Vote '08

We got a distinct sense yesterday that several of the pundits at ABC News don’t see anything wrong with the way they handled last Wednesday’s debate. [Watch the roundtable of George Stephanopoulos, George Will, Cokie Roberts & Sam Donaldson here.] Blogger MediaGirl called their denial a “let them eat cake” mentality & I tend to agree.

So does a particularly conservative NewsChannel9 colleague, who hadn’t seen my criticism, but forwarded me several pieces that criticized the way the debate went.

Not all conservatives feel this way, though. Check out Michelle Malkin’s take here.

The blog Publius has a humorous take on “The Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858 (Slight Return)”:

Presidential candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas held this debate on April 16, 1858 at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

MODERATORS:
CHARLIE GIBSON, ABC NEWS
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS

MR. GIBSON: So we’re going to begin with opening statements, and we had a flip of the coin, and the brief opening statement first from Mr. Lincoln.

LINCOLN: Thank you very much, Charlie and George, and thanks to all in the audience and who are out there. I appear before you today for the purpose of discussing the leading political topics which now agitate the public mind.

We are now far into the fifth year since a policy was initiated with the avowed object, and confident promise, of putting an end to slavery agitation. Under the operation of that policy, that agitation has not only not ceased, but has constantly augmented.

STEPHANOPOULOS: I’m sorry to interrupt, but do you think Mr. Douglas loves America as much you do? (more…)

Dear All 3 Presidential Campaigns,

For the love of all that is holy, can we please talk about things that happen at times other than 3 a.m.?

Can there be another group of people looking over bills & paperwork besides these folks?

Are there other children, perhaps, who would volunteer to be filmed while they sleep, so these particular kids can wake up & get on with their lives? (Think of all the Ambien that must be pumped into the kids’ systems so they could stay asleep for so long!)

Respectfully & sincerely,

[What does “jump the shark” mean? Explanation here.]

Regardless of how much the clip below is a current metaphor for the 3a.m. ad, we would give quite a bit to see any of the candidates cut a commercial with them in the role of the Fonz.


Aaaaaaaayyyyyyyyy.

(Guess she noticed Obama’s bowling skills too..)

I guess we should be surprised that either Clinton or Obama have waited this long to make this metaphor.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Hillary Rodham Clinton is comparing herself to Rocky Balboa today, telling a Pennsylvania labor group that she’s not a quitter.
Clinton tells a meeting of the state AFL-CIO in Philadelphia that if she were to heed calls for her to quit her Democratic campaign now, it would be like Rocky stopping his run up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art at the halfway point.
She continues by saying that like the character in the 1976 Oscar-winning film, she knows how to get off the mat to finish a fight. She says she never gives up, and “neither do the American people.”
She also appears to renew her claims that she would put up a tougher fight against the Republicans in the fall than her opponent Barack Obama would. Clinton warns the race against John McCain won’t be easy, and that the Republican attack machine “doesn’t have an off-switch.”

Will it be much longer before one of the candidates tries this?

p.s. Whom does Sylvester Stallone support for president? Watch!

It’s the first “YouTube” election, & the candidates are capitalizing big-time on the user-friendly site. We’ll show you how you can access their latest moves on the campaign trail — & show you some - nay, LOTS - of their & their supporters videos — after the jump.

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