Thank you all very much, that was a lot of fun.

Was anyone else watching the Hardball opening segment?  Matthews, Fineman, Barnicle, and Chuck Todd are basically sticking it to PUMA, suggesting that they are just a loud, annoying fringe group...

Once again, Chuck Todd has amazed me.  He has been on top of the VP watch from the beginning, and coupled with his superb coverage of the primaries, I feel like NBC would be stupid to not give Mr. Todd the most visible role possible this fall.

Last night on MSNBC, Chuck Todd was asked about the four front runners (Kaine, Bayh, Clinton, and Biden), Todd ignored all of the speculation regarding travel schedules, events, fake reports, etc. and made a simple observation: Joe Biden was acting like someone who would be busy for the next seventy days.

While Bayh and Kaine were playing golf, Biden was running errands.  He was going to the bank, he was calling his family, he was working with his staff.  Chuck Todd picked up on this and his observation made me switch my hunch from Bayh to Biden.  And it looks like (once again) he will be right.

Show some love for Chuck Todd in the comments.

I guess I'm feeling a little "saucy" (or mustardy) tonight; I didn't realize it until diary prep. So, advanced apologies if I seem a little hyper.

There’s 76 days until the Election and, hopefully, a new "Independence Day!"

Today's "day in history" is a rather notorious one; there was not a whole lot of "sweetness & light" to be found. On this date in 1989 (the year I graduated from high school), Lyle & Erik Menendez murdered their parents. And, if you've seen the crime scene photos, by golly, they were through!

On a much, much, much, MUCH happier note, hugs, kisses, smooches, & all that good stuff to F.O.O. who asked Keith to drop by here in his "Rachel" diary. I'm very touched by that; thank you! This sweetness more than made up for the upsidedown & backwards posts from last night after I left. WTF was that stuff??!! Do you have ANY IDEA how jarring it was to "read" that when I hadn't been properly caffeinated or, hell, even after proper caffeination?! Son of a .... *&^%$#@!

So, with begging & pleading for y'all not to post upsidedown & a$$backwards anymore [insert image of me on my knees begging here], let's Countdown with Keith & the gang!

Here's another "This Date in History" "gem"; on this date in 1909, the first auto race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Ever since then, my "beloved" state has been known for corn & racing. That's a hell of a legacy, ain't it?!

If you're like me these days, you could use a laugh (or 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 or infinity). On NPR today, Terri Gross replayed an interview she did with Mort Sahl in 2003; I laughed long, and I laughed hard (yea...yea...yea...get your minds out of the gutter; there's only room for me). Her shows are available as PodCasts, so if you have the means & the access to a nearby intertubes machine, I highly recommend you download it.

So, is it Election Day yet?!

Let's count down with our Countdown gang!

Over at MSNBC Chuck Todd has this running theory that any day Obama has to talk about race, it's a bad day for him.

I'd like to update that theory and suggest that any day he gets to talk about the economy, values or security puts him at an advantage.

A day when he gets to talk about what it feels like to be Christian is a really good day for him.

Go below for the fold on what we should take away from the Warren interview.

[Update]  Go to Real Clear Politics or MSNBC First Read for Chuck Todd's take on the interview

In a striking blow to Barack Obama's Presidential Campaign, Warner Bros. has decided to move the next installment of the Harry Potter film franchise to Summer 2009. The films was slated to swoop into theaters on November 11, 2008. The change in opening dates is yet another in a string of fortunate breaks for the McCain campaign.

Around this time last night, I went through some sort of out - of - body experience, so, did I miss anything? Did I do anything noteworthy? I didn't embarass myself, did I?

It's 90 days until the election. 90 days...90 f*ckin' days... I have a terrible feeling that a good chunk of the next 90 days will be like an out - of - body experience. I wonder if GWB will bring back any election pointers for the GOP from the Chinese? Oh well...

Let's diary Countdown for a rather infamous date.

Whatever you think of her, even the staunchest critic will have to admit: Andrea Mitchell is playing the game real well right now.  

Better than Brett Favre will ever do with the Packers in their current drama. Probably better than Ken Jennings did on Jeopardy a few years ago.

She’s playing it so well that someone (whether begrudgingly or angrily) needed to bestow accolades to her for doing so. Sentiments of scorn and disgust for the wife of Alan Greenspan need not apply in this objective and rather penetrating look at a polarizing character playing an angle just as complex as the ones on a sphere.  That sphere in this instance being the new host of Meet the Press.

After an opening teaser about the new McCain Paris Hilton attack ad, I thought, finally! a network will do a story on the unprecedented negativity of the McCain campaign (e.g. basically calling Obama a traitor recently). But no, on the NBC Nightly News tonight Brian Williams, Kelly O'Donnell and Chuck Todd tried to treat it all as business as usual and that both sides are equally guilty.

