See 3 Dems and 1 Repub on LCCC TV

LarCoDems' member Mary Lou Marcum sends this info:

Please help get the word out. The three Democratic Congressional candidates and Rick Kaysen will be appearing on LCCC Ch. 11 next week, from Oct 27 on. David Marcum, LCCC Political Science instructor will be interviewing them.

The schedule is as follows:
Gary Trauner & Chris Rothfoss: Monday at 9 a.m., Tuesday at 2 p.m., Wednesday at 8 p.m., Thursday at 3 p.m., and Friday/Saturday/Sunday at 10 a.m.
Nick Carter & Rick Kaysen: Monday at 2 p.m., Tuesday at 7 p.m., Wednesday at 3 p.m., Thursday at 11 a.m., and Friday/Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.

These are not debates but Q&A interviews. Should be interesting. Wish we could get the info to non-Democrats as well. The Republican candidates and Democratic condidate for mayor Jayne Mockler didn't respond to the invitation to appear on the shows.

Obama paddles toward victory

Manuel Olveda in Powell decided to take some yard sale items and made a sign for Barack Obama. Pretty creative, I'd say. This photo was on the Powell Tribune blog. On a separate post, the PowellTribBlogger wondered why there are so many more Obama signs that ones for McCain in a county that has five times more registered Republicans than Democrats. A trend?

More than 100,000 rally in Denver

Civic Center Park in downtown Denver. Denver Post photo. Go to Square State for a lot more.

Down in Denver and Ft. Collins, Obama rallies the Dem faithful

Meanwhile, Hummingbirdminds is on the road in Cheney country. Sorry to miss the Obama rallies in Colorado but duty called. This bronze statue of oil workers tells you where you are.

The only maveri(c)ks I've seen lately in Wyoming are full of gas.

Postcard from our Republican overlords

This mailer came to households around Casper, even to those who have deserted the sinking Repub ship. And why is this man smiling?

The other side of the card...

We are your trusty Republican team. Ask us about the latest bargains on Wall Street.

Dead dinos and maveri(c)ks abound in Casper

Casper is Halliburtonland

Waiting for Obama in Fort Collins

This Photo (and one below) taken by Cheyenne's Tom Burdette while he waited to see Sen. Obama in Fort Collins, Colo.

Lining up for the Fort Collins rally.

Walking door-to-door for Jim Byrd (HD 44)

On a windy day in Cheyenne, Democratic candidates for the Wyoming House and Senate gathered at IBEW HQ to distribute materials for a door-to-door walkathon. The photo above shows Jim Byrd, Democratic candidate for House District 44. I walked the North Capitol neighborhood for Jim this morning. As leaves and twigs and Republican yard signs swirled around me, I must have looked like Pooh on that legendary blustery day in the 100-Acre Wood. You have to be creative on days like this. You can slip the door hangers between the screen door and the doorjamb. Or wedge it between the screen and the iron bars some people have. You just want people to see your material. By the way, I must have been following a crew from Republican Cynthia Lummis's U.S. House campaign. Thise doorknobs were getting pretty crowded. Also, I had to pick up a half-dozen dislodged Lummis door hangers and put them back in their place. You don't have to thank me, Cynthia. Any former Boy Scout would have done the same.

Campaign getting interesting in Wyo. HD 8

A new postcard from Rep. Lori Millin came in the mail today. It shows her working in surgery. The text reads:

"Worried about health care? YOUR representative works in surgical scrubs! Re-elect Lori Millin. With her you can feel safe."

Lori represents me in the Wyoming State Legislature, House District 8. She did a great job during her first two years (2006-2008) and she'll do even better when she returns. I also prefer nurses to lawyers, especially Republican lawyers such as her opponent, Bob Nicholas. Lori beat Republican incumbent Dr. Larry Meuli in 2006 by nine votes. The closeness of the race required an automatic recount. Meuli's been a little ticked off ever since, it seems. The local paper had a letter from him this morning. It supported Republican Cynthia Lummis over Gary Trauner in the U.S. House race. He wrote: "I think substance should win out over presumptions and relative political neophytes every time."

In that case, shouldn't he be voting for Lori Millin over the presumptuous neophyte Bob Nicholas?

Just asking...

Newsweek: Obama leads McCain 53-40

This just in from Newsweek:

With less than two weeks left in the presidential contest, Barack Obama continues to hold a commanding double-digit lead over John McCain according to the latest NEWSWEEK Poll. Among registered voters nationwide, Obama now leads McCain by 13 points, 53 percent to 40 percent. Among likely voters, Obama's lead is similarly strong, 53 percent to 41 percent.

Don't these people know they're on camera?

And where does all this hatred come from?

This filmed at John McCain's rally this morning at the Stock Show Arena in Denver.

MTV concert brings attention to returning veterans' issues

You've probably seen Paul Rieckhoff on CNN and MSNBC interviews (notably Keith Olberman) talking about our overseas wars. Rieckhoff, head of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), announced on Huffington Post a petition initiative to bring attention to the plight of returning veterans: The Bill of Rights for American Veterans (BRAVE). You can check out the petition here.

