Palin: I'm Not Telling You Also!

Asked whether she voted for embattled, seven-count convicted felon, GOP incumbent Ted Stevens, Palin responded, "I am also exercising my right to privacy and I don't have to tell anybody who I voted for, nobody does, and that's what's really cool about America also."

Asked about Governor Palin's statements, the word "also" offered, "Tell that nutcup to leave me alone! I do not want to be part of her sentences anymore!"

Will We Come Together As A Nation?

Probably not. The domain name obamaimpechment.org is already active. impeachobama.com is unavailable for purchase.

Support for impeachment proceedings against Barack Obama prior to his election? The GOP vipers waste no time.

It's A Family Affair!

From The Potatoe's correspondent in Philly:

Outside a Philly polling location. This has been a generational event. Entire families voting together.

Reports From The Keystone State

A few tidbits:

- Reportedly a drunk poll worker at a location in Philly was telling everyone they could not vote.

- After a long wait, an Obama supporter had enough and got off the line. A number of Obama supporters lingering around the site allegedly gave the surrendering comrade a verbal flogging all the way to his car.

McCain Debates Palin!

Parting Message From Dick Morris

Dear Friend,

I will be working with Newsmax.com on election night to assess the data as it comes in. I will do interviews and send in blogs to NewsMax.com as the evening unfolds.

I believe we will be able to tell who has won and by what margin very early in the evening as we interpret, properly, the returns from the states that close their polls at 7:30 PM.

I won’t be on FoxNews election night but will be on O’Reilly on Wednesday and Hannity and Colmes on Thursday to react to the results.

Thank you very, very much for reading my emails throughout the race and I hope that they brought you insights that you found helpful and even entertaining!

Love,

Dick

Dear Dick:

Suck it.

Regards,

Every pollster in the country

Keystone Block Party!

From the field in Pennsylvania:

First thing was a big rush but then a trickle. Pa democrats already have a motion to keep polls open later than 8. Inner city has been 99.99 percent black voters and unabashed obama electioneering here - more like a block party than a polling place. Absolutely a feeling of total dedication to the cause by the voters - never seen such determination and joy about voting. They also LOVE us - they're totally into the coumbaya vibe with the voters and the poll watchers.The after 5 crush is forecasted to be immense and our district has been shockingly old peeps mostly. We'll see what happens after 5 though.

A festive vibe. Wonder how festive it is for Republicans at this district?

Keystone State Mayhem!

From another correspondent in Philly:

A lady just pulled up and told us this was her third trip driving voters. Unprecedented elderly turnout causing problems, because they voted during the morning rush.

Man, the dust muppets LOVE to vote. It's an outing. They make a day of it.

GOP Wilting?

From a correspondent outside of Philly:

Some details:

Obama's women volunteers - super good looking.

Unsubstantiated reports of black panther intimidation of McCain supporters in Philly spreading here.

McCain supporters literally packing up and leaving during day

More to come.

McCain supporters punching out early? I'll believe it when I see Pennsylvania go deep blue! Tough to shake off years of skepticism. Polls close in Virginia in less than three hours!!!

No Electioneering Within 100 Feet!

Press avail within five feet of a polling booth? Not so much a commentary on Hillary's lack of understanding, but more a sad statement of McCain's pitiful ground effort. Where are the GOP watchdogs? If Mitt Romney pulled this crap, Obamanites would devour his body like a pack of rabid dogs!

More Democrat Braggadocio

From one of our people in Ohio:

Problem with a voter who cast a provisional ballot when she should have been allowed to vote. Repubs showed up after. Eddie Muster acted like a tough guy, and then we scared the off with our good looks. They are under manned and roaming.

Ha - we know there are no good looking Democrats.

Seriously, stay grounded. Not a single vote has been counted yet (except for what will be known as the 2008 Dixville Notch Massacre!).

The Calm Madness of PA

Chaos is in the eye of the beholder: Problems in Philly or Republican problems in Philly?

Celebrating Too Soon?

From one of our people in Virginia:

Mccain supporters ditched out here too. Also they were ugly as sin. That should be noted. Turnouts here are beyond a record. It's an amazing turnout. The mccain supporters looked like someone had slipped them ex-lax in their coffee. They looked not thrilled.

Can you say exit polling for Kerry in 2004? Restrain your cocky impulses. Just get out the vote and act like you've been there before.

The Secret Society of Obamanites

From one of our people in the field:

McCain people just left, possibly for the day.

I hope this is indicative of general GOP support throughout NC.

People are not super energized about McCain and many don't come out.
Every Obama supporter that walks out gives as a knowing wink and nod; like we all are part of a secret society and we are the precipice of executing our master plan.

This is awesome.

