Wow… Just wow, and justice for Governor Palin

At  rally in Jefferson City, Missouri, today, Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin drew 18,000 people.

Eighteen thousand for a vice-presidential nominee. Gateway Pundit has more pictures.

Meanwhile, Democratic vice-presidential nominee Joe Biden held a rally earlier in the day in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. His turnout?

400.

Poor Joe. He’s a jackass, but I can’t help but feel a little sorry for him.

Very little.

Oh, and back to Governor Palin, the Alaska State Personnel Board exonerated her of all charges in the so-called Troopergate "scandal," and criticized the investigator hired by the legislature for misapplying the law:

Alaska’s Personnel Board concluded Monday that Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin did not violate ethics law by trying to get her ex-brother-in-law fired from the state police, contradicting an earlier investigation’s findings.

"There is no probable cause to believe that the governor, or any other state official, violated the Alaska Executive Ethics Act in connection with these matters," Timothy Petumenos, the Anchorage lawyer hired to conduct the probe, wrote in his final report.

It’s too late to do any good for election day with those who assumed she must have done something wrong, but it’s still nice to see her vindicated.

LINKS: Sister Toldjah, Ed Morrissey, Tigerhawk.

 

Technorati tags: Troopergate, Sarah Palin, Alaska, Jefferson City, rally, Joe Biden, Lee’s Summit, Missouri

Obama’s attack ad on himself

Man, this guy’s flip-flops make John Kerry look like Mr. Consistency:

 

Now, just what exactly does he really believe, or does it all come down to momentary convenience?

 

Technorati tags: Barack Obama, flip flops, Mary Katherine Ham

Obama’s a political coward

Hey, I didn’t say it!

Those are the words of New York Representative Jerrold Nadler to an audience in Florida:

Says Nadler: “I have no personal knowledge of what I’m about to say. What I’m about to say is my guess…”

Hoo boy.

“My guess,” Nadler said, “knowing how politics works, what I’m about to say is not particularly…”

He searches for the word. Rejects a couple suggestions.

“…not particularly complimentary towards Sen. Obama,” he says.

“Think of the history here,” says the six-term New York congressman. “You have a guy who’s half-white, half-black. He goes to an Ivy League school, comes to Chicago … to start a political career. Doesn’t know anybody.

“Gets involved with community organizing — why? Because that’s how your form a base.  OK. Joins the largest church in the neighborhood. About 8,000 members. … Why did he join the church? … Because that’s how you get to know people.

“Now maybe it takes a couple years,” Nadler says, suggesting that soon Obama starts to think of Wright, “’Jesus, the guy’s a nut, the guy’s a lunatic.’ But you don’t walk out of a church with 8,000 members in your district.”

Suggests a woman: “You don’t walk in though.”

“He didn’t know it when he walked in, presumably,” said Nadler.

And then, the line that may haunt Nadler for four years or longer: “He didn’t have the political courage to make the statement of walking out.

“Now, what does it tell me?” Nadler asked. “It tells me that he wasn’t terribly political courageous. Does it tell me that he agreed with the reverend in any way? No. It tells me he didn’t want to walk out of a church in his district.”

(Emphases mine.)

Somehow, I don’t think he’ll be getting many invitations to an Obama White House. Follow the link above for video.

Countdown to latest McCain commercial in 5…4…3…2…

(hat tip: Jennifer Rubin)

 

Technorati tags: Barack Obama, Jerrold Nadler, courage, cowardice, Jeremiah Wright

Old King Coal speaks

A message from the Ohio Coal Association:

Ohio Coal Association Says Obama Remarks Make It Clear: Obama Ticket Not Supportive of Coal

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov. 3 /PRNewswire–USNewswire/ — Mike Carey, president of the Ohio Coal Association (OCA), today issued the following statement in response to just-released remarks from Senator Barack Obama about the nation's coal industry.

"Regardless of the timing or method of the release of these remarks, the message from the Democratic candidate for President could not be clearer: the Obama-Biden ticket spells disaster for America's coal industry and the tens of thousands of Americans who work in it.

"These undisputed, audio-taped remarks, which include comments from Senator Obama like 'I haven't been some coal booster' and 'if they want to build [coal plants], they can, but it will bankrupt them' are extraordinarily misguided.

"It's evident that this campaign has been pandering in states like Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana and Pennsylvania to attempt to generate votes from coal supporters, while keeping his true agenda hidden from the state's voters.

"Senator Obama has revealed himself to be nothing more than a short- sighted, inexperienced politician willing to say anything to get a vote. But today, the nation's coal industry and those who support it have a better understanding of his true mission, to 'bankrupt' our industry, put tens of thousands out of work and cause unprecedented increases in electricity prices.

"In addition to providing an affordable, reliable source of low-cost electricity, domestic coal holds the key to our nation's long-term energy security – a goal that cannot be overlooked during this time of international instability and economic uncertainty.

"Few policy areas are more important to our economic future than energy issues. As voters head to the polls tomorrow, it is essential they remember that access to reliable, affordable, domestic energy supplies is essential to economic growth and stability."

