Democratic Debate or the WWF?

I'm done with the "I said," "I never said,"and "she said." Hillary has taken a page right out of the Karl Rove playbook. She has twisted Obama's words. Barack Obama never said that he loved the Republicans. He never said that. (look at this post for the video and listen to what he really said) Instead, he said that Reagan was an agent of change. This is true. I hate the analogy but it is true. I would have used Ghandi or Teddy Roosevelt as agents of change. Unfortunately, those references would have sent some to the internet and would have left others scratching their heads.

What Hillary has done is not politics. It is down right nasty and dishonest. She starts attacking Obama because he hasn't spelled out exactly how he is going to pay for his foreign aid programs. Okay. But what about her health care program? Hillary Clinton has had 10 years to formulate a health care program. Where are her numbers? How would someone like me get paid? Physician reimbursement has dropped across the board for years. Hell, Cardiac Surgeons used to be able to make over $2 million per year. Now, if they are lucky they might be able to make a quarter of that. Nurses need a salary increase. Where is that in her progressive plan? Hospitals desperately need more social workers. Where is that in her plan?

I simply reject the politics of personal destruction. I reject the politics of Democrats eating their own. This is so disappointing. I'm pissed.

TCR has some thoughts.

(BTW, I'm at another trauma conference so I'm done blogging for tonight. I'll take some Pepto and watch the rest of the "debate" and post some video tomorrow.)

Update: Video added.

As I was driving back home today, I had a chance to hear Lynn Samuels and earlier I heard Alex Bennett. From listening to these 2 left wing talk show hosts, I learned that Barack Obama is an asshole and is full of himself. Again, these are not right wing talking heads but "thoughtful" progressives.

Alex Bennett tried to spin the argument that because Obama spoke on Martin Luther King day that he was using the holiday for personal gain which "proved" that he was an egotistical, ass. I wish I had time to call his show this morning because I would have asked what would have happened if Barack Obama didn't speak on MLK day. What kind of noise would he have heard from liberals and Blacks? Was he too good for Martin Luther King? Barack was in an impossible situation. If you can't see that and it appears that Alex Bennett couldn't, then Bennett isn't worthy of the national stage, IMHO.

Lynn Samuels basically stated that she is supporting Hillary Clinton because Hillary was a woman. What? If that is her position that's fine but at least try to foster some support for the other Democratic candidates. Nope. She didn't. If she is just going to be a gossip queen who is going to talk about fashion and not examine the issues then she belongs with Sally Jessie and Montel.

Dennis Kucinich Back On Lie Patrol - Judge Rules that He Cannot Be Excluded From Nevada Debate

A Nevada Judge has ruled that Dennis Kucinich must be allowed to participate in the Nevada debate scheduled for later today. This is a big victory for Progressives.

Although Kucinich has no chance of winning the nomination, his participation will change the whole atmosphere of the debate- just by his very presense. This will pose a problem for Hillary Clinton. She will not be able to float through the debate and lie about her record, inflate her qualifications, or distort facts. Too often, the moderators of these debates allow her to get away with her lying by failing to challenge her, simply because she is Hillary Clinton. This is where Kucinich comes into play. He may be key to keeping her on the Defensive. Unlike Obama, who doesn't want to really go on the attack or say anything that would be deemed as wrong or "too negative" about Clinton, Kucinich has nothing to lose and nothing to gain. Without the burden of "political correctness" weighing him down, he will be free to tell the truth. I am quite sure that the Clinton camp is scrambling to adjust their strategy as I type.

The Clinton Camp would have loved to see Kucinich banned from the event, just like in New Hampshire. I guess she couldn't buy Nevada in time for this one.

Report from the AP

Judge grants Kucinich entry to NV

LAS VEGAS - A Nevada judge said Monday that Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich must be included in Tuesday's candidates' debate in Nevada.

Senior Clark County District Court Judge Charles Thompson said if Kucinich is excluded, he'll issue an injunction stopping the televised debate.

The judge sided with a lawyer for the Ohio congressman, who says debate host MSNBC at first invited Kucinich to take part and then told him last week he couldn't.

A lawyer for the network said MSNBC decided to go with the top three candidates after the Iowa and New Hampshire primaries.

The judge called it a matter of fairness and said Nevada voters will benefit if they hear from more than just Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards.

The cable network and the Democratic Party are calling the 9 p.m. EST debate a chance to hear issues from Nevada's minority communities. Tim Russert and Brian Williams are moderating.

