Poor Mike Gravel :(

The week started out well for my man Gravel, with an almost-but-not-quite endorsement from an Internet celebrity. And he even learned the Soulja Boy dance, so now he can impress all the girls at his next college party!

But then he went on Fox News only to have Neil Cavuto tell him bluntly to his face that he's not going to be President:

But there's still reason to rejoice! Cavuto said Gravel's a lock for the Libertarian Party endorsement!

Not so fast. Enter former Congressman Bob Barr, who apparently has the GOP scared that his positions make him the Second Coming of Ron Paul (I can't believe I just wrote that phrase) and that Barr will win the 8% of Republicans who have been voting for Paul over McCain even after McCain has secured the nomination (and 16% in PA).

The Libertarian Party picks their nominee by May 26th, and right now Gravel's in good position: 11th out of 11 on the Party's website, behind Barr, "Future/Unannounced Candidate," and "None of the Above."

Mike Gravel, Obama Girl, and Soulja Boy

That is all.

It doesn't get odder than this

When asked how he felt about Ron Paul, Mike Gravel had some surprising things to say:

for those who missed it, it was amazing night indeed. Needless to say, Mike Gravel is an interesting man. I'll have to get around to reading his book sometime soon.

Even Mike Gravel Thinks Yale Sucks

In case you missed it...

more to come in this series

Mike Gravel=Rocky (btw, He is also going to get the Democratic Party Crunk)

Who need Sylvester Stallone? We've got Mike Gravel!

The photo shopped John Edwards image in here is just ridiculously unnecessary. Still, I think Mike Gravel's hip hop is superior to Mitt Romney's. I sincerely hope that he makes himself of good use to society now that his presidential bid has ended to using his vaunted management skills to find out who actually did let the dogs. Who? WHO?!?!

(this a little weird until about 30 seconds in...then it gets a lot weird)

Get pumped for Friday! I am ready to endorse...

I Love Mike Gravel

Sunday Nights on the Lam: "Who the Hell are We Gonna Nuke?" Edition

In this edition of Sunday Nights on the Lam, we substitute the astoundingly attractive former Senator Mike Gravel (D-AK), potted plant extraordinaire and the man who singlehandedly ended the Vietnam War, for my usual Brett Favre. If for some inexplicable reason you get your Packers coverage from Dem Apples, you should know that we whooped Minnesota 34-0 today and that Fox somehow managed to cut out to the Eagles game before the third quarter was over. I do not appreciate this.

Our saga begins with my recent trip to gravel2008.us, Mike Gravel's official campaign website, which is apparently the only .us website in the Democratic race. (I had thought Dennis Kucinich also had a kucinich.us address, but apparently he's sold out and transferred to dennis4president.com, catering to the 95% of the electorate, myself included, that can't spell "Kucinich" on the first try. Anyway, a quick glance reveals that, unlike the man himself, Gravel's website is kind of ugly. This led me to wonder who the hell got paid to make that; the answer would be Rob Ryan, LLC, which advertises a three-step design strategy of "Get. Connect. Monetize" and provides the enlightening gem, "The more your customer buys, the more they will buy." Very Zen. Budding advertisers, take note: Rob Ryan LLC's website is graced by the Seal of the President of the United States, next to an advertisement touting a "1534% Increase in one of the key 2008 Presidential Candidate's online fundraising." You can't make this stuff up. Nor can Rob Ryan proofread it.

Additional gem: Mike Gravel has a campaign office in Second Life.

Finally, the classic moment in which Mike Gravel won all of our hearts:

That's all for today, folks - and remember to follow the money!

In which Mike Gravel's effective campaign expenditures quadruple

Via DailyKos:

Some guy posted a Craigslist ad offering to pay people $25 each to put up Mike Gravel signs on their lawns.

I support Senator Mike Gravel of Alaska in the 2008 Democratic presidential primary. I will pay $25 to install a yard sign on your property. Urban areas and places with maximum traffic preferred. If you have a property with roadside view in New Hampshire email me your address and I will have a sign installed on your property and put $25 in an envelope in your mailbox so you can go have a beer or two with a friend and talk about Mike Gravel's candidacy. All I ask is that you keep the sign visible and spread the word.

Blue Hampshire points out that this is probably Greg Chase, a millionaire hedge fund manager, who has attempted to pull other stunts in Gravel's support (buying full-page paper ads, paying NBC to let Gravel into the next Democratic candidates' debate). Blue Hampshire complains about the violation of campaign finance laws. I agree it's a pretty nasty precedent, but - come on! It's Mike Gravel!

Of course, I am rather puzzled that there hasn't already been a groundswell of support for Gravel in New Hampshire, given the wide availability of his brilliant postmodern media offerings:

Roundup -- Blazing Sun, Flaming Hearts

It's HOT as a motherfucker outside (by Boston standards), and lately it seems people's tempers and temperatures seem to rise in tandem. In the city, with heat comes stress. Of course reading period doesn't help -- it's the time when everyone is pretty much expected to sit in their rooms and be Studious, drives you stir-crazy -- but the level of irritation and downright hostility still seems a little oddly high. Maybe you can blame the CEB, pitting us against each other in this colossal Risk tournament (and if you're not playing yet, why the hell not?). I don't know. But everybody's in high gear and about ready to snap.

You could see it at the Stand for Security rally today (they're every day at 1 outside Mass Hall, please do come). Of course on that front there's real reasons to be agitated. One of the hunger strikers, Javier, has already been hospitalized, and still nothing from the administration -- whose response still basically amounts to "LA LA LA LA WE CAN'T HEAR YOU". Today got a little confrontational outside Holyoke Center, which was actually locked down at both entrances by HUPD once we swarmed it, and it's to everyone's credit that a scuffle didn't break out; it's important to bear in mind that nobody here wants to harass anybody, and I hope that was a one-time occurrance. Still, tensions are running high on the security front; another few days of hostility like this (including from Harvard) and I don't know what'll end up happening. While we all need to splash some cold water on our faces and remind ourselves it's not 1969 anymore -- nevertheless, one can only handle so much.

