What I Saw At McCain HQ, On Election Night 2008

This column will publish at Townhall Dot Com at 12midnight Eastern Time, tonight.

Here it is in advance......

Viewing the United States through the eyes of a foreign national is one thing. And viewing the United States through the eyes of foreign media professionals is another thing.

So as we close-out 2008, and begin a new year with the soon-to-be President Obama, the view from the “foreign news desk” may shed some light on some of the ways in which the world misunderstands both our country, and our President-elect.

I don’t have any “McCain scandal” to tell. No tabloid-style inside scoop about John McCain and Sarah Palin squabbling behind the scenes on election night, or Palin’s daughter’s boyfriend’s mom doing drugs, or “marital tension” boiling-over between celebrity Sarah and jealous husband Todd.

But on November 4, I was at McCain-Palin headquarters in John McCain’s hometown of Phoenix, Arizona. The headquarters were set-up at the luxurious Arizona Biltmore Hotel and Resort, a facility where Mr. McCain has spent election day for every one of his previous Senate campaigns, relaxing and watching the returns being reported.

I was hunkered-down in the “central media center,“ which was, essentially, a very large banquet facility packed with electronic equipment, and journalists and technicians from, literally, all over the world.

By 1pm Mountain Time, having watched multiple reports on the Fox Newschannel and CNN about “exit interviews” at polling centers on the east coast, there was a bit of a “lull in the action.” That’s when Ian, a reporter from Dublin, Ireland seated at the work station next to me, asked me to join him for lunch. And after some shop talk over food and beverages, the conversation got really interesting.

“You realize Europe wants Obama to win this thing, don’t you?” he asked.

“I know that’s a widely-held perception” I replied.

“You don’t think the polls are accurate?” he asked.

“I’m skeptical of them."

“The problem with McCain,” Ian explained, “is that he is perceived as being another war monger, jus like Bush, and Europe is fed-up with Bush.”

“Yes, that is another widely-held perception” I told him. “But I’m even skeptical of this supposed hatred of Bush.”

“What’s to be skeptical about?” he asked.

“Well, consider this” I told him. “During the Bush presidency, no less that four heads-of-state have campaigned on Bush-like themes of cutting taxes, and taking a strong stance against Islamic-driven terrorism, and also promised to their countrymen closer ties with the United States and the Bush Administration itself. Stephen Harper of Canada, Angela Merkel of Germany, Nicolas Sarkozy in France, and Tony Blair of England all campaigned on these platforms, in one fashion or another, and they all won their respective elections. So while the opinion polls may reflect Bush hatred, ballot boxes have conveyed something different, and I take the election outcomes more seriously than I do opinion polls.”

Ian seemed a bit surprised by this analysis, yet he didn’t try to argue about it. Changing the topic, he then asked me “so is Fox Newschannel really the most popular cable tv news outlet in the U.S.?”

“Yes, it is consistently ranked the highest in viewer ship” I told him.

“I find that ‘fair and balanced’ moniker to be very amusing” he said.
“Seems to me that much of what I see there is anything but balanced.”“I think you need to separate the news from the talk shows” I told him. “Fair and balanced is meant to describe the news product, while the talk shows are opinion and editorial-based.”“But do you even agree that the news is either fair, or balanced?” he asked.

“I do” I told him. “Juxtaposed with the liberal bias that is inbred within other news organizations, Fox is refreshingly un-biased.”

“That’s interesting” he said with a smirk on his face. I could tell he was skeptical, but was politely choosing not to argue.

Later that night, when the clock struck 9pm on the West Coast, and California was “called” for Obama, and Obama was thus declared the winner of the election, several American journalists began cheering, “high-fiving” each other, and dancing about in the McCain media center. A shot of staffers jumping and hugging on the set at CNN in Atlanta appeared on our big screen monitors, as well.
“Oh dear God,” Ian exclaimed in his thick Irish brogue. “You weren’t jokin about the bias.”“Pardon me” I replied, not quite understanding his point.

“I said you weren’t jokin about bias in American media” he said. “What’s with all this celebration for one candidate over the other?”

“It’s real” I told him. “You’re seeing some American media professionals in a rare moment of candor. Usually the bias is more subtle, but it’s always present. That’s why you can’t believe all the wonderful things told to you by the American press about Obama and other liberal politicians, nor can you believe everything terrible told to you about Bush and other conservatives.”

