The Blue State

Blue Radar

I post each morning, here are some of the political stories thatmight not be worthy of their own posts, but are nonetheless newsworthy:

• CONGRESS The Senate passed a non-binding resolution by Joe Biden that would recommend partitioning Iraq into three regions: Kurd, Sunni and Shiite.  The vote was 75 to 23.  (Great!  Another non-binding resolution, Joe.  You sure have your work cut out for you.)
• CONGRESS The House voted 341-79 to condemn the MoveOn.org ad against General Petraeus.
• CONGRESS The Senate voted overwhelmingly to allow the Pentagon to raise the reimbursement rates for mental health treatment of soldiers returning from war.
• IRAQ Defense Secretary Robert Gates is sending in a Pentagon team to investigate abuses by military contractors in Iraq.  No word on whether that investigative team includes former contractors.
• SCANDAL Senator Larry Craig (R-ID) is refusing to resign from the US Senate as he awaits the judge's ruling in the bathroom sex sting.
• 2008 ELECTION/HOUSE Congressman Terry Everett (R-AL) became the ninth Republican incumbent to announce his retirement from the House of Representatives.  His district is solidly Republican.
• 2008 ELECTION/PRESIDENTIAL Fred Thompson is hitting a block in the road as conservative religious groups are angry about the former lobbyist's pro-choice stances in the past.  This could significantly hurt his campaign.  According to Politico's Jonathan Martin, "While Christian conservatives once seemed willing to readily giveThompson the benefit of the doubt earlier this summer, when questionswere raised about his lobbying for a pro-abortion-rights group, theyare not willing to turn the other cheek anymore."
• 2008 ELECTION/PRESIDENTIAL Rudolph Giuliani has fired his chief fundraiser Anne Dunsmore.  To downplay he situation, Dunsmore released a statement saying, "I continue to believe Rudy Giuliani is the strongest candidate in the race and I strongly support him for president."
• 2008 ELECTION/PRESIDENTIAL Yesterday, John Edwards unveiled his plan to fight AIDS.  Most of the plan revolves around giving greater access to affordable health care in third world countries.  "Spend $50 billion over five years to increase the ability of people inpoor countries to receive AIDS drugs and use U.S. trade policies toensure that those countries can buy generic drugs at fair prices," as analyzed in the Des Moines Register newspaper, which outlined each part of the plan.

If we left something out, it's because we either wrote about ityesterday or are scheduled to do so in an individual post later today. Otherwise, feel free to add any stories in the commentbox.

Blue Nightowl Clips

What a debate that was!  Here are some of the non-debate videos that are making their rounds on the blogs tonight:

1. Kudos to Brave New Films for getting the progressive message out.
2. Josh Marshall updates us on the Lieberman-Kyl amendment on use of force against Iran.  Good job Webb for standing up!  Webb is the bravest Democrat in the Senate.  Why can't all Democrats be like him?
3. Pelosi on Iraq.  Wolf Blitzer interview with the House Speaker.
4. Ted Kennedy on the childrens health care showdown.

The Blue Radar will be posted at 4:05 AM ET, several hours from now.

The Blue State Pick: Hillary Clinton Wins Democratic Debate

Let's get right to it.  I was not happy at all after watching this debate.  Maybe I just expected too much out of these candidates.  I expected more out of Barack Obama and Bill Richardson.  Both of them needed to challenge Hillary on the war.  Edwards was the only one that really did.  But overall here, for being in the home stretch, the non-Hillary candidates were too cautious.  She simply laid back and coasted through.  She won.

1. Hillary Clinton - Escaped criticism about her vote in support of the Lieberman-Kyl amendment, which allows the Administration to take action in Iran against the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.  But the line of the night came when she was called by Tim Russert on a disagreement she had with her husband on the issue of torture.  She replied, "Well, he's not here," and added that they will have a talk when she gets home.
2. John Edwards - Split decision between him and Richardson.  His best answer of the night was at the end, when responding to the hedge fund issue.  Lastly, Edwards definitely took on Hillary better than Obama.
3. Bill Richardson - Not too good.  He did, however, elaborate more than anyone about how he would get troops out of Iraq.  He was clearly the most rhetorically forceful when it came to foreign policy issues.
4. Barack Obama - Really did not accomplish what he needed to tonight.  He was sick with a cold, though.  But still, this is the home stretch.  He did not help himself.  Also, he shocked me and everyone else when he said all troops would be out of Iraq by 2013 (yes, you read that right!).  That is unacceptable!
5. Dennis Kucinich - Funny.  Entertaining.  Other than that, he did an effective job defending his tenure as Mayor of Cleveland, when confronted about it by Richardson.
6. Joe Biden - Bragged about a resolution he sponsored that passed today that called for Iraq to be partitioned.  But of course, as you might have guessed, it was a non-binding resolution -- so it does nothing.
7. Mike Gravel - Other than his advice to Congress on how to challenge the President on the war, tonight he did not appear fit to occupy the Oval Office.

