The 10 Worst Christmas Songs Ever

Here are my choices for the 10 worst Christmas Songs ever ... be sure to send me your choices!


1. I’ll Be Home for Christmas – Bob Dylan - I was going to put all 15 cuts from Bob Dylan’s 2009 “Christmas in the Heart” album on the list, but I wanted to be fair to the other nominees in this category. This particular song will scare little children and make adults cringe. During the holiday season, if you find long lines at the mall, holiday traffic on the New Jersey Turnpike and truly bratty kids on the Santa Claus line to be “festive,” you will enjoy the Dylan album.



2. O Holy Night – Tracy Chapman – Holy crap is more like it. From “A Very Special Christmas 3,” Chapman brutalizes my very favorite Christmas song. In fact, South Park’s Cartman sings it better. When I first heard this rendition, I was looking for a “fast car” to take me as far away as possible from the sound.



3. Last Christmas – Ashley Tisdale – She’s 24 now. There are no more "High School Musicals" in her future. Why does she still sing like she is nine years old? If precocious and annoying little girls are your cup of holiday cheer, this song from “A Very Special Christmas 7” (they need to stop already), is right up your alley. Yuk.



4. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus – Bif Naked – I know. What did I expect? But the truth of the matter is that several of the other songs on the “MTV: The TRL Christmas” album are quite good. This one, however, makes you want to throw up in the egg nog. Bif needs to get dressed; go to the doctors; and get the vocal chords fixed.



5. Little Mr. Snowflake – Eddie Rabbitt – Only in a Country Christmas song will you find someone singing to a freakin’ snowflake asking it to find a long lost love. In this cut from “A Smokey Mountain Christmas,” Rabbitt sings: “Little Mr. Snowflake, if you happen to land on her soft brown hair, would you give her for me lots of hugs and kisses.” After about 37 seconds, you are rooting for the snow flake to melt on the way down.



6. Frosty the Snowman – Fiona Apple – What is it about snow that brings out the worst in singers? The usually soothing Apple is rotten to the core on this cut. From “The Hotel Café Presents: Winter Songs,” Apple sings like an Appalachian hillbilly high on moon shine. Fortunately this one bad Apple song did not spoil the whole bunch on this generally outstanding album.



7. I Want An Alien for Christmas – Fountains of Wayne – Before you ask what I am doing with the “Victoria Secret Christmas Morning” album, don’t forget I go to yard sales. Who knew my 25 cents would get me this little gem.



8. Feel Like Killing Myself for Christmas – Sick Puppies – Truly one of the more uplifting seasonal tunes every recorded. Consider these lyrics: “I feel like killing myself for Christmas. I never got along with my mom and dad. I feel like killing myself for Christmas. It would be the best Christmas I ever had.” Joyful, no? Only released as a single, but still you will want to run right out and get this one to stuff in your 12-year-old son’s stocking.



9. Christmas Tree – Lady Gaga – Again, we lucked out. Just one song here from the newest (and hopefully soon to be “latest”) pop rage. If you don’t switch the station during the horrible intro, you will hear the Gaga Lady sing “The only place you’ll want to be is underneath my Christmas tree.” Yeah, only with earplugs and a nice thick Christmas blanket wrapped over my head.



10. Donde Esta Santa Claus – Guster – “Feliz Navidad,” we like. This one, not so much. From “The Perfect Christmas – Sparkle,” you’ll be wondering “Donde esta” the off button about 15 seconds in.

A few seasonal photos ...

NFL Matchup!

Congressman Bob Franks, his Chief of Staff Haskell Berman and New Jersey Adjutant General Glenn Rieth joined me for a taping of ESPN's "NFL Matchup" with Sal Paolantonio, Ron Jaworski and Merril Hoge.

Our Annual Holiday Open House

Here are a few photos from our annual holiday open house this past Saturday. For those friends, family and business associates who were able to join us, it was great seeing you. For those of you who were not able to make it, have a great holiday season, a successful 2010 and we hope to see you next year (December 11th, by the way).

Michael Snyder, his wife Debbie (Haytaian) and their beautiful daughters.

Dick Kamin digs into the Swedish meatballs!

Joyce with Paul and Amy Bent's daughter Eliza with the trains.

Bluewater Wind's Doug Pfeister with his daughter Addie also enjoying the trains (they were a big hit with the kids).

