WASHINGTON - Cindy McCain says she will never make her tax returns public even if her husband wins the White House and she becomes the first lady.
"You know, my husband and I have been married 28 years and we have filed separate tax returns for 28 years. This is a privacy issue. My husband is the candidate," Cindy McCain, wife of Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting John McCain, said in an interview aired on NBC's "Today" on Thursday.
Asked if she would release her tax returns if she was first lady, Cindy McCain said: "No."
The power went off at Blue Girl's house just as she was about to post the piece below, but since it was up on her own site already, I'm copying and pasting it for her to this one.
Section 2. All citizens of the United States, including occupants of soldiers' and sailors' homes, over the age of eighteen who are residents of this state and of the political subdivision in which they offer to vote are entitled to vote at all elections by the people...
[emphasis added]
That's a pretty strong endorsement of the right to vote. Too bad they don't have that "problem" in Indiana.
About 12 Indiana nuns were turned away Tuesday from a polling place by a fellow bride of Christ because they didn't have state or federal identification bearing a photograph.
Sister Julie McGuire said she was forced to turn away her fellow sisters at Saint Mary's Convent in South Bend, across the street from the University of Notre Dame, because they had been told earlier that they would need such an ID to vote.
The nuns, all in their 80s or 90s, didn't get one but came to the precinct anyway.
"One came down this morning, and she was 98, and she said, 'I don't want to go do that,'" Sister McGuire said. Some showed up with outdated passports. None of them drives.
They weren't given provisional ballots because it would be impossible to get them to a motor vehicle branch and back in the 10-day time frame allotted by the law, Sister McGuire said. "You have to remember that some of these ladies don't walk well. They're in wheelchairs or on walkers or electric carts..."
Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan issued a press release today:
Apparently piqued at Harris' support for the Sunshine Law, Matt Blunt asked Attorney General candidate (and current State Rep.) Jeff Harris to turn over all correspondence sent to or from Harris' office.
Interesting how Blunt's chief of staff Trish Vincent started the letter:
"In your campaign for attorney general," the letter began, "you have announced your ardent support for Missouri's Sunshine Act. I wanted to provide you with the opportunity to demonstrate that commitment by fulfilling the below open records request." [emphasis mine]
So now Jeff Harris gets to prove his personal commitment to an issue he talks about quite a bit. In fact, on that first blogger conference call last fall, Harris talked at length about the possible interactions between an Attorney General Harris' office and the Sunshine Law.
Harris didn't waste any time in responding, either:
"I am a strong believer in the Sunshine Law, and that's why I've sponsored legislation to make sure that records are open to the public and that Missouri's public officials govern openly," said Harris. "Whether they are on a town council or they are the governor of the state, public officials must understand that government records belong to the people, and not to them."
Harris, a Democratic candidate for Attorney General, said he will comply with Blunt's request, but he questioned obvious political motives behind the request. Blunt's request came just one day after Harris, in a speech on the House floor, commended two state employees for standing up to the governor, whose office investigators allege made an illegal request to destroy public documents.
I know you're probably looking for someplace to put your activist energy as a long presidential primary winds down, and better yet, get behind one Democrat fighting an extremist Republican.
If you're in the St. Louis area, you're in luck. We are pleased to announce the first official blograiser in Missouri, on behalf of Deb Lavender, Democratic candidate for the 94th District of the Missouri House. Deb is a fantastic candidate running against an awful opponent, so picking her ahead of so many other good local candidates wasn't as hard a choice as we thought it might be. Deb is a Kirkwood physical therapist and small business owner who is running for health care and education reform and to protect our environment. She's also dogged campaigner who's not afraid to make a speech in a crowded bar, put in call time, and knock door after door in her district. Her opponent, Rick Stream, is a far-right Republican who voted for such measures as abstinence-only education in schools and to hurt MOHELA's ability to provide low-interest loans to college students. Best of all, he's beatable. Deb whipped him in fundraising last quarter and is nearly even in cash on hand. And recently as 2006, Democrats held the seat. It's going to take some effort, but it's within reach.
So, here's how a blograiser works. It's essentially a combination meetup, fundraiser, and liveblog. We will meet at the Royale at 7:00pm on May 21st, just like about 30 of us did last fall. This time, we'll pitch in some cash on behalf of Deb, and some of us will give online updates on our respective blogs. You can either bring your checkbook to the Royale, or you can contribute online at Deb's ActBlue page. The suggested minimum contribution is $10, and if you contribute online ahead of time, please print out your confirmation page and bring it to the blograiser.
Date: Wednesday, May 21st
Place: The Royale at 3132 S. Kingshighway in St. Louis
Remember, the action in Jefferson City is arguably a lot more important to us in Missouri than what goes on in Washington, D.C. Winning this seat back for the Democrats is a necessary step to bringing responsible governance back to the statehouse. So let's support Deb!
I had started a post about Phyllis Schlafly and her honorary degree at Wash U, but after reading this post by Kathy G, I gave up, because she absolutely nails it.
I am in complete agreement with Wolfe here-Phyllis Schlafly is indeed probably "one of the two or three most important Americans of the last half of the twentieth century." That is a bitter and painful truth, but a truth nonetheless. Wolfe again:
Critchlow [author of the Schlafly biography Wolfe is reviewing] is right to insist on Schlafly's influence-but influence is a neutral category. It may be a force for good or a force for ill, depending upon the ideas that animate it. Let it be said of Phyllis Schlafly that every idea she had was scatter-brained, dangerous, and hateful. The more influential she became, the worse off America became.
The officials at Washington U. can piously murmur all the bland words they please about "difficult issues where differences of opinion are profound and passionate," but let's get real: when you award someone with an honorary degree, you are making a value judgment[...]
