Obama And Petraeus

The Times tells us about the evolving and improving relationship between Gen. Petraeus and his Commander-in-Chief.

I like the reason the General is so well respected:

Like no other figure today, General Petraeus has stepped into Gen. Colin L. Powell’s shoes as the face of the military to ordinary Americans, particularly as the White House extols the end of the combat mission in Iraq, which was largely made possible by the troop surge that General Petraeus orchestrated.

General Petraeus orchestrated the surge, but who ordered it?  A mystery!  But Bush did get mentioned earlier, when we were told that Petraeus was one of his favorites.

The Times almost gets snide here:

General Petraeus has a history of early optimistic assessments that proved largely correct; one dates back to the Iraq surge, over which he and Mr. Obama first butted heads. Military officials say that during the early days of the surge, General Petraeus cited what his staff termed “leading indicators” of progress, even when much of the private and public discussion of the war effort was still negative. (During one Senate hearing with General Petraeus, then-Senator Obama accused the Bush administration of setting “the bar so low that modest improvement in what was a completely chaotic situation” was considered success.)

I stand by my earlier snarkery on the topic of Petraeus and Obama - one of these men has made history and changed a nation with his transformative leadership; the other got a lot of the asbestos out of Altgeld Gardens.

Comments

[Jim Miller]

This one's for Clarice, though I regret to say that the detail in the cartoon is not good enough to show your brand name on the pikes.

But there are pikes in the picture, and many other weapons.

(Sorry I can't post the actual cartoon, but I am not going to violate the copyright.)

[matt]

There is a kamikaze mentality abroad today that is truly amazing. Either that or an "eat, drink, and be merry" mentality. It reminds me of the orgies that swept Europe during the plagues. As thousands died, others plundered and debauched until it was their turn to face the reaper.

Murkowski, Castle, and the country club wing of the Republican party no longer get it, nor do the Dems. The spirits of Adams (both of them), Henry, de Toqueville and von Hayek are loose and this is that which they are afraid of.

Funny that the fear of first principles does this. We are faced with not one, but many clear and present dangers to our future, and yet it is business as usual.

If no one is paying attention, the cuts being discussed at DoD are massive, and if the economy tanks again, we will no longer be able to afford our military as it is presently constituted. We will have to cut deeply and refocus strictly on defense of our borders rather than projections of strength or nation building.

Already, the UK has announced cuts that are going to remove that country from the global stage almost entirely. Europe has already voluntarily do so in favor of the welfare state, which will be crashing down shortly.

The times they are a changin, and not for the greater good.

[Rob Crawford]

The spirits of Adams (both of them)

Gomez and Morticia?

[Clarice]

Thanks ,Jim. I predict business will be booming.

[centralcal]

Just got off work and see there was an earthquake in Afghanistan. Hope Soylent is alright.

[Danube of Thought]

A virulent strain of Islamophobic hatred has gripped the Swedes. The Swedes?

[centralcal]

Because I so despise so much of the MFM, and certain of its personalities more than others, I got a great laugh over this Mediaite headline:

"Rick Sanchez Had Massive Promotion For His Book, And Sold… Hundreds"

He sold 802 copies in the first week.

Hahahahahahahaha!

[DebinNC]

JJ Jr. challenges Fitz to "bring it on" and offers speaking in tongues defense.

[Jack is Back!]

Clarice,

Go to this link for Captain Eric down in Sarasota (Siesta Key). You'll be eating fish for a month after he takes you out:)

Anyone else who wants a great fishing experience in shore or off shore down in the Sarasota area can then go the link above.

[Pagar]

"The Swedes?"

Sweden leads in Rapes.

Sweden Democrats meetings cancelled Police can not guarantee safety.

[Melinda Romanoff]

DoT-

Do a Bing News search on Malmo, Sweden.

Then keep an eye out for "youths".

[Melinda Romanoff]

matt-

Excellent point, one nit: Fredrick A. Hayek was a student of Ludwig von Mises.

Well put.