Assemblyman Jack Conners, his wife Rose Mary, Connie and Tom Meyers (seated), Helena Sullivan, Jennifer Sweeney and daughter Rileigh.

Dan Lombardo and his wife Zulma enjoying my homemade food. (Yes, Dan, I made most all of it - except the candy. That is Joyce's department.)

Amy Mansue explains something to Jim Wallace.

The kids were the stars of the show! Rileigh Sweeney (left) with Addie Pfeister on her mom's lap.

Steve Weinstein, Governor Jim Florio and Sal Paolantonio.

Melanie Willoughby, Jim Benton and Lucinda Florio.

A Great Choice

He is still perfect.


Christopher J. Christie was 133 and 0 as a Federal Prosecutor. That’s right: One-hundred and thirty-three indictments and 133 convictions. John Wooden-like.

He ran once for Governor and won once. Barrack Obama-like.

And now he has made his first major appointment as Governor-elect: The selection of Richard Bagger as Chief of Staff. In my view, he is still perfect. Don Larsen would be proud.

Richard Bagger is a great choice because Richard Bagger makes great choices and will guide, advise and influence Governor Christie to make good decisions.

I have known Rich for almost two decades now and I know the quality and the character of the man. No one makes the right decisions all the time. But we are judged by the overall record: Do we continually make mostly poor choices or good ones. Rich makes mostly good ones.

A few examples:

As a young Assemblyman serving on the Appropriations Committee, Rich Bagger had to make a decision following a private conversation a young executive director had with him outside of a committee room on behalf of the Speaker. There wasn’t a lot of time to think about it. There weren’t any “trusted advisors” to consult. It was gut check time. Rich made a good decision.

As a new father and devoted husband faced with continuing the pursuit of a promising political career or an equally promising private career in the pharmaceutical industry and given the luxury of time, Rich Bagger consulted friends, presumably family, those who had faced similar decisions, and did his homework. He then made a great choice.

As a member of the Assembly’s leadership, huddled with our team on each and every major issue facing the Garden State in the middle and latter part of the 1990’s, Rich Bagger came to the that large table in the middle room of the Speaker’s suite having done his homework; listened attentively to the views of others; and then, more often than not, calmly and confidently voiced a view in a sure and quiet tone that persuaded others more than a dozen shouts of anger and the banging of fists on tables. Rich Bagger’s choices were respected.

I will leave to others to state the obvious: Bagger understands the state budget and how it gets done intimately; Bagger has the relationship skills and the Legislative experience that will serve the new Governor well; and, Bagger has the political skills that will enable him to say “no” in a multitude of ways that are not offensive.

Westfield-raised, Princeton-educated, Haytaian-trained and hardened in the world of global corporate dealings, Rich Bagger is the right man at the right time and in the right place. Over-used and even trite, but: Bagger and Christie – perfect together!

It Was Twenty Years Ago Today …

… or at least sometime around today that the new Administration of Governor-elect James J. Florio was working with the outgoing Administration of Governor Tom Kean to effectuate a smooth transition of power. Two days following the November 6, 1989 election, Florio named the top members of his transition team:

• Douglas Berman, Florio's campaign manager, who would go on to become State Treasurer
• Steven P. Perskie, a former legislator who resigned as a Superior Court judge to join the campaign, who would go on to become Florio’s first Chief of Staff and later go back to the bench
• Brenda Bacon, a senior campaign adviser, who would go on to become Policy Chief
• Karen Kessler, the campaign’s finance director
• Angelo Genova, the campaign legal counsel
• And the Campaign’s director of communications, Jon Shure, who would go on to be director of communications

It was Shure’s main job, both during the campaign and in the Florio Administration, to keep the state’s five key political reporters happy:

• Michael Aron, NJN’s political correspondent
• David Wald, political columnist for the Star Ledger
• David Blomquist, political reporter for the Bergen Record
• Jim Goodman, political columnist for the Trenton Times
• Sal Paolantonio, political correspondent for the Philadelphia Inquirer

Now you can relive those glorious days of old as on Friday, November 27th at 7pm, New Jersey Network will broadcast a special 20th anniversary edition of Reporters Roundtable, hosted by Michael Aron, with the four original panelists from the first season of the show in 1989: Wald, Blomquist, Goodman and Paolantonio. The show will re-air on Sunday, November 29th at 10 on NJN.

