There Is Win. There Is Awesome.

And there is this story.

Anyway: A wonderful lady picked him up at a bar, and she went to his hotel room, and she slipped him a mickey. When he woke up, his entire ridiculous jewel-encrusted ultra-tacky wardrobe was stolen — “$120,000 in money, jewelry and other belongings,” according to the Pioneer Press. Ha, it costs $120,000 to look like that? Who knew!

It was the night of Sarah Palin’s big dumb speech at the RNC. This guy, Gabriel Schwartz — “a single attorney and a fixture in Colorado Republican politics,” according to the Pioneer Press — was staying in Minneapolis at the fancy Hotel Ivy. He reportedly took this girl back to his $319-per-night room and she told him to get undressed while she made the drinks. This is a wonderful scene from some James M. Cain book, but rather than wearing a salesman’s suit, the mark is dressed like some castout from the Village People or the Stray Cats or god knows what.

“Victim reported suspect made victim drinks, told him to get undressed, which is the last thing he remembers,” a police narrative said. “Upon waking, victim discovered money, jewelry gone; total loss over $120K.”

A police report notes the crime occurred between 4:22 and 5:46 a.m., and Palmer said investigators believe Schwartz had been drugged, although he declined to discuss details.

Aside from the watch, ring, necklace, earrings and belt, Schwartz also reported a $1,000 purse or wallet, a $1,500 cell phone, $500 in cash and a couple of rings worth $50 had been taken.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. We salute you, wonderful girl thief of Minneapolis. You are America’s Real Hero. Everything about you is a delicious testament to the American Dream … the American Dream of duping a vulgarian lawyer.

The only thing that would make this better is an anonymous donation of $120,000 to Obama's campaign. Oh my my my my my. There is karma in the universe after all.

Action/Reaction

So what did people who make waaaaaaaaaay more money than I do think of McSame's McSpeech?

Slate's Mickey Kaus:

The Larger Issue: The speech reeked of extra cooks making too many unintegrated additions. What does it say about McCain's management ability if he let the process for this crucial effort get out of control? It's not like he didn't have months to prepare. Or were the months the problem? Palin's Wednesday night text, presumably written in a few days, was much better. Maybe the McCain campaign didn't have time to kill it with improvements. ...

CNN's Bill Schneider:

My view is: It was a simple and sincere speech that gave testimony to his character, avoiding most divisive social issues. But it did not seem to answer the question, "What are you going to do about the nation's terrible economic problems?"

His answers seemed very much part of the past: cut spending, cut taxes. He really needs to find a new and bolder economic plan.

He tried to claim some of Obama's major campaign themes Thursday: unity and change. But when McCain talks about change, he talks about changing Washington. When the Democrats talk about change, they're talking about changing the way things are going in the country.

If voters are choosing between two men, they will probably choose McCain. If they're choosing between two policies, I think Obama has the edge: His are newer, smarter and fresher.

The NY Times goes over the righty blog reactions:

As Rudy Giuliani wasn’t on stage tonight, we actually got to see the movie we were promised — although the Opinionator thinks Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit, has a point that “it was pretty weak. I can’t believe they didn’t do a better job given what they had to work with” and Megan McCardle of the Atlantic has a good question: “Do we need the tribute videos? There’s something of the whiff of creepy totalitarian propaganda films about them.”

The Power Line guys were...not impressed.

It took a bit of courage to begin by expressing gratitude to President Bush for "leading us in those dark days following the worst attack on American soil in our history, and keeping us safe from another attack many thought was inevitable." While McCain is obviously his own man, I don't think he can run entirely away from the record of the Bush administration, which he supported more often than not.

It was nice, too, to say a few kind words about Barack Obama and his supporters.

So far, the loudest applause has been for his comments about Sarah Palin.

There were two Code Pink protesters who had to be dragged out. They pulled them up the aisle right next to where I'm sitting. I shared some thoughts with them.

I'm not crazy about the recitation of McCain's sympathy for individuals who live in various swing states. I suppose this is a response to polls that say one area where McCain lags behind Obama is in "understanding the problems of people like me."

Paul Krugman nails the entire theme of the RNC however:

What’s the source of all that anger?

