Kennedy Wants Clinton's Senate Seat, But Some Cry Foul. Is All Fair In Politicis and Kennedys?

After more than a week of does she or doesn't she chatter, Obama supporter and childhood education activist Caroline Kennedy has made her intentions for Hillary Clinton's New York senate more clear. The New York Times recently wrote that Kennedy wants the job.

Some are surprised. Kennedy has spent nearly all of her life out of the political fray. While her cousins ran for office, she worked on her charities, wrote and edited books and mostly remained a political wallflower/family symbol as the only surviving child of President John F. Kennedy. While educated and politically curious, she simply didn't seem interested and who could blame her? Her entire family tree is littered with politicians, some successful, some not, some who like their Ambien and alcohol too much and some who faced an untimely demise.

Politics is an ugly business and you have to be one part Messiah complex, one part biggest ego in the world to withstand the dramarama that surrounds it. You have to be think you're Allen Iverson, that you're "The Answer" to the problems of your constituents. That you can deliver ... hopefully better than Iverson.

This is a compliment to Kennedy in the fact that I, quite honestly, did not think she had the ego for it.

Kennedy sank her gigantic familial chompers in for a huge bite of the political apple this year when she threw her reputation and last name behind Barack Obama for president. Apparently she is hungry for more.

But not everyone is skipping down Camelot memory lane. Especially those who supported Hillary Clinton in her presidential run (and that was the vast majority of New York Democrats), those who feel they've politely worked hard and waited their turn (that would be another family name, Cuomo, as in NY State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo) and those who involuntarily roll their eyes upon hearing the name Kennedy.

The United States of America doesn't have a monarchy, but that doesn't stop Americans to choosing to worship the political dynasties of their liking. The Republicans love the Bushes. Democrats still overwhelmingly love the Kennedys.

But the Kennedys are shrouded in desire and mystique because of when they came to political prominence and the life altering events that surrounded them. You can't get a much bigger backdrop than the 1960s, defined by war, civil unrest, injustice, violence, youth movements/youth culture and ideological warfare. If you couldn't make a name for yourself that decade it simply couldn't be done. But two assassinations shared by one political family was enough to wrap the Kennedy name up in romance. And so the name came to embody a certain American mythology. While the story is rooted in truth, the Kennedys are just people, extremely rich and influential people, but if all the boys and their alcohol/drug/women troubles have taught us anything, they are flawed.

A last name doesn't guarantee greatness.

But I suppose my larger point is -- why? Why does Caroline Kennedy want this job? Is this about the people, the party or the family name? Or is it all three? Are their individuals more qualified? Actress/activist Fran Drescher, quite strangely, wants the job. A reader floated Harold Ford Jr.'s name to me as a possible appointee for Clinton's seat. He was a supporter of her and has become more of a New Yorker, leaving his native Tennessee and his father's sphere of influence. (Yet another case for nepotism, but in New York the Ford name has less tread.)

Rev. Al Sharpton as endorsed Kennedy, yet a New York Democrat has compared Kennedy to "J. Lo," in the regard that they both have name recognition. How does this affect New York Governor David Paterson, who has to make this choice? Kennedy could definitely pull the money needed to hold the seat in 2010. And she has the name recognition. After all, Paterson would also be up for election in 2010 and it wouldn't hurt to have some attention grabber on the ticket, but ... what is this?

I was hoping Kennedy wouldn't want the job because you can't talk about Caroline Kennedy as a politician without talking about her family, specifically the mix of martyrs, tragedies and fuck ups that make up the Kennedy political graveyard. And Kennedy has no other political history to discuss other than the family history, turning us all into vulture voyers yet again. And people complain about "affirmative action" when it involves us at the bottom of the class warfare food chain, but isn't the potential Kennedy appointment the more classic case of "affirmative action?" As in, her last name is Kennedy therefore everyone acted affirmatively in her appointment?

I'm not saying Kennedy's not qualified. Qualifications for all elected offices are bare bones to make it easier for anyone to run. She's highly intelligent and politically astute and is easily the most likeable Kennedy, but 90 percent of her likeability is based in the fact that she is an activist who raises money for charities. She's seems nice and is non-controversial. But it's hard to get excited about this unless you like reruns. This isn't a "Great Gastby" scenario of the self-made politico, like Barack Obama or Bill Clinton, who had no name, money or status to trade for power. This is romance based on an old, doomed relationship in hopes it will be like the love before.

