Friday, May 30, 2008

NRO's Corner: MARSHALL FOR SENATE!

National Review Online's Jack Fowler endorsed conservative Bob Marshall over Jim Gilmore:
What’s the support of National Review’s publisher worth? Yes, a club soda on an NR cruise. But whatever its worth, I hope it helps: I’m backing Bob Marshall, and I hope to heck he wins tomorrow and in November to become the Commonwealth’s next senator.
I'll buy the first club soda.

Young Hillary Clinton

See y'all at the Convention!

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Virginia Virtucon: Team Frederick Accuses Team Hager of Denying Convo Delegates Access to Materials?

So I read this, and decided to see whether or not it was true. Time to call Josh Noland (RPV Comm Dir) and figure out what's what.

Pick up the phone to do some sleuthing... I decided to live blog the call (well, not really... but you'll get the general gist of the conversation):

Shaun: Hey, is Josh around?
...
Josh: Hey.
Shaun: Hey, see this Frederick e-mail on Virtucon? That's nuts! Is it true?
Josh: No. In fact, Jeff can come and pay to include stuff in the packet right now if he wanted.
Shaun: Really?
Josh: Really.
Shaun: Wow. Did anyone else have to pay?
Josh: Sure. Most everyone participated except Bob Marshall.
Shaun: Everyone?
Josh: John Brownlee paid to put stuff in there.
Shaun: Wow.
Josh: Yeah. Even the Log Cabin Republicans paid to put literature in the convention packets.
Shaun: Really?
Josh: Yep.
Shaun: But not Jeff Frederick?
Josh: Nope.
Shaun: Gee... that's kinda messed up.
Josh: *silence*
Shaun: So uhh... how's things?
Josh: Busy. In fact, I have a ton of other things to worry about.
Shaun: Uhh... yeah... I uhh... I guess that's true...
Josh: Yep...
Shaun: Umm.... I'll let you get back to saving America.
Josh: No problem. It's what we do.

*click*

One might think that Frederick would be inclined to financially assist the organization he intends to represent... or is that asking too much?

UTB: An Open Memo to the Republican Party

Great post to consider heading into the Virginia Republican Convention this weekend:
So, you really consider yourselves the heirs of Ronald Reagan ?

Well, watch this speech from 1964, then come back and tell me how anything that has happened between 20 January 2001 and today even comes close to living up to this ideal and how John McCain even comes close.
Mataconis does his talking through the Great Communicator himself... and the 12 min YouTube video is worth watching.

Is he right?

(I'm not talking about Doug.)

Fight Club in Union Square

For those who don’t live in New York, Union Square has historically been a giant meeting place for political protesters, social activists, and merchants of all sizes. In the days following September 11th, it was a meeting place for rescuers and mourners alike. Now it’s home to a multiplex, Ann Taylor Loft, a Whole Foods, and a Diesel store.

So really, it makes perfect sense that in the inner chamber of Manhattan’s consumer culture, right there in Union Square, there would be a massive, public fight club.

You hooked yet? Well... me neither, but it'd be fun to watch.

Jonathan Martin's Blog: The Christian conservative debate-cum-smackdown I want to see

Me too.

Virginia Virtucon: Warner for VP?

Connecticut Yankee Mark Warner says he's being considered as Obama's VP pick, which just sends the depth of his committment to Virginia to new levels of shallowness.

Marxists/Socialists/Communists for Obama!

I kid you not. Click here before it goes away!

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Bearing Drift: Convention Coverage and Jeffersoniad Hospitality

Jim Hoeft over at Bearing Drift has all the details on the Jeffersoniad Blog Alliance hospitality suite at this weekend's RPV State Convention.

RWL: Gilmore Breaks Out the Tin Foil Hats!

D.J. McGuire describes what he calls (rightly) the "most creative conspiracy theory I’ve ever seen."

Apparently, because Bob Marshall prefers nuclear power to fossil fuels, and because he his record against “sprawl” won him the endorsement of the Sierra Club in his House of Delegate races, STD sees the entire Marshall for Senate campaign as a sinister Eco-Nazi conspiracy.
Rappahannod Red gives us this hilarious take:

The Right-Wing Liberal (a conservative blog if you don’t get the pun) had a nice roundup of the desperation of the few remaining Gilmore bloggers who haven’t jumped the sinking ship yet.
Needless to say, Mrs. Kenney informs me that there is a fairly vicious screed from Team Gilmore at the house via snail mail, saying Marshall isn't a "reliable conservative" and listing votes viewed as favorable by the Sierra Club as one of his many sins.

Sounds like the wheels are coming off to me.

UPDATE: Marshall's staff has the Gilmore slick... and it looks like something from the hit-and-run playbook. Clearly this hit piece isn't the hallmark of someone confident of victory.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

WTOP on Gilmore: From Blowout to Squeaker?

Bob Lewis reports on what has gone from Gilmore's crass denial, to open season on Bob Marshall, to... well, a tacit concern from former Governor Jim Gilmore that he might not have the horses to win this weekend:
'We haven't tried to overpower the opponent. We simply want to win the nomination.'
From blowout to squeaker? Not exactly the same talking points Team Gilmore was parading before reporters a mere three weeks ago, nor is Gilmore's weak showing what most political pundits expected from a former RNC Chairman:
A closely contested convention and a narrow margin aren't what Republicans want as they begin their quest to retain the seat of five-term Republican Sen. John W. Warner. Even in Virginia, where Republicans have won 13 of the past 14 White House races, the GOP is sorely burdened by a deeply unpopular Republican president.