I'd sh*tcan the "secret society . . . executing our master plan" rhehtoric. You're starting to sound like a new incarnation of the Weather Underground. Easy on the subversion. And certainly easy on the arrogance - the polls have not closed anywhere yet.

Voter Shenanigans

Are you surprised? From TMZ:

So, check this out. Deerfield Beach, Fla. is one hour south of Palm Beach. Nearly 400 people were planted firmly in line at 6:15 this morning, waiting for the polls to open at 7:00 AM. There is one voting machine to accommodate all of them. The area almost entirely African American. Many of the people never have voted before. One woman was 101 years old. She was wheeled into the polling place and on her way out she said that before she died, she wanted to vote for a black man.Election monitors noticed a man in line who appeared to be a voter. Turns out he was a saboteur, telling people the Democrats were supposed to vote at a different location.Some of the voters said they were robocalled last night. The message -- Democrats weren't supposed to vote until Wednesday.

Who Are The People In Your Neighborhood?

CHICAGO, Ill. -- Among the other voters who have shown up to vote at Shoesmith Elementary School this morning, where Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., will vote: Louis Farrakhan and William Ayers.

Seriously.

Welcome to the South Side of Chicago.

That's pretty bananas. I wonder who they're voting for?

Warm Apple Pie Endorses Barack Obama For President

(Length warning. Someone's getting maudlin and windy!)

Formerly, I was an insalubrious fatty. I puffed a pack of Parliaments each day, considered exercise my morning constitutional to the toilet for bladder relief and stuffed my pudgy face full of McGriddles (ah, McGriddles - you still haunt my dreams!). There is a telling photograph of my bespectacled visage from Thanksgiving 2005 with a thick film of gravy - yes, gravy - on the right lens of my glasses. I really got into my food. I used my whole grill.

I was pretty sorry. My longtime girlfriend and I had parted ways six months prior to the humiliating candid shot - "ode to gluttony." My skin was a bit ruddy. I couldn't get my motor going in the morning. I sleepwalked through a dead end job. My apartment was a mess, strewn with cigarette ash and empty pizza boxes. Generally, the zest for life so self-evident during my early and mid-twenties had eroded into the enervation of my thirtieth year. A sad state of affairs.

Simply put? I needed hope. I needed change - change I could believe in.

I wiped the gravy off my glasses and addressed the mirror, confronting an old reflection before its time. Then, I took the first step.

I put down the smokes and tried to extricate the psychosomatic yearning in the pit of my chest. It wasn't easy. I teetered back and forth, sneaking drags from enabling friends, sometimes a whole butt. Like Ben Stiller playing "Simple Jack," the cold turkey removal of nicotine-produced endorphins made me feel "actually retarded." It was a dreadful epoch - those first few months. The withdrawal from addiction was frightening. Could I stop smoking forever?

Change was scary.

I got off the couch and trudged towards the gym, lugging my hefty 215 pound blob of a body to the treadmill, to the weights. My stringy muscles could hardly muster the will to do any meaningful strength training. My initial visits were painful. It was excruciating early on and progress was small, measured in baby steps. I wanted to quit. But I didn't. I kept at it. I got stronger, slowly, then steadily. The results manifested themselves. My vigor returned.

Change was tough.

I said goodbye to my beloved food, my blocks of Cracker Barrel, Extra Sharp, my Wendy's Junior Bacon Cheeseburgers, my chicken and cheese quesadillas (what can I say - I like cheese). Instead, I filled my robust belly with boatloads of protein. Chicken. Fish. I broke company with Mayo. I made my peace with Ben & Jerry's "Chunky Monkey" and sent it on its way. But a funny thing happen while my taste buds held vigil: I felt better. I felt spry. I reclaimed my youth.

Change was necessary.

Today, I'm 180 pounds, haven't smoke a cigarette in over a year (not a drag), fallen madly in love and generally keep my wits about me in the restaurant. No f**king mayo. No thank you, sir. I've improved, but it took change - scary, tough, necessary change.

My point (look, it's pretty late and I'm spent. I'm also half-drunk. Blogging is hard!): I endorse Barack Obama for President of the United States, our shining paragon of freedom, but do so with reservations about the future of an Obama administration, with the understanding that the road to American wellness will be long and painstaking, but with the unflappable realization that Barack Obama is a necessary panacea for the viral policies of George W. Bush's disastrous two terms.

This country is an insalubrious fatty right now. Barack Obama can bring it back to fitness. John McCain cannot.

I'm out of gas and really don't feel like ragging on John McCain again. His campaign speaks volumes. His inability to stay on message or offer a cohesive vision of our economic destiny is just too telling. John McCain is too risky to lead. That's a funny realization.

