Viral Video Of The Week

Okay, you know I've maintained a policy of not using news clips for Viral Video Of The Week, but "Romney in Heated Exchange with AP Reporter" is just too good. Glen Johnson clearly doesn't come across as the most professional or controlled reporter, but that doesn't change the fact that Mitt Romney comes across as slime. Super slime. The slimiest. In the below video, Mitt Romney eloquently explains the fundamental difference between lobbyists running his campaign and lobbyists just being senior advisers. See, if they "ran" his campaign, that would be bad. But senior advisers are okay. ya dig?

An Open Letter To Mitt Romney

As we discussed previously, Mitt Romney is really putting himself at a disadvantage by not committing to the CNN-YouTube Republican Debate. And I kind of feel it's our communal responsibility to sell him on it. God bless James Kotecki for trying to appeal to Romney emotionally and sentimentally. But I prefer writing open letters. Like the one I wrote to Ron Paul.


Dear Mr. Romney,

Congratulations on the success of your campaign. You've won the Iowa Straw Poll and you're ahead of the pack on YouTube along with Dr. Paul. You're award winning smile was featured on the cover of TIME MAGAZINE where you looked like a President of the people.

It is for these reasons that I am confused by your decision to deny the people a chance to engage you on the CNN-YouTube Republican Debate. This is no doubt a great opportunity for you to connect with young people across party lines in a venue that will be witnessed by all walks of Americans. It's a chance to show off your charm, witt and ability to think fast when thrown curve balls. All necessary skills of a great President. No doubt, if such a format existed when George W. Bush was running for President, he would be spending his days as an elephant shaver in the circus instead of as an elephant shaver in the White House.

You see, there's this notion of the Digital Divide. But that's bullshit. It's a myth perpetrated by the hippies. There is no divide. Nothing on this planet is exempt or immune or unexposed to the effect of the digital domain. You see, Mr. Romney, you are an old man that thinks in terms of nations and peoples. There are no nations. There are no peoples. There are no Russians. There are no Arabs. There are no third worlds. There is no West. There is only one holistic System of systems. One vast and inane, inter-made, interwoven, interacting, multi-varied, multinational series of tubes. It is the international System of the Internet that determines the totality of life on this planet. That is the natural order of things today. That is the atomic and subatomic and galactic structure of things today. And if you meddle with the primal forces of the Internet, you're campaign will fail. Am I getting through to you, Mr. Romney? Because in this world, there is no version of this debate being optional. Just as there's no version of election day being optional. The revolution will be viralized, Mr. Romney. And not even you can stop it.

Warmest Regards,

Philip Marlowe
Private Detective/C-List Blogger

CNN-YouTube GOP Debate Is A Go

Last night, Washington Post's The Trail reported that the CNN-YouTube Republican Debate is a go for November 28th. It is still unclear which candidates will be participating. Winner of this weekend's Iowa straw poll and frontrunner du jour, Mitt Romney is yet to confirm participation and quick to object to the format. "I think the presidency ought to be held at a higher level than having to answer questions from a snowman," says Romney.

Mr. Romney: Viralroots says you gotta go along to get along. Make no mistake, this election will be decided by a series of tubes.

Mudslinging... At Obama Girl... By Home Of Obama Girl

Okay, so I started to write something vaguely witty and offensive about BarelyPolitical and their new Romney Girls Attack Obama Girl video, but I just don't have the energy for it. Seriously, I can't deal. So watch the friggin video and make up your own observations. Or don't. I don't care.

Senator Lindsey Graham Poses with Controversial Sign - Wants to be like Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney is not the only one comparing Senator Barack Obama to terrorism. Check out this picture of South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham holding up a sign reading "Obama, Osama and Chelsea's Moma Say Cut and Run"

Seems a bit bold to pose in front of a sign like this, in this Viral age where photo's can be sent out across the electronic universe so instantaneously...especially when Mitt just got done having to explain himself for his sign. But if he's cool with it, whatever...I'm just gonna comment on it. Perhaps Lindsey's trying to show the world his Romney support? Nah...he's got a John McCain sign there with him too. Is he showing off his disdain for Democrats? Yes, clearly. Either way regardless of the message, he's late to the game and comes off looking unoriginal...maybe he should have added some glitter.


