Open Thread Saturday

On the road again.  Here is your Belmont Prep.

Comments

[MayBee]

Here is my free, unsolicited advice for the Obama campaign.
Introduce us to your friends. The nice, normal ones.
We were introduced to the FOBs and we knew about Bush's Texas buddies. We know Hillary and McCain.

We don't know who Obama pals around with besides his hired hand Mr. Love (a story that was an attempt, I think, to start a new friend narrative but failed).
So far, the friends we've been told about are Rezko, Wright, Pfleger, Ayers. Give us the nice couple that Michelle met at the PTA meetings that you have dinner with every couple of months. Give us the guy who you grab a beer with after your B-ball games.

You slapped that flag pin on your lapel when it started to look like you hate America. Now stand a normal friend on the stage with you, because it's starting to look like you hang around with wackos.

The end.

[kim]

They bet on the carbon.
They bet on the fear.
If they'd bet on Old Soleil,
They'd be free men, today.
================

[GMax]

You want Obama to haul Dick Durbin, Tom Harkins and Maxine Waters up on stage with him? I think he is better off with Ayers and a narrative that he is not that close to him. It aint great but admitted you a fully steeped end of the line Lefty seals your fate just as it did for McGovern.

[kim]

This well-matched pair of sociopaths constitute a folie a deux. They'll have no intimates.
================

[MayBee]

I admit, GMax, that I was making the crazy assumption that Obama might have nice, normal, neighborhood friends.

[Porchlight]

The film of Secretariat always gives me chills. Jack Nicklaus once described watching the race, and as Secretariat opened a 10, then 20, then 30 length lead, he found himself weeping and he didn't know why. He realized later that it had been the joy of witnessing an an athlete reach perfection.

[Buford Gooch]

I fear that Obama's friends might closely resemble the Addams Family.

[Danube of Thought]

Check what today's Rasmussen discloses about Obama's favorables and unfavorables, and the trends of those two items. Not at all good news for the Dems.

[Porchlight]

Even Hillary The Despised is viewed more favorably than Obama, per Rasmussen. McCain beats them both handily.

[PeterUK]

Obama and ordinary friend

[PeterUK]

Obama and a special ordinary friend

[Al Gore]

Looks like only half of the Florida democrat primary voters will be disenfranchised. Michigan TBD.

[Sara]

Going along with yesterday's discussion regarding the paucity of information about Obama's past record, here is an interesting article about his election/selection as President of the Harvard Law Review.

Obama's Mythical Intelligence

[MarkO]

Users don't have friends. Friends aren't useful. They require time and effort. Who could be friends with these two? What would you do? Go bowling?

[glasater]

Sara-

Where the Magna Cum Laud he graduated with come from?

[Danube of Thought]

Sars--I read the piece to which you linked rather quickly, and will have to read it again later. But a couple of questions (which may well be answered in the article) came to mind. First, I believe there is no dispute that he graduated magna cum laude, and that honor is determined solely by grades. Clarice has raised the question whether, by Obama's time, it might have been possible to get the degree while taking only an array of "easy" courses in the final two years, but I have some doubts about that. In any event, first-year courses to this day consist of the same essential core; everyone takes them; they are graded in the "blind"; and they count for one-third of the ultimate GPA.

Second, so far as I know no federal judge ever offers a clerkship to a graduate who has not applied for it. If Obama did not apply for a clerkship (for whatever reason), the fact that no judge offered him one means absolutely nothing.

[Sara]

I just link 'em, not vouch for 'em. Two of the dumbest people I've known were both honors grads of Harvard, two of he smartest people I've known never even graduated from high school, one of those never going beyond the 8th grade.

[Father Flay]

Obama "resigns" his church (per CNN). Good job Hussein, it only took you 20 years to figure out Wright preached hatred. Where will you take your kids next? A mosque? What a moron.

[JB]

"Obama "resigns" his church (per CNN). "

And now Uncle Jerry will administer the coup de grace with his fall book documenting what Barack knew and when he knew it.

[JB]

Yeah, that's going to put a huge hole in his "judgement" argument, ff.

[JB]

Yeah, that's going to put a huge hole in his "judgement" argument, ff.

[Sara]

Obama resigns from Trinity United Church

[centralcal]

Obama and Michelle have just confirmed by their resignation from their church of twenty years that it is a cesspool of racism, anti-American hatred, etc., and that they were participants in it and had been advocates of it.

[Danube of Thought]

And lest we forget, Obama apparently directed roughly $200,000 to this reptile Pleger's church, $100K of it in earmarked federal tax dollars.

Heal our souls for us, Barry and Michelle. We need you.

[PaulL]

It took a typical white person, Rev. Michael Pfleger, to give Obama the out to quit the church. This way Obama's quitting is not viewed as turning his back on his brothers.