[JM Hanes]

Jorge Gomez:

I liked Fagan's suggestion that we take a good long look at the people standing behind Murkowski when she announces her write-in campaign. It will tell us a lot. If she actually does it, as Politico is also reporting, my first stop is going to be Joe Miller's Donation page.

My international clock page says it's 2:20 in Anchorage, which one can only hope is enough time for better angels to prevail.

[Old Lurker]

If you get those three in a cage, please, please throw away the key. Do not leave a laptop within reach.

[Frau Steingehirn]

"Remnick writes that as a political neophyte in Chicago, Obama had no problem becoming "multilingual" -- learning to speak in different ways to different groups. He "subtly shifted accent and cadences depending on the audience," Remnick writes: "a more straight-up delivery for a luncheon of businesspeople in the Loop; a folksier approach at a downstate VFW; echoes of the pastors of the black church when he is in one."
This is a NLP skill that is natural to successful Kirby salesmen and is recommended by Oprah "He's the One" Winfrey. I took part in a week-long training session while working for the Los Angeles County School Superintendent. (A good place to save on education dollars, BTW)

[JM Hanes]

DebinNC:

You post great links! I liked Ahlert's observation on:

"[r]unning a tiresome RINO like John McCain for president and giving the electorate the worst "lessor of two evils" choice in modern American history."

[Jorge Gomez]

"If she actually does it, as Politico is also reporting, my first stop is going to be Joe Miller's Donation page."

Mine too. At least this will give Joe a boost in contributions. I gave already via the Senate Conservatives Fund (LUN), but my donation was spread among all the candidates. Next contribution is to Joe directly. This election season is hitting my wallet a little harder than usual.

[boris]

their all be okay fine more or fewer

[JM Hanes]

Jorge Gomez:

I also think the speed with which donations roll in and add up has a salutary effect of its own.

[Extraneus]

Good point on the fund-raising boost this gives Miller, Jorge. I'll donate, too.

[JM Hanes]

We could use a lot more fewer of the lessers of two evils, no?

[Rob Crawford]

Count me in on the Miller money train.

[Rick Ballard]

Dems Advancing In The Opposite Direction

Read the links, the opacity of the bayonet thrusts is hilarious. And don't worry - it's all just part of the ACME Ever Shrinking Perimeter Political Strategery Plan and the Dems are on target and ahead of schedule.

[Jorge Gomez]

PPP poll, a few weeks old, Alaska Senate 3-way:

"Public Policy Polling (D)
8/27-28/10; 1,306 likely voters, 2.7% margin of error
Mode: Automated phone
(PPP release)

Alaska

2010 Senate
47% Miller (R), 39% McAdams (D)
60% Murkowski (R), 28% McAdams (D)
38% Miller (R), 34% Murkowski (L), 22% McAdams (D)" LUN

I have to think people in Alaska will think even less of Murkowski with the write in stunt and a majority of the ones who like it are Democrats. Plus I would think write in vs. checking box (if she went Libertarian route) would bring her score down some on its own.

[Jim Miller]

Speaking of political leaders who were multi-lingual, one of the best must have been Fiorello La Guardia. He is credited with being able to speak seven languages, which must have been a great advantage in New York politics.

Years ago, I read that people who knew those languages well could tell which one he was speaking, even without hearing the sound, because he had the gestures right, too.

[matt]

I prefer von Hayek's defense of the liberal tradition a bit more, Mel. His is, I believe a more humanist and well rounded philosophy.

I think Hayek will go down through the generations not only for his contributions in economics, but in philosophy as well. He complemented and expanded upon von Mises in a way that resonated broadly.

[Extraneus]

I saw his real website right after the posts above, but now it's a contribution page.

http://joemiller.us

[Extraneus]

We're evidently not the first to think of ol' Joe up there.

[JM Hanes]

It's a really destructive vanity run. Republicans have mostly said the right things, when they've said anything at all. The fact that Murkowski emerged from spending hours in the Republican cloakroom, however, before heading home for her purported announcement, is not encouraging.

I've made the electability argument here, and inveighed against throwing establishment babies out with the bath water, but if folks are going to call on conservatives to hold their noses and vote for liberal Republicans, they had better be prepared to hold their own noses and line up behind the tea party's winners.

