The Hollywood Liberal

Amnesty International brings Gitmo to St. Paul.
“Guantanamo Bay is coming to St. Paul,” courtesy of Amnesty International. The human rights group is bringing their “live-size model of a maximum security Guantanamo Bay cell” to the Twin Cities. Visitors will be encouraged to experience the cell and push the Bush administration to shut down Guantanamo. Some details about the exhibit: The cell is […]

“Guantanamo Bay is coming to St. Paul,” courtesy of Amnesty International. The human rights group is bringing their “live-size model of a maximum security Guantanamo Bay cell” to the Twin Cities. Visitors will be encouraged to experience the cell and push the Bush administration to shut down Guantanamo. Some details about the exhibit:

The cell is a replica of a Camp 5 cell. It brings to life the harsh realities of illegal detention to concerned citizens and highlights the human rights violations that Guantanamo symbolizes. The cell includes a steel toilet, florescent lights and a sliding metal door. Detainees reported being held in isolation in similar cells for as long as 23 hours.

GOP Considers Delaying Convention
Republican officials said yesterday that they are considering delaying the start of the GOP convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul because of Tropical Storm Gustav, which is on track to hit the Gulf Coast, and possibly New Orleans, as a full-force hurricane early next week.

Preparing for Mass Exodus As Gustav Gathers Strength
CHALMETTE, La., Aug. 28 — Determined to avoid the mistakes made when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, federal and state officials began preparations for massive evacuations if it becomes clear that Tropical Storm Gustav will sweep over the region with the same force as Katrina.

Obama’s Historic Night
Ronald Brownstein, National Journal

Bonus Quote of the Day
“Many of you feel a responsibility to the voters in your state. Others want the choice to vote what’s in your heart. I am not telling you what to do.”

– Sen. Hillary Clinton, essentially releasing her delegates to vote for Sen. Barack Obama.

The Happy Warrior
Sixty years later, Hubert — can you believe it?

Humphrey returns from the 1948 Democratic Convention

Growing up in Minnesotan this speech sixty years ago at the 1948 Democratic Convention, and the man who gave it has always meant something special to me:

Fellow Democrats, fellow Americans:

I realize that in speaking in behalf of the minority report on civil rights as presented by Congressman DeMiller of Wisconsin that I am dealing with a charged issue — with an issue which has been confused by emotionalism on all sides of the fence. I realize that there are here today friends and colleagues of mine, many of them, who feel just as deeply and keenly as I do about this issue and who are yet in complete disagreement with me…

Friends, delegates, I do not believe that there can be any compromise on the guarantee of civil rights which I have mentioned in the minority report.

In spite of my desire for unanimous agreement on the entire platform, in spite of my desire to see everybody here in honest and unanimous agreement, there are some matters which I think must be stated clearly and without qualification. There can be no hedging — the newspaper headlines are wrong! There will be no hedging, and there will be no watering down — if you please — of the instruments and the principals of the civil-rights program!…

To those who say, my friends, to those who say, that we are rushing this issue of civil rights, I say to them we are 172 years late! To those who say, to those who say this civil-rights program is an infringement on states’ rights, I say this: the time has arrived in America for the Democratic party to get out of the shadow of states’ rights and walk forthrightly into the bright sunshine of human rights!

Sixty years later Hubert we are getting there. It is by no means the end, but it is a pretty awesome step.

Oh, and this happens to be the forty-fifth anniversary of another great moment which makes tonight all the more satisfying.

Never prouder to be an American, never prouder to be a Democrat.

(photo via the Nandotimes)

Thread
And now, a few words about healthcare.

Signed,
Not Atrios

Why We Need a Revolution
Efficiency tweaks won’t save us. Even if every car in the world were a hybrid, growing demand would dwarf savings.

The Christian Right’s Slick Campaign to Make Abstinence Seem Trendy
Conservatives finally learned that moralizing doesn’t keep teens from having sex. Now they have a creepy new tactic.

James Carville Hasn’t Changed; He Was A Spy for Bush in 2004
This is a repost of what I wrote here in TPM in 2006. I just came across a troubling incident that Bob Woodward reports in his new book. Very troubling. On page 344, Woodward describes the doings at the White…

Moment of History
Our David Kurtz on the convention floor as Hillary calls to make Obama nominee by acclamation … More here….

Hillary Clinton’s Grand Slam

Oh, the talking heads were talking. Oh, my were their lips flapping. Hillary wasn’t capable of fully supporting Obama. The Clintons were going to fracture the party. Why were the Clintons invited to speak in the first place? There was a ton of nauseating commentary with no substance. Just filling air-time.

From her opening paragraph, Hillary Clinton made it clear that she was supporting Barack Obama and she wanted her supports to get behind Obama also.