Some of it, of course, is driven by cultural and religious conflict: fundamentalist Christians are sincerely dismayed by Roe v. Wade and evolution in the curriculum. What struck me as I watched the convention speeches, however, is how much of the anger on the right is based not on the claim that Democrats have done bad things, but on the perception — generally based on no evidence whatsoever — that Democrats look down their noses at regular people.

Thus Mr. Giuliani asserted that Wasilla, Alaska, isn’t “flashy enough” for Mr. Obama, who never said any such thing. And Ms. Palin asserted that Democrats “look down” on small-town mayors — again, without any evidence.

What the G.O.P. is selling, in other words, is the pure politics of resentment; you’re supposed to vote Republican to stick it to an elite that thinks it’s better than you. Or to put it another way, the G.O.P. is still the party of Nixon.

And that's pretty much it. With eight weeks and four days to go, the real race begins now.

Strap in. The country's at stake.

The Year 2000 Called...

....and they want Bush's speech back, John.

Seriously. McSame's speech was all stolen:

1. Bush's stuff from 2000 was stolen, the teacher's unions to the cut foreign aid to the bi-partisanship crap and breaking the culture of Washington pap.
   
2. Obama's new energy, new job plan was stolen wholesale from the Dems. Nice to know.
   
3. POW! (tm) was stolen from the hagiography from BEFORE HIS OWN SPEECH. Ugh.
   

The GOP's got nothing. It was reheated Bush, only with "POW!(tm)". Hell, his own people almost booed him for the moderate stuff at least 3 different times.

Stick a fork in Mr. Green Screen. Here's the transcript. Lowlights:

"These are tough times for many of you. You're worried about keeping your job or finding a new one, and are struggling to put food on the table and stay in your home. All you ever asked of government is to stand on your side, not in your way. And that's just what I intend to do: stand on your side and fight for your future."

How? Cutting corporate taxes, of course. He's fighting for YOU.

"And I've found just the right partner to help me shake up Washington, Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska. She has executive experience and a real record of accomplishment. She's tackled tough problems like energy independence and corruption. She's balanced a budget, cut taxes, and taken on the special interests. She's reached across the aisle and asked Republicans, Democrats and Independents to serve in her administration. She's the mother of five children. She's helped run a small business, worked with her hands and knows what it's like to worry about mortgage payments and health care and the cost of gasoline and groceries."

Said with a straight face, and coming from the guy who married into $100 million.

I'm not in the habit of breaking promises to my country and neither is Governor Palin. And when we tell you we're going to change Washington, and stop leaving our country's problems for some unluckier generation to fix, you can count on it. We've got a record of doing just that, and the strength, experience, judgment and backbone to keep our word to you.

Like voting against your OWN CAMPAIGN FINANCE BILL, and flipping on global warming, and abortion rights, and taxes, and...

Thanks to the leadership of a brilliant general, David Petreaus, and the brave men and women he has the honor to command, that strategy succeeded and rescued us from a defeat that would have demoralized our military, risked a wider war and threatened the security of all Americans.

Because we put our troops there in the first place...why?

I fight to restore the pride and principles of our party. We were elected to change Washington, and we let Washington change us. We lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption. We lost their trust when rather than reform government, both parties made it bigger. We lost their trust when instead of freeing ourselves from a dangerous dependence on foreign oil, both parties and Senator Obama passed another corporate welfare bill for oil companies. We lost their trust, when we valued our power over our principles.

And of course your solution to that is to CUT TAXES ON THE OIL COMPANIES.

My tax cuts will create jobs. His tax increases will eliminate them. My health care plan will make it easier for more Americans to find and keep good health care insurance. His plan will force small businesses to cut jobs, reduce wages, and force families into a government run health care system where a bureaucrat stands between you and your doctor.

Best bullshit of the night, there.

Senator Obama thinks we can achieve energy independence without more drilling and without more nuclear power. But Americans know better than that. We must use all resources and develop all technologies necessary to rescue our economy from the damage caused by rising oil prices and to restore the health of our planet. It's an ambitious plan, but Americans are ambitious by nature, and we have faced greater challenges. It's time for us to show the world again how Americans lead.

Except Obama mentioned...nuclear power and clean coal just, oh, ONE WEEK AGO.

