Bush recants, says terror war will be won. Earlier. (via Monkeyfilter)

More photo comparison fun: Bush versus Kerry.

Amazon.com has launched Amazon.com's Great Political Debate Store, which highlights political debate topics and associated books. The site also features short interviews with political figures:

"The survival of the Republic is threatened by the election of John Kerry." -- Ann Coulter

"The precise details as to what level of heroism John Kerry exhibited in Vietnam should be the only issue determining the outcome of this election. Were his actions truly noble? Or merely valiant?" -- Jon Stewart

After drawing a not-so-warm reception at the RNC, filmmaker Michael Moore has decided not to return to Madison Square Garden for the remaining week of the Republican gathering. Moore will continue his week-long stint writing a daily column about the GOP convention for USAToday.

As far as security at the Republican National Convention goes, look no further than cryptome's coverage (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11) on the matter, which has given cryptome some press coverage.

Adding to a growing list of controversies over George W Bush's early career, Cheerleaders for Truth asks: "Did George Bush actually win a Varsity letter in Cheerleading at Yale? Or was this another "no show" like the National Guard? [...] Why haven't any member of Bush's Cheerleading Squad come forward and verified that he actually attended practice and the games?"

Bush is to IBM as Kerry is to Apple.

Retired military doctor Louis Letson described treating John Kerry's wounds that won him his first Purple Heart with a band-aid. Though the Kerry campaign disputes Dr. Letson's claim to have treated Mr. Kerry, Republican delegate and president of The Leadership Institute Morton Blackwell mines the controversy for gag props (band-aids emblazoned with the Purple Heart insignia) that were hugely popular on the first day of the Republican National Convention. It is of course unlikely that these band-aids were intended to be disrespectful of Purple Hearts in general, their target clearly being Mr. Kerry's Vietnam service record, but RNC chairman Ed Gillespie has nevertheless enjoined Mr. Blackwell and the delegates from distributing or displaying the band-aids for the remaining days of the convention.

Black Box Voting has exposed a security hole (details) in recent versions of the software used in Diebold electronic voting machines. The exploit, which should really be called a back-door, was already acnowledged by Diebold in earlier versions, but remains open in machines to be used in the up-coming 2004 election in states like California and Washington. Slashdot has more.

Top British scientists are trying to stop the U.S. from obtaining a worldwide ban on all types of human cloning, including the therapeutic cloning needed for embryonic stem cell research. As I understand the Constitution, if the treaty passes and the U.S. signs, it becomes U.S. law. Sneaky.

Republican Congressman Edward Schrock (VA) has abruptly retired rather than seeking a third term amid unspecified allegations that have "called into question" his ability to serve.

Some people say the unspecified allegations are that he is a closeted homosexual, who has been exposed via an activist weblog claiming to have audio of Schrock using a gay-themed phone dating service. Rep. Schrock is a co-sponser of the anti-gay Federal Marriage Amendment and has opposed gay rights in the past. (via Political Wire.)

Panoramic photograph of the Republican National Convention Floor, August 30th, 2004.

President Bush is now describing the War in Iraq as a "catastrophic success". "I, like most Americans, have no idea what that means," replied Democrat VP candidate John Edwards.

What everyone may not realize is that when the President uses the phrase "catastrophic success", he is citing a dynamical systems theory by a French mathematician. He may have picked up the phrase from Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Or perhaps he read it in a book by General Tommy Franks. Or maybe he's simply using a negative adjective to emphasize the positive, like the phrase "wicked cool".

With the economy, war, and homeland security dominating the national political scene, the environment (among other issues) has taken a back seat during the campaign. Not on a local level, as the Washington Post reports. Whether it's storage of nuclear waste in Nevada or diverting water from the Great Lakes for municipalities, environmental issues are being discussed in key swing states. (Bugmenot for the WaPo)

Bush's defeat would be good for the GOP, says Niall Ferguson in the Wall street Journal. I believe that the support for Bush by people like McCain, Giuliani and Schwarzenneger is really skin-deep, since none of them will ever rise to the top while the Neo-Cons are in charge, yet they know that if they broke with The Party, there would be no coming back.
(Thanks to homunculus at MeFi for the link)

"We're Not in Lake Wobegon Anymore", Garrison Keillor's unsympathetic assessment of the current generation of Republicans and "The Politics of Fear". (As previously seen at MeFi; I thought we might have less pissing in the punchbowl here.

When giving campaign speeches, Vice President Dick Cheney sometimes appears to misspeak and confuse Senator John Kerry with Senator Ted Kennedy. Not surprisingly, this is probably intentional.

