Monthly Archive for February, 2007
Page 2 of 4
Apparently when high-priority reconnaissance is reported from Iraq they don’t tell it to the DoD, the CIA, or the NSA, they go straight to Michele Bachmann. The “Fool for Jesus” must be getting her intel from on high because she dropped an info bomb in an interview with St. Cloud Times reporter Larry Schumacher that has caught everyone off-gaurd:
And half of Iraq, the western, northern portion of Iraq, is going to be called….
the Iraq State of Islam, something like that . And I’m sorry, I don’t have the official name, but it’s meant to be the training ground for the terrorists. There’s already an agreement made.
They are going to get half of Iraq and that is going to be a terrorist safe haven zone where they can go ahead and bring about more terrorist attacks in the Middle East region and then to come against the United States because we are their avowed enemy. [The Big Question]
I just have to say that I was completely wrong about this woman; thank God she’s in Congress because we may never have gotten advance warning of this deal if Patty Wetterling had won!
Of course there are a lot of unanswered questions. Like how Bachmann knows this, who the deal is with, how this guarantee was negotiated, how Iran plans to swing this on the international relations field, etc. Bachmann didn’t provide any answers to these questions but I have complete faith that her information is one hundred percent correct because,
But Republicans might make things interesting in 2008, as activists are threatening to target Ramstad and 16 other Republicans who voted with Democrats last week in opposing President Bush’s plan to send another 21,500 troops to Iraq, the Politico reported Tuesday.
The newspaper quoted Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol, who said: “There’s something called primaries we have in America, and there will be primary challenges in the Republican Party against some of those congressmen. And they deserve to be primaried, because they are acting, I think, in a shameful way.”
Conservatives, led by talk show host Hugh Hewitt, are leading the campaign. Their first target is Rep. Ric Keller, R-Fla. Hewitt wants his listeners to identify possible challengers to Keller who are backing the war. He also said he won’t donate money to the National Republican Congressional Committee because it’s supporting “White Flag Republicans.”I will continue to listen to our commanders in Iraq and vote accordingly, without regard to political considerations,” Ramstad said.
Is Iraq tearing apart the Republican party?
It’s important to know that until the past few days, I’ve been strictly a volunteer, consulting for the campaign on interactive and IT-related issues. I made a decision at the outset of this experience that if I did decide to work full-time on the campaign, I would go on a 20 month sabbatical from MNPublius. I’d like to take a minute to talk about why I think this is important, and the right thing to do.
There is not enough time in the day to post with the consistency and quality readers expect from me. The amount of technology required to run an effective, efficient statewide campaign is overwhelming. From workstations, to the internets, to network, to phones, to security…well, you get the picture. As anyone that’s volunteered for a Senate campaign knows, the pace is extremely fast, the days extremely long, and getting time to eat and sleep can be a challenge - forget about taking two or three hours to research and write content that keeps readers coming back. This is an operational limitation, and taken alone, I might try to get past it - but there’s another, far more important reason to make this choice.
I believe bloggers should be independent voices. I don’t think anybody that’s read my work here has any illusions about the fact that I’m a liberal Democrat, and that I’m a strong voice for the party. I love the game of politics, and I’ve always been motivated by a singular goal - getting Democrats elected. That being said, I don’t believe it’s ethical to get paid by a campaign and continue to participate in the public debate taking place in the blogosphere. Bloggers have to earn their cred through reaching out, working hard, protecting sources and writing smart, compelling content. Through that process one builds an audience, relationships, and ultimately more sources that lead to better posts - and the cycle continues. In my mind, that’s real blogging. Getting paid by a campaign destroys that equation - the water simply gets too cloudy, and ultimately would damage both my ability to connect with sources and the credibility of my writing.
I’m going to miss MNPublius a lot. The 2006 cycle was truly an amazing ride, and I want to end this post by thanking some folks. Ok, there are too many - let me sum up - to sources, journalists and reporters, operatives, party luminaries, and everyone the played any part in the tremendous success of MNPublius in 2006 - THANK YOU. I could not have done this without you, and even if I had, it wouldn’t have been nearly as much fun.
Finally, I need to thank two great writers, astute strategists, and above all else - two guys that feel truly blessed to count as friends.
