Romney’s Speech – It wasn’t as effective as Fred Thompson’s last night.
Quote of the night so far is from Mike Huckabee – “Palin got more votes as Mayor than Joe Biden got as Presidential Candidate.”
The crowd seemed very responsive to Mike Huckabee’s speech.
Everytime that Palin’s name is mentioned the audience goes crazy. She gets the loudest pops.
Hawaiin Governor Linda Lingle is on the stage now. Governor Lingle is doing a good job introducing us to Sarah Palin.
Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York City is speaking now. He says that this election is the most important. He says that this election represents a turning path. He says that we the people get to decide which way, not the media, celebrities, but the people.
Giuliani is likening this election process to a job application process. We have to make this decision, and we have to make it right. He says there is one man who has dedicated his life to the US, tested, by crisis. John McCain is a true American Hero.
Giuliani is talking about McCain experience as a POW. He says that America comes first.
“He has proved his commitment with his blood”
Giuliani takes jabs at Obama’s experience as a community organizer. The crowd chants “Zerobama” He says that Obama couldn’t vote yes or no, “it was too tough. He voted present.” The crowd boos. Rudy said he didn’t know he could vote present in NYC. He says that Sarah Palin didn’t get it as governor. He says it’s not good enough to be present, you have to make a decision. The crowd roars.
Giuliani is now talking about Obama in US Senate as a celebrity senator, with no leadership or position. He says he’s never run a city, state, business, or military unit. Obama has never lead people in crisis. They are chanting “Zerobama” again.
“Not a personal attack, but a personal fact. Barack Obama hasn’t lead anything. Zero, Nada”
Crowd is chanting Zerobama again!
“Tough times require tough leadership. This is no time for on the job training.”
“John McCain is ready to be Commander in Chief. We will be safe in his hands. Our children, and our country. No Doubt!”
The crowd is roaring again.
“Change is not a destination, just as hope isn’t a strategy.”
Giuliani says that McCain will bring jobs and prosperity. He will reduce taxes, reduce government, expand free trade, and he will lead us to energy independence. And he’ll do it with an all-of-the-above approach, nuclear power and offshore drilling.”
“Drill Baby Drill!”
“We need John McCain to save the economy and make sure it grows. John McCain will keep us on offense against terrorism at home, and abroad.”
Crowd is on its feet.
Giuliani says that the Democrats never said Islamic Terrorism. He asks who they are insulting? Terrorist.
He says that they rarely mentioned the attacks of Sept 11. 2001. He says that the Democrats are in the state of denial. He says that John McCain can face the enemy. He can win, and bring victory for this country.
Giuliani points out that McCain supported the troop surge in Iraq. He says that if Democrats gave up in Iraq, they gave up on America. The crowd boos when Giuliani said the Democrats said the war was lost. He asks who won then, Al Qaida, Bin Laden? The crowd boos. He says that John McCain got it right, and Barack Obama got it wrong. He says that John McCain was most associated with the surge and it was unpopular. He says that other politicians would change their position out of self interest. He says that Obama promised to take public financing, until he broke his promise. He says that Obama was against wiretapping before he voted for it. He says if he were Joe Biden he would want to get that VP thing in writing. The crowd roars again.
Giuliani said that John McCain would rather lose an election then a war. He talks about Russia/Georgia conflict. He said that John McCain proclaimed that we are all Georgians. He contrasts that to Obama, who said that both sides were equally responsible, then he changed his position and suggested that the United Nations security council could find a solution.
The crowd chants “Zero!”
Giuliani then said that Obama changed his opinion three days later to match John McCain’s. Giuliani said that next time just call John McCain. McCain, knows something about foreign policy. He says that Mccain will open up the party to new people. Sarah Palin is a choice for the future. He says that John McCain is a look forward. He says that Sarah Palin is the new generation. She is the best and most popular. He says that she has more experience then the entire Democratic combined. She’s been a mayor. He says he is sorry that Sarah Palin’s hometown isn’t cosmopolitian enough. He says, maybe they cling to religion there. He says the first day Palin became Mayor she had more experience then Obama and Biden combined. He says that Alaska can be proud for having one of the best governors with 80% approval rating.
