US Attorney Chris Christie, and probable 2009 Republican Gubernatorial candidate, has launched a probe of the activities of Governor John Corzine’s ex-girlfriend, and former Local CWA 1034 President, Carla Katz.

Some Democrats think this “doesn’t look right”, but where were these guardians of propriety and principle when Corzine was negotiating a new contract with Katz, who just happened to head the Union that represented the largest number of state workers? Something sure “doesn’t look right”, but it is the conduct of the Governor.

You know, a lot of people are going to be watching this debate. They're going to hear Republicans on this stage talk about how great the economy is.

And frankly, when they hear that, they're going to probably reach for the dial. I want to make sure people understand that for many people on this stage the economy's doing terrifically well, but for a lot of Americans it's not doing so well. The people who handle the bags and make the beds at our hotels and serve the food, many of them are having to work two jobs, and that's barely paying the rent. And you know what else? They don't think that they can afford for their kids to go to college; they're pretty sure they're not going to be able to afford health insurance.

This was on October 9, 2007 and even then, Huckabee had a grasp of how the economy was really doing. The other candidates might have thought he was a fool, but he knew what he was talking about.

On the way to work this morning, I was listening to NPR and they were talking about the results of an NPR/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard School of Public Health poll.  It was taking a look at Ohio and Florida and how the voters in these two swing states were feeling about the economy.  You can read the full resulst of the poll here, but I want to point out something that I thought was very telling. The poll results state:

Like people in the nation as a whole, Ohioans and Floridians overwhelmingly say the national economy is in not so good or poor shape, and that now is not a good time to buy the things they want and need. Most people see power in the presidency to help fix the economy; eight in ten say that a president can do at least “a little” about the economy, including four in ten in Ohio and nearly half in Florida who think the economy is something a president can do “a lot” about. Fewer than one in five in each state say the economy is mostly beyond any president’s control.

Did you get what that said? People actually believe a President can do something to change the economic outlook of our country. Of course, that would have to be a President that didn't have the oil companies in his pocket. It might also have to be a President who knows what it is like to struggle to make ends meet.  Maybe a President that understands how ordinary Americans fight every day to provide for their families and to give them something in life.

Does all of this sound familiar? Does it sound like President Bush? Does it sound like Hillary Clinton? Does it sound like John McCain or Barack Obama? I think not.  If you have watched and lisented to Mike Huckabee for any length of time, you will know and understand how he empathizes with us as a person, family man/woman, or American. He understands how we are struggling every day.

Even though Mike Huckabee was virtually an unknown when he entered the Republican Presidential race, we knew by listening to him that he had what it took to be our President. That's why we fought tooth and nail to help him win the election. It wasn't just what he said, but also what he did about the issues he faced while Governor of Arkansas that drew our attention. He actually governed and got things done.  Alas, it looks like 2008 is done for.  We can only hope for 2012.

That's my take!

Larry

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Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American bodybuilder, actor, businessman and politician, currently serving as the 38th Governor of the state of California. He is married to journalist Maria Shriver and has four children.

During his first term as governor, Schwarzenegger signed a bill creating the nation's first cap on greenhouse gas emissions, which set new regulations on the amount of emissions that utilities, refineries and manufacturing plants were allowed to release into the atmosphere. Schwarzenegger also signed a second global warming bill that prohibits large utilities and corporations in California from making long-term contracts with suppliers who do not meet the state's greenhouse gas emission standards. Both bills were part of a plan to reduce California's emissions by 25 percent by 2020. In 2005, Schwarzenegger had issued an executive order calling to reduce greenhouse gases to 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050.

Schwarzenegger signed another executive order on October 17, 2006 allowing California to work with the Northeast's Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by issuing a limited amount of carbon credits to each power plant in participating states, which is set to be in effect in 2009.

In addition to using his political power to fight global warming, the governor has taken steps at his home to reduce his personal carbon footprint. Schwarzenegger has adapted one of his Hummers to run on hydrogen and another to run on biofuels. He has also installed solar panels to heat his home.

On June 30, 2008, Schwarzenegger joined with California state treasurer Bill Lockyer and Tesla Motors to announce Tesla's decision to locate its new manufacturing facility in California. In addition, he announced that, as part of the state's ongoing commitment to clean technology, California will be instating a new program that waives the sales tax on investment in new manufacturing equipment for Zero Emission Vehicles.

So, here's the difference between Bush and McCain on the economy.  McCain wants to give even more tax cuts then Bush did (which was a lot) to the oil companies and the top 1% of Americans who are filthy rich.  Other then that back when there were differences between Bush and McCain, McCain went back and agreed with Bush because he knew he couldn't get his party nomination without agreeing with Bush.  Thus, there is no difference between McCain and Bush on the economy.  So, Gov. Mark Sanford was right.  Don't you just love surrogates.

The Poet’s Corner ©

Do I write poetry?
Man, what a question!
When I see daffodils I think
Of Wordsworth for sure;
Can any maid be
Plainer than his Lucy?
As for your Alexandrine:
It can rumble all the way
To Dover Beach for all I care.
Dover! Come Arnold I know you
Spoke so truly there,-
Schwarzenegger, is the other Arnold, I know,
But does he write poetry?
benny