There is quite a fire-storm over Hillary's comments about "white Americans".  I think my opinion is much different than many here.  To put it simply:

"Like a fish out of water, she is flopping around.  Don't poke at her.  Don't get enraged.  Don't take it personally.  Simply wait it out and she will stop."

On Hardball, McCain just said:

"There's no one I admire more than athletes."

Really?  No one?  Michelle Obama said that she has never been so proud of her country, which was clearly hyperbole, and she got lambasted as a traitor.  The media need to latch onto McCain's statement with the same intensity.

I couldn't find this diaried, so let me know if I missed one and I'll delete this.

Looks like the excitement in the Republican camp for their top tier recruit in New Jersey was a little premature:

From the New York Times:

After listening to requests over the last few days from Senator John McCain of Arizona and other prominent Republicans, John F. Crowley, a biotechnology executive from Princeton, N.J., announced Sunday that he would not enter the New Jersey Republican primary for United States Senate.

The general election is rapidly approaching and the Republicans are sharpening their sticks and looking for wedge issues to prop up McCain and divide the Democrats.  I love a good debate with someone from the other side, but it can be tough to have a good arsenal of facts to counter their arguments.  In the run-up to the general election, every Democrat should have a few key facts on each of the likely topics that the Republicans will be pushing.  This article is meant to respond to the following claim:

McCain refuses to place earmarks for pork spending, while Obama and Clinton are the king and queen of pork.

I think everyone can agree that John Edward's expensive haircut has not helped his campaign.  The whole ordeal has certainly been overblown, har har har, but it did get significant media play and fed into the mantra that John is a pretty boy.  Image does matter, so, unfortunately, such media coverage can hurt a candidate.

Which leads me to the question: why has Mitt Romney's $300 expenditure for make-up not received more press coverage?  

Okay, so we all to see the senate and house races flipping towards the democrats in five days, but you could choose just one senate race to flip (or stay) in the D column, which would it be?  

Katherine Harris, who is trying to become a U.S. senator, says she is writing a tell-all about the many people who have wronged her. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to: the Republican leaders who didn't want her to run, the press that has covered her troubled campaign, and the many staffers who have quit her employ, whom she accuses of colluding with her opponent.

Public opinion of both the Iraq and Vietnam wars shifted dramatically, but these shifts did not occur quickly.  Below the fold, I present a graph that shows public opinion of the Iraq and Vietnam Wars.  I believe that this plots illustrates that we are at a turning point in public perception and, barring any unexpected developments in Iraq, we are marching towards mass disapproval.

On today's Slate.com, an interesting article was published describing how American's are now paying off their balances at alarming rates.  

(more below the fold)

"It was my duty to advise and consent.  My judgement was not based on whether I would nominate the person, but whether the person was acceptable for the position."

(more below the fold)

An important question remains - What kind of salad dressings do conservatives love?

[Extended post and poll below the fold]

[Full text below the fold.]

I shop at Walmart.

There, I said it.  I never feel good when I shop there and, believe me, I understand just how evil that empire is.  It comes down to the fact I'm broke half the time and it's just too damn convenient when you need six random things that you would have to go to six different stores to buy.  Or maybe I've just been too damn lazy.  Either way, my New Year's resolution is to stop patronizing Walmart and encourage my friends and family to do the same.