Marketing Politically

Just a stray thought of which I haven't been able to rid myself over the weekend and into miserable Monday: What is politics if not marketing?

While Aristotle would say that political thought and reflection are the highest acts of natural causes that a man can make, what difference does any of the diplomacy make if not for the sake of re-election?

Re-election, being the lifeblood of any political viability, is both vice and virtue to politics, or so it seems to me. That's why we have different levels within our legislative bodies of representation: House has two years, President gets four, and the Senate gets six years to make their case for another term.

We obviously want some level of our government privy to the whims of the masses, and some to be insulated from those wants. That sensitivity binds politicians to their election campaigns; the most sensitive, the victor.

Marketing strategists and political operatives don't seem all that different, it's just a different strategy. You brand the face, name, phrase of your candidate, or some combination of all three, to get people who are uninterested interested. You enter the lexicon, thrusting your campaign — yes, both political and marketing campaigns — into the vernacular of those you wish to influence.

You saw a lot of that with the election of President Obama. He had a big, grinning face, unique, but not-difficult-to-pronounce-name, and hung a five letter banner "CHANGE" everywhere he went, first written by hand from loyal supporters in Iowa, to pressed on designer T-shirts. The iconic, three-color picture of the President is what will be remembered most from his campaign. It encompassed all three.

Senators, like Arkansas' Blanche Lincoln, are having to walk a tight rope toward re-elected prosperity, an arduous and difficult gait. She's obviously got her hands tied in some kind of restraint by those who will or will not elect her for a third consecutive term to the Senate.

While her policies are complex, her record long, and her biography well-documented, look for her opposition to use short sentences, if not monosyllabic phrases. She helped them out by dubbing a sympathetic constituency "un-American," but that will be a throw away.

I'm not really looking for an answer, it's just been buzzing around in my head. For all of the high-minded thought that's going into such policies as health care, climate changes, and, oh yeah, those two wars we're fighting, I'm just hoping that politics — the important part of it anyway — is more than picking between Reebok and Nike.

Random thought for the day. You're welcome.

Caption Contest! PoLOLitical Stuff

It's an early weekend, and therefore, is an early caption contest. In light of a recent dearth of comments, I've decided to kick it up a notch, and add some photos that already have comments on the photos themselves.

By all means, feel free to add more comments, captions, suggestions, or threats on my personal well-being. All are appreciated.

And yes, this is a clear cut example of my phoning it in today. Enjoy, and have a merry Independence Day, and take part in America's favorite pastime — recklessly and dangerously blowing up stuff that is highly flammable.

Hat and Swap — Cap and Trade

Apparently these legislative types in Washington didn't get the memo that I was leaving work early to book it to St. Louis on Friday afternoon. They had the audacity to make landmark decisions while I was away from my post. For shame!

As you likely heard, the U.S. House passed the U.S. Clean Energy and Security Act, also known as a variant of cap-and-trade, by a skimpy margin, 219-212. With a name like 'Clean Energy and Security' who could vote against this bill? Turns out a lot of people, and most of the Arkansas' congressional delegation.

Republicans dubbed this a "cap-and-tax" bill, and being that it was written by the likes of representatives from California (gasp!) and Massachusetts (fie!), were nearly unanimous in their opposition to the bill. The story was the schism between Democrats, rural and otherwise.

Rural folk are against cap-and-trade. The business of agriculture runs on gasoline fumes. The expenses, while a mild irritant for John and Jane Q. Automobile Driver, would be devastating for the farming industry, and could have a negative ripple effect (such as a rise in the imports of food and cloth), say opponents.

Subsequently, rural Democrats balked, leading to the squeaker vote. I spoke with several delegates who had "great concerns" over how this would effect the biggest business in Arkansas, which is of course, agriculture. There were references from all to "importing food and cloth like we import oil," all of which were negative references.

We can all see how the votes went down for our delegates, plain as day now. 75 percent were against it, with only one opting for it.

While the state's lone Republican, John Boozman, was surely against it, national media attention was given to the remaining delegates of our very Natural State. Mike Ross made some noise voting against the bill in committee. Marion Berry and Vic Snyder were the question marks.

Most speculated that Berry would follow Ross' example. In my discussions with Ross, he said that he plainly believed it to be a bad bill for Arkansas, so much so that when President Obama personally called him to support the bill, he say "Thanks, but no." Berry's district is just as if not more rural and agriculturally-based as Ross'.

If Berry and Snyder were the question marks, with the more 'urban' (as urban as an Arkansan can be) Snyder would have to have been considered the bigger wild card of the two. Snyder told me that he hadn't made a decision but that he indeed had concerns about the bill.

Those concerns were obviously alleviated. The decision itself is not necessarily remarkable. The congressman said that he was weighing the decision, understanding the potential difficulties for his agricultural constituency. One side obviously won out over the other.