[anduril]

M K Bhadrakamur follows up his excellent article last week re the footsie between Israel and Russia with this one: An Afghan bone for Obama to chew on.

When Robert Blackwill, who was former United States secretary of state Condoleezza Rice's deputy as national security adviser and George W Bush's presidential envoy to Iraq, took the podium at the International Institute of Strategic Studies think-tank in London on Monday to present his "Plan B" on Afghanistan, readers of the Wall Street Journal would have wondered what was afoot.

Blackwill is wired deep into the bowels of the US establishment, especially the Pentagon headed by Robert Gates. And the IISS prides itself as having been "hugely influential in setting the intellectual structures for managing the Cold War". Thus, the setting on Monday was perfect.

Blackwill has remarkable credentials to undertake exploratory voyages into the trajectory of US foreign policy. In a memorable opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal in March 2005 titled "A New Deal for New Delhi", he accurately predicted the blossoming of the US-India strategic partnership. He wrote:

The US should integrate India into the evolving global non-proliferation regime as a friendly nuclear weapons state ... Why should the US want to check India's missile capability in ways that could lead to China's permanent nuclear dominance over democratic India? ... We should sell advanced weaponry to India ... Given the strategic challenges ahead, the US should want the Indian armed forces to be equipped with the best weapons systems ... To make this happen, the US has to become a reliable long-term supplier, including through co-production and licensed manufacture arrangements.

Blackwill's construct almost verbatim did become US policy. Again, in December 2007 he penned a most thoughtful article titled "Forgive Russia, Confront Iran". He wrote:

To engage Russia, we need to substantially change our current policy approach to Moscow ... This is not to underrate the difficulties of interacting with Moscow on its external policies and its often-raw pursuit of power politics and spheres of influence ... But there are strategic priorities, substantive trade-offs and creative compromises that Western governments should consider. The West needs to adopt tactical flexibility and moderate compromise with Moscow. Again, he hit the bull's eye in anticipating the US's reset with Russia. So, an interesting question arises: Is he sprinting indefatigably toward a hat-trick?

There can be no two opinions that the crisis situation in Afghanistan demands out-of-the-box thinking. Blackwill's radically original mind has come up with an intellectual construct when hardly 10 weeks are left for US President Barack Obama to take the plunge into his Afghanistan strategy review.

Blackwill foresees that the US's Afghan counter-insurgency (COIN) strategy is unlikely to succeed and an accommodation of the Taliban in its strongholds becomes inevitable in the near future. The current indications are that the process is already underway. (See Taliban and US get down to talks Asia Times Online, September 10, 2010.)

The Blackwill plan probes the downstream of this "accommodation". Blackwill flatly rules out a rapid withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan as that would be a "strategic calamity" for regional stability, would hand over a tremendous propaganda victory to the world syndicate of Islamist radicals, would "profoundly undermine" the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and would be seen as a failure of US leadership and strategic resolve.

Therefore, he proposes as a US policy goal a rationalization of the tangled, uneven Afghan battlefield so that it becomes more level and predictable and far less bloody, and enforcement of the game can come under new ground rules.

Prima facie, it appears scandalous as a plan calling for the "partition" of Afghanistan, but in actuality it is something else. In short, US forces should vacate the Taliban's historic strongholds in the Pashtun south and east and should relocate to the northern, central and western regions inhabited by non-Pashtun tribes.

Blackwill suggests the US should "enlist" the Tajiks, Uzbeks and Hazaras to do more of the anti-Taliban resistance, instead of COIN. And the US should only take recourse to massive air power and the use of special forces if contingencies arise to meet any residual threats from the Taliban after their political accommodation in their strongholds.

A striking aspect of the Blackwill plan is that it is rooted in Afghan history and politics, the regional milieu and the interplay of global politics. Since 1761, Afghanistan has survived essentially as a loose-knit federation of ethnic groups under Kabul's notional leadership. The plan taps into the interplay of ethnicity in Afghan politics. The political reality today is that the Taliban have come to be the best-organized Afghan group and they are disinterested in a genuinely broad-based power-sharing arrangement in Kabul.

