Surrogate Revealed!

Some good old Facebook Stalking has yeilded this information (from the profile of some UNH College Dem student):

"Hillary Today, Howard Dean Thursday, John Kerry Saturday and BILL CLINTON on Sunday!!!"

Stay Tuned!

The Last Hurrah

It's the final stretch now; a week from today we'll have a new president! Wow...This election cycle has lasted nearly two years for us in New Hampshire, and it's almost over. I usually can't get enough of it, but I think I'm ready. Ready For Change.

DNC Chairman Howard Dean will be on the UNH Campus on

Thursday (tomorrow), 10/30/2008.

No word yet on Sen. John Kerry, stay tuned.

So, a few days ago a friend from New Mexico sent me a belated birthday gift. It's an electoral puzzle, with red and blue pieces for each state. You can put your own electoral map together. The night it arrived, I had a dream--too vivid for my own comfort--that it was election night. We were assembling the puzzle at my Election Night Party, as the TV news was calling states. New Hampshire was red! I couldn't believe it, and started having a serious in-dream panic attack that McCain could actually be president. I woke up at that moment, in a bit of a crazed state, but greatly relieved it was just a dream.

Then last night my son found the puzzle and wanted to assemble it. He put it together with some help, all blue, saying "There, that should make Barack Obama happy!" Yes, that would make a lot of people happy.

Oh, and those tattoos: a huge hit. My kids started passing them out at their after-school program. I had to quickly interject that everyone must ask their parents' permission before affixing!

The DNC's Idea of a Spending Spree!

Yesterday, I stopped by the Durham NHDP Coordinated Campaign Office to pick up more stickers and posters for my election party.  Lo & Behold, a new GOTV packet arrived that day!!  More large full-color posters, stickers, and window clings!  Window clings!?!  The stickers were amazing in that they came in an 11x17" sheet with assorted sizes and shapes, with a plasticy all-weather coating to boot!  And, all with the funky tri-color graphic of Obama, and the GOTV message: Vote, Nov. 4th. (So, don't try any dirty tricks and advertise the wrong day!!) Unfortunately, my daughter mistook the stickers for the window cling, and promptly stuck a sticker on the new front door.

The posters were intended to be preserved for the party, but each kid decided to hang one above their bed, even covering some of the new glow-in-the-dark stars we hot-glued on last month.  That is how much they liked these posters.

So here I am today, stopping by the MUB table for the College Dems, thinking I'd seen it all.  When what should appear?  TATTOOS.  Yes, 2" circular temporary tattoos that say, in that Gotham font I adore, "Yes We Can."  I am SO giving these out for trick-or-treating!  

This campaign is over the top in so many ways.  Maybe it's a waste of money, but you can be certain that the Obama will not be looking at leftover millions on the first Wednesday after the first Monday in November (like John Kerry, 2004).  

And speaking of... while I was at that table, I learned that not only is Hillary in Dover NH today, but DNC Chairman Howard Dean is coming to the UNH MUB soon, Senator John Kerry this weekend, and an as-yet-unnamed/big name surrogate after that.  

Deja Vu, All Over Again

Since I love the Obama graphic ID so much, I am using a different variation of the logo every day, for my Facebook Profile picture.  So, for those of you I haven't had the pleasure of friending, a different logo here too.  This one is for Students for Obama.

During my morning news/blog check routine, a noticed a theme coming from Team McCain that seemed oddly familiar: Beware of One Party Rule!  It was all over the news, and I kept thinking, "where have I heard this before?"  Ah, then it hit me as my morning surfing hit Boston.com: 2006, in the race for Governor of Massachusetts, which was won handily by Deval Patrick.  In the dying days of that campaign, when what's-her-name GOP candidate was tanking, she made a very desperate plea to Mass Voters:  Beware One Party Rule!  She seemed pathetic then, and McCain seems pathetic now.  Patrick took a cool, above the fray attitude, and just ignored her.  It didn't work for her, and it isn't working for McCain.  But nice try.  And another point for lack of creativity for the McCain-Palin ticket.

Also during my morning routine, I got an email from a student, who was cancelling an appointment with me for Tuesday 10/28 because she'd going to be working at an NHDP event, featuring Hillary.  So, further down the email list I found my own "personal" invitation from Team Shaheen:

A Rally for a New Direction with Hillary Clinton & Jeanne Shaheen 

Tuesday, October 28, 2008 Doors open at 12:00 PM McConnell Center Gym 61 Locust St, Dover, NH To RSVP: Click here or contact 603-617-2140

I am expecting a lot of student cancellations over the next nine days.  I should make sure I keep Nov. 6th wide open for all that rescheduling (save Nov. 5th for sleeping).  

