Rick Raw: Attacks on Michelle Obama are Unsubstantiated Right Wing Dirty Tricks

By Rick Grant rickgrant01@comcast.net www.rickatnight.com

When Bill Clinton ran for President, the right wing viciously attacked Hillary saying she was a 60s radical and other outrageous falderal. Bill Clinton’s unprecedented popularity didn’t leave conservatives much ammunition to attack him. So they went after Hillary. After Bill Clinton won and Hillary became involved with reforming health care, she was plummeted by continuous scathing criticism from the right. The chorus of negative cacophony reached a deafening level.

Deja vu all over again. Rush Limbaugh, the ultra-conservatives’ chief blowhard, is leading the Michelle Obama smear campaign, blasting her as an angry black woman who resents white people, hates America, and may have terrorist sympathies. And, it’s going to get uglier as the race for the White House heats up. Fox news anchor E.D. Hill called Michelle’s playful fist bump with Barrack a "terrorist fist jab." More significantly, Limbaugh and his gang of conservative thugs said that Michelle once denounced "Whitey" from her church pulpit.

Of course, the fact that Michelle is an intelligent strong woman who expresses her opinions makes her fair game for attack. Right wing conservatives think that candidates wives should stay in the background and keep their mouths shut. But like Hillary’s past political activities, Michelle is on the stump for her husband and she says what she wants, which rankles conservatives, who look at all women like 50s female sitcom characters.

The reality is, Michelle is her husband’s closest advisor–his intellectual equal. Michelle and Barrack have a truly modern partnership that conservatives envy. She is a graduate of Princeton and Harvard Law School and she had a successful career as a lawyer and hospital manager. When she claims to understand the downtrodden, I believe she is sincere, but she leaves herself open to accusations of being a hypocrite. Some pundits say she is whiner, complaining about the cost of piano lessons and summer camp for her kids, while addressing the concerns of poor blacks who are out of work and desperate.

Yes, Michelle and her husband were bringing in over $500 grand a year, but that doesn’t mean she can’t have compassion and can’t understand the problems of the poor. In other words, her affluence does not necessarily rule out her altruism and sympathy for those who struggle to make ends meet.

However, the truth is–Michelle’s husband’s candidacy is historic and it happens in the arena of down and dirty presidential politics in which dirty tricks and false rumors are rampant. Nonetheless, the Obama campaign managers are trying to soften Michelle’s image. She is now emphasizing her humble roots in a working-class home on the South Side of Chicago. Last week she guest hosted The View, portraying herself as a friendly, accessible wife and mother. Yet, every day, Limbaugh and his colleagues are spreading lies about her. It’s only going to get worse as the campaign reaches its climax near the November elections.

Still, Michelle is troubled by what she sees as the broken American government that only her husband can fix. And many of us agree with her. She may soften this rhetoric in the next months but she has strong views and will express them. She’s not going to stay home and bake cookies. Michelle sees herself as her husband’s political partner. So, I say, her honesty and refusal to be gagged by right wing muckrakers is refreshing and I know that she will help her husband in his difficult job as president. It’s about time we laud strong intelligent women. You go girl!

Rick Raw: McClellan’s Tell-All Book Rings True, But He’s A Weasel for Writing It

By Rick Grant rickgrant01@comcast.net www.rickatnight.com

Scott McClellan is a weasel. During his entire tenure as Press Secretary, he was Bush’s yes-man, going out to the press room podium and uttering the President’s lies, but all the time he knew Bush was lying, which makes him a second hand liar. Yet, McClellan stayed on to reap the benefits of the job, rather than be a man and resign earlier.

Yes, his book rings true, but no one likes a snitch, especially one who professed the administrations policies so vehemently as Press Secretary. He’s the type of kiss-ass traitor that lurks around many offices, spewing the company line but not believing a word of it.

Well the jokes on him. McClellan’s book, What Happened caused a backlash even among Bush haters for his blatant hypocrisy for pretending to be Bush’s friend and supporter, then stabbing him in the back. Sure, I hate Bush, but this nasty little turncoat makes me sick. I, and many people with a modicum of morality, would not pretend to be someone’s friend and then turn against him just to be in the national spotlight and sell a book.