The dissent on the other hand was slightly more remarkable. Sens. Pryor and Lincoln have not spoken favorably about the bill. I'm not sure exactly what their latest words on the matter have been on the matter, but cap-and-trade is expected to falter in the Senate, where urbanosity and rurality (words?) is spread more thinly between two Senators per each state.

Either way, a majority of Arkansas' congressional delegation believed that this bill was bad for Arkansas. The state Farm Bureau had come out against it, before and after amendments to accommodate rural economies were included. One delegate (Ross) was the rallying clarion for Blue Dogs against the bill.

What did Snyder see that the others did not?

Caption Contest! Too Soon?

I don't know if you've heard about this fifty times yet, but Michael Jackson died yesterday afternoon. If your office is anything like mine, all working ceased to look at TMZ/figure out what TMZ is, yell at everyone surrounding your desk, go outside and yell it on the streets, pull a fire alarm, and then just scream unintelligibly.

Then someone started comparing him to Elvis and you just lost it, didn't you. Me too. Apples and Oranges, man.

Anyway, here's a political photo I snagged while drifting through photos of the King of Pop. It's Reagan giving Jackson a civic award for being a good role model (hindsight?), and also for lending his hit song 'Beat It' to an anti-drunk driving campaign. Show him off right, kids. Show him off right.

Lattimer won last week. He gets to watch me moonwalk.

Oh yeah, I guess no one knows that about me. I can moonwalk. Seriously. Not kidding. I can do it.

Have at the CapCon.

Local Fisticuffs

"Man 1: Hey you, let's fight.
Man 2: Them's fightin' words!"
-The Simpsons

Roby Brock's article about the ever-daunting task of picking which unlucky soul will have to run against Gov. Mike Beebe in 2010 was enlightening. The writ outlining the fact that if the Republican Party of Arkansas wants to remain intact legally, they will have to put one of their lambs to slaughter was particularly interesting.

Basically, it means the mob will have their bloodbath.

But GOP head honcho Doyle Webb's musings about how people are "ready" and "willing" to be forced to step up to the plank- I mean plate was interesting as well. And maybe I'm reading to closely between lines that aren't really drawn, but his one-liner about the potential for the state's three congressional Democrats to draw opponents was particularly interesting.

I mean, isn't there enough blood being shed already?

You can ask my friend John Brummett about the ineptitude of the state's GOP. Take it with a grain of salt named David Sanders and you'll likely find the truth in the middle, but the truth is that the party can't swing much in Arkansas.

I hesitate to say 'of no fault of their own' but will stop short of saying quite that. I'm sure there is plenty that the party or former party leaders (cough, Huckabee, cough) could have done to help steady the ship, but the fact that Democrats have long managed and maintained this circus isn't really news so much as an understood axiom of Arkansas Politics: In any other region, they'd be Republicans, but in Arkansas, the Arkansas Democrat roams unfettered by national politics.

The only actual candidate who has voiced his candidacy for a delegate office, Senate-hopeful Kim Hendren, was a Democrat for years, and is now an ardent Republican. Like Brummett said: Same book, different cover. That applies to more than just a Kim Hendren.

The candidates will come. They have to. But what can they possibly do to win?

Nobody will likely touch Marion Berry. He's got the farmers in his corner and is a founding Blue Dog. There's some sect of more liberal Democrats running ads against Berry, but anyone in their right mind can see that's just foolhardy. Mike Ross is a young buck, comparatively, but still a powerful incumbent, but other than that I don't know much about him. He's got a funny haircut. I see him being the most "vulnerable," to use that word loosely, only because I know the others are pretty much bulletproof.

Vic Snyder has everything a politician could want on a resume: Veteran, doctor, lawyer, state legislator, experienced national legislator. He usually garners tepid poll numbers (likely due to the conservative rural perimeter surrounding Pulaski County), but always comes through and wins by the most vast of margins. The only struggle he'll have concerning re-election is whether or not the new triplets will affect his intentions of staying in office, as some often unfoundedly speculate. I haven't heard any intentions of a retirement from the good doctor.

I guess we should look at John Boozman, to keep things fair, but he is a Republican in friendly, friendly NWA waters. As political analyst Bill Vickery said, "He is undefeatable in that district."

There are two tactics opposition can take: Strike weaknesses or put forth a more popular candidate. The former seems nearly impossible as the resume's of these candidates are all quite lofty.

In the early 90's, Arkansas Men's basketball was visited by and were subsequently thumped by the University of Las Vegas. UNLV's biggest and baddest player, Larry Johnson, after nearly shattering the rim and flexing in Todd Day's face, sauntered over to Coach Nolan Richardson and said not-so-politely, "Coach. You need to get you some men."

The same is true for the Arkansas GOP, although gender isn't a prerequisite: They need to get some playmakers. The message is similar to the Democrats. Their members are strong. They need to get stronger people. And fast.

