It’s official: the National Enquirer is on par with the mainstream media when it comes to investigative journalism. The MSM tried burying this item for months, providing ample [...]]]> John Edwards repeatedly lied during his Presidential campaign about an extramarital affair with a novice filmmaker…his wife’s cancer was in remission when he began the affair…

It’s official: the National Enquirer is on par with the mainstream media when it comes to investigative journalism. The MSM tried burying this item for months, providing ample evidence for critics of liberal bias. Can you imagine the field day the New York Times would have had with this story if a Republican was involved?

The aforementioned statement is surprisingly thought provoking. [...]]]> In the debate over which Democratic candidate he should endorse, John Edwards has finally given in. And in the most predictable fashion, he has chosen Sen. Barack Obama. During his official endorsement speech Edwards said, “…the Democratic voters have made their choice, and so have I.”

The aforementioned statement is surprisingly thought provoking. If one takes a closer look at it, he or she will notice that Edwards first points out the fact that the Democrats have made a collective choice. He then ventures to say that he has subsequently made his own decision (which appears to be directly in line with the “popular vote” among the Democrats).

It’s not rocket science: Edwards is playing political monopoly. He is erasing his past statements about Obama and positioning himself for a vice-presidential nod. Or — at the least — he is keeping his name alive for future political gain.

After all, what took the former senator so long to endorse a candidate? MLive.com quotes Brent Slay, a retired Plainfield Township businessman (and an Obama supporter), who had some interesting thoughts on the matter:

“I think it will help [Obama] immensely with the working men and women of America. My opinion is Sen. Edwards saw Sen. Obama was going to be the candidate for the party, and he wanted to be the one to push him over the edge.“

But, perhaps the most intriguing portion of Slay’s thoughts:

Slay wondered if the endorsement might signal an Obama-Edwards ticket, although Edwards has said he is not interested in running for vice president.

Republican National Committee Chairman Robert Duncan has been the most precise in his criticism of Edwards’ endorsement. Duncan asks, “Why didn’t Edwards endorse sooner?” — a more than valid question. He continues:

“Edwards’ endorsement of a candidate he previously blasted as inexperienced, hypocritical and lacking substance will not help Obama with voters looking for real change.“

Let’s take a trip down memory lane. Edwards was posing serious criticisms of Obama as early as December 2007:

“I know Sen. Obama gave a speech today, and he’s a good guy, but I listen to the talk about, ‘I’m going to give the insurance companies, the drug companies, and the oil companies a seat at the table, and I’m going to sit at that table, and I’m going to negotiate with them, and they will voluntarily give their power away.’ Well, that’s not the world that I live in. They’ll give their power up when we take their power away from them.â€?

Sounds like a vote of no confidence to me. But suddenly — when Obama appears to have the majority of Democratic support, Edwards thinks he’s undoubtedly the man for the job. Does his description of Obama back in December reflect even a portion of the confidence one should have in a candidate they are endorsing?

And then there’s healthcare — an issue that a great many Americans have a personal stake in:

Edwards also took issue with Obama’s recently unveiled health-care plan, saying it fell short of covering the estimated 45 million uninsured people in the United States. “I believe unless we have a law requiring that every man, woman and child in America be covered, we’re going to have millions of people who aren’t covered,” Edwards said.

These are big issues — issues that Edwards has suddenly begun to ignore for the sake of an endorsement.

Yet, [...]]]> With victories in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Florida, John McCain is poised to virtually clinch the GOP nomination with wins in next week’s historically delegate rich Super Tuesday. Americans from the Pacific to the Atlantic have a chance to send Governor Romney, Governor Huckabee and Congressman Ron Paul home for good.

Yet, a much different scenario is playing out on the other side of the aisle. With the departure of Senator John Edwards from the race, the Democratic nomination has boiled down to a two way battle between the former First Lady and Senator Obama. The Democrats have a unique chance to decide if they want this country to go in a new direction or revert back to the same tired policies from a much different time in our history. Yes, a vote for Hillary is a vote for the first female President, but after catching Bill in action the past week, does anyone really believe Hillary will be the Alpha Dog in a future Clinton administration?