"If it's even vaguely close, Jim Gilmore will look like he's in even deeper trouble and will raise even less money," said professor Larry J. Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics. "If a former governor can't put away a gadfly state legislator and do it easily, that's a very bad signal."
Gadfly indeed, as Marshall has been taking body blows to Gilmore's record on amnesty, including a recent endorsement for Marshall from Rep. Tancredo amidst several key endorsements.

So what if Warner has the GOP candidates outraised 8:1? Given the fact that Marshall has done more with his $78K than Gilmore has done with nearly 13 times that amount says all we need to know about Marshall's effacacy this coming November against Democrat Mark Warner.

This ability to mobilze the conservative grassroots is the key to Republican victory in November. Bolling did it, McDonnell did it, the 2006 Marriage Amendment did it -- while failure to mobilize conservatives turns into systematic defeat time after time.

In 1993, Mike Farris bumped off the presumptive nominee at a convention in a huge victory for social conservatives. In an election year when conservatives are looking for a reason to stay involved, a Marshall vs. Warner fight sure looks promising.

OTB: Webb for VP Backlash

Seems as if some Democrats are questioning the ideological purity and questionable past of Democratic Senator Jim Webb, mostly by bringing up every single point the press refused to discuss brought up by Republicans in 2006.

The Next Right

The Next Right went live about 24 hours ago. Sign up and sound off!

Monday, May 26, 2008

Twitter / MarsPhoenix

FINALLY! A worthwhile use for Twitter!

What is it? Twittering the Mars Phoenix project, where NASA is literally task-by-task updating their progress. Pictures, events, or teases on new discoveries.

Now this I like.

Merlin German Dead at 22

You've seen this guy before, a Marine blown out of his Humvee in 2005 and was never expected to live the three days it would take to get him home.

He held on for three years. His story is nothing short of amazing. Sadly, Merlin passed away last month during what his friends and family would have considered "routine" surgery -- adding skin to his lower lip.

Read it all.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Northern Virginia Conservative

Meet and greet the newest Marshall for Senate endorsee over at The Northern Virginia Conservative, remarkable because this blog had formerly endorsed Jim Gilmore and thought better of it:
A few months ago, I endorsed Jim Gilmore's Senate candidacy on this blog. This campaign has shown me that he is NOT the man for the job. He is a classic glad-handing establishment politician. The Republican party, particularly here in the Old Dominion, is at a crisis point in terms of not only electoral success, but in terms of its identity. We have lost our way very, very badly the past few years by pandering to a very loud, very boorish social conservative minority, while at the same time making a Faustian bargain with people who are anything but conservative for the sake of winning. The worst part is that we keep losing despite that.

It's time for a change. Bob Marshall actually took the time to call me personally a week or two ago, and spent half an hour making a powerful case for his candidacy. I part ways with him on some social issues, but he is absolutely right on on just about everything else from fiscal issues to border security and immigration. He does not ever compromise his fundamental principles. It's just not close.
I can hear the laughter of the more jaded politicos now... a half hour talking to one voter???

Yep.

That's how much Marshall cares. Name me another politician who would do that for an undecided voter?

MUTH’S TRUTHS: Subway Bans Home Schoolers From Contest

My business now goes to Wawa or Quiznos.

Radar Online: A Call to Arms Against Millennials

There are 80 million Gen Y to about 30 million Gen Xers, and it would appear that it is the overwhelming opinion of Gen X that their younger counterparts are... well... stupid, lazy, and weak. A generation just waiting to be told what to do, just to watch them do it poorly.

I rest firmly in that middle ground -- Gen XY, the MTV Generation, you-name-it. Gen X in our mindset and approach, we are solidly familiar with everything Gen Y does and "speak the language" (spk teh lgng?) to a point. It's the generation born between 1976 and 1982 that spans the gap.

What makes Gen XY so unique? We're the folks who watched Soviet Communism fall. We drank in heavy doses of MTV. We watched fought the War on Terrorism when it was Cobra Commander and Destro threatening the world. We have seen the future of hidden technology -- not RFIDs, but TransFormers and Voltron. We made the transition from Atari to Nintendo to PC with effortless ease. We programmed our own C64 games. We grew up with Ronald Reagan. We watched Reagan and Gorbachev hold summit after summit.

Overwhelmingly, we rock.

Gen Y may have it's problems, but I wonder how much of that is because Gen X is so buttoned down and professional? True, straddling the fence has it's advantages, but that is what makes the Gen XY/MTV Generation so uniquely positioned to take advantage of the best of both worlds.

Double Knockout?

Is this like the unassisted triple play of boxing (or UFC, as it were)? The monster slam? The Hail Mary pass? I dunno... but it looks brutal.

OTB: Libertarian Party Embraces Big Tent?

Bob Barr, Tucker Carlson, and Richard Viguerie headline the Libertarian Party Convention? Is the LP losing it's libertarian moorings?

Not so, says McQ over at QandO:
No kidding. In fact it appears a conservative attempt at takeover of the good old non-factor LP.

But don't worry James - the guardians of the "real" LP won't let it happen - trust me on that.
Joyner doesn't seem convinced... but it does seems as if the LP is about to have a crisis of conscience between it's purists and the disaffected legions of the GOP.

There are some who might argue the converse -- that elements of Grover Norquist's "Leave Me Alone" coalition are reforming around the Libertarian Party. If so, stalwarts in the LP are going to have to come to a decision as to how to absorb the majority (and it will be a majority) of fiscal conservatives flocking to their banner.