Yes, like the rest of the blogging world except for the incorrigibly cynical and intellectually bankrupt, Sarah Palin didn't shift the political winds for me. But for a different reason than most. It wasn't her feckless efforts during her first interviews or her desultory presentation in front of the electorate. It wasn't even McCain's judgment in making the selection. For me, it's why he picked her - a straight, unabashed pander to the GOP base. That scares me more than the flimsy radical associations portrayed by the Republicans as surrounding Obama. For the first time in his political career, McCain played the partisan sycophant and tossed in with the far right. In appeasing the divisive component of the party, he forever coated his favorite word "Maverick" with thick irony. I would never take his campaign seriously again.

As for Obama, I go in believing, but with my eyes open. I like his energy policy. I like setting a hard deadline for energy independence in 10 years - a bold initiative rivaling Kennedy's race to the moon. I also like his health care plan. It's a hybrid between private insurance and the European model (yes . . . socialism! Woooooo.). We fatuously call this land the "shining city on the hill" until the remaining 42,000,000 of our fellow citizens can afford basic health care and, in turn, basic human dignity. And we'll quibble with taxes later on and reach a compromise.

Finally, I like what Obama represents to the global community, a signal that America will no longer play racial identity politics. He may become a galvanizing figure in this world always on the brink, embolden our allies to stand with us and fight evil, and cause our enemies to lose their stomach for battle. A beatific vision of course, but shouldn't we shoot for the stars and come up short, rather than admiring the distant twinkles of possibility from the wallow of our realities.

Hope - the fuzzy depiction the Republicans lambasted and disrobed throughout the campaign as shell promises. Tawdry goods. Valueless preacher hype. They never understood that hope fuels progress, creates ideas, sparks innovation. Hope is the thing of gut checks, when you're at rock bottom, no health care, no job, no prospects, a mountain of bills, not a pot to piss in, no way out. Fettered by hopelessness, that's your only spiritual leverage - the faint glimmer of hope. It's why you buy a lottery ticket. It's why you dream. McCain, Palin and the surrogates discredited it with every talking point. I firmly believe they will pay the price for their political atheism in less than 24 hours.

I hope Barack Obama wins. And that's enough to keep me going if he loses. Hope is real.

So that's it. You have my prediction for a metered Obama victory. Sorry about this stream of consciousness. On the old devil box, I'm watching Sarah Palin speak live from Elko, Nevada as she completes her campaign '08 gauntlet. Gosh, her crackling voice crawls into my debilitated brain like those slimy creatures Khan inserts into Chekhov's ear in Star Trek II. "I must obey . . . her incoherency . . . must write not good and dumb also."

One hell of an election though. The Potatoe will have reports from the field throughout the day, including live reports from polling districts in battleground states. We will be with you through the results of the election. Our country names a President in 24 hours (as long as Florida doesn't get unruly again). That's a hell of a thing.

Polls open in less than five hours on the East Coast. Good luck America. Let's keep it fair and civil. In the words of Jack Burton, "may the wings of liberty never shed a feather."

I leave you with Senator Obama's words from his October 22 rally in Richmond, Virginia. Click the link.

Screw it. I also leave you with this, Obama supporters:


One vote at a time. That's an election, guys. That's all it is.

Now . . . what are you going to do?

And It Begins . . .

Dixville Notch concludes midnight voting. The tiny township selects Senator Barack Obama as its choice for President of the United States, 15 to 6, over John McCain.

A good start.

ONE QUESTION

Where are your medical records, Governor Palin?

48 hours to go! We won't want them on Wednesday. You promised. You should keep your promises. That's part of "puttin' government back on the side of the folks also."

Oh, you meant you would release them prior to the end of the 2012 election. My apologies for the "gotcha" journalism then. You keep going rogue, sister!

***UPDATE***: Have you ever noticed that the audio on Sarah Palin's plane was either muted or "wasn't working" whenever the Governor is questioned about Tina Fey's turns on SNL:

It turns out Ms. Palin missed the full experience of watching Mr. McCain on “Saturday Night Live.” She boarded her charter plane at 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, just on time to watch the show, an aide said, but the audio on her television wasn’t working.

Could it be to avoid the awkwardness of questions like does she have any designs on the White House in 2012 before the 2008 election is over?

Is this really an update to this post? No - but it gave me the excuse to yell again, "WHERE ARE THE MEDICAL RECORDS, GOVERNOR PALIN???"

***UPDATE***: Sullivan is exasperated. So am I. Give up the records.

***UPDATE***: Draw your own conclusions about the supposed liberal bias of the mainstream media, but Jake Tapper of ABC News has requested Palin's medical records each day since she promised to disclose them during an interview with Brian Williams on October 22. To date, no production of records. Not even a skeletal one-page summary. Not even a three-hour in camera review. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Draw your own conclusions about Governor Palin . . . you know what . . . no . . . let me draw them for you: Sarah Palin lies. She is the ostensible successor to the "bob and weave" evasiveness and concoction practiced by George W. Bush over the past 8 years.