The Bushie/Cheney Georgia fiasco exposed just how overextended the US is, so a rationalization is in order. But Bhadrakamur sees a number of advantages in a partition of Afghanistan.

The US would be extricating itself from fighting and bloodshed, while at the same time perpetuating its military presence in the region to provide a security guarantee to the weak Kabul government and as a bulwark against anarchy and extremism - on the pattern in Iraq.

The US's and NATO's profile as real-time providers of regional security and stability can only boost their influence in Central Asian capitals.

Seemingly recent random "happenings" mesh with Blackwill's plan, including:
A base to be built for US special forces in Mazar-i-Sharif.
The expansion of the air bases at Bagram and Shindand.
The overhaul of the massive Soviet-era air base in Termez by the US and NATO.
An agreement between the German Bundeswehr and the Uzbek government regarding Termez as a stop-off point for NATO military flights.
Fresh deployments of US special forces in Kunduz.
The US's parleys with non-Pashtun leaders in Berlin.
Mounting pressure on Hamid Karzai's brother Ahmed Wali Karzai to vacate Kandahar

(Blackwill said in an interview with the British Telegraph newspaper last week, "How many people really believe that Kandahar is central to Western civilization? We did not go to Afghanistan to control Kandahar.")

As a seasoned diplomat, Blackwill argues that China and Russia will choose to be stakeholders in an enterprise in which Washington underwrites Central Asia's security. True, China and Russia will be hard-pressed to contest the US's open-ended military presence in Afghanistan that is on the face of it projected as the unfinished business of the "war on terrorism". Central Asian states will be delighted at the prospect of the US joining the fight against creeping Islamism from Afghanistan.

The Blackwill plan brilliantly turns around the Taliban's ascendancy since 2005, which had occurred under Pakistani tutelage and, in retrospect, thanks to US passivity.

Blackwill admits that his plan "would allow Washington to focus on four issues more vital to its national interests: the rise of Chinese power, the Iranian nuclear program, nuclear terrorism and the future of Iraq".

Without suffering a strategic defeat, the US would be able to extricate itself from the war while the drop in war casualties would placate US opinion so that a long-term troop presence (as in Iraq) at the level of 50,000 or so would become sustainable. This was exactly what General David Petraeus, now the top US man in Afghanistan, achieved in Iraq.

Curiously (or not), Bhadrakamur says nothing about how Pakistan would feel about such a "solution." My view is that it would scare the crap out of Pakistan. Up to now, Pakistan has been able to semi-control its Pashtun problem by keeping the Pashtuns focused on "Afghanistan." A partition might reverse the situation--instead of Pakistan serving as a safe haven for Afghan Pashtun groups (the Taliban), the Pashtun portions of "Afghanistan" might now serve as a safe haven for the Pashtun tribal groups of the Northwest Frontier, and change the focus of both Afghan and Pakistani Pashtuns to a Greater Pashtunistan that would include large swaths of Pakistan. Those are the kind of considerations that might lead Pakistan to reconsider their support of Islamic terrorism and their attitude toward India. Pakistan would then need all the friends it can find if it wishes to hold onto the tribal areas.

[Frau Steingehirn]

The DAR will be passing out copies of the Constitution downtown in my fair village, tomorrow. I wonder how the newly arrived students will react to the Daughters and the document.

[anduril]

This is a good idea for a weekend project: Weekend Project: Create a Live USB Key Linux Distribution.

The idea is to create a bootable USB flash drive, a "live" USB stick that would allow you to boot into Linux without affecting your existing system in the least. Linux runs just about as well from a USB drive as from your hard drive, so this way you can get a very good idea of what Linux is like. The easiest way I know to do this is to google Ubuntu, go to their site, and follow the very clear instructions.

[anduril]

Here's an interesting read, especially given the tenor of the public debate these days: Even Bush's Economic Advisers Thought The Tax Cut Was A Terrible Idea. It's by Bruce Bartlett.

