My Boyfriend's Back

guess who returned to capitol hill today for the first time since playing footsies in a minneapolis airport mensroom?

the only thing ole happy feet craig would say as he entered the senate chamber for a vote was "doing well. doing well."

the republicans must be so happy to have him back. i'm sure he was missed.

texans vs. panthers

the houston texans whooped up on carolina this weekend scoring 31 unanswered points after being down 14-0 early in the first quarter. final score: 34-21, houston.

i may be ready to jump on the possible playoff bandwagon. hell....i even read it on foxsports.com yesterday.

peter king of si.com named kubiak coach of the week and named houston one of his "fine fifteen."

matt schaub...as it turns out....has been a lifesaver. his poise and playmaking ability is just what the texans needed. and i don't know where the powerhouse defense has come from.... but mario has come into his own and 20-year old okoye not only smacked down his first nfl sack on sunday, but also got his second.

(by the way....check out the pick of the old number 8 shaking hands with the new number 8. my david is so cute..... i don't care how much he sucks. well, ummm.... you know what i mean.)

this is the first time houston has ever started a season 2-0. and they've never won three in a row. well....thank god we're only facing indianapolis next week.

of course...the last team to beat the colts? you got it....houston. 27-24 back in december.

make me proud, boys.

e.

John, John, John....

ole "hope is on the way" edwards aired the above message following the president's speech to the nation last night.

now.....here's the problem i have with this message..... beyond the fact that he paid for the 2 minute commercial time to air this on msnbc after the speech....and that really - his campaign is so stalled that nobody asked him to come on a post-debate analysis show to rebut the president.

i was really enjoying his message.... some great points... a good attack on the president.

but then...about a minute and 30 seconds in....he gets to the part where he says we're stuck with a "congress without the courage to bring them (the soldiers) home."

no, johnny boy.....we're stuck with a congress without 67 votes to override a veto. they may be able to garner the 51 votes they need to end the war - but bush will veto. they'll never get 67 votes to override his signature.

so then people say - cut off the funds. sure....cut off the funds and then the republican party accuses democrats of not supporting the troops.... cutting off the money needed to provide them body armor, etc.

i always point back to max cleland of georgia. a triple amputee of the vietnam war... his patriotism questioned when he didn't support the war. he lost his senate seat.

biden speaks the truth, my friends. we'll never end this war until there's a democrat in the white house. we're stuck there for at least another year and half.

and it's real easy to accuse congress when you no longer work under the capitol dome.....

i like edwards... but how 'bout a little honesty?

e.

addendum:
a very smart friend of mine emailed me this afternoon and told me that edwards was not merely attacking the democrats but all of congress.... including the 49 republicans. it's a good argument - and one that could easily be used by the edwards team should dems start fighting back at his words.

but i submit this thought process to you: it's primary season. edwards is running against democrats. he needs to attack the two democrats that are ahead of him in the polls. the two democrats that are in congress.

i think we know who he was attacking......

besides....the majority of the public merely knows that the dems control congress and they're mad as hell that harry and nancy haven't brought our troops home and ended this war. 51 votes versus 67 votes mean nothing to the majority of americans.

i think it's careless of edwards to make this attack and further the belief that democrats in congress are too cowardly to end the war.

and all in order to stir up some numbers in the polls....

e.

Shame, Shame... We Know Your Name

bill, bill, bill.... what were you thinking?

bill belichick, the dour coach of the new england patriots, was fined the maximum allowed by the nfl on thursday for stealing the opponent's defensive signals. videotaping the jets' signals has now cost belichick $500,000 and the patriots have been ordered to pay $250,000.

nfl commissioner roger goodell has also ordered the pats to give up next year's first-round draft pick if they reach the playoffs and second- and third-round picks if they do not.

can you believe this story? the patriots "dynasty" and this year's overall superbowl best bet - caught cheating!

