Hillary's Playlist

What, no Rage Against The Machine?

I actually thought this was an Onionesque joke when it landed in the in box this afternoon - "Pick Hillary Clinton's campaign theme song?!?" But lo and behold, it's legit:



Humor sells - witness the praise lavished on Bill Richardson's ads this week - and the video itself is a passable attempt at both viral campaign humor and I'm Just Regular Folks, Especially In Person (as we keep hearing, but as few non-Iowans will ever get a chance to experience). She even incorporates her own (in)famous vocals on the national anthem and solemnly pledges not to sing - but then fumbles at the end by adding an unnecessary "until I win" that weakens the punch line.

Of course, the concept of "pick Hillary's theme song" presents endless humor possibilities, and you can insert your own punch lines.

A musician only has to appeal to a niche, while a major league politician has to get to 50% or so. Cutting edge music should be challenging, and can often alienate or polarize audiences. This can be smart politics in the intellectual sense (see the collected lyric sheets of the Clash and Rage Against The Machine) but risky in the electoral sense. Even innocuous bland pop hits have the occasional lyric that can be parsed or taken out of context for unintentional humor. Or the artist has a controversial statement or lifestyle foible - musicians are good at those! - that you get attacked for. Or there's another song that you didn't even play at the rally and which you or your junior level staffer who actually picked the music has never heard of, and you get held liable for that too.

If you try too hard you get caught looking phony, as when Jerry Brown dropped Midnight Oil lyrics into his speeches in 1992 without attribution. (Somehow, you got the idea that Jimmy Carter actually listened to Dylan.) And while artists lose a lot of control once music is released, they don't lose their voices and can bite back if they think you've misused their song. This most famously happened in `84 when the Reagan campaign mistook the grim lyric of "Born In The USA" for a rah-rah anthem and Bruce Springsteen, at the very top of his career arc, quite loudly corrected that interpretation.

So we are left at rallies with bland cliches, and the list Hillary gives us to choose from is typical.

City of Blinding Lights - U2

Beautiful Day - U2

I've been a U2 fan since "October" and even I never ever ever want to hear "Beautiful Day" at a political rally ever again. Some of Bono's "am I bugging you" speeches from "Rattle and Hum" would be fine; Bono in his self-righteous prime was a wonder to behold, singing about the Central America war and turning the spotlight right back on the audience. But instead we are offered the watered down and latter day version.

Fortunately there's no John Mellencamp on this list. As progressive and as active as he has been, two or three of his songs are just so damn all-American that he's become a campaign trail cliche, killed by overplay just like "Stairway To Heaven."

Suddenly I See - KT Tunstall
The sleeper of the bunch which means it's probably already been picked. (Update: Apparantly this song has some kind of "Devil Wears Prada" connection. Which still leaves me in the dark but at least explains it.)

I'm a Believer - Smash Mouth
A cover of a song by a cartoon band (the Monkees) remade for a cartoon movie (Shrek). Should lock up the six year old vote (and perhaps their voting moms) in the summer of Shrek 3 marketing, but if movie marketing were a factor they could have gone with the Ramones version of the Spiderman theme. Of course that doesn't have the line "then I saw her face, now I'm a believer." And with that in mind...

Get Ready - The Temptations
"Never met a girl that makes me feel the way that you do" indeed.

Ready to Run - Dixie Chicks
While the political pun of the title is too corny, "Landslide" would have been even worse. At least this would have the advantage of pissing off Republicans. In fact, this may be one of the few things that could make Republicans hate Hillary even more.

Rock This Country! - Shania Twain
I heard Robert John "Mutt" Lange's other proteges Def Leppard on the radio the other day and realized that if you twanged up the guitars and changed a couple gender pronouns you'd have Shania Twain. Now, if Lange (aka Mr. Twain) got her in the studio with AC/DC, that'd be really interesting. Anyway, she's Canadian and as for her singing, well... uh... she looks real purty in the videos.

As we close out the southern state country music appeal department, why not go hell-bent alt-country and get Steve Earle on board?

So come back Woody Guthrie
Come back to us now
Tear your eyes from paradise
And rise again somehow
If you run into Jesus
Maybe he can help you out
Come back Woody Guthrie to us now

So come back, Emma Goldman
Rise up, old Joe Hill
The barracades are goin' up
They cannot break our will
Come back to us, Malcolm X
And Martin Luther King
We're marching into Selma
As the bells of freedom ring

Let's see: lifestyle foibles, controversial public statements, controversial songs... sorry, Steve, three strikes. Back to Hillary's playlist:

Right Here, Right Now - Jesus Jones
Might have been kinda hip for the first Bill Clinton campaign. Actually, an ironic choice, since the context of "watching the world wake up from history" was all about the "end of history" that was in vogue for about a year as the Soviet Union collapsed. I think in this context "history" is vote-for-the-woman vote code for It's Time.

I'll Take You There - The Staple Singers
I'm not going to say anything snarky about this damn fine soul classic. Just proves that you don't have to be cutting edge to be cool.

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So in my dream-world, filled with voters who are political versions of John Cusack and Jack Black in High Fidelity, what's my All Time Top Five list of Songs I Would Like To Hear At A Political Rally But Never Will?

We'll start with the cynical:

"Elected" by Alice Cooper - wouldn't you respect someone who had the nerve to take the stage to "I wanna be elected"?

"Vote For Me" by Joe Walsh, the theme to his goofball 1980 run for vice president.

"Looking For The Next Best Thing" by Warren Zevon. The ultimate compromise song:

Don Quixote had his windmills
Ponce de Leon took his cruise
Took Sinbad seven voyages
To see that it was all a ruse

(That's why I'm) Looking for the next best thing
Looking for the next best thing
I appreciate the best
But I'm settling for less
'Cause I'm looking for the next best thing

More seriously, here's one that almost works:

"We'll Inherit The Earth" by the Replacements. From their slightly overproduced 1989 album "Don't Tell A Soul," this underrated song both expresses rage at the system and confidence in change:

We can't hold our tongues at the top of our lungs

We'll inherit the earth but don't tell anybody
It's been ours since birth, and it's ours already

But the top of my list is mimimalist. I'll immediately endorse any candidate who takes to the stage to the tune of...



"New Day Rising" by Hüsker Dü. Recorded in the year of Reagan's Morning in America. Just the title phrase, screamed over and over and over again over Loud Fast Rules noise that would instantly alienate the 99.7% of voters who aren't fixated on `80s thrash punk... but what a noise, and just what we need: a new day rising.

Mayor's Bike Ride

Mayor's Bike Ride



Iowa City's Bikin' Mayor (see, he even has a sash so it must be official) Ross Wilburn led 200 cyclists Wednesday on Bike To Work Week's annual Mayor's Bike Ride.

In brief bullhorn remarks before bikers left the Chauncey Swan ramp across from City Hall, Wilburn told the crowd that he hopes to see as many people at meetings when biking issues come before local government.

Representing from the campaign trail were:


The Edwards campaign, a Richardson staffer, and...


Team Obama. County Supervisor Rod Sullivan said he'd ride with the Obama crew if "they slowed down to my speed." Also spotted with an Obama sticker was Coralville council member Tom Gill; Supervisor Terrence Neuzil was with the Edwards camp. Regenia Bailey from the Iowa City council stopped by, but she was Farmer's Market shopping rather than biking.


These folks teamed up on the ride, but they were outdone by...


this three man crew. (I think the guy in back was slacking.)


A rare Iowa City sight: cars waiting for bikes! We had police escorts both in cars and on bikes (which had to be more pleasant duty than patrolling the Ped Mall for errant skateboarders).

The low point of the ride was the hight point of the ride: the crest of the hill on Foster Road on the Peninsula. Just about everyone made it; photography gave me a nice excuse for a brief rest at the crest. (Most bikers kept a relaxed pace; my own ride was a bizarre, photography-driven mix of sprints and stops.)


Senator Joe Bolkcom at the top of the hill. Before the ride he told the crowd that cycles have an important role to play in fighting climate change.


It was all downhill from there, which if you're biking is a good thing. Past the dog park and...


across the Iowa River Power Company bike and foot bridge into Coralville.


At the end of the ride at Coralville's New Pioneer Co-Op, music and free bike fuel. No miles per gallon info available.


The last word: A little hello to our four wheeled friends.

Around The Interwebs

Around The Interwebs

A few items from the series of tubes this AM:

Skipped the Faux News GOP debate last night; a quick skim tells me Huckabee zinged John Edwards and Rudy zinged Ron Paul.

From the right, Cyclone Conservatives looks at each contender and Sporer does a debate score card. Both of them score Huckabee and Giuliani on top. Cy hasn't reset his poll, which still shows a Ron Paul landslide.

Iowa Voice sums up all the national wingers so you and I don't have to.

Common Iowan looks in from the left.

The GOP is culling candidates a bit with no-chance businessman John Cox left out. The Republican field will probably thin faster than the Democrats because the August 11 buy-a-vote straw poll is a bigger event than the caucus itself. Looking back to the most recent contested GOP cycle, the summer 1999 straw poll winnowed out more candidates (Elizabeth Dole, Dan Quayle, and Pat Buchanan bolting to Reform) than the caucuses themselves (Orrin Hatch, as if that wasn’t obvious). I'd expect a similar number of candidates to drop out this August.

Other subjects:

De facto Republican Joe Lieberman is hosting a fundraiser for official Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine, just after the Democrats have recruited Rep. Tom Allen to oppose her next year. Kos leads the chorus of blog anger.

