The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Memo From the National Affairs Desk: Final Boarding at McCarran International

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 9 Comments

The National Affairs Desk, 5:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 21, 2011

McCARRAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Las Vegas
By the time I got to the taxi stand in front of the fabulous Venetian Resort Hotel, it was 4:30 p.m. and I only had until 5 p.m. to get checked in at the Jet Blue counter for my flight to Long Beach en route to Dulles. The cab driver asked me which route I preferred to the airport, and I told him to take the fastest route possible.

Even the freeway isn’t too fast at that hour of the day, and there was some doubt as to whether I’d make it on time, but this guy was The Best Cab Driver in Vegas — aggressively cutting through traffic and zipping across lanes to make the McCarran Airport exit, so that he dropped me off with 10 minutes to spare. The fare was $30.80, and I gave him $35, because really sharp driving in an emergency situation deserves to be rewarded.

Check-in was quick and efficient, and the line at security wasn’t too long. My flight, originally scheduled for a 6 p.m. departure was delayed by half an hour and, while walking toward the D terminal, I placed a quick call to Smitty and discussed plans for future operations, beginning with him picking me up at Dulles in the morning, to save my wife the hassle. The bill for dinner in the airport lounge  — $9.19 turkey sandwich, $2.19 bag of chips, $6.49 Corona — came to $19.32 and a $3 tip seemed fair.

At this point, there is no time for the Final Wisdom. They’ll call final boarding in about 10 minutes, and I must be on the plane. Exactly what was learned during this five-day/four-night journalistic expedition to Vegas will therefore have to wait until I get back home. Maybe I can write it up on the red-eye transcontinental flight that will bring me to Dulles shortly after dawn Saturday.

Final boarding! Hit the freaking tip jar!


Category: Fear and Smitty in Vegas, Shoe Leather Fund

Drum-Sticking It To The Man

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 19 Comments

by Smitty via AoSHQ

Last night’s General Assembly meeting in Zuccotti Park was “one of most contentious ever,” in large part due to a heated debate over whether the drummers at Occupy Wall Street should be given $8,000 from the movement’s coffers to buy more drums and equipment. It seems some of the drums were stolen or vandalized, and the drummers asked the General Assembly to help them regroup. “We have worked for you! Appreciate us,” one drummer told the crowd, but the appeal was denied, and the Huff Post’s Craig Kanalley tweeted, “Drummer who didn’t get money from GA tonight now yelling, cursing at members of GA.” Meanwhile, another member of the drum corps was lashing out at the Community Board meeting.

This is not a video of the drummers in question:

The confetti guns at the end that the Blue Men fire into the crowd could be a metaphor for infinite public largesse that the #OWS twerps seem to want to vote themselves out of the public treasury.

Getting punked by an ungrateful crowd may be the best possible learning experience for these guys.

Meanwhile, the fruits of the “drummers working group” are unintentionally hilarious:

Notice, too, the blatant injustice on display at some #Occupy locations.

At the very least, the Capitol Police in Atlanta have definitely been treating these two groups unequally. These officers of the law have turned a blind eye to law breaking by the Occupy folks, allowing them to do anything they want, but did not extend that courtesy to those Tea Party groups that also protested at the Georgia Capitol House.

And why would the police treat everyone equally before the law? The #Occupy movement is an Administration-sanctioned outfit, and the police are an accessory to carrying out Administration wishes. Twisting the knife of un-equal treatment adds to the destabilization value.

I would like to be completely wrong in that previous assertion, and it would be extremely helpful if the Administration would start acting like one, and support legal protests only.

Category: #Occupy, Music, Progressivism, Video

Money Problems for Rick Perry? Also: Thoughts on the Logic of Strategy

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 44 Comments

Call this the “former front-runner” problem:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry kicked off his presidential campaign with an aggressive fundraising schedule that quickly made him a front-runner for the Republican nomination. But reports his campaign filed with the Federal Election Commission show that his ability to attract big money fell off steeply in September — perhaps not coincidentally — at the same time a series of rocky debate performances threatened his early front-runner status.
As Perry arrives on Friday in Washington for a private meeting with K Street insiders, the question is whether he can convince the smart money that his campaign is worth an investment. After three torrid weeks in August when he raised more than twice as much as his nearest fundraising rival, Perry has now fallen back into a much more competitive fundraising race with Mitt Romney. That is not good news for a candidate who, because of his late entry into the race, has a lot of catching up to do. Romney has raised $32 million since the beginning of this campaign cycle.

