Law Students

McCain's Colorado Problem

Posted on September 10, 2008
To win the election, McCain can't lost all three of the following states unless he does something dramatic (i.e., pulls Minnesota or Wisconsin out of blue territory):Colorado, Michigan, and New Mexico.Michigan went blue in both 2000 and 2004, and would be tough to flip...

Has the Large Hadron Collider Destroyed the Earth?

Posted on September 10, 2008
No.For now.Hat tip: ES.

Riff-Raff Democrats

Posted on September 10, 2008
A crowd of Obama supporters disrupted and cut short a McCain rally by loudly chanting "O-bam-a," ala the caricature of Obama supporters in the McCain ads.Republican presidential candidate John McCain cut short his first public appearance without running-mate Sarah Palin after chanting supporters of Democratic rival Barack Obama interrupted his speech...

"Don't Blame Me, I Voted for Cressbeckler"

Posted on September 08, 2008
The dark horse third-party candidate Joad Cressbeckler may prove to be a spoiler this year, akin to Ralph Nader in the 2000 election. Cressbeckler, a Beltway outsider from the South Dakota Badlands, is expected to cut into the hard right's support for McCain...

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Sitting on Your Netflix

Posted on September 06, 2008
The most common video people sat on in this Slate poll? Hotel Rwanda.Slate's advice? Return the disc unwatched, rather than sitting on it for month while cobwebs grow on the DVD slip.Mailing back a DVD unwatched doesn't mean you'll never get another shot at it...

The 5th Amendment Theory of Families

Posted on September 06, 2008
Under the Miranda rule, testimony that stems from illegal interrogations is generally inadmissible at trial.That is, the cops have to read you your rights, and if they don't, generally can't use what you tell them to convict you.Unless, that is, you perjure yourself...

This is What Off-Limits Looks Like

Posted on September 06, 2008
One of Obama's finance committee members, Howard Gutman, went off on Sarah Palin on the Laura Ingraham radio show: "So you're saying she's not putting family first," Ingraham said."Absolutely not," Gutman said. "If you take a daughter who's got this emotional strife and subject her to the most intense scrutiny of the world at this time in her life, I think you've put your career above your family...

Identity Politics

Posted on September 06, 2008
To the people who disagreed with me about identity politics in this post, I'm curious whether you can distinguish those arguments in the case of Sarah Palin. If having a type of person -- an African American, a woman -- take a position of power is of primary importance, why are her specific views, say on abortion, relevant?Unless identity politics is limited to those who agree with you...

Famous Quotes

Posted on September 04, 2008
"The GOP has lost the community organizer vote for a generation." -- Dean Harvey

"The Conservatives Have Found Their Obama"

Posted on September 04, 2008
The reviews on Palin's speech are generally very positive.NBC political director Chuck Todd, weighing in shortly after Sarah Palin?s fiery speech before the Republican faithful, declared: ?Conservatives have found their Obama.?Right-wing radio host Laura Ingraham agreed, telling Fox?s Greta Van Susteren that it was the ?night conservatives have been waiting for...

Joke Fact Check

Posted on September 04, 2008
Did Sarah Palin get more votes for mayor of Wasilla than Joe Biden got for President this year?First Read says no.For the record, Joe Biden got 79,754 total votes in the Democratic primaries.As of the 2000 census, the population of Wasilla was 5,469. It has been reported at currently more than 9,000...

Every Political Speech Goes Better With Van Halen

Posted on September 04, 2008
When I'm a hot shot political strategist, I'm going to recommend that this song be in the background of every speech my clients give.I'm watching Cindy McCain right now (get it, right now? Har har.) Anyway, she's much more exciting with Van Halen in the background.

Convention Bounce

Posted on September 03, 2008
Obama up by 8, 50-42, nationally.I think this is about as good as the Obama people could hope for. A VP announcement and the start of the Republican convention, and they get a bounce of about 6 points. Hard to ask for much more.The problem for the GOP is that their convention isn't feeling similarly, what's the word? Promotional...

Palin Was Fully Vetted

Posted on September 03, 2008
McCain's people claim they all knew all the Palin stuff was coming.Gov. Palin, the strategist said, was subjected to a ?complete vet.? ?That included her filling out a 70-question questionnaire that was highly intrusive and personal. She was then interviewed for more than three hours by A...

