Tag Archives: Video

Review – Collaborative AV Systems

Posted on May 30, 2011 by admin| Comments Off

In order to facilitate real time information exchange, an environment which accommodates seamless data transfer is needed. This data could be in the form of audio, video or text files often coming from different sources. This whole concept is termed as digital convergence. A truly collaborative AV environment is possible, thanks to the proper technology.

To truly harness the potential of this no barrier environment, it is essential to apply collaborative AV technology in a useful and user-friendly way. Thorough knowledge of designers and integrators in building and implementing a collaborative AV system plays an important role in this. For building a collaborative AV system, it requires –

A powerful video wall controller
Interactive technologies
A well-designed interface
An experienced integrator to bring it all together

Video Wall Controller and AV Collaboration

Video wall controller acts as a focal point in a collaborative AV environment. It accepts inputs of various video formats, and provides output to different displays devices like LCD, plasma or front end rear projectors. The advantage of a video wall controller is that one single video controller, concurrently can operate with various devices located at different location. It can also cover the devices of an entire building. High definition video capture is also possible (up to 60 frames per second). In addition, a video wall controller displays standard Windows applications on any of the device thereby making it possible the convergence between Windows applications and the video wall.

Video and Audio Distribution

Once the video wall controller is configured and set, the video system needs to be designed so as to converge onto the video wall controller. It is important that all video content be sent to the video wall controller. Matrix switches and signal repeaters are used for this purpose. Once this operation is perfected, it’s easy to derive the video signal as a whole or in parts to any other device connected to the video wall controller.

Audio is to be sent via an audio matrix switch or a zoned audio system so that any audio source can be selected as per the requirement.

Interactive Technologies for AV Collaboration

A truly collaborative AV environment requires a variety of devices to share the information between users. This is what lends flexibility of a video wall controller that truly drives any AV collaboration.

Systems and Platforms

Video wall controllers are not bound by any particular system or platform. They can accommodate a variety of technologies running on different operating systems to render the display anywhere in the building.

Teleconferencing

Teleconferencing is one of the prime usages of collaborative AV environments. New generation video wall controllers are able to handle multiple MPEG4 video streams (a codec commonly used by video conferencing devices) to be streamed simultaneously. Latest video wall controllers can handle this, including feeds in DVI and VGA formats.

Digital Whiteboards

Another great addition to collaborative AV environment is a digital whiteboard and large touch panel display. Routing signals from these devices to a video wall controller ensures that the video rendered on them is also available on other displays. Basic IT setup comprising of Microsoft Exchange Server or other applications (Google Apps) that allow multiple users to work on the same file are very useful here.

AV and IT Convergence

An ideal AV collaborative environment is one where all components like vide, audio and text files, converge and run seamlessly together. This ensures that the data is available for all end users in an abstract manner. In short, the users will experience easy real time sharing of all data and displays simultaneously, no matter how many types of them are needed. Such a collaborative environment requires a single and simple interface which has access to all the components of the system, namely video wall controller, display devices and audio system, teleconferencing platform, and even shared-file systems on individual PCs.

One way to creating a converged AV interface is to build a single touch panel control panel that is connected to a serial processor or a basic micro-controller capable of commanding all the hardware. Programmed to send multiple commands to multiple devices at the push of a single button, such control panels allows preconceived scenarios to be built into the collaborative AV system.

However, it is design and implementation that is the most crucial aspect of the custom interface whether it is, or it is not a touch panel. Proper design allows easy access to all functions even for the first time users; a hallmark of a truly successful AV collaborative system.

Conclusion

Numerous AV collaboration systems exist in the market today, and singling each one of them is an exhaustive task. Any environment that requires real time information sharing from more than a single source can benefit from this collaborative technology. A few of the areas, where such technology is used include NOCs (network operation centers) command and control centers, traffic surveillance and corporate board rooms.

Advances in technology, particularly in the realms of digital convergence over the last few years, have further broken all barriers to AV collaboration. Designers and integrators now are burdened with the task of applying this collaborative technology in the most useful ways possible. However, to do and to achieve this, a clear understanding of the above concepts is required. In addition, they also require a thorough understanding of the requirements for the implementation of a collaborative AV system.

