"Obamas" and "Palins" ask for chocolates instead of asking for votes on Halloween

Excerpt: Armies of aspiring presidential candidates on Friday beat the doors of the houses in the United States. But on the eve of presidential elections, instead of shaking hands, taking babies in their arms, giving political speeches and asking citizens to vote, they made a lot more simple question: "Trick or treat?", And did not ask for more than a piece of chocolate or some sweets.

Armies of aspiring presidential candidates on Friday beat the doors of the houses in the United States.

But on the eve of presidential elections, instead of shaking hands, taking babies in their arms, giving political speeches and asking citizens to vote, they made a lot more simple question: "Trick or treat?", And not asked for more than a piece of chocolate or some sweets.

In a tradition that happens every four years, when Halloween's day is just before an election: the most popular costumes are not those of dragons, dinosaurs or young nurses in erotic costumes.

In contrast, this time it was the politicians who stood out in the magical night: John McCain, Barack Obama and, of course, Sarah Palin, who often was represented with defiant erotic costumes.

Another favorite of the costumes was the pig with lipstick, a satirical reference on the comment made by Obama during his campaign about the economic policies of McCain, who was misconstrued as an insult towards the Republican candidate for the vice presidency, then that describing herself as a "Pitbull with lipstick."

The intensity of the election campaign this year was a panacea for polotical costumes's manufacturers, even amid the economic turbulence, said Mike Danford, owner and manager of traditional costumes of Halloween in San Francisco.

"I never saw something like this," he said. "Obama and McCain are obviously popular, but the costumes of Sarah Palin are taken as if they were to happen in fashion, which I personally hope."

In a trade of Halloween in Oakland, its owner, Greg Wills, said it sold all the Sarah Palin's masks.

"I called my provider every day, but the response was that he could not make them fast enough," he explained.

Willis is convinced that the insatiable demand does not reflect an appreciation for the Republican candidate for the vice presidency, but rather the opposite. In fact, he said, always sells more costumes of the candidate who eventually lost.

"Just because you wear a mask of someone that does not mean they will vote for him," he said. "Actually it means that one probably wants to make fun of him."

However, sometimes people crosses beyond some limits.

In the liberal enclave of West Hollywood, known as a major center of the gay community, secret service agents investigated a house where a mannequin of Palin was hung as part of an elaborate Halloween display, which also included a hellish portrait of McCain, surrounded by flames generated in the chimney of the house.

While the Secret Service concluded that the exhibit was not dangerous, local Republicans described the crime as bias, because it is targeting to candidates based on their political affiliation.

"If this stupid act has been carried out to Senator Obama, there had appropriately been a national protest," said county Supervisor Mike Antonovich.

The owner of the house, Chad Morissette, insisted that the policies of the candidates who frighten, not their representations.
"If it is a political statement, is that the policies (of McCain and Palin) scare us," said Morrisette the newspaper "Los Angeles Times." "This is our place of expression."

At the nearby Redondo Beach, a right-wing voters also found their way to express themselves: deployed from your balcony a representation of Obama lynched, with a butcher knife by cutting his throat, his red tie a slipknot and made his costume covered in blood. Finally, he was persuaded to withdraw the picture after a visit by the local organizer of the campaign of McCain.

Regardless of political views, there is little doubt that the increasing desire of Americans for a brief escape from reality is feeding a massive Halloween industry.

An estimated 51.8 million adults were dressed to celebrate Halloween this year, according to the National Retail Federation, which estimated that in total for the celebration were spent about 5770 million dollars throughout the country.

This was particularly true in the disputed state of Ohio, said the owner of a trade to the local daily "Freemont News Messenger."

"People are so tired of hearing all the negative campaign when it comes time to celebrate Halloween are ready and have some joy," said Greg Kearns, owner of the Costume Holiday House, "as was quoted.

"Halloween falls on a moment where things are very serious and tense between friends and colleagues discussing politics. Dressing gives people the opportunity to put aside their differences for a night, forget their problems and loose hair" He added.