He says as a former US Attorney he is impressed how she took on corruption. She has no fear and stood up for what is right. She is shaking up Alaska that hasn’t happened in forever. And with John McCain and Sarah can you imagine how they are going to shake up Washington?
“Look Out!”
“One final point. How dare they question whether if Sarah Palin spends enough time with her children and be vice president. How dare the do that. When did the ever ask a man that question? When?”
He says that party is best when they are expanding freedom, make sure people have freedom here and abroad, giving workers the right to work. Parents should choose where their children should go to school. And he says they are the party who believes in America’s success. He quotes Reagan in saying that it’s a shining city on the hill, a beacon. He says we get a chance to vote for a great president and woman who proves that she can governor.
“Let’s shake up Washington and move this country forward”
VERY GOOD SPEECH!
Sarah Palin has taken the stage. She’s getting a very long ovation from the crowd. There is a sign that says “Palin Power.” The press around the podium is Micheal Phelps large.
Sarah keeps saying thank you so much. The crowd is still cheering and chanting Palin. On the screen behind her is the Liberty Bell.
“Mr Chairman, delegates. I will be honored to accept our nomination as vice president to the United States”
Tonight is the night. Sarah Palin is going to make her national primetime debut at the Rebuplican National Convention. From what I’e heard so far, Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin’s story is amazing. She’s not a lifelong politician. Shen went from being a PTA member at the Wasilla, Alaska schools to fisher with her husband to Mayor of Wasilla then governor of Alaska. Now she is the Vice Presidential nominee for the Republican party.
ST. PAUL (Reuters) – Sarah Palin has dominated the Republican convention for days without saying a word, but on Wednesday she takes the spotlight with a prime-time speech that will introduce her to American voters and try to answer questions about her experience and life story.
Since John McCain made the virtually unknown Palin his choice for vice president, the Alaska governor has been the center of a media storm fueled by disclosures about her unmarried teenage daughter’s pregnancy, a probe into her role in an Alaskan official’s firing and questions about her political record.
Palin’s anti-abortion and pro-gun history have excited conservatives and party activists but the appearance on Wednesday will be the first chance for voters nationwide to judge her for themselves.
More…
(AP) Palin’s experience – she has been mayor of tiny Wasilla, Alaska, and has served as the state’s governor for less than two years – has been questioned since McCain chose her last week. The process that led to her selection has been criticized as hasty because McCain had met her just once before he offered her the job.
Palin also is the subject of an ethics investigation involving the firing of the state’s public safety commissioner after he wouldn’t dismiss her former brother-in-law, a state trooper. Her efforts as mayor to gain millions of dollars in federal funding through the so-called “earmark” process appeared to be at odds with the McCain message of fiscal reform.
Her personal life became a topic of discussion after Palin revealed that her daughter was pregnant. Yet her candidacy has excited Republicans at the convention and across the country, in part because she has earned a reputation for taking on entrenched interests in Alaska and is staunchly pro-gun and anti-abortion.
“Give her a chance to make her first speech, give her a chance to do her first interview,” said former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, the convention’s keynote speaker.
“Of course it’s going to be high stakes,” Giuliani said in an interview Wednesday with “Good Morning America” on ABC. “The media is ready to pounce on any mistake. … She looks to me like she’s got tremendous confidence, got tremendous ability as a speaker.”
“I had the privilege of living most of my life in a small town. I was just your average hockey mom, and signed up for the PTA because I wanted to make my kids’ public education better. When I ran for city council, I didn’t need focus groups and voter profiles because I knew those voters, and knew their families, too. Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown. And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves. I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a ‘community organizer,’ except that you have actual responsibilities. …
“I’m not a member of the permanent political establishment. And I’ve learned quickly, these past few days, that if you’re not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone. But here’s a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I’m not going to Washington to seek their good opinion – I’m going to Washington to serve the people of this country. …
“Our opponents say, again and again, that drilling will not solve all of America’s energy problems – as if we all didn’t know that already. But the fact that drilling won’t solve every problem is no excuse to do nothing at all. Starting in January, in a McCain-Palin administration, we’re going to lay more pipelines…build more nuclear plants…create jobs with clean coal…and move forward on solar, wind, geothermal, and other alternative sources. We need American energy resources, brought to you by American ingenuity, and produced by American workers. …
“Here’s how I look at the choice Americans face in this election. In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers. And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change.”