OK, so now back to slogging through my emails...

Lunchtime update: I can't believe I forgot this...

Last week, Colleen & I spent one lunch hour watching The War Room, starring James Carville & George Stephanopoulos.  We'd always wanted to see it, as we cut our primary & junkie teeth on Clinton vs. Bush, 1992. The parallels to the current race were beyond amazing, but the hair & clothes stole the show for me.  And George was so darn cute!  I highly recommend a watch before Nov. 4th, if you can squeeze it in.

It's STILL the economy, Stupid!

The Lit & Chum Report, Two Weeks Left

If you've been reading FRS for a while, then you know I have an odd fascination (OK, obsession) with campaign signs and chum.  I collect it, and am a sucker for it.  The more unique, the better.  My office holds most of my collection, but a few items are immortalized in the walls of my home.  Gore, Kerry, Edwards, Clinton, and Obama stickers are saved for posterity under the drywall of my quaint little home.

And, you may also recall that I am registered as Undeclared in New Hampshire.  Most people hate the campaign junk mail, but I like it and remain undeclared just so I can get it.  I like to see how the different teams use their resources, how they try to woo the much fought-over independent vote of the Granite State.  So, here's the update on my chum collection and the state of my mailbox.

Chum:  The Obama campaign is a Chum Collector's Dream.  OMG!  Just walking into the new Durham Coordinated Campaign office makes me salivate.  I'm ready to knock down a wall just to add more hidden stuff inside!  Stickers, mostly of non-standard sizes and shaped, in every color, are everywhere.  Wicked cool, full-size posters with coordinated GOTV messages are there, ready to don the walls of your dorm room or apartment (or play room as the case may be).  What all this says to me, is that the campaign has lots of money, and is not afraid to spend it.  (Did the dems finally learn that it's not good to have money left over at the end of a presidential

 campaign?) I especially love the non-

standard shapes/sizes; they are just that much more expensive to produce, making them that much cooler.  And what I really love about the collection is the graphic theme running through it all.  The Obama branding is pure gold; a marketeers dream, executed with brilliance.  

Lit:  This is a bit scarier.  I am getting many full-color scare-o-grams, telling me that Rep. Carol Shea-Porter will insure illegal aliens and Gov. Jeanne Shaheen is personally responsible for NH's high school drop out rate.  The photos are digitized or colorized to make them creepy.  The fear factor is disgusting.  There's no positive Sununu or Bradley message, probably because neither candidate has one.  Curiously, I haven't gotten any snail mail for McCain/Palin.  I am not complaining, I just find it curious.  Actually, I'm not getting any Obama/Biden mail either, but print stuff does keep appearing thanks to those ubiquitous Saturday canvassers (and, yes, there was a line outside the Dover NHDP office last week, with volunteer waiting to sign in!)

For the rest of the campaign--only two weeks left!!--I am gathering as much chum & lit as I can, to be turned into decorations for my party (assuming it's rated "G," and some of it is certainly not!).  Who needs the party store when I have so much good stuff to choose from!

Let's Get The Party Started, II

With this Politico article recently, my thoughts are turning to Election Day plans and my Quadrennial Election Night Party!  I've held one every presidential election since 1992, which featured Hillary's Chocolate Chip cookie recipe and an oh-so-modern connection to the internet via Prodigy! One can only hope that this year, the party doesn't go as late into the night as it did in 2000.

So, now, what to serve? My pal and fellow junkie, Colleen is attempting the Baked Alaska (I am calling it Baked Alaskan, myself).  I will repeat my USA Jello mould, and instead of doing red/white/blue layers, this time I've got all Wild Berry Blue. 

I have my electoral map ready, and am working on quiz questions and prizes.  The kids have picked out their patriotic outfits and can't wait to don the crowns I found. I also went to the party supply and grocery stores this weekend to stock up on supplies.  Believe it or not, I could not find "marble" cake!  Has it gone out of fashion?  I'm going to have to mix chocolate and white cake mixes myself for the biracial effect.  But I did get Oreos!!  What else?  Another colleague & I brainstormed on a napkin at lunch last week (results below), but we'd love to hear your contributions, even if you can't attend. 

• Hawaiian Punch (spiked of course)
  
• Alaskan Crab Dip
  
• Uno's Chicago Pizza, Hawaiian toppings
  
• Budweiser (Cindy's family owns distributor)
  
• Navy Bean Dip
  
• Arizona Ice Tea
  
• Kenyan or Indonesian Food 

It's looking more like a luau with a patriotic twist (or vise versa).  

