Check this out.  I was doing my daily Google News search for "McCain adultery" and I found this by Mildred Perry Miller:

There is much about John McCain that most people don't know but it is imperative that they learn. He is not as he presents himself.

He is aided and abetted by many in an adoring but incorrect media. He is a representative of a decadent and destructive Republican Party. He is willing to do anything to win, even keeping America in a constant condition of resentment and hate. He is a George W. Bush clone and will follow Bush's dastardly agenda.

Sen. McCain seems willing to engage in slander, bigotry, and non-issues. Imagine what our country will look like if these conditions which already exist under the present regime are allowed to continue.

Those are just my favorite parts!

Church people tend to be obsessed with "sin".  In many Christian minds, the main measure of a man is his loyalty to his wife.  Therefore, I think it will be very telling if Rick Warren does not ask John McCain about his past adultery, both political and personal.

I found a great little summary by Lisa Johnson.  Digg it.

Fast forward: McCain begins an adulterous affair with the younger and very wealthy Cindy Hensley. He divorces his wife and marries Cindy. Her family helped bankroll his entry onto the national political scene. Shortly after first being elected to serve as a US Representative, he became entangled in the Keating Five scandal. As it also happens, Keating was an associate of Cindy McCain’s father, and helped bankroll McCain’s campaign. Can we say the word "political corruption?" Of course, after McCain was caught with his fingers in the cookie jar, he "regretted" what he had done because it "didn’t look right." Sounds familiar again, doesn’t it? The ones who get caught "regret" their actions but they choose NOT to apologize to the people whose trust they have betrayed.

In the press conference today, John McCain said something that I could not follow.  It seems that CBS News was puzzled too.

When reporters pointed out Lieberman’s statement to McCain, who was standing next to Lieberman during today's press conference, McCain gave a response that left some confused.

"Well, let me respond by, by just saying that, I think that whatever we think at the moment, that we can all reserve that for a future time. And I think judgments will be made about how we handled that situation, how we approached the situation in Iraq, and how much experience and knowledge and background means in selecting the American people’s decision as to who should be the next commander in chief. And so all I can say is there will be plenty of time for that."

I guess the reporters were as flabbergasted as I was.  Can anyone translate that for me?

It's called High Infidelity, and it is about time that John McCain's similar behavior got some mainstream press.

Personally, I am totally disgusted by the constant media coverage of sex scandals... but at least they balanced the scale.

While McCain was married to his first wife, who was disabled from a car accident, he was "aggressively courting a 25-year-old woman who was as beautiful as she was rich," according to a New York Times colunmist's account of the 1970s incident that predated McCain's election to the Senate.

(Please DIGG the article up.)

UPDATE: Obviously this article comes nowhere near "balancing the scale", but it is at least a tiny pull in the direction of fairness.  I am so fed up with the corporate media that I can't tell hyberbole from cheese.

Word.

Before I celebrate this glorious morning in the spin zone that is the CNN Political Ticker, I want to applaud the USA Men's 400 Freestyle Relay team for achieving a new pinnacle in Olympic moments. I have been watching sports for each of my 47 years on Earth, and that race was Heavenly.  I just KNOW that Barack and Michelle were watching and screaming their hearts out along with the rest of America.  Thanks boys, you done good.

Now, onward to the the daily snapshot of a CNN Political Ticker page that swells my soul even thicker.

We have stuff like this, while Grampy McSame was trying to show off his war-making skills:

In his remarks, McCain repeatedly mispronounced the name of Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili. The gaffe comes in the wake of several incidents last month when he referred to the Czech Republic as the nation of "Czechoslovakia," which no longer exists.

But wait!  There's more, with links, and it's even better...

What a thrill.  The all-night coverage of the Beijing Olympics provided a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Serendipity to smile on the 2008 Presidential election. It was a 24-hour nail biter; waiting with baited breath to see which candidate would be blessed by the perfect combination of American athletic achievement and synchronistic commercial placement during the coverage.

Barack Obama’s brilliant "Hands" commercial won the contest.  It just happened to be aired immediately following the first medal ceremony for the USA - which was a triple sweep for the women’s fencing team!

These guys simply cannot seem to get on the same page, even in their own heads.  Curiouser and curiouser.

Dana Milbank is becoming more and more of a sell-out, and he sugar coated the Pawlenty endorsement of the Obama positive campaign.  He still managed to uncover another moment of split personality in the ongoing crisis of message in the McCain campaign.

When asked to name the most important quality in a VP candidate, Pawlenty said:

"Discretion."

Unfortunately it seems that the better part of valor is lost on Pawlenty. The article starts with a terrible joke that he had made himself three months ago.

The Minnesota governor, who aspires to be John McCain's vice president, said during a radio interview in the spring that his wife enjoys fishing, football and hockey. "Now," Pawlenty quipped, "if I could only get her to have sex with me."

That's a John McCain style joke, ranking right there with volunteering his wife for a topless beauty contest.

It does not, however, display discretion.

This is really important, and if the corporate news would pick it up they would need to run Warning screens before the evening news.

My favorite take is from WomenForJohnMcCain.com and it is called "McCain proposes New Duties for First Lady".

As Women for John McCain, we’re proud to support the candidate with the most innovative ideas for women in the workplace. And with an outstanding record that includes fighting to keep equal pay for women from becoming a reality in our country, it’s no surprise that our next president, John Sidney McCain III, has offered up our next first lady, Cindy McCain, as a competitor for cash prizes in a "topless beauty pageant. And sometimes bottomless, too." The LA Times reports:

"Before taking the stage, McCain and his wife bought four souvenir T-shirts. While in the store, McCain glanced at a rack of red T-shirts that featured a picture of a topless woman, apparently Miss Buffalo Chip or a wannabe.

