Oliver Stone’s “W” opened in theaters Friday, to mixed reviews.

“History is said to repeat itself as tragedy and farce, but here it registers as a full-blown burlesque,” writes Manohla Dargis. “It says nothing new or insightful about the president, his triumphs and calamities. (As if anyone goes to an Oliver Stone movie for a reality check.) But it does something most journalism and even documentaries can’t or won’t do: it reminds us what a long, strange trip it’s been to the Bush White House.”

If the idea of watching a fictional version of the Bush presidency gives you a headache, there is an alternative. Contributor Richard C. Crepeau was invited to a critics’ screening of a new film sure to delight young and old, as well as the “undecideds.” Here’s the trailer, as Dick remembers it:

From a time not long ago, and a place far away, comes the story of a hockey mom and Arctic Circle maverick, chosen to lead a nation …

“The Unbearable Being of Lightness: The Sarah Palin Story”

Starring …
Tina Fey as Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin as Tina Fey
John McCain as Tina Fey’s Running Mate

With …
Viggo Mortenson as “Todd the Snowshoe Secessionist”
Charles Bronson as “The State Trooper in Question”
Frances McDormand as Katie Couric

And introducing …
Karl Rove as “Earmark”
and
The Bridge to Nowhere as “The Bridge to Nowhere”

Plus …
Special guest appearance by George W. Bush as “The Man Who Thinks He’s Still President,” explaining the Bush Doctrine to a distracted crowd at a hockey rink

Don’t Miss …
- Watch a hockey mom shoot living things at the Arctic Circle from a B-52 while listening to “Jonah33″ on her iPod!

- Be amazed as the foreign policy maverick re-ignites the Cold War from her front porch, after she looks into Vladimir Putin’s eyes and sees his soul!

And, for the first time anywhere …
Sarah “The Barracuda” Palin challenges Barack Obama to go one-on-one in a half-court game!

Coming soon to a theater near you …

I heard Chuck Todd report on Meet the Press today that insiders in both campaigns acknowledge that a major factor in Wisconsin and Michigan is an unspoken (and un-pollable) racism from white rural voters — “the Bubba vote.” Todd says that the Obama campaign has a “magic number”: They need to go into election day with a 58 percent majority in the polling in those states, because they are going to lose seven percent of voters who will tell pollsters they are for Obama but who instead will vote their racial fears when they complete the ballot.

What Todd didn’t mention is that this racism isn’t simply a result of a backwards segment of the population; it is being actively fomented by the Republican party and their surrogates. And I’m not talking about intimidating African American voters and others in places like Michigan, where they are threatening to challenge all voters who have received a foreclosure notice on their home (a legally questionable and certainly “mean-spirited” tactic).

No, I’m talking about the distribution of “Obama Waffles” at the Values Voters Summit. It featured a variety of racist portrayals of Obama. While the image on the front recalls classic racist stereotypes, the image of Obama on the top shows him wearing an Arab-like headdress. The image on the back depicts Obama wearing a Mexican sombrero. Joan Lowy of the AP writes:

The box was meant as political satire, said Mark Whitlock and Bob DeMoss, two writers from Franklin, Tenn., who created the mix. They sold it for $10 a box from a rented booth at the summit sponsored by the lobbying arm of the Family Research Council. [...]

While Obama Waffles takes aim at Obama’s politics by poking fun at his public remarks and positions on issues, it also plays off the old image of the pancake-mix icon Aunt Jemima, which has been widely criticized as a demeaning stereotype. Obama is portrayed with popping eyes and big, thick lips as he stares at a plate of waffles and smiles broadly.

Placing Obama in Arab-like headdress recalls the false rumor that he is a follower of Islam, though he is actually a Christian.

On the back of the box, Obama is depicted in stereotypical Mexican dress, including a sombrero, above a recipe for “Open Border Fiesta Waffles” that says it can serve “4 or more illegal aliens.” The recipe includes a tip: “While waiting for these zesty treats to invade your home, why not learn a foreign language?”