My favorite excerpt is the third paragraph. Presidential Candidates have been saying, “We are going to be energy independent in 10 years” cliche for the past 30 years. It’s time for someone to say exactly what our nation needs to do in order to become energy independent.
John McCain was right – this is exactly who we need.
We all know how the story goes: God creates Earth in 7 God-days. After sometime God grows bored with all the animals and plants and decides to create a new species in his own image. Man and Woman instantly appear in one of Earth’s most fruitful and glorious gardens. They frolic for a bit, play games like “hide-n-seek” and “rock, leaf, and sharper rock”. Woman suddenly has an urge to bite into the forbidden fruit. Man and Woman become very rich from their apple farm. Man suggests that they should invest their money into an automotive company that produces only SUVs. Woman agrees, only if they can put some money into the aerosol hairspray industry.
Many years later as Man and Woman are enjoying their retirement vacation to some arctic location they witness a horrifying tragedy. A 200 pound chunk of ice from a melting glacier falls and crushes a waddling group of penguins.
The world’s penguin population is virtually melting away as a direct result of global warming, according to a new report from the World Wildlife Federation.
The new study, Antarctic Penguins and Climate Change, was released to coincide with the United Nations climate conference taking place in Bali, Indonesia.
Nooo! Not the penguins too!!
It suggests that four penguin populations are suffering serious losses due to the shrinking ice shelf, said Julie Langer, of WWF Canada.
“What we’ve looked at is the four populations that actually breed on the Antarctic continent and they are experiencing declines overall — sometimes what you might call population crashes,” Langer told CTV’s Canada AM.
“They’re in a completely disrupted state because of the huge temperature increases that is happening in the Antarctic continent.”
While climate change seems to be having an impact around the world, the effect is most pronounced in the Arctic and Antarctic regions, because the climates are so sensitive to any temperature shifts.
“The poles are actually warming four or five times faster than the rest of the planet,” Langer said.
“You’ve heard about global warming but it’s acute at the poles. As the temperatures increase, the ice melts. When you have less ice at the edge of the continent, you have less algae, less krill, less food for the penguins.”
I know there are people out there who don’t want to hear this… but taxation and carbon credits is not the way to solve Global Warming and the death of the penguins. Instead, we should ride this out. Sure, we can make more fuel efficient environmental friendly vehicles and whatever else that makes you feel good. But, it’s inevitable that the climate is going to change. The Earth has gone through many different phases and it’s not going to stop – EVOLVING – (OH NO, not that word!) just because man says so.
When I was in school they always told us about the different rabbit species separated by a river. Maybe it’s time for the penguins to learn to adapt to the changes and I dunno, learn how to survive the climate change?
It was obvious that Iran made a mistake when they announced that they defeated the United States on “debate” if their nuclear program was for peace or more demonic purposes. They then retracted that statement by accusing the United States of spying on them. Well, no duh! President Bush wants Iran to explain to the world why they had a nuclear weapons program.
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Bush on Tuesday called on Iran to explain why it had a secretive nuclear weapons program, and warned that any such efforts must not be allowed to flourish “for the sake of world peace.”
“Iran is dangerous,” Bush said after an Oval Office meeting with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano. “We believe Iran had a secret military weapons program, and Iran must explain to the world why they had such a program.”
Bush’s comments came after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that it was “a step forward” that U.S. intelligence agencies had concluded that Tehran stopped developing its nuclear weapons program four years ago.
Ahmadinejad told reporters that an “entirely different” situation between the United States and Iran could be created if more steps like the intelligence report followed.
“We consider this measure by the U.S. government a positive step. It is a step forward,” Ahmadinejad said.
“If one or two other steps are taken, the issues we have in front of us will be entirely different and will lose their complexity, and the way will be open for the resolution of basic issues in the region and in dealings between the two sides,” he said.
