Bizarro Cabinet

The NYT has a fun page that lets you pick the Obama cabinet and compare your choices with those of others. I had a good laugh over some of the names that were within the top 20 for various positions, including the following, which would make for some freakishly awesome cabinet meetings:

• Defense: Arnold Schwarzenegger (18th)
• State: Noam Chomsky (16th)
• Homeland Security: Ron Paul (8th)
• Attorney General: John Edwards (8th) or Eliot Spitzer (14th)
• Treasury: Ralph Nader (17th)

I think I can say with confidence that none of these individuals are actually in consideration for these positions. The #1 choices are Robert Gates, Bill Richardson, Richard Clarke, Janet Napolitano and Paul Volcker, as of this writing.

Dissing Nancy Reagan

You know, I enjoy laughing about Nancy Reagan’s being crazy as much as anyone, but it sure seemed odd to see Barack Obama crack a joke at her expense in his first presser as president-elect. That can’t be the way to build a broad coalition with people of all backgrounds, which was a recurring theme on the campaign trail. Having to apologize shortly thereafter shows his advisers realize he was off base. I’d rather Obama spend his political capital on getting his agenda passed rather than on nonsense like this.

Load up on guns, bring your friends

The Raleigh News & Observer reports that gun enthusiasts are stocking up out of fear that increased gun control will make buying guns harder under a new Democratic administration:

“It’s been an absolute madhouse,” said Trey Pugh, a manager at Jim’s Pawn Shop in Fayetteville, which is selling 15 to 20 AR-15 assault rifles a day. “I’m getting guys come in and say I always wanted that gun, and give me that one too and that one and, oh, I need a gun safe, too.”

Distributors are running out of assault rifles, he said, and prices are rising.

On the stump, Obama didn’t discuss sweeping changes to gun laws. But his stance that local authorities should be able to make “sensible” laws has worried some, as has the fact that many Democrats in Congress favor additional restrictions. The NRA, among others, stoked these fears during the election.

Yes, having local authorities make sensible laws worries these people. God forbid we should have those sensible laws! Despite this, Obama did manage to win North Carolina somehow.

The Rev. Wright Ad

TPM notes that a GOP group ran an attack ad on Sunday Night Football featuring everyone’s favorite crazy preacher, Jeremiah Wright. I can report that the ad ran on the NBC affiliate in Washington, DC.

It was about what you would expect, including the well-worn sound bites like “God damn America.” I find it curious that they bleeped both the words “God” and “damn” in the ad. It’s presumably OK to say “God” and “damn” on their own, but turn them into a compound word and they become a curse phrase somehow–this has always puzzled me.

Uh, Zogby?

Over at Technorati, I noticed that a bunch of right-wing blogs were all excited that McCain had a one-point lead in Friday’s Zogby daily tracking poll. Well, the Saturday poll is now out, and it gives Obama a nearly six-point lead. In his message explaining how this happened, Mr. Zogby writes:

Remember, as I said yesterday, one day does not make a trend. This is a three-day rolling average and no changes have been tectonic. A special note to blogger friends: calm it down. Lay off the cable television noise and look at your baseball cards in your spare time. It is better for your (and everyone else’s) health.

Not that I know a damn thing about polling, but why it seems like having your poll fluctuate like that would be indicative of some sort of a flaw in the poll’s methodology…

It’s official: Obama was born in the US

Another wacko internet rumor bites the dust:

HONOLULU (AP) — State officials say there’s no doubt Barack Obama was born in Hawaii.

Health Department Director Dr. Chiyome Fukino said Friday she and the registrar of vital statistics, Alvin Onaka, have personally verified that the health department holds Obama’s original birth certificate.

Fukino says that no state official, including Republican Gov. Linda Lingle, ever instructed that Obama’s certificate be handled differently.

She says state law bars release of a certified birth certificate to anyone who does not have a tangible interest.

Some Obama critics claim he was not born in the US.

Earlier Friday, a southwest Ohio magistrate rejected a challenge to Obama’s citizenship. Judges in Seattle and Philadelphia recently dismissed similar suits.

This always seemed like an odd rumor to be spreading, given that McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone, which isn’t exactly normal. (Link via Karen Tumulty at Swampland)

In case the whole voting thing doesn’t work out…

…we can always settle the presidential election with a dance off.

About Obama’s Aunt

TPM notes that it was illegal for Bush admin officials to leak the info about the immigration case of Obama’s aunt.