http://randallhmiller.com Timely, one-sided commentary on major political headlines and other cool stuff. Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:12:17 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The Washington Post recently named who they think will be the top ten Republican players to watch in the next election. There are ten names on the list (noticeably absent are Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee), but the only two I like right now are Governors Mitt Romney and Bobby ... http://randallhmiller.com/the-future-of-the-gop/ One of the things I’ve always liked about Obama is that he projects a “cool” image without making it look like he’s trying too hard. Contrast that with the wooden, grumpy John McCain that we saw during the election and it’s easy to see why he has such celebrity power. ... http://randallhmiller.com/friday-morning-fix-november-21st-2008/ A reader asks: “What, no comment on Hillary for Sec. of State?” I’m hoping that the drama around this is just drama. Hillary news sells papers and drives web traffic. I for one do not want the Clintons back in the White House in any capacity. This is supposed to be change. ... http://randallhmiller.com/hillarys-hunger-and-bubbas-baggage/ I met Howard Dean several times between 1991 and 1993 when he was Governor of Vermont and I was a cadet at Norwich University. I even had the opportunity to chat on-on-one with him for about a half hour once over lunch. During each encounter he came off as a ... http://randallhmiller.com/howard-dean-gloats-as-peggy-noonan-looks-on-the-bright-side/ The day after the election I took the day off. The point was to disconnect and attempt to regain some normalcy in my life after blogging almost exclusively about the election for almost a year. I checked email only once and resisted the urge to surf through the blogs that ... http://randallhmiller.com/once-you-go-black-berry-you-never-go-back/ Have you seen this man? This one-eyed, ethnic Pashtun's name is Mullah Mohammed Omar. He's the leader of Afghanistan's notorious Taliban and a close accomplice of Osama Bin Laden (whose head I look forward to seeing stuffed and mounted on President Obama's wall in the oval office in the very ... http://randallhmiller.com/where-in-the-world-is-mullah-omar/ Whatever your opinion of Bush there's no doubting the fact that the U.S. has not experienced another major terrorist attack since September 11th. And while many of his tactics have been controversial (to say the least), the overwhelming majority of Americans are pretty happy not being blown up and don't ... http://randallhmiller.com/friday-morning-fix-november-14th-2008/ President-Elect Obama has voiced his support for a volunteer civilian national security force to help the U.S. meet its long term objectives. Progressive? Gutsy? Groundbreaking? Not really, George Bush supported the same thing in his 2007 State of the Union speech. But that didn't stop Republican Congressman Paul Broun of ... http://randallhmiller.com/congressman-paul-broun-r-of-georgia-stupid-or-just-paranoid/ If you've ever watched a movie about about any President of the United States (POTUS) you already know that the U.S. Secret Service uses code names for the President, Vice President and their families (the code names are actually assigned by the White House Communications agency.) Such names are used ... http://randallhmiller.com/do-you-know-obamas-secret-service-code-name/ The 2008 U.S. Presidential Elections are over and Barack Obama has won. His first order of business was to try and lower the stratospheric expectations of his presidency and he did so in his acceptance speech. The following statements stuck out like a sore thumb to me: The road ahead will ... http://randallhmiller.com/friday-morning-fix-november-7th-2008/ A few weeks ago I asked if I had been too tough on Sarah Palin. I've also expressed several times in the past few months how much I was looking forward to the end of this election cycle and the information that would undoubtedly flow from for McCain staffers. Well, ... http://randallhmiller.com/i-was-wrong-about-palin-shes-much-worse-than-i-thought/ It's time to let Obama's victory sink in and for the final votes to be tallied (there are also several Senate and U.S. House of Representatives seats still up in the air.) I won't be posting at all today, but will be back in the saddle tomorrow (unless, of course, ... http://randallhmiller.com/im-taking-the-day-off/ I spoke today with Former Libertarian Presidential Candidate