I know, I know. Nobody cares about silly old yesterday, wherein we witnessed history before our very eyes. Wherein Pat Buchanan largely supported the speech of a Democratic black man right before the gates of hell permanently froze over and three dozen albino squirrels began flying out of Chris Matthews's butt.
That's because today, McCain said "UNCLE!" to Rove, Dobson, and Huckabee and agreed to pick the former mayor of an Alaskan village to be his Vice Presidential nominee. She's been the governor of a sparsely populated state for a year and a half -- before that, she was the mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, population 5,470 (2000 Census). A town near where I grew up is called Holly, Michigan. Population 6,135 (2000 Census). With all due respect to Holly's "village president" -- I don't think he's qualified to be one 72-year-old cancer survivor's heartbeat away from the Presidency of the United States.
Even if he was the greatest village president Holly has ever seen, I doubt it makes him ready to face the challenges of terrorism, energy policy, the national economy, global climate change, international trade, Social Security, health care, national education policy, or international diplomacy.
The Democratic Party's primary season was a vision of equality -- a woman and a black man, both exceptionally knowledgeable, both with a history of good judgment and solid records of achievement pursued the Presidency of this great nation. Both were qualified, either would be great presidents in their own right.
But choosing Sarah Palin was not a nod toward true equality for women -- it is a nod at the way Republicans see equality... which is to say, they don't.
To Democrats, equality means that you choose the most qualified person, whether it's a black man or a white woman, a white man or a Hispanic woman. To Republicans, women are not actually equal to men. The only reason for a Republican to choose a woman is for blatant political purposes, and it doesn't matter if she's actually qualified or not.
Sarah Palin is not.
The truth about Sarah Palin is that she opposes a woman's right to an abortion, even if a woman is raped. She doesn't believe in science, denies the existence of climate change, and is in the pockets of large oil companies.
John McCain has once again shown his similarities to Bush -- a man who chose some of the most incompetent, underqualified people for prominent positions within his administration. Remember "Heckuva job Brownie" (on this 3rd anniversary of Katrina hitting New Orleans)? Bush made these horrible choices because he himself is incompetent and underqualified. And America cannot afford another incompetent, underqualified President.
Anyway, now that's out of the way. Let's get to the good stuff:
Our Next President, Barack Obama:
"Now, I don't believe that Senator McCain doesn't care what's going on in the lives of Americans. I just think he doesn't know ... It's not because John McCain doesn't care. It's because John McCain doesn't get it."
Barack Obama:
"John McCain likes to say that he'll follow bin Laden to the Gates of Hell -- but he won't even go to the cave where he lives."
Barack Obama:
"The same party that brought you two terms of George Bush and Dick Cheney will ask this country for a third. And we are here because we love this country too much to let the next four years look like the last eight. On November 4th, we must stand up and say: 'Eight is enough'."
Barack Obama:
"Senator McCain likes to talk about judgment, but really, what does it say about your judgment when you think George Bush has been right more than ninety percent of the time? I don't know about you, but I'm not ready to take a ten percent chance on change."
Barack Obama:
"For over two decades, he's subscribed to that old, discredited Republican philosophy - give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down to everyone else. In Washington, they call this the Ownership Society, but what it really means is - you're on your own. Out of work? Tough luck. No health care? The market will fix it. Born into poverty? Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps - even if you don't have boots. You're on your own."
Barack Obama:
"For the sake of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, I will set a clear goal as President: in ten years, we will finally end our dependence on oil from the Middle East."
Barack Obama:
"America, now is not the time for small plans."
Barack Obama:
"Now is the time to keep the promise of equal pay for an equal day's work, because I want my daughters to have exactly the same opportunities as your sons."
Barack Obama:
"We cannot meet twenty-first century challenges with a twentieth century bureaucracy."
Barack Obama:
"If you have health care, my plan will lower your premiums. If you don't, you'll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves."
Barack Obama:
"If John McCain wants to have a debate about who has the temperament, and judgment, to serve as the next Commander-in-Chief, that's a debate I'm ready to have."
Barack Obama:
"We are the party of Roosevelt. We are the party of Kennedy. So don't tell me that Democrats won't defend this country. Don't tell me that Democrats won't keep us safe."
Barack Obama:
"If you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare the voters. If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from. You make a big election about small things."
Gov. Bill Richardson (D-NM):
"I've got a question for you! Is anyone here going to miss Dick Cheney?"
Gov. Bill Richardson (D-On Fire):
"John McCain will pay hundreds of dollars for his own shoes. But we're the ones who have to pay for his flip-flops."
President Al Gore:
"The carbon fuels industry-big oil and coal-have a 50-year lease on the Republican Party and they are drilling it for everything it's worth."
President Al Gore:
"John McCain is now openly endorsing the policies of the Bush-Cheney White House and promising to actually continue the same policies over again? Hey, I believe in recycling but that's ridiculous."
Barney Smith (Longtime Republican):
"Republicans talk about putting 'country first'. But tell that to Marion, Indiana. They sent my job overseas."
Barney Smith (Longtime Republican):
"We need a president who puts Barney Smith before Smith Barney."
Tim Kaine (D-VA):
"What an honor to speak not just to those gathered here in Denver but to homes across America -- and not just those owned by John McCain."
Tim Kaine (D-VA):
"Maybe for John McCain the American dream means seven houses-and if that's your America, John McCain is your candidate. But for the rest of us, the American dream means one home -- in a safe neighborhood, with good schools and good health care and a little money left over every month to go out for dinner and save for the future. Does that seem like too much to ask? John McCain thinks it is."