Check out the TMZ article here.

Mitt Romney Gets Heat For Controversial Sign

Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is getting some heat after posing next to a sign that read 'NO TO OBAMA OSAMA AND CHELSEA'S MOMA.' a) I think its a bit of an underhanded smear to group Barrack Obama to the Al Qaeda evil-doer guy Osama Bin Laden b) It's also a smidge funny too, 'Chelsea's Moma', common, it even rhymes.

The best part is that Mitt claims he didnt read the sign before posing for the picture. “I don’t look at all the signs when I’m having pictures taken." He goes further to say, “You know what? Lighten up slightly, there are a lot of jokes out there. I’m not responsible for all the signs I see.” Kinda reminds me of the President Bush Mission Accomplished Banner. ahhahah.

Read the CNN article on Mitt here.

Fred Thompson To Run For President in 2008

According to advisors, Fred Thompson has decided to run for President - and joins an already crowded GOP field that includes John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney. Apparently a testing-the-waters committee is to be formed June 4 so Thompson can start raising money, staffers will go on the payroll in early June and a policy team has been formed - but remains under wraps in case Thompson changes his mind.

At the debate on May 3rd there were a scant 10 GOP candidates on stage and clearly, that's not nearly enough options. Will Thompson water down the GOP voter pool and further divide the party or is he the one to bring it home? Read more on this former Law and Order actor and Tennessee Senator to decide for yourself. Click here to learn more.

GOP: Republicans Debate In South Carolina

Welcome to the wall o' Republicans.

GOP YouChoose Candidates By The Numbers

In the wake of the GOP debate at the Ronald Reagan library a few days ago - the YouChoose Subscriptions and Channel Views on YouTube are as follows:

Mitt Romney
Subscribers: 1,842
Channel Views: 593,189

John McCain
Subscribers: 1,160
Channel Views: 419,520

Rudy Giuliani
Subscribers: 1,249
Channel Views: 75,351

Ron Paul
Subscribers: 1,478
Channel Views: 69,512

Sam Brownback
Subscribers: 60
Channel Views: 2,295

Jim Gilmore
Subscribers: 19
Channel Views: 642

Romney and McCain look strong with Channel Views at nearly 600,000 and 420,000 respectively. But as for the rest of the pack, numbers look paltry at best. The YouChoose forum is speaking to us. Let’s keep listening…

Republican Candidates Debate - Live Blogging Coverage

LIVE debate excerpts

Paul: Forign policy needs to be changed. I would never abuse habeus corpus.

Guiliani: We havent been attacked since 9/11. Bush did the right thing to put us on offense.

Thompson: I would transform healthcare system better than Bush has done.

Huckabee: I wouldnt centralize power like this administration. We need strong state power, not just federal.

McCain: I woulnd't mismanage the war like bush.

Romney: I respect Bush's thoughts to protect our country from terror. We need to strenghthen the American Family.

Romney: The big bad three are Pelosi, Reed and Hilary Clinton

Guiliani: The national card should be required for only for immigrants.

Tancredo: We do not need a national ID card, but do need a social security card that cannot be tampered.

Paul: I am absolutely apposed to a national card. This is against our idea of a free nation.

McCain: We do need a tamper proof document.

Brownback: We dont need a card. We need a secure border with a fence. We already have a social security number.

Romney: Having a national card and an indication of work status will help.

Guiliani: A national tamper proof card is needed in this country. We need a database of everyone.

Tancredo: I will work to protect women's rights. But the right to kill another person is not one that I will support.

Paul: I trust the freedom of expression and we shouldnt regulate the internet.

