Fourteen To One

This from Memeorandum, according to the political junkie, quasi-insider outlet, The Hill, but notably not from the Associated Press (which gets picked up by everybody, everywhere) who sought out and found the one and only Democratic Congressman in all of the hinterlands of Oklahoma who won't endorse, but will still vote for Barack Obama at the convention and in November:

At least 14 Republican members of Congress have refused to endorse or
publicly support Sen. John McCain for president, and more than a dozen
others declined to answer whether they back the Arizona senator.

Be it the war, or the economy, they won't get behind their nominee for a variety of reasons "including campaign finance reform, earmarks, immigration, healthcare, taxes and energy" as well. Some are bitter about him being one of the other "gang of fourteen" that struck a no-filibuster deal with the Democrats.

We've come a long way from the enforced hegemony policed by the likes of Tom DeLay as the GOP coalition fractures more and more each day while the Democratic Party is moving in the right direction and coalescing towards the future.

But you wouldn't know that if you didn't read blogs or keep track of things via the InterTubez and only relied on AP, the Town Crier of the Versailles Village on the Potomac, because their narrative doesn't fit with the idea that Saint John McCain is here to preserve the Great White Way's same old song and dance. Just keep in mind, it's all theater.

Don't Just Complain

Intensely Complain:

There should be a lot of loud complaining about the fact that McCain has assiduously courted public endorsements from major public America-haters. There should be intense complaining that the media first questioned Obama's claim to be Christian on no reasonable evidence, although they've always senselessly accepted Bush's unbelievable claim that Jesus is his favorite philosopher, despite ceaseless evidence to the contrary. We should treat this as an opportunity for progressives, not just part of the jockeying for the nomination.

The essential, Avedon Carol.

Bonus Quote from her Sideshow: "Someone asked what those 29% who still approve of Bush are thinking, and Watertiger responded, 'They're not'."

Double Bonus Observation from Bill in Portland Maine:

Democrat Eliot Spitzer was forced to resign for hiring prostitutes because he seemed to be such an upstanding public figure. Senator David Vitter, on the other hand, wasn't forced to resign for hiring prostitutes because, well, that's what America has come to expect from Republicans.

And while I'm in a linkable mood, Kate Harding at Shakes Place notes that the Zombie Village Press Corpse was reminded of the non-story Vince Foster was not put to death by Queen Hillary, and that reminded them to remind you that there was lots of stuff the Village thought Hillary might have done without the slightest evidence, (Oh!, And that Bill Clinton did some nasty stuff in a bathroom) and now we have more evidence that there was no evidence that is now Breaking News of more non-news that the voters have not been sufficiently reminded of -- so what's she hiding?!?!?.

Simple minds want to know.

[Yes, I know this was a somewhat eclectic post, covering topics as diverse as Obama's religion and Bill Clinton's indiscretions. But you see, there is some madness to this method. I'm just not a Jedi of the irrational conflation like Jonah ... yet, and remain a hopeless liberal fascist.]