...and now I have the heebie-jeebies.

Tomorrow's the big runoff election here in Georgia, and over the last few days we've gotten a lot of robo-calls, from both Saxby Chambliss and Jim Martin, as well as from surrogates such as John McCain, Michelle Obama, and Bill Clinton.  Surprisingly, none of the calls have been particularly nasty; both camps seem pretty worried about turnout, and they're imploring people to get out to the polls. 

Also of potential interest, and related to the runoff: I was given the hard sell by a commenter on my other blog, trying to sway me to vote for Chambliss so the new administration would have an effective check in the Senate, using the rationale that I should vote Republican so the minority has a voice.  I disagree with that rationale; you can find the original post here, and another exchange here, as, since I disagreed with the commenter, I quite obviously revealed myself to be an idealistic Democratic dupe.

*Just now, as I was typing this entry, I got another robo-call, this one from Barack Obama, which was highly effective in counteracting the Palin-induced heebie-jeebies.  Thanks, Mr. President-elect.

-EB

Today in the New York Times, political reporter Adam Nagourney has an article called "Second-Guessing the Vice Presidential Pick," which you can read here.  Obviously, right now things are not going well for the McCain campaign, and there's a lot of second-guessing going on, much of it centered on the choice of Sarah Palin, who was chosen, according to the Nagourney article, for several reasons including this one: "...she would give Mr. McCain a chance to compete for women voters who had supported Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and were upset at how she was treated by Senator Barack Obama and the Democratic Party."

That struck me as a weird turn of phrase.  Was Hillary Clinton treated badly by Barack Obama and the Democratic Party?  I watched the Democratic primaries very closely, and early on, I was leaning towards Obama, but had not yet decided.  By the time of the Georgia primary, I had made up my mind and chosen Obama, and I have not regretted that choice in any way.  But in my decision-making process, how Senator Clinton was treated by Senator Obama and the Democratic Party never entered my mind, because I didn't see her being treated badly.  I saw that her campaign was unable to shake off Obama, and I saw her reinventing herself a few times in an effort to overtake him as the primaries went on.  I know Senator Clinton had a beef with the news media for what she perceived as a free ride for Senator Obama, but I really cannot remember a time where Senator Clinton was treated poorly by Barack Obama.

Am I missing something?  Have I put on the rose-colored glasses of selective recollection? 

One thing, though, is certain - if we're second guessing better choices for the v.p. slot on McCain's ticket, he'd probably be in a lot better shape right now if, instead of picking a woman to try and woo Hillary supporters, he had just picked Hillary.

-EB
http://elliotblake.blogspot.com/

I took advantage of Georgia's early voting today (although I don't know much of an advantage it was to stand on line for three hours), and if the early turnout in Dekalb County is in any way indicative of what turnout is going to be like on Election Day, I think it bodes well for Obama. At least, I hope it bodes well for Obama.

Full story here of my voting adventure here:

http://elliotblake.blogspot.com/2008/10/live-blogging-early-vote-in-georgia.html

-EB

...and I have been hit with some kind of election malaise, a weariness born, I think, out of the 24 hour news cycle, and my addiction to the minutiae that comes out of that news cycle.

But it's not just that. I've grown weary of the flat-out lying that's coming out of the McCain campaign. They're not even trying to win on issues now - they're trying to win on fear. Of Obama the terrorist sympathizer. Of Obama the socialist. Of Obama the sex-education for kindergartners advocate. Of Obama the government-run health care advocate. And on and on and on, ad infinitum, stretching the truth until it breaks. You can find a collection of the lying, detailing the robocalls and the misleading mailers, here at Talking Points Memo.

Both campaigns engage in distortion, but the McCain campaign just takes it to new levels. The thing that's wearing me out is the zeal with which they seem to engaging in this nonsense, especially McCain's running mate, Governor Sarah "I'm-just-like-you-everyday-Americans-just-don't-mind-the-$150,000-designer-wardrobe-that-costs-more-than-what-most-of-you-pro-America-folks-who-come-to-my-rallies-earn-in-two-or-three-years" Palin. Commie pinko liberal that I am, I was listening to NPR's All Things Considered on the way home from picking up my daughter, and they played a clip from a Palin speech she gave today at a rally in Troy, Michigan (or Ohio - it's unclear). (Here's a link to it.) The gist of the clip is that Palin, smug as ever, credits folk hero Joe the Plumber for getting Barack Obama to say in plain language that he wants to "spread the wealth," and then bashes Joe Biden for saying paying higher taxes is patriotic, before saying that it all sounds like "socialism" to Joe the Plumber "who is speaking for all Americans worried about their economic future," and that "now is not the time to experiment with socialism." To which the crowd responds with loud cheers and jeers. Can I remind the Governor that out of economic necessity, the Treasury Department, led by the former chair of GOLDMAN SACHS, JUST NATIONALIZED THE FREAKING BANKING SYSTEM! So clearly, our government, and our Republican Fed Chairman, decided that it is time to experiment with socialism, at least on a temporary basis.

The rest (yes, there's more to this screed) is here: http://elliotblake.blogspot.com/2008/10/twelve-days-to-go.html

-EB

Is it just me, or does it seem like the McCain/Palin campaign is working out the cast of characters for a childrens' television show?