***UPDATE***: ABC News reports Governor Palin's campaign has released a two-page letter from the Governor's person physician summarizing her past health:

ABC News' Imtiyaz Delawala and Kate Snow report: Gov. Sarah Palin’s personal family physician says she is in excellent health and “has no known health problems that would interfere with her ability to carry out the duties and obligations of Vice President of the United States of America.”

Late on the eve of the election, the Palin campaign released a brief two-page letter from Dr. Cathy Gladwin Johnson, a family physician affiliated with the Mat-Su Regional Medical Center near the Governor’s home in Wasilla, Alaska.

Honestly, I've got bigger fish to fry right now, but thanks for the perfunctory effort, Sarah. Nice meeting you. Good luck with all your future endeavors in Alaska.

Warm Apple Pie's Final Electoral Map: Obama Prevails, Makes History, But No Landslide (289-249)

Barack Hussein Obama will become the 44th President of the United States of America. See, you can use Barack's middle name in celebration of his rich heritage without subtext, prejudice or innuendo. Tomorrow will be a historic day for America, devoid of dilatory tactics, featuring a timely, heartfelt, stately concession speech by John McCain and culminating in a wonderfully high-flying oration by President-Elect Obama (in the words of Chris Matthews, I think I just got a "thrill up my leg") making the case for national unity. I predict nothing as to the success or failures of Barack Obama's first term. We are not there yet and I want to savor the exultation of this moment without thinking forwards or backwards. I want to immerse myself in the sounds and images. I want to reach out and apply a fleeting, futile grip to the now unappreciated nostalgia of my prospective twilight years.

Enough turgidity. To the numbers . . .

I see trending towards McCain in Pennsylvania, but too little, too late. Per the methodology expressed in my previous post, Grant Park will party early tomorrow night without biting fingernails deep into the witching hour when elections are stolen. And the margin of victory will be big enough to keep lawyers at bay and off the clock.

I see Obama solidifying the support within his Rocky Mountain West trifecta: Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado will vote Obama tomorrow. It is the keystone to Obama's victory and a testament to David Plouffe's electoral strategy in extending the McCain campaign beyond the budgetary limits of its operations.

I see the dead heat of Florida cutting towards McCain, partly due to the concerted, unseemly campaign tactics of sinister RNC surrogates. There is only so much Obama-Bin Laden or Obama-Hitler literature one candidate can withstand. It will be close in Florida despite this ugly calumny, but Obama will lose. However, it will not matter this time.

I see Virginia capitulating to a push from its "Real American" roots and cresting for McCain by 1 or 2 points. North Carolina will come with it. Still, forcing the GOP ticket to expend precious resources in the deep South was a pragmatic move in keeping Republican money away from Iowa and the Rocky Mountain West - states voting for Bush during the last foray.

I tentatively see Ohio going for McCain. This is the election day surprise considering all, but a sprinkling of polls call this state for Obama outside the margin of error. My heart says Obama. My head says McCain. The Obama campaign paid due attention to Ohio and the whirlwind three-stop tour yesterday generated ample energy and over 170,000 attendees. Still, I do not trust Ohio's election infrastructure or its presiding officials, there is corruption coming from both sides in the Buckeye state and the leak of Obama's comments to the San Francisco Chronicle with respect to bankrupting coal plants (out of context or not) will have a bit of resonance, especially in light of the head of the Ohio Coal Association's public response.

If I'm wrong about Ohio, Obama clears over 300 electoral votes as many predict (309 total).

I see the dead heat of Missouri breaking towards Obama by a margin of 2 points. The big urban center of St. Louis wins the day, attracting record numbers of Obama voters. Missouri is the feather in Obama's cap, electoral map gravy, as a state that favored Bush by over 7 points in 2004 comes around to the Democrats.

I see Indiana voting Republican. Obama put up a game fight, but the Hoosiers would vote for John McCain, Sarah Palin, Joe the Plumber, even Tito the Builder. It is a red state. Period.

The rest of the map reflects 2004. 289 to 249. Not the thumping of most commentators' augury, but I only take small sips of the Obama Kool Aid jug, not full swigs.

As far as the popular vote, I think most polling is validated tomorrow and Obama wins by a 5 point margin, 52% to 47% with the remaining 1% cast into the ether of the third-party cosmos. I also predict a larger turnout than 2004 with over 65% of United States citizens over the age of 18 casting a ballot.

Endorsement to come . . .

***UPDATE***: Pollster.com submits its prediction. It gives Obama Virginia and Ohio.