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Good Monday Morning everybody!

In case you hadn't heard gas prices are going INSANE! AAA reports the average price is $4.10. Kay Barnes has written an op-ed from her series "Show me State of Mind." This is 11th in the series.

"Small towns suffer more during these tough times. In some rural counties, residents spend three times more on gas than those who live in cities or suburbs. The St. Joseph News Press reported recently that the average commute time for Andrew County residents was almost 30 minutes. At that rate, someone in Andrew County pays nearly $200 per month for regular gasoline!

We can't just expect people to stop driving. A woman from Holt County who is on Medicare recently told me that she had to skip a doctor's appointment in Kansas City to treat a degenerative eye disease because she couldn't afford the nearly $35 in gas to make the trip. I wish that this story were uncommon, but it's not. It's just a reminder that the cost of gas affects everything including health care." Barnes

Right wing trying to get special tax day where they can endorse candidates. If you haven't heard of this - read it, its frightening...

Teen Pregnancy outbreak

A Schleicher County grand jury is expected to hear evidence next week of possible criminal charges against members of a West Texas polygamist sect.

CapJournal has an interesting article about the extent to which valid polling can be done with the rate of cell phone only house holds on the rise. More info on these problems specifically targeting the youth movement - read here. Gallup recently decided to begin polling cell phones to combat this problem.

South Korea is protesting US beef

Detention of journalists in Vietnam

Scott's Congressional testimony


According to Jim Slattery's campaign, on Friday

Senator Pat Roberts held a press conference at Jayhawk Pharmacy. At the event, Roberts said he was opposed to allowing the federal government to negotiate with drug companies for lower drug prices for the Medicare Part D program.

This cycle alone, Roberts has accepted over $90,000 from prescription drug companies and voted to protect the profits of prescription drug companies at the expense of the over 340,000 Kansans enrolled in Medicare Part D.

In 2003, Roberts voted for a Medicare prescription drug bill loaded with perks for drug companies (HR 1, 11/25/03). The bill prohibited Medicare from negotiating prices with drug manufacturers, forcing seniors to pay higher prices for prescription drugs, ballooning the cost of the entitlement for taxpayers, and resulting in an estimated $139 billion a year in additional profits for drug companies. (release)

Dirty Writer brings us some noteworthy things about our fellow voters. These are not things we don't already know, but they are helpful in understanding who we are.

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Happy Friday!!

Hope everyone is having a fantastic Friday!! Here's the news.

Hip-hop kids not allowed in new Power and Light District... racism or elitism much?

Little Stuart Little gives us the low-dow (a regrettable pun) about JoCo government progress and future.

"All you have to do is imagine, for a moment, a doctor agreeing to an abortion for women of color but saying, 'I will not' for white women. Or a Jewish doctor saying, 'I will do an abortion for Muslim women, but not Jewish women.' Or vice versa. Just imagining those possibilities shows how deeply problematic such a notion would be."

-- Jennifer C. Pizer, a lawyer with the gay rights group Lambda Legal, discussing the ramifications of a case before the California Supreme Court regarding a doctor who refused on religious grounds to perform fertility treatment for a lesbian woman.

Full story

The Atlantic features Kansas's Own Westboro Baptist Church as they picket Tim Russert's funeral. I continue to be disgusted... does anyone else think that Fred looks like he bats for the other team in this picture? Remember the pink bicycle shorts?? yeah... me too

On the heels of its ruling on same-sex marriage, California's highest court will decide another potentially landmark civil rights case: whether doctors can refuse to treat certain patients for religious reasons.

Washington Post

The Los Angeles Times has an interesting interactive map about the record-breaking number of marriages that have happened since gay marriages were legalized on Monday night.

Los Angeles Times

Lot of interesting issues he discusses here... hate to say it but he has a point..



Finally, my first blog posted to the Rock the Vote site, I was chosen out of 200 people to be a Rock the Trail reporter where I will interview stars, lead politicians, and cover events like conventions, debates, and more! I'm honored and excited! But more I'm eager to bring our issues to the forefront.

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Good Thursday to everyone!

If you missed the summer party last night you missed an amazing event with some truly spectacular food! We missed you but hope that you can join us in the future!

Now for the news!

A recent audit of Kansas technology found that there were a number of computers sold without removing the private information from them.... oops...

Graves and Barnes are sparing over immigration.

Claire says that the "Gas Tax Holiday" is a farce.

Evidently Nancy Boyda has a substantial lead over both opponents, and sadly in the primary Jim Ryun is far ahead of Lynn Jenkins.

Rock the Vote has released their New Media Tactics (pdf), to help people on both sides of the isle understand more about how they can use technology to do young voter or new voter outreach.

"A belief in intelligent design is a matter of faith, not science. If teachers believe in it, they should confine their lectures to their own kids in their own homes. To do it in a school setting is unconstitutional, and it undermines the education the kids are supposed to be receiving."

-- San Antonio Express-News, saying in an editorial that "intelligent design"/creationism does not belong in public school science classes.

A bill to overhaul the way evolution is taught in Louisiana public schools easily cleared its final legislative hurdle Monday despite threats of a lawsuit. The measure, Senate Bill 733, now goes to Gov. Bobby Jindal, who is expected to sign it.

A new survey on religion and politics provides important background on the dynamics at work among religious voters in 2008.

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Is anyone else as excited as I am that we are back to posting on the blog?

Here's whats in the news

Officials worry that our high school students are not prepared to enter college...

Claire McCaskill is lobbying the beer folks

"He didn't want to establish a precedent. ... Today it's Viagra, tomorrow it's a more expensive medication for high-blood pressure or cholesterol" -- MO GOV candidate/Rep. Kenny Hulshof's (R) spokesperson, Scott Baker, on the real reason Hulshof voted to continue federal Medicare and Medicaid coverage of Viagra (AP). Brings a whole new meaning to Breakfast Flake...

A new poll shows Barack Obama with a 5-point national lead over John McCain, and whopping leads among independents and women. [Reuters]

Cindy McCain "is up to her old tricks" -- her recipe for oatmeal-butterscotch cookies featured in the latest issue of Family Circle appears to have been lifted from Hersheys.com ("Huffington Post"). Bless her heart, her food just can't catch a break.