"this episode represents a calculated and deliberate attempt to avoid longstanding rules designed to encourage fair play and promote honest competition on the playing field," goodell wrote in a letter to the pats.

goodell said he did not suspend bitter bill "largely because i believe that the discipline i am imposing of a maximum fine and forfeiture of a first-round draft choice, or multiple draft choices, is in fact more significant and long-lasting, and therefore more effective, than a suspension."

whatever.... i say suspend the cheat!

goodell, however, did impose the biggest fine ever on an nfl coach and took away a first-round draft pick as a penalty for the first time in the history of the nfl.

nfl rules state: "no video recording devices of any kind are permitted to be in use in the coaches' booth, on the field, or in the locker room during the game." rules also state all video for coaching purposes must be shot from locations "enclosed on all sides with a roof overhead."

hmmmm.... who do you think olbermann might name as his "worst person in the nfl" on sunday night?

for shame, patriots.... for shame.

e.

The Petraeus Report & Other Farces

well, september is here... and that can mean only three things:

1) football season begins and my sundays are booked.

2) the rest of the country is getting cooler and i just have to sit and wait.

3) the long fabled petraeus report has finally been delivered to congress.

yes, my lovelies, general david petraeus has sat before congress and the world and delivered the bush address. i'm sorry - his address. any surprises........?

ummmmmm............. no, not really.

the real fireworks seemed to revolve around a moveon.org ad appearing in the new york times. titled "general petraeus or general betray us? cooking the books for the white house" - the article tears apart the tiny stitches that barely hold together the bush administration's assertions on the success of the surge.

yes, the good general said everything the white house wanted him to say about the drop in violence and blah, blah, blah.... but what numbers are we really looking at?

let's go down the list here (and i freely admit that i'm borrowing heavily from moveon.org, but they have links to back up their statements so go to http://pol.moveon.org/petraeus.html).

most every independent report from the gao report to the nie states that the situation in iraq and the surge have failed. but the numbers out of the white house are all based on some fuzzy math that the times reports come out of some odd thought process used by the pentagon to bend the facts to their needs. (wow - there's a new strategy for the bush administration.)

examples: deaths by car bombs don’t count. ummm...really? the washington post reports that assassinations only count if a person is shot in the back of the head...not the front. sorry....... i guess maybe those are executions?

and all this talk of a decrease in violence in certain neighborhoods has only come around because they have been ethnically cleansed. it's easy to end sectarian violence when one sect has obliterated another sect from their territory.

abercrombie vs. ros-lehtinen

there was a fabulous moment during the hearings on monday when rep. ileana ros-lehtinen (r-florida) tried to get democrats on the committee to use part of their q&a time to "disassociate themselves" from the moveon.org piece.

rep. neil abercrombie (d-hawaii) shot back: "point of order. nobody has to distance themselves from something they weren't associated with."

as politico reports: ros-lehtinen glared at her democratic colleague, sitting on the other end of the top dais. "take it easy," the florida republican muttered.

"i don't know, actually"

the most telling moment on tuesday came when retiring senator john warner (r-virginia) asked petraeus about the effects of the iraq war on america at home and whether or not it was making us safer.

"sir, i believe that this is indeed the best course of action to achieve our objectives in iraq," the good general recited.

"does that make america safer?" warner asked again.

answered petraeus: "sir, i don't know, actually."

wow.... wow! as howard fineman of newsweek said "if he could've said it, he would've said it. the fact that he didn't say it...is absolutely stunning." clearly, if petraeus thought is was making us safer, he would have said "yes." but he knew he couldn't.....

so what are we fighting for? chris matthews made a wonderful point this evening that the president keeps arguing that we must fight because our soldiers are there... "but what is often overlooked is that they're there on orders."

so soldiers are over there dying and it's not even to make us safer here at home. how can the president even defend his "dead certain" stance on the war?

well, that brings us to our next farce.......

the idiot speaks

yes.....bush addressed the nation in primetime tonight for the 8th time since the invasion of iraq. his opening remark: "in iraq, an ally of the united states is fighting for its survival." and then it went on for another 17 minutes and 20 seconds of very short, choppy sentences. easy enough for bush to recite and understand.

and since when were any of these guys are allies? does anybody over there really want us there anymore?

there was a lot about anbar, anbar, anbar. apparently, iraqis no longer need to fear beheading for supporting the united states. no - they only get blown to bits like the sheik that was assassinated earlier today. yeah.....he was one of the top tribal supporters of bush during his visit. sure...bring that up. great way to win an argument W.

