Yes, ICantSeeYou

President Obama Jokes At The White House Correspondents Dinner

Hollywood Declares Themselves - Steven Spielberg Directs The Funniest Voting Video You Will See

This is pretty funny.  And true.

Ron Howard For Obama - Watch The Cool Video

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

Parrot Palin (funny video)

This is pretty funny - I especially love it when she pronounces nuclear.

2004 Election Results Listed By Average IQ

This was from the 2004 election.  Clearly the states with the lower IQ's went to Bush because of issues such as abortion, religion, guns and other Republican talking points.  Naturally one would think that these low IQ states would be democratic since they earn less and need more help.  However, for a very long time the Republicans have put the fear of god into these people and they have been voting the wrong way.   What will be interesting is after this election what a chart like this will look like.  I believe due to Obama's broad appeal that he will win many of the states that Bush won in 2004.  Also note that he will be getting out the black vote in historic numbers this year - so he is bound to sway some of these states no matter what.   I have very little doubt that 2 weeks before the election Obama has a clear lead and will likely win.  It will be very interesting to see how much these results by state change.  Note that I personally don't believe in IQ tests - I think they are biased.  However I do believe in education and I would attribute this chart more to education than IQ.

Colin Powell Endorses Barack Obama for President

Colin Powell once again shows why everyone respects him - this is an very intelligent and thought out statement.

The Woman Who Called Obama An Arab At A McCain Rally.... Works For McCain. Watch The Videos.

And here is her interview..

Gosh Darnit! Tina Fey's Impersonations of Sarah Palin May Have Serious Implications for McCain

Gosh Darnit! Tina Fey's Impersonations of Sarah Palin May Have Serious Implications for McCain

American University Professor Says Late-Night Comedy Can Contribute to Negative Perceptions of a Politician.

Tina Fey's humorous impersonations of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live (SNL) may be no laughing matter for Palin's running mate, Senator John McCain, says Lauren Feldman, an expert on the political effects of late-night comedy.

Appearances on late-night comedy shows are useful for candidates as a means to project their non-political personas, to make them seem more 'human' and in-touch with voters. Palin is not necessarily lacking in these areas. She would benefit more from a strong, substantive performance in a more serious setting.

"When audiences are exposed to political humor or satire, they are less likely to oppose the information in the message or question whether it is fair or accurate," says Feldman, an assistant professor at American University's School of Communication. "Relative to more traditional direct attacks in political ads, political jokes and other comedic portrayals that paint candidates in a negative light present greater opportunity for negative information to seep into the audiences' consciousness. Ultimately, it can affect the perceptions of a candidate."

Because Fey's sketches accentuate Palin's folksy persona, her interview and debate performances, and her g-dropping, "gosh darnit" speaking style, they are likely to make Palin's negative traits and image characteristics more top-of-mind for viewers. This, Feldman says, can indirectly contribute to a more unfavorable rating of the McCain-Palin ticket.

"The potential for this will only increase as the volume of exposure to these types of parodies and caricatures increases," Feldman says. "This is important to consider given that SNL will be airing a series of prime-time specials during the next few weeks."

So, will SNL swing the election? According to Feldman, probably not.

"It is also important to remember that the audience for SNL is not necessarily interested in politics, though much of the show's recent boost in ratings is likely helped by political junkies tuning-in to see the latest Fey impersonation," Feldman says. "At the very least, by making the campaign front-and-center in its sketches, SNL might help raise attention to the campaign among viewers who otherwise would ignore it."

Palin has tried to capitalize on the attention being drawn to her by Fey's impersonations, arguing at rallies that her media interview performances were an attempt to provide Fey with ample material. Palin has suggested she would enjoy making a cameo SNL appearance. Rumor has it she might turn up in an upcoming episode.

"It is not clear this would help Palin in the polls," says Feldman, also a political communication expert. "Appearances on late-night comedy shows are useful for candidates as a means to project their non-political personas, to make them seem more 'human' and in-touch with voters. Palin is not necessarily lacking in these areas. She would benefit more from a strong, substantive performance in a more serious setting."

Feldman is the coauthor of the forthcoming article "Late-Night Comedy as a Gateway to Traditional News: An Analysis of Time Trends in News Attention among Late-Night Comedy Viewers During the 2004 Presidential Primaries." It will be published in the journal Political Communication.