McCain is up with a new TV ad on nat'l cable and in "key battleground states," focusing on his "plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions" (release). This includes missouri, if you've turned on your local KC news or any news channels on cable

AFSCME and MoveOn.org are airing "a provocative new ad" in OH, MI, WI, and on nat'l cable, portraying McCain's Iraq policy "as a prolonged presence that would involve a new generation of Americans" (AP). Is this the same AFSCME that supported HRC!!? And MoveOn?! Together?! Wow... I'm amazed.

Now President Bush and Florida Governor Charlie Crist both support offshore drilling for oil, on account of high gas prices. [New York Times] Know who else supports offshore drilling? John McCain, who’s such a maverick he will piss off his environmental pals whom he befriended after pissing off all his Republican pals. [Politico]

Americans are extremely pessimistic about the economy, even though the data suggests we should be only mildly pessimistic. [Washington Post]
(thanks to Wonkett for those last few)

VA Gov. Tim Kaine (D) is teaming up with civic and social orgs. "to try to add thousands of nonviolent offenders to the voting rolls" in VA -- a move some GOPers say is "designed to help" Obama (Washington Post). Remember when such people were taken off the rolls in Florida to help George W. Bush in 2000?? Paybacks are a bitch...

The Denver '08 Host Cmte, which was charged with raising $40.6M, came up $11M short for its final deadline yesterday (Rocky Mountain News). As such everyone has to bring their own hats, balloons, confetti, and there will be no rockstars. For all of those things you have to go to the lobbyist party down the street.

At least 55% of voters this fall will be using optical-scan paper ballots -- "nearly double the percentage" that did in '00 (Boston Globe). Which means 55% of people will probably not have their votes accurately counted as cast. Am I too cynical this morning?

Al Franken (D) is up with a new TV ad in MN SEN, "calling for an end to the war" and "arguing for renewed investment" in domestic priorities (release). He's actually only losing but like 3 points. When he was asked about this, his opponent said it was due to May sweeps.

"After the last eight years, even our dogs and cats have learned that elections matter" -- Gore, citing pet food safety as a reason to vote for Obama (CNN).

Cook Has a New Look! (check out the Cook Report's new website).

Nancy Boyda has a new website

Future Majority has a new website

Obama's facebook is 1million strong... wow

Speaking of the tubes - Clinton it seems spent FAR LESS than Obama on media buys online... v.v.v. interesting me thinks... is this a reflection of things to come?

Rep. Todd Tiahrt turned 57 on Sunday - I appoligize for forgetting to send my happy birthday's to him.

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A much delayed blog... we've been having technical difficulties for the last several days. But we are BACK! Like Cher... to bring you the great news of the day!

TOMORROW Is the Summer Party Extravaganza!

We hope you can make it, the food will be unbelievable, the company will be even better.

Johnson County Community College President Terry Callaway will be our honored guest.

Please call or email to RSVP
913-649-3326
sue@mainvoice.org


Now for the News!

The Kansas Republican asks who is in charge of candidate recruitment in the Kansas Republican Party

Party issues for Boyda?

Jim Slattery now within 9 points of Roberts new poll says.

Speaking of Kansas Republicans and the Apocalypse... there is a strange ad appearing on TV for Jim Ryun... Some are wondering why Ryun doesn't mention anything about his previous work in Congress. Some are asking what he's running from. I'm asking why the sky is so red... I also wanted to ask why hes "awkward as a colt" ...are they serious?



Texas goes Evolution Debate

Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance in Washington, says electoral candidates should stop using religion for electoral gain. Christian Science Monitor

Evangelicals have been indispensable to Republican presidential candidates since Ronald Reagan in 1980 and were key to George W. Bush’s White House wins. But many are lukewarm about John McCain, who denounced religious right leaders in 2000 and has struggled to win evangelical support this year. Dallas Morning News

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Happy Thursday! We're nearly there!

Holy bloggers Batman! The Slattery's are live blogging at FM Right NOW!

What in the name of Christmas Eve is Phill Kline thinking... one blogger asks.

Prime asks: Let's Go KC hears good news at the Missouri Joint Transportation Funding Summit in Jefferson City where extending public transit was the major issue being discussed.

14 Republican Congressmen are refusing to endorse McCain.

Chuck Schumer sees as many as 11 Senate seats going to the Democrats this cycle. I'm not sure I believe it, but hey - go gurl.


Obama launches http://www.fightthesmears.com. Good for the campaign. This is like the Hillary Clinton Fact Hub - v.v.v good way to stop bad messages where they start.


Um... yeah... Applebeas doesn't have a salad bar... duah!

In a surprisingly turn of events - Wisconsin has now gone blue. I'm sure there is a blue cheese joke to be made somewhere...

In the inaugural UW Dept. of Political Science/WisPolitics.com survey taken immediately after Hillary Clinton suspended her campaign, Barack Obama leads John McCain by a 13-percentage point margin in the Badger state. The survey of 506 randomly selected probable voters was conducted by phone from June 8- June 10 under the direction of Charles Franklin and Ken Goldstein from the University of Wisconsin Department of Political Science... It has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.

Some legal scholars would like to see America’s free speech protections made a little less free. [New York Times]

Here’s a four-page Atlantic article about how the Web has ruined the brains of book readers and writers and now we can only deal with single-sentence blog posts. [You Won't Ever Make It Past The First Page]



MO Common Sense believes Missourians are well positioned to deal with climate change if they're willing to be considerate of each other. As such, it is on this day that I encourage you to be excellent to each other!

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And a happy Day after Phill Kline declared he was running....
According to a piece on PrimeBuzz, Kline explained himself a little Tuesday after saying that he would not seek election back in December. Hint: He says ..."HAHAHA! You believed that!?"

Pat Roberts made the butt of the Daily Show's jokes.... oops...



So Speedy McRoberts maybe shouldn't copy off his classmate's papers.... doah!

Revised graduation standards for Shawnee Mission Schools have now been approved.

Since yesterday was Filing Day.... its important to know that a whopping FOUR incumbents gave up their seats on the Kansas State School Board... which means we could lose our moderate majority again ... and subject our state to another round of evolution hearings. This will be another front line we're fighting over at the Mainstream... as if we didn't alreay have enough with Phill Kline and the Right Wing Judges.

The moderate coalition has a 6-4 majority.

Carol Rupe, a moderate Wichita Republican, has decided not to seek re-election. She said after eight years, she's served long enough.

Steve Abrams, a conservative Arkansas City Republican, filed Tuesday for a state Senate seat.

Also running for the state Senate is Sue Gamble, a moderate Republican from Shawnee.

