Darn it. McCain is looney in the way all Republicans are looney, but he's actually a fairly sane individual otherwise. I was hoping for a Crazy Person vs. the Democrat this time.....

moe reads national review? who knew?

Uh oh, Grandpa is gonna be in control of the nukes!

(Pssst! Shhh... don't tell Moe, but Hillary's projected to win Florida.)

I don't remember who it was, but one of the political comedians was commenting on the McCain resurgence, and says "McCain should choose Thompson as his running mate. During the first State of the Union, someone drop a book loudly, give them both heart attacks, and BAM! President Pelosi." I'm not advocating for anyone's death, but that would be awesome.

Jesus Christ! Or is that Methusela?

Either way, I watched that dust bag last night - twice - and not only do I find him terribly over-bearing but his teeth must be coated in peanut butter or Vaseline or something because his lips......his lips keep pulling backwards into this grotesque shape that sortof resembles a smile, but it's unnatural to smile like that when talking about war and death. Whatever, gives me the willies.

hmm, mittens still has some strong independent voter support, and he may still be veep. who else is there? mccain-huckabee? hahahahaha... please god no.

Aww...Prison Baby! He's the cutest widdle political dissident ever!

@PinkSoxHat: LOL.

however, cindy mccain wouldn't cindy mccain be america's first modern-era pillhead first lady? former pillhead, ahem.

@charlotte corday: whoops, not at my peak after cocktail numero 3!

1. Why does Britney spend so much time at car dealerships? Does she need another car? Did she ever get her impounded car back? Can she buy me a car? I'll take a used one.
2. I'm all for the House's economic stimulus plan and it pains me that the Senate is going to go for all the stuff that the White House said it will not allow. This is one area where I'm all for cooperation and I like where it was heading.

@PinkSoxHat: Brilliant!

@missbananafish: that was the most hilariously tangential pair of statements. britney and economis stim package. love it.

Sorry, I still feel that shady lenders and mortgage brokers are more to blame than "all those poor people." Not to mention home builders who saturated the market with shit production homes. The whole thing makes me see red.

@PinkSoxHat: That imaginary scenario sounds sweet!

Not sure. You can argue that McCain is very old, and I saw that negative ads comparing him to Hillary are already in the works/going around. I'm trying to be optimistic, but I don't know if it's working.

My economy will be stimulated when I get my tax return in two or three weeks. Woop! Althogh I will say one thing for Texas-no state income tax, and I have to pay one this year. Oh well. Texas still has plenty of other probs.

Hill's gonna sweep Florida it appears.

re: Mortgages. This topic COMPLETELY chaps my ass. I made a conscious effort NOT to take a 15 year loan, just so I wouldn't ever be strapped. I can easily double up on my 30 year if I want to double up on a payment and pay off my house early.

People need to take some effin' responsibility. GAWD.

@Archetype: And the rating agencies who told investors that sub-prime mortgage-backed securities were a secure investment.

Also, I love Jimmy Carter.

@Political Party Girl: Can someone pls explain the logic of why the Dems decided to ignore FL???

Yeah, yeah, I get that they moved up their primary without party authorization, but seriously?! This is a huge battleground state come November. Wouldn't it make more sense for us to spend the time there then say Iowa? (sorry to any residents of Iowa, btw). I know a lot of time will be spent in FL post-today's "primary," but I don't think there's anything to gain by the Dems by not spending time there as early as possible. If you consider how much time the Republicans have spent there thus far… well, lets just hope that a lot of Independents weren't already swayed. To me, this move was just strategically INSANE!

@notaclevername: Not to mention Greenspan for keeping rates too low too long. Such a freaking mess. There's plenty of blame to go around.

@marin79: They did that to all states who moved up their election, which is why Clinton was the only one on the ballots in Michigan.

With Florida, these delegates will only count if they're necessary to break a tie. I don't think it's smart and it angered a lot of local Dems here who are saying, basically, what you are.

@marin79: And Tom Cruise. He's to blame, somehow, too.

So, I'm not sure how to say this without sounding off my rocker, but...

