The following story is from CNN.com. This shows you just how ridiculous our politics have gotten in this country lately. However, I think it's hilarious that if Sen. John McCain tries to cozy up to Ohio State fans because of this, he may lose Michigan fans in the process.
Biden in hot water with some Ohioans
Posted: 07:30 PM ET
From CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Biden may have upset some crucial swing state voters.
(CNN) — Joe Biden's off-the-cuff remarks on the trail have at times taken the Obama campaign off-message, but the Delaware senator's latest riff just may have landed him in hot water with voters — and die hard football fans — in a key battleground state.
Speaking to members of the University of Delaware football team Friday morning, the Democratic VP candidate said he thinks the Fightin Blue Hens (1-1 this season) could thrash a certain team from Ohio.
"I was out in Ohio," he said while fiddling with a football in his hands. "I told the folks in Ohio that we'd kick Ohio State's ass!" (It remains unclear if Biden actually ever told Ohio voters this.)
Biden, a proud University of Delaware alum, was clearly trying to rally his Division 1-AA team ahead of their match-up with Furman this weekend, but the comments couldn't have come at a worse time for faithful Buckeye fans who saw their team suffer a 35-3 trouncing at the hands of USC last weekend.
The comments also come as polls show the race in Ohio could hardly be tighter: A CNN poll of polls in the Buckeye state shows Obama holding a slim 1 point lead there. Close enough, presumably, that enough angry OSU fans could just make the difference — at least that's what Republicans are hoping.
The state GOP is already attacking the Democratic ticket over the comments, as well as his comments yesterday suggesting it was patriotic for some wealthier Americans to pay higher taxes.
"As if his comments about it being a patriotic duty for Ohioans to pay higher taxes weren't bad enough, now Biden is taking pot shots at the Buckeyes," GOP State chair Bob Bennett said. "Barack Obama and Joe Biden must really think they can win this election without Ohio, because they're doing their best to lose it with stupid comments like these. Keep talking, Joe."
David Wade, a spokesman for Biden said, “I think this episode explains exactly why we’ll win Ohio: Joe Biden is loyal to his home team, and John McCain is loyal to President Bush."
"We forgive the Republicans on this one, though," he added. "After watching John McCain flip flop on everything from taxes to torture, they’re just mystified by someone who takes a position and sticks with it.”
UPDATE: Michigan Democrats, fans of OSU arch rival University of Michigan, weighed in on the back-and-forth, calling John McCain a "Panderer in Chief" for recently purchasing Ohio State apparel on a campaign swing.
"John McCain won't be hailing any victors on Election Day if he thinks Michigan fans will let this recent pander slide," said Liz Kerr, a spokesperson for the Michigan Democratic Party.
2 comments:
Just the same old stuff, my friend. We just get to hear about it in a 24/7 cable/internet/ipod world. When John Adams was trying to keep the peace and stay out of a war with Britain/France, his aide de camp from the Army Alexander Hamilton was mostly concerned about the yellow buttons on General Washington's uniform. While Rome (er Paris) is burning. So today we have the awful trivia of games and lipstick on a pig etc. while dare we say Wall Street and Islamabad and Main Street is (er) burning.
The Raven
I agree with you. When Baghdad was burning, we got coverage of the death of Anna Nicole Smith for three days. I still haven't forgiven Wolf Blitzer for that, and the other media figures involved. What did they think she was going to do after three days? Why were they covering it, when both Iraqis and Americans were dying in the midst of intense violence?
Yes, very important point: when a society dissolves into an iPod, iPhone, i-centered culture, individuals can pay attention to whatever they want to pay attention to and ignore what is going on around them in the larger world. In this universe of so many different outlets for media and opinion, there are more ways for people to inform and express themselves, but there is more danger of people deciding on their own selective reality and choosing to ignore all facts or circumstances that contradict their preferred point-of-view.
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