Matt Yglesias

Party On

I hadn’t realized the right was even pretending that they’re taking a “sober” approach to the coincidence of their convention with Hurricane Gustav. But for the record: Politically problematic speech by unpopular incumbent president = canceled. Parties = not canceled. Indeed, your ThinkProgress team walked passed Minneapolis’ famed rock club 1st Avenue / 7th Street Entry and saw what I think was a fundraising event featuring Sammy Hagar. They told us we were in violation of the dress code and that getting in would cost $125 so we skipped it.

I think conservatism could use a better class of celebrity endorser.

Hurrican Campaigning

I know that if I lived in an area that was trying to prepare / evacuate in advance of a major national disaster, what I’d really want would be for a presidential candidate to swing by for a campaign appearance, distracting local political officials and drawing down resources of the local public safety agencies. After all, it’ll look good on camera to be engaged with the problem!