Conservative Americans have developed a healthy skepticism of our nation’s dominant, mainstream media. It’s time, now, to develop a skepticism of how our nation is being portrayed in the foreign media, as well. This will be especially important as we enter into the era of Obama.

Can He (Bush) Change Your Mind Now?

An interesting poll is out today, indicating that Barack Obama is the "most admired man in America." However, President Bush is still the second "most admired man in America."

How can that be?

President Bush has an approval rating of 29%; his disapproval rating is 67% (4% of Americans are "unsure").

And what is also noteworthy, is the fact that Bush was the number one "most admired man in America" for the previous seven years - - despite the fact that his disapproval rating has been quite high for the past 2-3 years.

So how "bad" is Bush, really?

And while we're at it - - is there anything he can do on his way out the door that would change your mind about him?

For me, the very best thing he can do on his way out, is to offer a presidential pardon to former Border Patrol Agents Ignacio Ramos, and Jose Compean.

If you don't know about these guys, visit www.AgentRamos.Com and you'll get the idea.



We'll talk about this tonight on The Austin Hill Show (www.TheAustinHillShow.Com for links and streaming audio).

Also...are you stimulating it? I'm referring to "the economy." Shopping bargains galore are available all over the country.

And what needs to happen next, in the ongoing Blagojevich-Obama scandal? It's a mess...we'll spell it out, explain where it stands currently, and get your response as to how the mess should be "cleaned up."

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Rick Warren? Or The Democratic Party?

Who best represents your view of marriage and family: Rick Warren, or the Democratic Party?

And isn't it time for the Democratic Party to just be honest and declare itself to be the party of gay marriage?

The furor over Pastor Rick Warren's selection to perform the invocation at Barack Obama's inauguration continues...and the Democratic Party is outraged with both Warren, and the next President.

Which side are you on?
We'll talk about it tonight.......

Also.......Joe Biden said that he and President-elect Barack Obama are working to support "working families."

What does that mean?

And who is not a part of a working family?

And is it the government's job to support non-working families, too?

And isn't it true that Obama and Biden promised to impune and damage SOME working families - - that is, didn't they pledge to raise taxes and take money away from working families that worked too hard and made too much money?

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Listen online at www.TheAustinHillShow.Com

Patience Is Running Out? Oh, Really, Mr. Obama? With Whom?

Today the President-elect stated that "the American People's patience is running out" with the Auto companies.

Oh really?

Is it a problem with the car companies? or with the United Autoworker's Union? Or with the President? Or the Congress? Or the President-elect?

As I see it, the car companies have allowed themselves to be crippled by the UAW.

The UAW has done the crippling.

And the politicians are enabling the behavior to continue.

How 'bout you? Who are you angry with here? With whom have you become impatient?

We'll talk about it tonight on The Austin Hill Show (www.TheAustinHillShow.Com ).

Also......in Maryland, a restaurant owner is being criminally charged for hiring illegal immigrants to work for him.

Is this an appropriate response to the problem of illegal immigration?

I think a more appropriate response is to secure the U.S. borders, and deport illegal immigrants, rather than impugn American business owners.

But you tell me...join the show from anywhere in the United States at 1-888-630-WMAL (9625).

So Why The "Warren Flap?"

I've been shocked at the outrage over Pastor Rick Warren's selection to offer the invocation at Obama's inauguration.

What's this all about?

On the left, homosexual activists are irate about a "pro marriage, anti abortion" Pastor. And this is symptomatic of things to come (Obama simply can't keep all the lefty activists happy).

On the right, however, social conservatives are behaving outrageously.

And we're going to talk about it tonight.

1-888-630-WMAL is the number.

To hear streaming audio, visit www.TheAustinHillShow.Com

So, How Bad Is It (The Economy) Really?

There is some evidence out today that suggests that we are starting to turn a corner with the economic downturn, and that we are poised for a rebound.

And perhaps equally as important, there is polling data out today that suggests that people's perceptions of how bad or good the economy is, might be improving a bit.

What's interesting is that when Americans are asked about their own personal economic situations, most Americans feel pretty good. It isn't until you begin asking about the economy, generally, that people start going negative.

So, what's that all about? And how bad is it - - really?

