Election 2008 is shaping up to be a contest between those who want America’s wars to go on indefinitely, and those who want to scale down the violence, restore a more cooperative international order, and focus on urgent, long-ignored domestic needs. The man they are vying to succeed, while addressing members of the Knesset in Jerusalem on the 60th anniversary of Israel’s founding, took a moment to violate a long-standing custom of not engaging in domestic politics while on foreign soil.
Politics/Economy
Edwards Endorses Obama (At Last!)
We were wondering if we would ever have the pleasure of seeing John Edwards’s endorsement of Barack Obama. And yes, we were grumbling impatiently and muttering ‘What’s taking him so damn long?’ But now we think maybe he has a good sense of timing after all. This endorsement feels well worth the wait. After Hillary’s big win in West Virginia, supported by that important demographic where Obama’s been falling short, John Edwards’s support is welcome indeed.
Ignorance, Gaffes, and ‘Myopia’: Josh Marshall Calls McCain ‘Unfit for Duty’
On the fifth anniversary of the launch of the Iraq War, Josh Marshall of TalkingPointsMemo explains why the American public should have no confidence in the foreign policy ‘authority’ of Senator John McCain—and the Democratic candidates shouldn’t give him any credit, either. McCain does not possess the expertise or geostrategic vision he likes to think he has. (Boldface added for emphasis.)
How Many Republicans Is Obama Running Against?
TPM Cafe reader “57andFemale” has written a powerful rant against the Clinton campaign’s race tactics and tepid ‘regrets’ of Geraldine Ferraro’s well-publicized outpourings. (Original spellings are retained.) HillaryMcCain ‘mindmeld’ composites by Mike Ferry of 2millionth web log, inspired by Driftglass.
Approaching Five Years in Iraq, 4,000th U.S. Fatality
We don’t know how this will play out, but we can be sure that while the Clinton and Obama campaigns sharpen their knives against each other, American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan will keep on killing and being killed—for what?—and the U.S. will still be borrowing billions monthly for those insatiable wars. And New Orleanians once able to afford rent or mortgage payments before the federal levees broke will still be homeless, encamped near City Hall and under the Claiborne Street overpass, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will still be late with its plan for Category 5–strength hurricane protection for New Orleans and vicinity.
Barack, You’re Totally Our Infrastructure Hero!
At a General Motors plant in Janesville, Wisc., on Feb. 13, Barack Obama “turned it down a notch” and gave a major policy address that laid out a broad agenda for reinforcement of the American economy. The plan would restore a measure of economic balance and stability, create infrastructure and renewable-energy jobs, and many other necessary and ambitious undertakings. The speech is substantive and shows Senator Obama’s seriousness and grasp of economic reality and possibility. Optimism and realism together. We’re delighted to see at least one of the three major candidates offering serious solutions to infrastructure and environmental degradation (as John Edwards also did). See excerpts from Obama’s speech below the fold.
Louisiana Adds to ‘Obamomentum’
This is the kind of surge we like. After winning the Louisiana primary and caucuses in Washington state, Nebraska, and the Virgin Islands, Obama gave a strong, confident speech at the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner in Richmond, sharpening the distinctions between himself and Hillary Clinton and asserting his strengths as a general election candidate over John McCain. The so-called GOP front-runner, who seems not to have won anywhere on Saturday, was Obama’s principal target.
Geaux-’bama!
Our friend Oyster at Your Right Hand Thief sent us links to coverage of Barack Obama’s “O-vent” before a more-than-packed house at Tulane University’s Fogelman Arena on Wednesday, campaigning before the Louisiana primary on Saturday, Feb. 9.
What John Edwards Brought Us
We are voting for Senator Barack Obama in the primaries—as many times as possible. The more we see of him, the more we like. But first, we want to take a parting glance at the contributions our First Favorite, John Edwards, made to the presidential campaign of 2008.
Armies of Compassion Aim for New Orleans – City to Host North American Summit in April – Democrats, Show America ‘We Are All Orleanians’
We couldn’t bear to listen to the president’s State of the Union Speech Monday night, but we were happy to find this in the transcript:
Edwards, Fix Your Focus: Economic Security for a Change; ‘Yes We Can, and Here’s Our Plan’
Congratulations to Barack Obama for a strong, kick-ass victory in South Carolina and a beautiful, stirring speech. That refrain “Yes We Can” is just what people need to hear. We just wish he’d kicked one butt instead of two (by coming in second).