Scott McClellan says in his book, that "while I was spinning, I harbored private doubts." McClellan depicts the White House as "ruthless, duplicitous, and obsessed with getting its message out at the expense of both the truth and governing." He goes on to say that "Bush and his aides decided to invade Iraq first, and then waged a relentless political propaganda campaign to convince Americas to support that terrible strategic blunder."

Duh! Anyone with half a brain saw through Bush’s lies. We didn’t need confirmation from this turdy-wordy little gnome. Every time McClellan took that podium, savvy journalists could tell he was lying, covering for his boss.

When the terrorists pulled off the terrible 9/11 attack, its mastermind, Osama bin Laden was hold-up in Afghanistan. There was no al Qaeda in Iraq. Suddenly, Secretary Rice was telling the Hill that what would it take to convince them–"a mushroom cloud over Washington." Then Colin Powell appeared before the Senate Armed Forces Committee with charts showing mobile chemical weapons labs. Powell was livid and embarrassed that none were found. He quit immediately when the truth came out. The whole thing was a smoke screen by the administration to justify invading Iraq. In the end, it was all about oil. We didn’t need McClellan’s book to confirm our conclusions that Bush and his gaggle of profiteers were lying sacks of dung.

Christopher Hitchens in Slate.com said, "McClellan’s book is without value. For one thing he doesn’t supply anything that can really be called evidence. For another, he never says Bush and his aides flat-out lied about believing Saddam Hussein had WMDs. The worst he can do is charge them with obscuring nuances and ignoring the caveats that should have accompanied their arguments." Sorry Mr. Hitchens but "ignoring the caveats" sounds a lot like lying to me. It’s tantamount to saying, "Oh, My sister was in a car accident," but leaving out "the caveat" that she was killed.

Tim Rutten said in The Los Angeles Times, "How can you believe him. To date, roughly a dozen former Bush administration personnel have published memoirs expressing their dismay with the White House." And so it went, McClellan’s book was panned by everyone who knew the truth, but just can’t stomach tattletales who rat on their friends. Now no one will want Scott McClellan around as a so called "friend."

Rick Raw: Obama–On to the Presidency–Now We Must Take the Leap of Faith

By Rick Grant rickgrant01@comcast.net www.rickatnight.com

Clearly, Senator Barack Obama is an unknown entity in his historic victory over Hillary Clinton in the hard fought nomination process. Now his supporters, including me, will take the leap of faith to vote him into the presidency. For we believers, his inexperience as a freshman Senator was overridden by his reassuring oratory and confidence on the campaign trail. During every speech, Obama seemed to be talking to each of us, individually, addressing our concerns. As a senior citizen struggling to pay back taxes, I cheered when he promised to end taxation for seniors drawing social security. His platform was based on common sense and logic, not the typical platitudes spewed by other entrenched Washington politicians, telling the voters what they wanted to hear.

Indeed, Obama’s clinching of the Democratic nomination was the most important accomplishment of any African-American since Martin Luther King sparked the Civil Rights Movement with his "Gone to the Mountain" speech. For me, his race had absolutely nothing to do with my decision to support him. Obama transcends racial issues.

Obama’s victory as the Democratic nominee has given hope to all of his supporters who welcome his promise of change and thinking outside the beltway. Obama has already redefined presidential politics, giving the issues back to the people. He listened to us-- he absorbed our anxieties–he brought the long past Kennedy enthusiasm back to ordinary people.

Now, Obama must make his most important decision since winning the nomination–deciding on a running mate. Of course, the logical choice is Hillary Clinton. She has a mighty voter block that is presently pissed off. If Obama doesn’t’ reach out to Clinton, conceivably she could contest the seating of delegates right up to the convention in August. Yes, what to do about Clinton is a huge problem for Obama, given there is left-over bitterness in his camp. There is a sense that if they buckle under to Clinton, it could hurt Obama’s chances to beat McCain. If Obama chooses someone other than Clinton as a running mate, her voter block might vote for McCain out of spite. Whatever, he decides he will get criticized.