Will this be love redux or is Gov. Paterson about to potentially pass over better contenders to please those who can't get over our lack of monarchy? Is there someone else who would be better for the job? The answer is probably yes, but I'm almost positive that if Kennedy wants the seat it is truly hers to be had.

The name is still in demand.

It's Official: The Election Is Freaking Me Out

Image from reader Tammy

I'm a little nervous.

And not because I think my sweet Hopey McChangey is going to lose. Au contraire, mon amie! Many Democrats keep uttering things like "landslide." America has been a 51-49 nation since the Culture Wars began and commonfolk could be divided along class and tribal lines. Such as, by nature of their needs, you'd think poor white people and poor black people would band together to fight their circumstances, but the teachings of Tim Wise would prove otherwise.

Culture Wars, re: ignorance and racism, trump common sense every time.

Or does it. And that's what freaks me out. Since the economy discombobulated all over us, the Obama Campaign has been on fire. Smoother than smooth. Calmer than calm and quicker than quick in recognizing and dealing with problems that most Democrats don't fight until after the fact.

Like poor and minority voters having their rights disenfranchised. Launching a team of lawyers to fight voter suppression in lieu of the looming election. The Colin Powell endorsement, huge no matter how hard some right wingers must trash a man they thought was their "pet Negro," but, as I've said before, if they'd ever actually listened to him talk about his reality they would have figured out long ago, Powell is no one's pet.

And the South shall rise again ... but for Obama? In Virginia? Once the seat of the Confederacy, it's residents are so dissatisfied that they're considering to go the way of The Great Black Hopemongerer? North Carolina? Talks of Obama using this "I'm rich, bitch!" donation stash to start making inroads in Georgia?

Georgia? The one Sherman burnt to the ground?

The state polls show he's more than closing in, he is beating down. He's neck-and-neck in Ohio and Missouri. He's leading in Florida where the Sarah Palin pick has gone over like a lead balloon with the fiscally conservative (but not too keen on the cultural conservatives) Jewish voters. Plus, her church participated in hosting a "Jews for Jesus" group. If you want to creep out a Jew who loves being a Jew, start hanging out with Jews for Jesus, which many Jews believe is a "peaceful" extenuation of the Holocaust.

Yeah. The shit is that deep.

John McCain is on defense, offense, the fence, fighting a trench war he only recently prepared for. The Obama campaign has been on the ground in ever state mobilizing for more than a year. Two years in some cases. Johnny Mac is a Johnny-Come-Lately, as he fights for Pennsylvania despite an 11 point Obama lead.

What the hell is going on? There are rumors that Obama plans to take his fight right to McCain's front door of Arizona, where the senator is up by 11. There are rumors that McCain, with his shrinkage -- re: funding shrinkage -- may abandon Colorado, where Obama is up by 5 points.

Next to falling off a stage a la Bob Dole, McCain is doing almost every thing he can to help Obama overcome the Bradley Effect and get into the White House and I salute the flyboys efforts, but I'm freaked out all the same.

The Democrats are "winning," people. The Democrats haven't done winning in decades. Save that brief respite called the Clinton Years (which were full of prosperity and filthy oral copulation), it's been a Democratic drought. Now we're facing the possibility of ANOTHER political monopoly, this time -- Donkey Kong style.

I'm interested if they'll go mad with power like the Republicans did, or if they'll maintain some semblance of common sense? Who am I kidding? Those sons (and daughters) of bitches want revenge. Even I want a taste. If they get the majority, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will morph into "The Punisher," black skull T-shirt at all.

But what scares me, with all the success looming, with everything going the Left's way, but we've seen this movie before.

How will the Democratic Party fuck up this time? They've botched so many elections. What possible scenarios are the DNC and the Obama Campaign over looking that they need to check their list twice on? November 4th could be a dream OR a nightmare. If the Dems mess up this time what is the most likely scenario (other than Mad Dog Joe Biden saying crazy things) to come to pass and how can we prevent it from becoming "deja vu all over again?"

