b,121tight race the polls keep showing the lead change
b,121
b,121
h,121
font class="post"1b,121b,121What in the hell are you watching? Save for one campaign bounce (following the RNC and lasting literally 10 days), Obama's had the polled lead vs. McCain for nearly half a year - since mid-April, well before the Primary season ended. You can't spin stats like that. Look at the a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/us/general_election_mccain_vs_obama-225.html" target="_blank"1RCP averages/a1, bud.
b,121...completely filled to the brim with negrophobic closet racist 'liberals' who won't talk it like they walk it when the voting booth curtain closes. Just like most major American cities.
b,121
b,121Them, combined with the rest of America= McCain victory. I'll stake a case of Schlitz on it.
font class="post"1b,121b,121I see your foolish bet and counter-offer a swap of our rarest records. On second thought, I'm not all that interested in your copy of Joe Crisco and The Jheri-Curlers, and you wouldn't know what to do with Dorothy Glass or anything on the Lindcharles label.b,121b,121Real Headz, my ass. Read my last post. And did you see the last debate?
Sidebar:b,121b,121I've got some extended, extended family in WV. It's hard to explain the mentality at play here, but you really have to experience the state for yourself. It's more than depressing to walk through towns there - even Charleston - and feel the poverty. I mean, you can just feel it. I still reserve my right to blame people for their own hatred and, at the end of the day, their damnable foolishness and stolid ignorance. But for some of these West Virginians, all they feel that they can OWN is their prideful self-description as a "hillbilly" or "redneck." That, and their nation's flag. Sweat equity can only get a man so far if he's unemployed and/or disabled from a mining accident. Although none of these insights leads me to dismiss the latent racism that can be found in WV, I instead feel honest pity - more so than revulsion - for West Virginians as a result of the short time I've spent there.b,121b,121Their experience could have been mine in another life, I proffer.
What do Obama and McCain have to say about the earmarks in the bailout? Seems like the same old same old to me. Hate to be Mr. Cynical because I am an Obama supporter but this pisses me off.b,121 b,121b,121b,121Billions in earmarks in Senate's bailout billb,121Zachary Coile, Chronicle Washington Bureaub,121Friday, October 3, 2008b,121b,121b,121While crafting a bill intended to rescue the U.S. economy this week, lawmakers couldn't stop themselves from adding billions of dollars in tax breaks that have little to do with restoring confidence in financial markets.b,121b,121Senators quietly tucked a number of earmarks into the tax package of the 451-page bill that was passed Wednesday night and is expected to be put to a vote in the House today: a $2 million tax benefit for makers of wooden arrows for children; a $100 million tax break to benefit auto racetrack owners; $192 million in rebates on excise taxes for the Puerto Rican and Virgin Islands rum industry; $148 million in tax relief for U.S. wool fabric producers; and a $49 million tax benefit for fishermen and other plaintiffs who sued over the 1989 tanker Exxon Valdez spill.b,121b,121Many of the tax breaks were put in place years ago and were set to expire. But their inclusion is complicating efforts in the House to pass an economic rescue plan; an earlier attempt failed Monday. Several House Republicans railed on Thursday against the pork-packed bailout bill.b,121b,121"One thing we didn't appreciate in the Senate's action was that they decided that this bill should become Christmas in October," said Steven LaTourette, R-Ohio. "We just don't think (the earmarks) should be in this piece of legislation."b,121b,121The tax earmarks were scarcely noticed during the Senate debate over a bill that featured a $700 billion bailout package and a $112 billion tax package, including the renewal of popular tax breaks for businesses and renewable energy projects and a one-year effort to shield at least 20 million Americans from paying the alternative minimum tax.b,121b,121Broad supportb,121b,121The bill was approved easily, 74-25, winning support even from lawmakers who have crusaded against earmarks - including Arizona Sen. John McCain, the Republican Party's presidential nominee, who warned last week that he might oppose a bailout bill if it included more pork-barrel spending.b,121b,121"It is completely unacceptable for any kind of earmarks to be included in this bill," he said in a speech in Freeland, Mich. "It would be outrageous for legislators and lobbyists to pack this rescue plan with taxpayer money for favored companies. This simply cannot happen."b,121b,121On MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program Thursday, McCain was pressed on why he voted for a plan that included earmarks that he strongly opposed. He said he had to support the bill because the country is "on the brink of economic