Barack Obama and John McCain: Online Videos To Tickle The Funny Bone

Back in February on Super Tuesday I posted "Super Online Videos For Super Tuesday." Now that the primaries are over and the official presidential campaign is in full swing, I don't know about you, but I'm ready for a few laughs.  What better way to get them then by checking out the latest online videos that take a humorous look at the campaign and the candidates?

Michelle Obama Enjoys "The View:" A Recap

Michelle Obama, wife of Senator Barack Obama and potential First Lady of the United States had her toughest test of the whole campaign this morning.  No, she didn't go on Fox News Channel.

She co-hosted "The View."

Here's a recap:

First the "important stuff."  Michelle---I'm going to call her Michelle, 'cause she and I are like this---wore a cute little sleeveless, summer black and white sheath and her hair and makeup looked modern and lovely.  She said she often uses a designer, Maria Pinto from Chicago and "It's fun to look pretty."

After she came out and was introduced by Whoopi Goldberg, Michelle made fun of the whole "terrorist fist bump" by fist bumping all the ladies around the table.  Heh.

She said she started doing it because of the young people on her staff.  It's considered a modern version of a "high five."  Actually, in my tennis playing circles, it's also supposed to represent "respect."

The first thing Michelle and the Gabby Girls talked about was the hits she's taken in the press, specifically over the "For the first time, I'm really proud of my country" quote."  They played a clip of the original quote and as Whoopi said, it's the "really" that changes the context of the quote.

Several of us at BlogHer talked about that months ago, the omission of the "really" part, but hey it's nice when the rest of the world catches up with the BlogHers.

What Michelle said said was:

"Of course I'm proud of my country.  Nowhere but in America could my story be possible."

"When I talked about it in my speech what I was talking about was having a pride in the political process."

Resident republican, Elisabeth Hasselbeck---and no, she and Michelle didn't come to blows---pointed out that current First Lady Laura Bush had sent a supportive note to Michelle after the whole incident. 

"I was touched by it.  That's what I like about Laura Bush.  Just calm, rational approach to these issues.  And I'm taking some cues. There's a reason why people like her.  It's because she doesn't sort of, fuel the fire."

Michelle said that she sent a thank you in return but the First Lady might not have gotten it yet.

Barbara then asked why Michelle felt that she was a target for so many attacks.  Michelle said that in today's 24 hour news cycle she "fills up some space," but she also realizes that it goes with the territory.

Tim Russert Dead At Age 58

Tim Russert, arguably the toughest interviewer on television, collapsed and died at his office in the NBC Washington Bureau this afternoon, reportedly of a heart attack.  He was 58 years old. 

As Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent Andrea Mitchell said during the breaking news coverage this afternoon on MSNBC, Russert's Sunday morning talk show "Meet The Press" was considered "the 'Meet The Press' primary" when it came to political campaigns.  The big question was always what candidates would run the journalistic gauntlet that was Russert and which ones would survive it?

If you watched one of his interviews you could always be certain that whatever question you were thinking of asking the politician sitting opposite him, Russert would ask it.  My favorite moments were always when a politico thought he or she could escape without answering the question by simply spouting political jargon.

It would be then that Russert would say in that distinctive voice of his, something like, "But Senator, that wasn't the question.  The question was..."  That was always good for a laugh.  And also good for us as voters because Russert held their feet to the fire so that we could make more informed voting choices.

President Bush who's in Paris released a statement of condolence that said in part that he and Mrs. Bush were "very fond of him."

"Tim would want us to say he won the lottery in life."  Brian Williams, "NBC Nightly News" anchor said.   And referring to NBC's Washington Bureau, Williams said Russert was the political "go to" guy.

"If it had to do with politics the question that always followed was, have you run it by Tim?"

Russert's survivors include his son Luke and his wife Maureen. 

David Gregory, also during this afternoon's MSNBC coverage talked about Russert's personal side.  "He loved kids," he said.  "He loved his own and anybody else's."  There was nothing that he loved more than "providing for his boy."

"He was always teaching us to be as rigorous as he was," Andrea Mitchell said.  "All of us are the better for knowing him.  Our hearts are breaking.