And Bill Wagnon, a Topeka Democrat, said in 2005 that he wouldn't run again this year.

Pro-Evolution conservative Catholic David Dennis files to run against Steve Abrams in the Wichita Board of Education seat. find out more about Dennis at his website.

The CapJournal also reports that the State BOE is Up for Grabs

Get ready for a very different Kansas State Board of Education — or not.

State board observers are waiting to see if the pendulum is about to swing back to conservatives after two years under the control of moderate or liberal members. But where the board will land after elections is anyone's guess. With half the seats up for election, only one candidate will take the power of incumbency to the polls.

"The elections are going to be very important," said Tom Krebs, governmental relations specialist for the Kansas Association of School Boards. "Elections matter."

What is clear is that the board will look different. Kathy Martin, a conservative Republican from Clay Center, is the only incumbent seeking re-election.

Rep. Nancy Boyda kinda... accidentally endorses Obama... Is anything ever off the record anymore? Of course not...

Also on the Daily Show... Sen. Jim Webb




British publication - The Times Online has a story about the President saying that he now "regrets" going to war and being known as the "war President." When the White House realized the President had said this without its consent they were quick to say that while interviewing with the British paper ... something must have been confused in the language translation...

Young Voters, are apparently headed to the South as part of efforts to help Obama's Campaign. They are among a group called Obama Organizing Fellows, and they will devote six weeks to Obama's presidential bid.

You may have heard last week that the unemployment rate for May increased to 5.5%, the largest jump in 22 years. Elaine Chao, the head of the Department of Labor, made a bold and ridiculous claim that the sharp jump was due to an unusually large number of graduates entering the job market:

Via Shame on Elaine:

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao issued the following statement on the May employment situation report released today:

“Today’s increase in the unemployment rate reflects the fact that unusually large numbers of students and graduates are entering the labor market.”

oy... Read the rest here... prepared to be sick

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Happy Phill Kline Is Running Day!

That's right - late last night Prime Buzz released the news that extremist Phill Kline has decided to seek a full term in the Johnson County DA's office.

If you haven't done so already - please go over to the Mainstream site and contribute to the cause and prepare for another fight. $100, $50, $30, or whatever you can. We need you now more than ever.



In a sharply worded editorial, the New York Times follows up on last week's major story on the coming battle over teaching in evolution in Texas. When it comes to science, writes the Times, creationists tend to struggle with reality.

New York Times

A Houston Chronicle editorial warns creationists on the State Board of Education not to hijack the education of Texas schoolchildren by promoting their own personal religious beliefs over sound science.

Houston Chronicle

Christian medical groups have started a major campaign to demand that physicians be permitted to refuse medical care to patients.

AlterNet

Beliefnet interviews Mark DeMoss, former chief of staff to Jerry Falwell, to find out how John McCain -- and Barack Obama -- are doing among evangelical opinion shapers and voters. DeMoss sees a potential major shift toward Barack Obama.

Beliefnet

For decades, when Americans talked about faith and politics the phrase "religious right" came to mind. But the country’s political landscape is changing, and now the "religious left" is re-emerging to play a prominent role in U.S. politics, says one of the country’s foremost experts on faith and politics.

Christian Post

With declining attendance, some Baptist churches are changing their names to stem declining attendance. Some have found that the word "Baptist" telegraphs "conservative" to many in the community.

Washington Post

Thanks TFN for those last bits!

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Happy Monday! Don't worry... its just a few more days until friday!

In case you forgot, Mainstream is offering a Advanced Web 2.0 workshop on Wednesday at 10am and Thursday at 7pm. If you are interested in attending please call our office! 913-649-3326

Did something important happen this weekend? I wasn't really paying attention...
Ok, just kidding..



Jim Wallis author of God's Politics and his recently release book The Great Awakening was spoke at a MORE2 reception on Sunday night.

“I believe we are seeing the beginnings of a new great awakening in America that could become another spiritual revival that will change big things in the world,” Wallis said in a recent interview.

“Hope and change are really possible, and we can make a difference. People of faith have done big things before and will do them again.”

“Church-based ministry that serves those in need is important, but organizing a movement that can work for social justice is critical,” Wallis said.

“And congregations have a central role in that organizing. We can provide message and motivation — a sense of meaning, purpose and moral value that is often missing in the larger society.

“As a countercultural community, the church can have a prophetic public voice.

“And, as often the last standing social institution in many communities, churches have the institutional presence and constituency for effective organizing.”

This can sound like politics, so I asked about that.

“People of faith should insist on the deep connections between spirituality and politics while defending the proper boundaries between church and state that protect religious and nonreligious minorities and keep us all safe from state-controlled religion,” Wallis said.

“We should demonstrate our commitment to pluralistic democracy and support the rightful separation of church and state without segregating moral and spiritual values from our political life.”

Wallis also told a great story about being at an event with some of the pastors from the largest churches in Cleavland Ohio. . . large meaning 2,000-5,000 people at the church. Wallis told them that its great that their people are that enthused and that involved, but that their community was failing. Here they have 5 or more churches with over 2,000 people in them and their whole city is falling into disarray. How is this possible? What is the church doing to help the community, Wallis asked them. It was a great event.

Sen. Obama will be at an event in St. Louis this week.

Arch City Chronicle looks at the issue of legalized gay marriage in California and how it is being received here in Missouri. No mention that Missouri and California are over 1800 miles apart.... hurm... 1800... reminiscent of the year right wingers want us to return to... coincidence?? Or conspiracy???

David Sirota author of Hostile Takeover and the new book The Uprising was on PBS on Friday. The PBS website now has an excerpt of the book so you can read and decide if you want to buy.

Conservatism with Heart wants her readers to not give up on the Republican Party as U.S. Sen. John McCain could pick a running mate that speaks to other factions within the party.

Also... another reason that John McCain should NEVER ever ever.. stand in front of a green screen...



Hot Rasmussen Action over at OL

First, there's the latest information on Partisan ID from Rasmussen, based on their daily tracking polls. Here's the chart I generated from their data. It shows how Democratic Party identification jumped sharply from the beginning of the primary season, after falling into the doldrums during 2007, when the Democratic Congress basically failed to deliver much of anything. It's remained fairly steady the last few months, but at record high levels:

I love graphs....

Super interesting bash on EMILY's List on OL Sunday....