Original Article can be found at 2001 dot Com

John McCain Admits: Obama Not a Socialist

Excerpt: Last night, while on the air in an interview with Larry King, John McCain admitted that he doesn't think Barack Obama is a socialist. That, of course, runs counter to most of his campaign rhetoric for the past few days.

Last night, while on the air in an interview with Larry King, John McCain admitted that he doesn't think Barack Obama is a socialist. That, of course, runs counter to most of his campaign rhetoric for the past few days. That admission clearly reminds me of when McCain, after several days of pounding Obama about a supposedly sexist remark, finally had to concede that Obama probably wasn't calling his co-runner Sarah Palin a pig when talking about "lipstick on a pig" at a campaign speech. Here is the transcript of that interview:

KING: You don't believe Barack Obama is a socialist, do you?


MCCAIN: No. But, I do believe -- I do believe that he's been in the far left of American politics. He has stated time after time that he believes in "spreading the wealth around." He's talked about courts that would redistribute the wealth.


He has a record of voting against tax cuts and for tax increases. And I don't think there's any doubt that he would increase spending and he would, sooner or later, we would be increasing taxes. There is no doubt in my mind that that's what his record -- 94 times he voted to cut taxes -- against tax cuts and for tax increases. He voted for -- and that's what matters. Not rhetoric. To raise taxes on individuals making $42,000 a year.


KING: Concerning spreading the wealth, isn't the graduated income tax spreading the wealth? If you and I paid more so that Jimmy can get some for him, or pay for a welfare recipient, that's spreading the wealth.


MCCAIN: Well, that's spreading the wealth in the respect that we do have a graduated income tax. That's a far cry from taking from one group of Americans and giving to another. I mean, that's dramatically different.


Sen. Obama clearly has talked about for years, redistributive policies. And that's not the way we create wealth in America. That's not the way we grow our economy. That's not the way we create jobs.

And when small business people see that half of their income, half of the income of small businesses is going to be taxed by Sen, Obama, then they're very upset with it.


KING: He says, it's only the personal income tax. If you run a store, if you make $250,000 or more, as a personal income, not a business income, that's where he's (INAUDIBLE).


MCCAIN: And that's where his folks just reduced it to $200,000. And then Sen. Biden yesterday said $150,000. And the fact is that if Joe the Plumber is able to buy the business that he works in, the guy that he buys it from is going to see an increase in capital gains taxes. They're going to see an increase in payroll taxes. They're going to see -- if he reaches a certain level, an increase in his income taxes. And that's what got people concerned. That's what's got Joe the Plumber upset. He wants to redistribute the money.


KING: Doesn't taxes pay for services?


MCCAIN: Taxes pay for services.


KING: (INAUDIBLE) taxes.


MCCAIN: But, do we want -- taxes pay to keep our government secure. To help those who can't help themselves. And other functions of government, which, by the way, expanded by some 40 percent in the last eight years and gave us a $10 trillion debt --


KING: Under Bush.


MCCAIN: And to the last two years, under Democrat majorities in the House and Senate.


But, that's the job of government. But it is not the job of government that I believe in, that would take a group of Americans who have some money and say, we're taking your money, and we're giving it to others. This 95 percent tax cut he's talking about for 95 percent of Americans -- 40 percent of Americans pay no income tax. So he is just going to give them some money. Where is he going to get it? He is increasing taxes for other groups of Americans. That's his plan.


KING: What are you going to do?


MCCAIN: I'm going to keep taxes low. I'm going to ...


KING: Where they are?


MCCAIN: Sure. Absolutely

Transcript, via CNN

The Video:

Do what I say: Facts on How Palin Spreads The Wealth in Alaska

Excerpt: Gov. Sarah Palin's policy of sharing oil companies taxed revenues with Alaska state citizens, has brought this topic to the presidencial campaign debate arena. Even though her fellow Republicans state that this revenue sharing is not the same as Sen. Obama's "socialist" intentions of "spreading the wealth", now some people wonder how "socialist" could be Gov. Palin.