Life Ends At Convention

Posted on September 03, 2008

Lieberman is *so* losing his Committee Assignments

Posted on September 03, 2008
You have to admire a guy who puts his career on the line for what he believes. Especially when, electorally, it would be a lot easier to support Obama.That said, I think it'll be a little difficult for Lieberman supporters to complain when the Democrats strip him of his committee assignments...

"Bimbo Alert"

Posted on September 02, 2008
Sarah Palin sets it off, says talk show host Ed Schultz.You stay classy too, Ed Schultz.

More Democrats Take Joy From Gustav

Posted on September 02, 2008
I mentioned a few days ago that Michael Moore was happy about Hurricane Gustav's timing with the Republican National Convention.Now it looks like former DNC Chairman Jim Fowler, and South Carolina Representative John Spratt, were also taking delight in Hurricane Gustav's appearance and timing...

Rickblogging

Posted on August 30, 2008
Hat Tip: ES

Stay Classy, Michael Moore

Posted on August 30, 2008
You can hate the Republican party and its members. But do your best not to show just how much you hate them, including hoping natural disasters occur to stop the convention next week.?I was just thinking, this Gustav is proof that there is a God in heaven,? Moore said, laughing...

Palin and Sexism

Posted on August 30, 2008
A really terrible post, quoting Dave Weigel, by Andrew Sullivan:It's going to be awfully, awfully tiresome to hear conservatives whine about Palin attacks being sexist. One, it's in bad faith: I challenge them to take a polygraph and say they never visited SlapHillary...

Olbermann as James Lipton

Posted on August 29, 2008
So pathetic. Vote for him or do not. But take pride that this nation can produce men and speakers such as that. For 42 minutes not a sour note and spellbinding throughout in way usually reserved for the creations of fiction. An extraordinary political statement...

Obama Rebukes Kerry, Richardson, et al

Posted on August 29, 2008
Obama went out of his way to be gracious to John McCain tonight, in order to rebuke members of his own party.These are the policies I will pursue. And in the weeks ahead, I look forward to debating them with John McCain.But what I will not do is suggest that the Senator takes his positions for political purposes...

The Speech

Posted on August 29, 2008
Big expectations, pretty good follow through.The most effective line, I thought, was about his mother. Paraphrasing, he saw her in bed, arguing with insurance companies over bills, while lying in bed dying of cancer. Such a powerful image.

Who Can Stop the Bounce?

Posted on August 29, 2008
With strong speeches by Hillary, Bill, and Obama himself, be sure to expect a convention bounce for Obama. Probably 8-10 points over the weekend.Who can stop it? Only one man. Wilfred Brimley, the VP.

Doom For McCain

Posted on August 29, 2008
NRO, breaking the bad news:Inexperience. Palin has been governor for about two minutes. Thanks to McCain?s decision, Palin could be commander-in-chief next year. That may strike people as a reckless choice; it strikes me that way. And McCain's age raised the stakes on this issue...

Obama Campaign Starts Early With Personal Attacks

Posted on August 29, 2008
Bill Burton's first reaction:Barack Obama's campaign is blasting John McCain for putting "the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency."The scathing description of Sarah Palin, from Obama spokesman Bill Burton, comes as Democrats scramble to gather a response to a selection that nobody in the political world expected...

Palin Fans Celebrate

Posted on August 29, 2008
Great pick by McCain.She won the NRO poll, is a breath of fresh air, and can steal away Hillary voters.The only question, whatsoever, is experience. Her best two arguments:(1) She has executive experience, while Obama does not.(2) She has been a full time Governor while in office; Obama has been a full-time campaigner.

Using their words against Obama

Posted on August 28, 2008
Strong ad. No Britney. No Paris.

Obama Misleads his Own Supporters

Posted on August 28, 2008
A Chicago radio program last night had on Stanley Kurtz, who has made it a mission to get the records for the Chicago Annenberg Fund, on whose board Barack Obama and William Ayers (Weather Underground) sat.The Obama campaign emailed its supporters to disrupt the program, and suggested that Kurtz was a "slimy character assassin...

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