A few feet away stood the woman herself, who goes by Jessica, wearing a black bikini and black leather chaps, signing autographs."

And here we thought John McCain was AGAINST the evils of Celebrity.  I guess not.

Forgive me the sports analogy this morning.  One of the corporate media "officials" was REALLY out of line this morning in his final comment and I need to keep my perspective.

On Face the Nation, while calling a penalty on both teams for negative campaigning, Bob Schieffer called equal fouls on the McCain and Obama campaigns.  The Britney ad was equated to something that does not exist.  He actually said that the Obama team was questioning John McCain's military record.  Huh?

In sports, this situation is common.  The referees give one side or the other a decided advantage.

A true champion overcomes the additional difficulty and wins anyway.  

With the biggest week of the General Election so far now in the books, the contrast between the two candidates has become even greater.  The two campaigns could not be more different.  Which one displays the kind of President we need to take America into the future?

The big difference between the New Yorker cover and David Horsey's parody?

The McCain version is very close to the truth, and it is based on facts rather than lies.

I love Bob Schieffer's parting comments on Face the Nation.  Last week he reminded us that the American Revolution was not as inevitable as we have come to assume, and that the founding fathers were risking their lives by signing the Declaration of Independence.  Today was even more enjoyable, since he thinks that this week's Presidential Election campaign was so sloppy and damaging to the candidates themselves that they should just press "pause" until after the convention.  I will talk more about the man and his interesting opinion after the break, and I look forward to someone helping me find a transcript and video for the segment in question because Bob Schieffer actually invoked a bit of lolspeak!  

I quote:

McCain said Gramm didn't speak for him.

ORLY???

(Thanks to webranding for the transcript in the comments!)

There are a few things that I just can't get my head around.  Help me understand.

Why has the traditional media largely ignored the worst week of the cycle for the Republicans, while obsessing on Jesse Jackson's irrelevant remarks?

Why is the tunnel vision outrage over the FISA vote still staining the undeniable opportunity we have to change the direction of our country, making history in the process?

Why would anyone willingly vote for John McCain in this election?

Hello, my beloved Kogs.  I have some good news, and I would like to indulge myself a short diary to announce it - so that you can have a joyous evening alongside us as we head out to see the premiere of Hellboy II: The Golden Army!

(That painting is by Mark Zug, from a Magic the Gathering card called "Heedless One".  It looks exactly like my lovely wife, and it also bears an uncanny resemblance to Guillermo Del Toro's new Angel of Death in the movie.)

If you remember my sobering diary from a month ago, you already know that the residue from Jeb Bush's evil legacy has stained the state of public education in Florida in a very ugly way.

Thanks to some serious grass-roots parent outcry, a strong and focused effort from my local teacher's union, all the good vibes and green magick from my friends here on Daily Kos and elsewhere, and perhaps from Barack Obama's own insistent vow to keep the arts in America's schools... my job is safe again.

(Follow me over the break to see Nina's hand painted shirt as a thank-you treat.  If we can save my job, we can take back the White House!)

Over the past few weeks, Barack Obama has made a concerted effort to embrace the churchgoers of America... despite the fact that it could further alienate the far left in the process.  I found a sweet Saturday column in the Miami Herald that bodes quite well for the strategy, while exposing an amazing shift in the Evangelical voter.

After decades of the Democratic Party writing off evangelical Christians, Barack Obama is making an unprecedented effort to reach out to people of faith. In contrast, Republican John McCain's outreach has been more subdued.

''It is really remarkable,'' said Hunter, whose Northland Church in Central Florida boasts 12,000 members. ``One of the many firsts of Sen. Obama's campaign is that he is probably the first Democratic candidate in history to reach out to the full spectrum of the religious community, particularly the evangelical community. . . . This is very heartening to us.''

Hunter is part of a new wave of evangelical Christians who would rather battle for peace and justice than fight the culture wars over abortion and gay marriage.

When I got home to the final edition of the Miami Herald yesterday, I found our party in full color and it got me thinking.  If MoveOn's Hungry for Change Bake Sales could bring out such a solid grass-roots wave of support for our progressive values on the hot pavement of 700 different American cities, what could we do here with our fellow Kossacks?

Some sort of coordinated event would demand a bit of brainstorming, so let's dive in.

Excuse me while I self-promote a bit.  As you may know, this past Saturday the Hungry for Change Bake Sale event turned over 700 American cities into one big small town.  Our version made it into the Miami Herald!

The online copy of the article has the full text, although the paper copy has a much cooler set of photos, and the killer title.  I must admit it is mad satisfying this morning to realize that 272,000 of my fellow Miami citizens are sipping their morning coffee and reading this:

"When you hold the candidates up next to each other, Obama will be the obvious choice," Fike said.

On The Chris Matthews Show transcript for June 22, you will find some of the most concentrated hope of the entire cycle.  I was especially emboldened by the opinions on the Economy issues.  Jim Cramer (yes, THAT Jim Cramer) of the "Mad Money" show said that Wall Street will embrace Barack Obama.

Jim Cramer: I think it's going to work. I think people recognize that the whole Bush plan turned out to be a facade, a charade, because most Americans don't own stock. It's not an ownership society. We don't care how our stocks do because they don't do well. So I think--I think Obama's making a lot of sense.

It's not class warfare anymore. We don't feel like that if we get rich, we're going to pay. We feel like, you know what, the rich have had such a great ride and what has it done for us. It's time for other people to do well.

That's what Wall Street thinks too.  (With Bush) Everybody got screwed except for a couple people who make more than $2.8 million a year.