The Australian reports that Labor’s lead in this fortnight’s Newspoll is down slightly from 57-43 to 56-44. Kevin Rudd is down three points as preferred leader to 65 per cent while Brendan Nelson is up two to 14 per cent.
The latest weekly Essential Research survey shows no change in Labor’s long-standing 58-42 lead. Also featured is a national-level question on state voting intention which suggests collective primary vote support for the state Labor governments is 7 per cent lower than for federal Labor (40 per cent compared with 47 per cent), although Coalition support is only 3 per cent higher (38 per cent compared with 35 per cent). Further questions involve federal Labor’s performance on various individual issues, and attitudes to the balance of power in the Senate.
“Labor could borrow Hillary’s 3AM ringing phone ad”
what instead of Cossie being asleep , vision shows him sleeked deeply hunched in a corner , teeth chattering , eyes caught like a cat in car headlites fearful of making any decision
McCain now $2.66 on Betfair – the punters clearly like Palin so far.
It’s a mad, mad, mad and mad PUTOS election. Putting Michael Palin as veep? The Deer Hunter Boys are indeed singing bye bye Miss American Pie and dancing in the street.
“We will decide who comes here…”
“Sums Howard up in one short sentence really.”
Arrogant, racist, opportunistic, dog whistling, divisive, xenophobic, scare mongering, uncaring.
I would agree Dario, it is also used in mocking tones at my workplace and in casual conversations, as in we will decide who gets the contract.
It will hang round Howards neck more than any other statement or action he did.
Just read the M. Fraser article in the AGE. I totally agree with his views especially re Russia, Georgia and the new arms race. It shows that he still is well informed on what is happening around the World.
It is a shame though that I can’t forgive him for 11/11/75.
Rod at 554 wrote:
Better it be hung around the Liberal Party’s neck now old Howard is gone.
George M shows Kerr how to do balanced opinion:
http://blogs.theaustralian.news.com.au/meganomics/index.php/theaustralian/comments/howards_a_lesson_for_second_coming
Ron et al
It’s interesting that the betting I referred to at 521 got onto Palin early. Someone leaked.
Palin doesn’t believe climate change is man-made. She also wants Alaska dug up and mined within an inch of its life. She has castigated Bush for not sending Big Oil her way.
Finns
You might get your first female POTUS after all!
Liberals threaten to quit if Costello leaves.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,24263092-421,00.html
On HuffPost the attack on Palin is underway.
1. McCain has only met her once in his life!?
2. She once asked “What exactly does the VP do every day?”
3. She said she couldn’t support Hillary because she didn’t like her “whining”
4. She’s happy for creationism to be taught in schools
5. She’s fervently pro-life
6. Doesn’t believe in anthropogenic climate change
7. “Worse than Dan Quayle with no experience”
Muskiemp – that’s an amazing point for a party to get to. A complete rabble with no faith in it’s leader.
Ok Costello takes over – who is shawod treasurer? Can you see Turnbull and Costello working together? Nelson? geez, please do!
Diog, not this one.
None of of this would have happened if Obama has not disturbed the heavenly peace. If he has been a little more patient and waited for his turn.
But having said that, and just to let the natives on the G island rest a little easier. It is my hope and wish that Obama wins, but I do have my doubt if the Americans will elect the first Black President on the first try.
With a VP like Palin, one heartbeat from being POTUS,the downfall of the USA continues.Is Australia going to continued to be bullied by the USA and follow them to the next war zone?
Finnigans.
I totally agree with you, Obama should have waited for at least another 4 years or even 8, he is young enough.
Greedy arrogant Obama.
Should have waited.
Should have picked Hilary as VP
Oh well – he wont be laughing in 67 days time.
Dio @ 558,
Re the betting, you’ve probably read there was a mysterious private flight from Alaska that touched down late Thursday night US time in whatever place McCain is at the moment. (It still seems unclear whether the plane was carrying Palin, or the rest of her family, or all of them). Evidently someone picked up on this and it started the betting surge on Palin.