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Posted in Tech, Video

Tagged LCD, Video, video wall, video wall controller, video wall controllers, video walls, videos

Political Circus: ‘Rahmbo’ dodges egg

Posted on November 11, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

Washington (CNN) — Politics is serious business — but not all of the time. From the halls of Congress to the campaign trail, there’s always something that gets a laugh. Here are some of the things you might have missed:

Rough crowd

Former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel — better known in some political quarters as “Rahmbo” — found himself the target of an incoming egg during a stop Wednesday in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood, NBC Chicago reports. The egg missed Emanuel, who is expected to make an official announcement soon that he’s running for mayor — and the egg thrower remained unidentified, the TV station reported.

Not a fan

More trouble for Emanuel: His tenant Rob Halpin — who reportedly refuses to move from a house he’s been renting from Emanuel — said he will run for mayor of the Windy City, according to a column by John Kass in the Chicago Tribune.

Halpin’s refusal to leave could hurt Rahm’s candidacy, too: “Now Emanuel’s campaign is expected to be challenged in the courts, a legal maneuver backed by guys on the South Side who are part of the stop-Rahm movement,” Kass wrote. “And Halpin’s talk of candidacy highlights the argument that Rahm is not a resident.”

Time to build an addition on the house perhaps?

‘Real World’ Rehoboth Beach?

Christine O’Donnell — the Tea Party-backed Republican who came up short in Delaware’s Senate race — appeared Wednesday on the “Tonight Show With Jay Leno.” Now that her schedule is free, O’Donnell said plenty of big opportunities are knocking on her door.

“The offers have been interesting,” she told Leno. “Anything from a book deal to a reality show.”

Notable quotable

“The Pentagon says it doesn’t know who was responsible for launching a missile off the California coast. They don’t know. Meanwhile Sasha and Malia [Obama] can’t believe the awesome new video game they just found in the White House.” — Jimmy Fallon

From the Twitterverse

Rep. Peter Roskam, R-Illinois, tweeted during his trip to South Korea, where negotiations for a U.S.-South Korea free-trade agreement are under way. Roskam may be working on a difficult subject, but he took time out to rib President Obama on his love for the teleprompter:

@PeterRoskam: The Teleprompters arrived safely, awaiting POTUS. #Korea http://plixi.com/p/56169133

Can’t see divorce from my house

In a new People magazine article, Sarah and Todd Palin shoot down tabloid rumors that they are on the verge of a $20 million divorce settlement.

“I call Todd on the cell phone [from the grocery checkout] and I say, ‘Todd, you won’t believe this cover!’ And he says, ‘Twenty million? Write me a check,’ ” Palin recounted to the magazine. “He’s good about laughing some of that stuff off.”

The picture you need to see

Someone missed his mark.

In this Getty Images photo, the caption notes, “Obama is moved to the correct spot by South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak and his wife, Kim Yoon-Ok, for a photo during the official reception ahead of the G20 Working Dinner on November 11, 2010, at the National Museum of Korea in Seoul.”

Headline of the day

“Chuck ‘Loko’ over caffeine” — New York Post story on Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-New York.

Late-night laughs

Stephen Colbert: “Things are terrible right now so they [congressional Republicans] are planning to make some bold changes. Yes — extending the existing tax cuts will create jobs. Because the only way out of this mess is to keep things exactly as they are.”

Conan O’Brien: “President George W. Bush has not been in the news for a long time. The day I come back on the air after a 10-month absence he returns — with a book.”

Jay Leno: “While in Indonesia, President Obama said he is making progress toward ending people’s misunderstanding about Muslims — like the fact that he isn’t one.”

David Letterman: “Bush says he’s happy and spends a lot of time down there at his ranch in Texas. He’s glad to be out of the Oval Office. And here’s why he’s glad to be out of the Oval Office: because he does not have to think all the time. And I’m thinking, ‘Wait … that was him thinking all the time?’”

Jon Stewart: “I can’t believe that cutting through our national security bureaucracy to find out something that may not have actually happened [the mysterious rocketlike cloud in California] takes longer than an hourlong cable news shift.”

Political Circus: ‘Rahmbo’ dodges egg

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Posted in News, Politics, Video, security, tan

Tagged chicago, cnn, emanuel, images, korea, news, president, Video, video-game, white, wife

GOP walks budget-cutting line with seniors

Posted on November 8, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

Washington (CNN) — Republicans rode a tidal wave of senior support into control of the House, promising to cut government spending and restore fiscal sanity to Washington.