They made no mention of the virtually unprecedented negativity of the McCain campaign of late and are trying to create a narrative that both sides are doing the same thing and it's just the way politics is done. They apparently have such a fear of alienating the McCain side that any story has to treat McCain in an absolutely equal way as Obama. It's impossible that one side is just plain wrong and doesn't deserve that good treatment.

On Morning Joe on MSNBC today, both Chuck Todd  and Mike Murphy were strongly in agreement with each other about how lousy the poll results are in this election cycle and warned repeatedly against paying attention to them (MSNBC video). Each, in his own way, strongly supported many of the contentions of Arianna Huffington in her post today (Obama's Trip Bounce).

This is my first diary. I'm a member of the mythical over-50, white-female cohort that McCain and Obama are desperate to woo. I was originally a John Edwards supporter and have supported Obama since Edwards dropped out.

Please read on.

Immediately after Barack Obama's historic speech before over 200,000 people yesterday in Berlin, MSNBC political analyst Chuck Todd opined, "John McCain could have given that speech."

Now, I understand what Todd was saying. The speech was non-partisan and non-ideological. Obama's lofty rhetoric was simply trying inspire the peoples of all nations, races and religions to work together to make the world a better place. Not very controversial ideas.

But John McCain never could have given that speech in a million years because he is not interested in any of that stuff. To suggest otherwise is absurd. John McCain cares about war, namely the Iraq War. Follow me below for my version of what McCain might have said if he had been in Obama's place.

On this Hump Day, I hope you got to be or will be able to assume whichever role you want - either humpee or humper. I wonder what the candidates' stance on Hump Day is? Inquiring minds want to know!

I've got nothing else "Intro" - wise; I've felt like my alarm just went off all day today. So, on to tonight's Countdown diary!

First Read is teasing an MSNBC poll that says the following:

Here's one result from the new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll that will be released tonight at 6:30 pm ET on Nightly News and MSNBC.com... With the news that Iraq's prime minister wants the US to set a timetable for withdrawal, 60% of registered voters believe it's a good idea for the US to set such a timetable, while 30% say it's a bad idea.

Did anyone catch this today? This is what Tom Brokaw said -

MR. BROKAW:  Thank you very much David Gregory, our NBC White House correspondent, and of course star of MSNBC, "The Road to the White House." Chuck Todd, our political director, we'll be seeing a lot more of you here on MEET THE PRESS and, of course, on all the platforms of NBC News and MSNBC in the weeks to come.

I dunno. Take a look at this video of Chuck Todd analyzing a MoveOn.org ad hitting McCain on his 100 year war, and tell me if you think Todd's just got the vapors.

For those of you who can't watch the video for some reason, the gist is this: The MoveOn ad features a mom and her baby, and she asks:

John McCain, when you say you would stay in Iraq for a hundred years, were you counting on Alex? Because if you were... you can't have him.

Hey, fair point. You don't think American moms think about this?

Well, they do.

But Joe Scarborough thinks this ad represents a partisan effort to "get down into the mud."

News flash, Joe: Just because a punch in the face hurts doesn't mean it was dirty. When John McCain said he'd commit troops to 100 years in Iraq, he was asking Mom to give him her best shot. She decked him, and you're practically in tears over it. Boo hoo. Toughen up, dude. Moms don't want their kids deployed in wars. It's just true.

Chuck Todd feels all squirmy in his chair about it, too:

I think it was a borderline shameless ad. Using a baby like that.

News flash, Chuck: All troops start as babies. Every one that gets sent belongs to someone. You don't like it? Take it up with the management.

This campaign won't have any shortage of shamelessness, borderline or otherwise. Here's hoping you two will drop your pearls for long enough to get concerned over... oh, I don't know... 100 years in Iraq, rather than the "use" of a baby.

Frankly, I don't think there are too many people out there who think Bush/Cheney/McCain's "use" for their babies is any less shameless.

In a recent The Atlantic blog post, blogger Matt Yglesias inexplicably writes he "100% agrees with" a Jonah Goldberg recommendation to turn Meet The Press into a panel-show hosted by Chuck Todd.

A Matt Yglesias commenter (in a comment typical of those on the thread) writes: "I think Chuck Todd would be a great choice. Cerebral, likeable, not overtly ideological, not a blowhard, projects competence."

But Chuck Todd is a typical corporate media shill who uses his position in the mainstream-media to trim the facts presented to the public and to promote Republicans!

Sadly with Tim Russert gone, NBC has some big shoes to fill on "Meet the Press".  Obviously it won't be the same show without Tim but already there is speculation over who will be the new host for "Meet the Press".