Obama + St. Louis = 100,000

I realize that Missouri is a "red state." Because of this some folks were surprised that Barack Obama pulled down his largest stateside lookie-loo turnout in my hometown Saturday, but in all fairness -- St. Louis is the New York City of Missouri. The Democratic Party has run the city for decades now under the threat of no one, nearly all the self-identified Liberals are from here and a solid majority of city dwellers are African American. Also good chunk of St. Louis County (namely North County) is African American. And it was St. Louis and Kansas City who helped Obama win Missouri during the Democratic primaries.

So, if Barack Obama was going to haul 100,000 supporters out of the middle of the country we were the place to be. That doesn't mean St. Louis is some black, Liberal Mecca. (God, no! If anything it's so horribly the opposite.) And it doesn't mean this feat isn't impressive, because it's obviously impressive. I'm just saying ...

Missouri is complicated.

That said ... stand in awe of the Gateway Arch, the Jefferson Expansion Memorial and more 100,000 people. (Photos by The Associated Press and AFP)

Michelle Watches Debate In Michigan

Detroit Gives You Red Wiiiiiiiiings!

The Obama-Biden ticket visited "Title Town," Detroit, MI and Former Mayor/convicted criminal (Wait, is he a convict yet?) Kwame Kilpatrick was kept 1,500 yards away from them at all times.

And Michelle was ready to do some glad-handin' and grinnin'! Who's husband is up in the polls! Hers is! Woot! Woot!

And hey kids! It's Grandpa Joe! I have to imagine that as zany (and slightly unstable, but in a lovable sort of way) as Joe Biden is as a politician he has to make an extremely fun, insane grandpa. Imagine the stories he tells the lil'est Bidens how he wrote "Profiles In Courage" and that time he and FDR arm wrestled over who would get win a date with Eleanor, and then later took down Imperial Japan with the power of "filibustering." And then Jill walks in with her hands on her hips and goes, "Now Joe! You're not telling the kids you single-handedly freed the Pacific again?"

Oh, crazy Grandpa Joe! The things you must say!

Barack: Hey Michelle, you know who's cute?
Michelle: Who?
Barack: You are.

Awwwwwww!

"And when we send all the bastards to hell they can tell Satan that Mad Dog Joe Biden sent'cha!"

And now for the presentation of the jerseys. Once again, Kwame Kilpatrick was NOT there to hand them out, thank you, Jesus. I'm starting to think it was the Obama campaign who made him step down just so they could campaign in Detroit and not be asked about him or see him or even consider the fact that he once prowled these streets, flacking for Hillary Clinton while sleeping with women who weren't his wife, while firing the detective investigating him, while just being gross. Detroit should lobby for a Papal visit. They need an exorcism to make sure they get that Kilpatrick smell out.

Oh well. Guess Hopey McChange will have to do for now!

I just hope Title Town's tenacity for wins rubs off on Team Obama. He's gonna need it! That McCain is crazier than Mad Dog Joe. Joe is his own, one-man diversion. McCain's got more stunts than Snoop's got blunts. It's a mad, mad campaign.

Who's Zoomin' Who?

Rep. Barney Frank is not feeling the Republican response to why the bailout bill failed Monday. The Republicans came twelve people short in a vote where the Democrats brought two-thirds of their team.

Give me those twelve people's names, and I will go talk uncharacteristically nicely to them, and tell them what wonderful people they are, and maybe they'll think about the country.

Insiders say the Republican leadership made the mistake of going to the floor of the House not knowing if they had enough votes.

CNN Asks Can Michelle Close the Deal? Snob Asks Can Geraldine Ferraro Get Over Herself?

*If you can't view the video, click here.

We all know the question by now. Can Michelle Obama get women to vote for her historic hubby? I have an answer for that -- yes, to a certain extent.

Let's be honest. If you are serious about the issues that have been the hallmarks of the feminist movement -- equal pay for equal work; family leave; reproductive rights; Affirmative Action; issues that affect women and children; etc. -- you're suicidal if you're not voting Obama-Biden. Yet I constantly see Geraldine "Gerry" Ferraro on FOX News, usually on Hannity & Colmes, and I often wonder what the hell is going on with her? Every renowned feminist and former Hillary Clinton supporter has come around to Barack Obama, seeing him as their best bet to push these issues.

