TresSugar

MoveOn.org's "Obama in 30 Seconds" Winner. Good Choice?

CitizenSugar — Tue, 13 May 2008 07:44:48 -0700

MoveOn.org just announced the winner in its "Obama in 30 Seconds" contest, and here it is. It's called "Obamacan" and tells the story of a life-long Republican veteran who's voting for Obama.

It's fine. Serviceable - but doesn't really grab me? But then they didn't include me on the star-studded panel of judges (weird, I know!) that included Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Julia Stiles, and Adrian Grenier. MoveOn received 1,100 entries and 5.5 million people nationwide cast their vote to help select the 15 finalists. The Move-sters have endorsed Obama (the first time they've taken a stand during the primaries) and will spend $200,000 to televise “Obamacan” in battle ground states like Ohio, Colorado, and Wisconsin.

This next one is my personal favorite (sorry Matt and Ben) but then I'm a sucker for '90s-era sitcom star Rider Strong and also baby chicks and cleverness.

Check out all of the finalists, see if you have a favorite. Did these MoveOn ads get you moving?

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The Aloha Office: Obama Brings His Style to Work

LibertySugar — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 00:01:36 -0800

Despite the fact that Hawaii-born President Obama likes to keep the thermostat in the Oval Office way turned up, the mood around the White House is pretty chill. Unlike buttoned-up Bush, Obama has set a more informal tone during his first week at work.

This week, the New York Times provided a rundown of Obama's presidential style. Some highlights:

The workday begins at 9 a.m., not 7 a.m. as it did under Bush. Barack works out, reads the paper, and has breakfast with his family before he makes the 30-second commute.
It's not necessary to wear a jacket in the oval office.
Weekend dress code is business casual, a policy that shocked ex-Bush staffers.
Meetings start on time and run late. With Bush they began early and always ended on time.
Instead of summoning aides to his office, Obama often wanders around the West Wing, popping in for surprise visits.
The White House refrigerators are stocked with Obama's favorite Honest Tea in the Black Forest Berry and Green Dragon flavors.

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Obama on the Daily Show - Better Than His 30-Minute Ad?

CitizenSugar — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 06:07:31 -0700

Here's the second installment of "the night Barack Obama took over the television." Appearing via satellite on the Daily Show before his 11 p.m. rally with Bill Clinton (so late!) Obama described his big infomercial to Jon Stewart, re-running Michelle's line about his kids being afraid he was taking over all the TV. Stewart asked of the commercial, ". . . Will it. . . annoy us?" Fair question, sir!

Poking fun at some of the scare tactics used against Obama, Stewart brought up the specter of the "Bradley Effect" and asked whether Obama might hit the booth on the 4th and his white half might be scared to vote for him. After chatting for a bit, Obama said, "This is the time to want to be president. . . now is the time when you can have some impact." Obama summed up his visit saying that despite being a "pretty conservative nation, " we now have "big challenges and problems that give us a chance to really move in a new direction." It was a better satellite connection than usual - both Obama and Stewart drew audience laughs and cheers - sometimes that satellite delay kills any sort of comedic timing.

What did you think? Was this appearance better than his 30-minute infomercial?

McCain and Obama Meet For Debate #2 After Day of Clashes

CitizenSugar — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 06:00:01 -0700

The second presidential debate is on tonight in Nashville, TN, and it stands to bring the candidates closer to each other - and to voters than they've been to date. The townhall format could be a dicey proposition given the . . . strong turn talk has taken in the last couple of days.

With fewer than 30 days left, McCain said since Obama was "taking the gloves off," he leveled a strong criticism of Obama's accusations over the credit crunch. He said, "I guess he believes if a lie is big enough and repeated often enough it will be believed." In Albuquerque, McCain continued saying, "For a guy who’s already authored two memoirs, he’s not exactly an open book. It’s as if somehow the usual rules don’t apply, and where other candidates have to explain themselves and their records, Senator Obama seems to think he is above all that."

To see what Obama's said lately, and how the the new format changes the whole game, read more.

Obama isn't taking the criticism lying down. He's planning a multi-media campaign to hit McCain on his involvement in the Keating Five scandal. He's adding a stringent ad saying, "Three quarters of a million jobs lost this year. Our financial system in turmoil. And John McCain? Erratic in a crisis. Out of touch on the economy. No wonder his campaign wants to change the subject."

With all of the strong words lashed back and forth, facing off on the same stage tonight in Nashville, townhall-style, could stand to be a little more than tense. What do they need to do to deal with the change in format? Slate's John Dickerson has the nuts and bolts on how to deal with a townhall audience - especially given the dark turn the campaign has taken lately.

Have the hard hits been equal? Are you geared up for the townhall format?

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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.

Make Your Own Obama Ad! Matt Damon and Celebs to Judge

LibertySugar — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 12:00:29 -0700

Tired of tacky and empty campaign ads? Well, if you're an Obama supporter now is your chance to do something about it! The super emailers at MoveOn want you to make your own 30-second spot telling the nation why we should elect Barack Obama. The winner of their "Obama in 30 seconds" contest will get a $20,000 gift certificate for movie equipment. Your ad will also make it on national television.

All you have to do is sway the panel of famous judges that includes Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Oliver Stone, Naomi Wolf, Markos Moulitas, Russel Simmons, Jessie Jackson, and a bunch more Obama-maniacs! If you're an aspiring filmmaker, try and top Will.i.am - this could be your big break!