disaster."b,121b,121"There were plenty of other bills that I fought against, voted against" because of pork, McCain said.b,121b,121The tax earmarks were championed by both sides of the aisle. Western lawmakers, especially Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Larry Craig, R-Idaho, backed an expansion of a program that helps pay for rural schools. Lawmakers from states with no income tax backed an extension of a program that allows residents in states including Texas, Nevada, Florida, Washington and Wyoming to deduct the sales tax they pay over a year from their federal taxes, a provision that costs the Treasury $3.3 billion over two years.b,121b,121Benefit for film producersb,121b,121Even Hollywood got something out of the Senate bill: renewal of a tax incentive worth nearly $48 million a year for film and TV producers who produce their work in the United States.b,121b,121The earmarks are not exactly new. They were passed by the Senate on Sept. 23 on a 92-3 vote (McCain and his Democratic rival, Barack Obama, were absent) for a tax package costing more than $100 billion. House Democratic leaders opposed the Senate's tax plan because it wasn't fully paid for and will add to the federal deficit.b,121b,121Steve Ellis, vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, the congressional watchdog group that tracked the earmarks in the bill, said Senate leaders had two main objectives in strapping the tax package to the financial bailout plan.b,121b,121"One is they're hoping this will turn a few votes, that people who support some of these provisions will forget about the $700 billion and concerns they may have on that, and say, 'If you give me a few million in tax breaks for my constituents, I'll go along,' " Ellis said. "The second reason is that this is your standard, run-of-the-mill, end-of-year politics. You take a piece of must-pass legislation, you cram whatever you want in there and you dare the House to oppose it. It's really a pretty cynical maneuver."b,121b,121The tactic might have helped pass the plan in the Senate, but it's making life tougher for House leaders. The House narrowly defeated the bailout plan 228-205 Monday, and lawmakers now must flip at least 12 votes to change the outcome.b,121b,121House Blue Dogs are complaining about the costs of the tax package. Republicans are unhappy at what they see as an attempt to sneak pork into the bill. Rep. David Hobson, R-Ohio, voted for the bill but said he's now undecided. "I hope other people who voted yes may be reconsidering where they are when they get the outrage of the pork barrel projects," he said.b,121b,121Measured optimismb,121b,121But leaders of both parties said Thursday they are cautiously optimistic the measure will pass. Several lawmakers indicated they were ready to switch from "no" to "yes" votes, including Republican Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida and Zach Wamp of Tennessee. Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., the GOP's top vote-counter, predicted the measure would pass.b,121b,121House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she won't put the financial rescue bill on the floor unless it's clear it will pass, hoping to avoid a repeat of Monday's embarrassment, when the bill failed a day after party leaders had announced a deal.b,121b,121But she added, "I'm optimistic that we will take a bill to the floor."b,121b,121Tax breaks in bailout billb,121b,121The financial rescue measure passed by the Senate on Wednesday included a series of tax incentives benefiting specific industries or states.b,121b,121Wooden arrows: This tax break, backed by Oregon's two senators, would benefit an Oregon manufacturer of wooden arrows for children by $2 million over 10 years.b,121b,121Racetracks: Earmark would allow auto racetrack owners to depreciate their facilities over seven years, saving the industry $100 million over two years.b,121b,121Rum: Offers rum producers in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands a rebate on excise taxes worth $192 million over two years.b,121b,121Wool: Reduces tariffs for U.S. makers of wool fabric that use imported yarn, worth $148 million over five years. The measure was pushed by Reps. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., and Melissa Bean, D-Ill.b,121b,121Exxon Valdez: Plaintiffs in the suit over the 1989 oil spill could spread their tax payments on punitive damages over three years, cutting their tax bill by $49 million. The measure was backed by Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska.b,121b,121American Samoa: Allows certain corporations to reduce their tax liability on income earned in American Samoa, at a cost of $33 million over two years.b,121b,121Hollywood: Extends a tax break for film and TV companies that keep their production in the United States, worth $478 million over 10 years. The provision was originally pushed by Rep. Diane Watson, D-Los Angeles.b,121b,121Source: Taxpayers for Common Senseb,121b,121E-mail Zachary Coile at zcoile@sfchronicle.com./a1
Comments