and apparently we've done away with the lines of "it'll be a cakewalk" and "as the iraqis stand up, america will stand down." oh, and the line made famous by the prince of darkness: "we're in the final stages of the insurgency."

no..... now we have "return on success." the more we succeed in iraq, the more american troops will be able to return home. so.....to clarify: the more we succeed? not the more the iraqis succeed?

but don't think the ole decider didn't have a ray of sunshine for all of us. petraeus has assured him that we can maintain the current security in iraq with less troops. so bush has announced troops will be coming home!

5,700 troops by christmas. another 21,000 troops by next july.

but wait a minute.... as norah o'donnell points out: the return of those troops is already scheduled as part of a normal troop rotation. and even with those troops out of iraq, there will still be 12,000 more troops in iraq than there were before the surge.

fuzzy math.........

for the record

bush made his first reference to 9/11 about 13 minutes into the speech. probably a record.

15 minutes into the 17 minute speech, bush mentioned "reconciliation." the argument for the surge was to give more time (breathing room) for the iraqis to reach a political reconciliation. good to know it still ranks so high in the argument.

the vitter farce - or - how he likes it

yes....that ole hooker-lovin' david vitter is back in the news. apparently, he was playing patty-cakes with a nola prostitute several times a week over a period of several months. so far... no calles from the hill for senator vitter (r-louisiana) to step down.

meanwhile....senator larry "happy feet" criag (r-idaho) continues his slow march into infamy.

it just goes to show.... if you're gonna fuck up as a republican - fuck up with a woman.

meet the press quote of the week

this one was hard.... i have two i like so much but i swore i would only do one. well.... maybe i'll do one now and save the other one for another day.

this week's quote comes from that ole pistol, senator joe biden - democrat of delaware and presidential candidate. and really - it ties into our whole discussion on W and iraq and his total ass-raping of the situation:

"this president has no plan how to win and/or how to leave. all he's doing is putting american forces in the middle of a civil war to maintain the status quo. that is unconscionable and he's wrong."

biden for secretary of state '08.

e.

Reality Check

a friend sent me an interesting post from cnn's political ticker just a moment ago. apparently, ole flip-flop romney's boston campaign headquarters was broken into sometime between last night and this morning.

a television and 8 laptop computers were stolen.

the story itself is not all that interesting.... but the posts by the general public below the story are fascinating.

cary from lowell, in writes: "doesn't surprise me, especially if this is found to be done by the liberal left. They'll stoop to anything to make a gain."

fabian palomino of nyc posted: "Looks like Hillary's hired gun private investigator Anthony Pellicano has gone on an early plumbing expedition. I suggest to Giuliani's campaign staff that they go to Costco and buy some extra locks. That's why I want Obama to win, I'm sick of the Clintons dirty tricks."

and matt from nebraska declares: "Another break-in. Wow, deja vu! You'd never guess there was a Clinton in the run for the White House!"

people, people, people...... let's stop and check back in with the wonderful world of reality for a moment.

we're in a primary election. primaries..... that means they're running against people in their own party.

not that hillary's camp would ever do anything like this... not that any democrat would stoop to nixonian tricks.... but for the sake of argument - let's say you thought this was hillary. why would she break into mitt's campaign headquarters? she's not running against mitt.

hillary's running against other democrats. mitt's running against other republicans.....

do people who read these political websites not quite understand how the process works?

besides.....hillary is beating rudy in national polls. rudy is beating all the other GOP candidates. i'm sure she's handily beating mitt. so....really....i doubt she's too worried.

people, please.... think before you post.

e.

p.s.

happy birthday, salsez.... you look fabulous for fifty!

http://salsez.blogspot.com/

Another GOP Departure

senator chuck hagel (r-nebraska) announced today that he will not run for president in 2008. but hagel, an out-spoken opponent to the president's war in iraq but otherwise a true-red republican, will also not seek another term in the senate when his current term comes to an end.

just another republican jumping ship and increasing the likelihood that the dems could widen their majority in congress once all the ballots are counted in november of next year.

