What The Hell Is Going On?! No.45: Edwards Affair Edition

From Funny or Die.com: (If video doesn't work, CLICK HERE).

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

Edwards Affair Story On Current TV

I posted the Edwards' Affair story on Current.com and it was put on Current TV's Current News.
Here's the link to the story: HERE. Here was my story under the screenname Liberal007 as it aired on TV:

EDWARDS ADMITS SEXUAL AFFAIR

Shocking news from ABC NEWS.com:

John Edwards repeatedly lied during his Presidential campaign about an extramarital affair with a novice filmmaker, the former Senator admitted to ABC News today.

In an interview for broadcast tonight on Nightline, Edwards told ABC News correspondent Bob Woodruff he did have an affair with 44-year old Rielle Hunter, but said that he did not love her.
Edwards also denied he was the father of Hunter's baby girl, Frances Quinn, although the one-time Democratic Presidential candidate said he has not taken a paternity test.
Edwards said he knew he was not the father based on timing of the baby's birth on February 27, 2008. He said his affair ended too soon for him to have been the father.
A former campaign aide, Andrew Young, has said he was the father of the child.

According to friends of Hunter, Edwards met her at a New York city bar in 2006. His political action committee later paid her $114,000 to produce campaign website documentaries despite her lack of experience.
Edwards said the affair began during the campaign after she was hired. Hunter traveled with Edwards around the country and to Africa.
Edwards said his wife, Elizabeth, and others in his family became aware of the affair in 2006.

Edwards made a point of telling Woodruff that his wife's cancer was in remission when he began the affair with Hunter. Elizabeth Edwards has since been diagnosed with an incurable form of the disease.
When the National Enquirer first reported the alleged Edwards-Hunter affair last October 11, Edwards, his campaign staff and Hunter vociferously denounced the report.
"The story is false, it's completely untrue, it's ridiculous," Edwards told reporters then.
He repeated his denials just two weeks ago.
Edwards today admitted the National Enquirer was correct when it reported he had visited Hunter at the Beverly Hills Hilton last month.
The former Senator said his wife had not known about the meeting.

Since becoming pregnant, Hunter has lived under assumed names in a series of expensive homes in North Carolina and, more recently, in Santa Barbara, California.

Edwards denied paying any money to Hunter to keep her from going public but said it was possible some of his friends or supporters may have made payments without telling him.

He said he would ask questions about any possible arrangement.

Watch the full interview tonight on "Nightline" at 11:35 p.m. ET

Blogging Resumes In August...

When I return, I'll give my full review of The Dark Knight.
In the meantime...

The Entire Democratic Race In 8 Minutes (UPDATED)

Kinda old now, but it's worth posting. It's the updated version of the Dem Race in 7 minutes that I posted last month.

infoMania: 6/19/08

Meet The Press: Biden vs. Graham

Sen. Joe Biden kicked some ass this Sunday on NBC's Meet The Press (moderated by Brian Williams). At the end of the segment, Biden is asked if he might be Obama's VP (Obama/Biden!!!).

BTW, at end of the broadcast, Williams announces that Tom Brokaw will take over Meet The Press through the November elections. After that, we'll see what happens.

Meet The Press: In Memory Of Tim Russert

Barack Obama Interview After Winning Nomination

From NBC News a few days ago:

What The Hell Is Going On?! No.44

From, 23/6.com. These are congratulatory cards sent to Obama after winning the nomination.

McCain: Dictator?!

This quote, from Deputy Communications Director Michael Goldfarb of the McCain campaign, really freaks me out. He was referring to the idea that Congress as a co-equal branch of government, and the fact that the founding fathers didn't want one branch in charge:
"True enough, but they sought an energetic executive with near dictatorial power in pursuing foreign policy and war. So no, the Constitution does not put Congress on an equal footing with the executive in matters of national security."

