Electronic Writer

There are over 1000 pages of Medical Records for Senator John McCain, but we are not allowed to know what is in them.

In the last 2 weeks, John McCain has irresponsibly picked an unqualified Vice Presidential candidate that he says will merely “inquire about the health of the president and attend foreign funerals.”  If elected, John McCain, would be the oldest President of the United States.  Inquiring about the health of the President may be a full-time job.

Here is a video by Brave New Films about doctors, and their justification for, requesting the health records of John McCain and making them available to the public.  We know about his 4 bouts with skin cancer.  We know about his high blood pressure and high cholestoral.  We know about the 6 medications that he takes daily.  What else is there?

Hockey mom.  Fiscal reformer.  Pittbull with Lipstick.  Tanorexic?

One of the first actions that Sarah Palin completed as a newly-elected governor of the great state of Alaska was to add a tanning bed to the Governor’s Mansion.

An unlikely news source for this sort of thing, the Narco News broke the story on Tuesday, September 16, that Governor Sarah Palin added a tanning bed to the Governor’s Mansion, although they were unable to confirm if the required electrical upgrade at the mansion was required as a result of the tanning bed, or if the electrical upgrades were already planned.

This news comes amidst quite a few conflicting reports that the self-proclaimed mantle of “fiscal reformer” that Sarah Palin wears is not universally recognized as one.  This news also comes amidst heavily supported arguments that the McCain/Palin Campaign has repeatedly lied to the media and the American public about their actions, policy, and the actions/policy of Democratic rival, Senator Barack Obama.

US Magazine reports:

“I don’t think it’s normal for people to have a tanning bed in their house, ” Wiese, who is based in Fairbanks said. “It’s expensive.”

Palin’s running mate, presidential candidate John McCain battled skin cancer in 1993, and again in 2000.

“I coat SPF 30 on myself first thing in the morning, and wear long sleeves and a hat whenever I’m in the sun,” McCain has told Newsweek.

And, that is the exact catch.  The rest of the America is concerned about John McCain’s FOUR rounds of Skin Cancer battles.  His friend, Joe Lieberman, argued that John McCain has a mere 15% chance to survive his cancer during the 8 potential years of a 2-term presidency.  And, Sarah Palin, his unqualified Vice Presidential running mate, installed a tanning bed in the Governor’s Mansion of Alaska.

Hockey Mom’s don’t have tanning beds . . . .

Read the entire article at Narco News >>

Read US magazine’s article >>

Read the Huffington Post’s article >>

We have seen more than one GOP news spin about what Alaskan Women think about Sarah Palin.  There were the Hockey Mom’s for Sarah Palin signs, the glowing review from her Palin’s sister, and of course, the assortment of supporters.  There is one woman, at least, from Alaska who doesn’t agree.

According to the recent New York Times article,

And four months ago, a Wasilla blogger, Sherry Whitstine, who chronicles the governor’s career with an astringent eye, answered her phone to hear an assistant to the governor on the line, she said.

“You should be ashamed!” Ivy Frye, the assistant, told her. “Stop blogging. Stop blogging right now!”

Before anyone cries foul about her motivations of her blog, please note that there are currently no advertisements on her blog.  So . . . money might not be a factor here.

Regardless, she has all sorts of information about Sarah Palin’s record as City Coucilwoman of Wasilia, as Mayor of Wasilia, and as her actions as Governor.

Read the New York Times Article >>

Visit Sherry Whitstine’s Blog >>

A little video footage of John McCain on the campaign trail.  A young kid questions Senator McCain directly about his age and the affects of age upon his ability to lead.

John McCain answers the question, then calls addresses the guy, “You Little Jerk.”

Do you remember the movie Fight Club?  Brad Pitt’s character is constantly asking the question, “How’s that working out for you?”  That is EXACTLY the sentiment I have for the John McCain/Sarah Palin team:

How is your campaign STRATEGY of lying to the public working out for you?

Last week, I wrote about the Campaign strategy of the John McCain/Sarah Palin team as outlined by John Feehery.  (Read that post here >>)  But, I was surprised to hear that some of the mainstream media has followed suit.

On Sunday, CNN had two one-hour shows: Sarah Palin Revealed and Joe Biden Revealed.  Sarah Palin’s show was the opener and quite a piece–not so favorable.  Joe Biden’s show as a bit more balanced–but, in my opinion, Joe Biden is a bit more balanced–and the show was merely reflecting it.

On Monday, however, even more news took a bite at the McCain/Palin campaign of lies:

• As Mayor of Wasilla, Palin Cut Own Duties, Left Trail of Bad Blood, was published Sunday on the front page of the Washington Post.  If you think the title is ominous for Sarah Palin, wait until you read the article >>
• Once Elected, Palin Hired Friends and Lashed Foes, was published Sunday on the front page of the New York Times.  Again, this is NOT a glowing review.  It describes Palin and her staffers efforts at censorship, nepotism, and the use of unqualified people/advice for making decisions.  The NY Times describes it as making politics “personal.”   Read the entire article here >>

Some may call it a witch-hunt, but to be honest, this is the vetting process that John McCain should have done.  In the last two weeks, the media is doing the job of the McCain campaign–determining whether or not Sarah Palin is qualified to be Vice President (and a heartbeat away from the Presidency).