The real news story isn't that "starlet" Rosario Dawson was arrested among the protesters at Madison Square Garden, it's that she wasn't protesting the RNC at all -- filmmakers were using the protest march as a crowd of ready-made extras.

Rumours swill over non-negotiation with Terrorists and the shooting down of commercial airliners last week by the Russian military. What, I hear you say?

Something is wrong here. Isnt this whole thing just a bit too quiet?
What does America have to gain from the Chechen elections?
Perhaps the spread of islam?

Justice Department (and the Patriot Act) versus the Supreme Court:

"The danger to political dissent is acute where the Government attempts to act under so vague a concept as the power to protect 'domestic security.' Given the difficulty of defining the domestic security interest, the danger of abuse in acting to protect that interest becomes apparent."

"It's something fun for delegates to sneak home in pockets and tell the kids about."

Who are those people wearing ugly green neon hats among the crowds of RNC protesters in NYC? Why do they keep calling themselves "legal observers", and why are they arrested by the NYPD? What can I do to prepare should I be arrested?

Laura Bush defends her husband by defending questionable attack ads. Laura is just defending her husband because all attacks are equal ... or, Laura is engaged in anti-veteran rhetoric. I report, you decide.

Joshua Kinberg, organizer of Bikes Against Bush (think protest messages via Internet printed in chalk via bike on the NYC sidewalks) has been arrested and his high-tech bicycle has been confiscated by the police. This will prevent him from using the bike for protesting during the week of the RNC convention.

Matt Haughey (of MeFi fame) offers a roundup of Do-It-Yourself Republican Convention coverage:
Flickr photos tagged with RNC, rncwatch.typepad.com, Technorati search for New York City, Buzznet's No RNC photostream, RNC convention bloggers, WeSeeRNC moblog, Indymedia's RNC coverage, and Google News search for RNC.

With all the talk of who will win the US Presidential elections, maybe the Australian Federal election, called today for an October 9th election date, will provide our American friends with some insight into who will win on November 2nd.

The Sierra Club makes predictions as to what will happen if George W. Bush gets re-elected. Expect the UN to go bankrupt and the building sold to Donald Trump, Superfund to be eliminated, Kenneth Starr to write a decision declaring a constituional right to pollute, and global warnming killing hundreds in the East Coast. And you just thought W wanted to drill in ANWAR. Oh, and by the way, don't worry about voting in the future, because the Sierra Club has called the election for Jeb Bush in 2008.

NPR's All Songs Considered presents the latest in "Political Songs & Satire".
Repurposed from MetaFilter, 'cause It's Better Here.

You know a subject is serious when it earns the highest of all buzzword labels: "shadowy"

The 2004 Republican National Convention unveiled a newly designed site -- wWw.gopconvention.com -- to cover the convention in New York City. The site includes the "W" blog page that will follow President Bush leading up to his arrival in NYC and a team of five Convention Jockeys ("CJs") who will cover the gathering of the GOP faithful at Madison Square Garden. "Rock stations have DJs, MTV has VJs and Republicans are introducing CJs," said Chairman Ed Gillespie.

Filmmaker Michael Moore has posted an open letter to George Bush.

According to reports, Britney Spears has been asked to perform at the GOP convention in NYC. Some Republicans are not happy about this idea.

For a smattering of non-US political news... Australia is due to call an election any day now. But, Prime Minister John Howard is embroiled in the midst of a political war with the Labor Opposition over claimes he lied about asylum seekers throwing their children overboard back in 2001.

With the latest Newspoll showing that Howard has already taken a beating to his primary vote over the USFTA, is this issue really as bad as the media makes it out to be for him? Or, is Howard right when he says that the Australian people are tired of this story? Discuss.

Pentagon worker(s) under investigation for spying for Israel.

Of course, Israel denies this. This story is developing.

It would appear that the President's administration has changed its mind about global warming. Only one problem, the President's mind didn't seem aware of this shift.

Asked why the Administration had changed its position on what causes global warming, Mr Bush replied, "Ah, we did? I don't think so."

Oops. Bob Dole didn't realize Bob Dole would appear on a leaked video of Bob Dole speaking a bit more candidly about Bob Dole's thoughts on Bush's campaign tatics.

Critical Mass "occurs on the last Friday of every month when bicyclists spontaneously come together to ride the ordinarily car-clogged streets of their cities." Tonight's NYC Critical Mass Ride resulted in 250 cyclists arrested on the streets of New York City and is the first major protest in connection with next week's Republican convention.

The Republicans have been working to get Ralph Nader on the election ballot in many states. Now you can sign a petition to let Nader speak at the GOP Convention.