I am told that among the topics to be discussed are:

• the transformation of politics and political journalism in New Jersey in the last 20 years
• the chances of the Christie Administration succeeding
• why Corzine lost
• the influence of Norcross and Adubato – the twin political titans in the state – on Trenton

So slap some turkey between two hunks of bread and cozy up to the television on Friday evening.

The League Conference

Joyce and I spent three days in Atlantic City at the New Jersey State League of Municipalities Annual Conference. I noticed three things:

Republicans were smiling more this year.
Democrats weren’t all that unhappy.
People were nicer to me.

What a difference an election makes!

Ten People I Bet You Wished You Had Been Nicer To a Year Ago

Jeff Michaels
Gregg Edwards
Bob Martin
Mike DuHaime
Vernon Hill
David Knowlton
Rick Mroz
Bill Palatucci
Sheila Oliver
Marcia Karrow

Where was the Preventive Services Task Force when we needed them?

An obscure Federal board – the “Preventive Services Task Force” – has opened up a can of worms and a full-blown national debate about whether mammograms are really as useful in preventing breast cancer in women as they are believed to be. (That is a fact. I don’t have an opinion on it. So leave me alone.)

Where was this group hiding when the Corzine Campaign decided to make this issue the most important one facing New Jersey?

Two Things That Matter More Than They Should

The Nobel Peace Prize – People care about the Nobel Peace prize. I have never figured out why. The prize winner is named by five people selected by the Norwegian Parliament. There is nothing else the Norwegian Parliament does that anybody else in the world cares about. But somehow this selection by their chosen five is important. Go figure. Gandhi, Eleanor Roosevelt and Corazon Aquino never won Nobel Peace Prizes. It would be like the Baseball Writers never inducting Babe Ruth, Ted Williams and Sandy Koufax into the Hall of Fame, but us still caring who they named this year.

The Iowa Caucuses – Iowa has selected nine of the last 10 major party presidential nominees for us. Why do we let them do that? There are only three million of the little suckers (less than one percent of the U.S. population). As compared to the nation, they are older, whiter, less bilingual, less educated and poorer than us. There are no major professional sports franchises within their vast borders – presumably they root for losers like the Cubs. Let’s resolve to stop letting them pick our presidents for us.

A Different Kind of Republican Cat

When the smoke cleared –

When the fog lifted off 50 or so million dollars in direct mail and billboards and radio spots and oh, those god-awful television commercials –

When reporters took off their campaign hats and returned once again to the public policy arena –

When the horse race with its near daily furlong by furlong updates from the pollsters and pundits ended –

There stood Christopher J. Christie who will be Governor of the State of New Jersey as we begin the second decade of the 21st Century. What we saw is encouraging and hopeful.

We saw our new Governor in Newark of all places – at a charter school, standing side-by-side with a Democrat ward leader.

We saw our new Governor in Woodbridge, the state’s fifth largest municipality – McGreevey Country – with the Mayor who served as Treasurer in that Administration.

We saw him in the heart of “Republican Country” – Tom’s River in Ocean County – listening to Mayors starved for a little love and affection from Trenton.

We saw him at a high school in Hamilton Township – a swing town, home to thousands of state workers – unflinching and happily answering question after question after question from eager young adults.

In all of those places we saw nary a compromise of his core values and principles. And that is what gives us hope. That is what encourages us.

The man who campaigned – for a change – appears to be the man who will govern.

His message never wavered:

Yes, I will lower taxes.

Yes, I will make the state more business friendly.

Yes, I will cut government.

Yes, I will make that government more competent.

And so on and so on and so on.

We should have known we were dealing with a different kind of Republican cat when in the spring and in the fall he stayed his ground when under a withering attack from different flanks: pointed attacks from the right in the spring and a brutal barrage from the left in the fall.

And NEVER did he cede his moral ground.

I now know what we’ve got as Governor and I like it.

I Told You So

In celebrating the rightly return of baseball’s championship to the Bronx and thinking about how long it has been since the greatest franchise in professional sports history has hoisted the World Series trophy, I was reminded of Carrie Underwood’s sad lament in her hit cover of Randy Travis’ “I Told You So.”

Would you tell me that you'd missed me too and that you'd been so lonely
And you waited for the day that I returned?
And we'd live in love forever and that I'm your one and only
Or would you say the tables finally turned?
Would you say: I told you so, oh I told you so.

