17 posts tagged “presidential election”

I think I'll have some arugula for lunch!

Indy Star

FIRST BITE The suspense starts in Indiana. Most polls close at 6 p.m. and others at 7. Indiana is a ruby red state where Mr. Obama has been running closely with Mr. McCain. Be wary of results that do not include Gary, a city with a substantial African-American population. If Mr. Obama wins it, Indiana could be the canary in the coal mine predicting disaster ahead for Mr. McCain.

from this story in the New York Times.

I strolled up to my polling place this morning at 6:15 a.m., waited in line for about an hour and then spent another 20 minutes or so showing my i.d. (twice), signing in and voting.  I got so choked up in the voting booth.  That didn't happen with Kerry/Edwards.  In 2004, I cast the 32nd ballot in my precinct.  Today, I was number 172!!!   That's change I can believe in!!

VOTE!!!!

John McCain is coming to Indy later today, which is hilarious.  The day before election day?  The Republican candidate for president is coming to Indianapolis?  I still have my doubts about Indiana going blue, but yesterday I saw the lines of people wrapped around the block to vote early at our City-County building.  And the line was just as long in the morning as it was in the evening.  And now McCain is spending precious campaign hours in Indianapolis today?  Wow.  It's hard not to be a little bit optimistic. 

Jonathan Martin dissects the significance of McCain's final day itinerary pretty well here.

Later in the day, McCain will hold his first campaign rally in Indiana. No political observer thought this summer the Hoosier State would be contested, but two polls there last week show a dead heat.   McCain may still pull it out on the strength of a huge margins in the southern, heavily rural swath of the state, but that he is being forced to stop the day before the election in a state that Bush won by 20 points four years ago offers the best evidence for how the degree to which the GOP has been forced on defense. And, incidentally, note where McCain is visiting — Indianapolis. Not only is it the largest city in the state, but Obama has pulled into a tie in the state on the strength of his effort in the capital's Marion County and its surrounding suburbs, especially fast-growing Hamilton County.

 

McCain Indiana Campaign Headquarters

1 comment

(from Ken Bode in today's Indy Star)

Some closing thoughts on the long election of 2008.

First, John McCain says we're in for a long night Tuesday, that this election is close and going down to the wire. I offer this alternative thought. The polls in Indiana close at 6 p.m., except for those 12 Central time counties. If it is not too close to call here, we'll be the first state on the network tote boards at 7 p.m.

If they call it for Barack Obama, you can go to bed.

Second, I have never written about women's clothing. But I am puzzled by Sarah Palin telling a rally that they will be returning most of her new $150,000 wardrobe. How does this work? Do you just walk back into Saks with a month-old $2,500 leather jacket and turn it in? Does Saks then sell it as used? This kind of reminds me of the governor who went into a friendly auto dealership and took out an Oldsmobile for a test drive. He brought it back four years later.

However, it really was Cindy McCain who got my attention.

A millionaire from birth, she chose to wear three-carat diamond earrings worth $280,000 on convention night, with an Oscar de la Renta dress, a Chanel wristwatch and a four-strand pearl necklace, bringing her wardrobe price tag to more than $300,000. With 13 cars and eight homes, what do the McCains know about Joe the Plumber?

Which brings me to thought number three. For McCain and Palin to hang their final message to America's voters on Samuel Wurzelbacher, aka Joe, an unlicensed plumber who fails to pay his taxes, is borderline ridiculous. Now they're expanding the repertoire to include Cindy the hairdresser, Fred the mechanic and Rudy the schoolteacher. They are like two cocky teenagers giving a "shout-out" in the high school assembly. Meanwhile, standing in the wings in their Gucci loafers are top aides Charlie, Rick and Steve the lobbyists.

With presidential race too close to call, 'every vote counts'
By Mary Beth Schneider and Bill Ruthhart
mary.beth.schneider@indystar.com

Presidential hopefuls John McCain and Barack Obama are locked in a dead heat among Hoosier voters, according to a new Indianapolis Star-WTHR (Channel 13) poll.

More than ever, that means Indiana's 11 electoral votes will go to whichever candidate does the better job of making sure his supporters cast ballots by Tuesday.

The poll, by Selzer & Co. of Des Moines, Iowa, showed Obama backed by 45.9 percent of those polled, and McCain by 45.3 percent. Given the poll's margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points, the race is a toss-up.

Before the Democratic Primary in Indiana, the polls showed Hillary Clinton with a 10 - 12% lead, and she ended up winning by just 2%, so while I'm trying to stay pragmatic about Indiana voting Democrat, I still find this very interesting. 

This photo?

Rebel

was taken in Martinsville, Indiana.  This might be the only Obama sign in Martinsville! 

from Jonathan Martin's blog at politico.com.

This ain't what it looks like!

Watch the suit Buddy it's from Saks

Oh, and the Anchorage Daily News endorses Obama!  Heeeee!

This may sound crazy, but I think this little radio ad could put Obama over the top in Indiana.  Hoosiers LOVE John (Cougar) Mellencamp!

Mellencamp cuts radio ad for Obama

By MAUREEN GROPPE
Star Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - A radio ad endorsement of Barack Obama by Hoosier rocker John Mellencamp repeats a charge the Obama campaign thinks will resonate with Hoosier voters: that John McCain supports tax breaks for companies that move jobs overseas. But independent organizations have said the tax the Obama campaign is referring to is not a main factor in overseas job migration.

"This is John Mellencamp and I’ve seen a lot of small towns, but now I’m seeing small towns across America dying," Mellencamp says in the radio spot, which was released Thursday as Obama returned to the state for a campaign stop. "John McCain will keep giving tax breaks to companies shipping American jobs overseas."

The Bottle Rockets have a little tune called "Indianapolis" in which they sing,"I'll puke if that jukebox plays John Cougar one more time," and it's true ...  Hit the scan button on your car radio in Indianapolis and chances are you'll hit upon at least 2 John Mellencamp tunes.

And while I'm not the greatest fan of John Mellencamp's music, I think his work with Farm Aid is pretty damn cool.   

To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. “Can I interest you in the chicken?” she asks. “Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it?”

To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.

I mean, really, what’s to be confused about?

Read the whole thing here.