Also noises started coming out of the Romney and Pawlenty camps that it wasn’t either of them.
Still, by the standards of modern politics, it was a well-kept secret.
I don’t think there is any nice way to say this: Palin is a crap pick.
Not so much for the reasons articulated by Dio @ 560 (reasons 2 to 7 there just put Palin right in the middle America mainstream, anyway). Although they are interesting points.
More because of the weirdness of putting up an Alaskan (any Alaskan, really) as a potential President.
Sorry, meant to say “reasons 2 to 6 there just put Palin right in the middle America mainstream, anyway”
ESJ – 565- I would hve to agree with you that he was greedy.
Well , there goes McCain’s strong point, experience. 74, with a VP just out of political nappies – what a risk.
I don’t see why Obama was “greedy”. He was no more greedy than Clinton in ’92, or JFK in ’60 (or for that matter Nixon in ’60 who nearly won). Those guys were all roughly Obama’s age (JFK was four years younger).
Hillary stuffed up the campaign, didn’t read the rules about caucuses and proportional representation, and lost. That doesn’t make Obama greedy.
I think in the campaign Palin will be a short term positive and a long term negative. McCain clearly picked a woman to pick up the disgruntled Hillary voters, which may happen in the polls at the outset, but once they start to become familiar with her credentials (pro-life, anti-AGW, religious nutter) they are going to get turned off pretty quick.
[Greedy arrogant Obama]
One of the more inept statements about Presedential races I’ve seen
It’s sort of like McCain has wanted a VP candidate to tick all the following boxes:
– young
– female
– well-presented
– not a Washington insider
– likely to shore up the Christian right
and SP was the only one to tick all the boxes.
Boy it will be interesting to see how she goes under pressure.
Another thing, evidently Biden has a history of faux pas (not unlike McCain I guess). But who from the press is going to be taking any notice of Biden now? Biden might just as well go on vacation for the next two weeks for all the coverage he’ll be getting …
Wouldn’t be too certain re Palin.
Yes, she’s young (tick box), female (nice try to angle in on the p’d off Clinton vote), looks OK (cater to the working class male) BUT they are overlooking some rather nasty baggage that may just explode in their face. She is currently facing a nasty little ethics issue that does beg the question as to whether she can be trusted to act with propriety.
Case being her sister has been involved in a messy divorce custody case with a state trooper. Palin sought to have said state trooper fired but the state commissioner for public safety refused. Palin then proceeded to fire the commissioner. Said commissioner went public to the extent that even the Republican controlled Alaskan legilature has called in a retired judge to investigate/report on the matter. He is still to report and can probably have the national media camped out on his front lawn.
McCain faced risky choices on all fronts with his VP choices. In picking Palin, methinks he has taken the “damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead” option. Brave maybe but may see the gallant Captain going down with the ship.
The video on this site re Palin is well worth a look. It makes the same point I made at 570.
http://www.usaelectionpolls.com/
McCain has made a big mistake in picking Palin:
1. He blunted his own “inexperience” attacks on Obama. kaput.
2. He blunted the attacks on Obama that Obama is an unknown.
3. In this election, the veep has added importance, McCain could die in office because of age and Obama ditto by a bullet. So the question is legitimate that the Veep has to be readied to step in.
4. In will be seen as a cynical, very cynical, attempt to attract Hillary’s votes. She is too conservative for Hillary’s votes.
Anyone with an ounce of sense knows that if you support Hilliary you’re not going to support Palin. What do they have in common? They are both women and that’s it. How shallow would you have to be to vote for someone on gender alone?
Dyno
I hadn’t read about the flight but that explains what happened.
Finns
I agree Hillary voters will view Palin in a very poor light. She’s a beauty queen light-weight, pro-life, has dissed Hillary, and frankly is not fit to do up Hillary’s shoe-laces.
I read somewhere that female voters aren’t keen on attractive, young women. They often think “she just got where she is because of her looks” whereas male voters think “Wow! She got where she is because of her looks!”