RIP Tim.

Michelle Obama To Co-Host "The View"

ABC-TV announced today that Michelle Obama will co-host "The View" with the Gabby Girls on Wednesday, June 18th.  She'll be following in the footsteps of Cindy McCain, who co-hosted a couple of months ago, and of her husband, Barack Obama who was a guest in March.

I'm guessing Michelle will get plenty of questions from Barbara Walters, Whoopi Goldberg and the gang about the campaign, being a Mom of two young girls on the campaign trail, and what she plans to do if she becomes First Lady.

Of course I'll be watching and bring you all the action as soon as the show is over.

Barack Obama: A Moment In History

I got chills last night.  Watch this speech and see why.

Congratulations Senator.

Conflicting Reports Of A Hillary Clinton Concession Tonight

Update (12 Noon):  Reuters is now reporting that the Clinton campaign says the AP report of a concession is wrong:

Clinton's campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe said the New York senator was "absolutely not" conceding the campaign and said the AP report was incorrect.

The Clinton campaign issued a terse statement: "The AP story is incorrect. Senator Clinton will not concede the nomination this evening."

I guess we'll all have to find out together after the polls close.

*******************************************************************************************************************************

Original Post (11:14 AM):

Fox News Channel is reporting via the Associated Press that after the Montana and South Dakota primary polls close tonight, Senator Hillary Clinton will acknowledge Barack Obama has enough delegates to secure the Democratic Party nomination for President of the United States.

Clinton is currently at her home in Chappaqua, New York.

If this is report pans out, it will be a dramatic ending to this historic and suspenseful democratic primary season.  Who knew at the end of last year, when everyone was proclaiming Clinton as the de facto nominee and the first woman with a shot at becoming the most powerful person in the world, that the real nominee six months later would be a black man named Barack Obama?  I sure didn't.

But the people have spoken and that's what democracy is all about.  The times, they are a changin'.

Megan's Emily Gould Post Quoted On Slate

I feel like I'm having an "Emily Gould" moment.  That's because my post about Gould was quoted by Michael Weiss of Slate in his daily blog roundup.

I've hit the big time!

It's my own New York Times Magazine cover story, it's my own Gawker writing job, it's my own claim to blogging and internet and who knows what other kind of fame.

Aw, the power.

Thank you Michael Weiss for giving me this moment in the glare of the internet sun.  If I can ever return the favor, please let me know.

Emily Gould: A Blogger More Than Exposed

This week the New York Times Magazine published an article by Emily Gould, a blogger who started her blogging career with her own personal blog and eventually ended up writing for Gawker, a very popular site that promises "media gossip and pop culture round the clock."

In the article, Gould talks about her lifelong tendency to "overshare" and how her original blog, Emily Magazine was an expression of that compulsion to overshare.

Her oversharing went into overdrive when she hit the big time, getting a job as a writer at Gawker.  She was to be responsible for twelve of the forty posts the blog published daily and suddenly she felt like she had achieved her destiny.

Ten TV Shows And Movies That Taught Me Something About War

I'm lucky. I've never had to serve in a war or known someone close who's died in one. Even though I learned the facts and figures of war in school, the impact of war I learned from television and the movies. In honor of Memorial Day, this post is about what I've learned about war.

Michelle Obama and The Daily Kos Controversy

As a follow up to yesterday's post "With Friends Like The Daily Kos, Michelle Obama Doesn't Need Enemies,"  I wanted to point out that Kim Pearson of BlogHer wrote an excellent post about the topic.  In it she quotes several scholars regarding the depiction of black women in American history and she also included the following:

It doesn't help that this image hit the blogosphere not long after a Roswell, Georgia magazine published a cover showing Sen. Obama in a rifle's cross-hairs.

This image flips and merges two of the most emblematic images in our tragic racial history: the black (usually) male victim suffering unjustly at the hands of white racists, and the fragile woman (historically white) being violated by brutish (black, and often imaginary) men.

