Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

the Pajama Pundit — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:15:28 GMT

If McCain picks Lieberman, it's all over. That choice would splinter the Right -- and further mobilize the Left.

All in all, it would be a great choice. :)

http://thepajamapundit.com/

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

BJ, CA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:17:00 GMT

Smoke and mirrors...McCain should announce before Obama to show how he is a leader and not the one man show he appears to be..
With Paris still in the running she should also bone up ...

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

squintz, philly, pa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:18:07 GMT

SEBELIUS!!!

I have nothing further to say on the matter.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Paul Miller, Woodbridge, VA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:23:53 GMT

Maybe McCain should pick his mother. It could be the "stop or my mom will bomb" ticket.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Nashville_fan — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:25:26 GMT

"The McCain campaign has very adroit of late of inserting itself into the media narrative at times when the assumption that Obama was going to own a week."
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
This is such an "insiders" statement - inserting itself into the media narrative?

I guess this is just a game like fantasy football these days, huh?

Good grief.

I guess that's why the score in the "punditocracy" is so different than the one out here in the real world . . . you all are living in a virtual reality.

Thing is if John McCain wins in your game, America loses in ours.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Alice, New York, NY — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:25:29 GMT

Forget swing states, political correctness, pleasing this constituency or that. Think of the VP as a stage prop to raise a presidential candidate's alpha cred. For Obama, Biden is the best bet. Tim Kaine in his 15 minutes looks too young and starry-eyed. Hillary is virile enough but brings along a gonzo, kibbitzing Bill Clinton. As for Evan Bayh, "male animal" is not the first thought that comes to mind. See "Alpha and the VP Pick" on AlphaWatch08.com

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Rick, NC — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:28:12 GMT

This won't happen..the party of miserable old white people who want to wag their fingers and scold you will never let a pro choice candidate in...these withered old has beens want to control womans lives and bodies...and peek in our bedrooms

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

not ugly — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:29:36 GMT

Ever notice the ones most opposed to choice are dirty old white men and women too ugly or old to have children?

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

sotiredofignorance — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:30:46 GMT

Congratulations to MSNBC for removing "The Verdict" from the fall line up and adding Rachel Maddow. Finally, a good decision from the people in programming. You need to dump Scarborough too, and replace him with a personality similar to Rachel, smart, interesting and an adult. Will you have the courage to do that?

I don't know why ANYONE quotes Rush Windbag. He is wrong. The Republican party was destroyed in the 80's by the takeover by people like him. The Neanderthal right wing. No reasonable person could ever support a party that looks backwards, not forward. I was a Republican when it had a live and let live attitude about people, but strong on defense and fiscally conservative. I would never vote for a Republican now.

Hope McCain picks Lieberman. They deserve each other.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Rodney Hopper, Waxahachie,TX — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:31:53 GMT

In 2000, when he was something better, John McCain would have chosen a pro-choice running mate. It's now 2008 and the sold-out to the religious right John McCain will not dare buck his party's venerable traditions.

http://www.rodneyhopper.com

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Ridge Rider — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:33:14 GMT

At least there are some checks and balances on the Republican side. Obama is in some serious need of some training wheels, but it looks like the Democrats are going to let Barack fail on his own.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Nashville_fan — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:33:31 GMT

If my other post comes through here - oops - I clicked the wrong topic! :)

Otherwise:

I think it is unseemly that right wing radio talk show hosts are allowed to spin lies and innuendo about Senator Obama daily, and yet John McCain is never asked to "reject and denounce them".

To the contrary, these same radio con artists get to dictate the Republican Party platform based on what THEY think is best.

And the media doesn't see a problem with this.

The real problem is one of Obama's VP vetters relationship with a mortgage lender.

Yeah - that's the ticket.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

usa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:33:40 GMT

If Biden will plagarize for a speech or a paper, will he be honest on ALL things?

from Nuts and Bolts of College Writing:

Plagiarism can have catastrophic consequences for one's career as a student and even later on in life—and the higher one's ambition takes one, the higher the stakes. In 1987, for instance, Senator Joe Biden, who was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, was accused of plagiarizing passages in speeches and interviews from the oratory of a British politician, Neil Kinnock. Here are some of the passages in question:

Kinnock (original)

Why am I the first Kinnock in a thousand generations to be able to get to university? Why is Glenys the first woman in her family in a thousand generations to be able to get to university?