Next door to Iowa we may see an open seat and special election in northeast Missouri as Swing State Report reports Rep. Kenny Hulshof is a finalist to be University of Missouri president. A tough district but it was long held by moderate Dem Harold Volkmer who fell to Hulshof in the massacre of `94. Hulshof won 61-36 last year with a lefty independent siphoning off 1%; Senate winner Claire McCaskill took 46% in the district.

Falwell Dead

Falwell Dead

Jello Biafra said it best back in the day (NSFW alert):



First hardcore punk record I ever got; this was the B side of the A Side with a title that began "Nazi Punks."

"Planning a war with or without Iran." Damn. Still relevant.

Vigil for COs

Downtown Iowa City Vigil for Conscientious Objectors

Twenty supporters braved the rain this noon for a silent ceremony honoring conscientious objectors.


Jeff Cox speaking briefly before ten minutes of silence.

Spokesperson Jeff Cox said the vigil, held at the Peace Pole outside the public library, was meant to:

...honor equally those who have refused to participate in any war in obedience to the commands of Christ, those who have followed the inner teaching of conscience, those who have refused to participate in an unjust war, and those who have simply recognized that war is the greatest evil known to humanity.

Special mention was made of the 50,000 Americans who resisted the Vietnam War; Cox noted "there are no memorials to them."

The crowd seemed evenly split between the Vietnam era and the Iraq II era. Among those present were Megan Felt and David Goodner, two of 11 people convicted of tresspassing yesterday for a sit-in at Chuck Grassley's Cedar Rapids office. After the rally, Goodner said the conviction is

...a sad comment on the state of democracy in our society when nonviolent peacemakers are considered criminals while people like Bush, Grassley, and the rest of the warmakers in our federal government commit war crimes and crimes against humanity yet go free.

The judge chose law and order over justice.

Sentencing on the misdemeanor chage is scheduled for July 6 in Linn County District Associate Court. Father Frank Cordaro of Des Moines, another of the eleven, said last night he anticipates time served (an overnight in jail) with perhaps a fine and court cost.

Biden Postpones

Biden Postpones in Johnson County

From the in box, regional field director John Anderson:

Next week will be the final week before recess of the Senate. Although (Senator Biden) tried to work around his tight schedule in Washington during these final weeks, it just proved not feasible to coordinate this trip. While he does very much want to be in Iowa this weekend, there are some very important Iraq bills coming before the Senate, and the Senator needs to vote on these bills.

We will be rescheduling the event, and hope to see everyone able to come out in an even stronger force in June.

It was supposed to be this Saturday. Now, well, it's not.

SUV wins race

Stunning Upset: Stutsman, SUV Wins Bike-Bus-Car Race

It's safe to say none of the two dozen bikers (and one neutral pedestrian commuter) at the finish line were cheering for her, but Supervisor Sally Stutsman scored the first-ever automotive victory in Bike To Work Week's annual Bike-Bus-Car race from Coral Ridge Mall to Downtown Iowa City.

As she strolled from the parking ramp to the finish line, bicyclists played the Death March on kazoos.


As Del Holland tries to figure out what went wrong, Sally Stutsman arrives in Victory Lane.

Thirty seconds later, the pre-race favorite, Senator Joe Bolkcom, was wheeling down Clinton Street accompanied by five other bikers.

Gracious to the biking cause in her unexpected, unwelcome victory, Stutsman said routing issues and good luck paved the way for her win:

I owe it all to Coralville and Camp Cardinal Road. No one said we had to take the Coralville Strip, and that would have been different. And I only hit one red light and got a good parking space right away. But I still have to pay to get out of the ramp...

Joe Bolkcom and Team Bike.

Bolkcom and his co-bikers got spread out, and Joe found himself fighting headwinds and an unanticipated hill.



Three minutes later (5:17 according to official Olympic Swiss Time) Amy Correia emerged from the Coralville bus (note bike rack on front of bus). Amy was surprised at her last place finish but was happy with the two chapters she finished in her book, a feat neither Stutsman nor Bolkcom could claim.


The Three Great Racers.

Prior to the dramatic finish, bikers talked up cycling issues with the two TV crews and handful of print reporters present.


Del Holland and his locally famous recumbent bike.

Del Holland, serving on the Johnson County trails advisory committee, said bikes need to be seen as part of transportation: "We need routes as well as trails." He also cited the relative low costs of on-site workplace shower facilities for bikers, compared to parking ramps.



Current champ in the Longest Bike Commute contest is Steve Rudin, who was flipping pancakes at this morning's bike breakfast (pictured above with Supervisor Terrence Neuzil). Steve takes a 16 mile route in from North Liberty to Iowa City in the morning, and a more direct 8 mile route home at night. Makes my 1.7 miles each way look wimpy.

Fuel Prices: Bikes vs. Cars

Bike To Work Week: Gas More Expensive Than Milk

As Bike To Work Week kicks off, a quick price comparison at the Iowa City Waterfront Hy-Vee shows that fuel for bikers is cheaper than fuel for cars:

Unleaded: $3.299 a gallon
Hy-Vee Brand 2% Milk: $2.99 a gallon

The cars still have the edge for higher-end fuel:

Super Unleaded: $3.19 a gallon (that's the ethanol kind)
Hy-Vee Brand Orange Juice: $3.98 a gallon

No stats on miles per gallon.

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Bicyclists of Iowa City was giving free fuel to bike commuters (try that, Texaco) at College Green Park this morning. In an exercise in participatory journalism, I found the pancakes quite tasty. If you missed out, there's more free flapjacks tomorrow from 7 to 9 AM at Coralville New Pioneer Co-op.

George Bush Wants YOU To Ride Your Bike

George Bush Wants YOU To Ride Your Bike



It's a sad fact that "Bicycle Race" by Queen is the only known rock song about bicycles. We were hoping for more but the Sheryl Crow-Lance Armstrong relationship crashed and burned.

So it looks like Queen and only Queen tonight for the Great Bike Bus Car race. Will Joe Bolkcom be singing "We Are The Champions" as he crosses the finish line? Or will it be Sally Stutsman and "I'm In Love With My Car"? Perhaps we'll hear Amy Correia and "Another One Rides The Bus." (Yes, I know it's Weird Al. Close enough.)

21 Bars and Voter Registration

Press-Citizen Gushes, Screws Up

In the first of a no doubt endless series of editorials that will crest with an endorsement, the Press-Citizen makes any number of miskates. (I left that in just because I likes it better than spelling it night.)

This mistake's substantive, but should be the subject of much debate:

If the referendum fails, those (non-alcohol) alternatives still need to be pitched as "healthy choices" for underage students. If the referendum passes, those alternatives will be the only choices for underage students.

BZZZZ. I may be an old man but I'm not so old to have forgotten the house party. In fact I recall hosting quite a few. Lucky for us the worst consequences I saw other than my own drunken foolishness was the occasional appearance of Mystery Dude.

Mystery Dude is that guy who comes to the party with his friend and doesn't know anyone else. Since he doesn't know anyone else, he drinks an above average amount and passes out/crashes on the nearby couch. Friend can't wake him up, goes home. Next morning the guys at the house see Mystery Dude on the couch and wonder who he is.

That's a mild consequence; date rapes and alcohol poisoning are more serious...

But this mistake is just plain wrong.

Because Iowa now has Election Day voter registration, the vote will be an even more accurate measure of community sentiment on the issue.

The election day voter registration law does not take effect until January 1, 2008. The neo-prohibitionists are no doubt aware of this - wonder if that explains their yet again fortuitous timing, holding this with the last major non-same day registration election after filing the petition the last day of finals? Coincidences based in state law, but convenient.

UPDATE, 1 PM: The P-C has now corrected the error on the same-day registration law.

Bike to Work Week 2007 Event Schedule

Bike to Work Week

Biking in Iowa is more than RAGBRAI, it's regular transportation. And with gas seen at $3.29 a gallon in Coralville on Friday, Bike To Work Week couldn't come at a better time than this Monday through Friday. As a regular bike to worker I'm planning extensive coverage.

For me, the highlight is Monday's annual bike-bus-car mall to mall race from Coral Ridge to Old Capitol, Our great racers are all politicians this year:

On the bus, Amy Correia from the Iowa City Council!

In the car, County Supervisor Sally Stutsman!

And, on the bike, Senator Joe Bolkcom!

Team Bike is defending the title won last year by Iowa City Mayor Ross Wilburn. Though the official odds from Vegas (or the Riverside casino) are not yet available, Bolkcom is confidently predicting a bike victory. Correia is hoping for a strong second place, has her book ready, and notes some construction on Highway 6 that may hurt her finish time... We'll be at the finish line at race time - 4:45 Friday on the Clinton Street side of the Old Capitol Mall.

Other highlights for the week:

Monday, May 14
7—9 a.m.
Bicyclists' Roadside Pancake Breakfast at College Green Park, Iowa City.

Tuesday, May 15
7—9 a.m.
Bicyclists' Roadside Pancake Breakfast in front of Coralville New Pioneer Co-op

Wednesday, May 16
5:30 p.m.
Old Pi to New Pi” Mayor’s Ride
Join Mayor Ross Wilburn in a casual bike ride from Iowa City’s Chauncey Swan Park to the Coralville New Pioneer Co-op. Refreshments and prizes hosted by the Co-op, live music by Irene and the Mad River Band. Free bike bells to be given away courtesy of World of Bikes.

Friday, May 18
5:00 p.m. (prize drawing at 6:30)
After Work Bike Rally
Fitzpatrick's on Prentiss Street in Iowa City, mixing cyclists, food, the live music of New Beat Society, and a prize drawing for a new bicycle, a shopping spree at a local bike shop, and many bike accessories!