American University's School of Communication is a laboratory for professional education, communication research, and innovative production across the fields of journalism, film and media arts, and public communication. The school's academic programs emphasize traditional skills and values while anticipating new technologies, new opportunities, and new audiences.

(I'm Thinkin' 'Bout Nailin') Sarah Palin (video)

McCain: "My Fellow Prisoners"

Yup, as I thought - McCain still thinks he's still a prisoner.   And if you vote for him they let him get an extra pancake.

Lettermans Top 10 "Things Overheard at Sarah Palin Debate Camp"

10. "Let's practice your bewildered silence."

9. "Can you try saying 'yes' instead of 'you betcha'?"

8. "Hey, I can see Mexico from here!"

7. "Maybe we'll get lucky and there won't be any questions about Iraq, taxes or health care."

6. "We're screwed!"

5. "Can I just use that lipstick-pit bull thing again?"

4. "We have to wrap it up for the day -- McCain eats dinner at 4:30."

3. "Can we get Congress to bail us out of this debate?"

2. "John Edwards wants to know if you'd like some private tutoring in his van."

1. "Any way we can just get Tina Fey to do it?"

Matt Damon on Why Sarah Palin Scares The Hell Out Of Him (video)

Sarah Palin, Candidate for V.P, and Supermodel? Will the strategy to get the women vote misfire because she is too attractive?

McCain's Moon Property: Real Estate Even He Won't Forget

McCain's Moon Property: Real Estate Even He Won't Forget

Upon learning that Republican presidential candidate John McCain can't remember how many homes he owns, a company specializing in lunar real estate has offered the Arizona senator some property even he can't forget.

San Jose, Calif. August 22, 2008 -- Upon learning that Republican presidential candidate John McCain can't remember how many homes he owns, a company specializing in lunar real estate has offered the Arizona senator some property even he can't forget.

Lunar International, a company that offers lunar land claims to the public in order to support future lunar exploration efforts, has reserved an acre of moon property for McCain in the famed Sea of Tranquility.

Both properties are in the same lunar region, but they aren't right next door to each other

"We're truly touched that Senator McCain is so underwhelmed by his current homes that he can't even remember how many of them he owns," said Jackson James, president and chief lunar officer of Lunar International. "A man of his stature deserves real estate that's truly memorable."

Thanks in part to the popularity of the Google Lunar X Prize and other private space-tourism endeavors, the dream that non-astronauts can travel to outer space someday appears to be imminently achievable. A handful of organizations, including Lunar International, believe that private ownership and development of land on the moon will be the next logical step.

Lunar International donates a portion of each sale to the Society for Lunar Exploration and Development, an organization attempting to establish a system that allows regular Earth-bound citizens to own moon property. Should the group achieve its goals, those who purchased land claims through Lunar International -- and those like Senator McCain who received it as a gift -- would enjoy full property rights to their slice of real estate on the moon.

James said the company has also reserved an acre of moon property in the Sea of Tranquility for Democratic presidental candidate Barack Obama as well.

"Both properties are in the same lunar region, but they aren't right next door to each other," said James. "We thought that might just be too awkward."

The Commander in Chief Test - One Of The Funniest Political Video's I've Ever Seen

Fox News Busted As Scott McClellan Admits That The White House And Fox Are In Bed Together (video)

Clinton says she's open to being Obama's VP

WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton told colleagues Tuesday she would consider joining Barack Obama as his running mate, and advisers said she was withholding a formal departure from the race partly to use her remaining leverage to press for a spot on the ticket.

On a conference call with other New York lawmakers, Clinton, a New York senator, said she was willing to become Obama's vice presidential nominee if it would help Democrats win the White House, according to several participants in the call.

Clinton's remarks came in response to a question from Democratic Rep. Nydia Velazquez, who said she believed the best way for Obama to win key voting blocs, including Hispanics, would be for him to choose Clinton as his running mate.

"I am open to it," Clinton replied, if it would help the party's prospects in November. Her direct quote was described by two lawmakers who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak for Clinton.

Clinton also told colleagues the delegate math was not there for her to overtake Obama, but that she wanted to take time to determine how to leave the race in a way that would best help Democrats.

"I deserve some time to get this right," she said, even as the other lawmakers forcefully argued for her to press Obama to choose her as his running mate.

