Hillary's November Surprise: She Will Sell Her House

Obama 2008 has been the leader when it has come to raising funds this year so far. There is no reason to believe that will not continue over the next two quarters. But my worry is the wide gap between how much Obama raise and how much Hillary raises will not be wide enough to offset the possibility that a worried Hillary sinking in Iowa might inject her own personal money some time in November. What if she were to throw 20 million of her own? How does that change the dynamic?

Obama will not have that personal option. And so it would be unwise for the Obama donors to sit back and relax and bask in the frontrunner status. Being frontrunner will not be enough. A lot of money will have to be spend to make up for the fact that Obama is not the same brand name as Clinton. A perennially controversial President Clinton soaked up a lot of ink and media time in eight years. Every mention of the Clinton name in that period cemented the brand quality of the same.

And so Obama 2008 will need more money than Clinton 2008 just to give parity to the candidate on substance. So give. Donate. Pass on the message. Invite others to give. Give and give again. We will need to raise at least $10 million more than Hillary in both the third and fourth quarters.

Obama: Older Than Bill Clinton Was In 1991

It is ridiculous to suggest Obama is not old enough. Look who is talking.


In The News

US Seeks to Curb Illegal Immigration Forbes
Democrats quizzed at LA gay-rights forum Los Angeles Times gay and lesbian voters, one of the party's more active and reliable voting blocs. ..... stepped gingerly around the edges of charged topics such as same-sex marriage. ..... live on Logo, a cable and satellite network aimed at gays and lesbians. ..... gays and lesbians should be afforded the rights of married couples through civil unions. ..... Kucinich and former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel, who both spoke strongly in favor of gay marriage. .... called for gays and lesbians to be allowed to serve openly in the armed forces. ..... nearly identical positions ..... same-sex couples should be allowed to adopt ..... expand the definition of hate crimes to include those motivated by a victim's sexual orientation and gender. ....... "All these candidates want the support of the gay community. Politically, they are pretty generous with fundraising and very active"
http://visiblevote08.logoonline.com/2007/08/09/video-barack-obama-rewind/
ESPN’s Beckham Obsession New York Times All of them had a lot to say about Beckham as he sat on the bench, tied his boots, warmed up, sat down on the bench, re-tied his boots, warmed up again … Close-up of his facial expressions. Shot of him talking to Cobi Jones. Cut to a sock adjustment. For all that was going on on the field, it was the superstar on the bench that held ESPN’s interest. ..... though the English superstar’s presence clearly gave the Galaxy a boost, he looked no more impressive than the United midfielder Josh Gros who hustled and made incisive passes for $6,500,925 less than Beckham this season.
Obama Argues for Civil Unions for Gays Forbes
Clinton is solid, Edwards is slick, and Obama is nervous at ... AfterElton.com I continue to be astounded by how pro-gay the whole lot of them are, and what a sharp contrast the Democratic slate is with the Republican one ..... It was Michael Dukakis, back in 1988, who was the first presidential candidate to actually say the word "gay." ...... in 2004, John Kerry was the first presidential nominee to refer to gay people in his convention speech. .... I was disappointed in Barack Obama's performance. He's my candidate, but I thought he seemed nervous, and his answers were vague and meandering. It made me wonder if he's truly tested enough for the presidential campaign. ..... Maybe the reason he seemed nervous was because the questions directed at him were so adversarial. .... the sense that this just isn't the year of a straight white man ..... the contrast between her, who clearly has complete command of what seems like every issue, and our current President Bobblehead, is jarring ...... I like that Hillary immediately goes wonky. A president who micromanages and understands detail .... a shame to take up so much time with what are obviously — yes, I'll say it — fringe candidates .... I appreciate the passion of people who think I'm a Total Sell-Out for being willing to accept anything less than Total Equality Right This Instant.
Democrats Voice Support of Gay Rights in TV Forum New York Times
Obama retracts statement; defends Musharraf Pakistan Dawn
US citizens protest Obama’s threats to Pakistan Associated Press of Pakistan
Obama’sa fool if he rushes in to Pakistan ChronicleHerald.ca
Clinton, Too, Ruled Out A-Bomb Use New York Times
Clinton Ruled Out Nukes in 2006 Washington Post
Obama's Foreign Policy Blunder Cornell University The Cornell Daily Sun Despite his rising status as the rockstar of the Democratic Party, Barack Obama has proven that no amount of popularity can match the experience and knowledge required to master the complexities of foreign policy. Obama threatened to unilaterally bomb Pakistan if actionable intelligence placed high-level al-Qaeda operatives in Pakistan and President Musharraf would not act. ..... the Pakistani lawmakers—from both the ruling and opposition parties—have heavily criticized the current state of relations with America, citing both Obama's unilateral threat and also legislation he promotes tying aid to Pakistan with their performance against terrorists
Could the shine be coming off Obama? Town Hall
Giuliani's 'I'm one of them' remark angers 9-11 workers Cincinnati Post
Giuliani Talks About Ground Zero Risks Washington Post
Rep. Rangel Rips Giuliani, Calling Him A 'Bum' WNBC
Poll: Giuliani leads for GOP nomination CNN