Just as Clinton supporters proved, she convinced millions of people that she would be the best choice for president. In contrast, there is a large anti-Clinton contingent that think she’s the devil in a pant suit. And then there is the matter of what to do about Bill, who seems to have turned into an angry old man snipping at reporters and becoming an embarrassment to Hillary. Obama must be asking: "What would Bill’s role be in an Obama-Clinton administration." The last thing Obama wants is Billy-Bob lurking around the White House hitting on the female staffers.

Perhaps, Obama should not go with Clinton as his veep. His message of change would be in tact and I still think he could beat McCain. As a compromise, Obama could promise Clinton an important position in his administration as his Chief of Staff or Secretary of Defense. I’m sure that would satisfy the Clinton supporters. Bill would be out of the picture. He could travel on the lecture circuit or spend his days in hotel lounges picking up women.

The Hillary question is a conundrum of Biblical proportions. Obama needs to make this decision soon to get it behind him and concentrate on the campaign ahead.

Rick Raw: Half a Vote Half a Person? –DNC’s Compromise Leaves Voters Feeling Screwed Over

By Rick Grant rickgrant01@comcast.net www.rickatnight.com

"I’m not an animal, I’m a human being," said the Elephant Man in David Lynch’s film. Yeah, and I’m not half a person, I’m a whole voter. However, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) compromise has cut me in half as a voter and human being. Again, Florida voters were royally screwed by a dirty trick. And now I have to roll around on a platform with wheels because I’m only half a person after the DNC cut me in half with a chain saw compromise. It’s humiliating.

During Saturday’s debate, Senator Bob Nelson pleaded his case for the voters of Florida in the televised DNC meeting to reach a compromise on the hotly debated Florida and Michigan delegates and what penalty would be imposed on the two States for holding primaries early. In Senator Nelson’s speech he revealed how the Jan. 29th early primary happened. It turns out that the Republican Senate and Governor slipped in the early primary issue into its voting reform bill, knowing that it would come back to bite the Democrats like a hidden poisonous snake. It was, in fact, a Republican dirty trick.

When the day-long meeting ended and the dust cleared, the DNC agreed to seat all the delegates from Florida and Michigan at the convention but give them only half a vote. This meant that Clinton and Obama picked up a substantial number of delegates, with Obama benefitting the most. His lead over Clinton was in tact. As expected, it wasn’t a popular decision but under the circumstances at least they had an agreement. Of course, Florida’s voters will feel screwed over losing half their vote, as will the folks in Michigan.

Clinton backers vowed to fight the Michigan decision, which gave Clinton a 10 delegate edge over Obama in a state where his name didn’t appear on the primary ballot. The ruling gave Clinton 105 pledged delegates from Florida and 69 from Michigan, with a total of 87 votes. Obama received 67 pledged delegates from Florida and 59 from Michigan, as a total of 63 votes. The tally leaves Obama ahead by the equivalent of 174 votes.

Harold Ickes, Clinton’s campaign guru said, "Mrs Clinton has asked me to reserve her right to take this to the credentials committee." However, Ickes, the most savvy political strategist in Washington, knows that if Clinton doesn’t bow out of the race by the end of next week, she will hurt her chances of having any clout with the party in the future. Of course, Obama clinched the nomination Wednesday, June 5, leaving Clinton on the outside looking in.

Spearheaded by Bill Clinton, the behind he scenes lobbying for a Obama-Clinton ticket is getting stronger. Bringing Clinton’s considerable voting block over to a team ticket would greatly increase the chances of Obama winning the election. Still, bitterness persists between the two camps, but it’s not anything that can’t be smoothed over with whiskey and cigars.

As half a voter and person, I agree with Senator Nelson–I and my fellow Floridians deserve to have a full vote. It’s outrageous to be cut in half like a side of beef. But given that the art of politics is the art of compromise, the DNC decision salvages what could have been a lost cause, with all the Florida and Michigan votes thrown out. In the end, begrudgingly, we Floridians will take the half vote as better than no vote. This Republican dirty trick will be remembered and it will hurt them in the national election. Besides, who in their right mind wants another four years of a Bush surrogate as president? Well, maybe a few diehard Republicans.