Joseph Crowley, a Queens Democrat who participated in the call, said her answer "left open the possibility that she would do anything that she can to contribute toward a Democratic victory in November. There was no hedging on that. Whatever she can do to contribute, she was willing to do."

Another person on the call, Rep. Jose Serrano of New York City, said her answer was "just what I was hoping to hear. ... Of course she was interested in being president, but she's just as interested in making sure Democrats get elected in November."

Rep. Charles Rangel, a devoted booster of Clinton who helped pave the way for her successful Senate campaign, said he spoke to her Tuesday and got much the same answer.

"She's run a great campaign and even though she'll be a great senator, she has a lot of followers that obviously Obama doesn't have, and clearly the numbers are against her and so I think they bring all parts of the Democratic Party together and then some," Rangel said.

Aides to the Illinois senator said he and Clinton had not spoken about the prospects of her joining the ticket.

Obama effectively sewed up the 2,118 delegates needed to win the nomination Tuesday, based on a tally of pledged delegates, superdelegates who have declared their preference, and another 18 superdelegates who have confirmed their intentions to The Associated Press. It also included five delegates Obama was guaranteed as long as he gained 15 percent of the vote in South Dakota and Montana later in the day.

Word of Clinton's vice presidential musings came as she prepared to deliver a televised address to supporters on the final night of the epic primary season. She was working out final details of the speech at her Chappaqua, N.Y., home with her husband, former President Bill Clinton, their daughter Chelsea, and close aides.

Earlier, on NBC's "Today Show," Clinton campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe said that once Obama gets the majority of convention delegates, "I think Hillary Clinton will congratulate him and call him the nominee."

Clinton will pledge to continue to speak out on issues like health care. But for all intents and purposes, two senior officials said, her campaign is over.

Most campaign staff will be let go and will be paid through June 15, said the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to divulge her plans.

The advisers said Clinton has made a strategic decision to not formally end her campaign, giving her leverage to negotiate with Obama on various matters including a possible vice presidential nomination for her. She also wants to press him on issues he should focus on in the fall, such as health care.

Universal health care, Clinton's signature issue as first lady in the 1990s, was a point of dispute between Obama and the New York senator during their epic nomination fight.

Other names have been floated as possible running mates for Obama, including New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, and governors including Janet Napolitano of Arizona, Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas and Tim Kaine of Virginia. Also mentioned are foreign policy experts including former Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn, Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd and Delaware Sen. Joe Biden, and other senators such as Missouri's Claire McCaskill and Virginia's Jim Webb.

Obama could also look outside the party to people such as anti-war Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska or independent New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg. Or he could look to one of his prominent supporters such as former Sen. Tom Daschle of South Dakota or try to bring on a Clinton supporter, such as Indiana's Sen. Evan Bayh or retired Gen. Wesley Clark.

Breaking News : Hillary letting go of her staff as of Tuesday. To concede shortly thereafter.

Several connected bloggers on the net are reporting that Hillary Clinton will be letting her staffers go on Tuesday. 

She will concede the nomination to Obama shortly thereafter and endorse him.

Whether she will be his running mate is an open question at this point.  Hillary has done some significant damage to her credibility and I'm not sure they can run on the same ticket. 

At the same time, an Obama/Clinton ticket would be nearly impossible for McCain to beat.  However, the Democrats have a history of not making the right choices and this may be one. 

One remaining rumor is that Bloomberg might be the potential V.P. choice for Obama.  If Bloomberg is willing, this will be a killer ticket and hurt the Republican chances immensely.  The problem is that no one knows what Bloomberg has planned or will do at this stage.

McClellan: Bush should have fired Rove

WASHINGTON - President Bush broke his promise to the country by refusing to fire aide Karl Rove for leaking a CIA agent's identity, said Scott McClellan, the president's chief spokesman for almost three years.

"I think the president should have stood by his word and that meant Karl should have left," McClellan said Sunday in a broadcast interview about his new tell-all book, a scathing rebuke of the White House under Bush's leadership.

McClellan now acknowledges he felt burned by Rove, Bush's top political adviser, and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff. He said Rove and Libby assured him they were not involved in leaking CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity, and he repeated those assurances to reporters.

In fact, Rove and Libby did help leak Plame's identity, as confirmed in a later criminal investigation. Libby had resigned by then, but Rove remained in office and eventually stepped down on his terms in August 2007.