Caption Contest! I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggonit People Like Me

It's yet another rabble-rousing Friday with yet another Caption Contest.

Last week's winner was anonymous. I donated five dollars in his or her name to a local charity. Congratulations! Unless this guy/gal hates Catholics. In which case, he/she doesn't need to win anyway. Shame on you.

Al Franken, comedian, will now have his name followed by D-Minn. in most places now. Public Strategies polls Minney-soda with 63 percent wanting the other guy whose name has already escaped me (Coleman? Callahan? Cartwheel?) to give it up already and get to representing. I'll get it started.

"HUG ME!"

"He's got the Whoooooole World in His Hands, He's got the Whole-Wide-World, In His Hands! Everybody!"

"I've played worse joints than this so-called Senate."

Pretty weak sauce attempts by yours truly, but this one's pretty open. Have at it.

Hate To Say I Told You So

Now where did I read that Sen. Blanche Lincoln was a 'definite no on card check' again? I have the worst memory about these things.

Ah, right. I didn't read it, I wrote it.

Anyway, I'm not gong to pat myself on the back anymore. Like Pop always said, you ought not be congratulated on something you should be doing anyway.

Plus, ABSOLUTELY NO ONE thought she'd ever go for it in the first place.

The next big point is where do we go from here? People have hyped this matter up for months, so naturally, there has to be somewhere for this pressure to vent. A trilogy of sequels to the Card Check saga awaits.

Labor — Lordy, what to do when the romance been gone? Labor felt a large kick to the bread basket on this one. Losing GOP-affiliate Arlen Specter is one thing, but this Lincoln is a Democrat. For labor forces, she was supposed to be a powerful ace in the hole. Heat from the business community in her right-to-work state was apparently too much to sway what many suspect is her naturally leftward inclinations.

Speaking with Alan Hughes, President of the Arkansas AFL-CIO, today, he said that from what he understood, Lincoln left a door open — wiggle room, if you will — to some sort of compromise, one in which his office has not heard in any detail but Sen. Pryor made headlines about.

Hughes says that while right now they would have to say no to a compromise, they haven't heard anything about it from the business community. Hughes also countered that they've offered no compromise, and wait on the business community to offer one first. I wouldn't look for one soon though. 'Compromise' is often code for 'we lost, but let's see how much we can squeeze out so it's not a complete and total loss.'

"This issue isn't going away," as Hughes put it.

Business — Chalk it up on the Big Board, so says the business community. From the beginning of the EFCA discussion, it seemed like big business has had this contest to lose for some time, being from a right-to-work state, while the Democratic delegation made it somewhat entertaining.

Chamber Prez. Randy Zook says that from here on out, the organization of businesses hopes to keep on keepin' on, educating people about what he and the chamber refer to as flaws in lousy legislation. Asked if this "education" involves focusing on Pryor to follow in Lincoln's footsteps, Zook agreed, but said they're not pressuring anyone, just educating.

He did leave us with a nice tagline for the trailers, though. "It will get the fate the bill deserves," while I thought I heard the faint drone of chainsaws and heavy and dangerous machinery in the background. Also some thunder rolled. And a horse neighed.

The Contenders — The most interesting story after the fact may be the card played by the candidates who might've been counting on Lincoln to fade to the left on this issue, giving them more ammo with which to assail her in her upcoming re-election campaign.

Several names have popped up. We were able to get a hold of two of those names regarding Lincoln's decision, and they seemed to be driving toward the same hoop.

"I’m glad that she is coming my way on this issue. I’m disappointed that it took years for her to get there,” said Tim Griffin, the former U.S. Attorney who has been the most active, if not vocal candidate among the ambiguity. Doyle Webb, state GOP head honcho and rumored candidacy-muser, said the something similar.

Look for the Republican strategy to be thus: "Why'd it take you so long to come out and say it? GOTCHA!"

It's kind of weak if you ask me, but it's the only hand they have at this point (Huh?! What?! Only a year and a half until Nov. 2010?! My how the time flies! [slaps forehead]). Delaying the inevitable decision was a pretty savvy move on her part, as according to phone conversations with her, she's much more concerned with other things, like health care reform.

But as Alan Hughes so accurately put it, "Huh, I believe it's on her radar." Politicians — as well they should be — are sensitive to the whims of their constituency.

The Republican contender, whoever that may be, is going to have a little more clout with the reports showing Lincoln's tepid-at-best approval ratings. That will be the big action from here on out.

But to quote Hughes again, this issue isn't going away.

Making Tim Tebow Mad By Voting Against His Bill Will Lead To Your Ultimate Demise

Florida's Equal Access Policy — which allows home-schooled children to participate in public school programs — allowed a son of missionaries to fling some pigskin around.

Worked out pretty well for both him and the state which allowed him.