MoveOn PAC launched their 10 Weeks: Don't Get Mad, Get Even! anti-Bush ad campaign today, offering a new political ad every Friday until the election in November. The effort is supported by several celebrities, many of whom offer their services for the commercials.

Here's a baseball analogy bound to make the Democrats feel cursed: The Republicans are the Yankees and the Democrats are the Red Sox.

The long out-of-print (and some people say intentionally so) 1971 anti Vietnam War book called The New Soldier by John Kerry is available online in all it's copyright violating glory. (Read more of the fallout at Metafilter.)

The New York City SWAT team spent today removing a giant "Bush vs. Truth" banner from The Plaza hotel where many GOP convention delegates will be staying.

Tonight at 8pm Eastern, cable network C-SPAN will be showing the Vietnam "Winter Soldier" testimony given by John Kerry before the Fulbright Senate Foreign Relations Committee on April 22, 1971. Parts of this testimony have been used in attack ads by the "Swift Veterans for Truth", who released a third anti-Kerry campaign ad today.

The new rebellion? Time magazine on the young conservative movement on college campuses. Some of them think George W. Bush has betrayed true conservative ideals. Many define their conservatism on an issue-by-issue basis. Tactics successfully used by liberal groups in the past are being adopted.

Sprint PCS is offering the mobile phone game Bush vs. Kerry Boxing to all it's subscribers. Published by mobile game company Sorrent, the results of every bout are automatically tracked on the Sorrent website. (via Joystiq)

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is running a state garage sale to sell surplus items accumulated by the state -- items will be auctioned off at a public auction and on eBay.

Project Billboard unveiled this clock billboard in New York City's Time Square to keep an updated running tally of the cost of the war in Iraq.

"We are the party of the open door." The GOP convention platform includes not just a ban on gay marriage, but also a ban on gay civil unions, including any rights or benefits that may be afforded to same sex couples.

"We further believe that legal recognition and the accompanying benefits afforded couples should be preserved for that unique and special union of one man and one woman which has historically been called marriage."

The latest Al Franken-stein Monster: The Great American Shout-Out, a combination political distraction/radio promotion for the moment Bush gets officially nominated at the RNC.
Contains 80% emotion, 20% snarky humor and 0% rational discussion. May not be approved for the Atkins or Angus Diet.

George Lakoff, cognitive linguistics professor and author of Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think, dissects what's behind "war on terror," "liberal elite," and other conservative catchphrases.

"You'd be amazed at the number of people who want to introduce themselves to you in the men's room. It's the most bizarre part of this entire thing." -- Senator John Kerry on The Daily Show (via Political Wire)

GOP delegates flying into New York City for next week's Republican National Convention will see protest signs before their planes even land at the airport.

The most overused, undefined, least understood political buzzword of this campaign season: Neo-Conservative

Yet another way to compare and evaluate the 2004 Presidential campaigns of George Bush and John Kerry: Which candidate has the better web site? (Sadly, the answer is probably Howard Dean.)

Vice President Dick Cheney: gay rights advocate?

If someone unknowingly volunteered for dangerous duty during the Vietnam War, does that reduce their accomplishment? What if that person was a Presidential candidate and exploited the details of that volunteer duty?

UrbanDictionary.com has an interesting collection of different "definitions" given to the terms conservative and liberal.

Wired has an interesting profile of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and how his political ideology (nicknamed "radical centrism") may serve as a new model in an sea of out-dated politics as usual.

Notable Quotables is a bi-weekly compliation from the Media Research Center of quotes demonstrating a so-called "liberal bias" in the media. More...

Shock-rocker Alice Cooper (recently seen hawking back-to-school supplies in tv ads for Staples) also happens to be a staunch Republican. "If you're listening to a rock star in order to get your information on who to vote for, you're a bigger moron than they are."

The country music act Brooks & Dunn top the entertainment lineup for Republican National Convention. More importantly, actor and born-again Christian Stephen Baldwin will be at the RNC, lending his Baldwin-ness to counter his decidely outspoken pro Democrat brother, Alec Baldwin. Which political party has the strongest Baldwin? Only Daniel or Billy Baldwin may know for sure.

The three companies that certify electronic voting machines operate in secrecy, and will not disclose the results of their testing -- something required by their contracts with e-voting machine manufacturers. "Testing and certifying voting equipment in this country is not only broken, but is virtually nonexistent."

The Smoking Gun delves into the Swift Vets ad controversy offering the document that led to one of John Kerry's Bronze Stars in 1969. The award recommendation report was written by George Eillot, who appears in the Swift Vet television ad critical of Kerry.