John Edwards’s campaign strategists have been calling in to ask our advice, and here’s what we tell them: Johnny, it’s the economy. You were right to capitalize on voters’ fatigue with Obama–Clinton squabbles, but give us specific economic remedies and repeat over and over. Economic Security for a Change.
MLK 3rd Urges Edwards: ‘Keep going . . . My father would be proud’
Crooks and Liars alerts us to a powerful letter of encouragement from Martin Luther King III to John Edwards, written after their meeting over the MLK Weekend. An excerpt follows.
Huffington Posts LNW’s ‘Ballsy’ Edwards Endorsement
Perhaps it was because the whole world was waiting to see whom among the 2008 presidential candidate Levees Not War would endorse—or maybe there was another reason—but the admirable HuffingtonPost featured our John Edwards endorsement in their “Off the Bus” campaign section (‘Ground Level Coverage of Campaign ’08’). The editors chose an amusing headline: ‘NOLA Endorsement: Edwards Will “Kick Repubs in the Balls”.’ Actually what we said (as you can see below) was: ‘Democrats need a tough candidate who won’t hesitate to kick the Republicans in the balls’—but who’s quibbling?
John Edwards for President 2008
It is not often we wish we lived in New Hampshire (nice place to visit), but we sorely wish we could be there on Tuesday to ‘vote early and often’ for John Edwards. Although we do not at all dislike the prospect of a President Obama, and though the nation would be in good hands if any one of the four Democratic candidates in Saturday’s New Hampshire debate were to win the White House, we have long preferred the 2004 Democratic vice presidential candidate and former senator from North Carolina. (Edwards/Obama? In what order? The ‘change’ candidates could alternate being president/vice president.)
Years of Decision
On the very same day that Al Gore was awarded his (shared) Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway (Dec. 10), the also honorable Henry A. Waxman, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, released a report concluding that “the Bush Administration has engaged in a systematic effort to manipulate climate change science and mislead policymakers and the public about the dangers of global warming.”
The Destroyer
If a president recites this oath, is he legally bound to take care of the nation itself, or only to ‘preserve, protect and defend the Constitution’ of the United States (however White House legal counsel may interpret that clause)? Does he have some ‘wiggle room’ here? (Does the oath pertain only to duly elected chief executives?)
Naomi Wolf on ‘The End of America’
We urge everyone to read the following AlterNet.org interview with Naomi Wolf, author of the new book The End of America: Letter of Warning to A Young Patriot. (Ms. Wolf, best known for her book The Beauty Myth [1992], is not to be confused with the other admirable Naomi, Ms. Klein, author of The Shock Doctrine [2007].) This spring Naomi Wolf published “Fascist America in 10 Easy Steps” in The Guardian (UK).
Grinch Wins Plastic Turkey Award: Pentagon Demands Repayment of Disabled Vets’ Signing Bonuses
Pittsburgh’s KDKA reports that the Defense Department is demanding that thousands of disabled U.S. soldiers return parts of their signing bonuses because they are unable to serve out their commitments. They had to go and get blown up so bad the army couldn’t patch them up well enough to push ’em back out on the streets of Baghdad as they do with other wounded soldiers. It is well known that the army has had to resort to signing bonuses of up to $30,000 to attract new soldiers to an increasingly unpopular war (though the army continues to fall short of its recruiting goals).
“Conservatives cannot govern well . . .”
The article below by political scientist Alan Wolfe explains in convincing detail the deadly consequences of the conservatives’ unbelief in governing and reveals why a deliberately weakened FEMA was unable to respond to the destruction and suffering wrought by Hurricane Katrina:
Omigod! Operation Iraqi Freedom Isn’t Free!
As we reported in “Let the Eagle Soar” below, the Congressional Budget Office released a report Oct. 24 estimating that the total expenditures for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could cost over $2.4 trillion over the next ten years—or $8,000 for every man, woman and child in the U.S. We hear often enough that “freedom isn’t free,” but we’re not sure we’re getting our money’s worth—especially when so many important priorities are neglected here at home.