Is it going to happen? I doubt it seriously. Libertarians are not conservatives for a reason... try arguing the pro-life, pro-drug war schtick within the hallowed walls of the LP and see what happens to you!

Bivings Report: John McCain, Strike Three

When I got started in 2007, one of the first things I asked for was an overhaul of the website... a piece of junk the Republican Party of Virginia was being charged someone's salary (yes -- it was that much) to "maintain" with an antiquated CMS and terrible graphics. It was unworkable, unnavigable, and unresponsive... at best.

Of course, there's politics behind why that is. Some folks on Executive Committee at the time didn't trust (and still don't understand) the blogosphere. There were some hurt feelings from some higher-ups about letting the previous web providers go. Above all, static content and message control was the mantra, whereas surrendering the site to bloggers, activists or others was tantamount to heresy.

In a nutshell, that's why we could never get the RPV site into a true blog. Nevertheless, baby steps are being taken to make sure the site gets to where it needs to go (functionality at this point has trumped style, but this is good in the long haul). Commonwealth Conversations -- RPV's revamp of "The Red Stater" newsletter -- is a solid step in that direction.

The new RPV website will indeed rock. That's a promise, not a forecast.

But back to topic....

Those consultants that RPV fired? The ones influencing some key folks at RPV not to engage the blogosphere? Unfortunately, they're the same people running John McCain's website, who pretty much just ripped the Obama site and made it McCain-ier.

I will give the McCain team some credit. They are trying. But this website looks as if it was made for the "silver surfer" (65 years or older) rather than the social networking crowd. It's a damned mess, lacking originality and completely unfocused.

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Back from Missouri

In case folks were wondering why I had not blogged in the last few days, I was on a business trip to St. Louis this week. All and all, not bad.

Of course, I return to all sorts of happenings in the blogosphere. Gilmore hearts amnesty, the Jeffersoniad Blog Alliance has a hospitality suite for the RPV Convention, Hillary hearts assassinations, and lo and behold -- to make up for it all -- I give you the greatest baseball pitch ever:

Not bad...

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

VDH: The Problem is not conservatism...

... it's conservatives who aren't conservative, as author Victor Davis Hanson explains.

(h/t to From On High)

WaTimes Slams Kaine on Transportation

A simple yet modest proposal from the editors of the Washington Times:
Rather than raise taxes, the state should reapportion its laughable transportation funding allocation away from politically influential but underpopulated parts of the state.
Heh.

Cuccinelli Leads in Poll by 2:1

With no duplicate IPs and one vote per 24 hours, Cuccinelli has a commanding lead over Brownlee for the Republican AG nomination.

Readers here can vote on the far right, whereas other Jeffersoniad bloggers have posted the poll in various conspicuous places. Poll will remain open... online polls tend to reflect a combination of numbers plus enthusiasm, so in that sense alone they are useful.

Go vote!

Gillespie Hammers NBC

And rightly so over the editing of President Bush's interview with NBC regarding Iran:
Bush aides were angered by how the president's answer was portrayed when Engel questioned him about his condemnation of 'the false comfort of appeasement' in an address last week to the Israeli Knesset. NBC stood by its treatment of the interview Monday.

Bush had mentioned the president of Iran in his speech, and said: 'Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along.'

Obama's campaign considered that statement an attack on him, which the White House has denied.

Engel asked Bush if he was referring to Obama in his speech.

As it appeared on 'Nightly News' Sunday and the 'Today' show Monday, Bush's response was: 'You know, my policies haven't changed, but evidently the political calendar has ... And when, you know, a leader of Iran says that they want to destroy Israel, you've got to take those words seriously.'

But the White House said NBC edited out these words that Bush said between those two sentences: 'People need to read the speech. You didn't get it exactly right, either. What I said was that we need to take the words of people seriously.'

Bush counsel Ed Gillespie, in a letter to NBC News President Steve Capus, said that 'this deceitful editing to further a media-manufactured storyline is utterly misleading and irresponsible.' He asked that the network air Bush's response in full on the two programs.
NBC countered by saying the unedited interview has been available since Sunday on the network's Web site, and that the reporting accurately reflects the interview.
Interpretation: NBC knows what President Bush intended to say, so they edited his remarks until they got what they wanted?

Of course, rumors are swirling that the United States is preparing to attack Iran before the end of President Bush's term, a move welcomed by the Israelis but cautioned against by SecDef Gates and SecState Rice back in Washington.

You would have missed this if one relied entirely on NBC for "facts" and ethical reporting.

UPDATE: The Hill has more from the Gillespie memo:
Gillespie used the opportunity to also inquire whether NBC News still believes that Iraq is in the midst of a civil war. In November 2006, the network decided to label the infighting in the country a “civil war.”

“I noticed that around September of 2007, your network quietly stopped referring to conditions in Iraq as a ‘civil war,’ ” Gillespie wrote. “Is it still NBC News’s carefully deliberated opinion that Iraq is in the midst of a civil war? If not, will the network publicly declare that the civil war has ended, or that it was wrong to declare it in the first place?”
Don't you just love it when the media tries to create facts that just aren't true? Of course, it certainly makes one shudder that 75,000 people in Oregon rallied to a candidate whose prime issue -- failure in Iraq -- is by and large manufactured (yes, manufactured) by the MSM... that's 75,000 Obama supporters willing to be lied to in order to relive the '60s.

Go get 'em, Ed.

Monday, May 19, 2008

VJP: Can the tent become too big?

