Ahh, nothing like the sheer audacity of lying straight through one’s pearly whites, eh? Oh, I’m well aware that they’ve got lots of nifty charts and graphs and numbers on the Porkulus propaganda website which purport to show proof of this job extravaganza, but last night CBS News urged a healthy bit of skepticism, and with good reason:

That, from a “real” news network. A couple hundred thousand to study the sex lives of female college freshman? To whom would that information be useful, outside the male college population? And, er, Roman Polanski?

Oh well. Do note that never before in mankind’s recorded history has anyone ever used such a ridiculous and highly questionable metric to measure the success of their policies. Jobs created…and saved? Before the Age of Obama, we mainly focused on how many jobs had been lost, or how many gained. That’s it. Why? Because there really is no way of knowing whether a job has been “saved” or not, but magic fantasy land numbers are a great way to hide the real loss of 3.3 million jobs since the Stimulus passed. And the 9.8% unemployment. And the fact this stimulus money didn’t grow on trees and won’t last forever. But shhh. Unicorns and rainbows for everyone!

Oh, and as you watch the Left and the media-but I repeat myself-go ga-ga over the rise in GDP last quarter, be sure to look for any references to a jobless recovery. Why? They sure were interested in that a lot during the Bush years, even when the economy was growing at a comparatively paltry 7.2%.

Hey, remember that whole equal treatment under the law thing? Yeah, me neither:

President Obama on Wednesday signed a law that makes it a federal crime to assault an individual because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity.

The expanded federal hate crimes law, hailed by supporters as the first major federal gay rights legislation, was added to a $680 billion defense authorization bill that Obama signed at a packed White House ceremony.

Wait, you mean Democrats played politics with a Defense measure by attaching a completely unrelated and controversial bill to it, forcing members to choose between funding our troops or voting against that to reject the hate crimes stuff? I’m shocked. Besides that, I’m not exactly what you would call a big fan of so-called hate crimes legislation. For one thing, they create specially protected groups under federal law, the modus operandi of a Democrat Party which is forever dividing people into groups based on their skin color, ethnicity, etc. You’re not an individual in their eyes…you’re a rich black man, a middle-class Asian woman, a blue collar gay man, a poor Catholic woman, etc. Secondly, such laws criminalize “wrong” thought instead of wrong conduct. Everyone knows that freedom of speech has its limits (as in you can’t yell ‘FIRE!’ in a crowded theatre), but now we’re telling people what they can or cannot think too, apparently. As abhorrent as some views are, that’s quite an Orwellian leap to make.

The bill was named after Mathew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr, both murdered in 1998 due in part, it is said, by hate (Shepard was gay, Byrd an African-American). The perpetrators of the Shepard murder are currently serving consecutive life sentences, while those responsible for the Byrd crime are currently awaiting execution in TX. (A third defendant in the Byrd case is serving life in prison.) Does that not show how the justice system worked without hate crimes legislation? During the signing ceremony, Obama had this to say:

To loud applause, Obama hailed the hate crimes measure in the bill as a step toward change to “help protect our citizens from violence based on what they look like, who they love, how they pray.”

If the death penalty isn’t a deterrent, as many say, why would classifying something as a hate crime do the trick? And are these crimes, heinous as they are, any worse than, say, this one, just because the victims were white and heterosexual? That couple was carjacked, robbed, kidnapped, beaten, raped, and murdered…by several black men. Was any racial motivation sought as a basis for those brutal crimes? What makes their deaths any less important?

Food for thought: Why is it that the alleged rape-later shown to be untrue-of a black woman by several white members of the Duke Lacrosse team receives wall-to-wall media coverage, yet that case in TN I linked to of the white couple brutally murdered by black men doesn’t? And yes, that’s a rhetorical question.

Meet your leader.

Perhaps I can clear things up for you boys (and girls) to a point of understanding for you so you can easily comprehend.
I do not separate my self from what Bubby says.
I truly think he is accurate.
Buy a clue, buy a hint…
I view you to be wrong… To the point of sinfulness….
Any questions? ~ Lowell Fulk

And what, pray tell, does Bubby say?

Bubby on the Nobel Peace prize

This award represents everything that Conservatives stand against: Black People, Foreigners, and Peace.

Bubby on Biblical historoy

Jesus never ministered inside a church - the Philistines owned that turf.

Bubby on Valley residents and Obama’s presidency

The Valley is full of native racists who resent this watershed event.