hagel, who initially voted to support a possible invasion of iraq, has been front and center in now defending the view that we need to get out. quoting hagel:

the war in iraq has pushed the u.s. military to the breaking point...our troops are being deployed longer than they should be, more frequently than they should be, and without full training and equipment.

we are eroding our military power at a time when our country faces an increasing arc of challenges and threats across the globe. we are abusing our all-voluntary force in a dangerous and irresponsible way.

hagel, 60, is another high-ranking republican in the senate and a loss the majority of the GOP will not want to see...despite his current stance against bush.

but really....who still stands with bush these days?

e.

p.s.

the texans defeated the kansas city chiefs 3-20 on opening day. could the possibility of a playoff game or two be in the stars....?

It Was All About Act II

last night.....nfl football kicked off the new season with what promised to be an amazing game: the new orleans saints vs. the indianapolis colts. madden and michaels predicted a high-scoring game. the saints, who almost made it to the superbowl last year, could have played the colts in that game. probably would have been a better game than against the bears (and it pains me to say that). all the excitement was intensified by the pageantry of celebrating the 2006 championship colts.

at least one team didn't disappoint......

if there were any lingering questions about the championship colts returning just as strong this year as they ended last year - the second half of last night's game put all doubts to rest.

after a sluggish first half sent both teams to the locker room with a score of 10-10, indianapolis outscored the saints 31-0 in the second half.

the saints.....last year's top ranked offense.....scored zilch in the second half to lose 10-41.

ouch.......

the stopping-power the indy defense displayed last night was a shock to all watching.... not to mention the saints. number one last year in offense....stopped dead by the colts defense. the defense that almost blew another superbowl run last year for the colts. amazing....

the only touchdown scored by the saints was a recovered fumble by their defense. no offensive touchdowns by new orleans. again....amazing.

as always.....manning was a sight to behold. 288 passing yards and three touchdowns. jesus - that man has mad skills. and the man came alive in the second half - taking no prisoners. to watch him find his receivers....especially those long passes into the endzone - clearly he's on his way to the league mvp again this year.

and reggie bush (who i can never quite forgive for stealing the heisman from my man, vince) was overshadowed by indy rb joseph addai. addai ran for 118 yards on 23 carries. by the way, bush only rushed 38 on 12 carries. so sad.... good thing he has all those endorsements, huh?

and new orleans quarter back drew brees, who was almost perfect last year, completed 27 of 40 for only 183 yards and two interceptions.

before a last minute lengthy completion last night in the fourth quarter, brees had captured a new record in the nfl: lowest number of passing yards per average reception. luckily - he avoided that title with just one throw.

the first half was not all that interesting..... but act 2 was a helluva sight in indianapolis last night... especially if you're a colts fan.

other observations

1) what the fuck was kelly clarkson wearing last night? her pants were about 10 inches too long.... and the girl has been packing on the pounds again. but i still love her....... and hey - i ain't no petite flower myself. i'm just saying.....

2) i'm gonna grow weary of listening to faith hill every sunday night. i understand they didn't want to use pink again.... but faith. really? what is this....nascar?

3) keith olbermann's first installment of "worst person in the nfl" was a bust. i love his regular segment on countdown for "worst person" but naming himself was a cop-out and it wasn't even funny. i think even bob costas was alarmed at how lame it was. but i remain hopeful. it's just nice to see the one-time host of espn covering sports again.

4) lovin' the new "pep talks with peyton" commercials. i love the guy....i can't help it. if he was hot like carr or some others...my obsession would have the potential of becoming creepy.

5) i hate all things mcdonald's....... but fuck me that commercial with the kid last night was hilarious.

chiefs vs. texans

this sunday..... noon central time. the houston texans kick off at home against the kansas city chiefs. i know a lot of excited people.

my excitement level will be taken at the end of the first game. i will say this, however: i'm hopeful.

and on that note, i just wanna say, i'm so happy football is back.

e.