I am honored to be here tonight. A proud mother. A proud Democrat. A proud American. And a proud supporter of Barack Obama.

She went on to say …

I want you to ask yourselves: Were you in this campaign just for me? Or were you in it for that young Marine and others like him? Were you in it for that mom struggling with cancer while raising her kids? Were you in it for that boy and his mom surviving on the minimum wage? Were you in it for all the people in this country who feel invisible?

We need leaders once again who can tap into that special blend of American confidence and optimism that has enabled generations before us to meet our toughest challenges. Leaders who can help us show ourselves and the world that with our ingenuity, creativity, and innovative spirit, there are no limits to what is possible in America.

This won’t be easy. Progress never is. But it will be impossible if we don’t fight to put a Democrat in the White House.

We need to elect Barack Obama…

Hillary Clinton went the extra mile. She made it clear that she was on the team bus and wanted her supporters to join her on the bus. Her speech was perfect. She talked about why she wanted to run and why she now supports Obama. She hit George Bush and John McCain with several excellent lines. (suggesting that she will be an excellent campaigner in the fall for Obama) Any speech that can mention Harriett Tubman, the woman’s suffrage movement and universal health care is a great speech in my book. Hillary Clinton hit this one out of the park. Outstanding!!!

Bill gives Obama forceful endorsement
Bill gives Obama forceful endorsement

Arctic ice shrinks to 2nd-lowest level
Climate change rapidly transforming northern ecosystems: researchers.

One Year Ago Today, Alberto Gonzales Resigned
One year ago today, Alberto Gonzales resigned as Attorney General of the United States amid questions of his “competence to run the Justice Department” and “accusations of perjury.” As the Washington Post reported at the time, Gonzales was “one of the nation’s most controversial attorneys general since the Watergate era”: [Gonzales’s] resignation, submitted Sunday to President […]

One year ago today, Alberto Gonzales resigned as Attorney General of the United States amid questions of his “competence to run the Justice Department” and “accusations of perjury.” As the Washington Post reported at the time, Gonzales was “one of the nation’s most controversial attorneys general since the Watergate era”:

[Gonzales’s] resignation, submitted Sunday to President Bush and disclosed yesterday, removes one of the nation’s most controversial attorneys general since the Watergate era. He will leave behind a Justice Department battered by allegations that partisan politics has infected its law enforcement mission.

Gonzales’ departure from the Bush administration has done little to reverse the well-documented politicization of the Justice Department.

In recent months, his replacement — Micheal Mukasey — has refused to say whether he believes Gonzales politicized the department, has promised not to investigate officials who authorized the use of torture on detainees of the U.S. government, and has refused to review the qualifications of career employees hired by former loyal Bushie Monica Goodling. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) said recently, Mukasey “hasn’t provided the balance that I had hoped for.”

In April, the New York Times reported that Gonzales “has been unable to interest law firms in adding his name to their roster” as a result of his performance as Attorney General. Gonzales found work — at least temporarily — in June, when he was hired to “provide assistance to a special master on a patent case.”

Black Delegates Also Bask in Obama’s Big Moment
DENVER, Aug. 27 — Lena Taylor, a Wisconsin state senator from Milwaukee, is “overwhelmed” by the history that will be made Thursday night, when Sen. Barack Obama will become the first African American to accept a major-party presidential nomination. Add in that his acceptance will come on the 45th…

How Scranton Became the New Peoria
Mark Jurkowitz, RealClearPolitics

The Credit Crunch Cuts Deeper and Wider
Ben Steverman, BusinessWeek

C-2
The New York Times has a great behind-the-scenes look at how Sen. Joe Biden was selected as Sen. Barack Obama’s running mate. To keep the secret, Biden was never referred to by name; instead the few aides who knew called him by his codename, C-2.

However, even the two aides that made all the preparations for the unveiling of Biden didn’t know Obama’s pick until just before the rest of us.

Reactions to Clinton’s Speech
Sen. Hillary Clinton’s speech at the Democratic National Convention put to rest the idea that her party is not unified in support of Sen. Barack Obama for president. While disunity has been a constant theme of the cable news channels, it’s barely noticeable among delegates. Clinton nailed her speech and put Democrats in the mood to enthusiastically nominate Obama on Thursday night.

Other reactions:

Ben Smith: “Hillary’s speech — a success in the hall — was a study in the virtue of low expectations.”

Nick Gillespie: “I’d say that Sen. Clinton has had the best performance so far, by a wide margin, both in terms of attacking John McCain and the Republicans head-on and defining a nauseatingly comprehensive set of plans for raising taxes, getting mad at companies for ’shipping job overseas,’ and pushing universal health care (or more accurately, even more expensive and less effective health care).”