The Bike To Work Week site offers plenty of tips, including free locations for showers and park and ride (if you can manage part, but not all, of the commute).

I lived with no car for periods of several months in 2003 and 2005, and the biggest barrier was groceries. The corner markets we used to have in every neighborhood have died off, but I still managed most everything in a backpack and side baskets. Except kitty litter. Just couldn't do the kitty litter.

But that was in midtown Iowa City. And even the Iowa City area still has a fair number of businesses that haven't managed a basic bike rack, such as the Best Buy-Target side of Coral Ridge Mall, where I have to settle for locking to a No Parking sign OK, I found it, but it's really easy to miss. And still, it was full - at 8:00 on a Sunday night...

How would living with no car work in small-town rural Iowa? Answer is: it wouldn't. Which begs some more questions. With the planet heating up and gas creeping up, should you really be living a long car commute from work? And how could we more effectively structure our societal layout for more bike-friendly transit? And why are there no jobs in our small towns and no affordable homes in our larger towns, so people have to commute dozens of miles?

Biden in Iowa City

Biden in Iowa City Saturday 5/19

Location still TBA but time is 6-7 PM and function (other than Caucus For Me) is a Johnson County Dems fundraiser.

And The Winner Is...

And The Winner Is...


Couple weeks back I launched a poll re: which hat should be my blogging hat. The count is in and the winner is...



Shopping at second hand stores will begin immediately. And no, I couldn't find the Warren Zevon version.

Pirate, fez and Sorting Hat all won significant support. Tinfoil was suggested, as was bike helmet, but I wear the latter often on non-blogging occasions.

Habeas Update

Habeas Corpus Update

Restoration of habeas corpus will not be in the Defense authorization bill. House Armed Services chair Ike Skelton (D-MO) supports restoration, but was concerned that including habeas as a rider would risk passage of the authorization bill.

Bay Area site Political Blotter reports that Skelton and Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) will be introducing a stand-alone habeas bill next week. Neither are known as left-of-the-left Dems. Blotter also has a nice Habeas 101 paragraph:

Habeas corpus, for the Latin-challenged, essentially is the right to be brought to the court for a determination of whether one is imprisoned lawfully, and whether or not one should be released. It dates back to the 12th Century, preceding its 1215 codification in the Magna Carta’s section 39; our Constitution’s Article I, Section 9, says it “shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion, the public safety may require it.” Yet under last year’s new law, those deemed “unlawful enemy combatants” no longer have this right.

Matt Stoller at MyDD lists Dems who voted for the original Military Commissions Act that abolished habeas corpus and will need persuading; note Leonard Boswell's name.

Meanwhile, testifying before the Judiciary Committee, Alberto Gonzales offers his Deep Thoughts:

Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) asked Attorney General Alberto Gonzales whether any U.S. citizens are “being held today, for over a month, who have been denied habeas corpus or access to an attorney.” Instead of giving an answer, Gonzales replied, “[Y]ou’re asking me a question I hadn’t really thought about.”

21 Bars

Neo-Prohibitionists Ready To File



Today's the deadline and the modern Carrie Nations say they have the names:

Jim Clayton, who lives outside city limits, said the group hit the required number last night.

Hm. So is it his business? And how many University officials and other public employees will weigh in on this from their official positions?

Speaking of public employees, here's how the city clerk will be spending the next three weeks:

After the deadline, City Clerk Marian Karr said, at least four employees in the city clerk's office will work for roughly 20 days, comparing the signatures to the 51,456 registered Iowa City voters, to finish the count by May 31.

The city code does not call for such an aggressive procedure; it simply says "the city clerk shall complete a certificate as to the petition's sufficiency." Certainly, a quick review striking names outside the jurisdiction (such as, say, Jim Clayton's) is in order, but reviewing every single signature seems like overkill and a poor use of time.

The PC and DI have more coverage. Only the DI bothers to get anything from someone opposing the petition; the PC has a feisty comment section going.

Maybe it's just a coincidence, but funny how this lands on the last day of finals.

Deauthorization Vote Falls Short

Deauthorization Vote Falls Short

But at least they had a vote on deauthorizing the war. 171 to 255.

This is the more politically acceptable version of Stop The War Now. The Kucinich approach of immediate defunding isn't viable because of the stripped-soldier-ad image, the notion that cutting off money strands troops. Only a dozen or so members are willing to go that far. But de-authorizing doesn't imply stranding, and doesn't leave that argument open,. It's a cleaner End It Now message.

Iowans: Loebsack and Braley are yes. Will that quiet teh Loebsack critics who want him on the Defund Now approach? Perhaps they should look instead to Leonard Boswell, who joined King and Latham in voting no on deauthorization. Only two Republicans vote no, and one is presidential contender Ron Paul.

UPDATE: Subsequent vote passes 221-205 for the two months of funding and benchmarks plan. Ten Dems vote no, mostly from the Not Another Penny perspective.

Hispanic Folk Fest in Columbus Junction

Hispanic Folk Fest in Columbus Junction Saturday, Sunday

Columbus Junction is hosting its fourth annual Hispanic Cultural Festival on Saturday and Sunday. This year, the event is in conjunction with the Midwest Folk Festival.

Mallory Smith of West Liberty is the festival's financial chair. She says the festival attracts more sponsors each year which is good testament to community support. Smith also notes that notes that Columbus Junction, a Louisa County town of just over 1800, has residents from over a dozen countries.

I see the Hispanic community, especially in Columbus Junction wanting more meaningful community involvement and achieving it by building new organizations and getting involved in existing ones. over the years we've developed much new leadership capacity and confidence. Many of the people on the committee are new to community projects and their abilities have grown right along with the event.

Chicago-based Puerto Rican act Africaribe is headlining the three-state festival.

"The Arts Council has supported our festival for 2 years and had a representative here last year," said Smith, "and suggest we apply to host the Midwest Folk Festival."

A full schedule of events, including a dance, church services, and children's music workshops with Iowa City's Dave Moore, is available on the Civic Society of Columbus site.

Thursday Tidbits

Thursday Tidbits

Lots of news yesterday other than Krusty klosing, though you wouldn't know it from my traffic.

Grassley bashes Obama for suggesting that maybe Grassley's constituents should maybe talk to Chuck about the war. Jonathan Singer at MyDD fires back hard:

If there were ever a portrait of someone who has spent too long on Capitol Hill, this might be it. Grassley apparently believes that he owns the Hawkeye state, that no one -- particularly not another Senator -- has the right to organize a grassroots lobbying effort among his constituents.

You have to go back to Grassley's initial run for the Senate against then-incumbent Democrat John Culver to see the Democrats offering him a truly active challenge. No wonder he believes Democrats shouldn't be questioning his actions.

While Grassley may be out of touch with Iowans, he is not so out of touch that he doesn't know the ground is shifting under him. In 2006, Iowa swung noticeably towards the Democrats... This trend could spell real trouble for Grassley, a stalwart Republican who backed President Bush's position 87 percent of the time and stood with his fellow Republicans on party-line votes 93 percent of the time in 2006 (both numbers according to CQ).

As is fairly apparent, Grassley is vulnerable -- and he knows it. This is why he is so offended that a Democrat would come into his state, expose his knee-jerk conservatism and call his constituents into action to lobby him. So kudos to Obama for calling Grassley out.

Gazette covers Tommy Thompson in Anamosa.

On the Iowa City substance front, the neo-prohibitionists say they'll have the signatures tomorrow for the 21 bar referendum. And in a DI article on marijuana arrests, Johnson County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek again calls for arrest and sentencing reform:

Pulkrabek has long argued that a cite-and-release program for people caught with small amounts of marijuana could help ease jail overcrowding in Johnson County. He hadn't completely defined what "a small amount" might mean, he said.

But he has faced some obstacles to his catch-and-release proposal, not only from local residents who think the penalty wouldn't be stringent enough but also from regulations in Iowa law.

"The law still holds it as a serious misdemeanor [and as so, offenders] still need to get booked in the jail at some point in time," Pulkrabek said. "I still hold the same opinion, and we are working through the chiefs and the county attorney about developing a cite-and-release program, but there are several unanswered questions."

Pulkrabek said until he and public officials can answer these questions, the program will not move forward.

"Because of the large number of people we're booking in, if there was one more group of people we didn't have to book in that would free us up for other offenses," he said.

Nationally, NBC had the leak and/or scoop on 11 House Republicans who met with W yesterday and called him to task, with the key quotes being 'You have no credibility on Iraq Mr. President.' and 'My district is ready for defeat.' Their video link is unfriendly so here's the Gray Lady instead.

The DI's Jesse Tangkhpanya gives the play of the week to Fred Thompson's coy semi-candidacy. The problem I see for this Thompson Twin is that a non-candidate gets to be all things to all people. But once you actually get into the race, and are no longer an empty vessel filled with whatever issues and actions the public imagines, you become a mere mortal again.

Bye Bye Krusty

Bye Bye Krusty

Iowa's top konservative blog shuts down. Who was that masked man?

Habeas Corpus

Loebsack Targeted On-Line In Habeas Corpus Drive

A-list national blogs Kos, MyDD and TalkLeft say Democrats on the House Armed Services Committee are considering adding a restoration of habeas corpus into the Defense Department Authorization Bill being marked up today and Thursday. Not a question of votes as much as will. Matt Stoller at MyDD writes"

Apparently Chairman Ike Skelton has the votes but there are concerns about whether to have this fight now.

The most important members to contact are Ike Skelton, antiwar freshmen, and members of the Armed Services Committee.

That puts the target squarely on anti-war Armed Services freshman Dave Loebsack. A guy who wore an ACLU pin all day Saturday after visiting their banquet is likely to be supportive, but it helps to be able to tell your colleagues you got a stack of emails yea high.