We'll talk about that. And, who is more entitled to be a Senator: Caroline Schlossberg (Kennedy), or Chelsea Clinton?

Join the Austin Hill Show at 1-888-630-WMAL; and for streaming audio, and audio on-demand, visit www.TheAustinHillShow.Com

Is The Obama Administration Mired In Corruption Before It Begins?

"Obama will report contacts with Governor Blagojevich next week." That's the headline that has been prevalent all afternoon and evening today.

In the meantime claims that a "review" indicates that there was no "inappropriate" contact between his camp, and the Governor's. But the "review" was conducted by Obama's own lawyers.

So if there was nothing inappropriate, why not just come on out and reveal it all - - NOW?

We'll talk about this tonight.

Also....is John McCain still the leader of the Republican Party? Was he ever the "leader," in the minds of most Republicans?

He was certainly acting like he still is, in his nationwide television interview yesterday.

But why?

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And listen online at www.TheAustinHillShow.Com

Who Do You "Blame?""

So who do you "blame" for the failure of the so-called automotive industry "bailout bill?"

If there is any "blame" entailed in this at all, it lies squarely with the UAW union....

The Republican Senate minority - - the only road blocks to the passage of this bill - - made a whole heck of alot of concessions, but the UAW? Oh, no, not them....The Senate Republicans wanted "a date certain" whereby the UAW would adjust downward the wages of the American auto manufacturers, and made the wages commensurate with those of Japanese manufacturers that assemble here in the U.S.

Pretty reasonable demand, but not for the UAW...

So...who do you "blame?"

We'll talk about it tonight on The Austin Hill Show (www.TheAustinHillShow.Com )...

Also....is Rush Limbaugh bad for the Republican Party? Colin Powell thinks so.

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Better-Off With, Or Without?

The wranging continues over whether or not our federal government should "bail out" America's automotive manufacturers.

With roughly 63% of Americans opposing the idea, it's interesting that the Democratically controlled congress is still pushing for the bailout legislation. And it's even more interesting that Republicans in the more-moderate-than-the-House U.S. Senate seem to be the roadblock that is preventing the legislation.

So would we be better-off with it, or without it? And is "saving" a U.S. industry a "patriotic" thing to do?

We'll talk about it tonight on The Austin Hill Show.

Also.......some are saying that President-elect Barack Obama needs to put forth an agenda for "Black America," and that he has, thus far, failed to do so.

Is that true? And what would that agenda look like?

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Is America's Government Going To Be Thrown Off Course?

Are you concerned that America's Government will be thrown off-course, given the scandal of the Illinois Governor and President-elect Obama's connection to it?

If you're an ardent Obama supporter, you might find that offensive.....the very insinuation that the Dear Leader Obama is "involved."

But he does have a long-standing close relationship with the Governor of his home state (as any US Senator would).

And even if Obama didn't discuss the "sale" of his Senate seat with the Governor, could it be that Obama's "staffers" - - David Axelrod and Rahm Immanuel - - did discuss the "sale?"

Sadly, a new Presidential administration is about to begin, mired in scandal.

Could this distract the new President from leading the nation through what he has labeled "the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression," and from protecting the nation from terrorism?

We'll talk about it tonight on The Austin Hill Show (www.TheAustinHillShow.Com for links and streaming audio).

Also.........Obama granted his first interview to a newspaper recently, and the interview appeared in the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. He made it clear that he intends to "repair" America's image in "the Muslim World."

So, does America have "repair work" to do, or does the Muslim World have its own repair work to do?

Join the show at 1-888-630-WMAL (toll free from anywhere in the United States and Canada).

Today the Washington Post stated in an editorial that Montgomery County, Maryland needs to "get tougher" about policing illegal immigration.

Montgomery County has endured a 1 year old shot on a county bus, an elderly woman burned alive in her house, and a waiter stabbed to death by suspected illegal immigrants.

Okay...and is there a region of the country that needs to "go easier" on illegal immigration?

We'll talk about that tonight...


Also.....President Bush took a tour today of the National COunterterrorism Center in McLean, VA today....and afterwards, spoke to the press and reasserted that the greatest threat to the United States today is a terrorist attack.

He's been saying that for over 7 years.

And now that he'll be gone from office in 43 days, one has to wonder....is he still right about this?

Join us tonight....the number is 1-888-630-WMAL.

