News Roundup, 5/13/08: When Nothing Changes

Yesterday we saw crazy predictions, McCain's lobbyist friends, and shenanigans in the Texas Legislature. You know, business as usual.

From the Sunday round table on FOX News, Bill Kristol went out on a limb when he predicted that Sen. Barack Obama would nominate former House minority leader Dick Gephardt as his running mate this fall. While the potential of Leader Gephardt's return to national politics is exciting, we are quite surprised that word of his return would come from the mouth of Bill Kristol.

In local news, The Texas legislature is turning its eye towards immigration. Of course, when Tom Craddick says no, he really means yes.

2006 Democratic nominee for governor Chris Bell provides The Texas Blue with his take on proposed Voter ID legislation in the Texas Legislature. In his article, he readily points out how such legislation could be a problem for poorer Hispanic Democrats who are legal citizens of the United States. This issue, of course, does not affect likely Republican voters.

We have known for some time about John McCain's ties to lobbyists, but now we enter a new level of sleaze. McCain's choice to run the 2008
Republican National Convention has resigned due to his lobbying ties with Myanmmar's military junta which has several human rights violations under its belt.

The slow death of television continues as Youtube and Google team up again this year for another online Presidential forum. While this debate will be aired on television as a normal presidential debate, those who choose to watch it on television will only be able to observe instead of participate in the spectacle that is a Youtube Presidential Forum.

Three states are holding important elections today. In the West Virginia primary, Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama will compete for the state's 28 elected delegates. It is expected that Sen. Clinton will win by a large margin. In the South, the citizens of northern Mississippi will be voting on who should be their new congressman in what is expected to be a close special election between Democrat Travis Childers and Republican Greg Davis. Finally, in Nebraska, Democrats will decide whether rancher Scott Kleeb or businessman Tony Raimondo will be their nominee for the Senate seat being left open by the retiring Sen. Chuck Hagel. Stay with The Texas Blue, where we will have the results of what transpires tonight.