Iran has said its nuclear program is peaceful, but until last week, the United States and Western allies had countered that Iran was hiding plans for a bomb.
“Iran has an obligation to explain to the IAEA why they hid this program from them,” Bush said, referring to the nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency.
“Iran is dangerous, and they’ll be even more dangerous if they learn how to enrich uranium,” Bush said. “So I look forward to working with the president,” Bush said, referring to Napolitano, the Italian leader, “to explain our strategy and to figure out ways we can work together to prevent this from happening for the sake of world peace.”
I woke up for an hour to watch the speech. I wanted less teleprompter and more from the heart spontaneous reflections about his religion and what it means to him. What we got was fine, but I was hoping for more.
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) – Republican Mitt Romney, confronting voters’ skepticism about his Mormon faith, declared Thursday that as president he would “serve no one religion, no one group, no one cause,” and said calls for him to explain and justify his religious beliefs go against the profound wishes of the nation’s founders.
At the same time, he decried those who would remove from public life “any acknowledgment of God,” and he said that “during the holiday season, nativity scenes and menorahs should be welcome in our public places.”
In a speech less than a month before the first nomination contests, Romney said he shares “moral convictions” with Americans of all faiths, though surveys suggest up to half of likely voters have qualms about electing the first Mormon president.
“I believe in my Mormon faith and I endeavor to live by it,” Romney said. “My faith is the faith of my fathers. I will be true to them and to my beliefs.”
Nonetheless, he strove to clarify his personal line between church and state, recalling a similar speech delivered by John F. Kennedy in 1960 as Kennedy sought to become the first Catholic elected president.
“Let me assure you that no authorities of my church, or of any other church for that matter, will ever exert influence on presidential decisions,” Romney said at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum, 90 miles from Kennedy’s speaking site in Houston. “Their authority is theirs, within the province of church affairs, and it ends where the affairs of the nation begin.”
He added: “If I am fortunate to become your president, I will serve no one religion, no one group, no one cause and no one interest. A president must serve only the common cause of the people of the United States.”
Romney’s speech lasted about 20 minutes and was interrupted a dozen times by applause from the invited audience. He said the word “Mormon” only once, otherwise referring to “my religion,” “my faith” and “my church.”
TEHRAN, Iran – A new U.S. intelligence review concluding Iran stopped developing an atomic weapons program in 2003 is a “declaration of victory” for Iran’s nuclear program, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday.
The U.S. intelligence report released Monday concluded that Iran had stopped its weapons program in late 2003 and shown no signs since of resuming it, representing a sharp turnaround from a previous intelligence assessment in 2005.
“This is a declaration of victory for the Iranian nation against the world powers over the nuclear issue,” Ahmadinejad told thousands of people during a visit to Ilam province in western Iran.
“This was a final shot to those who, in the past several years, spread a sense of threat and concern in the world through lies of nuclear weapons … Thanks to your resistance, a fatal shot was fired at the dreams of ill-wishers and the truthfulness of the Iranian nation was once again proved by the ill-wishers themselves,” Ahmadinejad said, drawing celebratory whistles from the crowd.
Yea… okay Mr President. The same guys you are accusing of spreading “a sense of threat and concern in the world through lies of nuclear weapons” is the same government that gives you your so-called vindication. We love the spin though!
Iran has touted the new U.S. intelligence report as vindication of its claims that its nuclear program is peaceful and Iranian officials insist that Washington should take a less hawkish stance and drop attempts to impose new sanctions in light of the report’s surprise conclusions.
Just like the liberal media before it, Iran is totally glossing over the fact that there was a Nuclear Weapons program in 2003. That that program was halted because of pressures from the United States and coalition forces (See Iraq War). And, that by now the Iranians have probably restarted their weapons program and we’ll hear about it in the next intelligence report due in 2013.
Rice said Tuesday it would be a “big mistake” to ease any diplomatic pressure on Iran despite the new U.S. findings.
“It doesn’t mean you should take the pressure off,” she said en route to Ethiopia to see African leaders. “It puts a premium on diplomatic efforts.