Emily's list is far from alone in this-the problem is endemic. The basic problem, as I will argue below, is that groups like Emily's List are not guided by the mission of building progressive power for all of us to share. Rather, they are guided by a focus on individual politicians using a limited set of criteria--criteria that in the end often fail to add up to a united progressive front. It is custom made for schemers and demagogues to take advantage of-and over the years they have increasingly done so, at the expense of the true progressives that we ought to be supporting.

V.v.v.v interesting... me thinks...

Also, on a whole different Nerd level... TP talks about the establishment, big money, and ... other wonky goodness in relation to new political organizing...

But there's another big reason why Obama's victory is so important. He is riding herd on the largest and most potent new political organization anyone has seen on the American landscape in at least sixteen years. He's probably got anywhere from four to eight million email addresses on top of his 1.5 million donors and 800,000 registered users of my.barackobama.com, his social networking platform.

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Happy Friday!

Since schools have all started pushing abstinence ... it turns out that it hasn't made any difference. What we are seeing is an decrease in protection. Which accounts for the fact that teen pregnancy is up and also now 1 in 4 teenage girls have an STD.

The Institute for Creation Research is ready to wage a David vs Goliath battle in Texas to win the right to grant graduate Master of Science degrees, much like it did in California. Last week, the Institute filed a petition demanding that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board reverse its April decision to deny the Institute the ability to issue Master of Science degrees (based on creationism) in Texas. The ICR is claiming “viewpoint discrimination” and that the board’s decision was unconstitutional. (thanks TFN)




Bob Barr appeared on Colbert the other night saying that Young People will vote for Libertarians.




Young voters also see Obama's race as an asset. This is not surprising because young voters represent the most racially diverse generation in history in the US.

The DNC has also banned money for the Lobbyist money.



While this is cool, Obama has also encouraged a ban on "soft money." What is problematic is that many major donors are now no longer giving money to subsidize the youth movement.

In other news - the cost of fighting global warming could be $45 Trillion... So... about the cost of another war in the middle east.

Evidently Sandra Day O'Connor is

RIGHT WING ALERT:

The following is a direct copy of an email from Rick Scarborough from Vision America (there have been no alterations of this text)

From: Rick Scarborough, Vision America
Date: June 5, 2008

There is no economic issue that more directly impacts the citizens of the United States than the out of control escalation of fuel prices. It impacts every segment of the economy.

It is now clear that we are reaching a tipping point as gas approaches $4.00 a gallon. I am told pawn shops are doing a banner business as people are hocking anything of value to buy gas to get to work--and every time someone puts $75 in their fuel tank, they know in a matter of days they will have to do it again. Congress' only solution to date is to tax the oil companies, which will in turn raise the price of fuel even more.

Heaven help us! On this one, we must unite and take action.

The entire U.S. government is negligent in their duty to this nation. Every day, gas prices continue to climb, driving more and more people to the brink of financial collapse. We have a huge supply of oil off our shores and in Alaska, and we have the ability to simplify the gasoline production process which could help bring the price down--and Washington does nothing. This is criminal. They also block the use of nuclear power, other fossil fuels and renewable fuels. And the prices continue to rise..

God has promised us He would supply us with everything we need. He has placed oil beneath the ground for us to use. He has given us the intelligence to develop crops that can supply what we need for both food and fuel and technology that can harness the power of the atom--to provide clean, safe nuclear power.

But despite all these solutions, Washington cannot seem to find the backbone to do anything about this except point fingers and assign blame. The blame lies solely at the feet of ALL the politicians who have had opportunity after opportunity to take actions over the past 14 years, and have done nothing. Today, as gas prices threaten to bankrupt us, we reap the results of their unwillingness to actually do the job they were elected to do. We must make them realize that we see them not taking action in our behalf--and we must hold them accountable.

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Here's what's in the news.

Live chat going on right now at the LJ World about the severe weather planned for today. In case you haven't heard there will be an outbreak of tornadoes today. In the event of severe weather you should get in the lowest and most center part of your house. (cellar or basement if possible) If there is a central bathroom get in the bath tub (don't put water in it) and cover yourselves with pillows and blankets. If you have children have them put their bicycle helmets on. Those of you a little more like me should remember your extra battery packs for your video cameras

Speaking of natural disasters... I feel so sorry for all you moderate republicans out there who have to deal with Kris Kobach - he's such a nutbar...

Don Bettes spent yesterday blogging... EveryDayCitizen, DailyKos, and heaven knows what else. This makes him the first candidate in Kansas to embrace web 2.0 in this caliber and is a lesson for new candidates to utilize these new technologies to create an online dialogue between people and the Representatives who serve them. I'm impressed. Go Don Bettes!

Jim Slattery released a list of the companies he lobbied for and a description of the work he did for those companies while at the law firm of Wiley Rein in Washington, D.C. from 1995-2008.

Slattery made this list available to promote greater transparency in not only how the public elects individuals, but to bring about a change in how they should expect officials to conduct themselves while in office.

They include Amazon.com, Aquila - the Kansas utility company, various steel companies, Columbia University, Earth Energy and Environment where Slattery advocated for Biofuels, KC Southern Railroad, Moterola and Verizon, Wheat Gluten Industries, and Washington Citizens for World Trade just to name a few.

He also lobbied on behalf of the Connecticut Student Loan Foundation where from 1998-1999, Slattery served as the point of contact between the Connecticut Student Loan Foundation and the Connecticut Congressional Delegation regarding a Department of Education claim that the foundation was violating certain loan guarantee rules. Slattery was also involved in negotiations to resolve the dispute. (release)

Straw poll over at OL for the Veep spots - no word on whether the GOP has a blog doing a straw poll

MO Gov is disappointed about gay marriage.

MO Judge Panel missing half of its people. This might also be attributed to the MO Gov being disappointed about gay marriage... I'm not quite sure....

PB wants to know whether BO should make HRC the VP choice... staggering number say no, cast your vote here

According to TechPresidents' Nancy Scola

Make of it what you will, but I left the Twitter-scanning tool Summize open last night in two browser windows -- one set to track "Clinton" and the other "Obama." When I got to my computer this morning, Summize reported 684 new mentions of Hillary’s name and 4080 of Barack’s.

Also from TP

One thing particularly striking about Hillary Clinton's speech last night was how insistently she pushed supporters to get thee to hillaryclinton.com. What was she up to? Seriously soliciting ideas on going forward? Trying to harness whatever momentum is left? Collecting emails for a future run? TechPresident’s Dan Manatt and Daily Kos's Markos Moulitsas came to the same conclusion -- she's looking for help retiring her campaign debts. (Indeed, it's not subtle -- the "I'm with Hillary!" form redirects to a contribution site.