[Danube of Thought]

Being an honors graduate of Harvard College (which would include all those who graduate cum laude) is one thing. Graduating magna cum laude from the law school is a very different thing.

[kim]

Where is Ned Wakeman in the moment of Obama's need?
=================================

[Ann]

And to add to the fun, The Gong Show is on MSNBC. Where they have determined what the definition of shall is, refuse to count full votes only half votes, declared that Democrats have rules unlike the Republicans all to the chanting of DENVER, DENVER, DENVER!!! :)

DENVER of course, is where the SUPER DUPER DELEGATES will really pick the candidate without counting anyone's vote.

What an embarrassment.

[PeterUK]

Could Obama's split from his church have anything to do with Hillary being handed the wooden sword by party bigwigs? Todays Telegraph,link down.

[PeterUK]

Front page of the Telegraph in case it comes back up.

[kim]

Bon Voyage Steve Hilton and Prince William. A son of a close friend is an AC&W specialist for the Hey Force.
===========================

[centralcal]

This is just too much fun! Obama running from TUCC! Ickes pledging on behalf of Shrillary to slog on to the Credential's Committee and the convention!

Looks like Barry O knows how to retreat and Shrillary knows how to fight!

I'm lovin' it.

[Ann]

I am awaiting Obama 's remarks and can't wait to see who he blames for leaving Trinity. Everyone's under the bus, now!

Oh, and Chuck Todd reported on MSNBC that the Clintons are no longer in charge of the party. I'm lovin' it, too. :)

[RichatUF]

So UTCC is getting tossed under the bus-Judgement To Lead!

[Texas Gal]

Porchlight: I so much agree with Nicklaus. Of course, I almost always cry at the conclusion of a race...hopefully they will be tears of triumph in November. Go Big Brown.

[centralcal]

Ann, I don't think anyone is in charge of the party at this point. Ain't that grand!

[ben]

Katie, bar the doors

PRESIDENT - FLORIDA (WRL)
John McCain (R) 58%
Barack Obama (D) 35%

[Sara]

So there you have it, strictly a political decision. Obama says he can't be a member at Trinity "as long as I'm running for president." And Michelle agrees.

[RichatUF]

Nobody has asked him yet about the earmarks.

Doesn't want the church subject to this scrunity...

Anyone watching his statement on Fox...no teleprompter...this doesn't look like its going to help, he might need to re-toss them Monday.

[centralcal]

Did Obama just say "my conventional Christian faith?"

By whose measure was it conventional or Christian?

[Jane]

Wow! So now we know he is disloyal. I can't wait to see the backlash.

[Rick Ballard]

He shoulda stuck it out at his mosque church. Now folks are going to wonder just how stupid you have to be to require twenty years to figure out that you're hanging around a bunch of racists.

I think he should have consulted with the senior Senator of his party about this. Grand Kleagle Byrd knows a thing or two about getting away from a long term relationship with a bunch of dumb racist haters.

Sheets, hood, dashiki - no big difference.

[ben]

Obama believed in that church before he threw it under the bus.

[JJ]

I still remember seeing Secretariat win that race. I was young and just happened to turn on the TV, watched the race by myself, and my jaw dropped and dropped and by the end of the race I was looking around for someone's sleeve to pull and say, "Hey, hey, did you see that!!?"

A number of years later, I made it a point to go see the horse on his farm outside Lexington to remember the moment.

[Danube of Thought]

Funny how it hardly took any time at all for Obama to decide to quit in Iraq, but it took him years to decide to quit this hate-filled cesspool of a "church." Talk about your decisive leadership.

Ham-handed empty suit with a nice baritone delivery.

[centralcal]

Who are these "reporter" hidden from view that are asking these assinine questions? Not one hard questions is being posed to this man about his hateful church, about his twenty year involvement or his current apologia for it and with it? Good grief our press in action.

[PeterUK]

Obama has had another "He's Spartacus" moment.

[ben]

It's too bad nobody in the MSM will ask Obama exactly what changed recently at TC that made him quit. What specifically changed at TC since he made his (in)famous race speech?

[ben]

Grandma beware....

Remember, "I could no more distance myself from Pastor Wright than I could from my white grandmother"?

[RichatUF]

What specifically changed at TC since he made his (in)famous race speech?

The greatest speech ever had a shelf life of a little more than 70 days. I bet Grandma is gettin' a bit nervous.

[ben]

Someone has to ask Obama the version of the "have you stopped beating your wife" question.

"When did you realize your church was a racist hotbed of anti-American doctrine"?

[MayBee]

Obama has had another "He's Spartacus" moment.

Ha!

