“It’s like these guys take pride in being ignorant.”

– Sen. Barack Obama, discussing his energy plan and today’s modern GOP.

Video:

We come to you today with some very exciting news! Team DoubleSpeak is headed to Denver to witness the Democratic National Convention first hand, only this time, we’re bringing cameras!

DoubleSpeak, along with our talented partners at Pattern Films, will be going to Denver along with thousands of other participants in the democratic process, from Senators and Congressmen to activists and protesters. However, the most important participants are the subject of the documentary film we’re partnering to make — THE DELEGATES.

You can check out our new film site where we will be posting videos every day from inside and outside the convention. We will also be updating this site daily with photos and musings from inside the arena.

You all have been dedicated DoubleSpeakers and we greatly appreciate all of the support you have given us in the past. We have every confidence that this film will be a success and to make this project a reality, we need all the help we can get.

We would be eternally grateful if you would:

1) Donate to support the production. Tell your friends, family, co-workers and neighbors about the film too.

Click here to donate.

2) Tell us what you would like to learn about the delegates

Click here to participate.

3) Help find a delegate who might want to be involved– we’re still trying to find a few more

Click here to share your story.

4) Invite everyone else you know to join this group and donate to help support the production.

5) Follow us on Twitter.

Our friends and supporters have been the fuel for DoubleSpeak over the past two years and as we begin a new and very exciting venture we will be counting on you more than ever!

Here’s some more info on the film:

THE DELEGATES, a new documentary film from Pattern Films and DoubleSpeak Media, will give viewers a rare look at the people at the center of the 2008 Democratic National Convention: the delegates themselves.

Following four delegates from their arrival at the airport to the Convention floor, committee meetings, and Obama’s acceptance speech at Mile High Stadium, the film will give a delegate’s-eye view of how a party comes together to present itself to the American public.

The delegates’ presence at the Convention is the outcome of a hard-fought and bitter contest, but once they arrive, their role is mostly ceremonial, ratifying the choice that has already been made during the primaries. THE DELEGATES will offer a frank and intimate portrayal of the lives and personalities of some of these Democratic activists and party officials, as they stand up to speak for themselves and for all of us.

At the heart of the hype and hope of the Convention, as diverse and opinionated as the party they represent, THE DELEGATES will illustrate the personal side of the political process.

We will keep you posted via the website, email, fax, Facebook, Twitter, carrier pigeon, bike messenger and robo-call so please stay tuned!

Michael Dukakis was my professor at Northeastern University and is one of the most intelligent and genuine people I’ve ever known. His insights were always spot on and his desire for young people to get involved in public service was a common theme throughout each lecture.

I just came across a (long) speech Dukakis gave in March 2008 as part of the University of San Diego Distinguished Lecture Series. This speech is wide-ranging but focuses mainly on the 2008 election and his thoughts on the electoral process in general.

I am reminded of what a great teacher he is and how, despite a high-profile electoral loss, he has managed to contribute so much and inspire so many to get involved in public service and politics.

Here’s the YouTube clip.

Sit back, open a Sam Adams (or other such Boston-based beverage) and enjoy.

You can also check out DoubleSpeak’s 2006 interview with Governor Dukakis.

“What you’re going to see is a great debate. Which is what the American public deserves. None of this negative stuff, though. You won’t see it come out of our side at all.”

–Cindy McCain, Today Show, May 8, 2008

The Obama campaigns response to McCain “celebrity” ad:

Apparently, the McCain is just starting to come to grips with the fact that Barack Obama is a celebrity. Today, they cut this awe-inspiring (enter snark) ad pointing out that, like Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, Barack Obama is also well known around the world.

Okay, I understand what they’re trying to do. They want to make Obama into this messianic figure who is too big for politics and too star-studded to deal with the problems Americans are facing. In fact, this ad might even work with some voters. However, it’s flimsy and it reeks of desperation. As Tim Kaine told us yesterday, they are trying to stop a runaway bus and they are grabbing onto anything they can in order to slow the momentum down. In the meantime, they are discrediting their candidate who pledged civility and who said he wanted to run a positive, constructive campaign.

I hope this ad backfires. I hope the McCain campaign will spend their money on talking about issues, like Obama has been. I hope they will stop this silly attempt to define Obama as something that he’s not and I hope that Obama will aggressively repudiate these ads and remind voters the stakes of this election. (Wow, that’s a lot of hopes!)