Can I just give props to my friend Randall who in 2004 told me that the he thought the Congressional Candidate we were working for should be saying her website at the end of every speech? Turns out Randall was right. Lessons to live by.

And according to a breaking email I just received - if you spend more than $100 a Pottery Barn you get 10% off. Hey, some people find this exciting....

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So I hear nothing important happened yesterday.... ok, just kidding. Here we go:

Obama is the nominee after 5 months of campaigning and 50 states. Has it really only been 5 months cause I feel like its been 5 years. Anyone with me on that?

"I think it's particularly poignant that in 2008, it comes exactly 200 years after we ended [the slave trade] in the United States" -- Ex-WH adviser David Gergen, on Obama becoming the Dem nominee (CNN).

"I'm overwhelmed with a sense of joy" -- Rev. Jesse Jackson (CNN).

There was also a lot of reaction to Hillary Clinton's speech, where she said, "I will be making no decisions tonight."

"Well whatever that was, it wasn't a concession speech" -- FNC's Hume.

"If I were Barack Obama, if I heard that speech, I would not be very happy. ... They are living in parallel universes right now" -- CNN's Borger.

"Clearly, she's trying to position herself, keep her options open" -- NBC's Russert (MSNBC).

NEA endorsing BO

Moore Endorsing BO

PB Reports

At 9:43 Tuesday night, the Missouri Democratic party announced superdelegates Jay Nixon, John Temporiti, and Robin Carnahan had endorsed Barack Obama.

That's about half an hour after he claimed victory.

We're told Yolanda Wheat and Helen Knetzer of Kansas have also endorsed the Illinois senator.

That means only Leila Medley remains unpledged among Missouri superdelegates.

And Rep. Dennis Moore has endorsed Obama, leaving Rep. Nancy Boyda unpledged.

FYI Boyda still says you'll have to pull her endorsement from her cold dead hands...

Poor John... what do you expect it IS Rolling Stone...

In other News....

Dan Glickman... gets all posh with Politico

Stop screwing with Evolution!!!!!

Stop messing with Young People!!!

And my PERSONAL FAVORITE

The alternative choice in this primary makes the decision even more simple. With a stubborn commitment to confused priorities alongside a patented brand of intellectual/rhetorical gobbledygook, Ben Hodge is an unacceptable choice for town dog catcher, let alone State Senator. Our party, and more importantly, our state, have serious problems to address. Tim Owens is a solid first step in achieving those objectives. We therefore fully support his candidacy and hope the citizens of the 8th District will follow our lead.

I spit coffee when I read this

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Its Tuesday - does that mean there is an election somewhere? I've lost track...? Oh, that's right! Today is the last primary day. Praise the Lord!


Just in time for Father's Day - two sets of father/son politico's step up to run for office.

According to LJWorld - Boyda and Bush differ on taxes. Really? Wow... stop the presses...

The Graves-Barnes ad war in northern Missouri involving the 6th District congressional race is drawing national attention with key lines like this: "The Graves strategy is to negatively define Barnes early on before she has a chance to effectively define herself." But the over-the-top advertisements could backfire.

Chief Wana Dubie is among those booted off Missouri's primary ballot and officials deny that attack of munchies ended the campaign.

This CNN video is kinda funny...

The Turner Report notes that a June 13 hearing is set for Charles County Commissioner Joe Brazil lawsuit against Republican blogger Jeff Roe for posts made on his blog, The Source.

A history professor writes that Sen. John McCain is wooing the wrong generation of the religious right. -- History News Network

The New York Times looks at the new generation of evangelical Christians. Evidently they are talking about their faith but not their politics... New York Times. But I heard recently that some new evangelical Christians seem to think that they've compromised the faith by being so involved in politics. Really?? What makes them think that?

After feuding for months over how to teach school children to read, the State Board of Education soon will shift to a topic that could become much more controversial -- the science curriculum and what Texas public school students should learn about evolution. - San Antonio Express-News

The Roman Catholic Church is planning a special conference in 2009 to mark the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of the Species, Charles Darwin's groundbreaking theory of evolution. The event, claim its organizers, is a milestone in the rapprochement between science and the Church. - London Times

Some of the nation's leading scientists, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's top science adviser, are sharply criticizing the diminished role of science in the United States and the shortage of federal funding for research, even as science becomes increasingly important to combating problems such as climate change and the global food shortage. Really? imagine that... (Washington Post)

Sen. Byrd was hospitalized over night. Sen. Kennedy is recovering.

Bill Clinton calls Todd Purdum, the reporter who published the hit piece in Vanity Fair, a scumbag and said that Purdum has done bad journalism since Whitewater.

What are you reading today??

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Hope everyone had a great weekend!!

Sad news: Dan Hermes, Topeka, former governmental affairs liaison for former Gov. Bill Graves, died Saturday night. (Hawver) Thoughts and prayers are with his family.

Rep. Nancy Boyda will announce the selection for this year’s Congressional Page Program during a press conference Monday, June 2, 2008 at Easter Seals Capper Foundation. Joining Rep. Boyda for this announcement will be State Senator Anthony Hensley, State Representative Ann Mah, a representative from Easter Seals Capper Foundation and other distinguished guests. (Release)

Neufeld nixes 900 Green Collar Jobs in Topeka. Oops.

KS GOP is split over the Prez visit. Breaking News: The KS GOP is pretty much split over everything... Duah...

DNC came to agreements.... finally... Clinton statement on it. Now half the country can get back to writing that novel they were working on... 19 in favor, 8 opposed and no abstentions. Full Michigan delegation seated with half a vote.

According to The New York Times: This leaves Clinton with 69 delegates casting 34.5 votes and Mr. Obama with 59 delegates casting 29.5 votes. And according to Prime Buzz this AM HRC is not happy with supporters shouting No-Bama - many were arrested for a lack of creativity.

Is Clinton out?

Members of Hillary Clinton's advance staff received calls and emails this evening from headquarters summoning them to New York City Tuesday night, and telling them their roles on the campaign are ending, two Clinton staffers tell my colleague Amie Parnes.

But CNN reports she's not done yet. Evidently though, she lost because of Muslims and Sexism. No reports on if these are Muslim sexists... I'm trying to find out.

Mainstream Media is apparently getting the Youth News wrong again.

Why did McCain revive the Coke thing?