Andrew Sullivan: “She started out a little dull and a little self-obsessed. But then she rallied — a little. ‘No Way. No How. No McCain’ was a good line. And the Twin Cities analogy was a great little riff on Bush and McCain. But I have to say her speaking style, although much improved over even a year ago, is still a little flat. When she’s passionate, she has little inflection. When she’s quieter, she’s a little drony. The ‘keep going’ theme, moreover, was a little unnerving. A thinly veiled threat?”

Craig Crawford: “Stunning. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s convention speech on Tuesday was so NOT what Barack Obama needed.”

Fourniercation Under Contrived Keyboarding
If only there were an appropriate acronym for that title?

Not regretting the breezy nature of his bias

Well, not terribly surprisingly — unless you were a paid television pundit — Hillary Clinton gave a full-throated speech endorsing Barack Obama. Not some tepid declaration, but a whole-hearted sincere endorsement of Obama and a ringing denunciation of the Maverick Sidekick.

What’s a not very well-hidden McCain campaign operative to do about this?

Ron Fournier knows…

For one evening, their political world was perfect. Or so it seemed.

Standing before thousands of delegates, almost half of them her backers, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton declared it time “to unite as a single party with a single purpose” and urged her followers to help elect once-bitter rival Barack Obama. “We are on the same team,” she said, after allowing the applause to build to a crescendo and linger, longer than usual ??? much like the Democratic primary race itself.

“Barack Obama is my candidate,” she said. “And he must be our president.”

But did she mean it?

Of course, not long ago Ron Fournier kissed Karl Rove’s ample behind while the latter blatantly lied about the death of Pat Tillman and Fournier attempted to land a job with the McCain campaign, a campaign he has YET to write one critical piece about (his only negative GOP piece this year was a piece criticizing Romney so as to praise McCain). I’m sure Fournier would claim this is not reflected in how he operates as an alleged “journalist”. Watch his pieces on the Republican Convention closely next week…and feel the love and the sprinkles.

And we know he doesn’t mean it.

So keep up the protests of Fournier’s partisan hackery. It is starting to be noticed. And there are signs, the AP is paying the price.

(pic from TPM Muckraker)

What Digby Said
This has been another edition of What Digby Said.

Expectations
CNN is informing that Hillary Clinton has to do 15 things simultaneously with her speech, and wise Soledad finally remarked that some of these things may be contradictory.

Our discourse is so stupid.

Hillary Electrifies: “Nothing Less Than the Fate of Our Nation … Hangs in the Balance”
In a speech to a roaring crowd at the DNC, Hillary Clinton gave full support to Barack Obama, promising to fight for health care and the environment.

Climate Reality Eludes the Business Press
For the Wall Street Journal’s editors, fear of a bigger government outweighs the fear of a warmer planet.

Age Matters
I’ve never thought Sen. John McCain was mentally ill, not even after George W. Bush tried to discredit his intelligence and wit in 2000. But now I worry about the obvious deterioration of his health. Look back at clips from…

Scheunemann Lobbied Against Bill to Keep Guns From Terrorists
We knew Randy Scheunemann, John McCain’s top foreign policy adviser, was into guns. After all, in 1997 he was arrested for having a shotgun and several rounds of ammunition in his car on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol. And…

Convention Blogging, Streaming, Twittering

(bumped)

Dem Convention Live Stream: The feed will be on whenever and wherever possible. IM me at “billscher” if you have any questions for any interviewees (or myself) throughout the convention.

Streaming Video by Ustream.TV

More convention blogging from me at OurFuture.org and HuffingtonPost.com (including coverage of Take Back America)

Kucinich: ‘Wake up, America!’
Kucinich: ‘Wake up, America!’

Gay media mogul withdraws support from Obama
Gay media mogul withdraws support from Obama

Juan Williams tears up after Michelle Obama speech: ?It?s unbelievable?
Yesterday, after Michelle Obama delivered an address highlighting the “improbable journey that’s brought us to this moment,” Fox News’s Juan Williams teared up as he talked about her speech, stating, “I’m just thrilled. I mean, it’s almost emotional. … We’ve never seen anything like that”: As a human being, as an African-American, it’s unbelievable. And then […]

Yesterday, after Michelle Obama delivered an address highlighting the “improbable journey that’s brought us to this moment,” Fox News’s Juan Williams teared up as he talked about her speech, stating, “I’m just thrilled. I mean, it’s almost emotional. … We’ve never seen anything like that”:

As a human being, as an African-American, it’s unbelievable. And then to have a family situation, given all the tension in Black America over families, and to see that positive image there for everybody to see. … Man, that’s just awesome.

Watch it:

Former Bush adviser Karl Rove, however, had an entirely different reaction to the speech, claiming Michelle Obama could have done better “on saying I love America.” (HT: Andrew Sullivan)