Jaded Sage:

There is no more diverse state politically than Oregon. Portland is as liberal as any city in the US including San Francisco but if you go east you find yourself next to Idaho and conservatism breathes in these locales. But this election is unique and the winds of change favor Barack Obama. One GOP senator seems to understand the nature of this election and he has hitched his wagon to the Illinois Senator in a new ad.

It is unheard of for a candidate from one party to identify with the nominee from the other party but Oregon Senator Gordon Smith has done just that. His ad shows Senator Obama’s website and also refers to Oregon’s Democratic Governor Ted Kulongoski. The advertisement is intended to show Smith’s ability to be bipartisan but the message is much more than that. The waves sweeping on Oregon’s shores these days are much bluer than in the past and Senator Smith wishes not to drown in the high tide. The impact of this ad may very well work for Senator Smith but he won’t win any friends in his party for running it. But if he indeed wins and the scales tip favorably toward the Democrats in Congress, Senator Smith will be able to put his bipartisan experience to work.

There is another element to this tactic by Senator Smith. There is not a feeling of disdain about either Barack Obama or John McCain. This climate has allowed for the Oregon GOP senator to air his ad. The vitriol that has served as the sword of Damocles the past several decades has been tamped down in this election.  Thankfully, mouthpieces such as Michelle Malkin, Ann Coulter and Michael Moore have been marginalized and with the nature and depth of the problems that the new President must face this can only be a good sign for our country.

An Obamacan is a Republican who supports Barack Obama

Why are Republican Congressmen hindering witnesses in the latest hearings on credit card abuse? Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) has proposed a bill that would protect credit card holders from their interest rates skyrocketing for the slightest infractions. Several consumers who have had their interest rates go from a fair rate to 23% overnight due to one late payment had agreed to testify before Congress. Republicans found a way to silence many of these witnesses. The panel’s Republicans insisted the visitors allow their lenders to discuss their financial histories publicly-in any forum, at any time. This did the trick for four of five witnesses who were fearful of the one part in the waiver that would allow their history to be fair game at anytime. The credit card companies and their lobbyists were there in huge numbers during Thursday’s hearings espousing the virtues of their consumer relations while the those who had been unfairly treated sat in the audience, successfully gagged.

Maloney’s proposal, called The Credit Card Holder Bill of Rights serves as a check on the companies that give out credit cards. Their power has become increasingly one sided in the past ten years. This should be a signal to everyone just who the Republicans cater to, and it isn’t us.  

If you haven’t seen the Frontline special on the abuses of credit card issuers see it here. It is an outstanding piece of journalism.

For more on the Credit Card Holder Bill of Rights (HR 5244):

Congress Takes on Credit Card Interchange Fees

Maloney and Conyers Introduce Two Bills