If you want to see how a caricature can legitimately use humor and make a political point, I would suggest Steven Brodner’s illustration of Sarah Palin in a recent New Yorker. BagNews Notes, as usual, has the insightful and convincing analysis:

Palin [...] is a reality show. Sixteen days out, her visage continues to permeate the media sphere, as the electricity — primed by biographical fairy tales tightly bound to visual spin aimed at the right brain — continues to trump the reams of qualifying or damaging information that is streaming out.

The crossed arms on two screens and in the larger caricature reflects her inherent defensiveness and hostility. The fish “that big” and the hand gestures on “Bridge to Nowhere” call out the chronic double speak. The way the eyes track in relation to the angle of her head speaks to how well she knows where the camera is (while the disappearing neck telegraphs the underlying reality of “the empty suit.”)

In real life as well, one can easily sense all this, but still she rolls.

Even though many Democratic activists are calling for it, I’m not yet sure that the Obama campaign needs to meet the Republicans down in the muck. I think the alternative narrative — which keeps them on a high road — might hold the most power, if we can afford to be a little patient.

Regardless, they need to seize control of the narrative. And an image, I’ve heard, can be worth a thousand words.

Paul Reiser (of Mad About You fame) uses some much-needed levity to express his own frustration with the lies and innuendo that appear to be the entirety of the McCain-Palin campaign:

We’re in the 3rd grade again. The skinny, smart kid who just moved in to the neighborhood is getting roughed-up by the asshole bully. The kid who hits you in the head with your hand and says, “Why’re you hitting yourself? Why’re you hitting yourself?”

“Um, actually I’m not. You’re hitting me.”

“You calling me a liar?”

“No, I’m just pointing out that…” SMACK!

“Why’re you hitting yourself?”

And, although he no longer speaks because of his battle with cancer, Roger Ebert is still able to give a devastating “thumbs-down” to those tactics.  Along the way he explains why Sarah Palin is the “American Idol” candidate:

I think I might be able to explain some of Sarah Palin’s appeal. She’s the “American Idol” candidate. Consider. What defines an “American Idol” finalist? They’re good-looking, work well on television, have a sunny personality, are fierce competitors, and so talented, why, they’re darned near the real thing. There’s a reason “American Idol” gets such high ratings. People identify with the contestants. They think, Hey, that could be me up there on that show!

My problem is, I don’t want to be up there. I don’t want a vice president who is darned near good enough. I want a vice president who is better, wiser, well-traveled, has met world leaders, who three months ago had an opinion on Iraq.

And Matt Damon thinks we’re all living a “bad Disney movie” nightmare:

Of course, why should the opinions of celebrities matter?  I mean, the only place farther away from the political realities of Washington than Hollywood is … a small town in Alaska?

Before we say a final goodbye to the Republican National Convention (and the good times had by all!) let’s take a moment to spotlight news stories, columns and an open letter to the Alaskan governor that transform the “R” for Republicans into Reality.

Jesus Was a Community Organizer: Joe Klein explains, in language simple enough for Rudy Giuliani to understand, exactly what a community organizer does — and specifically what Barack Obama did. The MoJo blog has more. And the Boston Globe has a story today featuring community organizers who are none too happy about the insults.

The Mother of All Hypocrisies: Lynn Paltrow, executive director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women, wrote an open letter to Sarah Palin on women’s rights that is a must read. Over at Slate, E.J. Graff explains the difference between feminism and feminine chauvinism.

In a column titled “Mirrored Ceiling,” Judith Warner asks, “Why does this woman — who to some of us seems as fake as they can come, with her delicate infant son hauled out night after night under the klieg lights and her pregnant teenage daughter shamelessly instrumentalized for political purposes — deserve, to a unique extent among political women, to rank as so ‘real’?”

Calling Out Contradictions: Kudos to Jim Kuhnhenn and Jim Drinkard of the Associated Press for putting together a handy rundown of false claims and exaggerations made at the convention. The issues covered include Obama’s tax plan, the infamous “bridge to nowhere” and Mitt Romney’s back-to-the-future moment.