On a lighter note, I guess Britney Spears and John McCain do have more in common than we thought:

UPDATE: Obama campaign senior adviser David Axelrod responds.

The right wing and the cable talking heads are in a tizzy this morning over Dana Milbank’s second hand reporting of a quote from Barack Obama said to a meeting of House Democrats. While the campaign isn’t denying that Obama did say the words, “I have become a symbol of the possibility of America returning to our best traditions,” as almost always happens in these cases the context is missing. And no, not that kind of context. Politico reports:

BUT A DEMOCRATIC SOURCE SAYS: “His entire point of that riff was that the campaign IS NOT about him. [The Post] left out the important first half of the sentence, which was along the lines of: ‘It has become increasingly clear in my travel, the campaign, that the crowds, the enthusiasm, 200,000 people in Berlin, is not about me at all. It’s about America. I have just become a symbol … .”

It sometimes seem as if this election is a test of whether or not America can still understand nuance.

What a day for DoubleSpeak! This morning we scored an interview with Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia and were able to be among the first people to ask him about the Washington Post’s reports that he sits atop Senator Barack Obama’s shortlist for Vice-President.

We’ve posted over at HuffingtonPost’s OffTheBus but wanted to give some love to all you DoubleSpeakers out there too. Here’s the recap as described on the HuffPo:

Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia woke up this morning to a new reality. He is, as reported by the Washington Post, on the short list to be Sen. Barack Obama’s running mate.

Kaine’s monthly radio appearance to discuss local issues pre-scheduled for today on WTOP radio in Washington, DC, was cast in different, higher intensity light. Kaine was joined by his colleagues DC Mayor Adrian Fenty and Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley.

It was quite a scene with a catered buffet (which included an omelet station) and a throng of reporters waiting to get an answer to the question of the day: will Kaine be Obama’s Vice-Presidential pick?

Immediately following the radio broadcast, we were able to get a few minutes with the Governor and ask a number of questions about his personal reaction to the attention he’s receiving and to get his response to Sen. McCain’s recent attacks on Sen. Obama’s overseas trip.

Kaine on McCain’s campaign:

“It’s just desperation. They’re just looking for a handle to grab on and slow the momentum of this bus down. And, it’s a different strategy every couple of days. It really has the air of desperation about it.”

Kaine on Vice-Presidential Speculation:

“…I’m not going to make the case for myself because that’s not why I’ve endorsed Senator Obama…”

“And, it still seems unlikely to me, it’s nice being mentioned. My Mom likes it, you know, but look, I got on board in February of ‘07 because I knew the country needed a change in direction and from a good Democratic field– I thought the field was a good field– he just struck as the guy who could change the direction of the nation. I’m just so gratified by the way the campaign has been run and the chance we have nationally but also in Virginia.”

“It’s a little surreal. It’s surreal to be mentioned and again it’s nice to be considered but I know there’s a lot of folks they’re looking at– there’s a lot of different skills and attributes that they have to weigh– personal, geographic, political — a whole series of things. But, you know, I have grown to have tremendous confidence in Barack’s judgment, in the judgment of his team, in very hard moments along the campaign, you know, I’ve kind of been with him when things were going well and not so well but they’ve always, in a cool and deliberate way, made a good judgment, and I have no doubt that the pick they make is going to be a strong one.”

For more images click here.

A very special thank you to our talented photographer Kate Sokolov who negotiated her way through the gaggle of reporters to get some great pics. We also want to thank Governor Kaine’s staff for allowing us great access during the WTOP interview and for granting us one of the only one-on-one interviews of the morning.

I just took a screen shot of the Republican National Committee’s website. Notice the countdown clock still reads 925 days, 01 hours, 07 minutes, 00 seconds since Barack Obama has last visited Iraq.

Did the RNC miss something? Wasn’t Obama in Iraq this past week meeting with Iraqi leaders, soldiers and commanders on the ground?

Why hasn’t the RNC changed their countdown clock?

I need to watch the speech again a couple of times, because there was a lot going on in my office this afternoon and I didn’t catch everything…but from what I heard, this seems to be a truly monumental performance for Barack Obama. If you haven’t had a chance to watch yet, here’s the video:

I’ll do a longer post tonight or tomorrow about my reaction to the speech, as well as the entire overseas tour.