Hampton Roads area Democrat Vivian Paige asks the tough question about coalition building:
That the Democrats with the majority can’t get stuff done is a problem. I understand that universal health care has been in the party platform for decades but does anyone think that such legislation could pass our current Congress?

So my question is this: can the tent be too big?
The answer is yes, depending on how big a circle you draw. Take the 2000 Virginia Republican majority... what did it accomplish, other than to throw the Democrats out of power?

Hence the lesson, one that I am afraid national Democrats have yet to learn.

The less simplistic answer to all of this is that "big tents" aren't difficult to establish, so long as those inside understand what the long poles are. For the GOP, it used to be that the long poles were less government, pro-life, pro-family, and pro-2nd Amendment. For the 1994 Contract with America, there were 10 key votes and an overwhelming anti-Clinton sentiment.

In 2006, it was anti-Bush sentiment (not anti-war sentiment -- as the current Democratic majority is demonstrating) that drove the train. Mission accomplished... and now the Democratic majority will have to squabble between its progressive and liberal wings for vision while the Republicans shift gears into a minority party with which they have long been comfortable.

The tent built by the Democrats in 2006 was pretty darned big... but when the edifice comes crashing down, my bet is that it will occur with plenty of warning, just as the conservative base cautioned in 2006 and continues to warn the GOP leadership heading into 2008.

BVBL: The Hubris Of Jim Gilmore

This is disgusting if it is in the slightest bit true:
Jim (Gilmore's) morning started uneventfully at the 8th District, where he and Bob Marshall both gave speeches. Then Bob Marshall left for the 10th District as he should have, but Jim Gilmore went to the closer 11th District instead. At that convention candidate speeches were scheduled to start after the first balloting, which everyone who had bothered to contact Becky Stoeckel (another failure by Jim Gilmore) knew. Sitting in the front row waiting for an opportunity to deliver his pearls of wisdom, while glaring at temporary Chairman Jay O’Brien for being delayed, Gilmore finally lost his patience, stormed the stage, took the microphone away, and launched into a rather lengthly speech. Many convention delegates were pretty stunned, not only because of this incredible display of hubris and self-importance, but because Gilmore actually ended up delaying the first ballot. Gilmore almost certainly lost quite a few delegates with this display.
It gets worse.
By the time Gilmore made his way over to the 10th District convention, the show was pretty much over. Gilmore and his staff met with 10th District Chairman Jim Rich where Rich was subjected to an angry tirade by one of Gilmore’s staffers, Jesse, who complained that Rich shouldn’t have let Bob Marshall speak until Gilmore was there. Gilmore then gave his speech to the thirty or so people remaining, some who were busy cleaning up trying to get out of there, and not terribly interested in listening to someone who shows up wanting recognition after the show was over.
Looks as if Gilmore's situation in Northern Virginia went from pecarious to overtly hostile in the span of a weekend.

Not good.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Jim Webb for VP

Jim Webb is on the short list for VP.

Don't believe me? Read this and believe.

I will add the following: If Obama-Webb is the ticket for the Democratic nomination in 2008, the GOP is in a universe (not world) of hurt.

CatHouse Chat: This week's Jeffersoniad Journal

Kat over at CatHouse Chat gives the Virginia blogosphere a first look at the Jeffersoniad Journal.

I'm certain this will be a running feature for the very best of the Virginia rightosphere's blogging talent.

Friday, May 16, 2008

President McCain's Questions

Republican presidential nominee John McCain says he's going to bring Prime Minister's Questions stateside, which is a tremendous idea:
"I will ask Congress to grant me the privilege of coming before both houses to take questions, and address criticism, much the same as the prime minister of Great Britain appears regularly before the House of Commons," McCain said in excerpts of a speech he is to deliver later in Columbus, Ohio.

Although U.S. presidents deliver annual "State of the Union" speeches to Congress at the start of each year, those formal addresses do not include a question-and-answer session.

McCain said exchanges such as those in the British House of Commons are a way of holding leaders accountable.

"When we make errors, I will confess them readily, and explain what we intend to do to correct them," McCain said. He also reiterated a pledge to hold weekly news conferences, a change from President George W. Bush's practice of holding them roughly once a month.
Of course, there's a slight question as to whether or not the American talent for hyperbole will turn this into a farce... but even if it's not the President, how cool would it be for the Speaker of the House to trade barbs with the minority -- even without the potential backdrop of a parliamentary system (votes of no confidence, and the like)?

I love the parliamentary system of governance, and while I wouldn't replace what we have for it exclusively, I would certainly replace the lower house of any legislature with European-style slating for the purposes of election (and introduce a version of Prime Minister's Questions).

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Faux Outrage

As only Keith Olbermann can do it:


4,000 American soldiers died for nothing, Mr. Olbermann? Sounds like someone needs to take his own advice...

BTW, some genius PR toad decided the best way to spin this rant was to rank it as "his best Special Comments ever."

What an ass.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Obama: Israel is "a constant wound"

Seems like Obama has qualms expressing his opinion on Israel:
JG: Do you think that Israel is a drag on America’s reputation overseas?

BO: No, no, no. But what I think is that this constant wound, that this constant sore, does infect all of our foreign policy. The lack of a resolution to this problem provides an excuse for anti-American militant jihadists to engage in inexcusable actions, and so we have a national-security interest in solving this, and I also believe that Israel has a security interest in solving this because I believe that the status quo is unsustainable.
That's disgusting. Maybe Jim Webb would make a great VP candidate for Obama after all...

Poor Bill O'Reilly

Torn to pieces in only the way Stephen Colbert can do it:

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Jim Webb on being VP

"I'm not really interested. That’s all I want to say."