D.C. Primary Doesn't Count

Like Their Representative In Congress, The D.C. Primary's Vote Doesn't Count

The always aware Richard Winger at Ballot Access News notes that despite the ongoing Florida-New Hampshire schedule war, the District of Columbia goes before anyone with a January 8 beauty contest primary. It's one of those protests against the lack of voting congressional representation, like the Gore elector in 2000 who abstained.

Maybe the proposed Utah-for-DC tradeoff, which would expand the House to 437 and give Utah a likely GOP seat in exchange for the certain Dem gain in DC, will settle things. But in the meantime, let's stroll down memory lane for a look at the 2004 DC primary:

Howard Dean won the first vote of the 2004 presidential campaign season on Tuesday - Washington, D.C.'s non-binding primary - although it was more of a voting rights rally than a chance to express a preference for a candidate.

The former Vermont governor won with 43 percent of the votes. The Rev. Al Sharpton received 34 percent of the vote, with former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois third at 12 percent, and Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, fourth at 8 percent.

As always, there were a few unusual candidates on the ballot - including 'Vermin Supreme,' who got at least 144 votes.

Happy Birthday Harry

Happy Birthday Harry




He'd be 123 today, so to celebrate we present The Picture and more Truman goodness from the Truman Presidential Library.

Side Order of Links

Morning Coffee, Side Order of Links

Here's your breakfast of champions for the morning:

McCain made the now-standard Hamburg Inn stop, reports the Press-Citizen, accompanied by Dan Gable. Article also covers the North Liberty event. The Gazette's James Lynch has his take on North Liberty, and joins me in noting "McCain received only tepid applause for saying he would close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo." The DI has its take and the Register caught McCain in Muscatine.

The Underrated One gets one on one time and has a choice lead lede, with McCain saying a pro-choicer would have a hard time getting a GOP nomination. Comments coincide with news that rival Rudy donated to Planned Parenthood as late as 1999.

I finally learned the difference between lead and lede: the first paragraph is spelled "lede" to disinguish it from lead as in Zeppelin which was the metal they used to use to set type. This should have as big an impact on my life as learning it was pronounced LINNux and not LYEnux.

McCain's not the only candidate in town, as Joe Biden does a Gazette editorial board. On Iraq: “The rest of the world thinks we screwed up so badly that our ability to be the catalyst for positive change in the world has been seriously compromised.”

Continuing fallout from Florida's calendar move: Iowa Girl at Kos has a diary that notes Florida legislative Dems were outnumbered and unable to stop the majority GOP from moving the primary date to Jan. 29, and that the date was tied to popular ban-the-touch-screen legislation. The thread includes the Best. Comment. Ever.:

...if Florida votes on January 29th, it will be mid-March before they figure out who won.

Craig Crawford at CQ Politics asks which candidate this helps and answers: Jeb Bush.

The AP looks at the relative accessibility of candidates on the trail. McCain, Mitt, Edwards: easy to talk to. Hillary, Rudy, Obama: Not so much. Everybody else: desperate.

Cyclone Conservative says the very very Republican northwest corner of Iowa feels neglected by the GOP kandidates. CyCon has a poll as a standing sidebar and, to his credit, offers Generic Democrat as a choice. It appears to have been libertarian-spammed as Ron Paul has a 359-32 lead over his nearest rival, Mitt...

McCain in North Liberty

McCain in North Liberty

The last place I expected to be on a Monday night was listening to Martina McBride’s "Independence Day" waiting for John McCain to show up. But with the new professionalism (and professional status) with the Iowa Independent connection comes a stretching of the boundaries, so I hit my first Republican event in about 15 years in North Liberty Monday.



I’ve meant to do a GOP event for a while and this one seems like the perfect start. Wasn’t sure how I was going to write this but I’m finding myself in the same groove I get with an Edwards or Obama speech. No wi-fi so this is mostly live-written but cleaned up.

5:15. Back in my public radio days I had a junior partner who was active in the GOP (Yo, Libants!) and he was my people-spotter. No such assistance tonight.

The first thing I’ve noticed that’s different is the music is a lot quieter. The only stuff I’ve been able to pick out over the crowd chatter is the theme from Rockies One and Three (“Eye Of The Tiger”). (Rocky 4 – “Living In America” - would be funkier and maybe even usable.) But the pledge cards at every table, that’s the same. Only they’re “volunteer cards.” Harder to follow up on a pledge when the GOP caucus is a secret vote.

He’s got an in the round setup with a stool and a waterbottle waiting. (This worked well for giving everyone in the crowd face time, but as a one man team I'm my own photographer and got a lot of back of the head shots.) The food for the evening is soup. Three TV cameras, but I didn’t see any tower trucks; despite the fortuitous hour I don’t think anyone’s doing the live at 6 thing. The usual local print is present too.

5:23 Chuck Wieneke is doing some intro-ing, notes his veteran status. (There’s a special “veteran’s sign-in” table.) They’re hauling out more tables as they play “Good Vibrations” and turn the volume up a notch. Playing the vet card plays to the McCain bio – but that worked sooo well for President John Kerry…

OK, this is something you don’t see at most Dem events: an Eagle Scout is presenting the colors and we do the Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem. Not sure if this is a McCain thing or a GOP thing. I stand, type this sentence with no caps one-handed with my right and hold laptop with left; realizing at the last second I’m wearing a hat. Tuck the hat under my arm at about “banner yet wa-ave.” (Post-speech annotation: I end up losing the hat.)

Leon Mosley, former Black Hawk supervisor and current RPI co-chair, leads a prayer. A “party of Lincoln” reference, some “lord let the people see our way” kinda stuff but no platform planks. But he ends with an unequivocal “in the name of Jesus we pray.” Wouldn't hear a reference that specific at a Dem event...

Head of Students for McCain speaks, gets nervous with audio issues. She’s been designated with the bio details. I’d guess the crowd between 150 and 200 but I’m not good at that. Other reporters are riffing on crowd counts with a theme of “everyone in Iowa east of I-35 was on the Pentacrest for Obama.” The student for McCain’s name is Hillary, which prompts a joke. (That’s the only by name reference to any of the Dems.) One of the reporters gets back from asking a staffer about crowd and renews the banter: “3000, he says.” Without hard number I’ll say: not bad for commute time.

Some country music: “you’ve got to stand for something… or you’ll fall for anything.” My country skills are 20 years out of date. Clearly we’re in Stall Mode ad McCain is running late.

I’m getting no overpowering sense on the superficial demographics; the differences between a Dem crowd and a GOP crowd are more subtle. Polo shirts vs. t-shirts on the young (though one fellow about my age sports a Metallica “Kill `em All” concert shirt), and no male long hair, the older folks a little dressier…

5:43 and a staffer breezes by the sound guys: “Play another song.” They choose the Bonnie Tyler `80’s chestnut “Holding Out For A Hero.”

5:50 and he’s on. A couple snowbird and weather jokes, and about two too many politician jokes.

5:55. Why the GOP lost `06. “I don’t believe it was the war.” Cites Lieberman. He thinks being in government post-1994 changed the GOP and spending is too high, gets first applause. Plays on the government-spending riff for a while. Cites earmarks, Alaska Bridge To Nowhere (not naming Ted Stevens). Pledges vetoes, gets loud applause. Cites scandals (naming Duke Cunningham and no one else). “The system is broken, and I promise to fix it.”

The jokes per minute ratio is high and it seems like he’s trying really hard to be funny. Nothing that brings down the house, though.

Plays the abortion and court card, cites the nuclear option fight and his role in the Group of 14. Calls Roberts and Alito “two of the greatest justices.” (“Of all time” or “at present” isn’t said.) Hopes partial birth (sic) will be banned worldwide.

“Chuck Grassley and I have a glass of ethanol every morning” is the funniest line of the night. McCain acknowledges he was not a fan of ethanol when oil was $10 a barrel, but the situation has changed and now energy independence is more important. Climate change is real. “Ethanol and nuclear power - and nuclear power” (repeated for emphasis) are important.

Iraq was sad, badly mishandled. But we have a new strategy. This Iraqi has to be more inclusive. There’s good news and bad news in Iraq today. (Mike craps out makes joke that DNC paid for mike).

“When we lost in Vietnam, we came home. It was over except for healing our wounds. In this war, they want to follow us home. This is a titanic struggle between good and evil.” No applause there, but there was for praise of troops. (Throughout the night, those were the biggest applause lines: not for any policy of this administration or of the prospective McCain administration, but for the “bravery and sacrifice of our troops.”)

He closed the prepped remarks with a tale of the troops he saw at Bethesda Naval Hospital. The buildup leads to a wounded soldier saying, “We can win this fight.” A beat, no applause till he says thanks. Good applause but not shake the rafters applause; wasn’t that kind of a speech.

6:10 and the first question: China and copyright. McCain: China will be a superpower, the question is how. They’re improving in some areas such as copyright… worse in others (anti-satellite weapons, human rights, Taiwan). Use Olympics for leverage. The Vietnamese, believe it or not, are our best friends in Asia. China has been a little help with North Korea, none with Iran.

The Fair Tax Question appears to be the GOP equivalent of the Iowans for Sensible Priorities Question. McCain says he’d sign, but passage unlikely. Wants taxes “fairer and flatter.”

Interestingly, a Blackbar question about “mercenaries.” McCain says they do security, etc. duties freeing more troops for battlefield, but he’s examine getting rid of them.

A Iraq vet says, “The Dems are beating us up on this every day. We have to have a way forward.” And because of our involvement, what will you do about the vets?

