Ad For Scott Brown in Massachusetts WAY Over the Top

Image from The Political Class

Today there's a really weird thing going down. Massachusetts is holding a special election for U.S. Senate (why now? I dunno). That's not the weird part. It's for the seat held by Ted Kennedy for 47 years. Kennedy spearheaded health care reform as an issue for many, many years. And now, it is not unlikely that the seat could go to a Republican. What's more, because it would remove the Democrats' filibuster-proof majority, it could kill the health care reform bill.

In case you missed it, that's the weird part. Well that, and the notion that Massachusetts would elect a Republican to the seat after all of these years. Now, I'm no huge fan of the reform bills as they've turned out. They're nowhere near liberal enough, which is ironic, since Republicans are acting like it's the end of America as we know it. They talk about taking their country back, and that President Obama and the Democrats are tyrannical, which is laughable. After all, the Democrats bent over backward (and forward? ahem), and damned near gutted the thing in a futile attempt at "bipartisanship."

But you wouldn't know that from this whopper of an ad for Scott Brown. The music! The imagery! The fear! Olbermann! Maddow! Eeeeeeek! It's one of the most over-the-top things I've ever seen. John Waters couldn't top it. And Scott Brown is a miracle? I'll grant he was pretty hot back in his nude modeling days (and not so bad these days either). But a miracle? One thing's for sure, whatever happens, it will be interesting, with a heaping helping of stupid. Just like anything else political these days.

Breaking News: Ted Kennedy has Passed Away.

Image from source, ABC News

Sigh. Wow. Two Kennedys in the same month. I am too young to remember the idealized "Camelot" Kennedy mystique. By the time I was old enough to know what was going on, Jackie was an "O" and Edward Kennedy was fodder for jokes on Saturday Night Live. Still, despite his faults, I know that he did a lot of good in his life.

The timing of course couldn't be worse for health care reform, which was ironically Ted Kennedy's pet project. Will this give Democrats added drive to get it done, or will the whole thing just unravel? Time will tell. RIP, Teddy.

[Excerpt]

Ted Kennedy Dies of Brain Cancer at Age 77

Sen. Ted Kennedy died shortly before midnight Tuesday at his home in Hyannis Port, Mass., at age 77.

The man known as the "liberal lion of the Senate" had fought a more than year-long battle with brain cancer, and according to his son had lived longer with the disease than his doctors expected him to. . .

Read more at:

Sen. Ted Kennedy's Brain Surgery "Successful"

Photo from source, AFP

I didn't want to give Sen. Ted Kennedy short shrift with just a mention, so here's a little more on his surgery today. Here's hoping the radiation and chemotherapy are equally successful.

[Excerpt]

Senator Kennedy undergoes 'successful' brain surgery

US Senator Edward Kennedy underwent "successful" brain cancer surgery Monday, his doctor said, as the political icon vowed a return to work and to campaigning for presidential hopeful Barack Obama.

"I am pleased to report that Senator Kennedy's surgery was successful and accomplished our goals," Duke University Medical Center doctor Allan Freidman said in a statement. . .

Read more at: AFP

Sen. Robert Byrd Hospitalized

Photo from source, Think Progress

It is ironic that two of the longest serving Democratic Senators were both in the hospital on the same day. OK, maybe not ironic (Alannis Morrisette has wrecked me). Edward Kennedy was in for brain surgery for a malignant tumor, and Byrd apparently for a fever, which can be bad for a 90-year-old. I've never been much of a fan of either man, though I wish them both well. And the fact that they are both perpetual punching-bags of the right (Sean Hannity has idiotic nicknames for both), puts me in their camp by default. Get well, guys.

[Excerpt]

Senator Robert Byrd hospitalized.

. . .Byrd, who is the longest-serving senator in history, voted during a 5:30 p.m. roll call Monday, then went home. Jacobs says that less than an hour later the senator began to feel ill. He was found to have a fever, and at his doctor’s request he was taken to a nearby hospital. . .

Read more at: Think Progress

Sen. Ted Kennedy Health Crisis

Photo from source, MSNBC

This news is recently breaking, and has already changed from the first link I went to. Initially, it was reported that Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy had experienced a stroke. Now, it is being called a seizure. These high-level politician health crises are often pretty vague at first, even after a few days. Remember Yassir Arafat? He's dead. . .no he's alive! Nope, whoops, dead. Not that I'm comparing the two men, mind you, only that political health problems are usually sketchy at best on the details.

[Excerpt]

Kennedy hospitalized after seizure

Edward Kennedy's primary care physician said the senator is "not in any immediate danger" after suffering a seizure at his Cape Cod home Saturday.

Dr. Larry Ronan said preliminary tests showed the 76-year-old Massachusetts Democrat has not suffered a stroke. Ronan said Kennedy was resting comfortably and would undergo further evaluation to determine the cause of the seizure. . .

Read more (with video) at: MSNBC

Obama-Clinton Dream Ticket? Kennedy Says No

Photo from source, AOL News

It's hard to remember the details of previous Presidential campaigns, as all of the details tend to go into the memory hole, except for the "standout" moments, like Dukakis in a tank, or Willie Horton. But if my admittedly fuzzy memory holds, I believe this "dream ticket" stuff has been floated many times in the past, with the front runner being urged to take one of the runners-up onto his ticket.

With this particular campaign, it seems logical that Barack Obama should pick Hillary Clinton as his veep, since the electorate seems nearly divided--and stubborn--between the two. But that logic may be faulty when we consider that the memory hole will swallow a lot of this primary race before the general election gets here. Clinton could help unite the party for Obama, but what about that whole "politics as usual" cry that Obama supporters are trying to end?

Putting Hillary Clinton on the ticket--assuming the dream team wins--would mean an unbroken chain of Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton in the executive branch from 1980 through 2012, or even 2016. There are already full-grown adults who don't know the White House without one or the other. Since I heard (now forever ago) that Hillary was running for President, my attitude was "Hey, it pisses off all the right people!" But now that it's pissing off some of the wrong people (fellow Democrats), I'm not so sure.

[Excerpt]

Kennedy to Hillary: 'No Veep For You!'

Since Tim Russert and I declared the Democratic nomination settled, there has been a whirl of discussion about Hillary joining Obama's ticket as Vice President. According to Politico's Ben Smith, however, prominent Obama supporter and Democratic Party royal Ted Kennedy says, "Not so fast..."

Read more at: AOL News