Was it because our predecessors were thick? Does anybody really think that they didn't get what we had because they didn't have the talent or the strength or the endurance or the commitment? Of course not. It was because there was no platform upon which they could stand.
Biden

I started thinking as I was coming over here, why is it that Joe Biden is the first in his family ever to go to a university? Why is it that my wife who is sitting out there in the audience is the first in her family to ever go to college?

Is it because our fathers and mothers were not bright? . . . No, it's not because they weren't as smart. It's not because they didn't work as hard. It's because they didn't have a platform upon which to stand . . .

It turned out Biden had also borrowed passages from old campaign speeches by Robert Kennedy and had inflated his academic record. But oratory has a long tradition of borrowing and even "heavy lifting," as speechwriters call it, so Biden stayed alive in the presidential race. The last straw, however, came when it turned out that twenty years earlier Biden had received a failing grade in a law school course for plagiarizing a legal article (he'd given a single footnote while lifting five full pages from the article). Biden said he'd been unaware of the appropriate standards for legal briefs, but the public was unimpressed. His campaign collapsed and he withdrew from the race.

The lesson: be afraid of plagiarism. It creates paper-trail timebombs that can destroy a career you've spent decades building—especially today, when teachers routinely keep copies of papers and the Internet makes it a snap to compare texts and locate sources.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

John, MI — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:35:25 GMT

I wish pro-life/choice wasn't such a huge issue nationally. There is supposed to be a seperation on church & state!

I for one would never vote for/against a person on this issue. And making it your main issue doesn't make sense to me either

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Diane from Illinois — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:37:19 GMT

I hope McCain DOES chose either Tom Ridge or Joe Lieberman.......we will see a mass exit of even MORE Republicans from the base. They either will not vote at all (a plus for Obama) or they will vote for Obama! They aren't real happy with McCain as it is and if he chooses a pro-life VP, they will groan even more! McCain will have to have Lieberman sitting beside him on the presdiential debate stage so he can whisper the answers into his ear for heavens sake! I'm looking forward to these debates...THAT ought to separate the men (Obama) from the mice (or rat...McCain)!

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Bud — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:37:34 GMT

All his choices suck because McLame sucks even worse.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

C A, Tuscaloosa, AL — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:38:15 GMT

No matter who Mccain picks as his VP Obama will come out on top. Obama has several good selections for his running mate whereas McCain's choices are limted to the likes of Lieberman, Ridge, Patawky (or whatever his name is) and perhaps a couple others. None would give McCain the boost that Obama's selection will be able to give him. If Obama picks Biden Obama's numbers will immediaretly go up. If Obama were to pick Hillary (on a national polling level) his numbers just might go down. If Obama picks anyone other then Biden or Hillary like Bayh or some others mentioned his polling numbers will remain about the same as they are now.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

RENEA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:40:34 GMT

McCain is going to pick who ever the 133 neo-con-hot headed-high priced lobbyist who run his campaign want him to pick.McCain is not smart enough to make up his own mind.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Paul Miller, Woodbridge, VA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:50:22 GMT

USA: "The lesson: be afraid of plagiarism."

So I guess you aren't backing McCain, after he plagiarized Wikipedia for his speech on Georgia, and after he most likely plagiarized Solzhenitsyn's cross in the dirt story.

Oh I know. A McCain staffer named Swindle came out and said he sorta, kinda maybe remembers McCain talking about the cross in the dirt long before 1999. But that doesn't explain the odd coincidence.

The cross in the dirt was a key incident in the Gulag Archipelago, in which a gulag prisoner transforms from being just another oppressed and hopeless soul there to something more.

McCain read the Gulag Archipelago, and included the decision to write the book as one of the 12 "tough calls" in McCain's book about historical decisions.

For the first time we can find, McCain in 1999 writes that the cross in the dirt incident happened to him.