Don't forget to vote early and often -- especially if you live in New York and Florida.

Political cartoons have long been a premiere source for editorial comment and satire. Whether sometimes helping a government agenda, or protesting every aspect of it, editorial cartoonists offer an immediate snapshot of political news.

"George W. Bush doesn't flaunt his hard-won war medals. Occasionally he will wear them if he is attending a formal or military event, but for the most part, they are tucked away in his trophy cabinet." Taking a Closer Look at the Medals of George W. Bush.

Here's one medal the British aren't dying to take possession of. (Hint: This has nothing to do with the Olympics.)

Graphic designer fired for heckling Bush (or more accurately, embarassing a client) at a Republican rally.

Photo of Bush supporter lending a hand to a protester in Oregon. (She seems nice.)

Bush adviser quits after appearing in new Swift Boat Veterans campaign ad. In unrelated news, parents report sharp increase in children asking: "Mommy, what does the word collusion mean?"

Retro vs. Metro America -- they're calling it "The Great Divide" and "The Uncivil War". What started as a series of puzzling ads now results in the release of a political campaign book.

The Politics of Bullying.

Amid the childish antics of the current Presidential campaign, it's interesting to note political web sites directed at kids. The White House has their White House for Kids official page, complete with Barney Photo of the Day. Moving up in age, there's The Young Democrats of America and Young Republican National Federation. (Comparing the two sites, it's interesting to note the Young Republicans have decided to "go negative", just like their GOP "parents".)

Newseum, the Interactive Mueseum of News, offers a daily snapshot of the front pages of 327 newspapers from 40 different countries, which can be sorted by map, region, or alphabetically.

Oscar winner Errol Morris is directing a series of political ads for MoveOnPAC, interviewing "real people" who voted for Bush in 2000 but intend to vote for Kerry in the 2004 election. The campaign ads may remind you of Morris' Switch Ads for Apple Computer. These ads join the long history of Presidential Campaign Commercials.

Poll: 54% of Americans believe that Iraq had Weapons of Mass Destruction or a major WMD program.

The real crushing of dissent.

Isometric map of Washington DC. (via MonkeyFilter)

Deal Hudson, the top Bush advisor on Catholics, resigned amid a report detailing his alleged affair with a student while Deal was a professor at Fordham University. This is the same Hudson who called for the excommunication of fellow Catholic John Kerry. Speaking about Kerry, Hudson said:

"I hope they will rise to the challenge and refuse to endorse another Catholic politician who is pretending to be a Catholic while rejecting the Church's central moral and social teachings."

Did you know that Senator John Kerry speaks French fluently? Not surprisingly, this has become a springboard for all types of criticism.

Former Vice President Al Gore was cited for speeding recently. (The trooper was nice enough "recount" Gore's speed from 77 to 75 so he would be issued a lesser ticket.)

Bushisms versus Kerryisms. (Winner: A Draw?)

At what point did the word Liberal become a dirty word? (Even "Seven Dirty Words" comedian George Carlin doesn't want that label.)

Kerry's pretend adventures "in" Cambodia. If Kerry wasn't trying to convince us that his war experience was more relevant than his Senate record, this might just be a footnote to history. But it's his fault and it might cost him the Presidency.

Kerry has put a lot of political stock in his Vietnam service. See how many of Kerry's Band of Brothers endorse him for Commander in Chief. (via Spot On.)

Communists for Kerry are in favor of electing a president who will be more respectful of France's ambitions to rule the world by threat of surrender. They've set up a site to allow other countries to get France's input on just about anything.

Blue New York Republican National Convention protest in New York City. They're calling it a "Blueout". (via Anil Dash)

FactCheck.org is a great resource for debunking "facts" that political ads spew.
"We are a nonpartisan, nonprofit, "consumer advocate" for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases. Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding."

One of the left's strongest taboos is coming unglued on the internet: black conservatives are coming out of the closet.

What if he's right? Lefty Bush-hater makes a thoughtful case for Bush in Esquire magazine.

What do you do when you're about to quit your job? Why, you tell your boss what you really think.

John Kerry's Flip Flop Olympics. (via Metafilter)

The George W. Bush official web site offers helpful Letters to the Editor templates -- users fill out a form with prepared text outlining the Bush agenda on the economy for easy forwarding to their local paper. Now what happens when one Google's the text from those form letters? Roughly 60 newspapers running the same "Letter to the Editor". (via Daily Kos)

Here is a touching photo of President Bush holding hands with a valued supporter... (Errm.)