Meanwhile, Ted Anthony, who covers culture and politics for the AP, notes that the Republicans want it both ways when it comes to the Palin family: “Hey, media, leave those kids alone — so we can use them as we see fit.”

Finally we turn to “The Daily Show” for a delightful exchange between Jon Stewart and Newt Gingrich on the politics of language:

In an article published in PopPolitics magazine, Anthony A. Cupaiuolo, an expert on public administration and municipal management, raises questions about the mayor’s role in Wasilla, Alaska and what Gov. Sarah Palin’s two-term record as mayor says about her managerial skills.

Small town adherents love to talk up the positives of the small town experience, how everyone knows each other and is likely to help out in a crisis. True, but the flip side is that local leaders, who are generally not trained in public administration, are more likely to cross the line between official responsibilities and personal agendas.

Case in point: As mayor of Wasilla (pop. 7,025), Palin set out to fire a librarian who didn’t share her interest in book-banning (resulting in a community outcry); requested the resignation of city employees who had shown support for her opponent; and successfully terminated the well-liked police chief.

That Palin allegedly demonstrated the same lack of professional judgment as governor when she removed the state public safety director for refusing to fire a state trooper who was involved in a messy marital situation with Palin’s sister should come as no surprise, but let’s stay in Wasilla.

In my experience, the city’s form of government is atypical for such a small community. Wasilla has what’s considered a “strong mayor” system, where the mayor has executive responsibilities. This system is usually associated with larger communities (250,000 or more), where there is a significant number of interest groups in competition with one another. It is therefore important for the mayor to have the executive power and political leverage to garner sufficient support for his/her goals and policies. In cities of this size, the mayor is also likely to have a deputy trained in public administration.

Continue reading “Sarah Palin and the Experience Argument to Nowhere.”

They’re moving delegates around on the floor to put more women in front of the stage before Gov. Sarah Palin speaks. The gender breakdown of Republican delegates explains the need for the seat shuffle: the number of male delegates overwhelms female delegates by 2 to 1.

Speaking of gender, NPR tonight noted that the speech originally written for the vice-presidential nominee was deemed too “masculine” and was thus rewritten when Sen. John McCain selected Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate.

As for other demographics, in a historic shift, only 1.5 percent of the total number of delegates at the RNC are African Americans — amounting to only 36 delegates, according to the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. It marks a sharp drop-off from 2004, when 6.7 percent, or 167 delegates, were African American. That was the all-time high.

In contrast, at the Democratic National Convention, nearly 25 percent of the delegates were African American, and slightly more than half were women (a first). The full demographic breakdown is available here.

Back at the convention, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a former Republican presidential candidate, practically did air-quotes around community organizer to minimize Sen. Barack Obama’s experience.

Meanwhile, the current Republican mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, opted out of watching Palin’s speech. His pick tonight? Whoopi Goldberg — in “Xanadu.”

Update: The Washington Post has a front-page story on the mostly white convention.

- The Reverend Debra W. Haffner, director of the Religious Institute on Sexual Morality, Justice and Healing, makes a good argument on the limits of family privacy when there are important public issues at stake.

In a column reprinted at RH Reality Check, Haffner writes that the unplanned pregnancy of Gov. Sarah Palin’s 17-year-old daughter “raises legitimate questions about Gov. Palin’s positions on sexuality education, teenage pregnancy and reproductive choice. Americans have every right, and American media the responsibility, to explore those questions without exploiting the child involved.”

- Funny that Rachel today cited a section of the Republican Platform that claims the party has “a moral obligation to assist, not to penalize, women struggling with the challenges of an unplanned pregnancy.”

The Washington Post notes that Palin used her line item veto to slash funding for programs that serve teenage mothers:

After the legislature passed a spending bill in April, Palin went through the measure reducing and eliminating funds for programs she opposed. Inking her initials on the legislation — “SP” — Palin reduced funding for Covenant House Alaska by more than 20 percent, cutting funds from $5 million to $3.9 million. Covenant House is a mix of programs and shelters for troubled youths, including Passage House, which is a transitional home for teenage mothers.