Its an odd coincidence at best, especially considering that McCain never mentioned the coincidence. If it had been me, and something happened to me that also happened in this book I think has such historical significance, I'd mention that a time or two.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

donna — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:59:45 GMT

usa,

We'll see your plagiarism, and raise you over a hundred fiery deaths caused by carelessness, the Keating Five, a whoremonger, a warmonger, an adulterer, an aristocratic ex-naval officer who only relates to 'the grunts' as fodder for wars, and a Senator that literally has nothing but disdain for women.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Amy B Portland, ME — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:00:29 GMT

I hope McCain picks a pro-choice Republican, because we know the conservatives will vote for him anyway, and then no one cannot deny what hypocrites those holier-than-thou types are. They will vote for a pro-choice Republican because they truly don't have principles.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

msnbc execs — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:01:40 GMT

The Verdict is on Danny-boy. The show sucks. Now they need a replacement, and it appears they've picked Maddows. She sucks too.

Ratings? We don't need no stinking ratings! - msnbc execs

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

g`pa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:07:48 GMT

The Repubs use the abortion issue as a wedge. They always pretend to be the baby lovers; But once the baby is born they couldn't care less if the baby starves. And "sadly enough the baby usually does." Because it's usually the poorest people in this situation, who can't even feed themselves, let alone another baby. And why are they so poor? Because the baby lovers are the wealthy republicans, who are using the Pro- life as a wedge to win another election. When all along they are getting wealther & Fatter on Bushes Tax Cuts For The Wealthy.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

TLA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:11:04 GMT

They haven't even been able to vet McCain yet, since he's hiding all his military records. It's easy to see why. He stole the "Cross in the Dirt" story, and has lied about other details. His injuries were from the plane crash - not torture. ALL POW's were offered early releases in exchange for making propaganda films. ALL turned them down. ALL of them were heros.

Fellow POW: Why I Will Not Vote for John McCain

http://www.military.com/opinion/0,15202,164859_1,00.html

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Dave, Tn — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:22:39 GMT

He should pick the guy Obama tried to equate with his terrorist buddy Bill Ayers.

Tom Coburn.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

siCK OF THE LIES — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:24:07 GMT

McCain and Lieberman, otherwise know as Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, those two crusty old geezers from Sponge Bob.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

denise, Tampa, FL — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:28:15 GMT

McZombie will announce on Aug 29th, the anniversary of Katrina AND his birthday...here's what the "Country First" candidate was doing on that horrible day three years ago: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRar6yKZE8g

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Class Warrior, D.C. — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:39:08 GMT

I think the whole pro-choice Veep thing is a red herring. He'd once again tick off his base with a VP like that.
Biden is mad right now. Biden was mad when Reagan damn near destroyed the economy. Biden is mad alot. And he knows foreign policy better than McClueless.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Austin, Boyertown PA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:41:19 GMT

Hey USA poster ----

The Biden plagerism story is old and at best a stretch. Yes he failed to site the speech ONCE. He quoted it the other 7 times he used it. And no... the time he didn't site it wasn't the first time he used it. The man made a mistake and forgot. It was also over 25 years ago. Context and all the facts are important when trying to dredge up stuff from the past.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Free Ride, Houston TX — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:49:53 GMT

Please stop giving McCain a free ride and report on this!!!!

http://www.military.com/opinion/0,15202,164859_1,00.html

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

S.B. Stein E.B. NJ — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:57:55 GMT

It is beginning to sound like that there are no real good choices for McCain. No matter who he picks, it could be a pain in the polls. Not everyone likes Lieberman, Ridge or Romney. Does that mean he trys to convince Jindal to run with him (even less experienced than most)? I just think that he is bound to piss off a bunch of people to either staying home or voting for Bob Barr.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Dorothy, Illinois — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:01:20 GMT

usa re: plagiarism

Since Senator McCain used a story very very similar to one noted in a book by Russian dissident Solzhenitsyn in his appearance on the Rev Clark show, would Senator McCain be considered a plagiarist?

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Zia — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:04:28 GMT

Why not pick Romney he is Pro-Choice and Pro-Life…………….depending on the week.

Perfect fit for McFlip!

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Curious what's up with that — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:19:29 GMT

Has anyone else noticed how MSNBC downplays/ignores Sebelius for some reason, even tho' all others -- AP, NYT etc -- think there is a short list of 4, not 3?

For ex -- 1) Dan Abrams' "Verdict" the other night, not letting his panel talk about Sebelius (seemed like he was trying to drum up ratings/controversy by changing subject to Hillary -- he totally poo-poohed Sebelius name with a dismissive grunt)
2) The Sebelius write up in the Veepstakes that didn't mention any of her accomplishments -- just who her dad and husband were.

just wondrin'....