But can they deliver on that promise without cutting entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security and angering older voters?

Seniors voted last week by an almost 60-40 split for Republican House candidates, after splitting evenly between Democrats and Republicans in the 2006 midterms. And voters 65 and older made up 24 percent of those casting votes last week.

Political Circus: McCain vs. Seacrest

Posted on November 5, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

Fightin’ words

Radio host/jack-of-all-trades Ryan Seacrest lashed out on his website at Meghan McCain after she criticized President Obama’s decision to appear on Seacrest’s show before Tuesday’s election.

Seacrest fought back on his nationally syndicated radio show. “She thinks ["On Air with Ryan Seacrest"] is just lowbrow,” he said. “I just want to be clear — it is the lowbrow show she wanted to be on twice to come promote her stuff.”

As he says on “American Idol” — Seacrest out.

Like a scene from ‘Gone with the Wind’

From Friday’s White House pool report from political website The Daily Caller: “At 9:48 POTUS and FLOTUS exited the south Portico and boarded Marine One. POTUS wore no coat over his suit, but FLOTUS wore a fashionable tan or light brown coat. POTUS put his hand on FLOTUS’ back as they walked and looked over at her, appearing to say something. And with that, the first couple was off for southeast Asia.” (The abbreviations stand for “president of the United States” and “first lady of the United States.”)

Watch where you put that hatchet

Former Delaware Senate rivals Chris Coons and Christine O’Donnell took part Thursday in a time-honored tradition in the state by burying the hatchet — literally, The Delaware News Journal reports.

Time to make the coffee

The New York Daily News reports on former President George W. Bush’s daily ritual since leaving the White House, saying his “internal alarm clock” makes him wake up before 5 a.m. And he’s taken on a more domestic role by making coffee for his wife, Laura. When outside, it’s all adventure: “He hits dirt-bike trails around Dallas regularly.”

First chef of New York?

New York governor-elect Andrew Cuomo’s girlfriend — cooking sensation Sandra Lee — won’t be taking on the title of first lady or any official duties, the Daily News reports. Cuomo’s staff says Lee “would never expect any taxpayer dollar to support the contributions she makes nor would she want to burden the state in any way.”

Notable quotable

“Tuesday night, voters completely rejected the efforts of a charismatic African-American. … Rick Fox is off ‘Dancing with the Stars.’” — NBC’s Jay Leno

The picture you need to see

From Getty Images: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton receives a Hongi (Maori greeting) during a welcome ceremony at New Zealand’s Parliament on Thursday.

Headline of the day

From Reuters:“Putin to Bush: My dog bigger than yours”

Late-night laughs

David Letterman: “[Sarah Palin] says she wants limited government. … Does she mean fewer elected officials? Or few elected officials who will resign in the middle of their term? I think limited government will be perfect for her limited abilities.”

Jon Stewart mocking the White House press corps: “Uh, Mr. President, Tom Patterson, UPI. Do you suck? Quick follow-up: do you suck so bad you don’t even know how sucky you are? I would like your answer in the form of ‘you suck.’”

Jimmy Fallon: “In his new book, George W. Bush says he considered dropping Dick Cheney from the 2004 ticket because he wanted to demonstrate he was in charge — not Cheney. But then Cheney nixed the idea, so it went back to normal. He didn’t do it.”

Political Circus: McCain vs. Seacrest

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Posted in News, Politics, Video, tan

Tagged clinton, cnn, coffee, congress, dallas, news, Politics, tan, Video, white house

Murkowski’s fate: High stakes ‘spelling bee’

Posted on November 4, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

(CNN) — An unyielding and exuberant Sen. Lisa Murkowski thanked her supporters on election night as she appeared headed to a once-improbable victory in Alaska’s Senate contest.

Just two months ago, the incumbent Republican conceded her party’s primary to little-known Tea Party-backed Joe Miller. Shortly after, Murkowski dove into the middle of Republican infighting by launching a write-in bid to retain her seat.

Party leaders criticized her decision. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who endorsed Miller, called Murkowski’s revived campaign “a futile effort on her part.” The last U.S. senator to win on a write-in campaign was Strom Thurmond in 1954.