McCain thanks him for service and gets loads of applause. The guy says, “I’d go back tomorrow if I could” and gets the biggest applause of the night, for McCain or anyone. McCain said Iraqi oil revenues “could pay us back for a lot of what we’re doing.” The region has an interest in stability. He makes an odd reference to “Bill Russell, the senator from the Boston Celtics”; I couldn’t tell whether it was a joke that missed the mark or a reference to Bill Bradley. Huh? Back on topic, he says “It’s not the presence of troops that bothers Americans, it’s the casualties. If we could create a climate of stability” then there’d be support for a continued presence, noting that there are few objections to our ongoing presence in Korea.

For vets, he offers people vouchers if the VA can’t squeeze ya in. VA needs to focus on their unique skill with combat wounds. He also says he was unaware of the Walter Reed conditions and he regrets that and will be sure it never happens again.

Young person asks about North Korea. “I hope the UN would act effectively, but Russia and China have been unhelpful.” The Chinese help prop up the regime as they fear collapse will lead to millions of refugees. Calls North Korea “a gulag of incredible proportions”

American citizen born in Egypt notes hostility toward US overseas, and references Carter speech. McCain says we can’t deny our prestige has slipped. “I would close Gitmo.” (Very scattered applause.) “I’d actively attack climate change.” If we are wrong that humans have caused warming, we’ve made the world cleaner. But if humans have caused change and we do nothing, it’s catastrophic. We need to be a little more humble, pay more attention to Western Hemisphere. USA Still greatest noblest, nation on earth, but we have work to do especially in Islamic world.

Richard Tibbets asks about health care. McCain says it’s a great long-term challenge. US health care is best in world – but to go to single payer “as was proposed in the 90’s” would be a disaster. (Hm. Hillary Clinton, and some of us who were pushing for single payer instead of her plan in 1993, might dispute that characterization.) “I’m not for government run health care” gets more applause than closing Gitmo. He offers a long list of private sector stuff: corporate incentives for low income to buy private insurance, health savings accounts, malpractice reform. Cites “My experience is in reaching across the aisle.”

6:30 and hydrogen and nuke energy. “Nuclear power is not only possible but being used in other parts of the world.” Waste disposal is the key. Plays the Navy card and says we’ve never had an accident on a nuclear navy ship in 60 years. (A matter of definition – ask the Guardfish.) Nuclear power is not the answer but it’s a big part.

Last question is immigration. “I knew I should have shut this down.” Nervous chuckles in the crowd. Securing borders #1 (big applause.) Make the commitment with sufficient guards, electronics etc. Once we’ve assured people the border is secure, then we move forward on temporary worker programs and the people here (he says of 12 million undocumented, 1/3 just let their visas expire). We need a tamperproof biometric document to assure employers. Prosecute employers who hire illegals “to fullest extent of law”; applause. As for the 12 million “some who’ve been here 40, 50 years, they can stay. Those who just got here, they can’t.” In between? Still seems to be working that through. “The status quo is not acceptable.” Grateful for Bush’s leadership on this (one of the few direct Bush references.) “And I’m sorry I recognized you” he tells the questioner.

Change of plan: one more. Tommy Thompson wants to split IQ into three states, do you? “Partition throughout history does not wok. It’s not a simple case. The Turks won’t stand for Kurdish independence. Most Iraqis identify themselves as Iraqis first, then as Shia or Sunni or Kurdish.”

Summing up: “I’m not the youngest candidate, but I am the most prepared.” World leaders, military, congress. “I have the vision and the experience. I promise we will disagree on an issue or to, but I will make decisions after careful consultation as to what’s best for this country.”

6:40 and he’s done. The scrum is the same wherever you go. I realize that almost all of the questioners prefaced their queries with “thank you for your service.”

Waiting for the interviews, a 35 or so guy with a Mark McGwire red goatee tells the tall blonde TV reporter “I never watch news but I watch (your channel) because I’m in love with you.” She gives him a moment for a pic but her answer is priceless; pointing at his buddy taking the picture and holding a child, she asks the guy “is that your baby?”

At least three interloping Dems are sighted (not counting me – I have a legit press pass); two get a lot of McCain face time despite their union t-shirts.

On to the press questions. Asked who the “they” are who want to follow us back home from Iraq, he says Al-Qaida, and victory is a stable and effective Iraqi government. His one on one speaking voice is surprisingly quiet – not Jim Leach, turn the levels up to the max quiet, but low key. Says his campaign is about getting back to the fiscal discipline basics of conservatism. Says he’s not worried about how photos of the massive security around his Iraq trip will effect the campaign. I follow up on immigration; he says most people realize that it’s a complex issue. Shakes hands with all us pressy types, (earlier, one press photographer had a McCain moment, held the camera at arm's length and got a posed shot of the two of them) moves on to meet some folks who look like they had some one on one time planned.

McCain in North Liberty Tonight

McCain in North Liberty Tonight

I may make my GOP blogging debut tonight:

Senator John McCain will be hosting a Soup Supper & Town Hall Meeting at the North Liberty Community Center, Gerdin Conference Center, 520 West Cherry Street in North Liberty. The event begins at 5:15 p.m.

Had a human being day yesterday but others were out and about:

Biden in Cedar Rapids: Essential Estrogen in two parts (writeup, video). Nate Willems at MyDD, and Gazette.

Dodd in West Branch: Gazette, DI.

Brownback in Davenport, seeking the fetus vote: DI.

H.R.C. IC HQ

McGuire, Locals at Iowa City Hillary HQ

"It's a mess and we need someone who can take over and lead on the first day," former Mike Blouin running mate Andy McGuire told two dozen supporters at the grand opening of Iowa City's Hillary Clinton office.


Andy McGuire, Rep. Vicki Lensing.

Also speaking at the HQ (familiar to local Dems as the 2006 Johnson County Democrats/Iowa Democratic Party office) were local endorsers Rep. Vicki Lensing and Supervisor Sally Stutsman, and neutral Congressman Dave Loebsack.

Hillary supporters repeatedly cited her intelligence and experience as reasons they're backing her. McGuire, a doctor, said "she knows more about health care than I do."

"She has the ability to talk to many nations, to get our standing in the world back to where we were," said Carol Pilcher, a longtime Washington County activist now living in Iowa City. She and her husband Don (a former Washington County chair) have been supporting the Senator since her first Senate race in 2000. "And Bill can give some good advice too," added Don, echoing the two-for-one deal Bill Clinton offered in 1992.

"We need the best candidate - it doesn't matter what gender or where they're from," said Lensing, now serving her 4th state house term from Iowa City's east side. "And Senator Clinton is that candidate." "She's intelligent, articulate, and experienced," added Stutsman.


McGuire with Congressman Dave Loebsack.

Loebsack offered a general overview of current House events, focusing on the recently passed hate crimes bill. He said before the vote the House Democrats had a deeply moving meeting, chaired by Barney Frank and featuring a speech from the mother of hate crimes victim Matthew Shephard.

"I'm in a relatively good district, but a lot of the other freshmen are from districts that are less friendly, that voted for Bush. I told them if Iowa can do it, Congress can do it. It's the right thing to do."

Loebsack expressed some concern about Florida moving its primary to January 29 and the possibility of moving Iowa's caucus to an earlier date.

"I want college students to be part of the process, unfortunately we're having the caucuses at a time that makes that difficult." The current date - January 14 - is during the University of Iowa's break. "And moving it even earlier would make it even more difficult."

The congressman set the Johnson County bar high for 2008, noting John Kerry's 20,000 vote win in 2004 and hoping for the same for himself and for "Hillary, or whoever."

Dodd in West Liberty

Dodd offers Bilingual Cinco de Mayo Message in West Liberty

Chris Dodd delivered roughly a third of his remarks en espanol for a crowd of 60-75 at the Cinco de Mayo celebration in West Liberty.

The Spanish remarks were not repeated in English. Yo comprende pequitito espanol, but I did pick up "el presidente" and "la Casa Blanca" in his conclusion. During the Spanish portion of his remarks, he also discussed the importance of reading for children (the event was hosted by the West Liberty library) and talked about his experiences in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic.

"I had to learn Spanish in the Peace Corps," he told me after the speech, noting that immigrants and their children would be well served by learning English - a remark he made in Spanish during the speech.

"We have to deal with immigration in a reasonable and intelligent way. Historically we have been a welcoming nation; there were exceptions in the Know-Nothing era in the 1850s and again in the 1920s, and we paid a price for that."

Dodd favors a "humane" path to citizenship for people who are already here, but adds that we need to respect people who have waited through the process. "We have people lined up at embassies around the world waiting to come here."

In the English portion of his speech in this Muscatine County town with a large Hispanic population, Dodd called immigration "the wealth of our nation." West Liberty Democratic activist Dave Bradley agreed. "A lot of other small towns are dying, but this one's growing," saying backlash against the immigrant community has faded somewhat in recent years. "You might hate them, but they're going to pay your Social Security."

Congressman Dave Loebsack was also on hand, greeting festival goers and visiting briefly with Dodd.

Addressing the war, Dodd told the crowd "It's time to say America, we're coming home. Iraqis, it's your job now." After the speech, he reminded me he is the only presidential candidate supporting Sen. Russ Feingold's plan for complete US withdrawal in a year. "The only hope for Iraq is clarity on when we're getting out. The president says he won't support a deadline, but I won't support his open-endedness either."

Despite major differences on the war, Dodd says he remains on good terms with his home state colleague Joe Lieberman. "Joe and I have a personal relationship going back over 40 years, and we won't throw that away over a disagreement on one issue, even though it's a big issue. He's been great on other issues over the years." Dodd added that he and Lieberman talk nearly every day and work together well on Connecticut issues.