Let the crying at Raising Kaine commence.

Monday, May 12, 2008

The Contemporary Conservative: BREAKING...

This.

Dirty pool guys...

RWL: Oh, by the way, our Iraqi allies WON in Basra

Gee... why haven't we read this in the MSM?

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Is It Time to Invade Burma?

TIME Magazine asks an interesting philosophical question, whether a nation has the unilateral right -- or obligation -- to offer coercive humanitarian aid:
That's why it's time to consider a more serious option: invading Burma. Some observers, including former USAID director Andrew Natsios, have called on the U.S. to unilaterally begin air drops to the Burmese people regardless of what the junta says. The Bush Administration has so far rejected the idea — "I can't imagine us going in without the permission of the Myanmar government," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday — but it's not without precedent: as Natsios pointed out to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. has facilitated the delivery of humanitarian aid without the host government's consent in places like Bosnia and Sudan.

A coercive humanitarian intervention would be complicated and costly. During the 2004 tsunami, some 24 U.S. ships and 16,000 troops were deployed in countries across the region; the mission cost the U.S. $5 million a day. Ultimately, the U.S. pledged nearly $900 million to tsunami relief. (By contrast, it has offered just $3.25 million to Burma.) But the risks would be greater this time: the Burmese government's xenophobia and insecurity make them prone to view U.S. troops — or worse, foreign relief workers — as hostile forces. (Remember Black Hawk Down?) Even if the U.S. and its allies made clear that their actions were strictly for humanitarian purposes, it's unlikely the junta would believe them. "You have to think it through — do you want to secure an area of the country by military force? What kinds of potential security risks would that create?" says Egelend. "I can't imagine any humanitarian organization wanting to shoot their way in with food."
Wasn't Iraq ultimately coercive humanitarianism (sans NBC weapons)? If the liberation of Iraq was indeed moral and just, and I would argue it was, why not the liberation of Burma?

Of course, there are a few reason to the contrary. Iraq was playing footsie with a 1991 cease-fire agreement, Iraq destabilized a large portion of the Middle East, Iraq was actively supporting terrorism, Saddam Hussein was a brutal tyrant guilty of murdering hundreds of thousands of people, Iraq refused to come clean on it's WMD program, etc.

Then there's the flip side of the coin: Coercive humanitarian aid involving unfriendly natives doesn't exactly create the best environment. If the goal is not regime change, then the source of the unrest will continue unchecked and unabated. Images of dropping tons of food from C130s on suspecting Kurds comes to mind... then there's the whole "no blood for (fill in the blank)" crowd.

The Iraq/Burma parallel is interesting to draw. Thankfully, it's done in an article that doesn't mention Iraq once... so I'm free to draw my own conclusions, rather than have them imposed.

The Challenge Dividend: Facebook Ads Don't Rock

We're still a long ways from making social media work. Beyond political campaigns, most online fundraising doesn't seem to work without a strong earned media component.

Hence the reasons why political types and people who jump in front of the train (petitions and such) seem to catch the wave. It's not just building the storefront either... Obama spent nearly $800,000 priming the pump with online banner ads while using both earned media and an aggressive e-mail strategy (76 e-mails in 28 days???) to committed activists, only to watch his e-mail subscribers drop off the map dramatically.

Obviously there's great potential online, but how do you reach those online donors without burning out your base? For smaller campaigns, this will continue to be a problem, whereas smaller organizations with brand names to protect will not be able to counter burnout with positive earned media.

Campaigns will have to find a way to take care of their e-mail subscribers by using information, inside baseball, and opportunities for activism. Organizations willing to use online fundraising may find out that in the end... campaigns or single initiatives will be the trick to riding the online fundraising wave.

Burnout seems to be the watchword. Moments of brilliance seem to be the key to the "money bomb"; more tactics than strategy.

Jim Riley Endorses Bob Marshall

Jim Riley breaks his open neutrality in the Virginia U.S. Senate race and has endorsed Bob Marshall for U.S. Senate:
I know some Virtucon contributors support Marshall while others support Gilmore and yet others won’t support Marshall even if he is the nominee. I respect and understand everyone’s reasons. Do I agree with Bob 100 percent on things? No. But my compelling reason isn’t taxes or social issues. Rather, it is Marshall is simply a great candidate on transportation issues. He doesn’t advocate paving Maryland as I would, but he does support connecting I-95 through DC right up to College Park, something I have long advocated.
Riley joins the other veterans of the Virginia rightosphere over at Bloggers 4 Marshall.

Is the Democratic Nomination Really Over?

Obama is posting a lead, but truth be told, if the DNC actually seats the Florida and Michigan delegates who voted for Hillary, there is only a 30 delegate difference between the two candidates: 1920 to Obama and 1890 to Hillary.

Since this is the case, with myDD is reporting 55 superdelegates as "uncommitted" and 518 delegates still left up for grabs, one small legal challenge could up-end the entire apple cart.

It would appear as if Hillary's path to victory is still very much alive, despite how the press and the Obama camp are spinning the current state of affairs. Worse news? Polls seems to indicated that McCain edges out Obama in a head to head contest, but Hillary edges McCain...

Wild!

Click here for the coolest picture you'll see all weekend.

...unless you see a McCain/Cantor '08 announcement.

I'm just sayin'.

Gun Owners of America Endorses Bob Marshall!

Big news!

...well, big for some folks. Read on!
"It will take someone like [Marshall] to excite the Republican base, which he will do not just on the firearms issue," according to Macy. "At the moment, Republican voters are disillusioned because they do not see politicians taking their issues seriously."
Amen to that.