It's a post worth reading.  And by the way, I still haven't heard anything from the Daily Kos.  I doubt I will

With Friends Like The Daily Kos, Michelle Obama Doesn't Need Enemies

The picture to the right was posted on the Daily Kos a liberal, political blog last Monday as part of an article called "The New Improved Southern Strategy."

In it, the writer One Citizen wrote in defense of Michelle Obama:

Right wing blogs and emails are suddenly all ablaze with half-truths and lies about Michelle Obama.  One interesting rumor circulating is that she's disingenuous for having claimed to have been brought up in a one-room tenement when she wasn't.  The fact is that she's never claimed it either.  The closest claim she's ever made is that she's from a working class-neighborhood.

I can't link to the actual post because it was removed after what I'm assuming were protests about the accompanying picture.  I read about this post at the blog What About Our Daughters. They linked to a screen shot of the post and that's where I got the quote.

This is what WAOD had to say about the picture:

I get the point they were trying to make, Michelle Obama is being criticized by the GOP for numerous things, but really what was going to your mind when you imagined Michelle Obama being tortured by the Klan?

I whole heartedly agree.  It's offensive, disgusting and makes me sick.  When I originally saw the picture I got a grapefruit sized knot in the pit of my stomach, but deep down I wasn't surprised.  How sad is that?  It appears anything goes these days and I'm just a prude when it comes to trying to be sensitive to others' feelings.  After all, this is "edgy" and  isn't edgy what everyone's shooting for these days? 

It doesn't matter that the Daily Kos was defending Michelle Obama.  The picture negates that.  And seriously, if you're the editor of a blog, don't you have to ask yourself, when does the representation of an offense become part of the offense itself?

How is it that someone decided this was something acceptable to post?  Could it be because whoever decided to post it isn't a black woman, and possibly doesn't know or care about any black women?  Is it possible they thought the message was so important that the controversy was worth it?  Or did they crassly decide the controversy would stir up more hits and that was all that counted?

If anyone from the Daily Kos reads this, I'd sincerely like to know.  If the post was removed because the folks at the Daily Kos came to their senses, I'd like to know that too.

Just removing the post with no explanation isn't enough.  How about an apology to all the black women out there who felt like I did?  Sick, but not surprised.

I plan on sending the Daily Kos a link to this post and I'll let you know when or if I hear from them.

Barack Obama Answers Questions For BlogHer

BlogHer just posted this interview with Senator Barack Obama.  In it he answers several policy questions submitted by the BlogHer community.  Topics covered include the war in Iraq, health care and the environment.

You can read the post and comments associated with the interview here.

More Thoughts On Justine Henin

Image details: BEL: Justine Henin Announces Her Retirement served by picapp.com

Now that I've picked my jaw up off the ground, I'm ready to say more about the retirement of world No.1 tennis player Justine Henin.

As commenter Denise pointed out to me yesterday, it's possible I jumped the gun with my speculation about why she's really retiring.  Besides the reasons I mentioned yesterday, if I'm honest, part of my reason for speculating is that I don't like her.  You see, I hold grudges---it's a character flaw that with a lot of drugs and a little therapy, I might be able to overcome, but until then, there it is.

The primary reason is the French Open semi-final she played against Serena Williams in 2003 which is described in this article by Howard Fendrich at NBC Sports.com.

However, let's go out on an high note, shall we?  I'm here to write about my memories of the 5' 6" powerhouse from Belgium.  The first that pops into my head is the semi-final she played at the 2003 US Open against Jennifer Capriati.   That match, which went into the wee hours of the night was one of the best matches I've ever seen. 

Jennifer threw every tennis skill she owned at Henin, was two points away from winning the match at least ten times, and Henin would not go away.  She was down 5-2 in the third, came back to beat Capriati, and after needing IV fluids to replenish herself, went on to win the tournament the next night.

And what about all those clashes with Serena Williams?  There were many and they were fiery.  Unlike Aranxta Sanchez-Vicario who made up for her short stature with speed, Justine developed her body with a training regimen that would kill most football players and compensated with compact power and consistent groundstrokes.  The rest of her game?  All mental.  She had a will of iron.