I can't see any reason why Sen. Gilbert Baker's bill to allow Arkansas' home-schoolers to do the same thing should fail.

What's the detriment? So long as the insurance is up, the student academically qualifies according to state standards, and the kid lives within driving distance of the school, what's the rub?

The rub I hear most often is that the school would have to finance a person who is not a student. "They've made their bed," opponents say. "Now they have to sleep in it. Now they have to pay the consequences of this decision."

The argument that the priorities of some outsiders shouldn't take the priority over an insider, who attends the school, has some merit. If there is a roster limitation or something (which I'm not sure there is), perhaps there is a reasonable argument that says if there's no room, the kid who goes to the school in question should get the spot.

But I bet that there will always be enough room for another kid. So long as he can contribute to the team, and he isn't a detriment, and all of the aforementioned qualifications are met, why not let the kids play? Is some legislator worried that his boy won't be in the pocket come fall?

At the very least, we can make the pool a little deeper for those Razorbacks. God knows their running a little thin these days. Although, I heard decent things from Spring Practices this past week.

Tumbleweeds Infest Legislative Halls

LITTLE ROCK — Tumbleweeds have swarmed into the capitol in what most call "The most exciting event to happen in the legislature in weeks."

The collection of rounded grassy refuse rolled all the way from the Senate chambers to the main atrium where a swift wind from an open door blew it right to the steps leading up to the Governor's office.

It remained there for twenty minutes before the custodian was allowed to remove it from the premises.

In the House, Rep. Ann Clemer, R-Benton, took an eight-hour nap as yet another Dan Greenberg bill was violently powerbombed, and Speaker Robbie Wills completed nearly half of the numbers in his daily Sudoku on the House floor.

In the Senate, Pro Tem Bob Johnson allowed AG Dustin McDaniel to showcase his Egyptian slideshow, full of museums, random people from Egypt, and another museum. A rush of excitement as Sen. Jimmy "JayJay" Jeffress, D-Crossett, dozed off and Sen. Tracy Steele, D-North Little Rock, put Jeffress' hand in warm water.

More as that story develops.

-------------

No. Seriously. Is there anything else of value going on? No controversy? Harrelson's Human Cock Fighting bill might turn some heads, and Jon Woods has apparently been blessed with enough teen angst to maybe bring up another tax-cutting bill, that Beebe will assuredly say is a no-go, but really? Nothing else? I suppose that the whole "No New is Good News" Rule might apply, but please. This is just painful.

Thank God that end is in sight. But wait, how many more bills were filed before the deadline?...

Shoot me. Just shoot me.

Lincoln a Definite 'No' on Card Check

I'm going to say on the front end that this is merely hearsay, and no one will confirm such a statement, but I'll go ahead and weigh in on this EFCA bit again.

Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., is going to be a definite 'no' on Card Check.

So says my Agent in Washington, who works in the Senate and is often around the Senate halls. He just so happens to be friendly with some of Blanche's people, and through their conversations and eavesdropping, he gave me the scoop.

Of course, it's not anything that you haven't likely heard from others around the state, but I thought hearing it from sources in the bowels of the Senate might be useful.

The Agent says that their office is indeed worried about 2010. They ought to be, as she's drawing opposition in the wee hours of 2009. They should also be confident. Blanche is powerful — she has been a vocal proponent for rural Arkansas, and no amount of union support by her party should bring her down, although it could possibly drive her to the brink thereof.

My friend also says that the Democratic Party is well-aware of Lincoln's intentions to go against the party agenda, and vote against Card Check, They say she just can't come out and definitively say it yet; They have to finesse it.

But the writing is on the wall. Lincoln can't go with this, not in Arkansas. The state is so pro-business that any one running against her would have plenty of ammunition against her. This could make a weak candidate a strong candidate; What would that make an already strong candidate?

You got it, and the Democrats know that calculus as well. She probably wouldn't lose her seat, but why even risk it?

For Lincoln, as I've said before, her thought should be to make sure you get re-elected, then make amends with the Party. But don't think that Lincoln is the only one who understand that. The Democrats need her in 2010, as well.

Those 60 votes are going to be tough to come by. It's hard enough right now, even with the addition of Al Franken, D-Minney-SO-dahdontchaknoe. With the party sort of fracturing from the inside, according to Politico, anyway, losing seats in relatively purple states like Arkansas isn't the way they want to go.

She gets it. They get it. We get it. It'd put Lincoln in an awful pickle to have to go for this Card Check in her state. The Party will give her a pass. They need her in office next year, and can possibly get it without her. If not, no big deal, I say. It's just paying back the Unions for their support. If you can't muster those votes with an honest effort, well, that's just the way it goes sometimes.

What will really be interesting will be to see how her opponents will position themselves without such a pivotal talking point in their pocket. Defeating Lincoln would be hard enough with her impugning herself with an affirmative for Card Check.