I really hope Gore doesn't endorse Obama. I have shifted to the point where I really want Obama to win, but I do not think it will happen (I still plan on casting my vote for him on Feb 5). I know Gore hates Clinton, but seeing as he backed the losing horse in '04, maybe its best for him to sit this one out so he doesn't look likes he's always backing the hopeful loser.

And already, I feel bad just for typing this.

@marin79: I totally agree. My best guess is they thought that by punishing Michigan and Florida for moving up their primaries, they would deter other states from doing the same. Thing is, nothing is written in stone. If it's a close race come Convention time, there's nothing to say the DNC won't give MI and FL their delegates back.

@notaclevername: Naw, I could never blame Cruise... I mean, as someone who lives in NYC, I owe he guy a debt of gratitude for saving us after 9/11! (I swear, I'll never get tired of mocking that crazy video! :)

@notaclevername: Whoops, shoulda hit "Refresh."

@marin79: I agree with you. Especially with how controversial the voting is in Florida. You would think they'd spend tons of time there.

So ignoring the entire country and focusing on Florida for three weeks didn't work out for Giuliani? REALLY?

@bowlingfordollars: Agreed. Did y'all see the profile on ABC World News Tonight? They told a story about a working-class couple (no shame there) who bought a nice home in a good neighborhood with a freakin' 9% adjustable rate mortgage, that quickly went up to 14%. Their monthly house payment was higher than that "what you should aim for" 1% of the cost of the house (more like 1.5%).

Well, ABC got involved, and no worries, folks. They've been adjusted down to 7.6%, which is lower than the original rate! Oh, BTW, their how is now worth LESS THAN THEY PAID FOR IT and they bought it with no money down. I wasn't crying any tears until I realized that our government could potentially foot the bill for bad decisions made by first-time home buyers like these folks.

I am acquainted with more cases than I can count of people who during the mortgage lending boom bought houses they would never in a million years without a sub-prime mortgage be able to own (or occupy, I should say), and proceeded to take out home equity loans on equity that now does not even exist.

I really feel that if we are going to "bail" people out, it should be on a case-by-case basis.

P.S. Guiliani did not actually say he was going to drop out, nor did his campaign manager lady on CNN today, but that is the rumor. I'm kinda glad the field is thinning out.

@PaisleyPajamas: Yeah, I've now read that he's dropping out & endorsing McCain tomorrow & also that he's seeing this thru to California. I'm seriously hoping the correct story is that he's done. That guy is a total scumbag. I'm going to be disgusted if he ends up on the Repub ticket as a VP.

@ae38: I know, Gore's stamp could easily be the death knell.

But he has definitely turned his image around since those days, so who knows.

HRC won a beauty contest where she got one MILLION votes. Her margin over Obama is gonna be greater than the number of votes that Obama has received in all the other states combined. Contested or not, you get 30% in a major state after 72 hours of the most affectionate media coverage ever, well, that's not good. Yea Teddy K endorsement!

@PaisleyPajamas: Well, as someone who works in the TeeVee industry, I assure you I don't have a dexterity with numbers, other than counting backwards from either :60 or :30.

But BUYING A HOUSE is a big deal, and I did all kinds of research - no one helped me there. I took the incentive since I am so math and finance challenged to do so.

I saved 30% to put down (and yes, I had to sacrifice some things in order to come up with that) so I could dodge the PMI and save in some other areas. I also did it so my house payment would be much lower. I got a 5.25% loan (after keenly eyeing the rates and deciding to lock in on that one.) The mortgage folks tried to loan me at least 2.5 times the amount I actually borrowed. ME. I'm a single woman - what do I need with a 5,000 - 6,000 sq ft house????

I say people can learn a valuable lesson if they get burned. I'm not advocating people losing their homes, but there should BE A PENALTY FOR BEING DUMB.

The dude is convinced that McCain can't win the general election because he's too old. I don't know...I'm skeered.

@notaclevername: Though Clinton did campaign in Florida. Not criticizing, just sayin'.

1. I guess that answers my earlier question of "where the hell is Lynn Spears in all this?" What does Lufti mean when he says she's "supporting" Britney? Is she putting the screws to her like she should be or just playing nice so she can get back on the payroll? I still think she's an absolutely terrible mother.