Bubby on those that value life from the beginning

This belief that life begins at conception is the product of great darkness - serving the agenda of women-haters and self-loathing women.

Bubby on the purpose of government

No Seth, the purpose of the government is to assure that citizens are universally provided with adequate and affordable health care.

Bubby on the Republican Party

There is nothing left but sulfurous gas-bags, anger, fear, and ignorance. They hate America because it refuses to turn toward their darkness.

What have I left out?

Obama held a rally with Creigh Deeds and Tim Kaine (D-VA Gov. in absentia) yesterday afternoon in Norfolk, hoping to drag the Democrat candidate’s badly-trailing arse across the finish line. Will it work? Not likely:

The Deeds campaign and the White House have gone back-and-forth over whether the president should make a campaign appearance in the state. The initial reaction from Virginia voters to the president’s campaign stop with Deeds late yesterday in Norfolk isn’t reassuring: 39% say Obama campaigning for Deeds in Virginia makes them less likely to vote for the Democratic candidate. Just 24% say it makes them more likely to vote for Deeds, and 36% say it has no impact on their voting decision.

Among those likely to vote, 49% approve of the way Obama has handled his job as president. That’s down four points from earlier in the month.

The optics on the Obama-Deeds campaign rally are particularly bad considering Deeds has spent most of the campaign running away from the President, even pointedly refusing to refer to himself as an Obama Democrat. Take a look at the candidate favorables/unfavorables from this Rasmussen poll:

Favorable / Unfavorable
Bob McDonnell: 62 / 30
Creigh Deeds: 47 / 50

Apparently, negative campaigning amid exhortations to read a 20-year old thesis have their limits.

Oh, almost forgot to mention the results of this latest poll. Its good news for Deeds, as it shows him down by only 13. Sure, that’s a worse showing then the previous Rasmussen survey which showed just a seven point advantage for McDonnell, but at least its not an 18-point spread. Like, er, this new poll from VCU.

UPDATE: Larry Sabato opines.

A look at where the Virginia Governor’s race stands, one week from Election Day:

The Washington Post, press arm for the Deeds campaign, released its final poll on the governor’s race. If there is a silver lining for Deeds, it must be that he’s down by only 11:

McDonnell holds double-digit advantages when it comes to dealing with the economy (plus 17 percentage points), transportation (16 points), taxes (25 points) and has overtaken Deeds as the one more trusted to handle issues of special concern to women (7 points)…

In bottom-line vote preference, independents now favor McDonnell, 61 to 36 percent, and women who consider themselves political independents are solidly behind the Republican. Independent women, who split about evenly between the two candidates in the weeks after the publication of McDonnell’s master’s thesis, now favor McDonnell 57 to 40 percent.

It gets worse. The latest SurveyUSA poll has Deeds down by 17, while Democrat outfit PPP has the margin at a much more reasonable, er, -15. Obama’s visit might help excite the Democrat base some, but Deeds will be extremely hard-pressed to overcome those abysmal numbers within the next week. It won’t help that he’s drastically cut back his ad spending, perhaps due to money woes, leading up to next Tuesday.

Unfortunately, the Post did not poll on the lieutenant governor and attorney general races, but both the SurveyUSA and PPP polls show the GOP candidates up big. Virginia does have a history of ticket-splitting, obviously, but I don’t see that happening this year.

As for “local” House races, or those most germane to the primary readers of this particular blog, I expect a GOP sweep. That is a very conservative, Republican area, and none of the seats in question (Lohr v. Hart, Landes v. Marrow, Bell v. Curren, Gilbert v. Leisinski, and any others in the Valley) are even on the radar in terms of potential Democrat pick-ups. They are the very definition of safe seats. Take a look, for example, at the recent voting history of the 26th District, the one currently represented by Lohr. Other than Warner, its all GOP by a wide margin. And what of the 25th, represented by Landes? Same thing, with even more of a GOP tilt. If these races were run last year, when Obama was exciting the Democrats and Republicans were holding their nose to vote for McCain, I would’ve said maybe one had a shot at winning. But, even that is stretching it. With a lackluster Democrat candidate at the top of the ticket and a mostly apathetic base, coupled with a political environment favorable to the GOP and strong candidates on that side, plus the money advantage, I’d be shocked if any of the Democrat House candidates reach even 45%. If one does it’ll probably be Hart I guess, given the relative closeness in the money race, or maybe Curren, since the 20th is apparently an open seat, but that’ll be as close as either is likely to get.