[glenda]

To clarice and all of the Jewish faith.."Gamar Chatimah Tova" and may your name be written in the book of life...

trying hard to be positive and pray for personal atonement, since my brother's memorial service Wednesday :(...He believed in love and forgiveness and I am trying to honor his memory..so, today, and maybe, tomorrow I'll hold back on Michele O, Lisa M, Barry, Nancy and Harry...

it was good to hear from soylent, above--stay safe! I hope all are well :)

[anduril]

By JAMES TARANTO

"There is no more Molly," reports Seattle Weekly. Molly Norris, formerly a cartoonist for the alternative paper, has gone into hiding. At the suggestion of the FBI, "she is, as they put it, 'going ghost': moving, changing her name, and essentially wiping away her identity."

Why? Because, as the New York Times reports, imam Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born Islamic supremacist who is himself in hiding in Yemen, issued a fatwa in July declaring that Norris "should be taken as a prime target of assassination" because of a cartoon she drew two months earlier titled "Everybody Draw Muhammad Day."

In October 2001, by the way, the New York Times described al-Awlaki, who then ran a mosque in Virginia, as someone who "is held up as a new generation of Muslim leader capable of merging East and West." How's that working out?

Here's another question: Where is President Obama? Last month, speaking to a mostly Muslim audience at the White House, the president strongly defended the right of another imam held up as a moderate to build a mosque adjacent to Ground Zero. The next day, and again at a press conference last week, Obama said he was merely standing up for the First Amendment. As far as we recall, it's the only time Barack Obama has ever stood up for anybody's First Amendment rights.

Now Molly Norris, an American citizen, is forced into hiding because she exercised her right to free speech. Will President Obama say a word on her behalf? Does he believe in the First Amendment for anyone other than Muslims?

[Janet]

a lovely post glenda.

Yeah anduril....who would have ever thought the left would become the champions of Islam.

[MarkO]

I think I can add a third response to my Obama catechism: he’s a coward. This free speech issue is just the latest. The best and most pusillanimous act was scolding the Supreme Court knowing they could give no response.

Obama is not that smart; he’s a liar; and, he’s a coward. [should I use poltroon?]

Say it with me children. Start with “Ummm, ummm, ummm. Obama’s a bum.”

Then, “What is Obama?”

Of course, if you don’t play along with my newfangled religion, I’ll cut your head off. Can I get government aid?

[Danube of Thought]

I found Hayek easy to read, and Mises very dense going.

[Thomas Collins]

Glenda, thank you for sharing with us your brother's belief in love and forgiveness. My prayers tonight will be to ask God's help in working on my own efforts for love and forgiveness in honor of your brother.

[Janet]

In this WaPo story about the reporter being fired, I find it odd that there are no comments. (he said Obama had received BP donations)
No links to the article, and no comments.

Here is the "controversial" TV report on video.

[Sandy Daze]

18 September 2010
Baghdad

darn ! Just tried donating to Joe Miller, but, the website says:

[quote]"As the US Federal Election Commission prohibits non-US residents from contributing to US political campaigns, we are unable to provide you with access to our website."[/quote]

Is that cool or what? Must have read the IP from overseas. Website continues saying:

[quote]"If you are a US resident travelling abroad and you wish to make a contribution, please contact us via email at sales@donationpages.com or telephone us at +1 888 WEB-2Win and we will assist you."
[/quote]

Actually, I think I will double my intended donation amount. If (future Senator from Alaska) Joe Miller is going to be that scrupulous about donations, I've got a feeling that he'll use good sense with our dollars and cents when he gets to WDC ! (Please see LUN.)

Take good care,
Sandy

[Ignatz]

Bruce Bartlett is doing his best to look like the morbidly obese version of David Stockman.

[Ignatz]

--Is that cool or what? Must have read the IP from overseas.--

Definitely NOT the software used by Barry's campaign, Sandy.

[MayBee]

Janet- there must be something wonky with WaPo's comment software. There are comments there, although at first it indicated there were none.

[Pagar]

"Definitely NOT the software used by Barry's campaign,"

My guess is that if Republicans used the software Obama used, you'd see Republicans going to jail for it.