Daniel Williams about the election. Thanks to him for always being so accessible. RHM: Any predictions? Daniel: I believe Obama will win, getting close to 300 electoral votes. A landslide is possible, but not likely. Supreme Court appointees are my main concern, as ... http://randallhmiller.com/daniel-williams-on-election-day/ Tuesday, November 4th - 12:00PM Atlantic Time The fat lady has sung. Congrats to Obama. Tuesday, November 4th - 11:35PM Atlantic Time The Massachusetts ballot initiative to decriminalize marijuana possession looks like it will pass easily. Interesting. Tuesday, November 4th - 10:45PM Atlantic Time Now they're talking about impossible scenarios. All done. The mood ... http://randallhmiller.com/election-day-live/ Leonel Fernandez (President of the Dominican Republic) recently sent the Dominican congress a list of over 100 changes he’d like to make to the constitution. Here’s how a UN representative characterizes those proposed reforms (from DR1): Dr. Cristobal Rodriguez, a constitutional specialist with the United Nations Development Fund (UNDP), says the ... http://randallhmiller.com/leonel-watch/ Edited 7:35PM EDT to include: Here's Drudge's latest headline: Unbelievable. Do they really see this as an October surprise? Let's vote and get this shit over with. --- The Drudge Report has been my homepage for over a decade. Why? Because regardless of what I think of him the headlines and stories he chooses ... http://randallhmiller.com/the-drudge-delusion/ I voted last week via absentee ballot in my 5th presidential election. I voted for Barack Obama. I voted for him not because I think he is the be-all and end-all of presidential politics, but because I agree with much of what he has to say. In spite of that, ... http://randallhmiller.com/friday-morning-fix-october-31st-2008/ I recently learned that one of our readers is in the mortgage business. Specifically, he buys up bad mortgages (No, that's not him in the picture). I joked that such a job must be similar to that of an undertaker during the bubonic plague considering the current housing crisis in ... http://randallhmiller.com/meet-greg-palmer/ I sometimes watch Fox News - not because I want to, but because I feel obligated to see their perspective. Fox News is, after all, the #1 rated cable news channel. And while most of it is suffocatingly biased there are other parts I truly enjoy and find useful. Shep ... http://randallhmiller.com/a-fox-news-journalist-who-does-his-job/ There's been a lot of talk this election cycle about bias in the blogosphere and the so-called mainstream media. And while some of it is a mixture of paranoia and sore-losing, the majority of the criticism has merit. In fact, let's not kid each other, the mainstream media - with ... http://randallhmiller.com/bias-in-the-blogosphere/ When I saw this picture over on Politico I almost choked on my sandwich. I just imagine someone in the crowd saying "What up, B-Dawg?" as he goes by. Caption Contest: What caption do you think would best fit this photo? http://randallhmiller.com/caption-contest/ "Do you think it's time that a government issued photo id should be required at polling places to prove your identity before you vote? I believe so and it's something I've thought about for years. Currently the only verification would be to check your signature and how it compares to the one on ... http://randallhmiller.com/a-reader-asks/ I've received a few emails and comments about my current tag line: "People come here for timely, independent commentary on major political headlines and to see cool stuff." The word "independent" is under intense scrutiny and perhaps for good reason. I'm an open-minded guy and willing to change it if that's the overwhelming ... http://randallhmiller.com/new-tag-line-proposals-open-thread/ This is what Sean Hannity considers a "reputable source." This is where all of the rumors about Obama's religion, place of birth, parents, etc came from. It ALL goes back to this guy (read the article). Great source, no? From the New York Times: An examination of legal documents and election filings, ... http://randallhmiller.com/hannity-nation/ Politico’s Carrie Budoff Brown casts doubt on Obama’s ability to actually do some of the things he’s proposing. She writes: Over 21 months of campaigning, Obama has promised a new brand of government that would negotiate a health care plan on C-SPAN, require agencies to conduct business in public, and force ... http://randallhmiller.com/lowering-expectations-or-keeping-it-real/