There has been much talk recently about how the GOP campaign only allows Bush supporters to attend Republican Presidential campaign rallies. The GOP has even had the public sign a loyality oath before being issued a ticket to attend campaign rallies. The result: During the "Ask President Bush" Q&As, questions from the "public" range from statements of support to a child asking: "Mr. President, as a child, how can I help you get votes?"

News Flash: John Kerry heterosexual, apparently likes "sexy and saucy" women. (via Drudge Report)

The Showtime "reality series" American Candidate follows ten political candidates on a manufactured campaign trial. The series (which originally intended to follow a real Presidential candidate) was created by R.J. Cutler, who is behind the political documentaries The War Room and A Perfect Candidate. Unfortunately for Culter and Showtime, the series has suffered from low voter turnout.

Conservative Party candidate Marilyn O'Grady wants you to Boycott the Boss. (The Boss being Bruce Springsteen, who is headlining the Vote for Change concert tour.)

Electoral Vote Predictor keeps an updated "predicted" count of electoral votes in the 2004 Presidential Election based on a number of tracking polls. Updated constantly, the site has a map of the US with state by state data to spare (including helpful comparisons to the 2000 Election results). Currently the predictor has Kerry in the lead. Just to give an even murkier picture, the Election 2004 Gallup Poll has Bush ahead among "likely voters" at the moment. Would it be possible for Bush to win the popular vote and still lose the election as Gore did in 2000?

Those young street punks George, Dick, and Rummy break down the Republican National Convention in New York City. (9mb NSFW video via MetaFilter)

Vote: The Machinery of Democracy is a fascinating online exhibition on the history of voting methods in the United States. Everything from the gear and lever voting booth to the hanging chads of the butterfly ballot are on display. I wonder what course electronic voting machines will take the voting process in the future.

Like everyone else, knitters are for or against President Bush.

Barbie® for President. She's representing the popular "Party for Girls". (Will her election campaign be hindered by her controversial and provocative past?)

Not invited to the upcoming Republican National Convention in New York City: the evangelical right? (Michael Moore will be there, however.)

President Bush declined to condemn (despite Senator McCain asking him to do so) the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" TV attack ads directed against his opponent John Kerry. The group recently released an ad and book accusing Kerry of misrepresenting his Vietnam war record. As to be expected, the "Swift Vets" have been called into question.

Documentary films are the new black. This is especially true if they are political documentaries. Whether it's the highest grossing documentary of all time, questioning media that claims to be "fair and balanced" or corporate responsibility in this fast food culture, documentaries have something to suit every bias. Just labeling ANY piece of media as a "documentary" is becoming a popular weapon in the battle for the White House. Case in point: Run a twelve minute Republican campaign video ad on the web, call it a documentary, and claim it "surpasses viewership of Fahrenheit 911 opening weekend". (They're using the "take our word for it" accounting for this claim, including the use of the meaningless term: viewership.)

Speaking of gay, New Jersey governor James E. McGreevey just resigned from office amid a extramarital affair scandal, saying: "My truth is that I am a gay American."

Remember all those gay marriages that took place in San Francisco a few months ago? Voided. (All 3,995 of them.)

Protesters at the upcoming Republican National Convention will be doing more than "holding cardboard placards and making puppets", they'll be creating digital anarchy.

Presidential election politics has always been a game of epic battles. Now you can wage your own campaign war with the PC videogame The Political Machine. Players take command of the election campaigns of John Kerry or George Bush. Unhappy with the two current candidate choices? Political Machine lets you create your own candidate from scratch. (If only in the real world...)

The New York Times has a fantastic Campaign Photo Journal by Times Photographer Stephen Crowley -- covering moments from 12 years on various campaign trails.

When National Lampoon isn't licensing their namesake moniker to films, they're occasionally trying to create a bit of humor, the most recent parody being aimed at a certain popular liberal neo-political website: MoveOnPlease.org

President Bush opposes legacy college admissions. The third generation Yale "legacy graduate" Bush states: "Well I think so, yes. I think it ought to be based on merit." (via WatchBlog)

A week ago, I posted at Ask MetaFilter asking for suggestions on community weblogs that covered the arena of politics. While I got several suggestions for political webloggers, there weren't any examples of community weblogs (where anyone can post to the weblog) that focused on politics.

A week later, and Devoter.com is born. This community weblog covers all matter of politics, which means almost any subject is in bounds. I hope this collabrative weblog invites politicos from around the web to contribute interesting political links, news, and other web sites. I invite everyone to register and post their favorite political links and news -- especially with the presidential election coming down to the wire.

At the very least, I hope this weblog can grow beyond it's MetaFilter clone roots. But for now, just think of this site as PoliticalFilter.