If you think back to when the Perry bandwagon got rolling (less than 10 weeks ago, although it seems like ancient history now), the perception of inevitability was central to the argument: The Smilin’ Texan was it — The Man, the Real Deal — and everybody else was supposed to gaze in awe while Perry proceeded to dismantle Romney. Read more

Category: Election 2012, Fear and Smitty in Vegas, Herman Cain, Rick Perry, Shoe Leather Fund

Bachmann Pulls the Plug in N.H.?

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 24 Comments

John Pindell of WMUR-TV got the scoop:

All paid New Hampshire staff for Michele Bachmann’s presidential campaign have quit over deep frustration with the campaign’s lack of commitment to New Hampshire. …

Because the rest of Pindell’s story is behind a paywall — charging 99 cents to read it online? really? why does that make sense for a TV station’s Web site? — we instead must rely on Politico:

They were going to [resign] even earlier, he reports, but didn’t because it would have harmed the candidate.
It certainly isn’t going to help her now – but they may have felt the hour was growing too late for things to change for her.

And Reuters has this:

“It certainly underscores the impression that New Hampshire isn’t a priority for her. She’s totally written us off,” said former Republican state legislator Fran Wendelboe. . . .
Bachmann has been on a slow fade since winning the Iowa straw poll of Republican voters in August. Bachmann has only been registering single digits in polls of New Hampshire Republican voters. In Iowa, she has been in fourth place in the polls behind Herman Cain, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul.

Thanks to frequent commenter Joe for the tip. I called Bachmann’s spokeswoman Alice Stewart to get her reaction and haven’t yet heard back from her.

Category: Election 2012, Michele Bachmann

“Why Can’t I Get A Job In My Field?”

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 48 Comments

by Smitty

Well, if it’s your field, then any agricultural job you get out there would make you self-employed, no?

Any guesses as to the gender of the subject?

Read more

Category: Economics, Education, Uncategorized

Dennis Miller On CNN Debate: ‘Obama Won’

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 25 Comments

by Smitty

Dennis Miller says, contemplating another dozen debates: “We cannot have everybody up there like nine praying mantises in a Helmand’s jar with three air hoses, breaking antennas and spitting tobacco on each other and trying to get to the air.”

via Just A Conservative Girl

Update: Linked at Daily Pundit.

Category: Video

Steve Foley in Las Vegas

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 6 Comments

LAS VEGAS, Nevada
Readers will please excuse the optical quality of this video interview, recorded last night in front of the fabulous Venetian Resort Hotel Casino:

If you’ll actually watch that video all the way to the end, you’ll gain some understanding of how bizarre Vegas really is. You’ll also hear Foley talk about his campaign for Congress in California’s 47th District and hear him reiterate some of the points he made during an interview that formed the lead of my American Spectator column today:

Steve Foley has been supporting Herman Cain’s presidential campaign since before it was even officially a campaign. In January, Foley launched the independent website Citizens4Cain.comto report news about the campaign and rally grassroots conservative activists behind Cain. Having been through a few campaigns as an online media consultant to Republican candidates, Foley is not surprised to see Cain coming under increasingly hostile scrutiny this week.
“This is what they’re going to do,” Foley said. “When you’re the front-runner now — Cain’s a front-runner — bull’s-eye right on your back, everybody’s going to come with all their slings and arrows. That’s just the way it’s gonna be.” . . .

Read the whole thing. You might also want to read Steve’s “Open Letter To Bloggers and Political Prognosticators About Herman Cain.”