I'm running for President to keep the country I love safe, and prevent other families from risking their loved ones in war as my family has. I will draw on all my experience with the world and its leaders, and all the tools at our disposal -- diplomatic, economic, military and the power of our ideals -- to build the foundations for a stable and enduring peace.

Bush Uber Alles!

On an October morning, in the Gulf of Tonkin, I prepared for my 23rd mission over North Vietnam.

And we skip six paragrahs and five minutes of him talling America, in case you didn't know, HE WAS A POW!

I'm going to fight for my cause every day as your President. I'm going to fight to make sure every American has every reason to thank God, as I thank Him: that I'm an American, a proud citizen of the greatest country on earth, and with hard work, strong faith and a little courage, great things are always within our reach. Fight with me. Fight with me.

I think if this man ends up President, so many of us will be out there, fighting his wars wth him. Well, he'll be there in spirit. He was a POW, did you know?

Domestic Terrorists Strike Republican Convention!

And no, I'm not exaggerating.

As clashes between police and protesters subsided outside the Republican National Convention on Wednesday, county prosecutors charged eight people with conspiring to cause a riot as part of a terrorist act.

The eight suspects were arrested in connection with raids of homes in the Twin Cities that were conducted by the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department before the convention began.

The charges are highly unusual because of the terrorism aspect. Ramsey County Atty. Susan Gaertner said she could recall no such case in her 24 years with the prosecutor's office.

"This was the most serious charge that we found that was supported by the evidence," she said. "The terrorism aspect is appropriate. This is not your average criminal charge, but this was not your average crime."

If convicted, the suspects could each face up to five years in jail, a $10,000 fine, or both.

Bruce Nestor, president of the Minnesota chapter of the National Lawyers Guild, which is representing several of the suspects, called the charges ridiculous.

The accusations are "an effort to equate publicly stated plans to blockade traffic and disrupt the RNC as being the same as acts of terrorism," Nestor said in a statement.

I talked about this a few days ago, how cops raided several homes in the St. Paul area and arrested hundreds because they PLANNED to protest. Now we see how some of those arrested are being charged with serious felony crimes...conspiracy to commit terrorism.

Our government is planning on putting people away for up to five years for the crime of planning to dissent against the GOP during their little party. It's the definition of thoughtcrime, they were planning to dissent. If they had actually been able to pull off the "vile terrorist act" of dissent, it undoubtedly would have been worth ten or twenty or more.

The "intent to dissent" is a terrorist act in George Bush's America. That's the real story in St. Paul this week. The police state in this country exists now. This is not a nebulous warning about a future Orwellian dystopia, this is Ramsey County, Minnesota, 2008. Do you honestly believe that the intent to block traffic is punishible by up to five years in prison, that it is on the same level as planning to blow up a chemical plant or trying to otherwise harm Americans, that it should be a Federal offense punishible by prison and fines?

Your government thinks so. They think it's applicable in this case because they planned to protest the GOP, and our leaders will not tolerate that kind of thing. They will not tolerate the intent to protest. That is the truly scary part: the notion that this was a grand criminal conspiracy.

The accusations of the government are very harsh.

According to the complaint filed in Ramsey County District Court, the eight suspects are leading members of the RNC Welcoming Committee, a self-described anarchist coalition. For at least two years, the group mapped out violent methods to disrupt the convention and prevent delegates from entering the Xcel Energy Center in downtown St. Paul, according to the filing. The group allegedly had considered barricading bridges, spraying delegates with urine and possibly kidnapping delegates.

The arrests follow a nearly yearlong investigation by the sheriff's office and federal law enforcement agencies. An undercover investigator and informants were used to monitor the group, according to court documents. The inquiry found that the group had connected with sympathetic factions in dozens of cities to recruit volunteers and raise funds, according to the documents.

Now, planning kidnapping and assault is one thing and certainly those ARE directly harmful to Americans, and worthy of prosecution. But this is a government that has lied to us before on much larger issues. Not much of a stretch to send a chilling warning to anyone else who might want to commit intent to dissent.

The death of liberty to thundrous applause, and all. Will the Obama campaign address the abuses of power in this country?

Hits And Misses

The Sadly, No! boys take on Miss Alaska, emphasis by moi.

Couple things:

- How can Palin not overshadow McCain in the days after this convention? What does it say when the leader on your ticket is in the No. 2 slot? This ticket is ‘Palin and McCain’ — that’s how it should be referred to by Dems.