Sirota was on CNN



I'm oddly fascinated by the Ron Paul Revolution. Apparently, I'm not alone

Ted Kennedy is getting brain surgery today. Sucks, but he's a fighter. Thoughts and Prayers...

SEIU is building the new structure for an accountability program, ie. primaries. You can follow the SEIU convention in Puerto Rico here.

Sources are saying that Obama is leaving his church. (PB) Opponents will no doubt say this is so he can continue to live his life as a secret Muslim without being harassed by the people at church.

Spelling Bee


What are you reading in the news this morning??

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TGIF

Bush for Nick Jordan while Pat Roberts works on tan in California

Biking across Kansas for Cancer

The Seblius effect

I don't even have a comment about this... sometimes you just don't know what to say.

Sirota on Colbert




How can Congress and government be more web friendly??

Full Disclosure and Full Release tells us that evidently John McCain has been diagnosed with everything there ever was.... wow...


Fun Fact about about NYTimes columnist Thomas Friedman He's married to a billionaire. OL tells us that today is the 5 year Anniversery for when Friedman said that the reason we went into Iraq was to tell Arabs to "Suck on this." I call this Bush Foreign Policy. Friedman was also the guy who said that young voters don't do anything and by golly back in his day they took to the streets .... walking up hill both ways...



Obama is apologizing for another preacher. Don't you HATE it when those secret Muslims have so many Christian Preachers around them they have to keep apologizing for!?!?

Bush is having surrogates go out and deny Scott McClellan's story about Bush's cocaine usage. Really? That's how they are pushing back? (from OL)

According to Hotline, in this week's National Journal Insiders Poll, Dems and GOPers in-the-know agree that the Democratic Party will see double-digit gains in the House in November.

Republicans said on average that the Dems would win 14 seats in the House and four in the Senate. Dems believe they'll take 17 in the House and five in the Senate, reports NJ's Jim Barnes and Peter Bell.

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It's what we call the news....

Claire is still a rockstar. One of these days other candidates will realize how important it is to go on these shows.



No members of Kansas' Republican Congressional delegation have gotten around to endorsing Sen. Nick Jordan in his quest to unseat popular incumbent Dennis Moore. They're very busy (though, not busy enough to keep them from endorsing a candidate for a county office in Johnson County, where neither of them live)

Those same busy schedules appear to be keeping Sens. Pat Roberts and Sam Brownback and Reps. Todd Tiahrt and Jerry Moran away from today's fundraiser with President George W. Bush.

Some of you might be saying, "See, this was a bad idea to bring the President and his record-low approval ratings."

Not so says Christian Morgan. (read rest from LBK)

Next Right says the GOP is lagging behind in web-iness. . . I would argue that that's really only in a majority of the states. In states like Kansas I would argue they are right on par if not better.

Not sure if you heard, but apparently this guy who use to work for the White House has some book out about his experience... I'm not its really not important.... (ha!)

McClellan's turn against the White House continues to dominate the media narrative about the war and the press. I'm not sure why, but perhaps it's confirmation of what has been obvious to many of us for a long time, presented by a messenger the elites cannot avoid ignoring. I've been thinking about this for some time. In The Second National Risk and Culture Study, five social scientists found that people tend to believe a story that contradicts a preset narrative they hold only when it is presented by someone who looks and sounds like them. They did this study looking for an answer to political polarization and the warring tribes of America. If you look at the DC press and political party leaders as a tribal culture, it fits perfectly. Glenn Greenwald has more, pointing to Jessica Yellin's admission that she was pressured to do pro-war stories by corporate executives. (OL)

Syndicated (except in the KC Star) columnist David Sirota will be on the Colbert Report tonight with the release of his new book The Uprising. I haven't read it yet, but if its anything like his previous best seller Hostile Takeover, then I'm on it.

There's a new Hillary Clinton boosting 527 running ads for her in Montana and Puerto Rico.

McCain is hosed, evidently.

Back in Washington, the anxiety level of Republicans is rising. "The McCain camp is now acting without much rhyme or reason," says a prominent consultant. "And it all goes to the top." Another Republican campaign strategist, in a thinly veiled reference to McCain, says, "Somebody is behaving impulsively is the point."...

Insiders are worried that reporters have too many chances to throw him off his daily talking points. "That's not how you win an election!" says a McCain associate. "McCain is about the only person left who thinks we ought to keep the bus going. Obama keeps the press at a distance. Why? Because he's trying to win!"

The Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow has an impressive list of high-profile global warming deniers on its Board of Advisors. Many, if not most of them, are also advisors to, or on the staff of, front groups that Exxon continues to fund (e.g. the American Enterprise Institute, the National Center for Policy Analysis, etc.) (from Kos)

Today's a busy crazy day.. I may have to post more as it becomes available. What are ya'll reading in the news today???

MAINdigest

Good-morning! Here's what happened while we slept...

The Right-Wing discovered the internet ...

Votes indicate where lawmakers fall on a liberal to middle to conservative scale - Bob Beatty's new Cap Journal piece

GI Bill is worth it.... some say that it isn't (seriously?)

Tank of gas = more than a bucket of chicken, a pizza, and a case of beer.. what is happening to our world???

Mass-transit? Cheaper than a bucket of chicken Brings a whole new meaning to Funky Town

Ohh Scott Schwab... Sad when he is better than someone... but it IS Ben Hodge

Steve Phillips accepts award from the Drum Major Institute with good words



The Republican version of ActBlue?? Ah-la David All...

2 Voter Rights Cases, One Gripping a College Town, Stir Texas

Poor Mike Gravel... can't catch a break...

Political Lunch from yesterday




I'm coming out right now... I LOVE campaign swag Evidently I'm not alone.

Columnist Roger Cohen schooled New York Times readers about something geeks have known for a while: “More than any other factor, it has been Barack Obama’s grasp of the central place of Internet-driven social networking that has propelled his campaign for the Democratic nomination into a seemingly unassailable lead over Hillary Clinton.” Better put: “It’s the networks, stupid.”

You know those TouchTones jukeboxes that have sprung up in bars over the last few years? Apparently they conduct surveys, too, and according to a recent one Barack Obama is the candidate most jukebox users would like to have a beer with, reports MediaPost’s Gavin O’Malley. The TouchTone survey also teamed up with Rock the Vote to give participants the chance to register to vote; 10,000 did. Who knew Obama would lay claim to the jukebox vote?