Gilmore: I am a consistent conservative that wont say one thing one year and another thing the next year.

Romney: The American family is the heart of this country. We need more marriages before babies.

McCain: YES believes in evolution. Also sees the hand of god when he sees the sunset at the grand canyon.

McCain: Lieberman would be a part of my administration. "I know how to reach across the aisle to the democrats, and they know how to do it to me"

Guiliani: We have to adjust the alternate minimum tax, we need to adjust the death tax.

Paul: Get rid of inflation tax. Its a transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich.

McCain: Let's cut the alternate minimum tax and the 3000 tax credit for low income citizens.

Gilmore: Let's cut the Alternative minimum tax.

McCain: Tax cuts need to be permanent, but spending is ruining the future of this country. The first pork barrel bill that crosses my desk will be vetoed.

Romney: Is for universal heath care.

Guiliani: YES Govt funding on embryonic stem cell research.

Paul: NO Govt funding on embryonic stem cell research.

McCain: YES we should fund embryonic stem cell research.

Gilmore: NO Govt funding on embryonic stem cell research.

Gilmore: We have to let the courts and juries make the decisions on imprisonment.

Hunter on the environment: We should bring together colleges, universities and the private sector...to remove energy dependence on the middle east.

Huckabee: too early to give a grade to Bush's handling of the Iraq war

McCain: We need line-item veto!

McCain: Will make the authors of the first pork barrel to cross his desk famous

McCain: I never new a drunken sailor with the imagination of this congress

Tancredo: it's all about believing in your heart the things that you say. NOT being a centrist to win

Brownback on political corruption quistion: we need to rebuild the family structure! (and blames don imus)

Giuliani: George Will said he ran most conservative government in NYC

Giuliani: "Neither party has a monopoly on virtue or vice"

Tancredo: Carl Rove would not be in his White House

Hunter: his border fence is a DOUBLE fence! (not one of those little shitty ones) (btw, answer to question about being non-partisan to garner votes)

Brownback: we should invite in and celebrate faith to the public square

HUCKABEE: Those whose faith does not effect dicision making are lacking strong faith. (flip flop of what he said in previous quote)

Thompson: It's the right of businesses to fire gay employees for being gay

Paul: Overdoing military aggressiveness weakens national defense

Giuliani, now standing amongst his peers is anti-abortion

Romney: Abortion is a states rights issue

Thompson: "(Roe V Wade) should be left up to the state"

Paul on IRS: "If you want to lower taxes....you have to change police"

Hunter on Iran: "Iran has crossed the line."

McCain on Bin Laden: "I'll follow him to the gates of hell."

Romney on Bin Laden: "We need to make sure he pays for what he did" "This is a world wide jihadist movement" "He is going to pay and he is going to die!"

Gilmore on Bin Laden: "I think we need to do everything we need to do to get this guy, he is a symbol" "We have to use all abilities, diplomatic, economic and be on the moral highground"

Tancredo on protecting Israel: "If there is a threat to the existence of Israel...then you have to come to the aid of Israel"

McCain on Iran: "Iran is a state sponsor on Terrorism" "Iran poses one of the greatest threats to the world." "We cannot allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons"

Paul on foreign policy: "Lets not pretend the Iraqis were a threat to us"

Gilmore: "We're gonna have to engage in the middle east for a long time" "There will have to be a new commitment to the Middle East."

Huckabee on Rumsfeld and Iraq: "Clearly there was a real error on judgement"

Brownback on Iraq: "We win the war by standing up for our values" "Iran is the lead sponsor of Terror on the world"

McCain on Iraq: "We need the support of the American people" "We are on the right track now. It was terribly missmanaged, but we have a new strategy and a new general."