In that particular part of the song, a little tear sometimes begins to well in the corner of my eye. So while I am so very happy about my team’s win – and my accurate prediction that the Yankees would win in six games – I am a little sad for my Philly friends in this part of the state and Yankee haters in other parts of the world. I understand how very sad they must feel this morning and I feel for them.

NAH!

Who am I kidding?!

Whoooo …. Whooo!

The YANKEES win, theeee YANKEEEEES win!

So let me give you my top five reasons why I am having a VERY nice day this morning:

1. Winning the championship is satisfying, but smacking down that punk Jimmy Rollins and his ridiculous prediction that the Phillies would win in five adds a little icing to the cake.

2. Beating Pedro Martinez, the elderly abuser, TWICE in New York.

3. Winning with Yankee-hater Tim McCarver in the Fox TV booth grudgingly giving the Yankees “props.”

4. Knowing that Derek Jeter now only has to get two more postseason hits to catch the combined total of the first six hitters in the Phillies lineup (Rollins, Victorino, Utley, Howard, Werth and Ibanez) at 177.

5. And finally, winning one for The Boss one more time!

Have a nice winter. Better luck next year!

Blog Bits

Anyone remember five years ago during the last flu vaccination shortage and just who was to blame? Presidential candidate John Kerry even ran a television commercial blaming one George W. Bush for the shortage: "Seniors and children wait. Not enough vaccines for pregnant women. A George Bush mess." Oh the humanity! Sure someone will figure out a way to blame the Texan for the current H1N1 vaccination fiasco. Read the Washington Post article on the Kerry ad here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38743-2004Oct16.html

Prize for most moronic commentary during World Series Game One has to go to Tim McCarver, who said in the bottom of the sixth: “The leftfielder is really not responsible for the ball hit down the right field line.” Thank goodness we have expert former Major League ballplayers available to give us THAT kind of insightful analysis. Do shortstops have to block balls bounced in front of home plate by pitchers? Just wondering …

This single line in today’s Associated Press story saying the Administration miscounted the number of jobs created by the stimulus package has to get anybody’s blood boiling, but particularly the poor guy who is out of work and had hope that the Federal program would help him: “A Florida child care center said its stimulus money saved 129 jobs but used the money on raises for existing employees.” The AP story must be entirely true and accurate seeing as it was posted on MSNBC.com.

I wrote a blog entry on mammograms and the gubernatorial campaign, but after being told by some close friends that I am not permitted to comment on the sensitive topic because I’m a guy, I didn’t post it. If you disagree with them, let me know. I am easily swayed.

Yankees in Six

The last time I made a public prediction for the World Series was in 1978 when as the sports editor of a daily newspaper in Ohio I wrote a column which correctly called the New York Yankees in six games over the Los Angeles Dodgers. I just had a feeling.

Thirty-one years later I am getting that same feeling. In fact, the only reason I am predicting the Yankees may take up to six games to dethrone the current World Champs is because the umpiring in the post season has become a crap shoot and virtually anything could happen with the men in blue.

While there are those who like to go position by position to see who has the edge, baseball is a team game and that never made much sense to me. It might be fun to point out that Pedro Feliz isn’t equipped to iron Alex Rodriquez’ uniform and would not even be permitted to manicure the field at Yankee Stadium, let alone play third base, but the poor fellow isn’t really matched up against the best player in baseball; he’ll be facing the best pitchers – C.C. Sabathia and Mariano Rivera. And that really is the essence of the World Series.

Pitching wins championships and the Yankees have better pitching. In fact, the Phillies bullpen is kind of like playing darts blindfolded – occasionally you are going to hit the board. As for the Phillies starting rotation, let’s get serious.

Cliff Lee is the same .500 lifetime pitcher against the Yankees (4-4 with 1 “no decision”) as he was this year in stints with Cleveland and Philadelphia (14-13). I wouldn’t exactly call him an “ace.”

Pedro Martinez once called the Yankees “my daddy” because they dominate him. He has pitched against the Yankees six times in the post season and won once. Yankee fans are praying that Charlie Manuel is stupid enough to start him in New York for game two where he will hear things from fans that Dick Cheney wouldn’t even permit to be said during the interrogation of suspected terrorists.

