Steve Phillips (without imported items)

"Commie homo-loving sons of guns"

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 06:27:29 GMT

You gotta love Sean Penn, who didn't disappoint in his Oscar acceptance speech.

Doubt, Delusion, and Meaning in Life

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 07:26:41 GMT

I just came from a fascinating and compelling play at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater that explores, with humor and insight, deep questions about meaning in life. Nicholas Temperley's Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins chronicles the relationship of a tone-deaf socialite and her relationship with her piano player.

While it could easily be a mocking portrayal of a clueless rich lady, the play provocatively delves into deeper questions about self-doubt, the lack thereof, failed dreams, realized dreams, and just what makes one happy, and what makes a life meaningful. Who is happier and more fulfilled -- the delusional singer who is actually a huge, although mocked hit, or the serious musician and piano player who lacks delusion, but also confidence, and never achieves his dreams on his own terms? It's rare you get the chance to laugh and also think, and Temperley's work is a triumph. If you get the chance, I urge you to check it out.

Nationalizing the Banks

Sat, 21 Feb 2009 06:20:49 GMT

Reading and watching the news, I'm coming to think that some banks may in fact actually be nationalized in the coming months. Consider the following:

1. The continued deterioration in the economy in general and the housing market in particular. As more and more people lose their jobs and housing prices continue to decline, the quality of the assets on the books of the banks is falling precipitously. On February 12, 2009, the New York Times wrote the following:

Some of the nation’s large banks, according to economists and other finance experts, are like dead men walking. . . A sober assessment of the growing mountain of losses from bad bets, measured in today’s marketplace, would overwhelm the value of the banks’ assets, they say. The banks, in their view, are insolvent

2. The second trend is the rapidly escalating talk of the acceptability – if not inevitability – of the federal government nationalizing some banks. When pressed at today’s press conference, Presidential Press Secretary Robert Gibbs would not specifically rule out nationalizing Bank of America and Citigroup. The attached chart gives an overview to the cascade of (bipartisan) commentary expressing openness to nationalization.

Given this uncertainty and then adding in the mounting near-consensus about the likelihood of nationalization, it would seem to be extremely riskyto be invested in the financial services sector at all.

Print is Dead

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 08:59:28 GMT

It's been happening for a while, but two things today have now convinced me. First, I read that the New York Times is eliminating its dividend. This on top of having to borrow $250 million from a Mexican billionaire. The Times is about as big and powerful a newspaper as there is, and if it's having those difficulties, something is seriously, seriously wrong with the industry. Then, I saw a fascinating Charlie Rose interview with Marc Andreesen who said (with that Silicon Valley brashness that can at times be annoying) what few dare say -- "kill the print edition." Hearing someone say it was one of those moments when things click. I think Andreesen is right. The print edition of the newspaper is dead, but we just don't know it yet. I'm not sure about the implications (its death will be painful for workers and disruptive for older people), but it's happening before our eyes.

What I Want to Know Is...

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 19:29:23 GMT

What I Want to Know Is...

Ask Palin A Question

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 19:27:35 GMT

Tired of Sarah Palin avoiding tough questions? The California Democratic Party set up an electronic billboard outside her event in Southern California, getting people to text in their questions for the evasive Alaska Governor.

http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.4594449/apps/ka/ct/contactcustom.asp

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Black turnout high in early voting

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 23:12:46 GMT

This is a very encouraging sign and confirms what PowerPAC's strategy has been all along. We have never seen the impact of dramatically increased Black turnout in a General Election. That, combined with the youth vote increases, will prove very interesting. Here's an excerpt from the article:

A disproportionate number of Georgia’s 194,138 early voters are African-American, in what could be an encouraging sign for Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.
As of Wednesday, about 39 percent of those voters — 74,961 — are African-Americans, Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel’s office said.

African-Americans make up 29 percent of registered voters in the state, according to Oct.1 figures. They cast 25 percent of the total votes cast in the presidential election four years ago.

http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2008/10/02/black_early_voting.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13

Jenifer Fernandez Ancona interviews PowerPAC staffer Ashley Thomas about her ...

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 07:06:54 GMT

Jenifer Fernandez Ancona interviews PowerPAC staffer Ashley Thomas about her reaction to Hillary's speech tonight in Denver. Ashley was in line for the "Rising Stars" party featuring Kamala Harris and Cory Booker -- who will also be speaking at the Vote Hope event from noon-2 on Wednesday.

Video equipment courtesy of the Voter Genome Project, which is handing out a couple "Flip Video" cameras. They're democratizing access to voter data and high-powered targeting tools and techniques, so why not provide democratizing voter persuasion tools too?

Greeters at the airport

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 21:07:18 GMT

Greeters at the airport

Listen Now: Podcast, Day One

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:15:17 GMT

Click here if you would like to download this podcast.

Live From Denver!

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 05:47:40 GMT

I'm here at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado, to experience the historic nomination of Barack Obama for President of the United States.

The convention kicked off today with speeches from Ted Kennedy and Michelle Obama. Kennedy's appearance was significant and moving, and Michelle was the picture of passion and grace.