Without that, where will a Republican like, say, Tim Griffin, attack?

UPDATE: Politico says good ole Blanchey is one of two Senators upon which the entirety of the EFCA vote hinges. Makes it more interesting, but frankly, it doesn't change anything. Arkansas doesn't care about what everyone else thinks. They don't care for unions. Done-zo.

Dr. Thompson and Mr. Surgeon General

One of the subplots so far of the 87th General Assembly in Arkansas could be "Safety First."

Two bills have been filed and processed with regard to personal safety, and I've noticed that one man has been very involved in both of them. Not a legislator, but a doctor. Dr. Joe Thompson, the Arkansas Surgeon General.

The name Joe Thompson is very recognizable to me and anyone else who attended college with me as the goofiest looking honky to step foot on a basketball court, so every time I see it, I take notice. He's been in the news a lot this session.

His latest dip into the high profile section has been this seat belt law that he's behind and lobbying for. Thompson urged lawmakers to prevent injury accidents by making the act of not wearing a seat belt an offense punishable by death. Not really, but it would be a primary offense, one for which you can be pulled over.

I've had my own cup of tea with this issue, but my initial, albeit slight, reservation certainly has nothing to do with the act of wearing a seat belt; Everyone should do it. Stay in drugs, say no to school, and buckle that seat belt. And Rep. Harrelson said it well: Reasonable minds can differ.

But Thompson's latest delve into the political realm was not his most memorable. With so much tension and noteworthy business going on within the chambers, many seem to have forgotten the momentous build-up, of which the surgeon general was key player.

It wouldn't haven taken a rocket scientist to figure out what the Arkansas Surgeon General's stance on raising the tax on a pack of smokes would be, especially when you consider the end — a brand-spanking new statewide trauma system.

I want to make it clear that this isn't about whether or not the tax was right or wrong, or the obvious value of such a trauma system, but rather a look at how involved Thompson was. And he wasn't just involved; He was in-your-face involved.

The Surgeon General was instrumental in assembling rallies to garner support for the bill, which were well-attended by regular ole citizens, but also delegates and even (gasp!) the Governor himself. They were at the Governor's Mansion, Children's Hospital, and ran without a hitch.

So, in a natural move of political boredom and obligatory rebuttal, opponents of the tobacco tax decided to hold a rally of their own, and bring in a big, headlining, marquee name to lobby their noble plight to the masses.

Instead, they got Dick Armey. (cue the Debbie Downer sound: wah waaahhh)

Okay, but this wasn't the first and won't be the last time the Arkansas GOP was described as futile or inept, and a rally was held for opponents to get their voices heard and backed by a national figure which, love him or hate him or question why he is such a figure, he is. It was just political mud-flinging, representing the other side.

Rep. Harrelson said it well, and some should say it more often: Reasonable minds can differ. Right?

Wrong! Thompson broke in the middle of the rally like Gangbusters, interrupting Armey, bringing the rally to a screeching and awkward halt, and challenging Armey to a verbal duel — a debate. Sources claim but can't confirm that Thompson slapped Armey in the face with his ceremonial latex surgeon glove.

Armey wisely declined being booby-trapped by a ready-to-pounce medical doctor who was ready to swing away. Of course, it made him look like a coward, running back to Washington or Texas with his tail between his legs, but that was probably better than looking like a verbally-decapitated idiot, which is surely what would've happened had he bitten Thompson's bait.

Proponents of HB1204 crowed. Robbie Wills heehawed like a blogger possessed. Max Brantley chortled like a man who had just run a criminal out of town on a rail.

But wait just a minute; Can't reasonable minds differ? What if some opponent more eloquent than Frank Glidewell and Bryan King (although with his performance in the chamber upon the vote of the bill set the bar pretty low) had barged into the middle of one of these support-driving rallies? Outrage would likely have been the appropriate word to describe the mood were such an event to occur.

And who was remarkably visible and audible throughout all this? Dr. Joe Thompson.

I'm not entirely clear of the Surgeon General's role. I know he is appointed by the the state to be the leading spokesperson on matters of public health in the state government. And I certainly understand the position, however juxtaposed the ends may be (stamp out smoking, but not so much that it can't fund some health programs, right?), and I'm all for him speaking adamantly for his position; He is as entitled as anyone to do so.

The man's a doctor and is concerned with health issues. Good for him and us, that we have such a knowledgeable public figure. But I'm curious to see if any legislation will be passed, not in this session but perhaps in future sessions, regarding obesity, which is regarded as an epidemic by the U.S. Surgeon General. They're talking about taxing mileage — maybe some taxing per pound will be in order?

But are his actions in the cigarette tax scrum above reproach? What's the precedent of a surgeon general to break up the partisan process that drives legislative debate? As an agent of the office that protects all Arkansans regardless of political affiliation, was Thompson out of line by using his clout to degrade and belittle a political view that was different than his own?