“They said it couldn’t be done,” Murkowski told CNN as the results came in late Tuesday. “We looked at that, and we said if it can be done anywhere, it can be done in Alaska, and let’s prove the rest of the country wrong.”

Aware of the intricacies of a write-in win, Murkowski cautioned that “we’re not done yet. There’s still a lot out more there; we know that.”

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The votes for write-in candidates outnumbered those for both Miller and Scott McAdams, the Democratic candidate.

But the outcome of the general election might not be known for days because officials need to determine which write-in votes actually went to Murkowski.

She was one of 161 people who filed the paperwork necessary to qualify as a write-in candidate, according to the Alaska Division of Elections.

As of Wednesday night, with 78 percent of precincts reporting, the write-in candidates were leading the pack with 41 percent of the vote. Miller had 34 percent, and McAdams trailed with 24 percent.

CNN has projected that the Democratic candidate will finish in third place but has not yet called the race for Murkowski or Miller.

Despite Murkowski’s excitement, Miller’s campaign remained optimistic Wednesday, saying, “This campaign is not over!”

“Previous write-in campaigns in Alaska have demonstrated that as much as 5 [percent] to 6 percent of returned ballots have not met the standard to be counted as a valid vote,” the campaign said in a statement.

“Candidates who mount a write-in campaign opt for an uphill battle. At this point, without a single write-in ballot counted, Lisa Murkowski has no claim on a victory.”

Another fellow Alaskan running as a write-in is Lisa M. Lackey, whose presence on the ballot may complicate things for Murkowski.

Under state law, for a write-in vote to be valid, the name written on the ballot must match the name as it is listed on the write-in candidate’s declaration of candidacy. In Murkowski’s case, the law requires her supporters to write “Lisa Murkowski” or “Murkowski” for the vote to be counted.

However, in the event a voter misspells or abbreviates a candidate’s name, such as “Lisa M.” instead of “Lisa Murkowski,” the Division of Elections would determine the voter’s intent “on a case-by-case basis,” according to division director Gail Fenumiai.

With two potential “Lisa M’s” as write-in candidates, determining the intent of a voter who writes in “Lisa M.” on his or her ballot would be much more difficult.

Matt Felling, an anchor for KTVA-TV in Anchorage, said the race could prove to be the “highest stakes spelling bee in American political history.”

“Now we are going to find out how many people can put nine letters together that somewhat resemble Murkowski,” he told CNN.

Miller’s campaign blasted the Division of Elections’ standards as “extraordinarily ambiguous.”

On election nights, the Division of Elections tabulates the total number of write-in votes cast — not a breakdown by candidate.

The Division of Elections only calculates the number of write-in votes for specific candidates if the total number of write-in votes cast is more than the number of votes received for any candidate, or if the total number of write-in votes comes in a close second to the top vote-getter.

Before the Division of Elections can start tabulating the write-in votes for specific candidates, all of the ballots cast have to be counted, including absentee ballots, early votes and questioned ballots.

The lieutenant governor’s office and the Division of Elections plan to count all absentee ballots next Tuesday and move on to the hand count of the write-in votes the following day. The count of the write-in ballots is expected to take about three days.

The count was moved up from the original date of November 18 to provide election results in “a timely manner,” according to Renee Limoge, spokeswoman for Alaska Lt. Gov. Craig Campbell.

Miller told CNN he would challenge the decision to count the votes earlier than planned. He also said that as of Wednesday, he had not heard from the national GOP, which backed his candidacy.

Murkowski said she intends to caucus with the Republicans should she return to the Senate.

“I’m not my party’s nominee, but I am a Republican,” she said.

With a victory, Murkowski would avenge her August primary loss to Miller in the latest chapter of a feud with his main backers and her long-standing tension with Palin.

Murkowski was first appointed to her post by her father, then-Gov. Frank Murkowski in 2002. Palin defeated him in the 2006 GOP gubernatorial primary.

CNN’s Drew Griffin, Jason Hanna and Robert Yoon contributed to this report.

Murkowski’s fate: High stakes ‘spelling bee’

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Tagged alaska, ballot, campaign, democratic, miller, party, Politics, race, total, Video, voting, write-in-votes

A long, nasty campaign comes to an end

Posted on November 1, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

Washington (CNN) — No more robocalls interrupting dinner or angry campaign ads at every TV break — the most expensive mid-term elections in history finally take place Tuesday, when voters decide who goes to Congress and governors’ offices.