RWL: Are Gilmore’s bloggers actually reading these bills?

Time to sign somebody up for remedial reading classes, as D.J. McGuire takes the Gilmore bloggers to school -- AGAIN.

Curiously, this is being done by a Gilmore camp convinced (or trying to convince others) it has the nomination wrapped up. You only go negative when you're losing folks...

Thursday, May 08, 2008

TORNADO!

Just a bad thunderstorm at the moment... seems like it passed us over.

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Loose Cow

Top of the driveway coming home this evening... a loose cow.

Great.

John McCain and William Wilberforce

John McCain's frontpage gives us a quote from none other than William Wilberforce:
"When we think of eternity, and of the future consequences of all human conduct, what is there in this life that should make any man contradict the dictates of his conscience, the principles of justice, the laws of religion, and of God?" -- William Wilberforce
Awesome. And just in time to stand up for rock-solid conservative judges (you can sign the petition here).

Frankly, the speech McCain gave on human liberty reads to be one heck of a speech. Some excerpts:
Last year the world celebrated the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the British and American slave trade in 1807. Nearly fifty-six years would pass before Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, signaling the end of slavery in the United States. But the achievement of both countries in terminating the international slave trade and setting into motion the titanic and bloody struggle to close a shameful chapter in the history of our country should be remembered as a turning point in mankind's long and fitful progress toward a more just world. William Wilberforce had struggled for years in the British parliament to strike the lethal blow against the abominable institution that had scarred Western civilization for centuries. He was a humble Christian man, powerfully motivated by his faith, whose example instructs every person born in freedom that we have a moral obligation not to turn a blind eye to assaults on the collective dignity of humanity wherever they occur.

...

Confronting evil has never been easy – in our age or any other. But the failure to do so affects even those who are complacent with our own blessings and secure in our human rights.

...

We can retain our own freedom when others are robbed of theirs, but not the sense of virtue that made our revolution a moral as well as political crusade, and which recognizes that personal happiness is so much more than pleasure, and requires us to serve causes greater than self-interest.

...

There is another form of human oppression that persists in the world today that demands our urgent attention and should sting the conscience of every good person. Inexcusably, it is a crime that, while prevalent elsewhere, exists within our own borders as well. Human trafficking – slavery, by another name – exists not just in places like Thailand, Kuwait and Venezuela. It is a serious problem here in the United States.... As President, I'll increase cooperation and communication between all agencies of the federal government by establishing an Inter-Agency Task Force on Human Trafficking, whose purpose will be to focus exclusively on the prosecution of human traffickers and the rescue of their victims.

...

We must also do more to ensure governments that tolerate human trafficking crack down on this modern form of slavery. We can support efforts to change the economic incentives and do more to aid the victims. But we must view this evil form of twenty-first century slavery every bit as important as drug trafficking. All too often the same criminal networks that trade in fourteen-year-old girls also trade in narcotics--and even in materials that can be used by terrorists. Identifying and destroying criminal networks that evade national boundaries is also a matter of our national security.

...

Our nation, whose founders sacrificed for the belief that we would be an example to the world, has long appreciated that our freedom confers responsibilities on us all, and among them, is our respect for the freedom of others. Ours is not a perfect history. But it is a history distinguished by our pursuit of this ideal.

...

Ours is a nation with a conscience, and thank God we are. As William Wilberforce said so many years ago, "When we think of eternity, and of the future consequences of all human conduct, what is there in this life that should make any man contradict the dictates of his conscience, the principles of justice, the laws of religion, and of God?"
What a great speech. Whomever McCain's speechwriter is deserves a gold star (or at the very least, a raise).

RWL: The Warnerese-to-English Translator!

This is blogging gold:
In our third year, we traveled the Commonwealth, holding an honest discussion with Virginians about what they expected from state government. In the end, Republicans and Democrats came together and we fixed the budget mess.

In our third year, when Chichester and Potts asked for the moon; I fell down on my knees and thanked God for my good fortune. I went around the state promising I’d only raise taxes half as much as those clowns, and the rest is history.

We brought more fairness to our tax system.

We told those fools in Northern Virginia that if they paid even more through the nose, that we would use the money to fix roads - and they fell for it.

We saved our Triple-A bond rating.

Wall Street told me to cut spending or raise taxes. See above.
Beautiful. I sure do hope we can see more installments in upcoming Mark Warner speeches... because this clears up everything.

Roanoke Red Zone: Gilmore Frederick Cold Calls?

Typically when you ask a telemarketer on whose behalf they are calling, they let you know.

Unless of course, you don't want them to know:
The first oddity came when she asked if I needed a ride and a place to stay. I said no but I was really intriqued with who would be willing to pay for my gas and put me up at their house. Huh, I was dying to find out who was doing this so as she was wrapping up the call I asked. No answer. I asked again. Again no answer. She had disconnected or hung up. I have no way of knowing if she heard me ask her to state who was paying for the call. The call clearly was in violation of state election law.

I was guessing that the Gilmore campaign was sponsoring the calls since he has more money that others up for election at the convention. However I don't know for sure of course. If you talk to someone in the campaign you could mention they need to fix their "survey".
Guess that convention for Gilmore isn't so neatly wrapped up as some might think, eh?

UPDATE: Team Gilmore says it's not their script... it's not Marshall's script, and it's not John Hager's script. Which leaves one candidate for office at the State Convention left...

Finally.

I'll say this once, and then I'll never repeat it.