Remember, I wrote this just minutes after the debate ended.  Feel free to give your own take on the debate in the comment section.

LIVE CHAT: The NH Democratic Debate

Welcome to our special coverage of the Democratic debate from the University of New Hampshire.  To talk live with fellow progressives as you watch on MSNBC, simply enter this chat room and enter any user name you want.  The debate runs two hours long, and starts at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT.

(Thanks for participating, everyone that did.  We will do this again next debate)

Voters care about expectations

As we countdown the minutes before the New Hampshire Democratic debate tonight, political analyst Chuck Todd makes an excellent point about voter expectations:

But judging a candidate based on expectations isn't something justreporters do, but voters do as well. Actually, if you think about youreveryday life, you make judgments constantly based on whether apreconceived notion about someone (or some movie or some food) was trueor not. "Frog legs aren't as gross as I thought" or "For all thebuildup, that movie sure was a disappointment."

If Hillary Clinton is thought of as cold and non-human but comes across as thoughtful and warm, that will impact the opinions of voters.  Usually you will not see a significant change in polling numbers unless candidates are able to surprise people.  Tonight, Edwards and Obama will look to do just that.

GOP mocks Democratic debate

The Republican National Committee set up a quiz game on their web site that allows web surfers to answer multiple choice smear questions about the Democratic candidates.

Some of the questions actually don't make much sense.  Nonetheless, here is the quiz.

You would think that with all the GOP fundraising woes they would have more productive things to do.

Video: Richardson releases anti-war ad in New Hampshire

Ahead of the debate that is just hours from now, Bill Richardson is releasing this ad in New Hampshire an attempt to clearly distinguish himself from Hillary, Obama and Edwards:

Interestingly, no speaking from Richardson himself at all, except for at the end when he says, "I'm Bill Richardson, and I approve this message."

You will notice that the ad touts Richardson's new web site, GetOurTroopsOut.com.

Biden puts it all on Iowa

We expected this to happen.  Joe Biden simply does not have the resources to compete in multiple states at once without first winning Iowa.  At the end of the second quarter, Biden came in sixth among the Democrats in fundraising, with only $6.4 million raised.  The Democratic Senator from Delaware is bringing all of his consultants to Iowa.

Acording to The Fix, no matter what Biden will remain in the race until at least the Iowa Caucus:

Larry Rasky, communications director for thecampaign, confirms that the decision to move senior staff en masse intoIowa means Biden is in the race until at least the caucuses -- quietingrumors (for now) that the Delaware senator might drop his candidacybefore the end of the year.

New Hampshire debate prep

We are entering the home stretch before the first primary contests.  Third quarter fundraising totals will come out after Friday at a time of each campaign's choosing.  John Edwards and Barack Obama are competing to pick up the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) endorsement.  Three days ago, Hillary Clinton turned it up a notch and appeared on all five Sunday talk shows.  This is the real deal, folks.

Tonight's debate is by far the most critical of any others thus far.  Not only do we have about 100 days until the first vote, but this debate happens to be in New Hampshire, which is likely to leapfrog Nevada and vote second.  Analysts are expecting a large viewing audience tonight in the Granite State.  With a lot on the line, here is what each of the major candidates must do:

