The Master Returns – Clinton at the DNC
Say what you will about Bill Clinton. Love him, or hate him – the man’s got game. The former President took center stage at the DNC, and while most speakers might have been thinking, “How on earth can I get up there and follow Elizabeth Warren,” Elizabeth Warren ended up thinking, “Wow. I got to be Bill Clinton’s warm-up act.” It was clear from the first moments, that Clinton hasn’t lost a step. It was like watching a whale set free in the ocean. He was in his element, and all pistons were firing. He stood on the podium, and…
3 Key Speeches from the DNC Opening Night
Here are three key speeches from the first night of the Democratic National Convention that rocked the house in Charlotte, North Carolina – Congressional candidate Tammy Duckworth, San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro, and First Lady Michelle Obama. The transcripts are of the remarks as prepared. Tammy Duckworth, candidate for U.S. Congress “My name is Tammy Duckworth. I’m running to serve Illinois’ 8th Congressional District. My father served in the Army and the Marine Corps. A Vietnam vet, his family has worn our nation’s uniform since the American Revolution. My husband is an Army officer. My brother saved lives…
RIP, RNC. AK at DNC in NC!
Well, it was quite a week. Hurricane Isaac was the featured guest of the non-first night of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida. Then we were treated to days of hearing the sad tales of long-suffering Republicans who had to sell some stock to get by in their early years, and stories of struggle and fear that if they couldn’t make it, they’d be forced to rely on their wealthy and supportive families to come to the rescue. And worst of all, they had to eat… TUNAfish, and PASTA. Ohhh, the humanity. Ann Romney never quite said, “I feel…
Walker’s E-Update Hypocrisy
Editor’s note: Friend of the Mudflats Heather DuBois Bourenane is a Madison, WI activist who publishes the excellent Monologues of Dissent, where this is crossposted. Due to the selection of Paul Ryan as VP nominee, Wisconsin is once again in the national news and, as always, Heather’s is an invaluable progressive voice that speaks truth to power. Dear Scott Walker, Thanks for your latest E-Update. Considering that it came just a day after the national brouhaha, I was surprised and disappointed that it did not contain an apology or redaction for your embarrassing tripling-down on…
Eastwood, Palin and the Long Goodbye
Tropical Storm Isaac put a damper on the first day of the Republican National Convention. But nothing hit Tampa by surprise quite as much as what happened on the last day. Tuesday, it was announced that a special mystery guest speaker would appear before Mitt Romney on the final night of the convention. The most famous of the small tribe of Hollywood Republicans, Clint Eastwood took the stage. Dirty Harry looked a little more like Crazy Uncle Harry as he stood on the podium. But he’s 82, after all, and it happens to the best of them. The difference is…
Alaska Primary Wrap Up
Another election, another night at Election Central. This party was subdued overall, with only one or two over-eager campaigns doing the march with signs, balloons, and volunteers. Lora Reinbold, and Shelley Hughes had teams of people. Hughes also had a guy in some kind of unitard that covered his face completely in blue spandex. Not sure what was going on there, but I realized later that I’d been a bit disturbed and fled the scene before snapping a picture of him. There were quite a few candidates there, even those who had not faced a primary challenger. TV stations were…
On Quilt Squares and Life
By Kellie Coulson Several years ago I was a single mother going to a church where a founding family was getting ready to leave the state. Several months before their departure, a committeewoman gave me a 10” square and a cardboard heart with instructions to do something with the square and to create a heart on it however I wanted, as that square would be part of a quilt to represent my family on a church quilt. I went to a local fabric store with my little daughters and was directed to an area where women were poring over…
Murkowski Urges Akin to Step Down
Republican War on Women? What War on Women? There’s no War on Women. That’s just delusional Democrats trying to manufacture controversy and put words in the mouths of poor ol’ Republicans. Ohhhh, what those desperate Dems won’t sink to. That’s what Republicans would have you believe. Then, there’s what actually happens, and what comes out of their mouths. And it’s not just Republican men, although they’ve gotten the bulk of the attention. Back in June, a group of 24 Republican House women – a sort of firewall, if you will, to protect the image of the Party with women by…
Bob Bell is Oh So Super Special
You know those politicians whom nobody can stand – the ones that think the rules apply to absolutely everyone? No exceptions. Except for them. I got one for you. Remember that scandal that had Director of the Alaska Division of Wildlife Conservation, Corey Rossi, in the headlines for weeks? Rossi and his croneys from the Board of Game got busted flying into rural Alaska and pretending to subsistence hunt muskoxen for food. You see, there’s a really really expensive way of hunting muskoxen, and there’s a much less expensive way. One way, you have to enter a lottery for a permit…
Here Come the Attack Ads
Corporations will use new unlimited election spending rules to try to sway your vote this November. The smart move is to take attack ads and flyers from corporate groups you’ve never heard of with a grain of salt. Roughly 80 percent of these ads will be negative and deceptive. They were last election. The corporate spending goal is a one-party state, that will give away $2 billion/year in poorly crafted oil tax breaks under a governor’s bill that lets companies take that money and spend it outside Alaska. A Legislature that has balance on both sides of the aisle, and…