The Gift That Keeps on Giving

oh, larry craig.... where have you been all my life?

our favorite closet case and republican destructive machine, senator craig (r-idaho) has not disappointed me once in eight days. the boy is back and he's ready for a fight.

much to the dismay of the GOP in congress (and a very befuddled mitch mcconnell), craig has made it clear that he just may not resign come september 30th.

now....i blame myself for not catching this, but craig did say it was his "intent" to resign at month's end. not that he would resign or that he is resigning....but that he intends to resign.

i guess it depends on what your definition of is is.....

it's kinda brilliant, really.... and it explains why he didn't immediately step down. and apparently, all of this has been egged on by ole rascally rabbit himself - arlen specter of pennsylvania. he went on the sunday talk shows and told craig he should fight for his job.

howard fineman has an interesting theory that this is specter's payback to the GOP brass for threatening his leadership position on the judiciary committee if he didn't play ball with all of their court nominees. i do love it when the repubs stick it to each other.

shit....the dems really just need to sit back and enjoy the show for the time being.

all of this, of course, depends on whether or not craig can get his guilty plea overturned in minnesota. and whether or not he can survive an embarrassing hearing in front of the senate's ethics committee.

whatever it is....i'm sure the republicans love having ole twinkle toes tap around the capitol building every day.

i wonder if they scatter when he enters the washroom.....?

GOP curse?

has anyone noticed what has happened in minneapolis lately? the republicans announce they're holding their national convention there in 2008. they will crown their nominee for the next president of the united states in minneapolis.

then the bridge collapses.....

then twinkle toes craig taps his way into infamy in the minneapolis-st. paul airport mensroom.

i think maybe the republicans are cursed.......

and just this morning.....representative paul gillmor (republican of ohio) was found dead in his d.c. apartment.

what is going on with the republican party?!?!

ya know, ole mitt "flip-flop" romney....i bet those days as a democratic governor of massachusetts are suddenly looking awfully sweet. are you sure you don't want to change your stance on reproductive rights just one more time......?

before it's too late.......

e.

Bad Week for the GOP: A Wrap Up

can you believe it was only a week ago that attorney general alberto gonzales resigned? jesus - that was one helluva day for the current administration. and - it didn't really get much better. all in all....it has not been a fun week for the republicans.

let us review.....

gonzo resigns

yes...it all began when al gonzales decided he just couldn't lie any longer and would step down as attorney general. amazingly enough - W let him. so much for loyalty, i guess. it's just another defeat for this administration and the first of many rats to abandon ship. al's last day will be september 14th.

i'm not sure the justice department has ever been more politicized. the department is meant to serve the people. obviously, this department served the white house only. perhaps most surprising (and telling) is that a replacement candidate has not been announced.

i think that speaks of more trouble to come for the white house - and they know it. they're looking at a fight with congress....so they need to find someone congress will support. i doubt bush has many cronies left that would even stand a chance. maybe he'll try ole harriet again.....?

my favorite homo

well......he's not my favorite homosexual, but i do love what senator larry criag (r-idaho) has done for the republican party this past week. the allegations surfaced midweek - by saturday he had resigned. although....honestly.....why september 30th? does he really think the GOP wants the spectre of his bathroom shenanigans haunting them all month long? i thought his resignation was graceful, but what's that bullshit?

but again - what i love the most - is he's shed light on a great deal of hypocrisy in both himself and the grand ole party.

maybe craig is gay and maybe he's not.... but the fact that he so openly fights against any type of gay rights and the fact that he may be gay..... only makes this all the more ugly. it is this non-stop attack on homosexuality by the religious right that perpetuates the need for people to remain in the closet. it's sad.... in this day and age.

people are afraid to come out simply because of this behavior. quote after quote from the GOP concerning craig this week included words like "disgusting" and "perverted" and "disappointing." they can wrap it up as "protecting our family" all they like - but it's homophobia.

by the way, republicans, here's a hint: don't be a fag. if you're gonna fuck around on your wife - best to do it with a woman. if this week has shown us anything...it's that you can fuck a hooker and survive in the republican party.... but proposition a man - and you're outta there.

side note: it's smart of the GOP to file this under "he plead guilty" and needs to go. that's the way to play it in the media and it's working. but i think we all know the truth.

after all....craig is gone. vitter remains.

the 'mos marry in iowa!