Muskiemp
If Palin became POTUS (God forbid!) the only good thing is that Rudd and the other world leaders will feel they can be more independent of the US re foreign policy. I know Adam will probably disagree with that statement because of the standing given to anyone as POTUS but Rudd etc are not going to be intimidated by Palin.
Diog, you gotta to admit by now that that the BEST Potus candidate is not even in the race, namely our gal Hillary. Crazy, crazy and crazy.
Where my amigo GG, because it’s time for a song:
Yep, North to Alaska.
John McCain turned to Sarah with his gold in his hand
Said John you’re a-lookin’ at a lonely, lonely old man
I’d trade all the gold that’s buried in this land
For one small band of gold to place on sweet little Cindy’s hand
‘Cause a man needs a woman to love him all the time
Remember Sarah a true love is so hard to find
I’d build for my Cindy a honeymoon home
Below that old White Mountain just a little southeast of Nome
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=5XGyWN57obw
Hi Finns,
Been very busy making a quid.
I see that The Reupublicans have gone with a woman Governor as VP. Could be a good choice all the others are Senators. McCain and Palin could now make claim to being aware of what’s going on outside Washington. Obama, despite all the rhetoric is just another beltway politician, as is his running mate Biden.
Superficially, Palin ticks all the boxes with regard to family, anti abortion, a member of the NRA and religious. Could be an inspired choice to sure up the religious vote.
As a straight talking woman, could be just what those conservative voters in the swing states in the mid west will go for.
Of course, the blogorgentsia are already painting her as the wicked witch of the north. That won’t do her any harm at all.
What I don’t understand in reading the above posts (and threads prior to this) is that there is such animosity towards Obama from a number of posters here. Having followed everything throughout the Democrat primaries to now, it is astounding just how much sour grapes there are from people about the fact that Hillary lost the primary race fair and square (and I’m not sure just how much name-caling of Obama can cloud that result in your eyes).
There is no evidence to suggest that she would have been the better candidate over Obama even if she had won the primaries (and the converse is true as well, in the sense that we won’t know how Obama will truly do until Election Day and we will never know just how well Hillary would have gone). So my view is rather than speculate on what could have been and continue with the sour-grapes line of argument, actually get behind Obama. He is, after all, the Democratic Presidential Candidate, and no amount of wishful thinking will change that. Hell, if both Clintons can behind Obama, then surely you lot can too!
GG
Palin has 6 years as mayor of Wasilla (popn 5,000) people, and 1.5 years as governor of Alaska (popn 650,000). If McCain drops dead, she becomes the most powerful and important person in the world. That’s a frightening thought.
She is being investigated for sacking her sister’s ex-husband to get back at him. She would appear to have serious ethical failings, although that would appeal to the Repug base.
Joe Biden will tear her apart. I disagree with people who think he will look bad for mercilessly stomping on a pretty young thing. She might be president one day and if she is destroyed by Biden, everyone could easily imagine what a dismal POTUS she would be. Bring it on!
Shh, OzFrog. That kind of truth is not welcome around here. Now you’re gonna be accused from several directions of being a closet Obama supporter, who is sucked in by his rhetorical dazzle and puffbaggery, and just cannot and will not see the ‘truth’ about this incompetent, unethical, juvenile political lightweight. Remember, only hardcore Hillary supporters can see the world as it really is. The rest of us are fools and knaves.
Apparently.
Putin was accusing the Bush adminstration of engineering the georgia affair in order to help McCain POTUS election. I wonder how Russians will say now that the potential veep is from Alaska or Alyaska that it used to own and sold it for a pitiful $9m to the USA.
Finns @ 586 – I didn’t think this would have any relevance whatsoever. The Russians haven’t made any big deal about Alaska since it was originally sold (as far as I’m aware).