But Gerry's still on H&C, empathetic towards Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin's "plight," battling sexism. Every now and then she'll mention that Palin is the antithesis to everything she ever stood for, but that doesn't stop her from relishing in her nomination and reliving her own failed attempt to be the first female veep.

Ferraro wrote the following for the FOX Forum blog late August:

It’s going to be a very interesting campaign. I must say that several months ago I said that it would be great if there was a woman on the ticket — that I felt that John McCain would have to pick someone, especially if Hillary was the nominee. But without Hillary being the nominee it’s really quite equally as important because people are looking for a smart campaign and I think this might do it.

There are a lot of women who are disaffected by how Hillary was treated by the media, by how she was treated by the Obama campaign, by how she was treated by the Democratic National Committee — [Democratic party chairman] Howard Dean not speaking up when sexism raised its ugly head in the media. They’ll be looking to see what happens now.

She's still bringing up those Operation Chaos agitators, PUMA, and it's September. They've been all but neutralized as a petty stunt. Yet I still remember her words from May when she was talking like a broken arrow, a rogue, Joe Lieberman in a dress.

But Gerry isn't the woman CNN is talking about. They're talking about Jane Doe, women who don't call themselves feminists but sure seem to like Title IX and "Well Woman's Check Ups" and birth control covered by the insurance. These are women who care about their children, health care and education. Single moms and working mothers -- those are the women Michelle is supposed to charm.

CNN argues that Michelle is not a counter-weight to Palin. But I'd argue that Palin is the counterweight to Michelle. Michelle's been on the trail almost as long as her husband, almost two years now, growing as a speaker and persuader. Like the lawyer she is, she takes to her husband's case for the presidency like a prosecutor, then reinforces that she's down-to-earth, that her family is solid and normal.

That she and her husband understand the needs of women.

This is the opposite of the dish Palin serves. She's all "grrrl" power and no substance. The resume on women is thin, with her hometown charging victims for rape kits when she was mayor. She's not arguing for womens' rights. She's arguing for the ovary crowd to do one for the "team" and vote McCain-Palin.

In some ways, Palin would be better off running as a candidate's spouse instead of the number two. While she has the attack dog in "maybe is real, maybe it's Maybelline" act down pat, she is mostly McCain's cheerleader, doing what is difficult for the more reserved Cindy McCain.

Palin is the rallier, the booster, the energizer. She's also the circus, sideshow and main event on the Republican ticket, over shadowing a presidential candidate few Republicans were enthused about (but will vote for him anyway). Captivating a media who only desires her more as they watch her fumble through even in the softest of softball interviews.

She's so good at distracting the press they've hardly noticed the fact that Democratic Vice Presidential Nominee Joe Biden sometimes sounds like a mad man.

But through the work of Michelle reaching out to women, Biden reaching out to blue collar and rural voters and Barack energizing the base, the young, the brown, the educated and the hopeful, the trio should have a shot at steering some of these wayward, former Democrats home.

And thousands of volunteers and staff working on the ground doesn't hurt either.

But nothing's going to be closed until November.

Maybe by then Gerry Ferraro will start thinking with her brain and not her furious gut. Barack has picked up the feminist flag and is flying it. We all have to make compromises.

There's still no deal, but McCain is gonna get his debate on. And oh, by the way we're all screwed.

John McCain has change of heart! Washington really doesn't need him after all!

From Politico:

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) ended three days of suspense on Friday morning and announced that he will leave bailout negotiations in Washington and fly to Oxford, Miss., for tonight's opening presidential debate

McCain had previously said that he would suspend his campaign—and so would not attend the debate—until an agreement was reached on the administration's $700 billion mortgage proposal.

No such agreement has been reached, but Republicans said the standoff was hurting McCain's campaign and that he would look terrible if he didn't attend the nationally televised, eagerly anticipated debate, while Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) was ready to go on stage.

There's no agreement. No plan. Talks broke down so bad last night Secy. of the Treasury Henry Paulson was on one knee "half-jokingly," begging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to not go before the press and call out the House Republicans for stalling on the bill.