Polls indicate a dissatisfied electorate may clean house — literally — by tossing out the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives and possibly doing the same in the Senate.

With all predictions, including those of Democrats, signaling Republican gains, the election is considered a referendum on both the Democratic-controlled Congress and President Barack Obama’s first two years in office.

Losses by the governing party are common in the first mid-term election it faces, but the shift Tuesday could rival or match historic levels dating back decades.

Unemployment of 9.6 percent amid a slow recovery from economic recession has been the dominant issue, with Republicans accusing Obama and Democrats of pushing through expensive policies that have expanded government without solving the problem.

Obama has led Democrats in defending his record, saying steps such as the economic stimulus bill and auto industry bailout were necessary to prevent a depression, while health care reform and Wall Street reform will lay the foundation for sustainable future growth.

As voting day approached, voter anger appeared to tune out the Democratic arguments. Conservative groups and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce funded attack ads that skewered increased spending under Obama and the health care reform bill he championed, while labor unions and traditional Democratic donors backed messaging that warned a GOP victory would bring back Republican deregulation and policies that caused the recession.

The long and bitter campaign season will cost more than $3.5 billion to be the most expensive non-presidential vote ever, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Republicans need to win an additional 39 seats to claim the House majority, and 10 more Senate seats to overtake Democrats there.

With around 100 of the 435 House seats at stake considered “in play,” or competitive, the anti-Democratic mood is predicted to result in big Republican gains.

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On the Senate side, where 37 of the 100 seats are being contested, the majority will be decided by key races in Nevada, Washington and a few other states where Democratic incumbents face strong challenges.

A new national poll released Monday showed the number of Americans who say things are going badly in the country, at 75 percent, is higher than it has been on the eve of any mid-term election since the question was first asked in the mid-1970s.

The CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey also indicates that the economy remains, by far, the top issue on the minds of Americans, more than all other major issues combined, including terrorism, health care, illegal immigrants and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In addition, the rise of the conservative Tea Party movement has added a new element to the election cycle, roiling Republican races by boosting little-known and inexperienced candidates to victory over mainstream figures in primaries across the country.

Tuesday’s vote will show how many of the so-called Tea Party candidates can win in a general election, but no matter the final tally, the result is expected to shift the Republican agenda to the right.

That means little chance of compromise or bipartisan approaches on major issues, observers warn.

Ron Bonjean, a Republican strategist who worked for the last Republican House speaker, Dennis Hastert, put it bluntly: “It’s been a hostile atmosphere, but it will be hostile on nitroglycerin.”

Ohio Republican Rep. John Boehner will be the new House speaker if the GOP wins control of the chamber. He already has signaled little appetite to negotiate with the White House or congressional Democrats, saying last week that “this is not a time for compromise.”

Boehner and other conservatives say the top priorities must be spending cuts to try to balance the budget and job creation to spur the economy. However, they also advocate extending Bush-era tax cuts for everyone at a cost of $4 trillion over the next decade.

In the Senate, legislative gridlock is likely if Republicans strengthen their current minority of 41 seats. Obama and Democrats accuse Senate Republicans of using obstruction tactics as a political tool, showing the distrust and animosity that already exists.

Democrats are also wary of a recent comment by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, who told the National Journal, “The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”

The first test of a new relationship will come in mid-November when Congress convenes a post-election lame-duck session to try to clear unfinished legislation before the newly elected Congress convenes in January. Among other issues, lawmakers must decide whether and how to extend Bush-era tax cuts.

Voters on Tuesday also will decide governors’ races in 37 of the 50 states, with the outcome potentially having an influence on redistricting based on the results of the 2010 census.

Every 10 years, the states redraw House district lines to reflect population shifts. Some states gain more House seats due to population growth, while others lose seats due to declines.

In most cases, state legislatures draw the lines and governors have the power to approve or veto that map. Governors also can influence whether any loss or gain of seats in their state involves districts represented by Republicans or Democrats.

The list of states that will gain or lose seats is released in December. However, Election Data Services issued estimates based on preliminary census figures that indicated Texas will gain four seats, Florida will gain two, and Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and Washington will each gain one, while Ohio and New York will lose two seats, and Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey and Pennsylvania will each lose one.

