Tag: Democratic Convention

Bernie Keeps Fighting

After yesterdays vote Bernie was handed his ass to him by the machine of the Clinton’s…..many think that he should bow out gracefully (mostly the liar’s supporters) but he has said he will soldier on (good choice)…..but what will he be fighting for it not the nomination?

Bernie Sanders isn’t giving up the fight after Tuesday’s primary results—but there may be a shift in what he’s fighting for. In what Vox describes as “a major hint that the race is over” and a “savvy, classy way” to start winding down his campaign, Sanders issued a statement Tuesday night saying he is looking forward to “issue-oriented campaigns in the 14 contests” to come and that he plans to go to the Democratic convention with “as many delegates as possible to fight for a progressive party platform.” Clinton won four out of five states and her delegate haul puts her 90% of the way to the nomination, according to the AP, leaving Sanders little chance of winning, even with his surprise victory in Rhode Island.

Sanders plans to “reassess his candidacy” Wednesday, according to the New York Times, and chief strategist Tad Devine says there will definitely be “adjustments” if it turns out there is no mathematical route to the nomination. The thing “to watch now is whether Sanders tempers his rhetoric against Clinton, a tacit acknowledgement that the math is close to conclusive, or whether he keeps going at her hammer and tongs,” writes Chris Cillizza at the Washington Post. Politico notes that in her victory speech Tuesday night, Clinton praised Sanders, listed the policy priorities she shares with him, and urged his supporters to unite behind her. “There’s much more that unites us than divides us,” she said.

I think he should continue the fight, at least for now, but to have Hillary’s word that she will push a progressive agenda to get his support is a f*cking LIE!

Once she gets the nomination she will forget all about the “promises” she has made….why?  She does not have to follow them for she will be the next president…especially if she runs against the paranoid tool of the idiotic Right, Trump.

Bernie needs to tell Clinton to piss off and take his support into the election as a Progressive Party candidate…..screw the cowards in the Democratic Party.

2012 DNC Convention

I have watched the videos of the speeches….and I am impressed…..the Dems were on message more so than the Repubs…..they made the cases of why Romney sucks…….unlike the GOP whose best line was Obama Sucks…..not in so many words but the implication was there…..

The first night speeches were beautifully orchestrated…..Mrs. Obama gave a helluva speech….emotional yet hopeful…..she has a compelling story….I personally liked the story about the 2004 convention when the Prez gave a keynote speech but had to leave the convention early because his credit card was maxed out….that we all can relate to….

Next was the speech by Julian Castro……..the mayor of San Antonio gave a masterful speech perfect delivery…another compelling story…..but beyond that….he is the face of the Dem Party in coming years……I see him and Deval Patrick going at it in the near future…..

Night two……I watch the vid of Warrens speech….to me, my personal opinion, she gave a good speech but sounded more angry than hopeful….I am not saying I did not agree with what she had to say….just that it was a stump speech and not a convention speech……she gave a adequate speech…..

Now to Bubba, Pres. Clinton, what can we say….Bubba was Bubba……NO body can give a speech like Clinton!  The best speech I have ever heard!  Boy can the man ad lib……absolutely NO body can distill complex issues down to the comprehension of anyone willing to listen…..Brilliant!

The last night was, IMO, all about the troops and the veterans.  The Dems did something that the GOP forgot to do…..thank the vets for their contributions to freedom…..this was a big mistake by the GOP…….

Biden–Joe was Joe….his speech was authentic and like his role of attack dog, he succeeded…he reminded all of the Prez work and the GOP obstructionism….I personally, do not think it was Joe best speech but it was effective….I love Joe…….

Pres. Obama a very good vision speech…….a speech that should rev up the base….a promise of a better future….and he will get my vote because of one thing and one thing only…..he did not forget the troops or the vets……he thank them……. he acknowledged their contributions, something the GOP neglected to do……he touched on all the points that make the Dems who they are….gays, immigrants, the poor, he made his case to the people and it was very effective…..

Mitt got a dead cat bounce after the convention….the Dems should do much better…..In comparison, the Dems convention was heads above the GOP one……they took on issues, real issues, not the “trust me” issues of the GOP…..the one thing that I learned was that conventions in the future will most likely be a 2 day affair….we have seen the last of week long conventions.

I Want To Be Fair

I, unlike many in the MSM, want to be fair.  During the GOP convention I was battling my old friend Isaac and was unable to watch the convention on the tube…..so I was unable to post daily on what I had seen on the floor of that convention.  I had to watch Youtube and such to get my info on the daily doings of our GOP delegates and guests.

Today the counterpart of the GOP, the DNC convention is beginning and in my small attempt to be fair I will not watch the daily doings……I will instead do like I did for the RNC…..I will watch the stuff on Youtube and others and will do my critique when the convention is over……..

I just want to be honest and fair in my analysis of the conventions……hopefully this will not be a problem…….

Unions At The Democratic Convention

The two main competing factions within the US trade union bureaucracy are temporarily setting aside their bitter rivalry to unite behind the presidential campaign of Barack Obama. One prominent feature of their intervention has been to attribute the lack of enthusiasm among their own members for Obama to white racism, a charge that they make no attempt to substantiate, and in fact is contradicted by polls that reveal growing anger and alienation among workers from the Democrats and the two party system.

Both AFL-CIO President John Sweeney and Anna Burger, chair of the rival Change to Win union federation, addressed Democratic National Convention delegates Tuesday night. Both union factions are participating in a series of workshops, and other events throughout the convention designed to boost the Obama campaign. Their uncritical support for Obama and the Democrats further underscores the fact that these organizations have nothing to do with defending the real needs and interests of working people.