- She still has to prove herself facing tough questions, during press interviews and during the Biden debate. It’s one thing for the hockey mom to read teleprompter-driven applause lines with an empty net, another to perform on the fly with Biden coming at her.

- They overplayed the ‘community organizer’ slam. The party that wants to shrink government says service outside of government is worthless? The only service worth anything is as an agent of the state? The Dems need to start talking up community work, church work, charity work, volunteering to coach youth sports, etc. Palin and McCain say Little League coaches and scout leaders and food drive volunteers aren’t doing anything useful?

- Her weaselly obfuscation on Obama’s tax plan was transparent. Mom & pop gas station owners and family farmers: ‘How are you — how are you going to be better off if our opponent raises your taxes adds a massive tax burden to the American economy?’ … cheap. Cheaply played, easily countered, easily seen through by even those famous ‘low-information’ voters. Obama wants to raise taxes on people with bank accounts the size of a small country’s GNP, and cut everybody else’s.

- The emphasis on the veto was a good one for Palin-McCain. A lot of voters like the idea of a mixed government that obstructs itself, which is absolutely what we get if Palin-McCain goes to the White House. On the other hand, in reality a lot of voters hate both this White House and this Congress because neither is getting shit done due to just that sort of obstruction. And I have absolutely no idea how to sell ’single party power’ to voters. Maybe just leave this one alone.

- She straight up lied about the ‘Bridge to Nowhere’.

- The foreign policy and war comments were just noise. ‘Al Qaeda terrorists still plot to inflict catastrophic harm on America, and he’s worried that someone won’t read them their rights.’ 2004 called, it wants its fear-mongering back.

- The McCain tribute was nicely done. He’s a genuine hero. But it’s hard to escape the message that McCain’s greatness lies well in the past, not the future. That he should be honored for past deeds but that his second wind is trying to catch its second wind for what lies in the days ahead.

- Message: Drill. It’s all they’ve got. It’s every plank of the Palin-McCain policy platform. Everything else is soft narrative — some mighty attractive soft narrative dressing for the base, like ‘experience’, ‘heartland values’, ‘mom’, ‘maverickness’ and ‘war hero’ — but soft narrative all the same. No health care talk. No mortgage crisis talk. No kitchen table economics talk. No paying for college talk. No global leadership talk. No national greatness talk. The absence of all that stuff starts to become apparent again once the shine of Palin’s star turn starts to wear off.

- The Obama bashing. Good red meat for the RNC crowd. People who never planned to vote for Obama love it. Could even be appealing to some swing voters who want an excuse to not vote for him. But how well does it play to many for this unknown, second banana selectee to burst on the scene and immediately start slamming a guy who worked his ass off in the national spotlight for more than a year to EARN his spot on the top of his ticket? We’ll see.

End of the day, Palin’s good news for the Repubs. She should not be underestimated going forward. Obama’s still going to win, quite handily.

And of course Aristophanes is right, when all you've got in your entire arsenal is "Drill, Terrah and Liberal!" without offering any real solutions for the problems at hand...you'll lose.

This isn't 2004. You would think 2006 would have taught the GOP some lessons. The only thing they learned is MOAR DRILL TERRAH SCARY BLACK MAN.

If You Can't Dazzle Them With Brilliance...

...bury them with bullshit. I've been saying for a while now that the GOP can't win on the issues, so they change the subject. It's nice to see CNN come to the same conclusion.

For the second consecutive night, a lot of the rhetoric at the Republican convention Wednesday evening seemed left over from the last cycle when the fight against terrorism dominated the race.

The biggest voter concern and the theme of the evening was the economy. But did it top the agenda Wednesday night? No. The policy prescriptions were minimal; the party-issued signs proclaiming "prosperity" made for a jarring sight.

The language and terror focus were left over from 2004. The evening's tone was vintage 1992, with just a hint of culture war.

Surveys suggest Democrats hold the advantage on the dominant issue this year, so Republicans looked to redirect the anger with base-pleasing swipes at the media and liberal elites.

That's all these guys have anymore. It has worked for them in the past, and they're going for it here all over again.

Nothing changes as long as they're in charge.

So Now What?

Now we fight.