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Favorite Campaign Ad of 2008: Paris Hilton For President

LibertySugar — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 03:00:32 -0800

Paris Hilton never had a chance of winning the US Presidency, but she did prevail as the candidate behind CitizenSugar readers' favorite campaign ad of 2008.

Not quite a mandate, Paris' announcement of her faux-candidacy, which came as a response to John McCain's Celebrity ad, received 32 percent of the vote. Barack Obama's 30-minute infomercial came in second with 28 percent.

While this could mean a bright political future lies ahead for Paris, I suspect it says something about everyone's distaste for the typical campaign ads that invaded our living rooms and computer screens for much of 2008! Don't forget to check out all our Best of 2008 coverage. And to see the winning video, read more.

Showing McCain's Cancer Scars in Ad on Health: Ugly Tactic?

CitizenSugar — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:03:53 -0700

A 30-second spot airing on MSNBC and funded by two liberal PACs are choosing John McCain's historic bouts with skin cancer as the face of worries about the candidate's health. The ad shows his scars following skin cancer procedures with the text, "John McCain is 72 years old and had cancer 4 times. Why won't McCain release his medical records?"

One of the PACs behind the spot is helmed by DNC Chairman Howard Dean's brother, a connection the RNC calls "despicable." The spot highlights the groups' efforts to gain more access to McCain's medical records. So far 2,500 doctors have signed a petition put forth by one of the PACs calling for the documents to be released. A total of 1,173 pages of medical records were made available to reporters in May.

The records showed that the last bout with melanoma was six years ago, and described him as having a strong heart and good health. He receives a thorough cancer check every few months. Barack Obama's health records have not been similarly made available. With the black-and-white closeups of the aftermath of McCain's procedures and doctors intoning, "Another bout of cancer for John McCain while he's president of the United States would profoundly affect his ability to lead," combined with the tie to the DNC - is this ad fair? Where are Obama's records? Is it just an age thing or the ugliest of politics?

You Drive Me Crazy? McCain's Car Prize and Obama's Ethanol

CitizenSugar — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:00:32 -0700

John McCain is putting money where his energy mouth is: he's just announced he's proposing a $300 million government prize for the successful development of a car battery that far surpasses existing technology. The prize haul is equal to $1 for every man, woman, and child in the country, which he says is "a small price to pay for helping to break the back of our oil dependency."

If you're thinking about entering, the winning device should deliver power at 30 percent of current costs and have "the size, capacity, cost, and power to leapfrog the commercially available plug-in hybrids or electric cars." Looking toward rewarding success in finding eco-autos, he's also promoting a Clean Car Challenge that will give US automakers with a $5,000 tax credit for every zero-carbon emissions car they develop and sell.

McCain says of the prize, "In the quest for alternatives to oil, our government has thrown around enough money subsidizing special interests and excusing failure. From now on, we will encourage heroic efforts in engineering, and we will reward the greatest success."

Get out of my dreams, get into my car? Perhaps.

Who's driving Barack Obama's "Pink Cadillac?" To find out, read more.

Last summer Obama was on hand to cut the ribbon at the new VeraSun Energy ethanol processing plant. As a senator from Illinois, the country’s second largest corn-producing state, he delivered a full-throttle endorsement of ethanol as an alternative fuel.
He said that ethanol, “ultimately helps our national security, because right now we’re sending billions of dollars to some of the most hostile nations on earth.” Saying that US oil dependence, "makes it more difficult for us to shape a foreign policy that is intelligent and is creating security for the long term.”

McCain sharply disagrees on the corn-as-fuel plan as well as subsidies for it, saying, “we made a series of mistakes by not adopting a sustainable energy policy, one of which is the subsidies for corn ethanol, which I warned in Iowa were going to destroy the market.” Obama favors the subsidies, some of which inevitably wind up in the hands of the same oil companies he says should be subjected to a windfall profits tax.

Who's driving the better auto alternative? More ethanol? A prize for developing a better battery? Is either plan "Paradise by the Dashboard Light?"

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Energy Faceoffs Spark Police Raids and Surprising Couplings

CitizenSugar — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 07:58:52 -0700

Grab a Redbull, it's a big week of energy match-ups: Obama vs. McCain, Protesters vs. Police, and Pickens plus Gore?

While Barack Obama may be declaring it "energy week" in a speech in the US today, in the UK police have cracked down on a camp of eco-activists protesting a new coal-fired power station. Police made arrests today during a second raid of the campsite.

View 5 Photos ›

Earlier, around 200 officers raided the climate camp, taking custody of hundreds of items they said could be used to break the law. The week-long camp out is being held at the proposed site of the UK's first new coal-fired power station in 30 years.

To see their difference in opinion, plus the green team of Pickens and Gore, read more.

The protesters claim that the police are stopping their message that a new coal station will stop the UK from meeting CO2 targets, while the police have a different take. They say the items taken (super glue, climbing ropes, and bolt cutters) show the protesters had a more malicious intent.

Meanwhile, energy mavericks Al Gore and T. Boone Pickens have been in talks about what could be the most interesting combo of planet warriors to date. The duo are said to be in talks about their respective campaigns to overhaul US energy. Is it too late for Pickens/Gore '08?

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