It's not hard to see through the medical doctors' thoughts on the dangers of smoking, but the political implications therein perhaps ought to be handled a little more delicately than being a mere button man for a certain political party.

And medical doctors with political appointments have been duly criticized before.

Leave the pushing and shoving to the politicians. That's what they're paid to do.

Sen. Pryor: The Magic Number is $789 Billion

I had a chance to speak with Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Arkansas, this morning in a telephone conference call with other media folk, and Pryor said that he had some breaking news on the Stimulus & Recovery Package or the Spend & Swindle Package, whichever way you're taking it now.

Pryor says that the magic number the Senate and House hope to agree upon in an upcoming special committee prior to its re-vote in the House is $789 billion.

Pryor also said that in the Senate, Democrats reached across the aisle and made bipartisan amendments to slim what he said was at one time in the $900 billion range on the stimulus, and that he supported the bill following the addition of said amendment.

"We decided to make some cuts that ultimately focused more on job creation and recovery," said Pryor (which is kind of funny, because I thought that's what the entirety of the bill was supposed to be focused on — woe to me and my boundless ineptitude).

The special joint committee between the House and the Senate is expected, so says Pryor, to try to work out the disparity between the House and the Senate bills, which is in fact the same bill, down to $789 billion.

I'm reading around and many are saying that the bill is supposed to be much higher, with the Senate bill being around $838 and the House version around $820, and you'd think it'd be in that ball park, but Pryor said otherwise, straight from the horse's mouth.

He said that this is an ear-mark free bill and isn't like the New Deal, full of government handouts. Rather, it will be mostly handled by the private sector. Whether or not he's talking about the same private sector that tanked on Obama's ole buddy Geithner yesterday wasn't discussed in the phone call. Let's keep em crossed that there's another one he was talking about.

Pryor also said that he was "optimistic" about the bill passing in the House, and said that Democrats were going to try harder than ever to get at least a little more than zero Republican votes on the bill in the House. The Senate stimulus got three whole unnecessary Republican nods from Senatoritas Susan Collins of Maine, Olympia Snowe also of Maine and Senator Arlen "Not Related to the Murderer Phil" Spector of Pennsylvania, likely ruining his shot at renomination in his own primary but receiving a nice pat on the back from across the aisle.

The special joint committee includes Senators Cochran, R-MS, Grassley, R-IA, Reid, D-NV, Baucus, D-MT, and Inoyue, D-HI, while the House is bringing Obey, D-WI, Rangel, D-NY, and Waxman, D-CA. If Democrats are really pumped up about bipartisanship and getting this thing passed amicably in the House, they might've started by including some on this joint whittling discussion, don't you think?

Locally, Arkansas is sitting pretty if the stimulus bill passes, Pryor said.

The Senator said that the Natural State is slated to receive $360 million for "shovel ready" projects. Pryor said that "shovel ready" didn't mean that a shovel was necessarily involved and that I was just being silly, but rather it meant that it's a project due to start in the next 180 days at most, with some beginning even 60 and 90 days from now.

"Arkansas currently has $1.1 billion scheduled in projects in the next 180 days," Pryor said. "People may complain 'We're only getting $360 million,' but there's a third of those projects taken care of instantly."

Obama is wanting to sign this deal by the end of the week, and his proposal knew very little bounds. Despite how these Republicans might struggle or how these Democrats might genuinely want and amicable resolution, the Democrats have more firepower and are lead by a guy who wants nothing more than to get this thing rocking and rolling on all cylinders ASAP. Like it or not, it's coming.

Of course, hindsight is 20/20. I look forward to seeing if this will be labeled as noble expedience or stubborn hastiness.

UPDATE: Just remember you heard it here first.

Steele selected as RNC chairman; GOP street cred levels off the charts

The former Lt. Gov. of Maryland, Michael Steele, was selected as the RNC chairman after incumbent Mike Duncan folded under the weight of yet another slobber-knocking defeat across the nation by Democrats in 2008.

I have intentionally forgotten anything credible that this man has ever done, to better put myself in the mindset of other, less-politically inclined individuals, and maybe see how this looks from the outside looking in.

Casual Observer: Holy crap, is that guy black?

Why yes, yes he is.

The induction of the first African-American President is one thing, but the first African-American Republican Chairman? That's a horse of another color altogether.

But all of this hubbub is grounded in stereotypes: The stereotype that the GOP is dead in the water after these past two elections, which seems eerily similar to the 1994 surge that gave the Right its headwind through twelve years. The stereotype that the Republican party is not just old-fashioned, but down right racist. The stereotype that the GOP is stubbornly intolerant.

