crosscut.com : Politics / Government

Heart attack on McCain

Crosscut — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 18:21:01 PDT

I saw this coming. Last night after John McCain's GOP convention speech, the hall was blasted with the sounds of Seattle band Heart's rocker "Barracuda," which became the convention's theme music for Sarah "Barracuda" Palin (Barracuda was a high-school nickname). I figured an objection would be raised.

If you can read this, congratulations

Crosscut — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 15:56:01 PDT

You've no doubt noticed our site has been sluggish or even inaccessible the past few days. It's because we posted a wildly popular article by a woman in Alaska about Gov. Sarah Palin's days as mayor of Wasilla. Her essay, which originally was an e-mail to friends, has been quoted widely on the Web, but Crosscut was one of the few sites to post it in its entirety. Click, click, click.

Sausage Links, Postman stops ringing edition

Crosscut — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:00:01 PDT

It's a sad day for state journalism. Seattle Times chief political reporter David Postman, the author of the ever-popular Postman on Politics, announced today that after some 14 years at the paper, he will leave to join Vulcan Inc., a company founded and run by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. The Capitol press corps appears to be devastated. I sure am. ...

'Me' for president

Crosscut — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 23:00:01 PDT

How we yearn to see ourselves on a presidential ticket, why John McCain wants a "soul mate," and what the Sarah Palin pick says about the battle for the soul of the GOP.

A decent speech by a decent man

Crosscut — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:00:01 PDT

The convention hall podium is not his comfort zone. But Arizona Sen. John McCain gave an acceptance address that roused Republican National Convention delegates and likely played well to party faithful watching on TV. It will be a few days before polls show whether independents and undecideds found it as moving.

Sarah Palin: the liberal voter's worst nightmare

Crosscut — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:00:01 PDT

A longtime Republican enumerates the many ways by which Gov. Sarah Palin could become the most beloved national figure since Ronald Reagan.

Sausage Links, 'Limbaugh with lipstick' edition

Crosscut — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:59:01 PDT

Sarah Palin has a zinger for you. And you. And me. The Alaska governor-turned-Trophy Vice-turned-bulldog with lipstick sent a fiery pot-shot-filled message to the nation and the media with her speech yesterday at the Republican National Convention. I believe it went something like this. ...

The rebirth of activist theater

Crosscut — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 13:00:01 PDT

Now in its third year, Puget Sound's BOLD theater group presents another round of consciousness-raising theater shows coupled with "Red Tent" events focused on the birthing experience.

A classic evisceration speech by the running mate

Crosscut — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 06:00:01 PDT

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin proved herself worthy of at least one thing with a rousing convention speech: She can fill the traditional role of attacker.

This election is a referendum on Obama

Crosscut — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 03:00:01 PDT

Here's my take on why McCain picked Palin.

His first goal had to be to kill the potential lift Obama would get after the Democratic National Convention. There are only a few inflection points in a campaign where numbers can really shift. A big VP pick from the Republicans had the magnitude to change the story of the election. Picking Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge or Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman wouldn't have changed the story.

Northwest national candidates through the ages

Crosscut — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 18:00:01 PDT

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is hardly the first from this corner of the country to run for one of the highest offices, but those who made it to the general election are relatively few.

Sausage Links, partisan hats and T-shirts edition

Crosscut — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 12:00:01 PDT

Republican presidential candidate John McCain might be the "anti-earmark candidate," but as The Seattle Times reports, McCain's VP pick, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, requested more than $197 million in federal earmarks for her state in 2008. Randy Stapilus at Ridenbaugh Press notes how "Palin employed a lobbying firm to secure $6.1 million in federal earmarks for a town of 6,700 residents while she was its mayor" in 2002. Meanwhile, Boise, Idaho, a town of more than 200,000, received $6.9 million in 2008. ...

The case for Sarah Palin

Crosscut — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:00:01 PDT

The Alaska governor is dead center in the mainstream of middle class American life, argues a conservative Crosscut contributor.

About Sarah Palin: an e-mail from Wasilla

Crosscut — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:00:01 PDT

A suburban Anchorage homemaker and activist — who once did battle with the Alaska governor when Palin was mayor — recounts what she knows of Palin's history.

Palin wouldn't be the first Northwest secessionist on a national ticket

Crosscut — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:45:01 PDT

Alaska governor and John McCain running mate pick Sarah Palin is raising eyebrows over her ties to the Alaska Independence Party. The AIP wants to put Alaska statehood up for a public vote. Some party members would like Alaska to secede from the United States. Whether Palin was once a party member, supporter, or merely sympathetic to the states' rights cause, she would not be the first pro-secession politician from the Northwest to run for vice president on a major party ticket. It has happened before.

Sausage Links, Pac 10 edition

Crosscut — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 12:51:01 PDT

It's been a busy year for University of Oregon graduates Jill Hazelbaker and Tucker Bounds. Recently named the "Dynamic Duck duo" by The Oregonian, Bounds and Hazelbaker are two of the McCain campaign's top communications officers — the Republicans' first wave of defense against Democratic attacks. As reporter Jeff Mapes points out, it's not an easy job. ...

A state agency eyes public-private transportation funding

Cascadia Center — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 02:00:01 PDT

No less than the Washington State Investment Board, which oversees public pensions, is giving serious consideration to government-business partnerships to make infrastructure improvements. Experts identify several possibilities, including the Highway 520 bridge rebuild, I-5 across the Columbia River, and improvement of ferry service.

No post-convention bounce for the Democrats

Crosscut — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 21:00:01 PDT

After a successful convention in Denver, Sens. Barack Obama and Joe Biden watched their poll numbers stay the same. Meantime, a weird weekend for news and weather clouds the prospects for Republicans at their convention this week.

The high price of Sarah Palin's candidacy

Crosscut — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 20:21:01 PDT

The out-of-wedlock pregnancy of Sarah Palin's teenage daughter is not news by itself. Many American families have faced the same situation.

What it implies about Palin, however, is not flattering.

Whassup with Wasilla

Crosscut — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:47:01 PDT

The day after a former Miss Wasilla was picked by Sen. John McCain as his running mate, I realized I'd been there. In 2004, I went to Alaska to see the start of the Iditarod. That's the grueling 1,150-mile sled dog race that starts in south central Alaska and ends in Nome on the Bering Sea. Often referred to as "The Last Great Race on Earth," it takes anywhere from 10-17 days for the teams of 12-16 dogs and their mushers.