Now, it's your turn...you are not committed to making or bringing your suggestion. But if you do come, remember that it is a very partisan event.  And no Nader voters, please.  And, theme-related dress is encouraged!  

Better To Be Thought A Fool...

I stayed up way past my bedtime last night, but it was worth it.  Here's the rundown of the evening.

Dinner:  I almost chickened out of dinner, for fear of being out of my league, but I ended up tagging along with our Debate Watch guest analysts (and Brian Lawson now of PolitickerNH) at The New England Center's Acorns Restaurant.  Thanks, Dante for the invitation and encouragement: "you're a junkie, you'll fit right in!"  I'm glad I went.  To my amazement, I was able to keep up with the conversation AND didn't make a big fool out of myself.  Of course, I am pretty sure I was the only flaming, bleeding heart liberal at the table.  But I didn't draw attention to myself (except for gently suggesting that McCain subscribe to the new Google Goggles feature before pulling any more campaign stunts).  Rather like Obama, my goal was to stay cool, refrain from any gaffes, and show superior listening skills.    ;-)  

Pregame:  We were fortunate to have a great crowd at the UNH Watch Event, mostly all Obama supporters.  Somehow I got stuck being greeting, introducer, and techie and wasn't very good at any of those jobs (--a new respect for Advance workers), but we got our analysts back from dinner in time to do their "what to watch for" pre-debate spin, and managed to get the giant screen TV turned on to CNN just as the debate was starting.  

Debate Watch: Joe The Plumber was the star of the show, and students cracked up every time those three words were mentioned.  This audience also was quick to chuckle at all of McCain's stumbles, but especially the "fresh of breath air" comment.  I have to admit that I was bored, and spent my time chatting on Facebook or posting comments on Blue Hampshire.  I love watching all the FB statuses change as Joe The Plumber got more and more play.  My fav was by Aldon Hynes, a blogger in Connecticut: "Joe the Plumber" a new series following "Bob the Builder" (best know for: Can we build it? YES WE CAN!).

Postgame:  Our right-leaning pundits did their job by showcasing McCain's big hits (I'm not Bush....), all of which were in the first 35 minutes.  They didn't cut Obama any slack, not even points for looking calm or always getting back on track to positives.  

I read someplace recently that you can really tell who is winning a debate if you mute the sound and watch it like that.  Seems like a good idea to me, because even though the UNH Pundits didn't talk about it, this debate was all about the non-verbals.  McCain's blinking, eye rolling, tongue-jutting, sarcasm, and evil laugh are all the really big stories the morning after.  So much for looking confident & presidential!  Maybe McCain should have followed my example and keep his feelings to himself.

I think McCain is a bit out of his league.

My Positive Reframe

Ah, the planets aligned themselves in an effort to get me out of that funk.

First, I must thank my dear friends and colleagues who provided the figurative therapist's couches, and let me vent/process my feeling in an appropriate and legal fashion.  And to whomever gave my partner the recipe for that Cosmo cocktail, I am eternally grateful.  A run threw a local corn maze with the family certainly didn't hurt, either. 

Next of course, my gratitude goes to the most disciplined and positive campaign on earth: Team Obama.  A local field organizer responded to my inquiry about "counter viz" for the Palin event in Dover, with a gentle "thanks, but no thanks."  Of course, they would rather focus on the positive and put their staff and volunteers to work for positive change.  (As an aside, check out this new cool tool!)  Man, this huge staff is disciplined, innovative, focused, and absolutely unflappable.  No matter what side you are on, you gotta admit that Obama has run a flawless campaign for nearly two years.  So big, so focused, so on-message, so technologically superior! An extra tip of the hat to THAT ONE himself, for demonstrating how to stay positive and more mature himself in Ohio by putting firm brakes on booing McCain with "Now, we don't need that...we just need to VOTE!."

Thirdly, UNH Students for Obama chimed in to cheer me up with news about a new Durham/UNH field office, AND an Obama visit to NH on Thursday.  If I can't go myself, I will send my minivan full of those students who are working so hard.

And the absolute icing on my new cake is that I will still be co-sponsoring the UNH Debate Watch Event Wednesday evening, and hopefully will be dining with some of the guest analysts beforehand.  Be still my political-junkie heart!!

So, as much as I've always prided myself on seeing all candidates of all stripes, I'm going to use my time off a bit more productively, and skip seeing Palin on Wednesday morning.  

Thanks but no thanks on THAT bridge to nowhere! 

(PS: as much as I hate that the word "Palin" keeps coming up in my spellcheck, I refuse to add it to my dictionary!  So, there.)