Facebook Faces Up BusinessWeek Now, with founder Mark Zuckerberg heading back to court Aug. 8 to defend himself against accusations that he stole the site's concept from ConnectU, another collegiate social network with its roots at Harvard, the vultures are on the sidelines, flapping their wings. ...... 71% of users are now outside the college age-bracket. .... a widget that links to Facebook. ..... on CollegeWikis.com's sponsored Facebook application, SuperWall, users post college-specific information that is instantly communicated to the virtual message walls of other registered users at their college. SuperWall is currently one of Facebook's 10 most popular applications.
Apple: Back to the iMac an industry trend away from desktops. .... A new feature called Web Gallery lets users store digital photos and video on the .Mac subscription site
What's Behind Apple's iWork? Cupertino and Redmond ..... Long Cold War-style rivals .... Saving Apple, he said, required getting beyond the insistence that for Apple to win Microsoft would have to lose. ..... Google's Web-based office applications, Google Docs and Spreadsheets, are free, easy to use, and compatible with Word and Excel. They also work on a Mac. To use them, all you need is a fast Internet connection and a browser. .... others are creating Web-based office applications such as ThinkFree and Zoho ...... AdiumX, which supports more or less every instant-messaging scheme under the sun, including Microsoft's .... the underwhelming reaction to Vista so far ..... Mac sales growth is ahead of the rest of the PC industry. .... Perhaps the Cold War never really ended.
YouTube Your Way to Better Speaking I'm spending more time these days on YouTube. .... a treasure trove of material that can help you become a better presenter and public speaker. .... Hillary Clinton stood confidently and maintained strong eye contact. .... credited Barack Obama with using confident hand gestures ..... strong speakers will stand (or sit) with poise and confidence, use hand gestures, maintain eye contact, and avoid fidgeting. ..... "bridging" .... answer difficult issues by using the question to segue—or bridge—to what they want to talk about ..... a powerful tool to advance the conversation to areas the speaker wants to talk about. ..... "Man on the Moon" speech at Rice ..... U2's Bono to Lee Iacocca ... Both men speak with clarity and passion. ..... Cisco Chief Executive Officer John Chambers .... All of his keynote addresses, presentations, and interviews are open to everyone on the "newsroom" section of Cisco's site. ..... Watch as the world's top leaders handle themselves confidently and gracefully. .. CNN's access to world leaders is unmatched and the TV network continues to place more of its interviews online. .... Powell answers tough questions crisply and succinctly. He also has great posture .... Business leaders who are great communicators are constantly looking for ways to improve. .... discover new, effective ways to electrify your audience during your next meeting or presentation.