Sarah Palin just became the GOP's version of Barack Obama: energizing, dynamic, and for the first time in a long time, something the GOP can rally around. I believe I'm doing Obama a major disservice by comparing the two on quality of ideas, but not quality of purpose.

This race was close without Palin. Now Obama and Biden have their work cut out for them. The old red meat eating, Buchananite base of the party is back, and they have their new queen for a new age. It didn't really matter that Palin lied repeatedly in her speech (even the AP called her out on the lies) but this wasn't about the issues. It was about bringing the heat.

Yes, Sarah Palin came across as mean, condescending, and sour. You play Peoria to Peoria, and her job is to exploit emotion, not logic. Logic is for elitist policy wonks, liberal media talking heads, and foul-mouthed bloggers like myself. Sarah Palin brought the thunder....it didn't matter if lightning actually caused it or not.

This is how Bush won. Keep that in the back of your mind. Attack attack attack has won in the past. Does Obama dare to stoop to that level? Ask Kerry and Gore if he should. The GOP is going old school: if you can't win on the issues, make new ones up and declare yourselves champion.

Now the world awaits Obama's response, and he doesn't have much time. He's going on BillO's show tonight opposite McSame's speech. We'll see.

Action/Reaction

How was Palin's speech received?

Steve Clemons says "Saint Sarah came to Saint Paul."

But despite my substantive differences with Palin, this performance tonight beat expectations and moved her to a new level. Her competition at this incredibly flat, low energy confab in St. Paul is thin -- so one could easily argue that she had a lot of room to pull off a success. But that is too cynical.

She did a great job -- and stared her doubters and the challenge down.

There is much about Sarah Palin we don't know yet. Unlike Biden and Obama, we didn't get much time to have our own public vetting of her before McCain's decision -- so there will be more fits and starts and twists and turns as other parts of her life are dredged up, over-analyzed, and judged by the American public.

But this is going to be very close race, particularly if nothing new and surprising shows up on Palin.

What no one will say just yet -- but which I think the McCain folks tried to convey is that "Saint Sarah" just made her real debut in Saint Paul.

Steve Benen believed Sarah Palin swung for the fences, but missed.

Judging a speech like this, it's probably best to consider the goals and the audience. Going into the speech, I expected Palin to try to connect to a mainstream audience, demonstrating competence, credibility, and readiness. She already enjoys the support of the GOP base; Palin has to work on convincing everyone else.

And yet, she (or, more accurately, the McCain campaign aides who wrote her speech) went in a different direction, aiming to shore up the party's base even more. Instead of seriousness, Palin went for biting and sarcastic partisanship. Instead of presenting herself as a trustworthy leader, Palin proved herself an attack-dog ideologue. Instead of answering questions about readiness, she answered questions about who she hates and how much. Palin not only steered clear of the concerns of swing voters, she practically thumbed her nose at them.

What's more, Palin did this with a striking dishonest speech, filled with the kind of obvious and transparent falsehoods that even half-way knowledgeable observers can debunk off the top of their heads. Palin didn't just lie, she lied brazenly, as if to say, "I don't care."

Kevin Drum was impressed by the style, but not the substance.

As expected, she's doing a very good job. In a way, she's every bit the pit bull Giuliani is, all the way down to the withering scorn and sarcastic asides. But she brings it off better than Rudy: it's more straightforward, more earnest, and yes, more small town. I don't think this speech will stop the questions about her selection, but it's certainly going to have an impact. She's coming off very well in her appointed role, and making a tough, smart, and very appealing first impression.

But holy cow, can this woman pull off the culture war stuff, or what? I gather that she didn't, in fact, ever really support Pat Buchanan, but she's every bit his disciple and successor in spirit. Wow.

And maybe just one more comment: for all that both Giuliani and Palin attacked Obama for being too full of himself, I don't think I've ever heard two more adulatory speeches in my life. You'd think John McCain was the second coming of George Washington the way they sang their nonstop panegyrics to him.

NY Times columnist Gail Collins pointed out Palin was better than McSame's other choices.

Palin’s speech totally swallowed up all the attention in St. Paul, leaving nothing whatsoever for speakers like Mitt Romney, who celebrated the convention Reform Day by announcing: “We need change all right! Change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington.” Tragically, nobody seemed interested enough to point out that this made no sense. It’s a long way from the golden days when Mitt invented the “Washington is Broken” slogan, and people took the time to ask him exactly who he thought had done the breaking.