Nothing short of a time machine is going to fix Cole Hammels who will need a complete re-tooling in spring training. The Phillies messed up a good arm and head. Unfortunately for Phillies fans, it is the 2009 version with a more than 7.00 post season ERA that will take the mound. The Yankees will chew him up and spit him out.

And finally, the New York Yankees will win the World Series because there are three first-ballot, unanimous Hall of Famers playing for them (talk to me about Ryan Howard in a decade or so): Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Alex Rodriquez.

By the way, if some Philadelphia fans need a little solace after reading this, in that 1978 newspaper column the last line was: “Little can be expected from Bucky Dent.” Dent went on to win the World Series MVP, going 10 for 24 and knocking in seven. Oh well.

Seven Good Reasons to Vote for Christopher Christie

1. He takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’ – Christopher Christie can stand up to punishment better than an old Timex watch. Never before has a candidate in New Jersey been subjected to such an onslaught as the former Federal prosecutor. Not only has he withstood the barrage, but most polls have him ahead or tied. No other state in the Union needs a tougher man at the helm than New Jersey.

2. He absolutely does not pander – NJEA, AFL-CIO, CWA or PBA – Christopher Christie doesn’t care what your acronym is or how many potential voters you bring to the table; he is not going to say what you want to hear simply to make you love him. So if he won’t even do that during an election you bet he won’t give away the store while he is Governor.

3. Electing Christie will reduce the Federal budget deficit – If both Virginia and New Jersey go south on the Democrats this November, the geniuses at the White House on Capitol Hill will quickly figure out what really has middle America perturbed – and it ain’t health reform – it is the spending spree. If you really want to send a message to DC, send it via Trenton.

4. The state’s public finance system for gubernatorial elections will be restored – Once the finest public financing system in the nation and a model for the rest of America, New Jersey’s system is in danger of collapse. Only a Christie victory in November will deter future rich folks from buying our state: They will move on to other states that do not have a two to one match for their opponents.

5. He’s the “Kermit the Frog” of Republicans – Trust me, it’s not easy being green as a Republican, but Christie has managed to outflank the heavily credentialed Chris Daggett (EPA Region 2 Administrator and former Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner) and Governor Corzine, who had a perfect environmental voting record in the United States Senate. Christie covets the green jobs that can be created in New Jersey through alternative energy and understands better than most Republicans the balance between growth and sprawl.

6. He will have his eye on you – A record of one-hundred and thirty-three to zero sitting in the State House will tell potential abusers of public office that they better think twice. “It starts at the top” is more than just a phrase; it is an attitude. Never before has New Jersey been more in need of an attitude adjustment.

7. He very well could be a one-termer – Lots of politicians say it, but you get the feeling that Christopher Christie means it: If he cannot fulfill his major promises to the people of New Jersey in four years, he will step aside and give someone else the chance. The Garden State needs someone who does not have his eye on the next election or next office.

NYC Wine and Food Festival

This past weekend Joyce and I attended 2009 NYC Food and Wine Festival in Chelsea. We ran into a few celebrity chefs.


Chef Amanda Freitag (Next Iron Chef 2009 contestant) at Meatball Madness:

Chef Ann Burrell at Meatball Madness told Joyce (in front) to “share your balls”:

Joyce with Bob Tuschman (Next Food Network Star judge):

Me and Joyce with Alton Brown (Good Eats and Iron Chef America):

Joyce & Duff Goldman (Ace of Cakes) – super cool dude!

Joyce and Giada deLaurentiss (is there anyone on the planet who doesn’t know who she is??):

Joyce and Guy Fieri (Season 2 Next Food Network Star winner; Diners Drive-ins & Dives):

Joyce shares a joke with Guy Fieri:

Guy Fieri and Robert Irvine (Dinner Impossible):

Joyce & Jeffrey Saad (2009 Next Food Network Star runner-up):

Joyce & Rocco DiSpirito @ Meatball Madness:

Joyce gets a kiss from Mama Nicolina DiSpirito (she’s so proud of her boy!):

Joyce & Melissa d’Arabian (2009 Winner of Next Food Network Star):

Joyce & Sandra Lee (Semi-Homemade):

Joyce & Sunny Anderson (Cooking for Real):

Joyce star struck by Jacques Torres, the chocolatier! (Chocolate with Jacques Torres)

Visit his store in DUMBO (Brooklyn) – it’s fabulous!