GOP advances primary in race for White House Guardian Unlimited
Countdown quickens in US election BBC News
14 Jan: Iowa caucus
22 Jan: New Hampshire primary
29 Jan: Florida
5 Feb: some 20 states including California, New York, New Jersey
5 February 2008, which has already been dubbed "Super-Duper Tuesday" ....
South Carolina's tradition of being the first Southern state to hold a primary.
Primary Shifts Complicate Leading Candidates' Plans (Update1) Bloomberg
Pakistanis Express Ire at Army and Musharraf New York Times “Before, our children would salute our soldiers when they passed. Now they spit on them.” ..... anger was set off by the government’s decision to storm the Red Mosque ..... Conversations with ordinary Pakistanis reveal uncommonly outspoken anger and antipathy toward General Musharraf specifically and the military’s involvement in politics generally. Analysts and opinion polls support the impression. ...... “The consensus that is emerging in Pakistan is that the military has no role in politics” ...... two of Pakistan’s four provinces have turned to armed revolt against the military — Baluchistan where tribe members are demanding more autonomy, and the tribal areas, where Al Qaeda and its Taliban allies have established a stronghold. ...... Musharraf’s approval ratings had plummeted to 34 percent from 60 percent in June 2006. Nearly two out of three Pakistanis polled said they believed he should not run for re-election. ....... The poll .... before the Red Mosque assault ..... the military .. remained one of the most highly regarded institutions in Pakistan, with a steady 80 percent approval rating. ....... When he took power in a coup in 1999, General Musharraf was welcomed by Pakistanis disillusioned with years of unstable civilian governments dogged by corruption. He was at first credited with reining in some of the worst excesses of avaricious politicians and with overseeing a growing economy and a more open Pakistani society. ........ it is the military that has been by far the biggest beneficiary of about $10 billion in official American aid for Pakistan. ...... While the economy has expanded, so has the reach of the military’s many enterprises, which extend into virtually every corner of the economy, including bottled water plants, cement factories and lucrative real estate developments. ....... the military’s internal economy is worth billions of dollars. ..... Musharraf can’t even shake hands with ordinary people. He is so scared of his life ..... A World Bank assessment recently ranked Pakistan in the lowest 10th percentile for political stability and said corruption was as bad as it was in 1998. ..... That was just a year before General Musharraf seized power from Ms. Bhutto’s successor, Nawaz Sharif, accusing him of gross corruption and mismanagement.
Musharraf Rejects State of Emergency Washington Post
Fewer Mexican Immigrants Are Sending Money Back Home, Bank Says New York Times a rising sense of insecurity and uncertainty about whether they would stay in the United States. ...... only 49 percent of the Mexicans living in states with relatively recent immigration said they expected to be living in the United States five years from now. .... They identified discrimination as the biggest problem they faced, with 83 percent saying that discrimination against Latin American immigrants in general was growing in the United States. ....... $23 billion, making them the country’s second-largest source of foreign income after oil.
Tornado Hits Brooklyn; Subway Back in Service Most of the New York City subway system was back in service by this evening’s rush hour after a fierce morning storm disrupted transit service throughout much of the region and unleashed a rare and destructive tornado that whipped southwestern Brooklyn with winds of up to 135 miles an hour. ...... raged through Sunset Park and Bay Ridge, ripping the roofs off five brick rowhouses, yanking thick trees out by their roots, turning cars sideways and shattering countless windows. ..... the tornado was the first one to hit Brooklyn since at least 1950 ..... intense winds that tore up trees and ripped apart homes and buildings ..... near the corner of 37th Street and 13th Avenue ..... The woman who was killed this morning was driving through an underpass when her car got stuck. After getting out, she was struck and killed by another car. ..... “It was over very fast, within 30 seconds” ..... Amid the commuter havoc, M.T.A.’s Web site, mta.info, shut down. ..... In the Kensington area of Brooklyn, leaves and other debris littered the street, trash cans were knocked over, and awnings on stores were ripped. On the corner of Dahill Road and Church Avenue, trees blocked road lanes, and a 30-foot-long pizzeria sign was down on the sidewalk. ...... By late morning in the Kensington section of Brooklyn, residents were sweeping the sidewalks and streets, and firemen were putting up yellow tape around the fallen trees.
Obama's downward slide San Francisco Chronicle a string of otherwise unwelcome developments. ..... union endorsements are trending for either Clinton or Edwards. ..... the opinion polls, where the news for Obama is worsening. As his numbers dwindle, Clinton's numbers soar, both nationally and in the crucial swing states of Florida -- where Clinton outpolls Obama by 30 points -- and Pennslyvania and Ohio ...... Stubbing his toe, at least politically, on various foreign policy issues hasn't helped, adding to the perception, long-held by skeptics (unfairly or not), that he is a lightweight. ...... Obama is the first casualty of Obama.
How strong is the Democratic presidential field? Salon Three out of five Republicans said in a March poll that they were unhappy with their candidates, and in July "none of the above" was the Republican front-runner.
Obama feels Pakistan's pain Chicago Sun-Times Obama said Wednesday it's critical for Pakistan to be a constructive ally in fighting al-Qaida .... expressed sympathy for Musharraf, who faces a growing militant backlash in his Muslim nation.
Obama Softens Stance on Musharraf Washington Post defended the Pakistani leader and said it was important that America maintain strong relations with him.
Obama's History in Fundraising at Odds With Rhetoric FOX News
PACs and lobbyists aided Obama's rise Boston Globe he collected hundreds of thousands of dollars from lobbyists and PACs as a state legislator in Illinois, a US senator, and a presidential aspirant. ..... from 1996 to 2004, almost two-thirds of the money he raised for his campaigns -- $296,000 of $461,000 -- came from PACs, corporate contributions, or unions ...... He tapped financial services firms, real estate developers, healthcare providers, oil companies, and many other corporate interests .... after seeing the influence of lobbyists firsthand during his two years in Washington, Obama decided before he entered the presidential race that he would take a different approach to fund-raising than he had in the past. ...... "His leadership on this issue is an evolving process." ..... Obama believes that healthcare lobbyists have blocked progress toward universal health coverage, and that oil company lobbyists have blocked badly needed changes to America's energy policies. ..... From the day he entered the presidential race, Obama has projected an outside-the-Beltway persona, positioning himself as the Washington change agent that Americans are pining for. ...... Clinton, whom Obama has been working to paint as a figurehead for the broken politics of Washington ..... Obama's campaign is relying almost exclusively on an unprecedented network of grass-roots donors and activists ..... Obama has championed public financing for elections and he fought hard to pass the federal ethics reform bill.
Clinton Discussed Use of Nukes Last Year Washington Post Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, who chastised rival Barack Obama for ruling out the use of nuclear weapons in the war on terror, did just that when asked about Iran a year ago. "I would certainly take nuclear weapons off the table," she said in April 2006. ...... reports that the Bush-Cheney administration was actively considering nuclear strikes on Iran even as it refused to engage diplomatically
Clinton and Obama Gain Ground In Iowa Atlantic Online a virtual dead heat among the Democratic presidential candidates. .... John Edwards maintains a within-the-margin lead among likely caucus goers. His support is dropping. ..... Iowa Democrats are beginning to see the race as a contest between, increasingly, Obama and Clinton .... Bill Richardson: he continues his slow climb. ..... Obama seems to have Mitt Romney's problem. To wit: his standing in national polling is going southward and his standing in key state polls is trending in the opposite direction. .... the contrasts Obama is drawing.