Dan Cleary

Separated at Birth

Rod Blagojevich...

...and Jim Carrey:

New Year's Eve Post: My Favorite TV Commercial of 2008

Who wants to read about politics on New Year's Eve? Instead, check out this spot for Jack in the Box, which has been getting a lot of play lately in the Nashville market. I get a kick out of it every time:

Blago Still Pretends Nothing's Wrong, Names Obama's Replacement

Scandal? What scandal?

It's back to business as usual for Rod Blagojevich, despite a 76-page, expletive-laced affidavit that "alleges" that he entertained the notion of selling Barack Obama's U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder. That document alone should have shamed him into resigning, regardless of whether he is ultimately "vindicated" from a legal standpoint.

Today, he defied his fellow Democrats and just about everyone else in the political world by proceeding with his announcement of Barack Obama's replacement in the U.S. Senate, a man by the name of Roland Burris:

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For more commentary on what's going on in Blago-land, I refer you to Allahpundit at Hot Air. Seems like the Senate Democrats are none too keen on Burris (or anyone else that Blagojevich may have had in mind), and neither is Barack Obama.

McGurn: New Jersey is the Perfect Bad Example

When it comes to states in economic disarray, California deservedly gets the lion's share of attention.

But don't sell New Jersey short. Writing in today's Wall Street Journal, columnist William McGurn calls New Jersey the "perfect bad example" for Barack Obama to consider as he attempts to bring the nation's economy back to life:

When Barack Obama makes his New Year's resolutions, at the top of his list ought to be the following: "I will not allow America to become New Jersey."

Think of it as our gift to the nation. Other states offer promising experiments in areas such as Medicaid, taxes, education and regulatory reform. In contrast, the People's Republic of New Jersey offers America something truly unique: the perfect bad example.

As harmful as this has been for our own prosperity, our example could be invaluable for President-elect Obama. That's especially true given that his team appears to be considering some of the same things that have long been popular in Trenton. For years, the solons in our state capital have operated on the assumption that you can have high taxes everywhere -- on income, on property, on business -- without suffering any consequences.

Well, Gov. Jon Corzine is now dealing with those consequences, and his budgets show it. Earlier this year, he pushed through a budget that was one of the few in New Jersey history to be less than the one that preceded it. With revenues now running $1.2 billion short of what was expected, the next budget will undoubtedly be tougher still.

Not all of Mr. Corzine's choices have been good ones. In fairness, however, he is dealing with huge problems that have been years in the making. In some ways, we are a mini-California. That is to say, where New Jersey was once a national leader in terms of economic growth and job creation, more recently we have become a national laggard.

Read the rest here.

McKinney Renders Debate Over Kennedy's Qualifications Moot

Take this one with a grain of salt, but Caroline Kennedy's housekeeper - in a rare guest opinion on Iowahawk - is vouching for Mrs. Kennedy's qualifications for U.S. Senate.

I must say, she makes a very persuasive case!

Honestly though, I don't see what all the hubbub is about. To me, Cynthia McKinney is proof positive that anyone - and I mean, anyone at all - is perfectly "qualified" to occupy a seat in Congress, provided they meet the age and residency requirements. Beyond that, it's usually just a matter of demonstrating your viability as a candidate in an actual election.

And Kennedy doesn't even have to worry about that part.

George W. Bush is the Second-Most-Admired Man in America

I'm not completely surprised by a poll showing Barack Obama as the "most admired man" in America.

What does surprise me is that the same poll showed George W. Bush as the previous titleholder. I must have missed the media fanfare surrounding that announcement.

Indeed, Bush still clocks in at #2, which leads me to believe that Obama and Bush were the only two choices in this poll.

Via Bretibart.tv.

The Twelve Days of Global Warming

Nice work here by the folks at Minnesotans for Global Warming:

Hat tips: Hot Air and The Jawa Report.

Now Let's Try Offering Levitra to al-Qaeda

Via Breitbart.tv: Viagra Helps CIA Win Over Afghan Warlords:

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Can we figure out a way to make them sterile at the same time?

See also:

• Redefining Hard Intelligence (Ed Morrissey, Hot Air)
• Afghan Tribal Leaders+Many Wives+Viagra=Intelligence (Stable Hand, My Pet Jawa)
• Make Love, Not War - Fighting Terrorism with Viagra (Glenn Reynolds, Instapundit)

Bush the Bibliophile

To clear up any lingering misconceptions concerning George Bush's reading habits, Karl Rove would like to point out that the man is, in fact, a book lover.

KCRW's Left, Right, and Center - 12/26/08

Recorded last week...