A pensive Rachel Ray at a demo:

Joyce @ Guy Fieri’s Food Network party:

And, oh yeah, we went to the Yankee game Friday night.

We were THIS CLOSE to Kurt Russell & Kate Hudson!

Donald Trump (pink tie in middle) next to Bill O’Reilly (right of the Donald):

THE YANKEES WIN! THE YANKEES WIN! 10-9-09:

It’s the money, Stupid.

Jon Corzine is going to be re-elected Governor of New Jersey. He always was going to be re-elected. Those of us who understand what “Money is the mother milk of politics” actually means have always understood that.

Now that the race has tightened and the inevitable has become evident to the uneducated, we will hear the excuses, the recriminations and the lamentations.

The experts will opine that:

If Chris Christie had come forward with a property tax plan …

If Chris Christie had been more specific about state budget cuts …

If Chris Christie had made a better case about the failures of Corzine’s first four years …

If Chris Daggett had not been in the race …

(And my very favorite)

If Republicans had only nominated a “true” conservative …

But none of that mattered.

It was never a fair race. It was never going to be a fair race.

It was more like a three-on-one basketball game or an eleven-on-three football game.

Arguing that Christie’s strategy or the tactics used to implement that strategy were flawed is kind of like arguing in the basketball analogy that he should have tried more three-point shots or in the football analogy that he should have ran the ball more.

None of that matters.

Forty to sixty million dollars to twelve millions dollars is ALWAYS going to win. But those are just the latest estimates and they are meaningless. Like Michael Bloomberg, Jon Corzine will spend “whatever it takes” to win. That makes them different. It distinguishes them from Doug Forrester and the others who came before him who were willing to spend a lot, but NOT “whatever it takes.”

The “whatever-it-takes” guys are ALWAYS going to win.

Message is secondary (by a long, long shot). If I am shouting and you are whispering, I will win.

Think of it this way:

McDonald’s sells a lot of hamburgers despite the fact that there are six or seven better burgers within a few mile radius of each and every one of their restaurants. That’s because you – the consumer – are “lovin’ it.”

Listen, “You deserve a break today” so stop trying to figure out why on November 4th you will wake up to the same Governor you had on November 3rd.

The only issue yet to be decided is whether our Governor will try to “Super Size” his career into a Presidential run some day.

10 Questions I would ask at the next NJ Gubernatorial Debate

1. Governor Corzine, do you think you would be able to win re-election if you spent exactly the same amount of money on the campaign as Mr. Christie?

2. Mr. Christie, do you think it is fair that people question whether you are disciplined enough to be governor given your physical appearance?

3. Mr. Daggett, do you think running for Governor, and losing, will be good for business?

4. Governor Corzine, what will be different in the next four years? Why should we believe you?

5. Mr. Christie, are you going to keep your friend, the Attorney General, in your cabinet?

6. Mr. Daggett, shouldn’t you be throwing more long balls?

7. Governor Corzine, should you win, what will keep you from becoming a “lame duck” immediately following the election?

8. Mr. Christie, will you pledge to veto every non-essential piece of legislation sent to you by the Senate and Assembly until they pass your tax cuts?

9. Mr. Daggett, who did you vote for in the last five Presidential elections?

10. All three: Explain to me the difference between property tax “relief” and property tax “reform.”

Thank you.

10 headlines the President wasn’t looking to see after his speech to Congress

1. “The Case for Killing Granny”

Newsweek Cover Story – September 12, 2009

Ironically, Newsweek makes a compelling “character of the nation” argument for reform in the same issue, but way more folks will see and read the cover story.

2. “Obama plan could add to cost of premiums”
“Employers and consumers face increases in cost of coverage”

Star Ledger Lead Story – September 11, 2009

Two days after the speech, the Ledger runs an Associated Press story based on a flimsy study conducted by “Erik Gordon, a health care analyst and assistant professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business.” If one didn’t know better, it would seem that the state’s leading newspaper went out of its way to sabotage the President’s effort.

3. “‘Severe’ doc shortage seen hiking wait time”

Boston Herald – September 15, 2009

If the “Massachusetts Experiment” is a model for the nation, many believe it has tripped and fallen off the runway. “The shortage is getting more severe,” said Dr. Mario Motta, the medical society’s president, tells the Boston Herald. He adds that the state’s health care dilemma can “serve as a valuable lesson for a nation.” Massachusetts’ “health reform initiative illustrates that universal coverage doesn’t equate to universal access,” he said.