According to Passage House’s web site, its purpose is to provide “young mothers a place to live with their babies for up to eighteen months while they gain the necessary skills and resources to change their lives” and help teen moms “become productive, successful, independent adults who create and provide a stable environment for themselves and their families.”

Michelle Cottle at TNR says it best:

(more…)

CNN’s Campbell Brown on Monday interviewed a spokesman for John McCain about what experience Sarah Palin, McCain’s pick for VP, has to be commander in chief.

The interview began with a discussion of when McCain knew about the pregnancy of Palin’s 17-year-old daughter and whether Palin had thought about the ramifications of putting her daughter in the spotlight. Spokesman Tucker Bounds sidestepped the questions, and the conversation transitioned — as every conversation with Republicans in St. Paul does — to Palin’s qualifications and reform-mindedness.

But this time around, an interview with a campaign spokesman quickly moved into the realm of Must See TV.

(more…)

My two favorite takes so far on John McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin for his running mate:

Stephen Colbert accuses nay-sayers of missing the significance of the moment: “A lot of people are saying that Sarah Palin is being used as a cheap political ploy. That is such petty cynicism. This is historic. For the first time in America, a woman has reached the highest levels of being used as a cheap political ploy.”

See his entire analysis here:

And Maureen Dowd is just happy that while reporting from the campaign trail, she can still indulge one of her “guilty pleasures”: watching “a vacuously spunky and generically sassy chick flick” — even if she already knows how this one is going to end.

In a more semi-serious analysis, Gail Collins yesterday summarized the big insult:

Over the last week, we have heard over and over and over that Tuesday was the anniversary of the day women got the right to vote. (They got it when a state representative in Tennessee, where the House was split on the ratification issue, changed his vote because his mother wrote him a letter telling him to shape up. That’s a story that I would love to get into, but, unfortunately, right now we have Sarah Palin to deal with.)

After that big moment of enfranchisement, women went through a long period in the desert where they had the vote but not much else. Then came the great revolutions of the 1970s, when all the assumptions about the natural divisions between the sexes were challenged. During that era, women could be excited and moved by symbolic candidacies that promised a better, more inclusive future, like Shirley Chisholm’s presidential race and Geraldine Ferraro’s presence on the Democratic national ticket.

This year, Hillary Clinton took things to a whole new level. She didn’t run for president as a symbol but as the best-prepared candidate in the Democratic pack. Whether you liked her or not, she convinced the nation that women could be qualified to both run the country and be commander in chief. That was an enormous breakthrough, and Palin’s nomination feels, in comparison, like a step back.

If she’s only on the ticket to try to get disaffected Clinton supporters to cross over, it’s a bad choice. Joe Biden may already be practicing his drop-dead line for the vice-presidential debate: “I know Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton is a friend of mine, and governor, you’re no Hillary Clinton.”

Of all the things about Sarah Palin, John McCain’s running mate, that bother me, her identification as a “feminist” is not one of them.

Yes, I realize she is not a feminist in any authentically enlightened sense of the term and her feminism doesn’t make conservatives flinch even a little bit.

But I’m so tired of “feminism” being a dirty word, that I don’t mind a little misappropriation.  It’s just too much fun to see Pat Buchanan defending McCain’s choice on MSNBC Friday night by gleefully shouting, “But she’s a feminist!”

On a serious note, however, I agree with Tanya Melich, writing for Women’s Media Center, that the choice of Palin is actually a continuation of the Republican backlash against women.

Melich admits that, at Friday’s announcement, “Palin was energetic, warm and reminded me of all those earnest young women we feminists have been recruiting into the women’s political movement since the early l970s.”

But she sees McCain’s choice of her as simply a political “disguise”:

McCain hopes that by picking a woman he can show he’s open to doing things differently, but his selection is window dressing and insulting to anyone who knows that he opposes equal pay for equal work legislation and opposes a woman’s right to choose.  And this is just part of the list of issues of concern to women that he doesn’t champion.

(more…)