it's true that the ability for homosexuals to marry in iowa was halted far quicker than it was temporarily allowed - but that was a bad day for the GOP. i mean.... homosexuals. marrying. in iowa!

now....allow me to sidetrack momentarily and bring up a bad moment for the dems: this will hurt them.

and it hurts me to say that as a man who happens to love men. but this brings gay marriage back into the limelight. anti-same sex amendments were on a lot of ballots in 2004 and it brought out the religious right. we are in trouble of the same happening again.

i predicted immigration would be the wedge issue used by the right this year - but iowa Has brought back the GOP's favorite boogieman: gay marriage.

i want this right....but this could hurt in a presidential election year. the religious right is not happy with their current choices. romney and rudy could keep them from the polls. but gay marriage - that will bring them out in droves.

so, i worry..............

but that won't stop me from sending out my heartfelt congratulations to sean fritz and tim mcquillan - the only gay couple that recited their vows to one another before gay marriage was again halted in iowa. i ask everyone to look at the picture of those two embracing one another. imagine - these two men have loved each other for a long time....never believing they could express that love to the world by virtue of marriage. that expression - that is happiness. pure and overwhelming happiness that they were able to marry one another. the man they love.

what an amazing thing.... i'll never understand why love frightens so many people. and on that note - i think i'll move on before i start sounding like kucinich at an lgbt forum.

the walls come crumbling down

what happens with the architect leaves the project? karl rove, bush's brain, stepped down on friday and ding dong, the witch is dead.

this clearly signifies that bush's final two years is going nowhere. rove doesn't even see the point of sticking around. just another bush loyalist reading the writing on the wall: game over.

the loss of a good man

not surprisingly, on friday senator john warner (r-virginia) announced his plans to retire next year. warner was old school congress.... a good man. a conservative, yes, but an honest straight-shooter. and he was a respected voice in the republican party and his opinions carried a lot of weight.

this is not someone they wanted to lose. but i think when he had to go public with his concerns on iraq.....his concerns that the president would not listen to...he also read the writing on the wall. his party has been highjacked by a moron. why stick around......?

the increasingly blue state of virginia (or "trending purple" as mary matalin says) has a good shot at electing another dem to the capitol. first webb.... now another warner, perhaps. ex-virginia governor mark warner is very popular there....and his name is being tossed around as a candidate.

from what i understand - there are about 22 republican senate seats in play next year. i doubt they wanted warner's to be one of them. there are only about 12 democratic seats. and with the way the nation is viewing the republican party right now.... there should be a larger majority for the democrats in 2009.

tony snow falls

press secretary and evil fucker extraordinaire, tony snow....bush's current press secretary and former fox news hack....announced his resignation on friday. he too shall step down on september 14th. is everyone trying to get out before petreaus reports to congress?

anyway....i say, "good." snow is a fucker.

and yes, yes.... i know he's suffering from a relapse of his cancer and i hope he pulls through. i wish him no harm. but come on - the man is a fucker. his sheer pompousness as he openly lied to the press corps day in and day out. does anyone remember his excuse for allowing the iraqi parliament to take off the month of august? "it's hot." um, yeah - can our military also take off the month then?

another loyal bushie.... the face of the administration most often to the press - is jumping ship. he says he needs more money. he earns six figures as press secretary. um, yeah - we should all need more than that.

to me....it just shows how out of touch the administration is from the rest of the world. to honestly face the nation - the poor - and say....sorry, six figures is not enough for me. but hey - i'll keep supporting tax breaks for the rich but not a minimum wage increase for the poor.

fuck you, ya douche bag.

meet the press quote of the week

this has to do with not a current bad moment for the GOP - but a potential problem down the road. fred thompson has decided to finally declare his intent to run for president. gee....what a shocker. he will do so thursday....via web. ummm.......okay.

but he has waited so long that he has mucho added pressure on him to succeed - and to out perform all expectations.

and as bob shrum said this morning on press: "he (thompson) almost became the first non-candidate ever to implode."

i sense problems...... but hey - i'll take ongoing GOP problems every day of the week. this past one - just happened to be a doozy.

almost makes me believe in a god......

e.