[matt]

sandy reflected recently on MacArthur's Thayer speech at West Point, so I went back and listened once again. My parents held it up to me when I was young. I then listened to his farewell speech to Congress. LUN

[Janet]

Thanks MayBee.

[anduril]

yeah, janet, it's pretty amazing the way the left has glommed onto this "islamophobia" thing. fact is, if the islamists ever got a foothold in power the left would be the first to go to the wall. that's what happened in iran. obviously the left thinks they can make some sort of political capital out of this, but they're mostly just talking to one another. their chatter won't change public opinion.

[MayBee]

Glenda- I'm sorry to hear about your brother.

[narciso]

So sorry to hear that Glenda

[Extraneus]

Did a sleep-over murder mystery evening at the Thayer once, Matt. And a friend's wedding. Beautiful, great place.

[Captain Hate]

What passes for "The Left" in this country always has their share of delusional alliances by which they produce a revolution. Ayres, a third rate thinker as well as a poseur and coward, had (and still probably does because his mind is incapable of developing) a racial war that he fixated on, not realizing that racial relations would improve to a point where even the ineptitude of the Indonesian Imbecile couldn't provoke it. More recent dumbasses think they can enlist the headchoppers and ostensibly bore and nag them to death after the victory that they pleasure themselves to.

[Porchlight]

Glenda, I'm so sorry about your brother. He sounds like a lovely man. Prayers for you and your family...

[anduril]

Ubuntu Linux has a remarkably clear and easy to follow Download Page that gives step by step instructions for Windows users on how to create a bootable Ubuntu USB flash drive (or CD/DVD) that allows you to give Ubuntu a test drive before deciding whether or not to install. You use Windows software to do this. Installation, should you so choose, is from the same flash drive. No modification to your system necessary to run the "live" flash drive as often as you want, and it even allows for "persistency" of data, meaning you can make modifications to the "live" version that will be remembered the next time you boot. There's also an option to install Ubuntu within Windows and run it basically like an application. I'm not sure why anyone would want to do that, since it's so easy to create a dual boot system if you need that sort of security blanket (I did for a couple of years until I realized that there was nothing on my Windows partition that I needed). A novelty, perhaps.

[narciso]

The RINO talk show host that follows Rush, was
all giddy today, about releasing the latest
found bit of doggerel, he had found about
Christine, despite the caller, telling him
in not so many words, to STFU, and focus on the opponent

[centralcal]

Dearest Glenda: Dinner is cooking and I am speed reading to catch up on the thread and, then, I come to your entry.

I am so sorry for the loss of your brother. I know that you have a deep and abiding faith, however, it is still a wound to your heart.

Please know that you are in my thoughts and prayers, as is your brother. May his soul rest in peace with the Lord.

And, the souls of the righteous are in the hands of God, and there, no torment touch them.

[Ann]

I can't say it any better than cc just did, Glenda.

So sorry to hear the news. You are in our thoughts and prayers.

[Captain Hate]

narc, who would that POS host be.

JMH and others have taken conservatives to task for sitting out elections when squishes and RINOS are the candidates. That may be true in some cases but it's not true for me; I consider it to be the responsibility of every citizen to vote in every election no matter what the quality of the candidates are. I consider that a conservative responsibility and anybody that shirks it isn't a real conservative imo. It's my hypothesis that Il Douche was elected in part due to non-conservative Repubs, who should've been happy with "My Friends", liking the jugeared goof even more.

Be that as it may, in Murkowski, Crist and Castle, along with some of their supporters, you're seeing where the true rot is in the Republican party.

[narciso]

His name is Todd Schnitt, out of Tampa St. Petersburg. The irony is he has been on the forefront of uncovering the Climate Change scam, and cap n trade, but still thinks that
Castle was the 'bees knees'

[glenda]

Thank you, friends..
I will carry your kindness to my prayers and the happy dreams I seek each night...your words have brought me comfort and I am very grateful..

[Captain Hate]

Glenda, cc speaks for me as well. TBH I've lost a couple good friends lately and am just tapped out of appropriate things to say.