The Ohio Coal Association (OCA) is a non-profit trade association representing the interests of Ohio's underground and surface coal mining producers. The OCA represents nearly 40 coal producing companies and more than 50 Associate Members, which include suppliers and consultants to the mining industry, coal sales agents and brokers and allied industries. The Ohio Coal Association is committed to advancing the development and utilization of Ohio coal as an abundant, economic and environmentally sound energy source.

Source: Ohio Coal Association

CONTACT: Mike Carey, president, Ohio Coal Association, +1-614-228-6336, (office), +1-614-264-1694, (mobile)

That sound you hear is the sound of thousands of coal-related votes in southeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania pulling the lever for John McCain with one hand, and flipping an emphatic finger at Barack Obama with the other.

(hat tip: Sister Toldjah)

LINKS: Similar outrage from West Virginia. Pennsylvania's coal association doesn't seem to have a web site. I'll keep looking for a press release. Ed Morrissey comments.

Technorati tags: Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, coal, Barack Obama

In his own words, and in your face

Courtesy of Hot Air, Tito has obtained a video of the Prophet Barack’s pronouncements on coal, the coal industry, and the price of electricity, which I wrote about here. I’ll make no further comment: you can judge for yourself. Roll tape, Tito!

 

I do have a question, however: How can the Chronicle claim to be serving the public when it never mentioned these comments in its article about the interview, nor provided a transcript?

 

Technorati tags: Barack Obama, coal, energy policy, San Francisco Chronicle, media bias

Predictions

It’s the day before Election Day here in the US, time for every pundit, would-be pundit, and sidewalk Solon to make his or her predictions about the outcome.

Not me.

As I expected, the race has just become too close to call. Look at these final survey numbers from battleground states via the Mason-Dixon Poll:

Colorado: Obama 49, McCain 44, Undecided 4
Florida: Obama 47, McCain 45, Undecided 7
Nevada: Obama 47, McCain 43, Undecided 8
Pennsylvania: Obama 47, McCain 43, Undecided 9
Virginia: Obama 47, McCain 44, Undecided 9
Ohio: McCain 47, Obama 45, Undecided 6
Missouri: McCain 47, Obama 46, Undecided 5
North Carolina: McCain 49, Obama 46, Undecided 5

As Brad Coker, who runs the Mason-Dixon poll, notes, the vast majority of the undecided voters in these states are whites.

(Courtesy Hot Air.)

That last reference to Whites makes me uncomfortable, since it’s practically an invitation to invoke the misunderstood Bradley Effect and claim racism if Obama loses.

There are two points to take from these numbers: first, they are all within the statistical margin of error, and thus reflect a toss-up. Second, the percentage of Undecideds is unusually large for this late in an election cycle, meaning the results could swing wildly from what we see here. Some theorize that late deciders will break for McCain, feeling that he’s the "safer" choice, but it’s also possible they could split down the middle — or not vote at all.

And there are so many "X factors" this year: how many disaffected Hillary voters will punch the card for McCain this year — the so-called PUMA vote? Will the late-breaking news of Obama’s hostility toward the coal industry and his promise of higher electricity prices be the deal-breaker for him in the key states of Ohio and Pennsylvania? Will voters, who, up to now, haven’t seemed to care about his associations with racist, anti-American preachers and unrepentant former communist terrorists, suddenly decide there’s something they don’t like about so many hateful people liking Obama?

What about McCain and Palin? Will voters overcome initial concerns about her experience (which is greater than that of the Democrats’ number one)? Will the middle classes rally to a woman who is so obviously one of them? Will the voter, having been swamped by economic news for two months, return to national security as a key issue and decide that, in a dangerous world, McCain is the best choice?

Who knows?

Thus, I make no predictions.

But I do have hope.

 

Technorati tags: Barack Obama, Sarah Palin, John McCain, polls, battleground states, predictions, elections

Quote of the day

On Ohio, Pennsylvania, King Coal, and the race card:

Particularly in the case of Pennsylvania, there are now about five Democrat-issued warnings or insults that could entice blue-collar voters in these formerly blue counties to vote Republican without ever having to resort to race.

Obama started the ball rolling during another trip to San Francisco, during which he was caught on tape calling the people of Pennsylvania and other rural areas "bitter" people who "cling to guns and religion" and dislike of immigrants and others. Joe Biden offered his opinion on coal in September, which the Chinese can have at but we shouldn’t go near. Rep. John Murtha of Western Pennsylvania followed up on Obama’s sneering with a one-two punch by calling his own constituents "racists" and then following up with a softer epithet— "rednecks." And finally, we have Obama’s cavalier talk of coal industry bankruptcy.

Rather than wondering which racists will not vote for them on Tuesday, a more realistic worry would be which reasonable people possibly could in these areas where the Democratic ticket and surrogates have offered high-profile insults to the the very people whose votes they wish to earn. When your outreach is this inept, the race card should be revoked. We should not allow them to use the imagined bigotry of others as an excuse for their own considerable bungling.

Technorati tags: Barack Obama, Pennsylvania, Ohio, coal, Joe Biden, arrogance