CNN’s Ted Barrett, Deirdre Walsh, Paul Steinhauser and Jessica Yellin contributed to this report.

A long, nasty campaign comes to an end

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Posted in Health, News, Politics, Video, economy, tan

Tagged afghanistan, congress, conservative, conservatives, country, democratic, election, obama, party, Video, white

Meek story shows Dems’ Senate fears

Posted on October 29, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

Washington (CNN) — The point that many people seem to be missing in the Florida Senate saga is that this whole mess actually has very little to do with Rep. Kendrick Meek or the Sunshine State — it’s all about a much broader fear among senior Democrats that they may be about to lose control of the chamber.

There are some fascinating inside details I’ve been able to piece together about how and why this Meek story exploded into the public.

In the words of one senior Democratic Party official, the Meek story came to a head because former President Bill Clinton “flew into a purple rage” about the Democratic candidate breaking a private pledge to him to get out of the Senate race and endorse independent candidate Charlie Crist.

But a source close to Clinton said he “never saw anything close” to rage from the former president, who is at peace with how this wound up.

“He always believed this was Meek’s decision,’ said the source close to Clinton.

As for the Obama adminstiration’s role in this, I’m told by senior Democratic officials that while White House aides were in the loop on the Clinton-Meek talks, they were not driving the conversation and were not lobbying Meek to go.

Video: Meek: I’m not dropping out

Video: Clinton sets record straight

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I’m also told that senior officials deliberately kept President Obama out of the loop on these behind-the-scenes conversations because they did not want to get him personally tainted by the Meek story. That came no doubt in part because they didn’t want it to blow up in his face like the botched attempt to get Joe Sestak out of the Democratic primary in the Pennsylvania Senate race so many months ago. (Clinton was the intermediary then, too).

But all the jockeying and horse-trading is really just a sideshow. The real story is how bad the broader electoral map has gotten for Democrats heading into the final weekend of this midterm election: Top Democratic officials privately say they believe they are going to lose the House, but as they survey the country they are getting increasingly worried they will also lose the Senate.

These Democratic officials tell me they’ve reviewed private polling numbers that suggest Sen. Patty Murray of Washington has a razor-thin lead of about two points over Republican Dino Rossi despite all kinds of help from the president and first lady Michelle Obama, among others.

They’re also deeply worried about whether Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada can beat Republican Sharron Angle, so suddenly the “firewall” out West to keep control of the Senate might be more like a crumbling brick wall.

These Democratic officials also say in private that they think Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin is likely to lose to Republican Ron Johnson and they’re worried enough about Obama’s old Senate seat that the president is heading home to Chicago, Illinois, on Saturday night for a rescue mission to again help Democratic candidate Alexi Giannoulias in his battle with Republican Mark Kirk.

Thanks to that awful landscape, Democratic officials made the brutal political calculation to try to toss Meek aside, because if Crist somehow beats Republican Marco Rubio in the three-way battle, he has indicated he will align himself with Democrats. A Crist victory would offset a potential loss in another state like Nevada or Wisconsin to help keep the Senate in the party’s hands.

“It’s got nothing to do with Florida,” one senior Democratic Party official told me about the story that’s rocked the state. “Except that if Kendrick was at 25 percent [in the polls] there may have been some sense that he was driving African-American votes that [Democratic gubernatorial candidate] Alex Sink couldn’t get on her own.”

Instead, Meek is stuck at 15 percent in the latest Quinnipiac University poll, a distant third place behind Rubio (42 percent) and Crist (35 percent). My sources say that given that grim political reality, several top Democrats have been privately encouraging Meek to step aside for the good of the party and Clinton was brought in as the “closer” to help seal the deal.

For several days over the last week or so, Clinton believed he had persuaded Meek to throw his support to Crist. I’m told that one of many scenarios had Crist and Meek joining up this past Tuesday at an event in Florida, but there was also another more dramatic scenario: The two candidates would shock the political world by getting together shortly after last Sunday morning’s CNN debate among the three candidates moderated by Candy Crowley.

But two people close to Meek persuaded him to reconsider: his wife and Rep. Alcee Hastings of Florida, both of whom made the case that he would upset his supporters, especially African-American voters who had already turned out in early voting, and jeopardize his career long-term.