Hear that sound, Harvard? That's your students getting angry.

ANYWAY. On to pleasantries!

--Gadfly has returned, with a vengeance. Mark Shepard kicked it off with a thoughtful post about Harvard's current campus initiatives, which is worth a read though I disagree with many of his conclusions; now Sahil's followed up with a barrage of current-events post that make a very entertaining mix. Welcome back, boys!

--I'm also assuming I don't need to mention that Cambridge Common should be on your daily reading list, both in general and for their in-depth coverage and commentary on Stand for Security. Endria Richardson has just done a great post on today's protest that I haven't quite processed yet, but that will definitely spark a serious discussion.

--And in less serious Harvard blog news, over at the Indy my friend Georgia Kelly Faircloth liveblogged the Female Orgasm Seminar. Good times.

--Turning to the outside world: if you haven't yet, read Jon Chait's excellent piece on the rise of the netroots and their role in Democratic/liberal politics. I actually agree with his assessment moreso than most bloggers (see Crooked Timber, Matt Stoller, and Whiskey Fire, all of whom think he missed the point), probably because I sympathize with his focus on the pure electoral-strategy side of things. Democrats should aim to become a coherent, powerful progressive force, and to my perspective the ideological program behind it is of secondary importance. But it's an open question. (...For an interesting contrast, read Alien & Sedition's latest bit on the implosion, and lately cannibalism, within the conservative movement.)

--THE POLITICO: Ever since it started something has smelled funny over there, hasn't it? Sure enough -- Glenn Greenwald reveals, in a story that should have gotten much more play, that it's owned and funded by hardcore conservatives. No wonder they ramble about John Edwards' hair so damn much.

--Michael Bérubé, on one conservative writer's crazed proposal for a military coup:

OK, well, call me cynical, but I think Sowell’s setting a trap, and Kevin Drum and Eric Alterman have walked right into it. I’ve watched the right play this game over the past five years, and I know what’s coming next: Why don’t liberals trust our men and women in uniform? What have they got against a coup? Is it that they don’t . . . support the troops?

--Mortage foreclosures: not just for the poor anymore.

--Does it bother anyone else that the White House basically stopped everything for several days and spent bazillions of dollars simply to entertain the Queen of England? Maybe it's just my Canadian upbringing (she's on our money, I'm sick of this woman), but I don't see why an unelected monarch deserves more of a dignified treatment than a duly elected national leader. BAGNewsNotes has a couple slightly disturbing visual analyses of the event that sum up my feelings pretty well.

--Turns out Mitt Romney is even more of a space cadet than you think. What is it with conservatives always confusing science fiction with reality?

--My favorite Crimson feature: Police Log! Not much of interest this time though, other than an oblique Lampoon reference, someone in Cabot burning noodles, and some incredibly expensive clothes lifted from 45 Mt. Auburn. Oh, and -- this freaks me out -- the home plate from Harvard Stadium was stolen by vandals, and apparently it is worth $200. Good grief. They know you can get a home plate for like 20 bucks, right?

--And finally, my heartfelt thanks to Garrett for sending out Radar's amazing piece about everyone's new favorite presidential candidate, Mike Gravel. This guy rolls up to an event driving a vintage Checker Cab and wearing velcro shoes -- how BADASS is that? Choice quotes:

Gravel smiles broadly and says, "Hey, can you straighten out David Broder?" Broder, an influential columnist at the Post and the unofficial godfather of the D.C. press corps, has been a target of much criticism from liberal blogs for seeming to provide political cover for Bush on Iraq, even with a majority of Americans now opposing the war. "He doesn't believe in the power of the people!" Gravel says. [Post writer Tom] Edsall blinks and looks perplexed. "David Broder is the voice of the people," he replies matter-of-factly. Gravel starts to smile, assuming Edsall is making an absurdist joke. But Edsall is not joking. The two men look at each other in awkward silence over a great gulf of unshared beliefs, then Gravel chuckles and walks ahead into the restaurant.

[...]"I don't understand it. They're pointing to Iran and saying, 'By God, those people are dangerous.' Christ, we're dangerous! You're very familiar, I'm sure, with the neo-con plan. It was in writing a few years before Bush even got elected: first Iraq, Iran, Syria, then Saudi Arabia," says Gravel, an apparent reference to a 1996 paper entitled A Clean Break: A New Strategy for Securing the Realm, by Richard Perle and several other prominent neo-cons. "Wolfowitz and Perle and all those guys—they're crazy as loons! Not one of 'em has even seen a gun fired in anger. Dammit, it just galls me no end! Why should Jessica Lynch go over there and get all shot up—why not have Bush's daughters do it?"

While Gravel says this, [Newsweek's Jonathan Alter] looks down impassively into his salad as though peering into a bottomless pool. "I need to get going," he announces, offering the distinct impression that one-liners about sending Barbara and Jenna off to get shot at are going to be a bit too pungent for the gatekeepers of mainstream media culture.

Too pungent indeed. This dude is the conscience of the Democratic Party; if Edwards drops out I might seriously consider throwing my support to him. Yeah, I know he's like 90 years old and crazy -- but think critically for a minute. What has Gravel said yet that isn't completely true?

Also, a Checker Cab. You have to admit. That rocks.

Anyway. Happy studying, and good luck to everyone in Risk (except Currier, to whom I send my condolences.) This is an open thread, for discussion of Mike Gravel, the hunger strike, or anything else.