Apparently, some of us are not buying the lies . . . .

There are a few problems in the John McCain/Sarah Palin campaign.  For the last 2 weeks, we have been talking about the huge problem that appointing Sarah Palin has become.  The other problem is a bit larger: John McCain’s actions.

In the Brave New Films video, we see a little double-speak going on.  Or, is it flip-flopping.  Or, perhaps John McCain just cannot make up his mind.  Regardless, it is not looking so good . . . .

Ready for a little humor?

The writers at Saturday Night Live get right to the bottom of the issue with this opening video from their weekly show.  It is exactly the question that I have been asking:

Where is Hillary Clinton now?  Why aren’t we hearing from her about Sarah Palin?

As a child, I was chastized that sometimes it takes big lies to cover up the little ones.  The point of the advice was to not tell lies.  I think Sarah Palin’s Troopergate scenario is EXACTLY what my mother was talking about.

Here are the events:

1. Mike Wooten marries Sarah Palin’s little sister.  After 3 – 4 years, they call it quits, and have a bitter child custody dispute.
2. Sarah Palin and her husband Todd hire an investigator, and contact Walt Monegan (Mike Wooten’s Boss) more than 20 times saying that he wasn’t an asset.
3. Sarah Palin fires Walt Monegan because he refuses to break the law and fire Wooten (who had already been disciplined).  This takes place in early July of 2008.
4. The Alaska State legislature begins investigating the firing of Walt Monegan.  Sarah Palin denies knowing anything about it.
5. The Audio tape of her aide making a phone call surfaces.  Sarah Palin says, I didn’t know about it.  My staffer did it without my knowledge.  I am going to put him on PAID leave until this is resolved.  The aide indicates that they got into Wooten’s personnel and workman’s compensation files while they were conducting other business at the same location.
6. Sarah Palin becomes Vice Presidential nominee with Senator John McCain.
7. Sarah Palin’s personal attorney (hired to defend her in the investigation because Alaska State Attorney General made phone calls to pressure Monegan) on behalf of the Governor filed an ethics complaint from the Governor against herself to move the case to a review by the Personnel Board and out of the hands of the investigation taking place with the Alaska State Legislature.  The judge denies this request.
8. We find out yesterday that the ethics adviser for the Governor warned her that firing Monegan raised “grave” concerns in a letter on July 24, 2008–only 9 days after Monegan was fired.

So what does all this mean?

Everyone has been saying all along that divorces are personal and emotional topics.  We can understand how they can affect someone so deeply–especially in custody cases.  But, abuses of power, are not acceptable.  When you are elected, it is your responsibility to NOT abuse your power.  And, the evidence is mounting that the claims may be credible that Sarah Palin abused her power in the firing of Walt Monegan BECAUSE he would not fire Trooper Wooten.  Ironically, she had praised him for his hard work a mere three weeks prior, saying she wanted to honor him publicly.

According to Time’s article, Palin and Troopergate: A Primer, in 2005 the judge was concerned with the fervor of the Palin family pursuing Mike Wooten:

Court records from 2005 show that the judge in the divorce case was concerned at the aggressiveness even then with which the family was trying to get Wooten fired, saying from the bench that “the bitterness of whatever who did what to whom has overridden good judgment.”

The most recent events involve 8 of her senior staffers refusing to testify, the Alaska State Legislature being forced to subpeona witnesses for their refusal to cooperate with the investigation, and attacks the this is a partisan witch-hunt: 8 Republicans and 4 Democrats are on the Investigation committee.

All in all, this is just ugly.  Lies told to cover up more lies.  And, now our potential Vice President using Bush/Cheney tactics to avoid accountability.  What makes this stink all the more is that Palin has lauded herself as the champion of reform.

From what I can see, there is not one shred of transparency left in Sarah Palin’s Office of Governor.

Read the entire article at CNN here >>

This was added last November, in which an elderly woman asked Senator John McCain a question about beating Senator Hillary Clinton.  Her phrasing was:

How do we beat the BITCH?

I certainly hope that this Republican cheerleader is not part of the faction calling Barack Obama a sexist.

Unfortunately, there are no responses from John McCain in the video clip that say anything like, “Senator Clinton is my long-time friend.”  Or, “she is a skillful politician” to reuse the words that the Obama campaign used to describe Sarah Palin.

There is no response–other than laughter.

Part of my reaction has to do with the direct misquotation that is happening.  The lies on the part of John McCain, Sara Palin and company have gotten out of control–especially when they alleged that Obama’s remarks about putting “lipstick on a pig” were about Sarah Palin–when in fact, they referenced McCain’s plan for the economy.

The smear campaign from the McCain/Palin camp certainly grabbed headlines as well as occupying valuable discussion time that the candidates could be talking about issues like: economy, energy independence, health car, war in Iraq, war in Iran, veterans’ benefits . . . .

Here’s the clip:

There has been a recurring theme, of late:

“I don’t care what they say about me, but I love this country too much to let them take over another election with lies and phony outrage and swift boat politics. Enough is enough.”

The New York Times has an interesting article about Barack Obama defending himself over the lipstick on a pig garbage.

The Republicans published an advertisement that asserted that Barack Obama made sexist remarks.

Read the article and watch the video of Barack Obama’s response >>