I’m interested to hear what others expect on Election Day. Not necessarily what you want to happen, but what you expect. Don’t be shy. I’m also curious to hear if anyone is still undecided about any of the races, or if you plan to sit it out. Frankly, I’ll be pleased the day after regardless, because that will mean no more ads!

…that Creigh Deeds looks kinda like Al Bundy?

As part of my swine flu avoidance program, I will no longer be doing my shopping on Saturday morning as I used to. It’s much more crowded than other days. Which means more chance of germs.

I won’t miss the groups that set up at Wal*Mart’s doors every Saturday trying to get money.

However, I will miss seeing all the men dragged out shopping by their wives. That was my favorite thing about shopping on Saturday. I think it’s so funny to see a woman walking along with a list while her husband trails along behind her with the cart and a glassy-eyed stare. She’ll ask him which kind of bread he likes best and he’ll kind of grunt as she puts something into the cart. You can tell he’s thinking “Why do I have to be here pushing a cart? Can’t she do this without me? It would be easier if we just ordered pizza every night. How much longer can this take? I’m missing the game.”

The writing, as they say, is on the wall:

A senior administration official said Deeds badly erred on several fronts, including not doing a better job of coordinating with the White House. “I understood in the beginning why there was some reluctance to run all around the state with Barack Obama,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to speak candidly about the race. “You don’t do that in Virginia. But when you consider the African American turnout that they need, and then when you consider as well they’ve got a huge problem with surge voters, younger voters, we were just a natural for them.”

A second administration official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said: “Obama, Kaine and others had drawn a road map to victory in Virginia. Deeds chose another path.”

I understand that the headline to this story is on the front page of the Washington Post, above the fold. That ought to do wonders for Deeds GOTV efforts, huh? Also, why leak this sort of thing now, when Obama is set to campaign with Deeds next Tuesday in Hampton Roads? Regardless, I’m not sure it would’ve helped Deeds all that much to have embraced Obama. The President may still be personally popular, but his policies increasingly are not. So, it made sense for Deeds to eschew close ties with the One, even declaring in a debate that he was not an Obama Democrat. Given that, he now looks silly releasing ads like this:

Of course, it would’ve helped had Deeds not been such a lousy candidate. The White House can distance itself from a likely Deeds defeat all it wants, but they’d certainly be trumpeting a win here as an endorsement of Obama’s agenda. That works both ways. (Pay attention to what they say should the Democrat Corzine inexplicably win New Jersey.)

I’ve mentioned the White House war with Fox News before, and I do so again only because I’m struck by how completely idiotic the whole thing is. This morning, President Obama echoed his advisors in declaring Fox wasn’t really a “news” organization:

Allow me to channel Keith Olbermann for a bit, if I can. If you’re not losing sleep over it, sir, why pray tell are you and your subordinates continuing with this meme? When even the New York Times and The Nation, two organizations that can hardly be considered bastions of the right-wing, are telling you to stop the whining, perhaps it is time to focus on more important issues. Like, say, that whole Afghanistan thing. Or still-rising unemployment. It makes you seem awfully petty, thin-skinned, and very small, Mr. President. Imagine the outcry, as one of the Washington Post’s resident liberals does, if George W. Bush had launched a similar campaign against, oh, MSNBC? Or CBSNews, after that whole Rathergate fiasco? Maybe the hacks at Politico are correct and this is really about containment, of making sure the potentially damaging stories that the Foxies trot out are marginalized and essentially kept away from broader public consumption. I have news for you, sir…they’re way ahead of you.

Oh, speaking of MSNBC, guess who met with White House officials in an off-the-record “briefing” the other day? I hope Keith and Rachel had a good time. I’m sure they were just discussing how to present the “news” in the most objective way possible. The White House is also helping out this “real” news organization in other ways, too, even going so far as to email anchor-ettes during live segments to “correct” a story. And Mika Brezinsky, loyal MSNBC Obama acolyte, is all too happy to oblige, dutifully parroting Obama talking points in the process. For its part, CNN also does all it can to cover Obama’s backside, and we all remember ABC’s hour-long infomercial pimping ObamaCare.

I hear that if Fox News doesn’t start playing by White House rules and pay tribute to the administration, Obama is going to take his ball and go home.

UPDATE: Despicable. Hope and change, indeed-