Do what I say and not what I do? This seems to be the message Alaska Governor and Vice-President candidate Mrs. Sarah Palin is conveying with hers own version of "Spreading the Wealth".

Gov. Sarah Palin's policy of sharing oil companies taxed revenues with Alaska state citizens, has brought this topic to the presidencial campaign debate arena. Even though her fellow Republicans state that this revenue sharing is not the same as Sen. Obama's "socialist" intentions of "spreading the wealth", now some people wonder how "socialist" could be Gov. Palin.

Republicans John McCain and Sarah Palin summon antidemocratic images of a communist state to attack Democrat Barack Obama's tax plan and his comment about spreading the wealth around. But in her home state, Palin embraces Alaska's own version of doing just that.

Palin and McCain seized on a comment Obama made to Ohio plumber Joe Wurzelbacher, who asked about his tax plans.

Obama wants to raise taxes on families earning $250,000 to pay for cutting taxes for the 95 percent of workers and their families making less than $200,000. "I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody," he told Wurzelbacher.

McCain said that sounds "a lot like socialism" to many Americans. Palin has derided the Illinois senator as "Barack the Wealth Spreader."

But in Alaska, Palin is the envy of governors nationwide for the annual checks the state doles out to nearly every resident, dividends from the state's investment of its oil royalties. She raised taxes on oil last year which, along with escalating oil prices, helped her to boost the checks this year.

McCain campaign spokesman Taylor Griffin said Thursday that spreading wealth through Obama's tax plan and doing it through Alaska's oil-profit distribution are not comparable because Alaska requires the state's resource wealth to be shared with residents, but it's not taxing personal income.

"It's how the revenue is shared between the oil companies and the state."

Alaska's state revenue Commissioner Pat Galvin added, "It's not a matter of taking something that's earned by someone and giving it to someone else."

A look at Palin's and McCain's comments and the record in Alaska:

THE SPIN:

"Barack Obama calls it spreading the wealth. Joe Biden calls higher taxes patriotic," Palin told a crowd in Roswell, N.M., and elsewhere. "But Joe the Plumber and Ed the Dairyman, I believe they think it sounds more like socialism.

"Friends, now is no time to experiment with socialism."

In Ohio, she asked, "Are there any Joe the Plumbers in the house?" To cheers, she said, "It doesn't sound like you're supporting Barack the Wealth Spreader."

McCain told a radio audience that Obama's plan "would convert the IRS into a giant welfare agency, redistributing massive amounts of wealth at the direction of politicians in Washington."

"Raising taxes on some in order to give checks to others is not a tax cut; it's just another government giveaway."

THE FACTS:

In Alaska, residents pay no income tax or state sales tax. They receive a yearly dividend check from a $30 billion state investment account built largely from royalties on its oil. Palin raised taxes on big oil last year. With oil prices soaring this year, she was able to increase the checks by $1,200 to help residents hit by higher home fuel and gas costs. Thus every eligible man, woman and child got a record $3,269 this fall.

She also suspended the 8-cent tax on gas.

"We can afford to share resource wealth with Alaskans and to temporarily suspend the state fuel tax," she said at the time.

Much as Obama explains his tax hike on the rich as a way to help people who are struggling, Palin's statement talked about the energy costs burdening Alaskans:

"While the unique fiscal circumstances the state finds itself in at the end of this fiscal year warrant a special one-time payment to share some of the state's wealth, the payment comes at a time when Alaskans are facing rising energy prices. High prices for oil are a double-edged sword for Alaskans. While public coffers fill, prices for heating fuel and gasoline have skyrocketed over the last six months and are now running into the $5- to $9-a-gallon range for heating fuel and gasoline across several areas of the state."

In an interview with The New Yorker last summer Palin explained that she would make demands of a new gas pipeline "to maximize benefits for Alaskans":

"And Alaska we're set up, unlike other states in the union, where it's collectively Alaskans own the resources. So we share in the wealth when the development of these resources occurs."