The speeches of the two union bureaucrats were carefully scripted and, especially on the part of Sweeney, laced with religious and patriotic references. Sweeney and Burger made almost no direct reference to the actual situation facing millions of working people—the slashing of jobs, the gutting of social programs, surging gas and food prices, widening home foreclosures, eroding wages—referring merely to the fading of the “American Dream.” Predictably, the union leaders avoided any concrete reference to questions of policy, limiting themselves to abstract calls for change. They made no serious attempt to explain how the election of Obama would actually improve the social situation of workers.

This silence is understandable given that the Democrats are presenting a social agenda consisting of a few ludicrously inadequate reforms, in no way commensurate with the magnitude of the unfolding economic disaster facing working people.

Dems In Denver–Day 4 and Last

It is official, Obama is nominated and has accepted the candidacy of president. Now his acceptance speech. A HELLUVA speech. The man was tough, ambitious and very presidential. Obama, as usual, delivered an excellent speech to the point that at times, IMO, he sounded like a State of the Union speech given by the president. He fired the open salvos at McCain and now it is on bitches!

But the media was the most disappoinmting part of the convention. Their coverage was solely for the ratings and at no time was it informative. I was expecting more out of Williams and Brokaw , et al. The viewer still does not have any idea the specifics of the platform, which by the way is 54 pages long. Nothing of the issues was important enough for them to cover, but what Romney, Guiliani and other Repubs was so important to the convention conversation that they got almost as much time as Dem surrogates.

Now on to St. Paul/Minneapolis and the Repub convention.

Dems In Denver–Day 3

First, Obama wins the nomination in a roll call, where Clinton’s name was placed into the process also.  All that is left now is his acceptance speech.

The night was full of speeches by first Bill Clinton and then Joe Biden.

Mr. Clinton proceeded to do precisely what Mr. Obama’s campaign was looking for him to do: attest to Mr. Obama’s readiness to be president, after a campaign largely based on Mrs. Clinton’s contention that he was not.

“I say to you: Barack Obama is ready to lead America and restore American leadership in the world,” Mr. Clinton said. “Barack Obama is ready to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. Barack Obama is ready to be president of the United States.”

Next was Biden.

Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, Mr. Obama’s choice for vice president, accepted the nomination with a speech in which he spoke frequently, and earnestly, of his blue-collar background, in effect offering himself as a validator for Mr. Obama among some voters who have been reluctant to embrace the Democratic presidential nominee.

He then turned to Senator John McCain, the likely Republican nominee, signaling how he would go after him in the campaign ahead. He referred to Mr. McCain as a friend — “I know you hear that phrase a lot in politics; I mean it,” he said — and then proceeded to offer a long and systematic case about why Mr. McCain should not be president.

All in all good speeches and I believe that the Dems have finally set their tone for the upcoming election.  But my problem is that the media has been creating drama where there is no drama and have yet to mention the issues and the platform of the Democratic Party.

Media Circus Called A Convention

The more than 4,000 Democratic delegates—covered by an army of some 15,000 members of the press—are convening in what amounts to a political bubble surrounded by security measures consistent with those of a police state. The convention itself, not to mention the lavish parties being thrown for the delegates—many of them elected officials—is being paid for largely by major corporations looking to buy political influence.

The media has focused the bulk of its attention on the convention’s first day on speculating as to whether lingering “bitterness” on the part of Obama’s principal rival for the nomination, Senator Hillary Clinton, and her supporters will detract from the unity message that is meant to predominate. Most of this coverage is cast entirely in terms of personal frictions and identity politics, without a hint of any substantive political issues involved.

This is in keeping with the general tenor of the convention itself, which is packaged as a $60 million, four-day infomercial, with no question of a debate over policy breaking out on the floor of Denver’s Pepsi Center, where the delegates are assembled. The media, with very few exceptions, functions as an uncritical conduit for this process, accepting its narrow parameters as given.

Damned If They Do, Damned If They Don’t

For months I have been hearing the media hammering Obama and his wife that the American people do not know who they are and that explains why the polls are not better. They have said that he needs to identify himself to the blue collar worker. And that he, Obama, is not viewed well by these and other voters.

And that is just what Michelle Obama set about doing just that at the convention. She told the public about her life and her life with Barack; she showed that her story was a “typical” American story. That they both were brought up in modest means and worked hard and long to get where they are today.

Now the media vultures are slamming them for being too mild mannered in the speech; that McCain was not attacked and that the speech was too mild mannered. The media is saying that McCain is getting a free ride at the convention and that 25% of the time was wasted on a life story instead of hitting McCain hard and fast.

Enough! At what point does the media stop driving the conversation and direction of the convention and election? At what point does the media stop looking and creating drama and start reporting on the issues that are facing the voter?

Dems In Denver–Day 2

Hillary’s speech.

There had been much anticipation on how and what Hillary would say in your highlight speech.  As anyone who reads my stuff knows I have been a very verbal critic of Hillary and will always be a critic.  But I give props where props are due.  Hiilary came to the plate and swung for the fence.  She hit a rocket out of the park.

She talk to her people and basically worded her speech to say that if they do not vote for Obama then they will be offending her personally.  She used her usual technique of talking about the people she had met on the campaign trail and used them to press her stands on the issues.  She challenged Dems take a stand to make a strong country and to vote for all Americans.

Hillary did her part to unify the party, even if some in the MSM thinks she was too mild manner and did not attack McCain enough.  Her speech was effective and to the point.  She also made it clear that she was giving her full support to the Obama-Biden ticket and that she would work tirelessly to get them elected.

She deserves here props.