When in Puerto Rico… clips of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama dancing in Puerto Rico are making the rounds. After Hillary remarks on how good the local beer is, she closes her eyes and shimmies for a couple of seconds. It makes us feel uncomfortable. Similarly, as Barack Obama walks through the streets, he mimics an off-camera dancer with some improvised moves that don’t seem to belong to any particular style. Slightly less embarrassing. Neither, however, compares to this slice of weirdness of John McCain. We’ve officially reached the dog days of the campaign.

(last three from TP last was the best though)

Have a good day - be excellent to each other

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Happy Tuesday - I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day and honored our soldiers and their families for their continued sacrifice.

Here's what's in the news:

Sen. Sam spent the weekend with Sen. McCain... evidently it was all about the meat. That means, however, that they both missed the Great American Bar-B-Q Festival in beautiful Kansas City this weekend. Do we honestly think that Arizona BBQ can stand up to KC BBQ???

Our own Dr. Bob and his wife Shirley recieved the Porchlight Award from the Front Porch Alliance. They did not accept the gift on their porch, however - but at a beautiful banquet at the Gem Theatre. We celebrate this award for two very deserving people.

Gender should not be a factor in the Graves/Barnes race, according to conservatives... Right, cause gender only happens in San Francisco... duah!

MO state BOE has decided that no matter HOW BAD your charter school is - you still have the right to pay money to go to it and lead your children into a life of unstable inefficiency and intellectual sewage. Party on...

The Oprah's approval ratings have dropped since her endorsement of Obama. Her favorables are now at 66 down from 74 earlier this year. And her unfavorables jumped to 26 from 17. They indicate this has nothing to do with her gaining weight from her gland problem. Also in the news both McCain and Obama would die to have these numbers....

Also, McCain and Obama's campaign finance reports are now too big for excel spreadsheets over at the FEC. No word on whose spreadsheet is bigger - McCain or Obama but I vow to keep you posted.

In an interview with McCain - the AZ Sen criticized Sen. Obama on Iraq saying

"He really has no experience or knowledge or judgment about the issue of Iraq and he has wanted to surrender for a long time."

This message comes just after Sen. McCain borrowed Sen. Clinton's notes during study hall....

HBO film Recount aired this Sunday showing a violent portrayal of GOP House and Senate staffers who chased an official down the hall and out of a building in effort to stop the recount. This news is nothing new, but still shocking. It also shows Sen. Joe Lieberman's royal screw-up on the established message set by the campaign.

Breaking News: George W. Bush is still in the White House. Also breaking, Katherine Harris still puts her make-up on with a putty knife and squandered her only chance at being an elected official in one of the most expensive mistakes ... ever. OOPS!

You can now enter the GOP Poll to see who is the VP nominee... GO WILD!

Actor and Director Sydney Pollack died yesterday at 73. I, personally, deeply mourn his loss, he was one of my favorite directors.

All I got for now... have a good day - feel free to comment and post your own news not seen here!

MAINdigest

Happy Friday!

Non-profit org Democrats Work and Wes Clark are teaming up with the program 'Serve with a General'. They will go to one Congressional district and jointly do a community service event. You can help pick the district here. The only one in Kansas and Missouri is for Congressional candidate Kay Barnes. The project would bring Clark to the district to conduct service projects like cleaning parks, working with Habitat for Humanity, and various other needs in the area.

Breaking news... Coal Is Dirty from DeSmogBlog launches to take on the myth of 'clean coal'.

John McCain doesn't have cancer

Affordable housing Jo Co .... uhhh not so much (pdf)... Please, keep all hands, feet, and poor people within the car at all time while passing through .... Thank you, and welcome to Overland Park...

David Sirota does good things with words in a Different Kind of Democracy. Tell me again why he isn't syndicated in the Star?? Anyone??

Elizabeth Edwards talks about cancer with regard to Kennedy and talks about health care


Gallup talks about abortion




The Columbia Daily Tribune Politics Blog writes that U.S. Rep. Ron Paul will be speaking in Branson, either before or during the Missouri Republican Party Convention.

Big Muddy Politics believes that the "greening" of Missouri is a positive trend.

Halliburton contacted Congressional candidate Jared Polis in CO-02. Polis has been sharply critical of the company, and the company's letter calls Halliburton 'an American success story'.

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MO Sen. Claire McCaskill will appear on Steven Colbert's show as a promise to her daughter who asked for it for her birthday. Geeze... all I asked my mom for was shoes..

Kay Barnes - just ten points from Graves... who in this picture looks like that creepy guy from the X-Files.

Guess what, Jay Nixon is going to win... omg, I'm shocked...

People are all over how well Slattery is doing. Evidently someone is making t-shirts that say Slattery is my Homeboy. Way to connect with the youth Slatts!

I don't know what to say other than the fact that Lawrence has E85 at 9th and Iowa...

Men in dresses beware! Unless you're the Pope then its ok.. No word on when Graves will put this in an ad against Kay Barnes .. according to op-research reports she may have seen a picture of one once.

The National Presidential Electoral Forecast... brought to you by Chris Bowers - this is as of yesterday.

HRC blames Chad...

Geraldine Ferraro blames black journalists.... yeah... seriously...

You know you get them... viral emails that talk about Obama being a Muslim or not wearing a flag pin or saying the pledge... here enjoy this. When was the last time you wore a flag pin?? .... GASP! You don't!? You're a terrorist!!!

Interesting observation, Kos is bothered by the fact that the DNC gave 63 delegates to Puerto Rico. 63 is larger than the delegate count of 27 states in the country that actually ARE states... But do they wear flag pins, is the question...

Civil Anarchy in California... just fyi

And so it begins....

Lobbyist concerned about the lack of Lobbyists running campaigns

Along with that - a viral video that will NOT get out of your head... listen at your own risk

MAINdigest (aka GI Wednesday)

Slattery Urges Roberts to pass GI Bill

"There's overwhelming support for the 21st Century G.I. Bill among the veteran community and in Congress," Slattery said. "Sen. Roberts must put partisanship and politics aside and vote in favor of this bill."

"Members of the reserve and the National Guard are serving our country in the same way as career soldiers and they should be treated in the same way when they come home," Slattery said.

"The passage of this bill will serve to honor those who have stepped forward to serve our country," Slattery said. "It's the right thing to do." (release)

Tiahrt & Moran oppose GI Bill... so kind...

McCain gets hits for his GI Support (or evidently lack there of)


See the site: for more info


Oregon and Kentucky... Kentucky and Oregon...