• Hillary Clinton: Don't mess up.  You coasted through the five news shows on Sunday unscathed.  Good job.  Now here comes a harder test.  This is a field of candidates know you are the front-runner, and will do anything to pick you apart as a Washington insider.  So take the hits, but don't take any rhetorical risks.  This debate is yours to lose.
• Barack Obama: Think aggressive and think big.  This is the one downside of branding yourself as above the typical political discourse.  Sometimes you have to get your feet muddy and play hardball.  Tonight is one of those nights.  In a new CNN poll, Obama trails Clinton by 20 points.  The deficit was only 9 points in July.  Obama must be aggressive.  So how do you do that against the Clintons?  Think big -- which is everything the Clintons are.  Think in terms of big ideas.  Play to your strengths by wowing people with your charisma.  Remind New Hampshire voters what they liked about you in 2004 and earlier this year during your Chicago announcement.  It's time to step it up, or get out of the way and let someone else take on Hillary.
• John Edwards: Be the anti-Hillary candidate.  For Edwards, this debate should not be about Hillary Clinton -- it should be about Barack Obama.  The SEIU stopped short of endorsing Edwards because they were worried about whether he was better suited than Obama to beat Hillary.  With that endorsement hanging in the balance, Edwards will need to make the case that he, not Obama, is the most viable alternative to the former First Lady.
• Bill Richardson: Think big and loosen up.  People know about his resume and his position on Iraq.  What people don't know is what kind of person he is, and what kind of political philosophy he would implement.  Richardson also needs to show some passion, and not come across as too polished.  He is a western Senator, and he should look like it.  Loosen up a bit too while you are at it.  Tell some jokes, and at least try to mean them this time.
• Joe Biden: Don't yell.  People know you are passionate about foreign policy.  But show that same passion on other issues too.  And while you are at it, stop yelling -- it's not very presidential.  Voters have been waiting for him to show a softer side.  Like Richardson, show voters what kind of person you are.

The debate starts at 9 PM ET.  Don't forget to join us for the live chat.  Yap away with fellow progressives as you watch the debate on television.

Blue Radar

Remember to join us tonight for our live chat during the Democratic debate at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT.

I post each morning, here are some of the political stories thatmight not be worthy of their own posts, but are nonetheless newsworthy:

• WASHINGTON Dick Cheney was spotted on Tuesday night at the Borders bookstore in Washington DC buying the Washingtonian magazine, which featured the "Power 150" -- listing the 150 most influential people in Washington.  According to the AP, "several people watched through streetside windows as Cheney browsed on the store's ground floor."
• CONGRESS Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) warned on the Senate floor yesterday that an amendment by Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ) might give the Administration the authority to go to war with Iran.  Webb said the "proposal is Dick Cheney’s fondest pipe dream," and added that it is a bad way to secretly declare war.  The amendment would categorize the Iranian Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist group, meaning under precedent the US would have the right to go in and remove the threat.
• CONGRESS In front of a House panel yesterday, Congress interviewed two hip-hop artists about the issue of explicit lyrics.  Artist David Banner accused Congress of having a double-standard: "Arnold Schwarzenegger  killed lots of people in his movies. He even went to Mars and blew it up. But he can be governor of California."  (LOL!!!)
• JUDICIARY The Supreme Court will consider two cases: one pertaining to the legality of the voter ID card, and the other about lethal injections.
• FOREIGN AFFAIRS Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega spoke at the UN and defended both Iran and North Korea, and accused the US of imposing a worldwide hegemony.
• 2008 ELECTION/HOUSE Angry due to lackluster fundraising numbers, House Republican Leader John Boehner tried to get a few people fired from the National Republican Campaign Committee.  Boehner is now backing down from that demand.
• 2008 ELECTION/PRESIDENTIAL The key donor that is backing the election reform measure in California, which would divide up the state's electoral votes in 2008, is a Giuliani supporter.
• 2008 ELECTION/PRESIDENTIAL Chris Dodd is criticizing Bill Richardson for claiming to be the only candidate with a clear plan to withdraw all forces from Iraq, without leaving any behind.  "BillRichardson would be better served if he threw his support behindSenator Dodd's efforts in the Senate that would actually end this war, said a Dodd spokeswoman."  (But why would Richardson want to do that, especially when the Senate has done absolutely nothing so far to end this war?)
• 2008 ELECTION/PRESIDENTIAL Political scientist Stuart Rothenberg is reminding everyone about the insignificance of national polls, in comparison to surveys taken in Iowa and New Hampshire.  "More than three months before the crucial Iowa caucuses, there are goodreasons for treating national surveys with great skepticism and forplacing greater weight on the candidates’ standing and strength in Iowaand New Hampshire," Rothenberg said.  (The New Hampshire debate is tonight!  Join us at 9 PM ET!)
• 2008 ELECTION/PRESIDENTIAL New Hampshire Democrats (CNN): Clinton - 43%, Obama - 23%, Edwards - 12%, Richardson - 6%.

If we left something out, it's because we either wrote about ityesterday or are scheduled to do so in an individual post later today. Otherwise, feel free to add any stories in the commentbox.