Maybe this is a knee-jerk reaction to the charge made by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Thursday, saying this to his ranks and to the party at large:

“We’re all concerned about the fact that the very wealthy and the very poor, the most and least educated, and a majority of minority voters, seem to have more or less stopped paying attention to us,” McConnell said in a speech at the Republican National Committee’s winter meeting. “And we should be concerned that, as a result of all this, the Republican Party seems to be slipping into a position of being more of a regional party than a national one.”

So maybe this was what the GOP thinks the doctor ordered. Let's appeal to the youngins, shake it up a bit, maybe put out a reality show on MTV or something, they'll say.

The nod to Steele neither refutes nor endorses any of these stereotypes.

The Left will hold this nomination under a heinous microscope, inevitably determining that this lot was cast as a mere political and shameful ploy, and doesn't reflect the true nature of the Evil Empire that is the Republican National Committee.

But one can't chastise a party for being allegedly deliberately exclusive against minorities and then accuse the party of added racism once they might be trying to branch out to more diverse grounds. This may be a move to rectify some of the stereotypes that have frankly been giving the party a black-eye for years. Can you begrudge them that immediately, without evidence?

And the Right will hold Michael Steele up to the Left like some sort of membership card into the "We're Not Racist" Club. As I said earlier, McConnell's words were not to just to the committee, but to the party at large. The message here is to dust off the old train of thought and begin a more encompassing train of thought.

Steele may be the lightening rod to spark the movement, but in order for McConnell's message to be effective, it must reverberate through the base, not just the heads of the party.

But of course, we're supposed to be viewing this from the eyes of a casual observer, detached from regular political thoughts and discourse. It's the same verse.

Holy crap, is that guy really black?

Governor Retahd Digs a Deeper Grave

When I was about eight or nine years old, I decided it would be an awesome idea to try out a lot of my dad's power tools, namely the power drills, when the folks were out. I quietly absconded with the machinery into my bedroom and began drilling through anything and everything in my room. Toys, books, pillows; it was all gravy.

Then I decided to grow up a bit and get to some more productive drilling. That wall had to go. I drilled about ten holes in the drywall in between my room and my brother's room. Only after I had calmed down from my drilling frenzy did I think, Maybe...Just MAYBE this was a bad idea. I moved my dresser over the destructed wall but to no avail — Scotty the Body (aka Dad) found the destruction and questioned me immediately about my obvious transgressions.

I stood poised to create a whimsical and fantastical defense. I rose like Clarence Darrow, ready to weave some sort of intelligible alibi, likely impugning my little brother or our cross-eyed neighbor. As I opened my mouth, my Dad quickly cut me off and laid down some logic that to this day I believe to be true.

"Son, don't lie to me. We both know what you did. If you lie to me now, it's only going to get a lot worse. So just tell me the truth, and we can deal with it. But don't lie; you're only going to make it worse."

I learned two things that day: reckless drilling leads to sore backsides, and getting caught lying leads to much worse.

So you can see why I might be so frustrated at this ex-Gov. Rod The Retahd Blagojevich, not so much for his stupidity in the first place, but at his added stupidity with this media-rampage that is keeping the regular guests off The View. Just thinking about all of the sexy guests and rising stars that could have been on that show instead of some awkwardly-haired liar.

On a quick sidenote, there is something ungood about that guy's follicle arrangement. It's too thick to be declared fraudulent, yet far too shapely and too life-of-its-own-like to be considered mere hair. More on that as it develops, I suppose.

Anyway, the FBI has been tailing this guy for months for all sorts of differnt misgivings and errors, from extortion and laundering and abuse of power. So they're recording him. Then, they get something they can't just keep to themselves: he tries to sell President Obama's vacant seat in the Senate. They have tapes. They have records. They have transcripts.

FBI agents testified to this point today during Blago's impeachment trials. From the AP:

Again and again, agent Daniel Cain told state senators he had accurately quoted Blagojevich in a sworn affidavit filed when the governor was arrested last month on federal corruption charges. At each stage, House prosecutor David Ellis displayed the most damning quote on a poster board.

The affidavit quoted Blagojevich saying his power to name a replacement to Obama's vacant Senate seat was a "valuable thing, you just don't give it away for nothing." Ellis asked if that was accurate.

Yes, Cain replied.

Did he say, "I've got this thing and it's (expletive) golden, and uh, uh I'm just not giving it up for (expletive) nothing"?

Yes, Cain said.

Did he say, "I want to make money"?

Yes, Cain said.

The lawyer here obviously tracked his thoughts very carefully, so as not to be encumbered by any legal ambiguity. For the record, the FBI agent said Blago called the seat a "golden opportunity" that he wasn't going to "give away for forking nothing."

The hand is in the cookie jar. The holes have been drilled in the wall. Here's where you grin to yourself, then go before the media, resign, and wait it out until someone else messes up and you're quickly forgotten. You're politically out, but maybe after a grand jury hearing, some form of "punishment" or a slap on the proverbial wrist, and you're back out there, writing books and doing charity boxing matches against Danny Bonaduce.