So after dinner feting Costello, Nelson goes off for a drive with a truckie:
http://news.smh.com.au/national/nelson-takes-road-trip-with-truckie-20080830-45y5.html
“Dr Nelson has hitched a ride to the NSW Central West with Dubbo truck driver Rod Hannifey, so he can experience first-hand the life of a truckie on the road.”
Just Me
#585
“The rest of us are fools and knaves”
Well , you hav (correctly) described yourself and OzFrog , and you did it allby yourself Your fustration is you can not handle adverse facts about th phoney , but then wannabe elitist intelligentsia never can nor deal with reality , rather prissy , you’d be at home on Gilligans , unless you ar using another moniker here
Fortunately there ar some Obama supporters like AL , Diogenes etc who can be debated with , but they live in a reel politcal World
Because Obama’s inexperience & protectionist policys will hurt Aussie farmers in there pockets as well as manufacturing exporters & also KEVIN RUDD’s ‘oz’ trade deficit , a point intellegentsia ar oblivious to in there daze , I shall continue to criticise his oiliness whether you like it or not
Diogenes,
That would put her streets ahead of Obama in terms of “Government” experience.
“Tear apart”. What if he doesn’t or can’t?
Even if he did, will it win any more votes for Obama?
GG
You could make the same argument about “government” experience against Biden, Hillary and McCain. None of them have ever run anything.
If she implodes under questioning on something crucial, the independents will desert the McCain-Palin ticket in droves. The ticket wouldn’t have any credibility.
The strangest thing about it all, from my point of view, is that she’s only met Macca on one occasion. How can you pick someone based on one meeting.? In US football parlance, her nomination is being called a “Hail Sarah” pass into the end-zone.
Ron, you obviously just can’t accept that some people genuinely do not see a big difference between Clinton and Obama overall, and have no strong preference either way. So instead you indulge in sometimes quite derogatory personal attacks on those who hold such a position, and make all sorts of unsubstantiated claims about them and their beliefs.
It does you no credit at all.
Diogenes,
With respect, you are being rather vague. If, buts, maybes. She actually might prove to be a formidable foe. I think she’s been picked to fill a gap in McCain’s resume and help get the Conservative vote out.
I’ll make my mind up after I see her perform.
I find it interesting that at a time when the US economy is faltering, that neither candidate has muscled up on the economy. Who is best equipped to handle the economy is likely to be the real decider in this election.
Just Me
#592
now don’t play moral ground games just because you’ve been caught out…again , your posts 2 days ago showed you INITIATED personal abuse including quote “hate’ 2 days ago , now if you wish me to re post them here to show your untruthfulness in pretending to be so supposedly innocently moral I WILL
You will recall you made unsubstantiated comments , which i then proceeded to disprove with credible sources like th New york Times , another time when facts got in your way , grow up
“Who is best equipped to handle the economy is likely to be the real decider in this election.”
Like it was in our election?
GG
Fair enough. I’m sure sure you are right that Palin is a good pick for the independent MidWest CO/NV/NM. I agree I am being a bit vague as I still haven’t seen her perform yet. There seems to be an awful lot of photos of her on the internet though! 😉
You’re right about the economy as well. On the economy, Bill Clinton has the best record of any POTUS in living memory. Obama stuffed up when he denigraded Bill’s record. Bill wanted to talk about the economy as the topic of his speech at the Convention but Obama made him talk about national security instead. Basically, Obama didn’t want to be shown up on the economy.
GG did you watch the video at 576 on the selection of Palin?
Gary
I think the economy was hugely important in our election. It was the ONLY thing the Rodent had going for him. He was rated lower on everything else. Rudd neutralised it as well as he could but Howard still almost got over the line based on a (incorrect and flawed) narrative about a steady hand with the economy. I believe that the Rodent would have won if the subprime crisis happened six months earlier and there were two less interest rate rises.
“…..Howard still almost got over the line based on a (incorrect and flawed) narrative about a steady hand with the economy.” Are we talking about the last election?
“It was the ONLY thing the Rodent had going for him.” That was my point actually. The bloke seen as the better economic manager lost the election.