What?! Near dictatorial powers?! Talk about being unpatriotic, this guy doesn't even believe in the Constitution. What he needs to do is read the historic document, and get a history lesson. But since the President would have unlimited power during war, maybe when Obama is President, he could be declared an enemy combatant, be sent to a secret CIA prison, have his right of Habeas Corpus suspended, and be waterboarded.

TIM RUSSERT: 1950-2008

NBC's Washington Bureau Chief and moderator of "Meet The Press", Tim Russert, died yesterday of a heart attack. His death was a shock to everyone in news and politics. He was one of the most respected journalists, and was revered for his tough questioning of public officials. He was known to be a very dedicated father, husband, and son. He even dedicated two books to fatherhood. Many members of the media and politics reacted to this shocking story. CLICK HERE for the reaction from various journalists. CLICK HERE for more reaction from public figures.
I watched Tim Russert nearly every Sunday on Meet the Press, and saw him throughout the election coverage on MSNBC. I always looked forward to watching his tough interviews. His analysis of the latest poll numbers and explanation of election news was fantastic. He will be missed. My thoughts and prayers are with his family. A special edition of Meet the Press with Tom Brokaw will air this Sunday. I'll post it here when it's available.
Here's a dedication from Keith Olbermann from last night:

Keith Olbermann's Special Comment: 6/12/08

"McCain Should Know Better"

infoMania: 6/12/08

CLINTON WITHDRAWS, ENDORSES OBAMA

In the big news today, Hillary Clinton withdrew from the Democratic Race and fully endorsed Barack Obama. She urged her supporters to back Obama in November. I hope they listen. I never hated Hillary, I just disliked her more as the race dragged on. But I respect her. Bill on the other hand, has lost my respect once he started playing dirty.
Anyway, here's Hillary speech from today. I admit, it was pretty good:

If Obama Supporters Are Sexist--Are Clinton Supporters Racist?

After the loss of Hillary Clinton, her supporters are really pissed off. Why? Because according to them, anyone who opposed her is a sexist (if every Obama supporter is a sexist, can't you also say that every Clinton supporter is a racist?).

And along with the vast right-wing conspiracy, there's a vast left-wing conspiracy too. It's full of liberal bloggers, anti-war protesters, Democratic Party officials, Obama supporters, Obama himself, and of course...THE EVIL MEDIA. The most evil news organization? Fox News? Nope. CBS? No. CNN? Yeah right. It's MSNBC. That's right, MSNBC. The home of Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, Tim Russert, etc.

There's even a new website up called womenboycottmsnbc.com. It's full of angry supporters who believe that she lost because everyone was sexist.

The fact is that Hillary didn't lose because of her gender, she lost because of a terrible campaign strategy. She didn't contest caucuses and thought it'll all be over by February 5th. Remember, in 2007, she was INEVITABLE. EVERYONE THOUGHT SHE WAS GOING TO BE THE NOMINEE. I think that being a woman actually helped her a lot. If it weren't for women, she probably wouldn't have won the really close contests earlier on. She won New Hampshire because of white women, if they didn't turn out for her, she would've lost NH and the whole race much earlier. Remember: women make up over half of the Democratic Party.

The bottom line is that Hillary lost because of her own mistakes. She lost because of Bill Clinton. She lost because of her advisers, like Mark Penn. She lost because Obama ran a better campaign, had a better message, and had better organization. She lost because Obama can inspire. The fact is that it's OVER. The Dem race is over, and all Dems should unite against John McCain. It's time to put a Democrat in the oval office in 2009.

Here are some numbers from a Pew study that show the percentage of positive news stories on the candidates from each of the cable news networks. Check out MSNBC's numbers:

"69% of the assertions about Obama on Fox News Channel were positive, versus 54% for Clinton. And both far outdistanced Sen. John McCain, with only 45%.

On CNN, Clinton was the clear winner, with 70% positives versus 59% for Obama and 49% for McCain.

The most even-handed, at least toward the Democrats, was MSNBC, the researchers concluded, with 72% positives for Clinton and 70% for Obama (McCain got 53%)."