[JB]

FWIW, from Larry Johnson:

BREAKING NEWS: Michelle’s Whitey Problem

New and dramatic developments. This is a heads up. I’ll post the news Monday morning by 0900 hours. Now I know why people who have seen the videotape say it is stunning. Barack’s headaches are only starting.

[JB]

FWIW, from Larry Johnson:

BREAKING NEWS: Michelle’s Whitey Problem

New and dramatic developments. This is a heads up. I’ll post the news Monday morning by 0900 hours. Now I know why people who have seen the videotape say it is stunning. Barack’s headaches are only starting.

[kim]

Let's see 0900 hours, would that be about 36 weekend hours?
====================================

[glasater]

Years ago I was a member of Toastmasters--mainly to learn how to tell a joke.
They would count every "uh" in a speech. New/beginners were given a small break but as one progressed through the program--one was charged twenty five cents for every "uh" spoken giving a speech. Kept the club coffers in good shape.
Many "uh's" indicate poor or unorganized thinking. Even a sort of false shyness and self absorption.

The way BHO speaks with so many "uh's" brings that former training to my mind.

[MayBee]

So he's posting it in 24 business hours?

[PeterUK]

Uh? Uh uh!

[Rick Ballard]

I think that's Uh O!

[Porchlight]

I'm reluctant to believe anything Larry says, but I did wonder at hearing the news today if there may be some kind of incriminating video pending. Otherwise why make the announcement on a Saturday? It doesn't seem like something he'd want to bury in a weekend news cycle. Why do it at all if you don't think getting the news out will help you?

[Porchlight]

Texas Gal and JJ, I'm glad I'm not the only one that feels that way about Secretariat. I grew up in Louisville in the '70s and his Triple Crown has mythical status in my kid memory. Would have loved to have visited him on the farm.

[Lesley]

Blah.

I drive 9 1/2 hours and what's the first thing to greet my eye upon arrival in Minnesota?

A fresh Franken (as in Al) sticker on the bumper of a small station wagon in front of me. Had a moment where I thought of ramming that bumper with the F-250.....

[RichatUF]

The comment thread over there is a treat-one winner said 'Why does the GOP hold onto information that is important to the nation'-or words to that effect.

Scary Larry-a Hillary water carrier is pushing the tape-and its a GOP "dirty trick". We'll see..,uh, like you know, maybe.

[RichatUF]

One thing I just though about if the tape does is exist is that it is a thunderous call for "slavery reparations" with BHO in clapping and cheering in the pews. Might explain the bit of greasing the Pfleger tape provided.

[Sue]

Porch,

After your comment earlier today, I wanted to rewatch the 1973 Triple Crown. I can understand why Jak cried. I was cheering Secretariat on, even though I watched it at the time and knew he won. The video is available at you tube. Just type in Secretariat in the search engine there.

[Rick Ballard]

Rich,

Ya think maybe Pfleger was a set up to give The Great Disowner a reason to dump his fellow parishioners? Kinda makes me wonder what the real polling says about the BHOTUCCs flareup.

[ben]

Re Michelle tape maybe we should save that for the general election....

[Sue]

Rick,

I believe both Wright's performance and Phleger's performance are staged for just hat purpose. When the controversy didn't completely die with Obama distancing himself from Wright, voila, up pops Phleger at just the right time.

[Sara]

Oh my goodness, listen to this!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KACQuZVAE3s

[Porchlight]

Sue,

Thanks. It is so amazing. If that sight doesn't make a person jump to his feet and cheer, nothing will.

When Secretariat died, it was found that his heart weighed 21 lbs, more than twice as much as an average thoroughbred's. The veterinarian, who had done many such autopsies, said it was the largest he had ever seen.

[Danube of Thought]

I don't think any of it is staged. I think it is exactly what we are now, more and more, coming to understand to be just what it is: an unprincipled and ambitious guy who will latch on to whatever serves him best at the moment, and then slither away, slick as boiled okra, when a larger chance comes along.

I also think that all the political commentary at the moment about what it all means is unadulterated bullshit. About half the electorate is going to take their first hard look at this clown in the fall, and he's gonna get beat like a rented mule.

Toast.

[Sara]

And this woman is just as angry and bruised too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KACQuZVAE3s

[Sara]

I guess there are silver linings to every situation:

Alcee Hastings To Boycott Convention Due to FL Delegate Travesty

[ben]

At Redstate you can see a Hillary protester declare her vote for McCain...and pretty eloquently too...

"When you tell me that much bad news about someone, I start to panic. Suddenly it's no longer about being a Democrat. It's about being an American. It's about preserving the United States of America."

[Sue]

I don't think any of it is staged.

I don't think they did anything different than they have done for years, but I think they laid low until Obama needed them to trot out so he could say adios. The polls weren't in his favor with that church.

