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First Calls from ABC: Kentucky for McCain, Vermont for Obama.

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We’re in the bell lap in this marathon that has gone on way too long already. As an aside, I believe that one of the reasons we are choosing between the two candidates we have is due to the length of the campaign this election cycle. I think it is very likely that a shorter campaign could have given us two completely different presidential candidates.

But, we get to vote for what we have, not what we could have had.

I am part of the large majority of Americans who, in spite of all the hype and headlines, has not taken advantage of early voting. As I mentioned the other day, I like going to my local polling place on election day. There is something almost “ceremonial” about casting a ballot, and despite any real or perceived inconvenience it is something that I truly look forward to doing.

If the lines aren’t too long first thing tomorrow morning the process shouldn’t take very long at all. I am not one of the undecided voters and I won’t be making up my mind with the pencil in my hand.

President/Vice President — John McCain/Sarah Palin. I have laid out my reasons for supporting John McCain already. It is, to be honest, almost as much a vote against Barack Obama as it is for McCain. Almost. I am convinced that the policies of Barack “The One™” Hussein Obama would be detrimental to our country; Even those that could benefit me personally in the short term.

That alone would not be enough to convince me to vote for John McCain. While I am sure that I will not agree 100% with a President McCain, I will agree with him and his direction for our nation most of the time.

U.S. House (Fl-D12) — Adam Putnam. I have really grown to appreciate his psotions and his leadership. He was one of the leading voices in the house to take an “all of the above” approach to energy policy.

Here’s hoping for the best tomorrow. I’ll be doing my part. That’s all I have left that I can do.

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Choices, choices. What to do on a Wednesday night?

There was McCain/Obama debate III of course, but team Obamessiah had already told us how it would all turn out. Besides, my pre-debate assessment was the same as A.J. Strata’s:

To save myself time I am going to live blog the debate now and get it over with:

McCain wins most rounds, nation differs with me when polled.

Yup.

It didn’t matter that I didn’t watch, Bob Owens at Confederate Yankee summed it up well:

Senator Government: Spend, spend, spend.

Senator Blinky: You can’t spend your way into prosperity.

Now, will anyone looking for Hopeychange understand?

Instead of watching the debate I went the Good Lt. route. The Phillies are going to the World Series!

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Before the debate even ended the McCain campaign had put this out:

Nice.

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Not me, but Steveegg is.

I’ll just follow his effort while being free to make wise a$$ comments there. I don’t know how much of the debate I’ll be able to watch in between the Marlins playing the Mets (3-0 Fish in the bottom of the 6th), Cubs and Brewers (1-1 in the top of the third) and following the Phillies and Nationals online (7-4 Phils at the end of 6).

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I caught Barry O’s response to John McCain on the radio as I was coming home from work yesterday. Two things struck me. Of course quite a few people caught the “if you need me, call me” comment, but the thing that struck me was something he said earlier in his remarks.

I don’t know the exact chronology on this, so let’s assume his words are as pure and golden as The One himself. Prior to the Q&A he was talking about the joint release he wanted to make with McCain. He talked about some of the specifics of the plan he would like to see implemented and remarked that Sen. McCain had “adopted his position” on some of those things. Like I said, I don’t know who said what first, but I have a hard time believing that McCain made any decision on his position based on what The Obamessiah put forth. Even if he did, it still sounded as arrogant as anything I’ve heard fall from his lips, and that’s saying something.

My thoughts on yesterday’s events are that Senator McCain is honestly focused on finding a workable solution while his opponent is focused on finding a political opportunity. Your thoughts?

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You are all well aware by now that John McCain has picked Alaska governor Sarah Palin to run as his running mate. When the buzz was strong about this early this morning I had a conversation about this pick with a conservative co-worker. We came to two conclusions. One: She is perhaps unique in her ability to exite and appeal to the Republican base (as well or better than Sen. McCain) and draw in moderates and disaffected Hillary supporters. Two: There is a real possibility that some feminist heads will explode like a Cog being hit by Wedding Cake over the dilema of having a pro-life woman running for Vice President.

More later.

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When I looked at the electoral vote projections at Election Projection yesterday I was surprised to see that John McCain had jumped out to a 274-264 lead. It’s even more interesting today.

John McCain’s newly acquired status as presidential leader here at Election Projection lasted exactly one day. A Research 2000 poll out yesterday gives Barack Obama a one point lead in Nevada, and with that result, Nevada slips back into the blue column. Courtesy of Silver State’s one-day turnaround, we are now looking at a dead-even tie in the Electoral College. Obama is projected to win 269 EVs. McCain is projected to win 269 EVs. Oh my! And the interesting thing is that it’s not hard to imagine the states coming in on election night as they currently stand.

Of course it’s still early, and these numbers are written in this weeks Florida beach sand.

The Mile High coronation is about to begin (if disgruntled Hillary supporters can be “whipped” into line). Next week should be really interesting.

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Before he was Gilligan, Bob Denver played the lovable beatnik Maynard G. Krebs. The character was known for iconic catch phrases such as, “I’m getting kinda misty…”, “You rang?”, and perhaps his most famous, “Work!”

It was a reflexive reply whenever the word work was mentioned, even innocuously. Krebs, the prototypical hippie, felt that work was the ultimate four letter word.

Sort of the same way Senator Obama feels about “Debate!”

Barack Obama’s campaign released a letter this afternoon from campaign manager David Plouffe to the Commission on Presidential Debates only agreeing to the traditional three sanctioned fall debates and single vice presidential forum.

“Due to the late date of the two parties’ nominating conventions, and the relatively short period between the end of the conventions and the first proposed debate, it is likely that the four commission debates will be the sole series of debates in the fall campaign,” Plouffe writes.

Sounds good, but I ain’t buyin’ it.

The response from the McCain campaign was deadly accurate:

“We understand it might be beneath a worldwide celebrity of Barack Obama’s magnitude to appear at town hall meetings alongside John McCain and directly answer questions from the American people, but we hope he’ll reconsider,”

In other words,

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It is great to get up in the morning and see a fine display of journalistic balance. </snark>

(Click for bigger view)

This is a view of my Google feed reader this morning in a folder I have labeled Elections. Sixteen headlines visible without scrolling, thirteen stories about the Obamessiah, one “Today on the presidential campaign trail”, and two on John McCain – one of those about the veterans group working against McCain.

So, here is journalistic balance — In A Nutshell:

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