"I think the president should have stood by the word that we said, which was that if you were involved in this in any way, then you would no longer be in this administration. And Karl was involved in it," McClellan said.

White House press secretary Dana Perino declined comment Sunday, as did Rove's lawyer, Robert Luskin.

The White House had said in 2003 that anyone who leaked classified information in the case would be dismissed. Bush reiterated that promise in June 2004.

By July 2005, Bush qualified his position, saying he would fire anyone for leaking classified information if that person had "committed a crime."

Rove was never charged with a crime.

McClellan writes in his book that Bush backpedaled to protect Rove, a point McClellan repeated in the interview.

"We had higher standards at the White House," McClellan said. "The president said he was going to restore honor and integrity. He said we were going to set the highest of standards. We didn't live up to that. When it become known that his top adviser had been involved, then the bar was moved."

Current and former White House aides have disputed McClellan's account of a White House that pushed aside candor and honesty as needed.

McClellan says he shares some blame for getting caught up in the culture of spin and passing on information he later learned to be untrue.

On other topics from his book, McClellan said Sunday:

_He was part of a White House effort to shade the truth about the case for war in Iraq. "I was part of this propaganda campaign, absolutely," he said.

_His tone for the book changed and grew sharper as he wrote it, and he reached different conclusions than he anticipated. "I believe I have gotten to the truth, from my perspective."

_He anticipated the fierce reaction he has received from critics, including former Sen. Bob Dole, who called McClellan a "miserable creature" motivated by greed. "This book takes aim at Washington, and there are many in Washington that were not going to be happy with it. I knew that going in," McClellan said.

_He would donate some profits from the book to families of those killed in the Iraq war.

McClellan was Bush's press secretary from July 2003 to April 2006. The White House says Bush was surprised, saddened and disappointed about the book, which is titled, "What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception."

McClellan appeared on "Meet the Press" on NBC.

After Wright ordeal, Obama now up by 11 points over John McCain

Please refer to this post for background on this story....

http://icantseeyou.typepad.com/my_weblog/2008/04/were-reverend-w.html

The prior story I wrote effectively gave my opinion that the Rev Wright comments that eventually gave Obama a reason to distance himself from the Wright were politically planned. 

The story below shows how effective this Obama/Wright plan was and how it not only diffused the situation but helped Obama really jump up past McCain.  Political genius I say.  I haven't heard anyone out there with my theory (which I posted in the above linked story right away) that the Wright insanity was a planned way to give Obama the distance he needed from the Rev.  I'd like to give my kudos to the Obama team for such a brilliant move.

Democrat Barack Obama appears to have rebounded from some of the damage caused by the controversy surrounding his former pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright, according to the latest CBS News/New York Times poll.

On one key measure, Obama has seen a big reversal since his denunciation of Wright’s remarks on Tuesday. He now leads presumptive Republican nominee John McCain in the hypothetical fall contest by eleven points, 51 percent to 40 percent. That compares to a tied match-up in a CBS News/New York Times poll that was released last Wednesday.

Positive assessments of how Obama has handled the situation with Wright are also reflected by a continued lead over fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton in his battle for their party’s nomination. Among Democratic primary voters (those who have voted or plan to vote in a Democratic primary) Obama’s lead over Clinton has increased -- he now leads Clinton by twelve points, 50 percent to 38 percent. That’s up from his eight point lead in the poll released just a few days ago.

However, among all registered voters who identify themselves as Democrats (regardless of whether they have voted or plan to vote in a Democratic primary) Obama and Clinton are virtually tied -- 45 percent for Clinton and 44 percent for Obama. This is similar to the numbers earlier in the week.

The poll also shows good news for both Democrats in a campaign versus McCain in the fall. Just like Obama, Clinton’s lead over McCain has jumped, from 5 to 12 points.

ndependents back Obama in a head to head against McCain, but in a Clinton-McCain contest independents support McCain by five points. However, more Democrats say they will vote Clinton in the fall than say they will vote for Obama.

The poll shows that almost eight in ten Democratic primary voters would support either Obama or Clinton against McCain in November. Among Democratic primary voters who support Obama now, 70 percent say they would vote for Clinton in November if she is the Democratic nominee. Among those who support Clinton now, 60 percent say they would vote for Obama if he is the nominee.