[Captain Hate]

still thinks that Castle was the 'bees knees'

There's a lot of that going around as AoS seems to have proved where people whose online personnaes I thought I knew turned out to be more focused in on the pursuit of raw power, no matter what the entities by which it's attained, than trusting peoples' choices in a highly unusual year.

[Clarice]

Glenda, thanks for your kind wishes and condolences at the loss of your brother.

JIB, Thanks. I do not know when i will avail myself of your son's services, but I've kept the information and perhaps I can get together a group to charter his services.

[Old Lurker]

Glenda, I join with all your other friends here in wishing you the best in what must be a terrible loss. Your words were beautiful. CCal...yours too.

[centralcal]

Murkowski announces - cites the recently deceased Ted Stevens' "endorsement" of her.

Ah jeez. Give it up, Lisa.

[Pagar]

Glenda, centralcal said it very well. My condolences on your loss.

[narciso]

My deepest condolences on your loss, Glenda

[Jorge Gomez]

Just donated to Joe.

He was just on Greta and he mentioned how Murkowski called with a brief congrats after the election then later left him a nasty voicemail (he provided no details on contents). He said the only change in strategy is now he is running against two liberals. He called Lisa out for using Stevens as some sort of endorsement. Then he mentioned how she has $1.8MM to campaign.

[Rick Ballard]

My deepest condolences, Glenda.

[peter]

Fiorello LaGuardia was one of the early founders of New York's welfare state.

[centralcal]

From the Des Moines, Iowa Register blog:

Sarah Palin drew the largest crowd here tonight in the history of the Iowa Republican Party’s Ronald Reagan Dinner – more than 1,500 people.

Go Sarah!

[Stephanie]

Murkowski resigned her senate leadership.

Hmmm... what was said in the after hours meeting on the hill yesterday?

Of course, that means that she'll be in AK 24/7 now drumming up votes. And ample opportunities to put her foot in it.

[centralcal]

Okay - I probably am tired and need to go to bed, but I am instead calling for ANN!!!! and her picture pasting skills.

This photo of BOzo, alone in the oval office is labeled "Tick Tock" at Ben Smith's blog over at Politico. Why do I need to go to bed? Because to me it looks like something else entirely - like he couldn't quite make it to the men's room.

[Ann]

cc:

I have been watching Murkowski on CSPAN. Can't wait to hear from daddy. She kept bringing up the ghost of Ted Stevens and called the tea party a radical lobbyist group. She is doing this for the people of Alaska don'tcha know.

She is also humbled by the outcry for her to stay in the race. Something about completing her heart. gag. A radio guy by the name of Bill Stewart was one of the endorsers and I swear the people behind her look like the ones that worked overtime complaining about Palin.

I also wonder if they know that McConnell reported that: "I have accepted her letter of resignation from Senate leadership."
She has no power.

All over twitter:
I'm told your Murkowski vote will count if you simply write-in "Bitter Lady." LOL

[Rick Ballard]

c-c,

I think you're right - if the shot were a little wider it would catch Axelrod rolling up a newspaper. Again.

[Ann]

Yep, Looks like he is going to take a leak, cc!

The only problem is, that is not the beige re-do MO spent a million dollars on. Now, why would Politico show a photoshopped picture of Obama looking like he was going to pee on the rug in the oval office.?

[Melinda Romanoff]

c-cal-

Ya mean Wee Willie Winkie, here?

[Melinda Romanoff]

It actually looks like the Blackberry hunch, thumbs akimbo, waiting for the next instruction from Ayers.

But that's me.

[Stephanie]

"My advice for Lisa is the same for anyone who sees a grizzly in the woods. DON'T RUN."

retweeted by Sarah. LOLOL. Smart lady, smart followers...

LUN

[centralcal]

Ann, I was mistaken - that is NOT the oval office. Sorry - wrong room! snort - obviously, BOzo was confused about what room it was too!

[centralcal]

oh, Mel, you're no fun. That was my second guess, but the first one was so much more giggle worthy.

[laura]

Either that or it explains the disappearing ring

"precious, my precious"

[Melinda Romanoff]

RATS!!!