Category: Election 2012

LIVE AT FIVE – 10.21.11

Posted on | October 21, 2011 | 5 Comments

— compiled by Wombat-socho


TOP NEWS
How Muammar Qaddafi Met His End

A wounded Moammar Qadafi is pulled from a truck by rebel fighters

Exact time and method of dictator’s death uncertain

Turkey Strikes Back At Kurdish Rebels In Iraq
Ten battalions hit PKK bases in Kurdistan after Wednesday’s attacks in Hakkari province

Senate Blocks Votes On Jobs Bills
Smaller versions of original fecal sandwich rejected just like original



POLITICS
Romney Ramps Up Campaign In Iowa

Governor Romney speaks at the Treynor State Bank

Focusing on businessmen, counting on rivals to divide social conservative vote

Michele Bachmann Ignored By San Francisco Protesters

ACLU Accuses FBI Of RAAAAACISM

Few Americans Take Immigrants’ Jobs In Alabama

John Bryson Conformed As Commerce Secretary

California Air Resources Board Enacts Cap & Trade

Cain Clarifies Abortion Views



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Euro Dips, Nerves Frayed Ahead Of Weekend Summit
Microsoft Sales Exceed Estimates On Strong Corporate Demand
Dow, S&P Edge Up As Europe Sends Mixed Signals
Southwest Airlines Posts 3Q Loss On Fuel Hedging But Air Travel Holds Up
US Crude Falls, Germany Dashes Hopes For EU Plan
Europe Weighs On Asian Markets
Gold Rebounds With Other Commodities; EU Summit Eyed
Mercedes Expanding Alabama Plant, Adding 400 Jobs
Inside Google’s “Ice Cream Sandwich” Phones, Tablets
Nokia Reports Smaller Loss As Handset Sales Beat Estimates
Fewer iPhone Activations Hurt Growth At AT&T
Android Tablets Gain On iPad In Q3, Analyst Says



SPORTS
Rangers Make Sacrifices To Beat Cardinals

The Rangers' Michael Young hits a sac fly in the 9th for the winning run

Two sacrifice flies in the ninth give Rangers 2-1 win; series returns to Texas even at one game apiece

NBA Owners, Players Break Off Talks

Capitals Blitz Flyers To Remain Perfect




Bruins Stagger To 48-12 Loss As Bowl Hopes Fade

Tebow Nation Awaits Denver QB’s Start In Miami

Avalanche Lose To Blackhawks 3-1

Ortiz Aims To Keep Sox On After Winning Clemente Award

Rules Changes, Wheldon On NASCAR’s Mind Heading Into Talladega

No Decision Yet, But Nationals Set To Stick With Davey Johnson



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Lohan Turned Away At Morgue After Showing Up Late

LATE. AGAIN.

No slack from the Coroner’s Office

Biography Sheds New Light On Steve Jobs’ Life

Kim & Kris On The Rocks Already?


Jessica Simpson Cashing In On Her Baby

Travolta’s Request To Reserve Table At UK KFC: DENIED

Patrick Swayze’s Widow Unveils His Madame Tussaud’s Figure (Video)

Giuliana Rancic “Doing Well” After Breast Cancer Surgery, Husband Says

Bryan Singer’s “Battlestar Galactica” Film Gets Airborne



FOREIGNERS
NTC: Gadhafi To Be Buried According To Islamic Norms
Spain Hails End To Basque Separatists’ Terror Campaign
Turkey Seeks Iran’s Support Against Kurdish Rebels
Clinton Presses Paks To Crack Down On Militants
Bangkok Braced For Flooding As Drainage Begins
No Warning From Kenya To US On Somalia Invasion
NATO Peacekeepers Move To Tear Down Serbian Roadblocks In Kosovo
Ukraine’s Dismal Finances Offer No Simple Way Out
The Queen Receives Australian PM Gillard



BLOGS & STUFF
Allahpundit: Rubio, Miami Herald Slam WaPo Hit Piece
Gateway Pundit: Zuccotti Park Residents Tired Of #OWS Goons Crapping On Their Doorsteps
Weasel Zippers: Norks Hail #OWS Protests
Power Line: Steve Jobs On Obama’s Jobs Performance
Big Government: Fisker Karma -Half A Billion Federal Dollars, Only 20 MPG, And Built In Finland
Don Surber: “Obama’s Numbers Down Even In Hawaii”
PJ Tatler: Obama’s Woes In The Buckeye State
Michelle Malkin: While You Were Sleeping
Watts Up With That?: Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature Project Puts PR Before Peer Review
Big Journalism: “Time” Magazine Columnist Accuses Herman Cain Of Being “Black Clown”
Marginal Revolution: Should We “Get Tough” With The Banks?


SOTD: Working For The Weekend

Category: Live at Five
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