[Sara]

Ben watch the two video links I just posted above. To say Hillary supporters are p!ssed would be understatement.

[Porchlight]

Just saw that first clip, Sue - that was awesome. When she says McCain will be the next President, it really sounds like she knows something we don't.

[JB]

He can stage anything he wants at this point, explaining away a twenty year history is going to be mighty tough. Even if the Michelle video is nonexistent we still haven't gotten to his audio book yet.

[Porchlight]

Oops, sorry, I meant Sara, not Sue, in the comment above.

[Rick Ballard]

Sue,

The timing of Pfleger's performance was no accident. It goes back to what JMH menioned about forgetting how far away the general is - BHO is playing Clinton '92 tactics and counting on the DeMSM to provide smoke cover. It won't work this time, any more than Dan Rather holding up a word doc worked in '04.

[RichatUF]

Rick-

Ya think maybe Pfleger was a set up to give The Great Disowner a reason to dump his fellow parishioners?

I'm not sure-the Pfleger tape is puzzling to me. The Wright preformance at the NPC seemed more for the wavering superdelegates-BHO collected quite a few in the air pocket between that event and the IN and NC primaries. If BHO needed to disown TUCC why didn't he do it sooner-he tossed Wright under the bus twice (and he's been really quiet so far). And for all the talk no one has to date released any tapes of the Obama's cheering and clapping during a Trinity Special Khutbah.

20% of SD's population is Catholic-FWIW?

[Sara]

I goofed and gave you the same link twice. Here is the 2nd one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH92E5vWrjk

[Sara]

Guys and Gals, he made his reason very clear in his statement:

Obama says he can't be a member at Trinity "as long as I'm running for president."

That's it, end of story.

[Sue]

Sara,

He said that? He gave up his church for political reasons only?

[Rick Ballard]

"If BHO needed to disown TUCC why didn't he do it sooner-he tossed Wright under the bus twice"

The bleeding never slowed, let alone stopped. The shift in favorable/unfavorable has all occured in the Very Unfavorable column and over half the shift has occurred over the past 30 days. They just switched from pressure bandage to tourniquet. It really doesn't work that well on head wounds though.

The initial "framing" has splintered and the new "frame" could actually damage Dems down ticket.

[Patrick Tyson]

I came over to see what the commentary was like on how Obama's people took Clinton out but good today.

I decided to post one more comment (Hi Clarice, Jane, Rick...) because there has been no greater event in sports in my lifetime (with the possible exception of a pitching performance in game seven of the 1965 World Series) than Secretariat's still World Record (I think) mile-and-a-half at Belmont in 1973.

Years later, I watched Simply Majestic (perfect name) break Secretariat's World Record for a mile-and-an-eighth (established later in 1973 IIRC) with a winning ticket in my hand. The jockey quote that appeared in the papers the next morning said it all: I just held on.

Best.

[Sara]

Yep, saw it come right out of his mouth myself. Actually he prefaced by saying that after "Michelle and I" talked, they agreed that he couldn't belong to Trinity as long as he is running for president.

[RichatUF]

Sue-

He did. He also said that Trinity would not be able to withstand the scrunity of the a Presidential campaign and that it would be a distraction. I've been looking for a transcript but am coming up empty-

[Sara]

He also still has praise for the Wright replacement and Wright.

[Rick Ballard]

via Baldilocks -

"I did not have spiritual relations with that church......Trinity United."

[Sue]

That is simply amazing.

[Ann]

Goodness, I am already to watch Obama throw his church under the bus and my electricity went out. Beautiful day and boom.

I have been playing cards outside in candlelight while the Obama's were going boom. I can't believe he said "as long as I'm running for President." What an empty suit.

If anyone finds video, let me know.

[JB]

"He did. He also said that Trinity would not be able to withstand the scrunity of the a Presidential campaign..."

Umm, so basically confirmed what Rev. Wright said about him before he threw him under the bus (sorta..."our relationship has 'changed'") -- that he's just doing what politicians do.

Why was he so angry at Uncle Jerry?

[Sara]

Here is one of several video on the press conference:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeAxPDdmCKE

[JB]

It is possible I was wrong to assume Obama has only a 120 I.Q.

But he certainly believes a sizable chunk of the electorate has a 70 I.Q. to peddle this crap.

[Sue]

I notice he has his flag pin on in the video.

[Sara]

The video doesn't include the Q&A. Darn. It was most revealing.

[Ann]

Sara, thanks for all the video links. Uh? Uh uh! I am speechless.

Those New York women should be on with Tim Russert tomorrow, not old Scotty. Poor thing will not sell a book or have a friend, after this weekend. LOL

[Sara]

I don't have a link handly, but even Terry McAuliff has blasted McClellan.

[Sara]

oy - handy