2. I agree that there's a certain amount of personal responsibility first-time homebuyers should acknowledge about taking out these ridiculous sub-prime loans (and that it's equally dumb to expect that the feds should foot the bill for every bad decision someone made), but for real: the ethics of even involving people of that low-income strata in such a cold, calculating scheme are fucked up and exactly what we created the SEC for. I don't know about the government paying for these homes but if there was insider/underhanded shit going on behind the scenes to exploit these fools? I want to see the proper heads rolled.

@bowlingfordollars: I wonder how much of a real death knell a Gore endorsement would actually be. Sure we all care what Gore thinks, but most people here spend a lot of time following every twist & turn of these races. I just wonder how much the core Democrat voters (i.e. working class, union workers, etc.) care what Gore says. As much as I LOVE the guy, I also see him as the rebranded Hollywood elite guy (I mean, he has a Nobel Prize!). I'm not sure how much his opinion would sway some of these voters. Now Teddie's opinion... that one probably matters.

@bowlingfordollars: But there is a penalty, there really is. All the anxiety, feeling stupid, embarassment, the ruin of your credit...I know what you are saying but to me it is even worse than a credit card company giving someone a ginormous credit line, someone they know won't be able to pay it back. Disclosure: my mortgage is not subprime but my marriage ended over 1 1/2 years ago and because of the market, I cannot sell the house, the house I cannot afford to live in. My savings from a small inheritance are almost gone, and I have no idea what to do.

@bowlingfordollars: ...but there should BE A PENALTY FOR BEING DUMB.

Hon, I could not agree with you more. You did everything THE RIGHT WAY. What many of these homebuyers did was the equivalent of buying a brand new car on a credit card at 28%. If they had had money to put down, bought within their means, and shopped around for the best possible rate, instead of going for the one that was gonna send them on that Disney vacation they always meant to do for their kids, well I say, they need to figure it out the hard way. Bailing them out is not going to teach them a lesson about how to manage their finances. All of this crying over "We're gonna lose our home." FUCK! It's a home they were never gonna own anyway.

I still cannot effing believe someone would sign on the dotted line for an adjustable rate mortgage at 9%. I just can't believe it!

@TruculentandUnreliable: I'm scared too. But the guy has a point about McCain's age. I mean, the dude is OLD! Just think about how much Clinton and GW aged while in office. That job takes a serious toll on young candidates. Can you imagine what it could do to McCain? His VP would have a bigger potential chance for sussession than we've seen in recent years, which is why I'll freak the F out if it's any of the current contenders.

@notbetty: This subprime bail-out fiasco doesn't apply to you, but you are DEFINITELY A VICTIM OF IT! I am so sad for what this mess is costing and the grief it is causing for people who did the right thing.

McCain has won in Florida. So I hear.

I have this really horrible feeling that McCain is going to get the Republican nomination, Obama will get the Dem, and McCain will be our next President. Just sayin'...I am a little freaked out by this and have heard "hm, well if its McCain/Clinton I will go with Clinton, McCain/Obama not so sure..." too many times to count. But I live in Washington and we are all obvs the scurge of the earth so take that for what it's worth.

@bowlingfordollars: I agree with you.

If you are going to buy a house and make that significant financial commitment, you owe it to yourself to do some work and make sure your mortgage is one that you can actually afford. I have never made a major purchase without thinking of all the worst-case scenarios, like Can I somehow swing these payments if I lose my job/don't get that raise I am hoping for? Unfortuanately, a LOT of people got duped though and were talked into taking on something they just could not manage.

I hate to see anyone lose their home. But hell, I've made major mistakes in the past when I was less informed on matters involving money. Sometimes you learn the hard way. And believe me, it sucks.

@notbetty: i assume you called your lender right? also, hate to say it, but sublet? or roomate? i know, it's horrible.

HRC going to get one MILLION votes. That's a sweet beauty pageant. She's gonna beat Barry by more votes than he received in all the other primaries/caucuses combined.

@ae38: lose the guilt, obama will run well against mccain, it's what he presumed all along.