I Can't Handle The Truth

After that last post went up on Friday, my day went downhill fast.  What I thought was going to be a lovely lunch with a friend and colleague was the culprit.  And by the start of the long weekend, I was ready for the therapist's couch.  My friend is a McCain-Palin supporter.  And not just a supporter, a volunteer/canvasser/viz worker!

He's a PhD scientist who is months away from retiring, if there's anything left in his account. We've been good friends for eight years.  We bonded over the Bush administration's disdain for scientific evidence and research.  I still love him.  But I just don't understand.  

I'm starting to take this election too personally.

In past elections, I have always been able to keep friendships with people who vote differently with me, especially students--I just LOVE that they VOTE and are engaged!  I even liked McCain, back in 2000, when he was really a Maverick.  

But for me, the difference this time is when it's people I know and respect and love, and who know and respect me.  People who I've "let in" to my life.  If you are just a colleague or acquaintance, I wish you a fair & happy election, may the best candidate win.  If you are someone that I have become closer to on a personal level, I feel betrayed.  

The McCain-Palin ticket represents values diametrically opposed to everything I am and everything believe in, especially the Palin part of that ticket.  I am a lesbian, and an atheist, after all.  I am pro-science, pro-environment, pro-choice (not necessarily pro-abortion), and pro-evolution.  I can't even begin to name all the issues where Sarah & I don't agree.  ("Don't agree" is an understatement, of course.)  She makes my blood boil.  

Here's why I need the therapy: I see a trusted friend's vote for McCain-Palin as a sign the close friend/voter lied to me.  "Sorry, I was just being polite to your face.  I don't believe you should be able to marry or have kids or adopt.  I don't believe in the Scientific Method or the Theory of Evolution.  Drill Baby, Drill!"

So I'm thinking of not going to see Sarah in person on Wednesday in Dover.  Do I really want to be in a crowd that hates me so much? What if I see people in the crowd I know, cheering enthusiastically for the Palin-McCain Administration?  Do I need so much negativity in my life?

I've always had close friends with whom I do not agree or have common values, especially religious ones.  I'm fascinated with how they interpret their religion's texts or teachings, and how those values are put into action, in a rather sociological kind of way.  But when religious and cultural intolerance is used as a tool of hatred, or spreading misinformation, I draw the line.  

_____________________________________________

Maybe, what I really need is for this election to be over already.

There's No Place Like Home

It's like the NH Primary season all over again.  And I love it!

Beside gorgeous weather and peak foliage, there are now four political events going on in the region over the next several days:  

First, Alaska's First Dude Todd Palin is showing up in Fremont NH this weekend at some snowmobiling event, then heading to Maine for more energizing of "the base."

Then, Joe Biden rescheduled his visit to Rochester NH, and is coming on Monday, Oct. 13th at 10am.  This time, though, he hit Columbus Day weekend when most workin' folks have the day off, unless they work at UNH.  So, I will not be in attendance.

Next up, the Hockey Mom herself, Gov. Sarah Palin at Dover High School, Wednesday, Oct. 15th at 10am.  The venue is in the heart of Clinton Country;  I saw Bill there in January of 2001 and Hillary in February 2007.  And let's not forget one of DHS's most famous graduates, Bill Shaheen!  Now, this may be worth taking a personal day for!

Fourth and to me, the most fun, will be the UNH Debate Watch Event, also on Wednesday.  Co-sponsorship has grown to include both the College Dems and College Republicans, so we're reserved a bigger room in the MUB, with room for spill-over into the Food Court area.  Prof. Scala arranged for some faculty "experts" and two political consultants to be on hand for analysis.  I am most excited to meet and hear from Steve Marchand, former mayor of Portsmouth NH.  Every student I talk to has him up on a pedestal, and I've heard wonderful things.  So, now I get to meet the man that, up until now, has just been a Facebook Friend.  

The students have been impressive in their efforts over the last few weeks.  Voter Registration drives on campus have been a huge success, thanks in part to a university challenge between institutions in so-called swing states.  The UNH student leaders on both sides of the aisle have been canvassing, phone banking, tabling, visibility, chalking, voter reg, event planning, and still going to classes (for the most part).  Students for Obama have been working on a float for tonight's UNH Homecoming Parade, and they have some famous actors from the TV show "House" coming to their tailgating at the football game.  (Too bad I don't have any clue about who these people are.)  

In all, they have been super professional, following all the UNH canvassing rules, and playing well with others.  Let's hope they keep this spirit of cooperation up as crunch time finally finally gets here.

Happy Homecoming!

Getting Busy Again

Next week suddenly got a whole lot busier for me here in Durham, NH.