The main event on Dodd's schedule Saturday was a renewable energy conference in West Branch. I kidded Dodd over risking the West Branch Jinx, an alleged reluctance of presidential candidates to visit West Branch and risk comparison to Herbert Hoover. It turned out that West Liberty Index editor Sara Sedlacek, with whom I shared interview time, was a Hoover descendant. Dodd said he's visted the Hoover library and praised Hoover's non-presidential achievements. "I've been to Belgium, and he's still revered over there" for his famine relief work after World War I.

And yes, he told the diaper joke.

Vets and Loebsack

Vets tell Loebsack Health Care, Equipment Top Concerns

Health care and equipment were the top concerns for vets of all ages who met with Congressman Dave Loebsack Friday at a town meeting for veterans at the Iowa City library.

Veterans are not fully informed of their eligibility for benefits when they return home, and miss out on available help until it is too late, said Afghanistan vet Jennifer Zarr of the University of Iowa Veterans Association. “The unit never told me, and when all you want to do is go home, you’re not always paying attention.”


Veteran Jennifer Zarr shares her concerns as (left) Rep. Dave Loebsack and (center) John Mikelson, Veterans Advisor at the UI Pomerantz Career Center, listen.

Most veterans have a two-year window of eligibility for VA service. Johnson County Veterans Affairs director Leo Baier said enrollment was open from 1998 until 2003, but that opportunity was closed in 2003 with budget cuts. Means tests now make many veterans ineligible.

“There is no shortage of people in Washington D.C. in both parties who want to do things for veterans,” said Loebsack. He expects the proposed $87 billion VA budget will be met or exceeded, but expressed some concern about possible increases in co-payments proposed by the Bush administration but opposed by the House.

“If we send people off to war, we have the responsibility to take care of them when they get back,” said Loebsack, who this week voted to override President Bush’s veto of a bill that provided funding for the Iraq War but set a withdrawal deadline. The override vote failed to get the 2/3 vote required.

Loebsack did not discuss war politics during the veteran’s forum, focusing instead on their health care and equipment concerns. “I don’t know” what comes after the veto, he told me after the forum. “I don’t think anyone does. What I’m telling Nancy Pelosi, and what other freshmen are telling her, is to keep the pedal to the metal on this.” Loebsack cited the key role Rep. Dave Obey (D-WI), Appropriations chair, would play. “If they have to step back to benchmarks, rather than a deadline, it’ll be harder to support.”

“Every freshman voted for the supplemental, including those in the districts Bush won. They’re the brave ones, not me.”

The first-term Mt. Vernon Democrat acknowledged criticism from protesters who call for an immediate defunding of the war, and said they have a role in the process. “We all have the same goal – to get the hell out of there as soon as possible.”

Those who have been in the hell over there said Guard units are especially ill-equipped. “Our biggest problem was supplies,” said Zarr. “I hade no body armor plates the first two months I was in country. My M16 was older than I was.” Zarr said there was a prejudice in the regular military toward guard units: “They see us as part-timers with part-time benefits. But when you’re called up, you’re full time. I made $30,000 the year I was in Afghanistan.”

Loebsack, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, said he was shocked by briefings on how ill equipped troops are. “We have no unit that is truly C-1 combat ready in the United States. You (the troops) have suffered as a result of these decisions.”

“I’m not trying to be partisan, but there are differences between the new majority and the people who were in charge before. What’s driving our decision making process is what’s good for the troops NOW, not newfangled weapons systems in 2022.”

Zarr said her unit only lost one soldier in Afghanistan, but that death was a direct result of an inadequate. “75% of our Humvees were soft-top cloth. We had to buy scrap metal from the locals to plate the bottoms,” and the vehicle in which the soldier died did not have such improvised protection. “It was because we didn’t have the equipment.”

Loebsack, who visited Iraq soon after taking office, said he wished every one of his colleagues could see the military vehicle graveyard in Kuwait. Rows and rows and rows of jeep and tanks and Humvees hit by IED’s… and then thinking about all the people who were in them.”

Zarr said her unit was lucky and got new helmets. Roy Romans, a Cold War era vet from North Liberty, said many guard units still have the old ones. “Your head is like a BB in the old ones. Brain injury is the signature wound of this war.”

Veterans are also denied benefits for drug abuse, even if the abuse is service related to some degree. People are self-medicating for post traumatic stress disorder, said Zarr. “Is it anything to do with that you were in Iraq and saw your best friend die?” “They’ve got to be covered no matter what, echoed another veteran.”

“If you wear that uniform and risk your life, you’ve earned it,” said Romans, “whether you saw combat or not. When I was in, the deal was: if you served honorably, the VA would be there for you.” Veterans were united in their praise of the actual work of the VA despite frustration with bureaucracy.

Zarr also said Blackwater, a private security force working alongside the military, put troops at risk. “We despise Blackwater. They were the ones torturing people, and it made the locals not trust us.”

Student veterans also said they were having issues with education benefits. Lindsay Anderson said on enlistment in the Guard, she anticipated 100% of her tuition would be paid. But when she was called up to active duty, her eligibility did not transfer, and she’ll have to pay her last three semesters out of pocket. “I was disadvantaged because of my deployment.”

“Every vet needs to know,” said Zarr.

Caucus Leapfrog

Caucus Leapfrog: Florida to January 29

The long-threatened nomination date changes have started, with Florida now leapfrogging back to January 29th. Chris Bowers at MyDD has some analysis. The DNC is likely to penalize Florida by cutting delegates, yet Michigan is muttering about following suit.

Floridian Ron Gunzburger of Politics1 loves it, stepping outside his usual relentless objectivity for this shot:

Florida is doing a long-term favor to the voters of the 46 states not granted special early privileges by the two major parties with their fixed schedule. My state may lose nearly all of our 2008 convention delegates by refusing to genuflect before the bipartisan altar of corn and granite -- but we'll bring about the end of the unfair schedule forced upon us by the strong arm tactics of the DNC and RNC.

All this messes up the artfully negotiated Iowa-Nevada-New Hampshire-South Carolina dance set up last summer, and raises the possibility of our own move. The Republicans have also anticipated this and have not even officially scheduled their Iowa caucus date yet. (A quick call to RPI HQ indicates they've been planning for 1/14, but the official action hasn't happened. They're focused on the buy-a-vote straw poll anyway.)

This all recalls the leapfrog game of the fall of 1999 when Iowa announced a second, then a third caucus date before it finally stuck. That was driven by the South Carolina Republicans, and the 2000 Iowa date wasn't finalized until October 14, 1999.

As late as 1996, the caucuses were on February 12.

Tom Beaumont at the Register has his take, quoting ex-IDP chair Rob Tully as anticipating a move to January 7. Don't make any New Year's Eve plans yet, friends...

CSNY - Ohio, 2006

May 4, 1970



Old guys playing an old song that's still way too relevant on this the 37th anniversary of Kent State.

JC Dems

Johnson Dems in Solon

Staff from five - or six - presidential camps patiently wait through two hours of Johnson County Dems central committee business in Solon Thursday for their three minutes in the fluorescent spotlight to make a few announcements. Hey, staffers, anyone up for a long discussion of attendance bylaws and caucus apportionment math? It's not all glamour, folks.

In no particular order:

Edwards camp says the Iowa City HQ to be announced soon, and candidate in-state Memorial Day weekend but no Johnson stops (rural-focused trip). Also plugs Women for Edwards house party May 19 at home of Virginia Stratton-Coulter.

Obama camp thanks folks for the Earth Day event.

Clinton camp plugs HQ grand opening Saturday, 2-3 downtown Iowa City with speaker Andy McGuire.

Biden camp introduces themselves, fail to mention Sunday Cedar Rapids event.

Richardson staffer talks at some length about self but has no actual news.

Cedar Rapids Draft Gore volunteer Peter Rieter offers the URL algore.gov - yes, dot-gov, he insists when questioned - which doesn't work. (Once I was back on the grid, I found it at algore.org - but you'll have to cut and paste. Not because it's my old nemesis Al, though that's a contributing factor, but more because I have principles against giving link love to someone who gets their own URL wrong.)

No presence from the Dodd camp, but how many Eastern Iowa Dems got two blast calls yesterday?

One fron the Senator inviting folks to the West Branch renewable energy event on "Sunday, May 5..."

and a second one a few hours later from a spokesperson reminding folks again about the event "Saturday, May 5 - check the date."

Somebody's not gonna get an A for that internship...

Back to Solon, legislators Dvorsky, Lensing and Jacoby cite accomplishments. Jacoby highlights stem cells, minimum wage, and civil rights, Lensing adds election law especially same day registration. Dave Leshtz of the Loebsack staff lists a full weekend of Loebsack events, including a listening post with vets, the Crisis Center pancake breakfast, the NAMI walk, and Cinco de Mayo in West Liberty.

Full News Chopper Veto Coverage

Full News Chopper Veto Coverage

FLASH... FLASH... FLASH... BREAKING... BREAKING... BREAKING... DANGER, WILL ROBINSON, DANGER...

OK, so maybe it's the biggest surprise since that unexpected sunrise yesterday, but The Commander Guy vetoes the funding slash deadline bill. Here's that roll call. Most of the Defund Now Dems (Maxine Waters, Barbara Lee, John Lewis, etc.) who were No votes on passage are Yes votes to override, but in his constant effort to draw attention to himself Dennis K. is the lone Present vote. Iowans again vote on party lines.

iPol has a good roundup of Democratic candidate reacts to the veto.