“I continue to see Iran as a dangerous power in international politics,” Rice told reporters traveling with her. “At this moment, it doesn’t appear to have an active weaponization program. That frankly is good news. But if it causes people to say, ‘Oh, well, then we don’t need to worry about what the Iranians are doing,’ I think we will have made a big mistake.”
Since 2003 Iran “elected” Ahmadinejad and his religious nutjob views into office. The rhetoric against Israel increased dramatically. Including various times when he said that Israel would be forced into the sea, or wiped off the face of the earth (depending on the translation). There should be caution over Iran and what’s going on with it’s civilian nuclear plant.
The article continues.
Rice said it may take some time for U.S. allies to understand the administration’s new conclusions on Iran, but she said there should be great concern still about the Islamic republic’s continuing preprocessing and enrichment of uranium, which Tehran insists is only for civilian energy production. Such an enrichment program also could lead to nuclear weapons production.
“We need to do everything we can to stop them from being able to perfect this enrichment and reprocessing program,” she said.
The U.S. secretary of state urged nations such as China and Russia not to harden their stance against a new round of sanctions, arguing that the fact that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003 because of international pressure shows that diplomacy works.
“We know that pressure has worked in the past and it caused them to do something very important,” Rice said. “Now let’s use our collective efforts to cause them to take the next important step,” she added, referring to a potential halt to its enrichment of uranium.
Rice said she wants officials from other countries to try to understand the nuance of the new U.S. intelligence assessment.
“People need the opportunity to absorb what they’ve heard,” she said. “We have been completely transparent about what the intelligence assessment says. And people need a chance to read it. When they do that and when they read it in its detail and nuance, they will be able to see the points that I have made.”
Two days after a new intelligence report said that Iran had halted its nuclear weapons program four years ago, Bush demanded that Tehran detail its previous program to develop nuclear weapons “which the Iranian regime has yet to acknowledge.”
“The Iranians have a strategic choice to make,” he said. “They can come clean with the international community about the scope of their nuclear activities, and fully accept the long-standing offer to suspend their enrichment program and come to the table and negotiate, or they can continue on a path of isolation.”
The administration is worried that the new National Intelligence Estimate — representing a consensus of all U.S. spy agencies — weakens its leverage over Iran and its ability to build global pressure on Tehran to stop its uranium enrichment program.
Bush, arriving here on a campaign fundraising trip, said he had consulted with members of his national security team, who gave him a report about what Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley have learned in talks during the past several days with their counterparts in Britain, Germany, France and Russia.
“These countries understand that the Iranian nuclear issue is a problem, and continues to be a problem and must be addressed,” Bush said.
Backing the U.S. intelligence community, Bush said he appreciated its work in helping people to understand past and present activities in Iran and helping the administration develop a sound policy.
“It is clear from the latest NIE that the Iranian government has more to explain about its nuclear intentions and past actions,” Bush said.
I agree. The fact is they were developing a nuclear weapons program. Now they need to answer why.
Fred Thompson’s staff is on the attack against Mike Huckabee. Apparently, the Huckster was on Don Imus in the morning on 77WABC. When asked about his foreign policy he reverted to a joke. I don’t watch/listen to Don Imus – but from what I’ve gathered his show is supposed to be a typical morning ‘shock jock’ spectacular without the bare asses and boobs you’d find on Stern. Not really the place for foreign policy debate or serious conversation.
Fred Thompson Press Release:
Huckabee on Foreign Policy
Consider these events in the last three days:
· A new NIE on Iran
· Major referendum in Venezuela
· Russian Elections
· A bombing this morning in Afghanistan near to Sec. Gates
How does Mike Huckabee respond to these? He makes a joke.
When asked by Don Imus this morning about his lack of foreign policy credentials, Mike Huckabee joked: “And the ultimate thing is, you know, I may not be the expert as some people on foreign policy – but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.” (WABC Radio, 12/04/07)
“When confronted with a serious question about his lack of foreign policy experience, Mike Huckabee makes a joke. The security of Americans and our allies is no laughing matter. What Americans are looking for in their next president is a commander in chief, not a Court Jester,” added Bob Haus, Executive Director of Iowa Friends of Fred Thompson.