Giuliani on Immigration: "We should solve our immigration issue with our strengths, not our weaknesses"


The Debaters:
Sam Brownback
Jim Gilmore
Rudy Giuliani
Mike Huckabee
Duncan Hunter
John McCain
Ron Paul
Mitt Romney
Tom Tancredo
Tommy Thompson

Going into this debate, these are the poll standings for the Republican front runners courtesy Rasmussen Reports:
Giuliani: 30%
McCain: 14%
Thompson: 14%
Romney: 11%


Going into this debate, the leading Republican Candidates have the following YouTube Channel Subscribers:

Giuliani: 1223
McCain: 1131
Paul: 1243
Romney: 1770

GOP Candidates Contemplate Their Association With Bush

Thursday night, leading GOP candidates will meet at the Ronald Reagan Presidential library for their first debate. But instead of uniting on trickle down economics or lauding our post-cold-war-era country's latest accomplishments, the main theme of the night will be the issue of whether or not each individual candidate will decide to align themselves with President Bush's current stance on topics of Iraq and health care (maybe even the environment?).

Already, the leading candidates are showing clear divisions. In formally announcing his candidacy last week, John McCain, without naming Mr. Bush, attacked the performance of the White House at home and abroad. In doing so, he separated himself from his two main rivals, Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney, who have chosen to stick close to Mr. Bush, or at least to avoid breaking openly with him.

The sinking ship that is President Bush's administration will yield defection sooner or later. The big question is, who jumps ship? And When?

Supporting the quagmire in Iraq does not appear to be the most prudent choice in helping anyone get elected...but what do I know. I'm just some silly little citizen. I don't really count...right?
Read more on the issue of GOP alignment here.

YouChoose Spotlight Traffic Boost For Mitt Romney

The above Alexa Chart is a close-up look at the mittromney.com traffic spike in the wake of Romney's first Spotlight video going online.

Mitt Romney Responds To YouTube Community

I would venture to guess that this may be the first time ever that voters have been able to carry on public discourse with a presidential candidate from the comfort of the home PC.

Mitt Romney has just posted three responses to YouTube users this morning. Firstly, and rightfully so, Romney addressed the flack he received from the YouTube community for asking US what WE believe is America's greatest challenge. No shortage of users immediately chimed in with, "No, Mr. Romney, what do YOU believe?" or equivalent. Well, Romney stepped up and answered that question himself. He places the spread of radical jihad at the top of his list of challenges. Following in importance is staying competitive with rising Asian economic markets. Then, working to preserve the family unit. See the video here:



Next Romney calls for a stronger military with more troops, more spending and SDI. In addition he wants to bolster health care and finance on the military front. Oh, and he wants to lower taxes. Check it out:



Finally, Romney responds to YouTube Guru James Kotecki's question about Tom Friedman's THE WORLD IS FLAT. Romney speaks out firmly against the isolationist backlash to our presence in Iraq, saying we must stay globally competitive to allow ourselves the greatest opportunities at home. Watch:

MySpace Demographics

As the presidential primaries near, there has been exceeding media buzz about how 85% of MySpace users are of voting age. Specifically, students are key targets for presidential candidates. Below are some recent links to articles discussing these numbers in greater detail. After that are the numbers of MySpace friends held by select contenders.

MySpace Politics Target Students (The Northerner)

Presidential hopefuls create MySpace pages, larger student bases (The Daily Texan)

More than Half of MySpace Visitors are Now Age 35 or Older, as the Site’s Demographic Composition Continues to Shift (ComScore)

MYSPACE FRIENDS OF CANDIDATES
Barack Obama: 100000+
John Edwards: 18000+
Hillary Clinton: 10000+
Mitt Romney: 5000+
Ron Paul: 3000+
John McCain: 3000+
Dennis Kucinich: 2000+
Joe Biden: 1500+

Mitt Romney Responses

After a full day, there have been 37 responses to Mitt Romney's spotlight video. You can view them all on YouTube HERE.

Mitt Romney's YouTube Statement

Mitt Romney kicks off a dialog with voters on YouTube.