A columnist writes that socially conservative Christians don't need leaders, like the late Jerry Falwell, to reduce their faith to a political movement.

Texas Polygamist Extravaganza
The Texas Senate's top social services policy writer says she fears that Child Protective Services is so strapped because of its raid of a polygamist sect last month that horrific child abuse in other parts of the state may go undetected.

Dallas Morning News

With the price tag of providing care for more than 400 children seized last month from a polygamist ranch in West Texas expected to reach the tens of millions of dollars, a legislative panel suggested Tuesday that the state explore using the religious organization's assets to recoup the costs.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Child Protective Services will not let a polygamist sect's children keep photographs of the group's spiritual leader, Warren Jeffs, or any of his instructional materials because he's a convicted sex offender, a CPS spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Dallas Morning News
(Thanks to TFN for the tips on this)

MAINdigest

Voting in Oregon begins in a few hours. Kentucky has already started! Happy election day!

In the news...

Gadzooks! James Azeltine filed to run for the District 3 Commissioner seat opposing David Lindstrom in Johnson County.

“On numerous occasions during his term, Commissioner Lindstrom has cast votes that are inconsistent with what I know about the residents of this area. In addition to voting against the most recent budget, he voted against the establishment of the Johnson County Public Art Program and Mr. Lindstrom was the only commissioner to vote against a county smoking ban,” Azeltine said in a prepared statement.

Azeltine, a Leawood city council member, said he was “bewildered” by Lindstrom’s tie-breaking vote in April to approve the funding for an independent prosecutor requested by District Attorney Phill Kline.

I'll be darn... What is it they say about paybacks?

New GI Bill passes the House.... Bloggers discuss... Politicians do photo-op:



According to the bloggers

"But of course we all know that this is not enough. This past week we learned that Army Physicians in the VA have been falsifying diagnoses for soldiers coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (see document below)."

Also in that race Lynn Jenkins says Ryun needs to move back from DC if he's going to run for office in Kansas.

“Time after time, we’re reminded just how deeply Washington changed Jim Ryun,” Jenkins campaign spokesman Pat Leopold said in a statement. “Jim spent 10 years in Washington talking a good game, but spent money on nearly everything except border enforcement.”

The Ryun campaign disputed several of the Jenkins campaign’s charges. The Ryun campaign emphasized that it doesn’t have a “branch” in Washington, D.C. — only that it uses a bookkeeping firm that has an office there — and noted that not all of its paid campaign staff “hails” from there, either.

In Missouri Robin Carnahan has become the saving grace of voting rights advocates.

In Kansas Kathleen Sebelius said no dice.

In other news:

A columnist explains how John Hagee made amends with Catholics and possibly inoculated John McCain against attacks regarding the pastor in the fall.

A Roman Catholic priest has denied Communion to Douglas Kmiec, a former constitutional lawyer to Ronald Reagan and prominent opponent of abortion, for his endorsement of Barack Obama for president despite Obama's support for a woman's right to choose. Kmiec responds in a posting on Catholic Online. (This comes shortly after a Catholic archbishop asked Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to refrain from taking Communion until she stops supporting a woman's right to choose.) No word on Brownback and the death penalty.

After the California Supreme Court ruling last week Religious-right groups are working to place a constitutional ban on gay marriage on the November ballot in California.

A conservative columnist explores the mainstream media's inadequate reporting on the overtly Christian tenor of Obama's campaign strategy. READ THIS! Seriously...

Covered on NPR yesterday and in The Hill

Democrats are battling for the right to face Sen. Gordon Smith in Oregon and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in Kentucky, while Republicans are looking for a candidate to replace retiring Rep. Darlene Hooley (D-Ore.).

But the biggest battle is in Oregon, where Smith (R) and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) began their campaigns early this cycle in a torrent of ads. That air war has weighed heavily on the already pitched Democratic battle between state Rep. Jeff Merkley and activist Steve Novick.

Interesting thing about this race is that the R incumbent is running like a democrat vowing to reach across party lines, opposing the War in Iraq, and being loved by democrats state wide. If he can make it through the primary - stay tuned for a safe republican seat in Oregon that may serve as the model for how Republicans can win against Democrats this fall.

Hint: Run away from the Right Wing and become more Mainstream.....

MAINdigest

Happy Monday morning!

Today's News:

Phill Kline who??

Mayor Funkhouser has decided that the new Light Rail will be named the FunkRail after himself...

Kennedy still under evaluation but it was not a stroke as was previously thought. Many sent thoughts and prayers out to him via social networks this weekend. And there is now a "thoughts and prayers for Sen. Kennedy" facebook group.

when in doubt... use similar ideas!

Republican Solutions and a Positive Agenda
Posted By: Tom Cole, May 16, 2008 - 9:52 AM

Families today face challenges that yesterday's laws simply don't address. We need to fix government, and one solution is to update our laws so they provide America's families with more freedom in their jobs; greater healthcare and retirement security; safer communities; access to quality, affordable education; and the ability for future generations to compete in the global economy.

McCain having a rough time connecting with young voters.. And lobbyist connection woes continue...

The first ad referencing the CA Supreme Court decision has begun airing. Republican Christian Conservative Jay Love out of Alabama talks about his kind of love...





To go along with that... Gallup asks us what is morally acceptable ....



Colbert shames Obama for not giving Edwards a Jetski

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Happy Friday!

Kline still not ruling out the possibility for a run .... joy... rapture....

House OKs new Army Hospital in Fort Riley

All I can say is... Ben Hodge..... Ben.... Hodge

Kay Barnes is being tied to San Francisco... stop the presses (right out of the playbook for the nationals.)


(I'm Graves and I approve this message because I look more feminine than Kay Barnes in this picture...)

When Kay attacks....



And now for making fun of everyone else....

TIME asks how healthy John McCain is... (I ask... who cares?)

TechPresidents smacks McCain for ..... long emails..... seriously, stop the presses....

As Government Reform Chair Susan Collins looked the other way. Oops...




The VA is mis-diagnosing Iraq vets on purpose so they don't have to pay for their benefits. Wow... this is so unbelievably wrong.

My favorite columnist David Sirota (author of Hostile Takeover) has a piece today about NAFTA trade and the economic wonderland of Washington... Why is it that he isn't syndicated in the KC Star is beyond me...

More about the Mississippi First race - very interesting on the ground report about the last days of the election and the kinds of attacks that proved to be ineffective




Anyone need a job??