As he got down on one knee to lighten the mood, Pelosi joked back, "I didn't know you were a Catholic."

Paulson was afraid her statement could cause the markets to go into free fall Friday.

After all that "straight talk," McCain has found himself on a plane straight to Mississippi for a debate of destiny with Barack Obama. In this game of chicken of McCain versus Obama, the presidential debates commission and Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi, it was McCain who blinked. Despite his staff (surprisingly still working despite his campaign being "suspended") who came out to say that it was Obama who's "grandstanding" derailed the White House talks

McCain's campaign said the meeting "devolved into a contentious shouting match" and implied Obama was at fault — on a day when McCain said he was putting politics aside to focus on the nation's financial problems.

But, yeah. This battle was always his to win or lose and Nancy Pelosi has (of course) declared McCain the loser.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi took on the notion that John McCain has helped in the federal bailout negotiations Friday, calling the Arizona senator’s involvement “a blip.”

“He hasn't been involved in this, and now, as there's some discussion about putting this off, I don't think that we can do that,” Pelosi said on “Good Morning America.”

“I think Sen. McCain's involvement is sort of a blip.”

Pelosi called Thursday's meeting with the president, congressional leaders and the presidential candidates “disruptive” to the negotiations “because we had to begin writing the bill.”

“We can't take the bill to the floor until the bill is written, and we were on a path to that. It took a whole afternoon. And that time is important to us,” Pelosi said.

Describing the phone call she received from McCain shortly before he suspended his campaign, Pelosi told reporters during her weekly press conference that the Arizona senator “said that he was calling because nothing was happening, and there was no progress being made on all of this; he was calling a meeting, and would I come” ...

“Well, Senator, I have good news for you,” Pelosi responded. “Quite a bit has been done. The deliberations are going forward, and we make progress every day, and I don't see any reason for us to come to a meeting based on a premise that nothing is being done, because plenty is. We're moving in a forward direction, and we'd like to keep on our path to get that done.”

Others agreed, saying McCain did little-to-nothing to help the process. Some even accusing him of hindering progress. But it may be that this was all just a Category 5 failure among all the rebelling GOP members.

From Think Progress:

Bailout negotiations “dissolved into a verbal brawl” at the White House yesterday, as some House Republicans, led by Eric Cantor (R-VA), said they wouldn’t back a bipartisan negotiation on the package. The House GOP faction stunned the participants at the meeting yesterday by announcing their own plan which “advocates tax cuts and relaxed regulations.”

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has said the House GOP proposal would not work. “Democratic leaders questioned McCain’s involvement in the House Republicans’ opposition to the plan.” McCain met with House GOP leaders before heading to the White House, but neither party seemed to know what they were talking about:

Boehner and McCain discussed the bailout plan, but Republican leadership aides described the conversation as somewhat surreal. Neither man was familiar with the details of the proposal being pressed by House conservatives, and up to the moment they departed for the White House yesterday afternoon, neither had seen any description beyond news reports.

Think Progress reports that at the bipartisan meeting McCain didn't speak "until 43 minutes into” it. That the candidate “sat silently for more than 40 minutes ... then offered only a vague sense of where he stood.”

Sen. Chris Dodd said, “Instead of being a rescue plan for our economy it was a rescue plan for John McCain.” Sen. Chuck Schumer urged Bush to “respectfully tell Sen. McCain to get out of town. He’s not helping.” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid added, “We had [Republican] Senator [Bob] Bennett, a high ranking official, who said these are the principles. And then, guess who came to town? And it all fell apart.”

Fellow Republicans, White House Press Secy. Dana Perino and Independent Democrat and McCain BFF Joe Lieberman all tried to talk up the work McCain did in half-ass suspending his campaign and sort of rushing to Washington on his white horse to save the day.

Lieberman said McCain “felt that yesterday the best thing he could do is to listen and then try to work with all sides to make that happen. That's what he was doing all day yesterday.”

But some folks had to admit, the turnabout did not look good.

The action contradicted the position McCain had taken Wednesday, when he announced, "I'm directing my campaign to work with the Obama campaign and the Commission on Presidential Debates to delay Friday night's debate until we have taken action to address this crisis."