But very rarely-in fact, almost never-do you see a great university honor someone who, throughout her public life has shown nothing but contempt for the values of the academia, values such as intellectual honesty and integrity, rational discourse, and the dispassionate pursuit of knowledge.
It gets better from there. As they say, read the rest.
Steve Brown, running against Stacey Newman in HD 73 for the seat Margaret Donnelly is vacating, comes from a political family. And he's proud of it. His aunt, Sue Shear, represented that district for 26 years, beginning at a time when women in the legislature were rarities. In fact, Steve remembers, as a kid, listening to her discuss with his dad whether or not she should run--a difficult decision back in 1972 for a woman. He asked his dad why people bother running for office and was told, "To whom much is given, much is expected."
Brown was guided in the direction of a political career from the get go. As a child, he ran errands for politicians. When he was eight, he was often sent to collect checks for the Hearnes senatorial campaign, whose office was next to The Fatted Calf in Clayton. Steve's mother was distressed to learn that he was sometimes entrusted with thousands of dollars in checks.
He never lost any.
As a young man, he spent lots of time knocking on doors with his aunt and with Harriett Woods. Then, after college, he went to D.C. as a staffer in Dick Gephardt's office. He considers it a privilege to have worked not only with Gephardt, but with Stephanopoulos, Begala, and Carville. He was, he says, traded for a player to be named later when Joan Kelly Horn unexpectedly won the Second District in 1990 and needed an experienced aide. After two years with her, he went on to law school and a long stint in Jay Nixon's office, from which he's taken a leave of absence to run his current campaign.
Blue Girl, Clark, hotflash and I will be there covering the entires ["Preview" is our friend] show. It's a rare chance for the four of us to be in the same place at the same time. It's also an opportunity for you all (and us) to say hello to each other, visit a bit, and talk about what's what in Missouri and national politics.
Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that our media isn't talking about McSame's inability to seal the deal with a significant number republican voters in the republican presidential primaries?
In a letter to her constituents, Rep. Jeanette Mott Oxford (D-St. Louis) wrote:
One of the most disgusting political tricks I have ever seen happened on April 30. While debating a bill to eliminate corporate taxes, a series of bogus amendments were offered that promised to restore Medicaid coverage to the 180,000 people who have been cut off since 2005. The mechanism to do so was a tax increase that borrowed some of the language from my own tax reform bill (House Bill 2131), but without the refundable tax credit portions that lower tax burden for about 60% of Missourians. It quickly became apparent that this was a purely political maneuver intended to secure a roll call vote that could become ammunition in negative campaign ads. Those who voted yes could be accused of voting for a tax increase; those who voted no could be accused of voting against restoring health coverage to persons on Medicaid.
I was outraged that a topic as serious as the Medicaid cuts could be turned into a shabby political trick. I grilled Rep. Muschany and Rep. Hunter about their amendments and then delivered a shaky, but heart-felt speech.
Click to listen to her pungent remarks:
I don't know who interjected the remark about "preserve our decorum in the chamber", but I'd guess it's some irony-challenged Republican. It is indecorous to smugly present an amendment that mocks the suffering of those kicked off Medicaid--no matter how gentlemanly your demeanor is while you're doing it.
In the battle for the 9th Congressional District, let's take some time out to see how the candidates are doing in the category of raising money.
First, let's cover the five Republicans.
Dan Bishir hasn't filed a report yet. He does have a site under construction. Good for Bishir that the cover of the 'purge of the lazy' only applies to statewide and state legislative races.
The Kansas City Star has an online copy (pdf) of the lawsuit filed in Cole County by Special Investigator C.E. Fisher against Governor Matt "baby" Blunt in the e-mail destruction/obstruction case. It's kind of nice that the paper saved us a drive down to Jefferson City to get a copy. The document provided by the paper does not have the case number nor any filing stamp on the header. tiny URL
Oh, yeah. The Kansas City Star did a front page story (below the fold) in this morning's Kansas City Edition. tiny URL
Naturally, Jim Roos spent last Saturday collecting signatures. He's been working intensively on the eminent domain abuse issue for at least the last nine years, and Saturday was his last chance to get the needed signatures in the First Congressional District. So he spent the day in Florissant, where the annual Valley of the Flowers parade attracted thousands of people.
But despite how tiring that had been, Roos woke at midnight Saturday night, fretting, needing to do something. He decided to join the volunteers who were organizing and boxing the signatures in a room at the Drury Inn on Hampton. He drove there and worked until 8:00 Sunday morning, when the work was done.
By then, the group knew they had the signatures they needed. He says that saying goodbye to Homer Tourkakis, who just lost on appeal his suit against the city of Arnold, was emotional. Tears were shed, tears of relief and happiness.
Th Missouri Civil Rights Initiative, the anti-affirmative action ballot initiative being circulated by a California businessman, is off the November ballot. All petitions were due at the Secretary of State at 5 pm yesterday, and the MoCri signatures failed to materialize. Says an ACORN organizer:
Missouri is a state that believes in fairness and equality," said Jeff Ordower, Missouri ACORN Head Organizer, "Once our voter educators got the word out, people learned quickly that this initiative was bad for everyone.
So, here's how a blograiser works. It's essentially a combination meetup, fundraiser, and liveblog. We will meet at the Royale at 7:00pm on May 21st, just like about 30 of us did 
Naturally, Jim Roos spent last Saturday collecting signatures. He's been working intensively on the eminent domain abuse issue for at least the last nine years, and Saturday was his last chance to get the needed signatures in the First Congressional District. So he spent the day in Florissant, where the annual Valley of the Flowers parade attracted thousands of people.