To publicize this effort, IAVA has teamed up with MTV to air a concert, "A Night for Vets: An MTV Concert for the BRAVE." It will be on tonight at 8 p.m. ET/PT and (probably) 6 p.m. MT. The concert will feature Beyonce, Kanye West, Kid Rock, 50 Cent, Ludacris, Fall Out Boy and Nelly.

Over the weekend, CNN will air its special, "Back from the Battle," featuring interviews with Reickhoff and IAVA veteran spokeswoman Carolyn Schapper. "Back from the Battle" will air Saturday the 25th and Sunday the 26th at 8 p.m. ET (6 p.m. MT) on CNN.

As Reickhoff says:

We worked closely with MTV on BRAVE, because there is a tremendous amount
at stake for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans in this election.

BRAVE includes the following calls to action:

• Properly treat veterans' mental health issues.
• Prevent homelessness among veterans.
• Give disabled veterans the benefits they have earned in a timely manner.
• Fully fund veterans' hospitals across the country.
• Compensate troops who are made to serve longer via Stop Loss.

IAVA will be encouraging its thousands of members nationwide to sign the BRAVE petition - and you can sign on as well. Just text BRAVE to 66333 or log on to Choose or Lose. And you can also watch the show, scheduled to air on MTV on Friday, October 24, at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Tune in and learn something.

Obama in Denver and Ft. Collins on Sunday

As reported here a few days ago, Barack Obama is coming to Denver and Fort Collins on Sunday, Oct. 26. Fort Collins, as you may know, is located across the border in Colorado and is considered by some to be a Cheyenne suburb.

Here are the details, courtesy of Square State blog in Denver:

EARLY VOTE FOR CHANGE RALLY WITH BARACK OBAMA at Civic Center Park in downtown Denver (located between the Colorado Capitol and the Civic Center), Sunday, October 26, gates open at 10 a.m. Program begins at 11:30 a.m. RSVP Here

EARLY VOTE FOR CHANGE RALLY WITH BARACK OBAMA in The Oval on the Colorado State University Campus in Fort Collins (my alma mater). Use the public entrance at University Ave. and West Drive. On Sunday, October 26. Gates open at 1:30 p.m. and program begins at 3:30 p.m. RSVP Here

Both events are free and open to the public. Tickets are NOT required, but an RSVP is strongly encouraged. Space is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Dem lit drop set for this Saturday

Nicole Novotny, communications director for the Laramie County Democratic Party, sent this:

Please sign up to help hand out information for our Laramie County candidates during this weekend's literature drop!

When: Saturday, October 25, 2008

Times: Two Hour Shifts - 9-11 AM, 11-1 PM, 1-3 PM

Where: Meet at 810 Fremont Street (IBEW Bldg.)

Questions: Contact Betty Jo at 635-7901 or Mike at 634-9001

Gov Dave endorses Gary Trauner

Wyoming's Democratic Governor, Dave Freudenthal, endorsed Gary Trauner today for Wyoming's lone U.S. House seat. As he noted in his remarks at a noon press conference, he doesn't do many endorsements. In fact, some of us Dems have been a bit upset that his endorsement didn't come earlier. But, better late than never. In Sunday's Casper Star-Tribune poll, Trauner led Republican Cynthia Lummis 44-43 in this squaker of a race. Gov Dave's endorsement may help. The Gov is wildly popular, his approval rating in this Republican-heavy state hovering around the 81 percent mark. During the summer, he was the second-most popular Western governor, ranked just behind Sarah Palin of Alaska. But her numbers have taken a hit since emerging into the national spotlight.

I won't quote all of the governor's remarks about Trauner. You can get a transcript and an audio at http://www.traunerforcongress.com.

Here are a few choice paragraphs:

It's the same thing in another of the ads that his opponent [Lummis] runs that talks about during her tenure, she developed $5 billion in state money. Well, the truth is, anyone can take credit for that. I can take credit for that, the Legislature can take credit for that. The real reason that that money exists is the way that this economy has been over the last five or six years. I make a persuasive argument that it all happened because I was elected Governor. Because about the time I was elected, if you remember, that's about the time that prices went up.

I think we need to be realistic about what it is that we say to the public in terms of these races. The fact of the matter is that as politicians, we shouldn't believe our own press releases. The reason that this state is prosperous, and the reason that we have the money that's available, is not by virtue of somebody who was in office, whether they were Governor or Treasurer, but by virtue of the fortuitous circumstances of the nature of this state's economy.

Denver Post sez Obama in town Sunday

Now it's not such hot rumor. Sen. Obama is set to be in Denver on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 26. Obama's been to Denver a three times since the big convention the Dems had there in August. I was hoping he'd make his way up to Ft. Collins, which is a suburb of Cheyenne. We'll see....

Sen. Hillary Clinton will make a stop in Aurora this Friday. John McCain is also making a stop in Colorado on Friday. Maybe they can arm wrestle (Hillary would win).

FMI: http://www.denverpost.com/politicswestnews/ci_10785972