While it is impossible to know how that mess will play out, one thing that is for certain is that the closest thing we have ever had to a national primary (next week’s twenty-two state free for all) will not produce the required amount of delegates for either of the Democratic front runners. This essentially knocks California, New York and New Jersey down the totem pole in terms of relevance and importance, precisely the opposite effect that was intended when these large states front loaded the process this time around and significantly moved up their primary calendars (in the case of New Jersey, four months earlier).

No matter how many times the leadership in the major parties try to reform the process, we continue to learn the painful lesson that the parties are better at producing commercials and fundraising, and should leave more important matters like elections to the various Departments of State. So much of our tax dollars are mindlessly wasted on proposed bridges to nowhere and museums dedicated to the cotton mill. Why not allocate necessary resources to reforming our election process as well as a nationwide upgrade of voting and counting machines? Americans will support additional federal spending if it is done in a smart way for a worthwhile cause. Nothing should trump the importance of accurate voting. Let’s hope that Congress does the right thing and invests in our electoral infrastructure.

1.) Rudy’s ridiculous strategy of completely ignoring Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina predictably backfired. Now the Mayor will endorse Senator McCain in an attempt to freeze out the hard-to-like Romney. Today’s photo-op at the Reagan Library may propel Giuliani to a seat in McCain’s [...]]]> Last night’s Florida primary taught us several things:

1.) Rudy’s ridiculous strategy of completely ignoring Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina predictably backfired. Now the Mayor will endorse Senator McCain in an attempt to freeze out the hard-to-like Romney. Today’s photo-op at the Reagan Library may propel Giuliani to a seat in McCain’s cabinet (Homeland Security Secretary?).

2.) Mike Huckabee’s victory in Iowa appears to be a fluke, once again raising questions about why the first caucuses were so overcovered by the mainstream media.

3.) John Edwards has a great message but is not the best messenger, especially in light of the superior oratorical skills of Obama. He may have a promising future as attorney general or Supreme Court justice in the next Democratic administration.

4.) The Florida Democratic Party (among other state parties) has no regard for equity, justice or the right of its members to participate in the candidate nominating process. The rules that punish the voters because the state party leadership yearns to be a more active participant in the national picture is draconian and should be revisited. Is there anything more un-American than disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of voters for actions beyond their control?

5.) Seven years after the infamous ballot counting nightmare, it is inexcusable that areas in the Sunshine State (particularly Putnam County) still experience technical problems with the voting process. Whatever happened to the election reform we were all promised?

1.) the Governor of New Mexico – Bill Richardson

“Look at the last twelve months. Not only are we still in Iraq, we still have the failure called No Child Left Behind. We still have 9 million children with no health insurance. We’re still allowing this president to thumb his nose at the [...]]]> The latest examples:

1.) the Governor of New Mexico – Bill Richardson

“Look at the last twelve months. Not only are we still in Iraq, we still have the failure called No Child Left Behind. We still have 9 million children with no health insurance. We’re still allowing this president to thumb his nose at the Bill of Rights. We’re slipping into a recession. And we can’t even reject an attorney general who refuses to condemn torture.”

2.) the former Senator from North Carolina and 2004 Vice Presidential Nominee – John Edwards

“The American people are on the outside. And on the other side, on the inside, are the powerful, the well-connected and the very wealthy…The truth is that it’s not just Republicans who built this wall. Democrats helped. Too many politicians from both parties are choosing self-preservation over principle, compromise over convictions.”

3.) the Senator from Delaware – Joseph Biden

“Before a Democrat can lead, he or she must get elected. We know the Republican playbook. They’ll say we’re weak. They’ll play on people’s fears, not their hopes. Ask yourself: Who do you want in the ring to take their best shots and then give it back, better, harder, and faster than they gave it?”