DAN RUBIN: For two weeks, Fumocrats Jim Kenney and Frank DiCicco have found their public — and some private — moments captured on videotape by Ed Kirlin, a consultant for Local 98 of the electricians union. Kirlin, you might remember, is the guy the city Ethics Board has accused of being behind flyers that questioned then-mayoral candidate Michael Nutter’s motivations for leaving the Catholic Church. After the Sept. 18 session, when DiCicco walked over to Committee of Seventy head Zack Stalberg and youth advocate Shelly Yanoff, DiCicco warned them they were being watched by a Local 98 operative. Kirlin said, […]
EVER NOTICE THAT: The More Things Change…
The more they stay uncannily the same? Or do they? CLICK TO ENLARGE TELEGRAPH: Barack Obama’s senior aides believe he is on course for a landslide election victory over John McCain and will comfortably exceed most current predictions in the race for the White House.Their optimism, which is said to be shared by the Democratic candidate himself, is based on information from private polling and on faith in the powerful political organisation he has built in the key swing states. Insiders say that Mr Obama’s apparent calm through an unusually turbulent election season is because he believes that his strength […]
WORTH REPEATING: The Twilight’s Last Gleaming
[Illustration by DRUNKPUPPY] SMIRKING CHIMP: Here’s the thing about Americans. You can send their kids off by the thousands to get their balls blown off in foreign lands for no reason at all, saddle them with billions in debt year after congressional year while they spend their winters cheerfully watching game shows and football, pull the rug out from under their mortgages, and leave them living off their credit cards and their Wal-Mart salaries while you move their jobs to China and Bangalore. And none of it matters, so long as you remember a few months before Election Day to […]
TONITE: Do You Know Where You’re Going To?
TAXI TO THE DARK SIDE (2007, directed by Alex Gibney, 106 minutes, U.S.) BY DAN BUSKIRK FILM CRITIC Everything I know about politics I learned at the movies. Take torture. It was watching all those WWII movies with my older brother that introduced me to the U.S. policy on torture and war, especially prison camp films like The Great Escape, The Bridge On the River Kwai and Stalag 17. In each of them, the U.S. soldiers were left fairly unmolested, forced by dumb luck to wait out the war in lousy P.O.W. camp conditions. Occasionally a Japanese or German commander […]
FAILOUT: House Votes ‘No’ On Bailout
WALL STREET JOURNAL: A bipartisan group of U.S. House lawmakers defeated a $700 billion rescue plan for Wall Street on Monday, rejecting pleas from the Bush administration and congressional leaders from both parties of the potential dire consequences of policymakers not acting to help financial markets. The 205-228 vote against the plan sent stocks plummeting, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down around 500 points as news of the vote spread through Wall Street. The defeat came despite House leaders holding open the vote for well beyond the 15-minute time limit, supporters were unable to convince enough members of either […]
PALINTOLOGY: ‘It Was Fun While It Lasted’
WALL STREET JOURNAL: The McCain campaign moved its top officials inside Gov. Sarah Palin’s operation Sunday to prepare for what is certain to be the most important event of her vice-presidential campaign: her debate on Thursday with Democrat Joe Biden. Additionally, at the urging of the Republican presidential nominee, Sen. John McCain, Gov. Palin will leave late Monday for his Arizona ranch to prepare for the high-stakes debate. The moves follow several shaky performances by Gov. Palin last week and come amid concern and grumbling from Republicans, and even a few queries from her husband, Todd Palin, according to campaign […]
MY BAD: Latrice Bryant Is Sorry For ‘KKK’ Signs
INQUIRER: The chief legislative aide to Philadelphia City Councilman W. Wilson Goode Jr. issued a “letter of apology” yesterday for flashing handwritten signs in City Council chambers comparing a Fox29 news reporter to the Ku Klux Klan. In the letter addressed to Goode, Latrice Bryant said: “I apologize for my public, albeit silent, display of the handwritten signs. What I did was inappropriate and inexcusable.” On Sept. 18, during a Council meeting, Bryant held up notebook paper with the messages “Fox29 are racist” and “Jeff Cole KKK.” Bryant and Goode are black and reporter Jeff Cole is white. As Fox29 […]
PWNED: Citigroup Swallows Wachovia Whole
NEW YORK TIMES: Citigroup reached an agreement early Monday morning to acquire the banking operations of the Wachovia Corporation after making a daring bid that pulled the deeply troubled company from the brink of collapse. Federal regulators worked around the clock this weekend to orchestrate the sale, finally reaching an agreement at 4 a.m. on Monday morning. In the end, the government agreed to provide Citigroup with a financial guarantee on Wachovia’s most risky assets. It is similar to the deal that the Federal Reserve established with JP Morgan Chase’s emergency takeover of Bear Stearns. Citigroup will assume the first […]
BACK TO THE FUTURE: McCain Elected President
Only you can stop this. Click HERE to check your voter registration status. Remember, October 6th is the registration deadline to vote in this election. What the HELL are you waiting for?
USSR: Bailout Could Be The Death Of $700 Billion Man
[Photoshop by NY POST] WASHINGTON POST: At the final, critical meeting in negotiations on the $700 billion Wall Street bailout — the last round of talks began at 10:40 p.m. Saturday and ended around 12:25 a.m. this morning — Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson was so short of breath that lawmakers called the Capitol physician because they were so concerned. Paulson, 62, a former Dartmouth offensive tackle, told lawmakers he was fine and waved off the doctor, despite working around the clock for several days. But as Paulson and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) later walked to the microphones to address the […]
HEAD OF SKATE: Would Be Funnier If It Wasn’t True
EDITOR’S NOTE: Welcome Salon, Wonkette and Andrew Sullivan readers! You can find all of our Sarah Palin coverage HERE.
GAMBLOR: John McCain, Casino First
NEW YORK TIMES: Senator John McCain was on a roll. In a room reserved for high-stakes gamblers at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, he tossed $100 chips around a hot craps table. When the marathon session ended around 2:30 a.m., the Arizona senator and his entourage emerged with thousands of dollars in winnings. A lifelong gambler, Mr. McCain takes risks, both on and off the craps table. He was throwing dice that night not long after his failed 2000 presidential bid, in which he was skewered by the Republican Party’s evangelical base, opponents of gambling. Mr. McCain was betting […]
LIVE & DIRECT: Mississippi Burning
We were planning to live blog from the Irish Pub, with one eye on Bible Spice and the other on the debate — but her handlers are already shooing her out of town before anyone actually asks her a question. Never fear, though, dear reader, for we shall be liveblogging the debate from the comfort of our pajamas. As per usual, Citizen Mom and Jonathan Valania — the Greatest Political Analyst Team In The Known Universe — will be cracking wise, with occasional shoutouts from Philly Mag’s Steve Volk. You lucky ducks! 8:54 PMCitizen: yo 8:55 PM Where the hell is […]