I agree with Barack Obama on virtually nothing. I have strong disagreements with John McCain on social issues. But for the first time in a long time, I can truly say that whomever wins will be a president with whom I may disagree with on policy, but I could truly say I'd be proud to be represented by them. Finally, two thinking individuals running for president... when is the last time we had this in America?

Having said that, Obama is a socialist hippie commie pinko. (whew, I feel better)

Let the 2008 elections begin!

Jerry Lisenby's "Age is Only a Number Biggest Loser" Bike Tour!

Kents Store sits along Route 76 -- the Trans-America Trail -- a bike trail that starts in Yorktown and ends in Astoria, Oregon.

Every once in awhile, we'll get bikers coming down the road heading towards Monticello who will stop at the store and visit, swap stories, and of course buy something to eat before heading down the road or camping out for the night.

Monday, our visitor was Jerry Lisenby, a gentleman some might recall from the TV show "The Biggest Loser". The Lisenby's needed to stay overnight, so we let them camp out in the yard and fed them breakfast before they went on their way. Heard some great stories about their time in the Peace Corps, Paraguay, and some other great experiences.

Along the way, Jerry and Lynne are promoting the Children's Home of Illinois, a charity back in their hometown of Peoria. Feel free to check out the website -- he tracks everywhere he's been with small notes about where he was -- blog and everything. Great site!

Monday, May 05, 2008

Kottke: Yahoo stock plunges?

On Jan 31, the day before Microsoft offered $31/share for Yahoo, YHOO was at $19.18/share (market cap: $26.4 billion) and MSFT was at $32.60/share (market cap: $303.6 billion). At the close of trading today, YHOO closed at $24.37/share (market cap: $33.5 billion) and MSFT was at $29.08/share (market cap: $270.8 billion). In other words, the Microsoft offer increased the value of Yahoo! Inc. by more than $7 billion and decreased the value of Microsoft Corporation by almost $33 billion. In still other words, in attempting to take Yahoo by force, they let an amount equal to Yahoo slip through their fingers. Why isn't anyone writing about Yahoo's amazing stock gains and Microsoft's plunge?"
Good point.

Sunday, May 04, 2008

Spike and Aurora

About a month ago, Radar (the family outside cat we adopted) looked a bit pregnant. Sure enough, Radar disappeared for a week, and came back less pregnant.

For about three weeks I've been picking on the cat. "Hey Radar, where's your babies?!?!" to the incessant mewing of a hungry cat.

This afternoon, we found one very black kitten in the garage, whom I pulled out of some junk and set her in a small box (where we placed Bucky last year). Sure enough, this evening I go to turn out lights and there is another kitten... a grey-and-white striped kitten who is mean as hell.

Caroline got to choose names. For the black kitten, she originally chose Aurora (we've been watching Sleeping Beauty), but since that doesn't fit both boy-and-girl names they settled on Spike.

Now we're going back. Aurora is the black kitten (she's nice) and Spike is going to be the striped kitten. Because Spike is mean as hell.

At this rate, I was hoping that Radar's track record of one kitten a year would continue. Now that the theory is disproven, we're going to have to spay and neuter these guys. On a lighter note, it looks as if my mouse/mole/vole problem will be fixed in the coming year. I'll take the trade.

The New Niagara Movement

African-American bloggers are going around traditional outlets such as the NAACP and forming their own conferences and such.

The result?

Civil Rights 2.0, as reported by the WaPo:
Others have another name for the new efforts by black bloggers: Civil Rights 2.0. Blogger L.N. Rock said that if abolitionist Frederick Douglass, former congressman Adam Clayton Powell Jr., civil rights organizer Bayard Rustin and "people like that were around today, they would have blogs."

"The NAACP's youth-outreach efforts are dysfunctional," Rock said. "We would have been glad to work with them had they asked. If you're talking about the talented tenth, we are the new talented tenth," a reference to a concept by Du Bois of a group of exceptional black men.

"The skill sets of the bloggers is no joke," Rock said. "These guys have doctorates. They're not being used."

But overtaking traditional civil rights groups, which have built their reputations over time, will take more than words, computer savvy and bravado. The NAACP alone has more than 300,000 members who pay dues and an additional 325,000 who have signed up online, the group's spokesman said. ColorOfChange.org has about 400,000 online members, Jones said.
Interesting...

SWAC Girl: Conservatives gaining ground in GOP ...

Updates from this weekend's GOP events show conservatives picking up or coming very close in several RPV positions.

Congratulations goes out to Marie Quinn, Kurt Michael (confirmed at Augusta GOP Chairman), Fred Anderson, and newly-minted 2nd District Chairman Gary Byler. Many of these victories on the right were above the endorsements of elected officials.

Here's the catch: Progressives are still being judged about their methods (for an example: Jim Webb in 2006) as they took over the Democratic Party from the liberal establishment. As conservatives re-establish their party (not take back -- because there's very little to reclaim), the manner of which we accomplish this will be just as important as the deed itself.

Beyond that, congratulations all!

The Shad Plank: Bob Marshall bites back against the inevitable Jim Gilmore...

Team Marshall takes a shot at Team Gilmore's supposed delegate lead... and takes shot at Dick Leggitt's past in Colorado:

Remember last week when former Gov. Jim Gilmore's campaign released internal canvassing numbers to suggest that Gilmore had wrapped up the Republican nomination to run for U.S. Senate.

At the time, the spokesman for Republican hopeful Bob Marshall called the claim "baloney," because delegates for the convention are still being elected.

