Prior to Obama becoming victorious there was the Maverick. Jon Golbe '06 starred in a great sketch on The Colbert Report about how you too, can be a maverick. Check it out here, and way to go, Jon. (PS, he's the nerd).
At least it's not likely to be this bad.
The results are from an actual poll taken in October 2006, before anyone outside of Hawaii, Illinois, or DC had even heard of Barack Obama.
Senator McCain appeared on Saturday Night Live last night alongside Tina Fey as Sarah Palin.
In the opening skit, McCain attempted to raise funds by hosting a QVC show featuring McCain themed purchases to counter Obama's 1/2 hour ad. A real life Cindy McCain served as the Senator's jewelry model. The Ayers' freshner and McCain's extensive set of pork knives seem particularly appealing! Palin even stepped aside to hock her Palin 2012 t-shirts. Stock up now!
McCain also appeared on Weekend Update.
Sure, much has been made of Barack Obama's impressive list of major newspaper endorsements, including the Anchorage Daily News, Denver Post, Chicago Tribune, and Providence Journal, all of which endorsed George Bush back in '04. But the Big O also leads McCain 63-1 in an even more important category: college newspaper endorsements.
In addition to a sweep of the five NESCAC papers that have endorsed a candidate--Amherst, Bates, Bowdoin, Middlebury, and Tufts--and the obvious ones such as U. of Illinois and Penn, Obama has racked up endorsements from some unlikely sources, including Davidson, Duke, Northwestern, Indiana U., West Virginia U., and the Universities of Kansas, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and even Arizona. Ole Miss's (U. of Mississippi) Daily Mississippian is the lone holdout in the wave.
Forget about being up just one point in your own home state. Failing to win the endorsement of its flagship university is truly a crusher. Maybe instead of blabbering about how no one will delay the World Series when he's president, Johnny Mac should've promised voters no one would screw over 'Cats basketball if he's in charge.
Editor & Publisher: BMOC: College Papers Back Obama, 63 to 1
John McCain talks a lot about his zeal for cutting earmarks. But, could his running mate be an earmark unto herself?
As governor of Seward's Icebox Alaska, Sarah Palin not only billed the state to live in her own house, she also "charged the state for her children to travel with her, including to events where they were not invited, and later amended expense reports to specify that they were on official business," reports the Associated Press.
The charges included costs for hotel and commercial flights for three daughters to join Palin to watch their father in a snowmobile race, and a trip to New York, where the governor attended a five-hour conference and stayed with 17-year-old Bristol for five days and four nights in a luxury hotel.As if treating her kids to a week at the Ritz—while they watched daddy race a snowmobile—wasn't enough, the spending blitz continues; this time, on the RNC's dime.
The Republican National Committee appears to have spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family since her surprise pick by John McCain in late August.If John Edwards' $400 haircuts were excessive, and McCain's $520 leather shoes were over the top, how does $150,000 fit in? McCain prides himself on cutting wasteful spending... maybe he should take a look at the $49,425.74 outfit on the woman campaigning at his side.
According to financial disclosure records, the accessorizing began in early September and included bills from Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis and New York for a combined $49,425.74.
The records also document a couple of big-time shopping trips to Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis, including one $75,062.63 spree in early September.
The RNC also spent $4,716.49 on hair and makeup through September after reporting no such costs in August.
Interested in the health care system? Come to a screening of the short documentary Diagnosis: NOW! regarding health care reform in the United States.
The 12 minute film will be followed by a discussion of health care reform plans at the state and national level, as well as some discussion about the differences between the health plans proposed by Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain. Our guests for this discussion are:
Date: Tuesday, Oct. 14th
- Paul Wessel '82, Healthcare4every1 campaign
- Suzanne Haviland, Health Care Policy Analyst for AFSCME
- A representative from Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro's office
Chances are it'll be relatively uneventful, but McCain really has nothing to lose at this point. Here's hoping it gets dirty (though not this dirty):
Catch it tonight at 9 on every channel. Usdan is having a public viewing if you lack a TV and don't want to wait for choice YouTube clips.
The 2008 election has hit Springfield. Watch Homer Simpson as he tries to vote.
Don't forget to watch the debates tonight!
Date: Tonight at 9.
Place: WesDems will be watching in the Nics lounge, but tune in anywhere.
The McCain campaign unveiled a victory ad this morning. You be the real judge!
CNN's Campbell Brown calls out the McCain campaign for hiding Sarah Palin from the media, turning their annoying claim of sexist treatment on its head:
Especially poignant in light of John McCain's apparent wimping out of his first debate with Obama this Friday, in an effort to postpone the VP debate even further.
[edit] And this is what happens when they do let Sarah Palin answer questions, she is like a grade-school teacher awkwardly trying to patronize Katie Couric:
The Internet takes glorious advantage of McCain's unfortunate situation in front of a solid-green backdrop during his keynote speech at the RNC:
McCain's picked Sarah Palin as his VP. Let's state the obvious: she's a woman. She's the governor of Alaska. She's younger than Obama. She's anti-corruption, anti-big-oil, pro-drilling-in-Alaskan-oil-refuges, anti-gay-marriage, super-pro-life and made a public decision not to abort a baby with Down's Syndrome.
This is going to be a tough/interesting election.
A friend of mine showed me this today and I figured I'd share: Fundrace 2008 (a part of The Huffington Post) allows you to search campaign contributions for the current presidential election by name, address, occupation, and employer. Unsurprisingly, it looks like Wesleyan faculty are rather overwhelmingly Democratic.
The makers of "Rainin' McCain" are back with yet another '80s throwback, "McCainiac". I don't think the apparent insincerity takes away from the entertainment value:
According to micro-targeting pollsters with questionable methods, Joanna Dicke '10's food, beverage, and liquor preferences make her an Obama-supporting stereotype:
If there’s butter and white wine in your refrigerator and Fig Newtons in the cookie jar, you’re likely to vote for Hillary Clinton. Prefer olive oil, Bear Naked granola and a latte to go? You probably like Barack Obama too. And if you’re leaning toward John McCain, it’s all about kicking back with a bourbon and a stuffed crust pizza...Apparently Obama supporters go for Bear Naked cereal, Clinton supporters prefer GoLean. and McCain supporters like FiberOne.
When it comes to fried chicken, he said, Democrats prefer Popeyes and Republicans Chick-fil-A.
“Anything organic or more Whole Foods-y skews more Democratic,” Mr. Dowd said. [Wow, who could've guessed]
I can't tell if this video is for real, but following in the grand tradition of gems like Obama Girl, Hillary4UandMe, will.i.am's "Yes We Can!", and Helter Skelter with wacky Mike Gravel, three soulfully tone-deaf women calling themselves the McCain Girls revamp everybody's favorite unambiguously gay anthem, "It's Raining Men", to suit everybody's favorite wacky Republican presidential candidate:
Forreal! Best moment: 1:42, when, indeed, it rains McCain.
[EDIT] Ok here is truth.
Presidential candidates have to deal with the fact that pretty much everything they've ever said, done, or looked like will eventually become common knowledge. Here are somewhat hilariously dated pictures of our leading contenders this year:
Claire Kaplan sends us grainy hippies Bill and Hil:
The New York Times dredged up Obama's heady youth (read all about how Obama - get ready for this - smoked pot a few times in college):
John McCain is apparently the only one who came out of the '70s looking good (I challenge anyone to find awkward pictures of the guy before old age set in, the Internet is apparently on his side*):
*Not counting pics of him as a POW or in a hospital bed, we don't wanna be all Karl Rove about this and I like to think Wesleying's got standards