John Edwards hits the airwaves with "Again and Again" ad urging Congress to send Bush the same bill. Interesting spot: it's just regular folks all the way through with the candidate's only appearance the legally required "approved this message" at the end. See it at Common Iowan. From the inbox, John asks me to upload video - and, oh yeah, kick in some bucks to run it.

Jesse Tangkhpanya at the DI gives the congressional Dems a Play of The Week despite the override's defeat: "They forced Bush's hand (literally) and forced the Republicans to stand by the 30-something percent of what's left of his lame-duck presidency."

---

Other stuff that didn't fit anywhere else the last couple days:

American Research Group polls three of the first four states - how about Nevada? I'm interested in how tightly they code their answers, as 16% seems like a waaaay low Iowa Democratic "undecided" number.

The Register tries to get more mileage out of the Obama "nobody has suffered more than the Palestinian people" reply from six weeks ago. Hint: your own article indicates that both the Israel lobby and James Zogby at the Arab-American Institute are satisfied with Obama's responses...

Iowa City Council Forum

Terry Smith: Expulsion for Underage Drinking? "Potentially"
Iowa City Council Forum

Iowa City Council Candidate Terry Smith suggested Wednesday that the University of Iowa needs a student ethics code to deal with law enforcement issues – one that could potentially include expulsion for underage drinking offenses.

Smith joined three other council candidates at Connections, a candidate forum sponsored by local LBGT group Queer Connections at the Hotel Vetro in downtown Iowa City.

(Connections, however, did not have a wifi connection, thus the slight delay in coverage.)

Twice during the forum, Smith said consequences for underage drinking were not high enough, repeating the phrase: “We need collective consequences with the University.” As he had begged the question, I asked.

Deeth: So that that mean expulsion for underage drinking?
Smith: Potentially.

Smith noted the issue of legal drinking age is complex – he said has a 19 year old son in military service who can’t get a beer – but said that law is the responsibility of the legislature not the city council, and the city’s role is to enforce the law as is.


Terry Smith, first time candidate.

Smith, an at large candidate, joined district incumbents Mayor Ross Wilburn (District A) and Regenia Bailey (District C), and at large incumbent Dee Vanderhoef, who had not yet announced her candidacy before the forum but said “I’d like a fourth term” in her conclusion. Another potential candidate cancelled out late; despite severe threats moderator Carlton Blackburn did not violate the omerta and reveal the name.

It’s three months until the filing period - why a forum so soon? Blackburn says we’re a lot closer to the city elections then the caucuses, yet the presidential candidates are debating. “This forum starts the conversation and starts people thinking.”

Rick Dobyns, `05 candidate and leader of the Iowa City 21 bar referendum, was present, but despite kidding did not take a seat on stage. Doctor Rick reports the referendum petition has 2,600 signatures of the required 3,333. Also spotted: Councilor Amy Correia (not up this time), Supervisor Rod Sullivan, and staffers for Obama, Edwards and Richardson.

Before the forum proper, organizers took a victory lap for the civil rights bill. Attorney Ed Krug:

“Instead of a hodgepodge of municipalities and cities, now across the state all GLBT people will be protected. For the very first time in Iowa, you do not need to be afraid, you now have protection.”

Robin Butler noted Iowa City passed its civil rights ordinance 30 years and one month before the state and credited activists and allies with a great late-session effort. Blackburn offered the good advice that “an activist’s job is to be annoying.”

In prepped bios of all the candidates, Bailey emphasized her nonprofit work, while Vanderhoef focused on her work on state, regional and national committees. As candidates introduced themselves, Smith said the Council is a natural transition after eight years on city commissions including Planning and Zoning. “I see good parallels with what the city faces and my job” (safety and compliance with Mid-American Energy); “We had a lot of experience with public safety and disaster recovery” in the 2006 tornado. Bailey said it was important for the city to “do projects with people not to people.” Vanderhoef’s opening remarks lasted 14 minutes (of a 2 hour forum); she said when she first was on the council she often heard “no one wants to do business in Iowa City” but she hasn’t heard that in four years.


Ross Wilburn, incumbent, seeking 3rd term.

Wilburn, interestingly, sported an Obama pin next to his own button at the debate. His endorsement has been high profile but here he brings it into his own re-election race, even working a brief mention of “looking forward to working with Barack Obama in the White House” into the closing remarks.

Some blatant copying of the Dem presidential debate as Carlton asked The Elephant In The Room question (candidates were, however, clued in ahead of time). And Wilburn even more blatantly ripped Joe Biden with a one-word “No” answer. More important was the question: whether working with fellow council member – and ex-wife – Amy Correia was ever a conflict. It was insulting when the Press-Citizen asked it the day after Amy’s election in 2005, and didn’t need to be repeated as Ross’s “no” answer has been illustrated well over the last 18 months on both their parts.

Other Elephant questions: Dee, is 12 years on the council too long? “No limit if you have the desire and passion to do the job.”

Regenia, how do we pay for your proposals and balance the budget? “Financially, I’m less risk averse than my colleagues – part of that’s coming from a non-profit perspective. I’m also less inclined to collect taxes to build fund balances than to provide services.”

Terry, is there a conflict with your Mid American job and serving on the council? “I’ve proven on commissions that I can separate issues and do my job.” At this point he made things interesting, noting that he would have to recuse himself from a vote on a Mid American franchise, and if he had an agenda he’s be supporting another candidate who could be a Yes vote on the franchise rather than running himself. He then challenged the other candidates to “support the democracy of the last election” in which public power lost 2-1. (He didn’t mention the $600,000+ in Mid American corporate in-kind contributions that maybe sorta helped a little.)

Addressing low-income housing, Wilburn noted the disconnect with low-income workers: “We want you here working certain types of job but don’t want you living here.”
Smith was concerned about the cost of entry level housing and dropped a line that was clear code for the development community:

“With all the requirements we put on builders and developers it’s no wonder the cost is so high.”

Dee Vanderhoef, incumbent, seeking 4th term.

As for the 21 bar referendum, Wilburn and Vanderhoef are in support, with Vanderhoef emphasizing that she personally had signed the petition: “Where does it say in the city code that I am to baby-sit underage drinkers? I’m here to uphold state law.” Bailey is opposed and said the city has a huge gap in talking to young people. All three incumbents said they would vote to place the issue on the ballot, rather than simply passing the ordinance without a vote (as is an option under the city charter).

Bailey referred to downtown Iowa City as a “cultural district” and along with Wilburn discussed the ongoing market mix study. Vanderhoef noted that “throughout the state everyone wants to come to Iowa City for a meeting and they want to be based downtown” to shop. “We’ve got malls where we came from – we want unique places.” Whitey’s Ice Cream seemed to be an especially popular downtown destination for candidates.

The candidates showed remarkable restraint when asked about the use and Abuse of tax increment finance (TIF) districts, a hot inter-governmental issue in Johnson County. No one bashed any other city by name. Bailey: “We look at wages and benefits when we look at these breaks. We use rebates, so we get the taxes paid then we check the outcomes.” Vanderhoef said “we’re very judicious with how we use it in Iowa City. It isn’t all one sided.” Smith said the Sycamore Mall re-development was a good use of the TIF incentive, with Wilburn concurring and noting the $9.8 million in increased valuation and 95% occupancy.


Regenia Bailey, incumbent, seeking 2nd term.

Discussing “responsible and equitable growth,” Bailey suggested housing density bonuses so we grow with infill, rather than out. “We need to consider growing UP (vertical) rather than at the fringes where we have transit challenges.” She verbally backed away from the word “sprawl.” Vanderhoef said the re-use of Sycamore Mall was preferable to building a new strip mall further out.

Wilburn said the city’s funding for human services was an important symbolic gesture as many cities just let the county do it. Bailey said her nonprofit experience shows her that the city human services budget is greatly needed and appreciated. Vanderhoef emphasized education and charity in addressing poverty. Smith noted his work on the Goodwill board and prefers a Teach A Man To Fish approach: “The city should not provide support for programs that just provide handouts.”

The recent wave of assaults on UI students prompted a three bullet point answer from Terry Smith: 1) Lighting (an obvious answer from the electric guy, but in this case appropriate) 2) more patrols 3) awareness. Ross Wilburn had the very good answer of challenging men to step forward and say assault is unacceptable – a better answer that Vanderhoef’s “we can do all the training in the world with these young people, and they still decide to walk alone” (uhh, shouldn’t they be able to?)

The big question in building a fourth fire station is funding a staff of 8 to 10 firefighters. Wilburn suggested the possibility of a transitional phase of a part-volunteer staff, and noted Bettendorf did just that and is now fading the volunteer out for full-time paid people. He also mentioned the local option sales tax.

Bailey and Wilburn agreed the Shelter House needs to grow; the city is stalled until the Supreme Court issues a ruling and it’s likely that wherever the shelter is sited, neighbors will sue contending that the shelter lowers their property values.

All candidates agreed the budget is Issue Number One, but the twists were revealing. Bailey emphasized pushing for changes at the state level “as state is reluctant to do property tax reform.” Smith spoke of fiscal responsibility and reserves, while Vanderhoef, in her firmest tone of the night, said, “The one new revenue that is available to us is the sales tax.”

In closing remarks Smith offered the challenger answer of “I don’t have all the answers, I have the ability to listen to your concerns.” Wilburn noted he would like to not only return to the council, but also serve as mayor again. (Note for non-Iowa Citians: the mayor is elected by and from among the council, not directly.) Bailey has the volunteer sign up sheet handy and works in the URL baileyforiowacity.com so she gets the link love.