Streaming audio is at www.TheAustinHillSHow.Com

Will the SCOTUS Be Politically Correct?

If the Supreme Court of the United States does NOT choose to hear the Donofrio case - - the case arguing that Barack Obama is not a "naturally born citizen" and therefore inelligble to be President - - will it be because of "political correctness?"

Some would say so. And it's interesting that on a day like today, when many Americans are waiting in suspence to see what the Supreme Court does with the matter, OJ Simpson ran out of political correctness-based good luck, and was convicted kidnapping and armed robbery.

We'll talk about the timing of these two events, tonight on The Austin Hill Show (www.TheAustinHillShow.Com).

Also.......is there really a "War On Christmas" this year? Hostility in the United States towards Christmas has been on the uptick in recent years - - but how about this year?

Join me - - 1-888-630-WMAL is the number from anywhere in the U.S.

Supreme Court Weighs Obama Presidency..

Tommorrow, we should know if the SCOTUS is going to consider a challenge to President-elect Obama's status as a "natural-born citizen" of the U.S.

Quite frankly, I don't think the court will intervene on this, nor do I believe that this is a good idea.

But I'll be talking about it tonight, on The Austin Hill Show (www.TheAustinHillShow.Com).

Also..........if Obama critics remain focused on his "country of origin," doesn't that take the focus away from where it should be....like scrutinizing his national security plans, his economic plans, and so forth?

The problems that are still unfolding in India spell major trouble for the United States, and Americans best be focused on how our government, and our President-to-be, address them.

We'll talk about these items, and more, tonight from 8-10pm Eastern.

To join the program, it's 1-888-630-WMAL.

A New, Acceptable Form of Bigotry In The Age Of Obama?

Say it isn't so! An "acceptable form of bigotry" in America, just as we prepare to inaugurate our "First Black President?"

Well, if you happen to be a Mormon, you might feel that way. And truthfully, anyone who dares to allow their religious faith - - especially if it's "Christian Faith" - - to permeate their lives and their values, might be feeling this way as well.

In California, "Proposition 8: The Musical" has emerged as a short-form, roughly 4 minute video, mocking social conservatives who helped to pass the constiutional amendment in that state that defines marriage as a heterosexual institution.

View the video HERE.

Imagine such a mockery of a production, insulting Muslims...or African-Americans, or Hispanics....

We'll talk about this tonight on The Austin Hill Show (www.TheAustinHillShow.Com ).

Also..........if America will be have more nicely to terrorists, will terrorists be nicer to America?

Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff seems to think so.

We'll talk about it all, tonight, on The Austin Hill Show.

1-888-630-9625 if you want to join the conversation.........

Can They Earn Back Your Trust?

I'm talking about the "journalists" among the ranks of the old fashioned Mainstream Media.........

Some in the Obama press corp got ticked-off when the President-elect got flippant over a question about his "changing perspective" of Hillary Clinton.

Obama glibbly said that the media was "having fun" with this........

And then, CNN's Campbell Brown got really defensive, and editorialized against the Dear Leader (see the story, and the video, at The Huffington Post right now).

Also.......how comfortable are you with the United States Military watching over you, and "patrolling" domestically here in the U.S.?

We'll talk about all of this...and we'll keep you updated on the run-off election returns from Georgia, tonight on The Austin Hill Show. Visit www.TheAustinHillShow.Com for streaming and on-demand audio...

1-888-630-WMAL if you want to join the show.

Are Walmart Shoppers "Victims" Of Advertising?

You could ask that question of most any shopper at any retail outlet in the U.S. - - are they "victims" of advertising?

I wrote about this phenomena in my weekly column at Townhall Dot Com over the weekend.

Apparently, some people actually believe that "lower income folks" are "vicitims" of Walmart's advertising, such that they lose control of themselves and "have to get ahold of the item" that Walmart is advertising, and will "do anything to get it."

We'll talk about this tonight on The Austin Hill Show.

Also.......is "gay" the "new black?"

An article in the Washington Times suggests that the struggle for "gay rights" is the same as the struggle that black Americans have fought for decades, in pursuit of "civil rights."

And one particular gay rights activist quoted in the article, who happens to be both gay, and black, says that "black people are equal now, and gay people aren't."

Oh, really? Does a majority of black Americans agree with that statement?

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