It’s been one big reunion in Minnesota for the old gang — Rudy and Mitt and Fred and Mike. Together again, for the first time since those primary debates. Reliving the golden days in which they managed to convince Republican voters that no matter what John McCain’s defects, he could not possibly be as bad a candidate as they were.

Dan Balz of the Washington Post says the hockey mom scored a goal.

Palin gave the impression of an entire party rolling up its sleeves and digging in, never mind whether some of its arguments were illogical or shot full of holes, or even blatantly ridiculous, as when she portrayed the party as pro-environment and Giuliani earlier portrayed it as feminist-minded.

She proved herself in the great arena; that's what counts politically. Nobody could watch that speech and still consider her a joke, no matter how flimsy her credentials and qualifications may seem on paper. The joke, it seems, is on those who'd been laughing at her. Last night the laughing ended -- and the cheering began.

And the Wall Street Journal's John Fund says it's a race now.

Some hard-bitten political observers I know were uncharacteristically impressed with the Palin speech. Hal Stratton, a former Attorney General of New Mexico, wrote to me as follows: "That's what we out west call openin' a whole can of whip a— on your opponents."

Other observers were more restrained, but still impressed. "She passed her first major test, and if the reaction of the crowd in the hall is any indication, with flying colors," says Peter Brown, the deputy director of the Quinnipiac Poll. "So much for the comparisons with Dan Quayle, who couldn't have given that speech if his life depended on it. Obviously, Sarah Palin probably went down better in Warren, Michigan than she did in Washington, D.C. -- but that was the whole point of her speech and her candidacy." Indeed, while Mrs. Palin certainly won't swing any deeply blue states in John McCain's direction, she may have an impact in swaying independent voters as well as boosting GOP turnout in swing states such as Colorado, Nevada and Michigan.

One of the standard operating theories this Election Year is that Barack Obama and the Democrats are much more energized, excited and willing to work hard for victory in November.

After Sarah Palin's remarkably effective speech, I don't think any pundits or politicians will be able to count on a decisive Democratic enthusiasm edge. Sarah Palin electrified the hall, and from what I can tell from my e-mail inbox that excitement is being replicated in living rooms across the country.

The general consensus is she energized the base dramatically...but did she swing the center?

Well, It's The Truth

And the Truth shall set you free.

In her speech, Palin wants to leave no question about which ticket has a better hold on the economy, aides say.

Something tells me there will in fact be no question about who's better on the economy after this...

What The GOP Didn't Say Last Night

Joe Sudbay at AmericaBlog noticed what the GOP completely failed to mention last night in their efforts to fall all over themselves to honor John McSame, Prisoner Of War:

Notice how the Republicans, while managing to take swipe after swipe at Barack Obama, haven't told us a thing about McCain's plan for the fixing the failed economy. Nothing. The failing economy isn't just a political issue for American families, it's a harsh reality. The Republicans apparently don't want it to muck up their well-choreographed show. And, let's face it, if you don't know how many homes you own, you're not too worried about the economy.

Time Magazine's Joe Klein noticed:

But the most striking thing about the evening was what was missing: even the slightest wisp of substance. Not even a detailed tax cutting proposal, not even a paean to anti-missile defense or a rant against Iran. The strategy here seems crystal clear--indeed, it was stated today by McCain's campaign manager, "Issues don't matter." The Republicans are gambling that John McCain's inspiring biography will overcome the overwhelming--80%--feeling that the country has been moving in the wrong direction. They are gambling that people will turn to Republicans to clean up the mess that Republicans made. And they may be right, but I'd guess the euphoria over John McCain's story will last no longer than the next time most Americans have to pull out their checkbooks and pay the bills.

The Obama campaign noticed (via email):

At a time when millions of Americans are struggling like never before to pay their mortgage, their medical bills, and their gas bills, tonight’s speakers at John McCain’s Republican convention proved how out of touch their candidate is by saying not one word about his plans to put our economy back on track and provide real relief to middle-class families. Apparently, John McCain’s belief that we’ve made ‘great progress’ economically over the last eight years means he doesn’t have to offer any plans at all to fix our ailing economy,” said Obama campaign spokesman Tommy Vietor.