I type like a ninny, four fingers. just. doesn't. do. the. job. (A La Shatner, quarterhorse breeder extrordinaire). He lives on Versailles Pike, outside Lexington. Beautiful 1820's house.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Another thing, the "break" on the pants. He wears his pants almost hip-hop style, because the tailor cut the pant length about two inches higher, where a tailored waist would be. He's never worn a suit as a tool.

[Pofarmer]

"My guess is that if Republicans used the software Obama used, you'd see Republicans going to jail for it."

I'd say that's a lock.

[JM Hanes]

I'm so very sorry for your loss, Glenda. My father-in-law asked to have this poem read at his funeral, and it has helped me many times since then. We all seek comfort in our own private ways, but perhaps you might find some small measure of solace in it too.

[JM Hanes]

Ignatz:

"Definitely NOT the software used by Barry's campaign, Sandy."

Same software, just strategically disabled.

[Melinda Romanoff]

c-cal-

Did you know that my friend Rick goes to the Tea Party gatherings around here just to watch?

He's got tickets to the Palin/Beck event here, but is afraid to go. He loves Mark Levin. We had an awesome exchange today, just after he got word he was going on Kudlow. tonight.

It was an interesting day, to say the least.

[Clarice]

That is a lovely poem, JM.

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vjnjagvet]

He looks like Tom Hanks in Big and Forrest Gump. What a chump.

Glenda, may God grant you comfort and peace.

[Jorge Gomez]

Ann:
"I have been watching Murkowski on CSPAN. Can't wait to hear from daddy. She kept bringing up the ghost of Ted Stevens and called the tea party a radical lobbyist group."

Per Politico (LUN):
"Less than an hour before Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski planned to announce a write-in campaign to retain her seat, her top aide e-mailed scores of the most prominent lobbyists in Washington to ask them to join a Saturday conference call with the senator.

Karen Knutson, Murkowski’s chief of staff, emailed scores of top lobbyists in town and employees at some of the largest oil companies – including Chevron, Conoco Phillips and Marathon Oil – to ask them to join the senator on a conference call Saturday, according to a copy of the e-mail and a recipient list obtained by POLITICO."

[JM Hanes]

Shoot, I had to miss the announcement. Per Jorge's earlier link, I really wanted to see who showed up to play backdrop. Does anybody know if there's video or pix floating around yet? Or a replay?

[Stephanie]

A very good idea for that free new dem logo sticker request at the

LUN

[Melinda Romanoff]

Jorge-

All that's left of the family legacy is a stinkin' Rolodex.

And she just put it up to hock.

Too transparent.

[maryrose]

Sore losers -Murkowski and Castle-Both have no class and unfortunately will find out soon how really replaceable they are in the real world.
Glenda: I'm praying for you and your family.
centracal; what beautiful words.

[JM Hanes]

Is this suggestive or what? It smacks of illegality to me.

“Dems will reduce cable buys in the Chicago market, saving valuable resources that might be spent elsewhere. The party is optimistic that Pres. Obama will not let any of the 3 Dems running in competitive races — Reps. Bill Foster (D) and Debbie Halvorson (D) and marketing consultant Dan Seals in the open IL 10 contest — want for money.”

Beltway Confidential over at the Washington Examiner has also been tracking some of the more interesting expenditures (or lack of them) as they are reported to the FEC.

[Ann]

Stephanie:

LOL, She is definitely on a roll and fearless.

I love this one:

'You Asked for the Job, Buck Up or Stay in the Truck'

JMH, You can watch her speech tonight at the Iowa Reagan dinner at Conservatives4palin.com. Another great line is at 7:16.

[Melinda Romanoff]

JMH-

Dan Seals is well known not to live in the district, and it's his 3rd try, with cotinually declining results.

And Halvorsen has some self generated issues with the NAZI party.

Pity, that.

As Insty, and Elmore, say, "I hate Illinois NAZIs."

[Melinda Romanoff]

And with that note, I'll fade and wish all of you, adieu.

G'night all.

[Danube of Thought]

So sorry, Glenda. God bless him, and you, and your family.