For some reason, Iowa City Council (or, as it’s officially officially known Iowa City City Council, or perhaps Iowa City, Iowa, City Council) is the office that above all others in Johnson County draws the largest pool of candidates – some of whom are, well, interesting. Several have dropped out after ballots were printed, one got stuck by a train on voter registration deadline and missed turning in a large pile of registrations, one failed to register to vote himself until late in the afternoon of deadline day. Then there was the late Ollie Habhab, who ran despite his homelessness (he listed Pizza On Dubuque as his address and his picture is still on the wall there.) He got much love but few votes.

But there were no Mike Gravels at this forum. These four are all main-chance contenders.

More May Day

More May Day

Old Media followup on Missing May Day:

The Gazette's Jennifer Hemmingsen, whose name may be familiar in other contexts, does about as good a job of catching the flavour of the event as possible within "mainstream" restraints.

Also DI and PC.

DI also covers an immigration vigil that was separate and simultaneous (sorry I missed it; I'm a one person crew here). It was part of national events; the AP reports turnout down from similar events a year ago.

Dodd: West Liberty, West Branch, Muscatine Saturday

Dodd: West Liberty, West Branch, Muscatine Saturday

Chris Dodd will be spending Cinco de Mayo in eastern Iowa:

Noon to 1 at Rendezvous Park in West Liberty for a Cinco de Mayo celebration (the PR notes his Spanish language skills)

1:15 to 2:30 in West Branch, talking renewable energy at the Hoover House. I believe it was former West Branch Times publisher (and `02/`04 Iowa House candidate) Mike Owen who noted the West Branch Jinx: a long-time reluctance on the part of presidential candidates to visit West Branch and tempt comparison to the town's most famous native. It should be noted that Herbert Hoover was a great success at everything he attempted in life with one notable exception.

4:15 to 5:15 Dodd will be in Muscatine, no word yet on venue. Look for live or pseudo-live coverage of one of these.

---

Update on Hillary's HQ opening Saturday: The featured speaker is Dr. Andi McGuire, Mike Blouin's erstwhile running mate...

Missing May Day Peace Events

Missing May Day Peace Events

Organizers of Tuesday's Missing May Day peace events in downtown Iowa City had energy beyond numbers. It was a "spiritual event," said one speaker and the message was simple: end the war now - no deadlines, no conditions - now, was the call of the day.

Initially discussed weeks ago as a relatively routine picket, the event evolved into a festival, a Peace-a-palooza if you will.



The event wasn't really about the speeches, it was about young, young, young. Most organizers and attendees were in their 20s or even teens. A group of City High students (above) marched from school to downtown at about 4:30.



And there was music - lots and lots and lots of music. Two stages worth, in best Lollapalooza style. Lipstick Homicide covering Sleater-Kinney's "I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone."



Still, there were speakers. City High student Abby Mason-Marshall (speaking, with other City and West students):

All the youth are not apathetic. This can start a change that can make a real difference. We are not "radical" - this is the next common sense step.

Donations were accepted for Doctors Without Borders and the Iowa City Free Medical Clinic.

The remains of a few of Monday's Silhouette Project outlines were scattered on the Ped Mall; city officials scrubbed the area at about 10 a.m. due to business complaints, but there were a few areas the large street sweeper couldn't reach.



Mona Shaw, Nyssa Koons and Megan Felt (one of 11 arrested in a protest at Chuck Grassley's Cedar Rapids office) reading the names of 42 Iowans killed in the war to date. Shaw spoke to class issues: "Just because you're not in the class that's being shot at doesn't mean the war's not here."

UI international law professor Burns Weston had the unenviable task of following popular high school rock band Harvey, but nevertheless built the case for Iraq as war crime: "This is the stuff of high crimes and misdemeanors, for which impeachment is the appropriate remedy."



Despite the age gap, symbols of the 60's abounded. I saw multiple John Lennon references including the relatively obscure "Gimme Some Truth" next to a picture of Bush. Jamie Frederickson (above with peace flag) said the crowd had ebbed and flowed throughout the day. Getting a body count was hard - who was there for the event vs. just passing through? - but I saw about 100 at any one time.

The only politician sighted earlier in the day was Supervisor Rod Sullivan. (Reportedly, another elected person stumbled onto the event inadvertently and walked through the Ped Mall as quickly and as far from the event as possible. I didn't see it but it makes a good story anyway, as complaints about the rarity of elected Democrats at peace events are murmuring in the Iowa City peace community.) The Obama and Edwards campaigns had a presence, as did the Greens.

The counter presence was anonymous. Downtown Iowa City kiosks (infamous in the late `90s for their five-figure price tag) were papered with red white and blue flyers: "Support Our TROOPS = Support the MISSION!"



One of those troops was Josh Casteel, once of the 203rd Military Intelligence Battalion and now a conscientious objector.

"It is almost impossible to serve in the present military and abide by international law", said Casteel, who noted that mot of the people he interrogated were guilty of nothing more than being Arabs. "People were being arrested for owning Korans."

Casteel joined the other speakers in urging rally-goers to take their concerns to the presidential candidates. "Now isn't the time for political pragmatism. Now is the time for giving a damn."



Another of those troops was artist John Paul Hornbeck, who served in Afghanistan and who designed the sculpture above. He spent the day hosting movies in the Iowa City Public Library.

An interesting mix of issue tables were scattered through the event. Most other tables has some ties to the war or military issues. Iowans for Sensible Priorities were there, as was a group in support of Palestinians. Some less relevant groups were about - I'm sure the animal rights folks would find a way to tie their cause to the war but it would be a stretch. At least their rabbit was popular. But the omnipresent Socialist Workers who attach themselves to every Iowa City event left of the DLC were absent.

Organizers get an A for effort but an incomplete on outreach and crowd-building. As for the celebratory tone of the event, that's hard to judge. Does an anti-war event have to be somber to be effective? Or were the silent-vigil types put off by the festival atmosphere?

When I was the age of these organizers, the war was in Central America, and one of my most vivid memories was a march led by a veteran for peace. He had us all doing cadence calls, like we were troops. The rhythm was perfect, it was as funny as anything in "Stripes" (a universal cultural experience for my generation - at one time HBO had only three movies and "Stripes" was one), and the words were all peace-topical. And some of the older peace activists didn't go, because they wanted a nice quiet candlelight vigil instead and the walk was too far.

That was my generation, my war. This is my daughter's generation, and the worst thing I can do is tell her peers how to express themselves about the threat hanging over them.

Iowa Voter Registration Lawsuit

Coming Soon: Those G's and L's on Voter Cards

Richard Winger of Ballot Access News reports:

In September 2005, the Iowa Libertarian and Green Parties sued Iowa in federal court, over procedures that force all voters to register “Republican”, “Democratic”, or “independent.” Iowa and Kansas are the only states that don’t have a blank line on the political party question on voter registration forms. Instead, they just have checkboxes for each qualified party, and the choice to be an independent. (sic-actual phrase is "No Party")

For almost a year, Iowa officials have been indicating they want to settle the lawsuit out of court, but progress toward implementing the exact settlement has been agonizingly slow. But signs are that it will be settled by May 31. The settlement will include a procedure by which voters can register as members of unqualified parties, if those unqualified parties have been active in the state.

Silhouettes Scrubbed

Silhouettes Scrubbed

As of 10:15 AM, city crews were washing away the outlines drawn yesterday by the Silhouette Project. When asked why by May Day peace rally organizers, the city crew said "the businesses and vendors didn't like it."

Quick Links

Quick Links

A few items I couldn't cram in anywhere else:

See you tomorrow at Connections, the city council candidate forum sponsored by the GLBT community. Seems waaaay early - filing isn't till August 13-30 - but moderator Carlton Blackburn, in a DI guest piece, is quite proud that the campaign is starting out in front of a GLBT audience. The interesting thing should be the hints of who's in the race, who's not.

Duncan Stewart, who really needs a blog, opines on behalf of Obama.

Hillary Clinton's campaign opening an Iowa City HQ this weekend at 353 E. College. Grand opening Saturday 2 to 3. It's the same building as Obama, but that's just reminiscent of the 2004 cycle in Iowa City. Dean, Kerry and Edwards were all upstairs at the Old Capitol Mall (now taken over by UIowa).

Nationally, Chris Bowers at MyDD looks at `08 Senate polling and says "Harkin is threatening to put Iowa out of play."

Peace Events Today

Iowa City Peace Events Today

It's a two-stages Peace-a-palooza today with events starting at 10 A.M. Music, speakers, pie, even the Radical Cheerleaders (think Bring It On with lefty lyrics.) Main speakers starting at 5 PM.

May Day

Labour Day In Most Of The World

Today is Labor Day - or Labour day for you anglophiles - in most of the civilized world. It was a pagan holiday with ancient roots, and became associated with organized labor in the 1870's and 1880's, at the dawn of the labor movement. As such it also got associated with the socialist movement, and eventially with long parades full of Soviet missiles.

(Aside: I miss that aspect of Kremlinology where the experts tried to determine which Politburo member was in or out of favor based on who was standing next to who.)

In the U.S., May Day was twice used to slap back at the left - as Loyalty Day in the Red Scare `20s and as Law Day in the `50s and `60s.

None of this has anything to do with the pilot yelling "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!" while the plane crashes - that's derived from the French m'aidez, meaning "help me."

Silhouette Project Finishes

Silhouette Project Finishes

Nyssa Koons reports:

We finished up the project with a count of 3,339 silhouettes - It took us until about 12:30 - 1:00 am. Approximately forty people showed up between the beginning and the end. It was really amazing and interesting to see peoples immense curiosity and emotions/respect for it. We probably talked to upwards of 200 people all night long. Many people, including several vets asked that we draw their silhouette.