Obama To Restore Constitution

According to Reuters a couple of weeks ago, Democratic Nominee (sounds great, doesn't it?) Barack Obama promised to work with his Attorney General (I hope it's John Edwards) and overturn every law or executive order that he sees as unconstitutional. The concern over our civil liberties and Constitution is a VERY important issue, and it's often ignored by many politicians. I'm very happy that Obama's going to confront this issue head on and he'll do what's right. It's time to restore democracy to this government. Now THAT'S patriotic.

Here's the story:

"Maybe it’s his background teaching constitutional law.
If elected president, Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama said one of the first things he wants to do is ensure the constitutionality of all the laws and executive orders passed while Republican President George W. Bush has been in office.
Those that don’t pass muster will be overturned, he said.

During a fund-raiser in Denver, Obama — a former constitutional law professor at the University of Chicago Law School — was asked what he hoped to accomplish during his first 100 days in office.
“I would call my attorney general in and review every single executive order issued by George Bush and overturn those laws or executive decisions that I feel violate the constitution,” said Obama

Other goals for his first 100 days: work out a plan to withdraw troops from Iraq; make progress on alternative energy plans and launch legislation to reform the health care system."

RFK Jr Speaks The Truth

Here are a series of videos that show parts of a speech by Robert Kennedy Jr. I agree strongly with his ideas presented in these videos. I strongly recommend these videos:
"Phony Conservatives" and The Constitution

The Media

How the US media failed us

OBAMA SECURES DEMOCRATIC NOMINATION

History was made this week when Barack Obama clinched the Democratic nomination. I still can't believe that the long Democratic race is over. I'm so proud to have supported Obama's campaign and I plan to volunteer for him over the summer. Now all Dems have to unite and get ready for the 5-month journey to the general election. It's going to be interesting.

Here's Obama's victory speech from Tuesday night. It was the best speech he has ever given. 18,000 people were in that arena that night, with thousands more outside. In a nice slap in the face, the speech was given in St.Paul, Minnesota--the sight of the Republican National Convention in September.

Biden Slams Bush/McCain/Lieberman Policy

In a WSJ editorial a couple of weeks ago, Sen. Joe Biden rightfully slammed the idiotic policy proposed by McCain and supported by Joe Lieberman towards Iran. It's a must-read article (Let me say again: OBAMA/BIDEN TICKET). Here's the full piece:

"On Wednesday, Joe Lieberman wrote on this page that the Democratic Party he and I grew up in has drifted far from the foreign policy espoused by Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman and John Kennedy.

In fact, it is the policies that President George W. Bush has pursued, and that John McCain would continue, that are divorced from that great tradition – and from the legacy of Republican presidents like Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.

Sen. Lieberman is right: 9/11 was a pivotal moment. History will judge Mr. Bush's reaction less for the mistakes he made than for the opportunities he squandered.
The president had a historic opportunity to unite Americans and the world in common cause. Instead – by exploiting the politics of fear, instigating an optional war in Iraq before finishing a necessary war in Afghanistan, and instituting policies on torture, detainees and domestic surveillance that fly in the face of our values and interests – Mr. Bush divided Americans from each other and from the world.

At the heart of this failure is an obsession with the "war on terrorism" that ignores larger forces shaping the world: the emergence of China, India, Russia and Europe; the spread of lethal weapons and dangerous diseases; uncertain supplies of energy, food and water; the persistence of poverty; ethnic animosities and state failures; a rapidly warming planet; the challenge to nation states from above and below.

Instead, Mr. Bush has turned a small number of radical groups that hate America into a 10-foot tall existential monster that dictates every move we make.
The intersection of al Qaeda with the world's most lethal weapons is a deadly serious problem. Al Qaeda must be destroyed. But to compare terrorism with an all-encompassing ideology like communism and fascism is evidence of profound confusion.