I dislike when these groups attack each other. Yea, I known it’s’ part of the process. If you can’t hold up to scrutiny from your own party then how can you handle criticisms from the enemies or the democrats. I get that. I just don’t think it’s really needed. So far Fred Thompson has been a disappointment to me. Instead of focusing on himself he’s resorted to attacking the others.
A Missouri mother says she will do “whatever it takes” to stop former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee from becoming president, because he freed the man who went on to rape and murder her daughter, Carol Sue Shields (pictured).
“I can’t imagine anybody wanting somebody like that running the country,” Lois Davidson of Adrian, Mo., told the Blotter on ABCNews.com.
Wayne Dumond was initially sentenced to life plus 25 years for raping a 17-year-old Arkansas high school cheerleader. In 1999, a parole board voted to free Dumond, after then-Gov. Mike Huckabee announced his desire to see him released.
This one is hard to gage. If this were to happen to my family I would be outrage at a failed government. The jury system convicted Wayne Dumond and he was sentenced to not only life, but life+25 more years. That’s a pretty hefty sentence. For each story where the government has failed in making the right decision – there are other stories where the government has succeeded. I’m not sure, but have all the former inmates Huckabee let free committed crimes post-prison too? Or was this just a bad lemon out of the bunch. I feel for the mother and she has every right to be mad. The ultimate blame belongs on Wayne Dumond.
“We started off with the McCain surge, the inevitable candidate, then it became the Giuliani surge, and then it was the Thompson surge, and now we have the Huckabee surge,” the Republican candidate said.
“There is an initial infatuation and people take a close look on a person’s issues and decide whether they want to support them or not,” the former Massachusetts governor told CNN.
McLean, VA – Sen. Fred Thompson released the following statement today in response to a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit – Americans United for Separation of Church and State v. Prison Fellowship – regarding an important First Amendment ruling on religious programming in prisons.
“The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals opinion appears to allow Prison Fellowship’s privately funded, voluntary prisoner rehabilitation programs in Iowa’s prisons to continue. Prison inmates face daunting odds: statistically, two-thirds of them will be rearrested within three years of their release. As a society, we must do something to reduce this number and help returning inmates break the cycle of crime. Prison Fellowship’s program has already demonstrated great promise. This ruling will allow faith-based prison programming to continue in order to improve the odds of successful reentry into society. This decision represents a win for the State of Iowa, for Prison Fellowship, and for anyone concerned about reducing recidivism.”
The court ruled that the ministry couldn’t use taxpayers money to fund the program – rightfully. From my understanding, the program can still continue if funded privately by individuals.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A federal appeals court ruled Monday that the state of Iowa cannot fund an evangelical Christian prison ministry program because doing so advances or endorses religion, violating the Constitutional separation of church and state.
The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt’s June 2006 ruling that a Prison Fellowship Ministries Inc. program at the Newton Correctional Facility was unconstitutional if paid for with taxpayer dollars and should be shut down.
Barry Lynn, executive director of the Washington-based advocacy group Americans United For Separation of Church and State, which brought the lawsuit, said the ruling would have major implications for the Bush administration’s policies of allowing faith-based groups to offer services to government institutions.
“This is an enormously significant case on the whole question of how government can, or in this case, cannot aid religious ministries,” Lynn said.
“I think this has implications far broader than a prison in a single state because the basic framework of this decision, the way they reached the conclusion is that government can’t pay for these religious social services nor can they turn over functions of government essentially to religious operations,” he said.
Prison Fellowship Ministries, which contracts with InnerChange Freedom Initiatives Inc. and other organizations to conduct faith-based programs, must repay about $160,000 to the state for money received between June 2006 and June 2007, said Mark Early, the group’s president.
In a couple of hours the results in the Venezuela election should be known. Local Venezuelan websites are already reporting some exit poll results, but it is too soon to know anything for certain.
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez appeared headed for victory on Sunday in a referendum on allowing the leftist to rule for as long as he keeps winning elections, government-linked sources said, citing exit polls.
Three exit polls showed Chavez won by between six and eight percentage points in a vote where turnout was low, the two sources said.