Zack Stephenson. Zack went on sabbatical when he was working on Amy’s campaign as I came into the fold, and while he proved ultimately completely useless for source information, his counsel and support throughout the cycle was invaluable to me. Simply put, when I was confounded or upset or angry or at a loss for words, Zack was always willing to pick up the phone, day or night, and talk me through whatever was happening. I know we often disagree on politics, but there’s nobody I like arguing with as much as you. Now suit up get your ass back in the game.
Matt Martin. What can I say my friend? It’s been a long strange trip. For those that don’t know, Matt founded MNPublius from Dartmouth years ago, back in the infancy of political blogging. Matt’s efforts can be summed up in one word - tireless. He’s been blogging on MNPublius consistently for years, and I’ve been lucky enough to come in and stand on the shoulders of his efforts. Matt, I’m going to miss our daily calls (voicemails), discussions (arguments), and meetings (drinking beer and venting). One thing I won’t miss at all is our friendship - because that’s never going to change. Do good work, keep your nose clean, stay on the ball, and good luck with Air America and law school. Thank you so much for everything, and godspeed in ‘08.
So say we all.
But, just so you can see that I’m doing something, I do want to say that we have a stellar show today. I’d especially recommend tuning in at the top of the 6 o’clock hour for an interview with the founder of Empowering Vets PAC because he has some great dirt on Coleman. As usual you’ll find us on AM950 or streaming live here.
Can his incredible intelligence make up for his less-than- incredible one-on-one people skills? Frankenly [ugh, terrible pun, the rest of the article really is better], can he be taken seriously, either as a candidate, or in the hallowed halls of the Senate, known for its collegiality and lofty debate? (If you’re not laughing, you haven’t been paying attention.)
Well, the serious, cleaned-up Al Franken is very impressive, and unless Hubert Humphrey comes back from the dead to claim this seat, I’m a convert.
Here’s why. [she goes on to list several reasons and this is why you should read the article]
…
Minnesota deserves someone better than the plastic and malleable one-time Democrat Norm Coleman, whose contortions to please the President when he was popular, and pass him off when not, should earn him a spot in a circus side show, not in the Senate. I know that doesn’t much limit the field, but for now the front-runner is Al Franken, and for now I’m impressed.
We’re coming at you live from 5-6PM
Tune in to AM950 or catch us online
By waiting until September, allowing candidates under two months of head-to-head general election time, we are unnecessarily cutting short the truly productive period in a campaign. Even worse, the extended primary battles that can result from this late primary can consume millions of dollars on candidates that will not even be on the ballot. By extending the period of the election during which we have one Democrat and one Republican, we can extend the period when the public is educated about the issues that are crucial to governing.
I’ll admit that I’m not the biggest follower of Washington County politics, but this was enough to perk my ears up. Washington County Commissioner Bill Pulkrabek had these terribly nasty comments to make in response to the proposed spending on a County housing coordinator:
Many people who are evicted and don’t have homes have found themselves in that position because of their own behavior problems, he said.
“Basically, they’re jackasses,” said the District 2 commissioner .A request to approve $53,045 to continue a county housing coordinator position for the coming year was on the board’s consent agenda. The housing coordinator works with local housing resources and agencies to provide information to county residents to help them obtain or maintain housing, according to information provided to the board.
“We’d be better off spending the $53,000 on one-way bus tickets,” Pulkrabek said, after which the rest of the board approved the expenditure. [Woodbury Bulletin]
As you can see, he’s a very empathetic man. This is the same Bill Pulkrabek that ran Ron Eibensteiner’s successful campaign for Republican State Party Chair only to turn around and run against him (Ron Carey won that one; Pulkrabek came in an embarrassingly far-off third). Maybe he’s just still bitter. I’d be careful about those homeless comments too because by the looks of his photo on the County website, Bill might just be homeless himself.
Seriously though, what a jerk. He grows up in Minnesota and comes back!? That is unacceptable. I totally agree with Ron Carey, who grew up in Iowa until age 18, that politicians like Norm Coleman, who grew up in New York City and went to College there followed by law school in Iowa, are way better! I mean, what’s more Minnesotan than Norm Coleman’s Mayor Quimby-esque accent? There’s just no way that someone who hasn’t lived in Minnesota all their life could possibly gain political traction here! Right Ron?
People Are Shouting
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