Presidential Debates Action Alert

Hat tip to the Hankster for this action alert:

ACTION ALERT: Tell the FEC to demand a fair debate process!
Ron Paul excluded from Fox Debate/ Dennis Kucinich excluded from ABC debate

ABC News and FOX News are trying to narrow the field of presidential candidates Americans get to hear just as the first votes are being cast. Here's the story:

First, FOX News has invited the Republican candidates to participate in a forum on Sunday, January 6, 2 days before the New Hampshire primary. But they have excluded Ron Paul, who has been climbing in the polls, and has raised $19 million in the last three months -- more money than any other Republican candidate in the quarter. And he received 10% of the vote in Iowa!

Congressman Paul is the only Republican who has come out strongly against the Iraq war, and who has challenged many of George Bush's positions. The fundraising and poll numbers show Paul's positions are resonating with the American people. FOX has not released its criteria for including candidates in the forum, so we are left to infer the reasons behind their decision.

Second, ABC News and WMUR-TV are sponsoring Republican and Democratic debates on Saturday, January 5. This week they issued criteria for participation: a candidate has to either 1) place in the top 4 in Iowa; 2) poll at 5% in NH, or 3) poll at 5% nationally.

ABC is arbitrarily deciding who the American people hear from. Given the Iowa results, and that Dodd and Biden have dropped out of the race, this criteria only excludes Dennis Kucinich.

By law, the debate sponsors are supposed to issue pre-existing objective criteria for who gets to participate in the debates. FOX News has issued no criteria at all. ABC only issued their criteria on Tuesday, January 1, for a debate taking place on January 5.

It seems the criteria is being used to shape the results of the election.

HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Where is the FEC? It is the agency charged with enforcing the limited fairness protections that have been enacted in our election laws. Send the FEC General Counsel's office a letter or call to urge her to take action! The NH debates are critical, as they are just days before the first votes are cast in the nation. The FEC should demand that FOX and ABC include all ballot-qualified candidates in the debates.

FEC Contact info:
Thomasenia Duncan
General Counsel
Federal Election Commission
999 E Street, NW
Washington, DC 20436
tduncan@fec.gov
202-694-1650

Watch the Yearly Kos Presidential Debate

Intro


Watch The Debate in 3 Parts

Part I

Part II

Part III

Another love fest for the Democrats....

Hillary Clinton continues with her lies in Part II (About pulling troops out of Iraq).

The Media Bloggers Association & the PBS Debate

The following is a response to commenter Denise, regarding the credentialing of Bloggers for the PBS debate. Here is the list of Black bloggers invited or "allowed" in by MBA and PBS.

It looks like you had to be an award recipient in order to gain approval from the Media Bloggers Association. I had a pretty bad experience with this group (the "MBA") a couple of years ago. I attempted to join their little organization shortly after I entered the world of blogging, as a way to help me get started... but I was told at the time (in so many words) that I was not elite enough. I basically told them that they could go straight to Hell.

The MBA is an elitist white-run group... which is reflected in how they choose people to "credential". Their aim is to gain favor with the big media (which is what they are doing here). That is a horrible group to have as a filter for these events. It's an especially bad filter for an event involving black bloggers... Black bloggers are excluded & marginalized enough as is.

Who in the hell are they to even know or decide who the good Black bloggers are? That organization knows little about Black bloggers... and I doubt if they even read "Black blogs"... (from the full spectrum of what is offered). Side note: "Black blog" is usually a term that I don't care for because it paints too small of a box. The term tends to suggest that a blog is limited to certain content, mostly centered on race. I never wanted my blog to be pigeonholed or placed in any one category, because I cover all kinds of issues; issues that transcend race, religion, national boundaries, cultures, and so forth....but for the sake of this commentary I am going with the term.

Is the MBA even familiar with the wide cross section of Black bloggers? Reading LaShawn Barber and Booker Rising does not make anyone an informed reader of Black blogs.
This is why I have called for a professional organization that could represent Black Bloggers, and work in their interests. I have a vision for a Black Bloggers Association...that would be supported by existing minority media groups, or at least an Independent or Progressive Bloggers Association that could do the same function and provide the support that we need. It does not necessarily have to be a race defined or race based group. But I don't have the money or the other resources needed to turn that vision into a reality. But if we could ever get that idea off the ground... we'd be able to tell the MBA to go to Hell. Why is a predominantly White group...that has little to do with the event, deciding which Black Bloggers are allowed in????

Unfortunately, due to the divisions among Black bloggers, I am not too confident that a Black Bloggers group (a professional bloggers organization) would be successful. Based on what I have seen in the Black Blogosphere, I have plenty of reason to doubt that it would be a workable proposition. But I will keep this vision in the back of my mind.

In the meantime, I have to take advantage of the tools I have just as an ordinary blogger. This David and Goliath nature of the media is why blogs are so important. Blogs help to level the playing field...at least to some degree. I have the same opportunity to comment on the event as those who are "credentialed" and "allowed" to attend.