Terrorism is a means, not an end, and very different groups and countries are using it toward very different goals. Messrs. Bush and McCain lump together, as a single threat, extremist groups and states more at odds with each other than with us: Sunnis and Shiites, Persians and Arabs, Iraq and Iran, al Qaeda and Shiite militias. If they can't identify the enemy or describe the war we're fighting, it's difficult to see how we will win.
The results speak for themselves.

On George Bush's watch, Iran, not freedom, has been on the march: Iran is much closer to the bomb; its influence in Iraq is expanding; its terrorist proxy Hezbollah is ascendant in Lebanon and that country is on the brink of civil war.

Beyond Iran, al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan – the people who actually attacked us on 9/11 – are stronger now than at any time since 9/11. Radical recruitment is on the rise. Hamas controls Gaza and launches rockets at Israel every day. Some 140,000 American troops remain stuck in Iraq with no end in sight.

Because of the policies Mr. Bush has pursued and Mr. McCain would continue, the entire Middle East is more dangerous. The United States and our allies, including Israel, are less secure.
The election in November is a vital opportunity for America to start anew. That will require more than a great soldier. It will require a wise leader.

Here, the controversy over engaging Iran is especially instructive.
Last week, John McCain was very clear. He ruled out talking to Iran. He said that Barack Obama was "naïve and inexperienced" for advocating engagement; "What is it he wants to talk about?" he asked.
Well, for a start, Iran's nuclear program, its support for Shiite militias in Iraq, and its patronage of Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

Beyond bluster, how would Mr. McCain actually deal with these dangers? You either talk, you maintain the status quo, or you go to war. If Mr. McCain has ruled out talking, we're stuck with an ineffectual policy or military strikes that could quickly spiral out of control.

Sen. Obama is right that the U.S. should be willing to engage Iran on its nuclear program without "preconditions" – i.e. without insisting that Iran first freeze the program, which is the very subject of any negotiations. He has been clear that he would not become personally involved until the necessary preparations had been made and unless he was convinced his engagement would advance our interests.

President Nixon didn't demand that China end military support to the Vietnamese killing Americans before meeting with Mao. President Reagan didn't insist that the Soviets freeze their nuclear arsenal before sitting down with Mikhail Gorbachev. Even George W. Bush – whose initial disengagement allowed dangers to proliferate – didn't demand that Libya relinquish its nuclear program, that North Korea give up its plutonium, or even that Iran stop aiding those attacking our soldiers in Iraq before authorizing talks.

The net effect of demanding preconditions that Iran rejects is this: We get no results and Iran gets closer to the bomb.
Equally unwise is the Bush-McCain fixation on regime change. The regime is abhorrent, but their logic defies comprehension: renounce the bomb – and when you do, we're still going to take you down. The result is that Iran accelerated its efforts to produce fissile material.
Instead of regime change, we should focus on conduct change. We should make it very clear to Iran what it risks in terms of isolation if it continues to pursue a dangerous nuclear program but also what it stands to gain if it does the right thing. That will require keeping our allies in Europe, as well as Russia and China, on the same page as we ratchet up pressure.
It also requires a much more sophisticated understanding than Mr. Bush or Mr. McCain seem to possess that by publicly engaging Iran – including through direct talks – we can exploit cracks within the ruling elite, and between Iran's rulers and its people, who are struggling economically and stifled politically.

Iran's people need to know that their government, not the U.S., is choosing confrontation over cooperation. Our allies and partners need to know that the U.S. will go the extra diplomatic mile – if we do, they are much more likely to stand with us if diplomacy fails and force proves necessary.

The Bush-McCain saber rattling is the most self-defeating policy imaginable. It achieves nothing. But it forces Iranians who despise the regime to rally behind their leaders. And it spurs instability in the Middle East, which adds to the price of oil, with the proceeds going right from American wallets into Tehran's pockets.

The worst nightmare for a regime that thrives on tension with America is an America ready, willing and able to engage. Since when has talking removed the word "no" from our vocabulary?

It's amazing how little faith George Bush, Joe Lieberman and John McCain have in themselves – and in America."