TresSugar

Biden Talks Crazy Crisis on SNL: Guffaws or Groans?

CitizenSugar — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 08:29:08 -0700

"Gird your loins!" Yeah! My favorite quote of last week made it into the opening of SNL last night where Joe Biden and John Murtha attempted to remove their feet from their mouths for certain "crises" and "redneck" statements. Biden just blusters on with the thought. "Our military may invade Pakistan, or surrender to the Chinese. We may sell Hawaii to Saudi Arabia or just destroy it, so it can't fall in to North Korean hands. But just reserve your judgment - we know what we're doing!" Really? Let's watch and just see about that.

Biden's bombastic soothsaying continues, "If Barack Obama is elected, we will have a crisis. And when this crisis hits, and it will! In the second week of February, we may do some weird things." It's followed by a list of other crazy things Biden could say when he should know better. Punctuated with Murtha trying to get a word in edgewise about how he didn't mean redneck, he meant racist and ignorant to the modern world, it was a cavalcade of "not helping! Stop talking while you're ahead!" moments. Just like the campaign itself. Ah, philosophy on a Sunday morning.

Also in the political scheme of things, Maya Rudolph made her debut as Michelle Obama in a sketch about the variety hour Obama is going to turn his 30-minute television spot into this week. I hope it's true! It looks better than the Carol Burnett Show and Hee Haw! combined.

He's Unstoppable Now - But Is McCain Too Old?

CitizenSugar — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:00:36 -0700

Yesterday Democratic Rep. John Murtha said that Sen. John McCain is too old to be president. Murtha might have a unique perspective on the age-factor: Murtha himself is 75, four years older than McCain. He says the rigors and stress of running the country is too much for guys their age.

"I've served with seven presidents. When they come in, they all make mistakes. They all get older. This one guy running is about as old as me. Let me tell you something, it's no old man's job."

That "one guy" running, if elected would be the oldest man to become president at age 72. McCain's take-it-easy, senior citizen's schedule in the past few days has included a wild turn with Chris Matthews on Hardball, a big announcement about cutting the gas tax for the summer, and a slot as the cover boy for New York magazine. That's more than I've done in the past 48 hours, for sure.

Ronald Reagan may have famously quipped while campaigning for a second term at 72, that he was not going to exploit his opponent's "youth and inexperience" when the question of his age surfaced - but is Murtha right? Is McCain the answer to the question, "How old is too old?"

Source

Inconvenient Timing: Hillary Receives Big Endorsement

CitizenSugar — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:00:27 -0700

If an endorsement falls in Hillary Clinton's forest on the same day Barack Obama gives a huge speech about race, does it make a sound? If it does, it's muffled at best.

Yesterday Representative John Murtha (D - PA) endorsed Hillary Clinton, the first superdelegate to line up behind her since her victories in the last big primaries. The endorsement is key for a number of reasons:

Murtha is a decorated Vietnam veteran. He created a stir in 2005 by calling for an end to the war in Iraq, and in his endorsement stated that Clinton has "a similar position" on the conflict. This is significant backing given Obama's reliance on his 2002 speech against the war and his subsequent attacks on Clinton's war vote. Having Murtha's approval on her Iraq position and plan strengthens her cause.

But wait, that's not all! Please read more.

As Clinton seeks to close the delegate gap by rallying the superdelegates, Murtha's support for Clinton paves the way for three other Pennsylvania superdelegates to echo the dean of their state delegation. Reps. Robert Brady, Michael Doyle, and Tim Holden are big Murtha supporters and have so far been undeclared in the presidential campaign. Big props in Pennsylvania also help bolster Clinton's Keystone Cause among voters.
Murtha's got cred. He's served in the House since 1974 and he's chairman of the US House of Representatives appropriations subcommittee that oversees defense spending.

It's huge. It's a big backing from a big fish with Iraq credibiltiy. Why, oh why then was it announced on the same day as Obama's speech? Did they think that it would be big enough to squash his race-based buzz? Given the shy attention given to Hillary's Iraq policy speech on Monday, and her apparent vague grasp of the content of Obama's speech, what in the world is going on at Hillary HQ? Surely her lack of enthusiasm about it was to strategically defray the buzz? Right?

Is Murtha's endorsement a boon? Will more superdelegates follow suit?

Source

Congressman Suggests Home For Gitmo Prisoners: Alcatraz

CitizenSugar — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 03:00:30 -0800

Figuring out where to place prisoners now being held at Guantanamo Bay could be a legal nightmare when Gitmo closes; but the political obstacles could be even more tricky. Thanks to the high profile nature of the prisoners, as well as their characterizations (exaggerated or not) as the most dangerous people in the world, it will be hard to convince cities or towns to keep the prisoners within their limits.

One Republican, Florida Congressman Bill Young, came up with a creative location - Alcatraz! Unfortunately, the island in the San Francisco Bay, which was once an infamous US prison, is now a money-making tourist destination.

When it comes to actual functioning maximum security prisons on US soil, Democratic Pennsylvania Representative John Murtha pointed out last week that “there are thousands of dangerous prisoners being held securely behind bars in supermax prisons across the United States." In fact, Murtha said he would be willing to accept the suspected terrorists in his district. The invitation has some local officials excited about the job and revenue potential, since a maximum security prison would have to be built first.

Would you protest if Guantanamo Bay prisoners came to a prison near you?

Source

Lighten Up: John McCain Is Older Than McDonald's

CitizenSugar — Sat, 03 May 2008 07:00:09 -0700

John Murtha might think McCain is too old - but while FM radio, McDonald's, and the Golden Gate Bridge are all great American institutions, McCain predates all of them - and then some.

Hey, I like 'em with a little patina. To bastardize that Spiderman quote, "With great age comes great wisdom." A little institutional memory goes a long way - but I chuckled.

Source