This article can be found at Yahoo News

Joe The Plumber Information Checked Beyond Previously Aknowledged

After "Joe The Plumber" made some "politically incorrect" questions to U.S. Presidencial candidate Barack Obama, the mainstream media along with state agencies went on a depp digging for Joe's information spree.

Should we common citizens feel safe against the forces of the power when we voice our oppinions if Joe the Plumber, who opened his home's door to Obama, and responded to a question Obama himself asked to him, has been thrown to a media grinder?

A state agency has revealed that its checks of computer systems for potential information on "Joe the Plumber" were more extensive than it first acknowledged.

Helen Jones-Kelley, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, disclosed today that computer inquiries on Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher were not restricted to a child-support system.

The agency also checked Wurzelbacher in its computer systems to determine whether he was receiving welfare assistance or owed unemployment compensation taxes, she wrote.

Jones-Kelley made the revelations in a letter to Ohio Senate President Bill M. Harris, R-Ashland, who demanded answers on why state officials checked out Wurzelbacher.

Harris called the multiple records checks "questionable" and said he awaits more answers. "It's kind of like Big Brother is looking in your pocket," he said.

If state employees run checks on every person listed in newspaper stories as buying a business, "it must take a lot of people a lot of time to run these checks," he said. "Where do you draw the line?"

The checks were run after the news media reported that Wurzelbacher was considering buying a plumbing business with more than $250,000 in annual income, Jones-Kelley wrote.

"Given our understanding that Mr. Wurzelbacher had publicly indicated that he had the means to purchase a substantial business enterprise, ODJFS, consistent with past departmental practice, checked confidential databases ," she wrote.

"Not surprisingly, when a person behind in child support payments or receiving public assistance is receiving significant media attention which suggests that the person appears to have available financial resources, the Department risks justifiable criticism if it fails to take note and respond," Jones-Kelley wrote.

The results of the searches were not publicly released and remain confidential, she wrote. Wurzelbacher has said he is not involved in a child-support case and has not purchased any business.

Jones-Kelley wrote that the checks were "well-meaning," but misinterpreted amid the heated final weeks of a presidential election.

Wurzelbacher became a household name when Republican presidential hopeful John McCain frequently referred to "Joe the Plumber" during his Oct. 15 debate with Democrat nominee Barack Obama. The checks began the next day.

Wurzelbacher, who has endorsed and campaigned for McCain, had been caught on videotape challenging Obama about his tax proposals during a campaign visit to "Joe's" neighborhood in the Toledo suburb of Holland.

Republicans have painted the checks on Wurzelbacher as a politically motivated bid by Democrats to dig up dirt and discredit the McCain ally. The Obama campaign has said it has no ties to the checks and supports investigations.

The administration of Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland has said the information was not improperly shared and that there were no political motives behind the checks.

The Dispatch has uncovered four uses of state computer systems to access personal information on Wurzelbacher, including the child-support check authorized by Jones-Kelley.

She said on Monday that her department frequently runs checks for any unpaid child support obligations "when someone is thrust quickly into the public spotlight."

Republican legislators have challenged Jones-Kelley's reason for checking on Wurzelbacher as "frightening" and flimsy.

Jones-Kelly also has denied any connections between the computer checks on Wurzelbacher and her support for Obama. She donated the maximum $2,500 this year to the Obama campaign.

Ohio Inspector General Thomas P. Charles is investigating whether the child-support check on Wurzelbacher was legal.

This article can be found at The Columbus Dispatch

Palin's Popularity Plunges in Alaska and the rest of the Nation

Is Gov. Sara Palin's popularity plunging in her home State and Nationwide as well? That's what it seems. The support she enjoyed before making her debut on the national stage now seems to be far from the support she's enjoying when just a few days separates her and her presidential fellow, John McCain from the White House.

Latest polls shows a decline on the support she's receiving from Democrats in Alaska, and this lack of support could come from her decision to accompany McCain on his run to the presidential chair, as the following article from R. A. Dillon at Newsminer.com states.