This poll was conducted after Obama’s public comments on Tuesday denouncing Wright’s statements, something most voters think he handled well. Democratic primary voters are especially approving.

By a margin of nearly three to one, registered voters who have heard about the situation approve of how Obama has handled it, with 60 percent approving to 23 percent who disapprove. Among Democratic primary voters, the margin is 68 percent to 22 percent.

Just over half of registered voters say Obama has been appropriately critical of his ex-pastor. But one in four voters (and slightly more Republicans) would have liked him to have gone further in his rejection.

However, 47 percent of voters see political motivation as the main reason behind Obama’s decision to renounce his minister. Fewer, 34 percent, think the split came mainly because Obama disagreed with things Wright said.

A large number of voters - three-quarters - say that what Wright has said has not changed their opinion of Obama. However, Wright has caused 24 percent to change their view, with 22 percent saying their view of Obama is less favorable. Republicans are more likely than Democrats or Independents to describe the Wright impact negatively.

Favorable views of Obama have rebounded some in this poll compared to earlier in the week when his ratings had dipped in the days after Wright’s recent speeches. Forty-four percent now say they have a favorable view of Obama, compared to 39 percent on Wednesday and 43 percent back in March. His negative rating is 30 percent now, compared to 34 percent on Wednesday and 24 percent in March.

When voters are asked about their support for Obama as a candidate, the impact of the Wright situation is again negative -- but limited. Seventy-three percent say say it has not changed their likelihood of voting for him, 18 percent say it makes it less likely and six percent say it makes them more likely. As with personal views of Obama, it is Republicans most likely to report a negative impact.

Most voters also say they do not expect Wright’s impact to linger in their own minds. Only about one in ten say this will affect their November vote a lot, with 73 percent saying it will not affect them at all. The impact appears strongest, however, among Republicans, who are least likely to vote for any Democrat.

However, some perceptions of Obama’s qualities have shifted in the last few weeks, and he has lost his edge over Clinton on some past strengths. He is behind both Clinton and McCain on the question of who is tough enough to make the hard decisions a president must. Seven in 10 think both Clinton and McCain are tough enough to make the right decisions a President has to make. Fifty-eight percent say this about Obama.

But more voters, 52 percent, view Obama as the candidate who would unite the country. Slightly fewer now say this about Clinton and McCain is the weakest on this characteristic. Obama has gone down in this measure from February when 67 percent said he would unite the country.

No candidate now has a clear lead when it comes to the candidate who shares the values of most Americans. Sixty percent now say that Obama shares the values of most Americans, but this is down from 64 percent last week, and from 70% a month ago. Four in 10 of those who do not think Obama shares their values say their opinion of Obama has been negatively impacted by the Wright controversy. And most of these voters say Obama distanced himself from Wright for political reasons and not because he really disagreed with his statements.

The poll also asked voters about their opinion of lifting the federal gas tax over the summer, a proposal supported by McCain and Clinton, but not by Obama. Forty-nine percent think lifting the tax is a bad idea, while 45 percent approve of the plan. Most Republicans approve of the idea and most independents disapprove, while Democrats are divided. Americans are also divided on this issue by income: Americans making under $30,000 a year approve of a gas tax “holiday” for the summer, but most Americans making more do not.

The poll also found that many are skeptical of the motives of the public figures that support the idea of a temporary lifting of the federal gasoline tax: seven in 10 think they support the measure mostly to help themselves politically. Even most Americans who approve of the idea think so.

In this poll, Clinton is the candidate most viewed as pandering: Just 34 percent think she says what she believes, while nearly two in three believe she says what people want to hear. For both Obama and McCain, just over half say they say what he believes and four in 10 think they say what voters want to hear.

The debate over the gas tax comes as America’s view of the condition of the national economy reaches new lows. According to the poll, 83 percent think the condition of the national economy is bad - the highest number recorded by the CBS News/New York Times poll since this question was first asked in 1986. Only 16 percent say the economy is even somewhat good, also a record low. The view of the condition of the economy has dropped six points since last week, and it has dropped 22 points since the beginning of the year.

Lastly, the poll found that President Bush’s job approval rating remains at 28 percent, the same as on Wednesday. Mr. Bush’s approval rating has not risen above 30% in over a year.