From The International Herald Tribune, here are some AP quotes from other players:

"She was a great champion and she gave me a world of trouble, so I hope the best for her. She had a great year last year. ... Gosh, what can you say about such a champion? I don't think we have enough time." — American player Serena Williams.

"She was a great opponent. She always challenged herself to play her best tennis no matter what the circumstances. She was just a real fighter, so I think that was really what made her best." — American player Venus Williams

"She was a great player and achieved so much. She brought a lot to the women's game. ... I'm sorry to hear this thing, but it's her own feeling and her own decision." — Serbian player Ana Ivanovic.

"It's obviously a shock for the tennis world. It's particularly surprising that it came one month before the French Open and two months before Wimbledon, which she has never won. It's unfortunate she is out of the game, but she would have had her reasons." — top-ranked men's player Roger Federer.

So a hearty farewell and good luck to Justine.  Allez!

Tennis Shocker: Justine Henin Retires!

Image details: Sony Ericsson Open Day 9 served by picapp.com

Justine Henin, the number one women's player in the world has announced her retirement at the age of 25!

I don't know about you, but I'm floored.  For her to retire is one thing.  For her to retire right before the French Open, which she loves and which she's won four times is shocking. 

According to BBC Sport:

The 25-year-old insists her decision is final after confirming the shock news in her native Belgium on Wednesday.

"It's the end of a wonderful adventure but it's something I have been thinking about for a long time," said the winner of seven Grand Slam singles titles.

The article continued:

Henin also insists that, unlike many other sports stars who have retired at an early age, she will not change her mind.

"A new future is ahead and I won't go back on this decision," she added.

There's got to be more to this story.  It's entirely possible that Henin's burnt out and after twenty years in tennis, she feels it's time to move on, but I'm wondering if there's not some injury we don't know about or some personal issue we don't know about.

I'm not a huge fan of Henin's, but I respect her work ethic and her accomplishments in the world of tennis.  And once I get my jaw off the ground, I might have more to say about this.
 

Enough Of Reverend Wright Already

Just because the Reverend Jeremiah Wright decides he needs to do a media tour across the country based on his new media status as "Rabble Rousing Flavor Of The Month," does not mean the media should be covering him 24/7.

Enough, already!

Yesterday Reverend Wright was at the Washington Press Club and over the weekend he did an interview with Bill Moyers which aired on PBS, and made an appearance at an NAACP gathering.  So for the last 24 hours, Reverend Wright has been exhaustively covered on every single television news channel. I half expected to see a segment about whether or not Reverend Wright's choice of toothpaste reflected badly on Barack Obama or not, because God knows I saw everything else.

I resent all this coverage because it smacks of so many things I abhor about the media.  Number one, that this one black man speaks for all black people.  As far as the media was concerned, it used to be Jesse Jackson who "spoke" for all black people, then Reverend Al Sharpton, and for a while there, film director Spike Lee was our "spokesperson."  Now it's Reverend Wright.

But I got news for you.  Reverend Wright does not speak for all black people.  Reverend Wright does not speak for Barack Obama.  Reverend Wright is using this spotlight as his bully pulpit.  Good for him for trying.  That doesn't mean he's news any longer.  That doesn't mean his every breath should be televised.

Memo to the news channels:  Reverend Wright is not running for president.  Barack Obama is.

There are health care issues, and poverty issues, and war issues all percolating under the surface of the public consciousness, but all you insist on doing is throwing Reverend Wright at us and hoping you can whip up a good old 24/7 news cycle race war.

It's ridiculous.  Obama has answered every question he needs to about Reverend Wright and from now on when asked about him, he should just give the reporter a copy of his speech on race from a few weeks ago and move on.

Just like I want to do.

Bob Herbert of the New York Times wrote an article today where he speculates that Reverend Wright's recent forays in front of the spotlight have a lot to do with getting back at Barack Obama for not defending him.  "What we’re witnessing now is Rev. Wright’s “I’ll show you!” tour," Herbert writes.

I don't know that I agree with that assessment, but I do know, I'd like to hear more critical assessments of the candidates positions and much, much less from Reverend Wright.