The GOP really doesn't believe the issues matter. You'll vote for them because he was a former POW and Sarah Palin has 5 kids. But then again, it's worked for them over the last two Presidential elections. Why stop now? Issues are for pansies. McSame and Palin are real Americans!

The GOP can't win on the issues, so they've simply created new ones and declared themselves to have already won.

Bangkok Dangerous (But St. Paul Is More So)

In Thailand, the PM Samak Sundaravej has declared a state of emergency to stop ten of thousands of protesters demanding freedom. It's been less than two years since the Thai Army kicked out the last Prime minister and replaced him, and the People's Army of Democracy (known as the PAD) has taken to the streets in massive numbers over the last couple of months to protest.

But Thailand's current Army chief isn't too thrilled about sending in the troops.

Thai soldiers would not use force to evict protesters occupying the prime minister's office, army chief Anupong Paochinda said on Tuesday despite a state of emergency giving him the power to do so.

"If we thought we could use police and soldiers to get them out with a peaceful conclusion, we would do it. But we think that that would create more problems," he told reporters after a man died in clashes between pro- and anti-government protesters.

The emergency powers invoked by Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej banned public meetings, declared government buildings off limits, and restricted media reports that incite unrest.

But with the army reluctant to enforce the decree -- Anupong said his soldiers would be unarmed and would act only as a buffer between the protesters -- the stand-off looked set to drag on.

"Announcing a state of emergency is proper and timely. But if you ask me if this is the beginning of the end? No, it isn't," said Puwadol Lapudomsuk of Asia Plus Securities.

And so, the standoff continues. Now compare that to how America treats its own protesters demanding democracy in the streets of one if its cities.

Following up on this weekend's extreme raids on various homes, at least 250 people were arrested here today in St. Paul, Minnesota. Beginning last night, St. Paul was the most militarized I have ever seen an American city be, even more so than Manhattan in the week of 9/11 -- with troops of federal, state and local law enforcement agents marching around with riot gear, machine guns, and tear gas canisters, shouting military chants and marching in military formations. Humvees and law enforcement officers with rifles were posted on various buildings and balconies. Numerous protesters and observers were tear gassed and injured. I'll have video of the day's events posted shortly.

Perhaps most extraordinarily, Amy Goodman of Democracy Now -- the radio and TV broadcaster who has been a working journalist for close to 20 years -- was arrested on the street and charged with "conspiracy to riot." Audio of her arrest, which truly shocked and angered the crowd of observers, is here. I just attended a Press Conference with St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman and Police Chief John M. Harrington and -- after they boasted of how "restrained" their police actions were -- asked about the journalists and lawyers who had been detained and/or arrested both today and over the weekend. They said they wouldn't give any information about journalists who had been arrested today, though they said they believed that "one journalist" had been, and that she "was seemingly a participant in the riots, not simply a non-participant." I'll have video of the Press Conference posted shortly.

Think really long and hard about under GOP rule in 2008, how being a protester in Bangkok, Thailand is less likely to get you arrested and detained to stifle your voice then in St. Paul, Minnesota. This is the Police State the people of St. Paul live in this week, their only crime being in the same city as the GOP's orgy of influence-peddling and corruption.

Think about that when you vote. We're already more of a police state than Thailand under an Army-imposed state of emergency. Give it another four years of the GOP and see where we are.

Here are several photographs taken from around St. Paul from this morning -- before the march or any of the protests started -- showing how militarized the city was. For whatever reasons, the brigades of police officers would periodically chant military terms and march around in formation ("Double Time!"), while helicopters hovered overhead and Humvees drove by frequently:



Clearly, and particularly in the wake of this weekend's thuggish raids, the intent was to create a highly intimidating, militarized and high-tension climate.

I'd say it's working. I'd say you will see more of this in every American city should things get as bad as I think they will with the collapse of the housing market and runaway inflation evolving into rampant deflation, unemployment, and economic disaster. Imagine this on YOUR street corner...and every other street corner in America.

Now keep in mind the mechanism to do this is already in place. It just needs a reason.

The Politicization of Gustav Begins

Bush and Cheney are skipping the Republican convention due to Gustav. They have to appear Presidential.

This has nothing to do with the fact their combined approval ratings are under 50%, I assure you.