At one point, Democratic officials say Meek went into “radio silence” mode, infuriating Clinton and others as they waited to see if the congressman would follow through on his private promise to get out of the race. When Meek finally emerged to tell party officials that he was staying in, Clinton was unhappy.

Shortly thereafter, the story was leaked to Politico, causing some chaos. The leak sent the message to the Democratic base that the party hierarchy does not believe that Meek can win, so the rank and file might prefer to vote for Crist instead of throwing their vote on Meek.

Top Republicans are laughing at this strategy and the broader Democratic claim that the Florida seat is still winnable for Crist. One said, “I think a fair question for the White House is this: What does it tell your Democratic base to see that senior party officials are willing to throw an incumbent African-American Democrat congressman under the bus in place of a former Republican who campaigned against the health care bill and on a pro-life platform?”

In fact, I asked top Democratic officials if it’s really worth it to try to push Meek out, even though the whole plan has now been exposed and it appears the congressman will not budge. The consensus was yes, it’s worth it simply because holding on to the Senate is the Democrat’s sole chance of keeping some power on Capitol Hill.

One senior official was particularly blunt in saying the goal among top Democrats now is to get Meek’s numbers even lower than 15 percent in the polls, perhaps even below 10 percent, in the hopes that he goes so low that Crist gets a surge of support and pulls out a comeback victory. But is this really worth the risk of dropping one of your own Democrats down below 10 percent?

“Who cares if Charlie Crist wins and he caucuses with Democrats?” this Democratic official said bluntly, adding that this strategy is critical “especially if we don’t hold on out West” in some of the other Senate battles.

In other words, time to tighten the seat belts. Tuesday might be even bumpier than expected.

Meek story shows Dems’ Senate fears

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Tagged clinton, country, democratic, health, obama, party, polls, president, rank, Video, white

Campaign Circus: Obama vs. his cousin in 2012?

Posted on October 26, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

Washington (CNN) — As Election Day gets closer, the rhetoric gets more intense, interesting and, shall we say, passionate. Here are some things you might have missed.

Obama’s cousin to take him on in 2012?

Don Cordell, an 83-year-old retired engineer from California, plans to run against President Obama in 2012. Cordell told AOL News that he is a distant cousin to 22 presidents — including George W. Bush, Obama and George Washington, to name a few.

Harry Reid the default option?

Nevadan Joyce Ferrara told CNN affiliate KVVU that when she went to vote, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s name was already selected. An election official claims there is no fraud.

‘He had me at hope and change’

The College Republican National Committee, in a new video entitled “Break Up,” says it wants to put an end to its relationship with President Obama. Wait — they’ve liked him this whole time?

Scooping the poop

Obama cut out of a fundraiser in Rhode Island on Monday night, according to the Provindence Journal, saying that he couldn’t stay for dinner because he had to “go home to tuck in the girls and walk the dog and scoop the poop.”

Say what?

Sean Bielat, the Republican taking on openly gay Democratic Rep. Barney Frank in Massachusetts, is under fire for telling the Boston Herald that gays and lesbians don’t have the right to serve in the military, just as short people don’t.

Picture of the day: He’s not having any of it

A police officer assigned to President Obama’s Moving America Forward rally at the University of Southern California appears to be having a bad day in a Getty Images photo of the rally.

Campaign Valley of the Dolls

Two well-publicized candidates — one known for her unique name (Krystal Ball) and the other for his Rent Is Too Damn High party (Jimmy McMillan) — have received a special honor, according to POLITICO.com: getting their own action figures made.

Reid staffer gone amid fake marriage revelation

A staffer for Reid no longer works for the senator, amid reports the staffer orchestrated a sham marriage in order to provide a Lebanese man with American citizenship, a spokesman for Reid said.

Campaign Circus: Obama vs. his cousin in 2012?

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Unions and women: Democrats’ last line of defense

Posted on October 19, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (CNN) — If Democrats hope to retain their majority in Congress, it could take some “Women of Steel” to fire up the party faithful and get them to the polls on November 2.

Mary Jane Holland is one of 1,000 female members of the United Steelworkers gathered here to talk about how to mobilize her labor colleagues to re-elect what she calls “worker-friendly candidates” across the country.