On Thursday, Marshall's campaign got a little more personal, pointing on some of the history of Gilmore's political guru Dick Leggitt. Marhsall's team is pulling Leggitt's history and noting that he feed cooked polling data to reporters in Colorado in 2006.
That campaign was the Marc Holtzman campaign, one marked as a particularly vicious campaign against the eventual nominee, Congressman Bob Beauprez. You can read the details here. As a result of a poorly run campaign, some of the strangest ads I've ever seen run, and the bruising primary, Beauprez lost his gubernatorial bid to Democrat Bill Ritter by a 10pt. margin.

The conservative Rocky Mountain News back in May 2006 was particularly harsh, but focused more on whether someone should be sued for presenting false poll numbers (which was the rallying cry immediately after Leggitt came clean on the numbers as "spin"):

If Holtzman wants to employ someone who lies to the press in such brazen fashion, that's his business. Journalists will adjust their reports depending on whether they feel they can trust anything he now says. For some, the answer will be no.

But as for there being an obligation to fire Leggitt, that's nonsense. The Colorado law is - or at least should be - unconstitutional. You can't outlaw false campaign rhetoric, intentional or not. Indeed, we can hardly think of anything more destructive to free speech than inviting courts to rule on political truthfulness and honesty.
A little perspective is needed: No one is going to court in Virginia over delegate counts.

Yes. folks are going to dump on Dick Leggitt for awhile for previous missteps. That's stupid, because the best way to make sure you do have the horses is to bring them yourself. That's bring them, not count them on some spreadsheet in some vacated box store.

Personally, there's the nagging doubt that Leggitt might have the goods. How do I know? Because Leggitt isn't doing the delegate count for Gilmore -- Matt Wells is. Second, after getting caught in the Holtzman debacle, few good political hacks are willing to make the same mistake twice. Lastly... Dick Leggitt is a good guy who wants his guy to win. That's not a crime... loyalty to a fault, perhaps... but not a crime.

If Gilmore is off in the delegate count, it's because they are being misinformed by troops on the ground. Having worked with Matt before... well... he thought it was close, he'd be more worried. Then there's that small thing about delegates not wanting to be on the wrong side, so they tell both sides "of course I'm supporting ____________!!!!"

Psychology at it's best.

Marshall's team isn't wrong to bring up the past, but let's keep in mind one thing: Total number of delegates this adds to the actual tally? ZERO.

Get back to work!

(In the interests of full disclosure, I was in Colorado as campaign manager for the CO-04 race, starting in about a month after the Beauprez-Holtzman race had settled out... not only did I not have a dog in that race, I only had to deal with the aftermath in my corner of Northern and Eastern Colorado.)

Saturday, May 03, 2008

This is not Senatorial

Ugh.

I think I'd rather ask Ron's opinion... but I'm not one to leave folks in the lurch, because there's a right and a wrong way to do video (online or otherwise). So I'll advise.

For tips on how to properly do a YouTube video between a candidate and a consumer, read this:

Ever do a truly crappy job at something you cared about? That was me a month ago when I put together my first YouTube video. I did it - God forgive me for my sins - because the organizer of the Business of Software Conference in a fit of Pure Evil decided the only way for speakers to get on was to do a vote for me video.

...

After a month of sleepless nights and depressed days agonizing over what to do in this Brave New Video World, a strange golden light surrounded me early yesterday morning and an amazing calm filled me. A godlike voice said in my head, “This is television dummy! There’s always a take 2!”
Gilmore desperately needs a Take 2.

Of course, if you want to see one done right... well, you know where to look:

Now seriously, if you saw only these two videos, which would you vote for?

Lest this be confused for more shilling by yours truly for Marshall over Gilmore, check out Marshall's YouTube videos... and you will see nothing of the sort of one-on-one conversation (which I would strongly advise Marshall do).

Altogether, it does raise one question: If Gilmore truly intends to present the RPV Convention as a mere coronation rather than the contest it is shaping up to be, shouldn't the rank-and-file be able to point to at least one field where we are trouncing Mark Warner and the Democrats? Fundraising? Grassroots? Organization? Voter contact? Red-hot issues? Online media? Or God forbid -- real, solid pro-life, pro-limited government, pro-family, and pro-2nd Amendment issues that speak to our base????

Are we seriously being asked to count on McCain's coattails to soothe Gilmore's high negatives and carry the GOP to victory? I would much rather have the heads up contest of ideas Marshall will give us against Warner... without the baggage Gilmore brings to the table.

Perhaps I'm just hungry and sleepy (and therefore, grouchy). Therefore, I'm going to go back to mowing my lawn now... or maybe I'll be going fishing.

One of the two.

UPDATE: This is not the first time Gilmore has been offered feedback... once upon a time, a similar criticism for Gilmore's video announcing his 2008 presidential bid was issued from James Kotecki (of Politico fame)...

...and that was for Gilmore's abortive presidential run. Ouch.

TWSOMB: Is it possible for a blogger to be both Christian and Conservative?

Mike over at The Write Side of my Brain reflects on the condition of being both a Christian and a conservative.

Interesting (and worthwhile) read.

Friday, May 02, 2008

Baby Dropping!

Wheeee!

 

RedStormPAC

$

JEFFERSONIAD POLL: Whom do you support for Virginia Attorney General?

1) John Brownlee
2) Ken Cuccinelli

View Results

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ShaunKenney.com is one of Virginia's oldest political blogs, focusing on the role of religion and politics in public life. Shaun Kenney, 30, lives in Fluvanna County, Virginia.

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