McCain had also said he would suspend all campaign activities, but in reality the campaign just shifted to Washington while the work of trying to win the election went on

McCain had taken a gamble with the move, trying to appear above politics and as a leader on an issue that had overshadowed the presidential campaign and given him trouble. But Democratic rival Barack Obama had not bowed to McCain's challenge, and instead questioned why the Republican nominee couldn't handle two things at once — the debate and involvement in the bailout negotiations.

An Associated Press-Knowledge Networks poll out Friday just before McCain's announcement showed the public overwhelmingly wanted the candidates to debate, 60 percent to 22 percent, with the rest undecided ...

By Friday morning, it appeared McCain was looking for a face-saving way to get to the debate even though a deal had not been reached. He met with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, before heading to his campaign headquarters and issuing a statement that blamed others in Washington for the failure to reach an agreement ...

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, a McCain supporter, said the Republican made a "huge mistake" by even discussing canceling the debate.

John McCain blinked and as Sarah Palin has taught us you cannot blink. There is NO blinking allowed. But don't fret. Not everyone thought McCain batted his eyelashes at the matter.

"It's tempting to say that he blinked, but it's not like he was squaring off against someone and finally gave in. If anything, he was squaring off against himself," wrote Jed Lewison in his piece for The Huffington Post, aptly titled, "Humiliation."

What will this change of plans mean? And what does it mean when former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is calling you out saying it was a "huge mistake" that McCain even discussed skipping the debate?

"You can't just say, 'World, stop for a moment. I'm going to cancel everything,'" Huckabee told reporters Thursday night in Alabama before attending a benefit for the University of Mobile. He said it's more important for voters to hear from the presidential candidates than for them to huddle with fellow senators in Washington

I actually feel a little sorry for McCain because there was not a lot he could realistically do (nor could Obama). Neither were on the commerce committee. The most they could do was try to rally the troops and vote. Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid had their team in place and on message (which is shocking considering we're talking about Democrats. These people tend to either eat their young or butcher it all).

McCain talked favorably of the plan on the trail, but returned to Capitol Hill with a House Republican mutiny on the President's hands. George and Vice President Cheney no longer have the cache to whip them into line. The Hammer, bka Tom Delay wasn't their to make them cry and vote the way he wanted. And former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich seems to be cheering on the mutiny.

So what was McCain to do? The recalcitrant, somewhat newish House Republicans weren't interested in bowing to him. House Minority Leader John Boehner is accusing the White House of trying to bully them into voting for a bill they don't believe in. So who does McCain side with? The populist Republican rebellion in the House or the White House, Henry Paulson and Ben Bernanke? Both come with risks.

Choose the rebels and he gets to maintain his maverick cred, but he also has to face the uncertainty of what the markets will do the longer Congress goes without passing a plan. Overnight Washington Mutual became the largest bank to collapse in US history. More banks are set to fail the longer this goes on. If the market goes into free fall he could get blamed.

But on the other hand, if Johnny Mac goes with the President and the plan the Democrats negotiated for, he could anger his base, alienate a sizable chuck of House Republicans and once again, be tied to President Bush. And it doesn't matter that Obama is signing on to this same crazy plan. Obama has a (D) after his title. It's McCain who gets hung by Bush every time -- especially if the bailout doesn't stop the bleeding.

And the reality for all of us, whether you're pro- or anti-bailout -- there are no good options. Do nothing, the markets will fall and more banks will fail. Do the bailout and inflation could skyrocket as we would have to devalue our currency as the Treasury prints more money to flood our market with, making the dollar ever more worthless. This could have dire consequences for food and fuel prices. But do nothing and the credit industry will lock up. Banks won't loan each other money. Banks won't loan us money. And without credit businesses would find themselves unable to meet payroll and then, God only knows.

We're in it bad whether you only have a pound or a ton. If you've got a 401K or a pension, you're in trouble. If your place of employment is having a tough year, you're in trouble. If you're banking some place other than Bank of America and Merrill Lynch, you're in trouble. If you're still paying on a mortgage, you're in trouble.

I hope McCain and Obama will discuss the economy at length tonight. I've got questions. I hope they have answers.

Photos by The Associated Press and The New York Times