4. “Young Adults Likely to Pay Big Share of Reform's Cost”

Washington Post – September 16, 2009

With friends like these … Another media ally weighs in. The President is counting on the foot soldiers who successfully waged his election battle – those 30 and under – to once again pick up arms and fight for him. The day after the speech he went to the University of Maryland at College Park and implored them to “seize this moment.” It will be a measure of his Presidency to see if he can get them to advocate against their own self interest.

5. “Obama Clarifies Position on Tort Reform on ‘60 Minutes’”

CBS News – September 14, 2009

It was less than a bone that the President threw advocates for medical malpractice reform during his speech before the Joint Session of Congress; it was more like “Kibbles and Bits.” On Sunday, the President took the Kibbles away and left the Bits when he “clarified” his remarks and said he is not willing to consider caps on malpractice judgments. What little hope there was for significant Republican support when “poof” with the clarification.

6. “Obama should ‘stand up for the 70 percent of Americans who aren't crazy’”

“Bill Maher Takes On Obama ‘This Isn’t What I Voted For’”

HBO Show – September 11, 2009 (and June 2009)

The President wasn’t likely to hold the fringe left for long without abandoning the core principles which bind the nation, but some of them lasted less than six months. On his HBO show on a Friday evening in June, Bill Maher complained about the President’s frequent public appearances, saying he was a lot like Lindsay Lohan: “in the papers a lot but not doing very much.” He added, "This is not what I voted for," Maher said. To add insult to insult, he urged the President to be more like George Bush (yes, really) saying, "What he needs in his personality is a little George Bush ... What we need to do is to marry the good ideas that Barack Obama has with a little bit of that Bush attitude and certitude."

7. “Crowds Pack Downtown DC to Protest Spending”

NPR – September 12, 2009

The National Public Radio introduction of the story of the so-called September 12th “Tea Party” march on Washington began thusly, “Tens of thousands of people marched through Washington Saturday to protest President Obama's proposed health care plans. The rowdy pilgrimage capped a series of conservative "Tea Party" rallies across the country. As the demonstrators walked along Pennsylvania Avenue toward the U.S. Capitol, the line stretched as far as the eye could see in either direction. The crowd was so thick in places that it was difficult to move. People like Jenni Goyet, a mother of two from Virginia Beach, Va., say they came for a whole range of issues.”

A whole range of issues … about all of which, these folks are angry. The sign that said it best for me was held by an elderly black man and read, “I don’t belong to the Party of NO. I’m with the Party of HELL NO!” Both Republicans and Democrats misread exactly who these people are to their own peril.

8. “Unemployment rate continues climb, reaching 9.7 percent”

NJBIZ – September 16, 2009

The biggest thing standing between the President and meaningful health reform is the long line of millions of unemployed Americans, many of who are perplexed that their plight has been pushed to #2 on the White House hit list. No matter how many times the President says health reform “doesn’t add to the deficit,” many are scratching their heads wondering why the focus of these budget neutral funds is not the economy. The President has yet to convince the nation that health reform and the economy are inextricably linked.

9. “Seniors may face higher Medicare drug costs”

The Villages’ Daily Sun – September 16, 2009

So what are “The Villages” and who cares what its “Daily Sun” has to say? Well, The Villages is Florida’s “friendliest retirement community” in “the heart of Central Florida” covering three zip codes and home to thousands of seniors. The “Daily Sun” is their newspaper. While AARP is spending millions in support of health reform (and losing “tens of thousands” (Source: ABC News) of members in the process, everyday senior citizens remained in steadfast opposition to reform. They’re scared – justifiably or not – they are.

10. “Opposition to Health Care Reform Reaches New High at 55%”

Rasmussen Reports – September 15, 2009

Perhaps this is the most important headline of them all. Rasmussen has been tracking health care reform daily. Here is what they had to say on the 15th: “One week after President Obama’s speech to Congress, opposition to his health care reform plan has reached a new high of 55%. The latest Rasmussen Reports daily tracking poll shows that just 42% now support the plan, matching the low first reached in August. Following the speech last Wednesday night intended to re-launch the health care initiative, support for the president’s effort bounced as high as 51%.” As one blogger cleverly opined, “Man, the shelf-life of his magic is getting shorter and shorter.”