If confirmed, it would be by far the slimmest victory margin in the career of a man who wants to rule for life and turn the major oil exporter into a socialist state.
Opposition says their exit polls show that they won by 4% (Salon)
Update I:
Plenty of sources are saying that NO will win – but the government might still announce that the referendum passed.
Update II:
Venezuela News and Views blog is reporting that Chavez has canceled his press conference – which could be seen that the results might be to close to call.
Alexis Marrero Blog has regional results.
CARACAS (Reuters) – Three cabinet ministers on Sunday said Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez won a referendum on whether he can run indefinitely for reelection.
The ministers, who asked not to be named, cited preliminary polling and electoral data.
Update IV:
Venezuela News and Views blog is reporting that reporters are begging for their viewers to keep the peace while the results are coming in cause the results are going to be very close.
The Tendency is very clear the triumph of is not definitive, all the acts that have been entered give like result a definitive triumph of the opposition. it is certain that when I write this post I do not have the confirmation of the Zuliano state, Barquisimeto, Mérida, and Barina. But in the other states the Triumph is definitive. We could say with clarity that the triumph is by very little point but it is it.
The National press has not managed to give the tendency so that the law Jaw therefore stipulates it. But there are pro-government foreign newspapers of tendency that are using single the source that the government gives them. Cómos con is Country and other sources already known.
Venezuelan you do not lose the faith here soon will leave the truth.
The results in tendency are the one of 51% NO
49% YES
Update VII: Official word is that NO has won the election. Chavez’s referendums failed the election. Now I wonder if he’ll follow up on his threat to end exportation of Oil to the United States or not.
Update VIII: Isn’t amazing on Al Jazeera and Reuters both called it as a win for Chavez hours before the official word came out? No doubt there will be investigations into the results by Chavez.
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) – President Hugo Chavez suffered a stinging defeat in a vote on constitutional changes that would have let him run for re-election indefinitely, the chief of National Electoral Council said Monday.
Voters defeated the sweeping measures by a vote of 51 percent to 49 percent, Tibisay Lucena said.
If I had a gun (or a lollipop for those who are anti-guns) to my head and I had to make the correct decision or the gun/lollipop would spontaneously explode… who would I choose as the winners of the 2008 Iowa Caucus?
For the Republican side I would have to go with Romney. Rudy Giuliani has been non-existent here in Iowa. I’m not sure if he has decided that Iowa just isn’t worth his time or what the deal is. From the top of my head I cannot recall any news coverage about him being in the state. Does he even know Iowa exists? I know that Giuliani is the lead in the national polls, but Romney and especially Mike Huckabee have been the stars in the state. I would really like to see Mike Huckabee win Iowa – but at this moment I believe that more of Romney’s supporters would make it out to caucus. While Mike Huckabee hasn’t been consistent with the number of supporters, Romney’s numbers have stayed consistent for the better part of the year.
As for the Democrats…. I would like to see Barrack Obama pull it out ahead for the Democrats because I believe he’s easier to beat in 2008. If someone was jabbing that lollipop at the side of my head I would say Hillary will pull through in the end because she has a lot of silent support from those who don’t participate in random phone call polls. She has the Clinton machine behind her where the consensus is that “a Clinton can do no wrong.”
Mike Huckabee has leaped ahead of Republican presidential rival Mitt Romney in Iowa, seizing first place in a new Des Moines Register poll of likely Republican caucus participants.
Huckabee wins the support of 29 percent of Iowans who say they definitely or probably will attend the Republican Party’s caucuses on Jan. 3. That’s a gain of 17 percentage points since the last Iowa Poll was taken in early October, when Huckabee trailed both Romney and Fred Thompson.
Barack Obama has pulled ahead in the race for Iowa’s Democratic presidential caucuses, while the party’s national frontrunner Hillary Clinton has slipped to second in the leadoff nominating state, according to The Des Moines Register’s new Iowa Poll.
…
Obama, an Illinois senator, leads for the first time in the Register’s poll as the choice of 28 percent of likely caucusgoers, up from 22 percent in October. Clinton, a New York senator, was the preferred candidate of 25 percent, down from 29 percent in the previous poll.