Palin’s supporters regularly refer to her as "the most popular governor in America." But while her approval rating remains sky-high among local Republicans, she’s lost the support of Democrats and independents who once formed a significant portion of her base.

Gov. Sarah Palin electrified the conservative base of the Republican party when she was first picked as Sen. John McCain’s vice-presidential running mate, but polls say she has become a polarizing figure since then in her home state.

Before all this started, her approval rating was almost universally positive with independents,” said Ivan Moore, who often polls for Democrats. She’s really taken a hit among Democrats and independents.”

Palin’s popularity with Alaska voters has dropped precipitously, from a high of roughly 90 percent this spring — long before she was selected to join the McCain ticket — to an approval rating now of around 60 percent.

Not bad for a governor, but nowhere near the support she enjoyed before making her debut on the national stage.

A statewide poll conducted Oct. 23 by Ann Hayes found about 63 percent of respondents have a favorable opinion of Palin, with 47 percent having a very favorable opinion.

Palin’s negatives are about 35 percent, according to the telephone survey of 400 likely voters with a margin of error of roughly 5 percentage points.

She enjoyed a tremendous level of support, and it’s now beginning to seriously erode,” Hays said. That’s a significant drop in that matter of time when you consider that you should be the home-state hero.”

A Rasmussen poll released Wednesday showed similar numbers, with a 61 percent favorable rating among Alaskans.

Palin’s popularity started to slide into the mid-70s in July when the dismissal of Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan first made headlines, according to separate polls by Moore and Hays.

But Palin’s popularity was back up to 80 percent by the time she was unveiled as McCain’s running mate at the end of August.

Hayes said her polling data shows the biggest loss of support for Palin was among independents, though she sees the governor falling in popularity with Democrats and Republicans, as well.

Marc Hellenthal, a pollster who regularly works with GOP candidates, said he sees a drop among Democrats and independents, but that Palin is gaining support among Republicans.

She was the most popular politician with Democrats, but that’s not true anymore,” Hellenthal said. She’s being viewed as more partisan now.”

State Rep. David Guttenberg, a Democrat from Fairbanks, echoed that sentiment.

She’s no longer above the fray. She’s being mean and vindictive,” Guttenberg said. If you’re a Democrat, she’s being phenomenally partisan. And if you’re a Republican, you’re pissed because she’s dragging down your presidential candidate.”

Even with the erosion of support among voters on the left, Palin still enjoys a 92 percent approval rating among registered Republicans in a very red state, Hellenthal said.

There are about 125,000 registered Republicans in Alaska, compared to roughly 77,000 registered Democrats. Both parties are dwarfed, however, by the nearly 263,000 undeclared or nonpartisan voters in the state, according to the state Division of Elections.

Palin’s growing partisanship could make her transition back to state politics — should McCain not win the White House — a potentially rocky one.

Rep. John Coghill, a Republican from North Pole, said it will be up to Palin to set the tone for working with state lawmakers after Tuesday. A lot depends on how she returns to Alaska,” he said.

Coghill said Democrats have burned up” a lot of goodwill with the governor over the Troopergate investigation. But there also remains some bad blood among some Republicans.

There’s a difference between working with someone and being a ‘yes man,’” Coghill said. I’m not interested in being a ‘yes man.’”

Coghill said the petroleum production tax and the natural gas line contract with TransCanada are issues that are likely to come up during the next legislative session beginning in January.

Guttenberg, a Democrat, agreed that relations between with the governor will likely be more strained when the Legislature reconvenes in January.

The relationship is up to her,” he said. The Democrats are not going to be so friendly anymore. She’s going to have to work harder for her priorities.”

It’s going to be a different landscape for her completely,” Moore said. She’s going to need to tap into a bunch of political skills that she hasn’t had to use before.

Before she got by on her popularity, now she’s going to need to be more diplomatic.”

Moore said he’s not convinced the governor is up to the task.

“I don’t think she’s very practiced at admitting her faults and taking criticism well,” he said.

This article can be found at Newsminer.com