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Tom Kaye — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:29:04 GMT

So McCain sold out to the right . . . so much for the "maverick".

This was after calling them agents of intolerance!

Not worthy of being president!

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

John Alexander,PA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:33:20 GMT

It is funny to see that abortion is the wedge issue de jour this year when the last repub congress promised to rid us of this 'scouge' on the unborn, well, what happened, not enough votes in a republican controlled congress.
Where was Bush 'the commpasionate consevative' on this issue, I don't seem to remember him pushing this 'important' issue to the forefront.
Perhaps they knew it was more important to have this as a wedge issue rather than doing something to change the political landscape.
A vote for the repub is a vote for the party that ignores hard issues in favor of devide and conquer politics.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Jorge — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:47:00 GMT

That is why McBush is not trusted by Republicans. He is reckless, impulsive, and delusional. Imagen two old men trying to lead this country? 66+ 72 = 138 years old. Time for the young to take care of our country get rid of the old politics. Republicans for Obama.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Philip, Wisconsin — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:58:47 GMT

John in MI,

Here's the thing, it's not an issue of separation of church and state. It's an issue of when does life begin. If it begins at conception, then abortion is murder. If it begins at birth, then abortion is no different than removing a tumor. If it begins somewhere in between, then we need to figure out when so we can know whether or not we're destroying innocent human life. This is not a church matter that the religious have brought into the public sphere, rather, this is a human rights issue that the church happens to have a very strong opinion on.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

joseph — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:12:05 GMT

when Liberman lost the primary election in Cn, He decided to run independent because he knew the republican were going to vote for him and another thing ,the reason Gore lost the election its because he picked liberman as vice president so lets not blame Nader and I hope Mccain picks him as vice president

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Philip, Wisconsin — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:17:17 GMT

Amy B in Portland, ME,

I disagree with you. They won't be voting for a pro-choice repub as much as they'd be voting against a marxist democrat. They have principles, but also weren't given much of a choice this election cycle. I'm not sure how McCain got the nomination, but conservatives aren't happy about that at all. The problem is that everyone sees national elections as a dichotomy: either it's the republican candidate or the democratic candidate. The issue is there is no choice here. They're both bad options. We need strong third parties in this country to give citizens true freedom of choice. Right now, we have none.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

usa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:21:31 GMT

The man made a mistake and forgot. It was also over 25 years ago. Austin, Boyertown PA (Sent Wednesday, August 20, 2008 10:41 AM)

Interesting you said forgive and forget it was "over 25 yrs ago". Maybe, some of the people posting here will take that same vein re: McCain's divorce.

But, re Biden, you seem to think this was nothing. Well, it was big enough he had to drop out of the Presidential election. And, he also failed a class in law school for plagarism. It's a character issue. It seems to me that some writing here
don't care about a person's character; there seems to be an attitude of "do whatever you want as long as it doesn't impact me."

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

usa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:31:58 GMT

ince Senator McCain used a story very very similar to one noted in a book by Russian dissident Solzhenitsyn in his appearance on the Rev Clark show, would Senator McCain be considered a plagiarist?
Dorothy, Illinois (Sent Wednesday, August 20, 2008 11:01 AM)

Back your statement up with proof, not speculation, Dorothy. Biden's case is well-documented.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

John Q — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:36:07 GMT

This is old news. Yesterday the RNC announced that McCain would be selecting a pro-life VP. He was floating a balloon-- and my guess is that it was an intentional balloon for added press! And it worked.

Veepstakes: A pro-choice running mate?

Ben, Richmond, VA — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:52:15 GMT

McCain is going to pick Fiorina. Ridge and Lieberman are nothing but smoke and mirrors. Fiorina is a good pick for McCain. It strengthens him on the economy.

Obama needs to bite the bullet and take Hillary. Sure, she's polarizing, but she is cut out for the job. Its time to make the dream ticket a reality. I have always admired Joe Biden, but that's not a splash. With McCain taking the lead in some polls, this is the moment where Obama needs to retake the lead. Evan Bayh is wishy washy. Kaine is too inexperienced. Biden is too safe of a pick.

Obama/Hilldog in 2008. I was against it for weeks, if not months, but he needs to man up like JFK did and take his rival, regardless of Bill.