Former congressman Tom Davis (R-VA) emerges as favorite in Cyber Czar search

I don't remember a whole lot about Davis, except that in the run up to '08 (after he had decided not to run again in what would probably be a whupping) he was preaching moderation to the Republican Church Of Over The Top.

Tom Davis, a moderate Republican from Virginia, has emerged as a leading candidate for the Obama Administration's newly created position of cybersecurity czar. Sources familiar with the White House's deliberations on the subject say Obama officials feel a Washington power player would make a better candidate than a tech guru. "They want someone who understands technology issues, but more importantly, knows how to get things done in Washington," says a cybersecurity expert who has been consulted by the White House. "There are very few people who have that combination of skills, and Davis is at the top of that short list."

Davis, who served in the House of Representatives for seven terms before retiring last fall, is a Hill veteran with extensive experience in technology policy.

VIDEO: Former Republican Congressman Calls for Investigation Into Jim Cramer

By GottaLaff

Looks like someone needs a fallout shelter:

Former Congressman Tom Davis (R-VA) says it's time some investigator takes a closer look at Cramer:

CNN reporter Jim Acosta reflected on limited regulation of hedge fund’s and how they attracted “wealthy investors.” He then turned to former Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., once chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, who said Cramer’s the reason hedge funds should be considered for more regulation.

“I think he’s become a poster child for why hedge funds need more regulation and transparency,” Davis said.

When asked if what Cramer said was illegal, Davis admitted that it was not, but “should be. He may well have crossed the line.”

Davis suggested the powers that be “ought to be looking at” Cramer’s confessed manipulation from 2006. “I think the tragedy is over the last few years nobody’s been looking at this at all.”

Wow. A Republican calling for more regulations and ethics over the interests of the oligarchy? Will wonders never cease?

I'm not sure what's more stunning: The Cramer revelations or a Rushpublic (Tom Davis, yet) seeing the light. Hey, Jim:

By the way, Tom, where were you "over the last few years"?

In 2003, Davis became Chairman of the House Government Reform Committee. He served as Chairman until 2007, when Democrats became the majority party in the House of Representatives. Henry Waxman of California replaced Davis at the gavel. Davis had renamed the committee, removing "Oversight" from the title; one of Waxman's first acts as Chair was to reinstitute the name as the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Little known facts about Al Franken

By GottaLaff

Remember Tom Davis (no not that Tom Davis)? He's the guy in the photos with Al Franken. He was also Franken's comedy partner back in the day. What day? HellifIknow, just The Day. But what a day it was! And Tom discusses that day and many others, revealing some little known facts about Senator Franken:

• Perfect SATs

• Competitive on the athletic field. He was a good wrestler, played soccer.

• At 13, he earned money as a caddy at a country club golf course. One golfer was playing poorly and became cranky with his caddy.

  Golfer: “You must be the worst caddy in the world.”
  Al: “That would be too big a coincidence.”

• As a 14-year-old, he was going out on his first date, and his father, Joe, realized he had never explained the birds and the bees to his younger son. Beginning with a gentle inquiry, Joe discovered that Al didn’t appear to have a grasp of the facts. After carefully explaining the differences between the sexes, Al was confused and upset. “You mean women don’t have penises?” Joe tried a different approach, but his son became even more upset. Joe began to start all over again before Al told him he was joking.

For more, go buy Davis' book, 39 Years of Short-Term Memory Loss, by clicking on our Amazon link somewhere over there on our right side bar.

Rep. Davis: Race is over if it's about Bush

By GottaLaff

As if we didn't know. Bush is poison:

Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) cannot win the presidency if the election becomes a referendum on President Bush, a prominent Republican lawmaker, Rep. Tom Davis (Va.), declared Wednesday.

“If this is a referendum on Bush, then this race is over,” Davis said on a conference call with reporters.

Davis acknowledged the political environment is tough for Republicans because Bush’s numbers have been “in the trash can.”

I have to admit, I have gotten in the habit of associating Bush with trash. I can fully understand the Republicans' plight.

But Davis cautioned that the presidential race could also well come down to whether Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) is able to positively familiarize himself with voters who don’t know much about him.

Call me crazy, but I'm guessing that Obama will become a household word at best, and familiar to voters at the very least. His campaign is wonderfully disciplined and focused. I choose to be optimistic about this one.

