TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

REFORM: Budget Deficits, Redistricting, Initiative and Referendum, Electoral College, Ballot Access Reform

• CA: Is governor's pay cut threat just a big head fake? (Sacramento Bureau Contra Costa Times)
• CA: Would Prop. 11 help minorities? It takes redistricting away from the Legislature. Will minorities gain or lose? (LA Times)
• NY: Cut the Legislature-Plan to reduce number of lawmakers deserves support from officials (Buffalo News)
• The Far Left's War on Direct Democracy (By JOHN FUND, Wall Street Journal) A few words on Ward Connerly's anti-affirmative action activity
• Gov. Granholm likes part of Reform Michigan Government Now proposal (Michigan Live)
• Pennsylvania Senator Introduces Ballot Access Reform Bill (Ballot Access News)
• Maine Ballot Access Case Oral Argument in State Supreme Court (Ballot Access News)
• Dump the Electoral College? (Detroit Free Press LETTERS)

CAMPAIGN

• Bloomberg Wants Independents To Organize To Increase Power (JOE GANDELMAN, The Moderate Voice)
• John McCain takes my advice. (By mw, Donklephant) The Left of center blogosphere jumped all over it, called it a flip-flop, and completely missed the important point. Sure it was a flip-flop. But most Obama supporters cheered when Obama flip-flopped “moved to the center” on a whole host of issues. So let us just say that Maliki has permitted McCain to “move to the center” on Iraq. You know - where most of the voters are. With this move, McCain takes away the single biggest issue advantage that Obama has over him with moderate, centrist, independent and libertarian voters.
• Ralph Nader at UGA, criticizes Obama's corporate ties (By JIM GALLOWAY, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Talk/Talk: Arnold and Donna

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Below are excerpts from this week's Talk Talk, Arnold and Donna. Every Sunday CUIP's president Jacqueline Salit and strategist and philosopher Fred Newman watch the political talk shows and discuss them. Here are excerpts from their dialogue on Sunday, July 13, 2008 after watching "The Chris Matthews Show" and "This Week with George Stephanopoulos".

Salit: Something else that I liked about Schwarzenegger was his commentary on flip-flopping. He said he was pro-flip-flop. Part of the story here is that more traditional progressives are saying that Obama's flip-flopping on the issues is going to undermine his base. They're really talking more about themselves than they are talking about Obama, it seems to me, meaning that Obama's changes undermine their position. In any event, Schwarzenegger says, 'I love flip-flopping. Flip-flopping is a good thing. You're allowed to change your mind.' It was a welcome change from the usual.

Newman: The last thing the Democratic Party gets upset about is its left wing being upset about flip-flopping. The Democratic Party left has never displayed that it has the courage to vote for what it says it stands for anyhow. They're strategic flip-floppers, so to speak

Read Talk Talk in its entirety here.

Talk/Talk: Slick About Oil?

Sunday, July 6, 2008




Below are excerpts from this week's Talk Talk, Slick About Oil?. Every Sunday CUIP's president Jacqueline Salit and strategist and philosopher Fred Newman watch the political talk shows and discuss them. Here are excerpts from their dialogue on Sunday, July 6, 2008 after watching "The Chris Matthews Show" and "This Week with George Stephanopoulos".

Newman: OK, let's take one soldier. He or she is over there, and they are fixing a bayonet and heading towards a building to go kill someone. Now, if you take that same soldier, have her or him over there standing in front of an oil refinery to make sure that someone from Al Qaeda doesn't come and blow up the oil refinery, that's still having an American troop there. It's the same soldier. But it's a different mission and it means something different. I really don't understand what it is that McCain is saying. He seems to be saying that the surge worked because fewer American troops are being killed.

Salit: They're trying to make the point, I guess, that this reflects well on the underlying mission.

Newman: How does it reflect well on the underlying mission? Was the mission to have fewer American troops killed? If that was the mission, why go in at all? You'll have no casualties. I don't get the logic. What if we had 10 times as many troops killed in the most recent period of the surge, but they captured or killed Osama bin Laden? Is that a success or a failure by virtue of the current McCain argument?

Read Talk Talk in its entirety here.