Democrat, is pro-choice, and seen by many right wingers as a "liberal" on social issues. Another potential choice, Tom Ridge of Pennsylvania, might be an attempt to off-set Biden's appeal in that state, but he is also pro-choice. Mitt Romney - will born-again Christians vote for a Mormon? Those I know find him a total turn-off. Many conservatives in the 6th might prefer a Mike Huckabee type of candidate. While that might help Bob, it would sink McCain in state after state. Seems there are no good choices for McCain - if he goes right to help right wingers like Bob, he alienates the moderates and independents he needs to have a prayer of winning. If he opts for a moderate, the wingnuts sit out '08.

I might be crowing about my prediction of Biden joining the Obama ticket, but I don't feel nearly so cocky about predicting McCain's choice. There aren't any good ones. McCain is unpredictable. I don't think like a Republican. Thank God. My early guess is that he doesn't pick anyone I've named above - he's gotta roll the dice. I do know McCain doesn't care one bit what will help right wingers like Goodlatte - his "maverick" reputation is mostly earned by stomping on the toes of his own party.