But no. Rod the Retahd decides he's not going to give up anything he hasn't worked/stolen hard to make during his career, cut no losses, and run his name as far into the mantle of the earth as possible, never to be seen again.

The media blitz he is running isn't necessarily one of the more innovative of all time, but then again, Johnny Cochran has been gone for sometime.

He's using the Ole Out of Context bit, which is about as keen as the Ole Pull a Dollar by a String Gag, and the Ole I Got Your Nose Bit O' Sorcery.

"In the end, a lot of it was talk and exploring ideas," Blagojevich said. "I never, ever intended to violate any criminal law."

I can't wait for this guy to actually be prosecuted. Scotty the Body said it first: It's only going to get worse.

Blago will be selling a different seat in prison.

An Optimist's Guide to Bush's Legacy

Here's the bottom line: George W. Bush has not been good for business.

He is terribly unpopular, especially regarding Iraq, and his approval ratings have been in a tailspin since 2004. These dismal numbers have been reflected in not one, but two elections, with Democratic sweeps in 2006 and 2008. His beloved GOP has all but abandoned him, keeping him out entirely of the Republican Convention and only mentioning his name with the caveat "I'm not him."

I would very cautiously argue, however, that history may be kinder to him than the present.

I'm not saying he's a good president now, to do so would toss any semblance of political or journalistic credibility overboard. But I am claiming that there may be a potential upswing of favorable remembrances for W. And let me constrain myself to say that I do not believe that there is any way history will ever remember him as a great president; his potential, in my opinion, can only lift him from the ranks of 'bad president' to 'not bad president.'

We cannot deny Bush's handling of the Iraq War, which most would say was altogether disastrous. Faulty intelligence showed that there were W.M.D.'s in Iraq and that they were indeed a viable threat to the United States. Granted, it wasn't Bush telling himself there were weapons there, it was the hitherto reliable intelligence agencies who were, but Bush really dropped the ball on this one. W. used the same bull-headed tactics that had done so well for him in Afghanistan (or had been doing well for him), when all he needed to do was let diplomacy run its course.

Speaking of bull-headed, his abandoning of conservative principles was offensive to conservatives. For a party whose primary figurehead, Ronald Reagan, called for limited government, one would think that this president would not be one of the most government-expanding and empowering presidents since Lyndon Baines Johnson. Au contraire. So not only was Bush losing favor with those who he regularly would quarrel with, namely Democrats, but he was also losing Republican comrades along the way. In fact, many suspect that the very ideological fabric of the GOP may have been irreparably altered, as 2008-conservatives are scrambling to appeal to voters who have sacked them in consecutive elections.

That was very bad. But, Bush has not been all bad.


We cannot deny Bush's handling of September 11th, which most would say was altogether masterful. Many of the idea-void individuals in the GOP cling to this day as some kind of banner of victory like someone clinging to an iron bar in a tornado, and subsequently trivialize Bush's actual accomplishments. Bush coolly and calmly went about handling the situation, uniting the country under one patriotic emblem. (SIDENOTE: That's not an excuse to trivialize Sept. 11, though. What happened on that day was God-awful, and to speak frankly about someone benefiting from it is unsettling, while possibly true.)

So, for now, everyone is down on this Bush fellow. Presidential-hopeful John McCain, who is about as liberal as a Republican can get, was hamstrung by any and all associations he had had with Bush, and ultimately lost the election. A mandate from the public against Bush, Democrats won across the board.

But let's say everything from now on, following Bush's administration, goes his way.

Optimistically speaking, what if Bush's Middle Eastern democracy-manufacturing plan firms up and carries on? Iraq has been making marked improvements since the ballyhooed Surge, and perhaps could gain self-sufficiency in the future. If the country is in fact better in fifty years than it was prior to 2003, Bush could be regarded as a national hero. That potential is certainly there, although it may be far-fetched.

Which are people more likely to remember, his blunder of Iraq or his grace under fire in September of 2001? A lot of this has to come from hindsight and hindsight alone. The projection is there, in fact it is all Bush and Heir Cheney cling to: "We are safer than we were on Sept. 11." Well, we've only come seven years. Call me naive, but I'd like to think that there are some safeties that have to be monitored for longer than that span of time. Maybe we are and maybe we aren't.

This could go in Bush's favor, or blow up in his face. If it doesn't bounce his way, it will be just one more thing topped on a pile of grievances. Recall when the economy - Bush's economy - nearly crumbled this fall? No one was any more angry at Bush than they were before. You can only be so mad, before it's just noise. It was like everyone expected it.

If it does somehow go in his favor, then perhaps history can salvage as much a morsel of dignity from the Bush Administration, which won't be much, but it could be something.

One thing is certain; there's nowhere to go but up.