Some campaign messages are better left unsaid

By GottaLaff

Politico published a piece called "A Guide to Undisciplined Messaging". It's "a list of dirty words or phrases that have already surfaced in this campaign but are better left unsaid." They include the following:

• “Sweetie” -- Barack Obama
• “Hard-working Americans, white Americans” -- Hillary Clinton
  
• “Tar baby” -- Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.); Mitt Romney
• “Boy” -- Rep. Geoff Davis (R-Ky.)
• “Cojones,” etc. -- A local Indiana labor leader; James Carville
• “Pansy” -- North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley
• Fatal Attraction -- Rep. Stephen I. Cohen (D-Tenn.)
• “Articulate” -- Joe Biden; others who were not mentioned by name
  
• Any assassination reference -- Hillary Clinton
  

Now for a few of the comments that followed, which are also a list of dirty words and phrases that have already surfaced in this campaign but are better left unsaid:

• All this is a red herring anyway. It's the MSM's way to take light off Obama's communist connections. The BIG COVER-UP.
• You forgot, Obama's Middle Name. It's akin to saying "Lord Voldermort" in the wizarding world. The PC Police (death eaters?) of the media wont allow it.
• I for one would love it if Obama called McCain a senile old goat or McCain called Obama "Tar Baby" during a debate and I think even Hillary supporters would agree that "*****" wouldn't be far off the mark as an apt description.
• Well, Barack's dad was a Muslim which means that Barack was Muslim from the moment of his birth under sharia (Islamic law) until he was baptized into Christianity at age 26 at Trinity. So folks who erroneously think Barack is a current Muslim are not too far off -- he is a former Muslim guilty of the highest crime in Islam - apostasy or "irtidad" -- punishable by death in the Middle East according to a NYT article by Edward Luttwak.

Of course, there were reasonable comments, too. I just found these more interesting.

Republicans in trouble and blaming George W. Bush

By GottaLaff

Waaah! The Wittle Wepubwicans don't wanna play with Georgie no mo'. Oh, and the Democrats are drawing blood:

Republican House leaders are scrambling to contain the damage after a third straight special election loss, with NRCC Chairman Tom Cole putting the blame on the party’s public image and former NRCC Chairman Tom Davis warning of a bloodbath in November if members can’t divorce themselves from the “brand” put on their party by President Bush.

It's all Georgie's fault! All these years they all seemed to play so nicely together. Then they go and lose a few lousy elections, start a couple of disastrous wars, make a few million people poorer, and cause sick people to get sicker, so what to they do? Blame their most favorite playmate of 7 years. Talk about fickle little brats! Check that: Awkward fickle little brats:

But sources who attended the “awkward” leadership meeting said that not one word was said about the GOP’s electoral woes or the steps party leaders might take to address them.

Other sources have talked of the possibility of replacing Cole with Davis, who has been critical of the party and of Cole’s handling of its congressional campaign arm.

These losers need a new game with some new rules. Or... they need to learn to follow the existing ones, because, boys and girls, what happens when you break the rules? You get in tro-o-ouble!

Boehner said Wednesday morning that he had “no preconceived ideas” about how the party should respond to Tuesday’s special election in Mississippi’s 1st Congressional District, a conservative stronghold where Democrat Travis Childers cruised to an eight-point win over Republican Greg Davis despite more than $1 million in NRCC spending and a visit from Vice President Dick Cheney.

Wowzers! The vice principal came to visit and the gang still didn't behave? He must be a rotten vice principal!

“When you lose three of these in a row, you have to go beyond campaign tactics,” Cole said. “A large segment of the American public doesn't have confidence in the Republican Party to deal with the issues in front of us. What we have to do is look in the mirror bit and ask how we lost our way."

The little cherubs got lost? Maybe they should have asked the nice policeman for help. No, wait. That would be mighty risky. So many of them would have been shipped right off to reform school if the coppers got wind of what they've been up to.

Davis downplayed rumors of a coup Wednesday but distributed a “Where We Stand Today” memo in which he said the three special election losses were “canaries in the coal mine, warning of far greater losses in the fall, if steps are not taken to remedy the current climate.”

Uh-oh!

“The political atmosphere facing House Republicans this November is the worst since Watergate and is far more toxic than the fall of 2006, when we lost 30 seats (and our majority) and came within a couple of percentage points of losing another 15 seats,” Davis wrote. “Whether measured by polls, open seats, money, voter registration, generic ballot, presidential popularity or issues, our party faces a steep climb to maintain our current numbers.”

Double uh-oh!

Davis warned that the Republicans could lose 19 more seats in November if they don’t find a way to reinvent their brand, which he said is now “an albatross to our members.”

I love animal stories! Canaries and albatrosses, weeee! And I bet you a zillion dollars that this one will have a happy ending! If you're a Democrat, that is.

“We don’t need to abandon long-held principles, but we do need to understand our shortcomings and make appropriate adjustments,” Davis wrote. “It starts with the brand, and the brand is Bush."

Blaming Georgie a-gain? He must be the biggest dork alive! I have a feeling he won't get invited to their next Rootin' Tootin' Cowboy Costume Party.

Davis said that Sen. John McCain, by contrast, won’t “drag anyone down” but can’t “carry anyone over the finish line,” either.

Carry them? He can't even lift them.