Seeing Michelle and her brother up there as this normal Black family was also quite personally moving to me, and a great way to kick off the convention and remind us all of the great progress we're making here.

Today we were settling in and ironing out our technology, but expect more updates tomorrow!

PowerPAC's new ad targeting Hispanic voters in the key swing state of New Mex...

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 18:34:26 GMT

PowerPAC's new ad targeting Hispanic voters in the key swing state of New Mexico. There is a similar version in Spanish. These ads carry cultural cues that will resonate with English-speaking Hispanic voters, who make up the majority of Southwestern Hispanic voters.

Article: The End of Bubba Dominance

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:43:30 GMT

This is a long but worthwhile piece on the shift that should be happening in progressive politics right now -- away from the middle-of-the road white swing voter, and towards a politics that tries to build and strengthen our multi-racial progressive coalition.

I will be publishing a piece on a similar topic soon in Huffington Post, so stay tuned.

http://www.agenceglobal.com/article.asp?id=1680

Letter of Interest | Democracy Alliance

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 20:43:05 GMT

The Democracy Alliance is opening up a public process for the first time, where groups can apply in a Letter of Interest for the priority areas outlined on the website above.

Having an open and transparent process for a clear and research-based set of priorities was one of my major goals of being involved in this process, as a member of the Alliance Board and the Committee that has overseen it, so it's great to see this up.

http://loi.democracyalliance.org/

Lessons on Blogging from Jon Stewart

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 23:41:53 GMT

This is a good inside look at Jon Stewart's creative process by tech blogger Tim O'Reilly (no relation to Fox News' O'Reilly).

He talks about how the success of the show hinges on creating an authentic voice and on processing mountains of information to distill it down to the one key point that makes people truly understand a complex political story. More interesting lessons as we think about progressive media.

http://radar.oreilly.com/

NYT: Obama Backers Mobilize in Bid to Wrest North Carolina From Republican Grip

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 19:09:32 GMT

A lot of pundits are dismissing North Carolina, but as this story shows, the South cannot be counted out just yet. There is a real opportunity to build on Obama's strength in the North Carolina primary, and pull out many more new voters.

Our analysis shows that in 2004 -- before the influx of new people into North Carolina as this story discusses -- there were more than 800,000 eligible but non-voting African Americans. The margin of difference between Kerry and Bush was less than that -- about 430,000 votes.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/17/us/politics/17carolina.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=politics&adxnnlx=1218999799-1wbZyg2378MvC%20aWqBRk1w

David Sirota: A Bargain Bayh For Corporate Interests

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 18:07:54 GMT

I have to admit, I am appreciating the anti-Evan Bayh organizing that's happening online. Next to Barack, he really does seem like the most uninspired choice imaginable.

http://www.openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=7556

Washington Post: David S. Broder - Obama's Well-Oiled Machine

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 18:04:01 GMT

"That's why I pay more attention to the registration figures than to the polls I see at this time of year," Plouffe said. "The polls will change, but we know we need 200,000 new voters to be competitive in Georgia, and now is when we have to get them."

This is good advice right now, and certainly where I have been urging donors to focus. The polls, the conventional wisdom, even turnout figures from 2004 don't matter this cycle. It is truly an historic election, and it is going to take a lot of work between now and Nov. 4 to seize the opportunity.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/15/AR2008081503098.html?nav=hcmodule

Overheard on the Olympics

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 04:30:41 GMT

During the women's marathon: "The cardinal rule of running is not to look back."

Daily Kos: Listen up Obama campaign! Here is the skinny on New Mexico. Pay attention.

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 02:45:52 GMT

This backs up what we've heard about New Mexico -- that the Hispanic vote is key, that it is unlike any other Hispanic electorate in the country, and that McCain is so far doing much more with this community. We've been listening to people who know the state and the population in formulating our plans to talk to Hispanic voters there.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/8/16/16338/4125/551/568971

Working on Getting Comfortable

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 00:53:33 GMT

Watching the Saddleback Forum, I'm reminded of the quote from Charlie Cook, that this election will hinge on whether Barack Obama can make a majority of voters comfortable with him as President.

This forum is all about that. Not a lot for progressives to feel great about, and yet another reminder for the need for a national counter-force to this being the agenda for the country. Though on the getting comfortable front, he seems to be connecting with at least a good portion of this audience.

"Power without love is reckless and abusive; and love without power is sentime..."

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 23:31:12 GMT

"Power without love is reckless and abusive; and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice."

–Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

This is the invitation for the event we're hosting in Denver, featuring Newar...

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 22:30:05 GMT

This is the invitation for the event we're hosting in Denver, featuring Newark Mayor Cory Booker, Congresswoman Hilda Solis, San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris, and other rising leaders. Contact Jennifer Pae at jennpae@gmail.com for more information.

Ben Smith's Blog: Saturday reading: Saddleback and Arkansas - Politico.com

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 22:01:35 GMT

Saddleback Forum tonight should be interesting...5 p.m. PST on CNN.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0808/Saturday_reading_Saddleback_and_Arkansas.html