Hoffmania! John McCain vs POWs - Cindy and Swift Boater win big.

Open Left: FISA cave-in imminent

The Big Picture: Foreclosures up 48% in May

alicublog: Old America-New America

The Impolitic: Idiotic AP vendetta

Vagabond Scholar: Batocchio looks back at the whole nomination process, focusing especially on all the insanity of the last few months.

Sadly, for the person that sent this report to me, what it all boil downs to is that the American Dream is fading, and most young people think it's out of reach for them.

Change To Win:

Economic conditions for workers are deteriorating so dramatically in the new American economy that an overwhelming majority, nearly 70 percent, now say that basic security - not opportunity - is their number one concern, according to a new survey released today. The finding is a stunning reflection of the anxiety, anger and demand for action rising in Working America in the global economy. Among the other key results of the poll of 800 non-supervisory workers:

• Nearly 80 percent of workers, both college and non-college alike, no longer believe the next generation will be better off. Nearly half think their children will be worse
• Nearly 80 percent of workers view multinational corporations as too powerful, and have driven down wages, eliminated health care and retirement security, and disregarded labor laws.
• Nearly 70 percent of workers feel that government doesn't take action to rein in greedy and unethical behavior by corporations and CEOs.

Full results are available on the Change to Win Web site.

The survey indicates workers see few opportunities for good jobs while they face the financial insecurity of rising health care costs, the elimination of pensions, the outsourcing of jobs, and wages falling behind living costs. But in addition to the concerns, it also showed that workers are remarkably united in their hopes, ideas, and solutions for the future on the critical issues of the workplace, a consensus that remains intact regardless of age, gender, geography, ethnicity, country of origin, and education.

Bill Kristol, who is one of the major players in the group called PNAC, joined the set of the "Colbert Report," and I think was taken off guard right at the outset of the show because he had to answer questions that our media never asks. PNAC envisioned America attacking the Middle East since the middle '90's and for some inexplicable reason (that was a joke) the media never questions him or his members which have lined the walls of Bush's cabinet about PNAC and how it influenced our foreign policy, which led us to attack Iraq.

Colbert immediately called him on it and Kristol was quite embarrassed talking about it.

Download | play -WMP Download | play -QT

Colbert: Speaking of thinking alike, you were a member, or are a member of the New Project for the American Century, correct?

Kristol: I am.

Colbert: Were or am, am?

Kristol: Were and am.

Colbert: How's that project coming?

Kristol: well. it's..(stammering)

Colbert: How's the New American Century, looks good to me?

Kristol: Ahh--I think...hehe yea--I'm speechless..

Colbert: Really?

Kristol: Yea...we've sort of...the Project for the New American Century is just a few people..

Colbert: Come on, it’s a terrific New American Century, right?

Kristol: Well I think we do OK.

Colbert: You Rummy Wolfowitz, Cheney, Pearle, Feith, all you guys right?

Kristol (responds timidly): Well, we fought back after 9/11..

Just watch as Colbert turns every argument Bill has made about the Iraq war around on his head. As Pac says: "He left Kristol smoldering in ashes."

full transcript

First it was killin' a turkey and now a dead bear. You betcha!

Anyway, Sarah Palin plans to join the National Council for a New America:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will be part of the National Council for a New America, an attempt by leaders in Congress and potential 2012 presidential candidates to rebrand the struggling party.

"I am pleased to announce that Governor Palin has joined the National Council for a New America's panel of experts," said House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (Va.) today. "When NCNA was announced last week, we spoke about a dynamic organization that worked to constantly bring in new people and innovative ideas."

Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), who shared the national ticket with Palin, had hinted at Palin's involvement during a conference call last Thursday announcing the National Council's formation.

But, her office had been largely silent in the intervening days and Cantor's office made clear only that she had been invited to join not that she had accepted.

Palin's involvement in the group will help rebut the idea that the National Council is an organ of the establishment wing of the party set up to keep the Palins and Gov. Mark Sanford's (S.C.) -- both of whom are more hardline conservatives -- from taking over control of the party.

Her appearance on the panel is just window dressing -- some useful PR for Herself. I do believe she would have agreed with the dittohead who said he thought America doesn't need education. Only Rush Limbaugh.

Sarah will be right at home with the wingnut base that attends these townhalls. She was a complete failure as a VP candidate and had no ideas of any kind except to call Obama a terrorist lover. (Well, that was actually Karl Rove's idea. My mistake.) She might think about animals just a wee bit more, don't you think?

David Shuster brings us Sarah Palin's extremely creepy turkey pardoning and post-pardoning interview from Wasilla, Alaska. The whole thing plays like something out of the Twilight Zone or the latter stages of Fargo.