First, my offer to help host the Political Science Dept's Debate Watch Party was accepted.  I pitched in with posters and some advertising, and plan to market my internship program from the sidelines while live blogging and chatting online.

Now this from WMUR:  Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is planning to visit New Hampshire next week, sources tell News 9. Wednesday, October 8, 2008.

Whoa. That could be interesting.

10/09 update from BH: She's coming to DOVER! Someone please invite her to our Debate Watch Party at UNH, pretty please.

NH Breaks Up With McCain

Ken Burns, the well known documentary filmmaker and resident of Walpole, NH, has chimed in on the issue of New Hampshire's fading love affair with Senator John McCain.  

Here's a link to his op-ed piece in The Manchester Union Leader, from this weekend.

While Burns is not hiding the fact that he endorsed Obama almost a year ago, and folks on Blue Hampshire attest to the fact that he's had an Obama sign on his lawn for some time, I do think Burns hits the nail on the head.  

My favorite line is this: If you have to say you're a maverick in your ads, it's clear you're not.

I am betting that "The Making of the President Obama" documentary is already underway!

New Hampshire Updates

Just a quick local update or two...

A third New Hampshire poll came out again over the weekend (I'm working on refinding that link), again putting Obama about 10 points ahead of McCain in the state.  As my friend who has a PhD in Physics once said to me "two points do not make a data set."  So, now we have three points.  There you have it.  

With a very strong incumbent Democratic governor (most people can't even name Lynch's opponent!), two members of the House that are Dems, and a statehouse now dominated by Dems, NH is not turning Blue, it is already Blue.  If Jeanne Shaheen is elected to the Senate (as I believe she will), and Carol Shea-Porter & Paul Hodes fend off their challengers (which I believe they will), Senator Judd Greg will be the Lone Republican in Congress from NH.  That is something.

In other news, Joe Biden was scheduled to appear in Rochester & Manchester NH today.  But, he has cancelled due to the death of his mother-in-law.  It's no surprise that they'd send Joe to these former mill towns, both of which I find depressing as you may already know.  His message & style will fit right in.  He cancelled his only UNH appearance last spring, too, so I've never seen him in person.  I hope that when he reschedules,  he comes at a time when those regular workin' folks are able to attend, and not 10:00 on a Monday morning!

Living Free or Dying in NH

So, I am trying my darnedest to keep a New Hampshire focus on this blog. It's been hard with so much going on, and I don't always keep my promise. But here I shall try.

When I was in DC not long ago, I got a few remarks from strangers about being from New Hampshire with regard to being in a so-called "swing state." The most curious was when a security guard at Reagan Nat'l Airport--an elderly Black man who was checking my ID--commented somewhat skeptically, "New Hampshire, huh? They really like McCain up there, I hear." Very bold of him, I thought. "Don't believe it!" I replied. "They USED to like McCain, before he got all extreme." Then the conversation went naturally to what a freak Palin is. Having just spent a day the the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History examining fossils and meteorites that were millions of years old, I launched into her belief that humans & dinosaurs walked on Earth together. He laughed shaking his head and waving me through, "I hadn't heard that one yet! THAT is a good one."

I passed through and walked toward my gate wondering to myself, "I'm not wrong on this, am I?" My view of the state is that we could not in the past be counted as Red the way the midwest or south is Red. New Hampshire conservatism is not evangelical or religiously based. It's Live Free or Die here--live free of government intervention in particular. Don't tell me what I can do while hunting, motorcycling, on my own property, in my doctor's office, in my church, or in my own bedroom. That is not the same "base" as the one loving Gov. Palin right now. By pandering to that evangelical base, I believe McCain has alienated the more Libertarian, NH-type base (in which I include George F. Will). But, am I wrong? I wondered...

Then, today, along came a new state-wide poll! NHIOP poll puts Obama in the lead in the state! Not just by a hair, but by 10 points! Most interesting to me was this:

Among those who say they will vote for Obama, however, 41% say McCain’s choice
of Palin influenced their decision a lot or some. Only 22% of McCain voters say
Biden influenced their decision a lot or some.

And another poll has similar results; Obama is in the lead by 10 points. The right-wing nut job that is Sarah Palin may have energized McCain's flailing campaign, but she has kissed New Hampshire good bye in the process.

Now I want to know this: what kind of turn out did her recent Manchester rally get?

Women Against Sarah Palin

I was recently asked to guest-blog at a friend's new site, Women Against Sarah Palin.  So, linky linky.  Check out my latest rant.  See you there. 

PS: Google Women Against Sarah Palin.  Jessica isn't the first person to be so inspired!