She made the trip to Pittsburgh from West Bend, Wisconsin, where she is the president of her local USW chapter. She’s been spending weekends knocking on doors, sending out voter information and urging fellow union members to vote.

“People hear negative things, and we’re trying to be positive and trying to make sure they understand how these [candidates] are working for them day in and day out,” Holland said.

She conceded many voters are upset because President Obama and congressional Democrats haven’t turned a bad economy around yet, but she said they need to be patient.

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“Are we going to achieve everything in 18 months? No we’re not going to. We know it is a slow process, just like women coming up in the union.”

Tonya DeVore-Foreman is from Michigan, which has a 13.1 percent unemployment rate, the second-highest in the country. She said the sluggish economy is a reason to stick with candidates who back labor — usually Democrats, she notes — not reject them.

“We’re losing our manufacturing base every day. The manufacturing base decreases, the loss of jobs continues to grow. And we feel it is very important to get labor-friendly, working-family-friendly candidates in office.”

These are the women House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was trying to energize Monday when she visited the “Women of Steel” conference. She entered the convention ballroom to loud cheering and Tina Turner’s “Simply the Best” blaring over the speakers. Women stood up, waving signs that said, “Best Speaker Ever.”

It was a warm reception for a politician who has become a liability for many Democrats this election season. According to a recent CNN-Opinion Research Corporation poll, more than half of Americans have an unfavorable impression of Pelosi. She has kept a low profile on the campaign trail this year, traveling the country fundraising, rather than doing public appearances with Democratic candidates.

Speaking to this friendly audience in Pittsburgh, Pelosi was able to do something many Democrats have avoided this cycle — touting legislative victories on health care reform and Wall Street regulation and accusing Republicans of wanting to return to the Bush era.

“It’s a choice, as the president said, of moving America forward or going back to the failed policies. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: We’re not going back and we’re not going back and we’re going to win because the Women of Steel, the Women of Steel are going to help us lead the way in our country to that great victory,” Pelosi said.

The problem for Democrats is that the enthusiasm in this room is not necessarily shared by other Democratic voters.

A recent CNN-Opinion Research Corporation poll shows women, who tend to support Democratic candidates over Republicans, are much less inspired to head to the polls than their male counterparts, who generally favor GOP candidates.

Thirty-eight percent of likely male voters said they were “extremely enthusiastic” about voting in the midterm elections, compared with just 23 percent of women who rated themselves the same way.

But DeVore-Foreman pushes back at polls showing voters who rallied for Obama in 2008 might be less enthusiastic now, saying union members will succeed in firing up those Americans.

“Polls talk about likely voters. One of the things we’re gonna do is we’re gonna bring people who weren’t reached in those polls, and get them to vote. Because when working people vote, our voice is heard,” DeVore-Foreman said.

She’s reaching out to fellow union members, sending postcards to workers in other states with competitive races, reminding them how important these elections will be to pushing the labor agenda through Congress.

While these women know people are disheartened by the stalled economy, they remain confident that their efforts will turn the tide for Democrats on Election Day.

“People have been sitting back, waiting and looking looking and investigating,” Holland said. “And when the election comes around, I think you’ll see it especially in the union vote. I think they’re gonna come out and vote, and it’s gonna make the difference.

Unions and women: Democrats’ last line of defense

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Tagged america, health, manufacturing, obama, party, president, research, speaker, tan, trip, Video, voice

Subpoenas issued in John Edwards’ probe

Posted on October 7, 2010 by admin| Comments Off

(CNN) — A “sizable” number of subpoenas have been issued in the investigation of former Sen. John Edwards, his attorney said.

Wade Smith, the attorney, said Wednesday he did not know who asked for the subpoenas or who was summoned. However, Smith said he maintained Edwards is innocent and said they welcome the government scrutiny.

A North Carolina federal grand jury has been investigating payments the former senator’s campaign and supporters made to Rielle Hunter, his mistress who also worked as a videographer for his campaign.

As Edwards campaigned for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, allegations began to surface that he had an affair with Hunter as well as he was the father of Hunter’s young child.

Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth, became legally separated after the scandal.

Subpoenas issued in John Edwards’ probe

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Tagged attorney, campaign, cnn, democratic, edwards, former-senator, government, hunter-as-well, mistress, north, north-carolina, supporters-made, Video

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