A Hurricane of Another Kind?

WE'VE MOVED! Democratic Convention Watch is now at http://www.DemocraticConventionWatch.com

As I prepare to begin my last 16 hour work-day here in Texas, I have one little anecdote, and one bit of "what to watch for" later today.

First, last night, coming out of a restaurant with a business associates, I saw it. Obama support - it was a woman in a "got hope" tee-shirt. I pointed and started walking over to her. She looked a little frightened. I explained how great it was to see Obama support. Her discomfort turned out to be the fact that she works for the IRS, and was afraid that I was someone she had audited. We laughed and spent a few quality moments talking hope and change, before it was time for me to go back to work. AH JOY!

Anyway -- what do the names "John McCain" and "Raffaello Follieri" have in common? The former is, well, you know. The second is a convicted felon. Think: wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy.

Prosecutors have said the 30-year-old Follieri posed as the Vatican's representative to the U.S., telling investors that the Roman Catholic church would sell him property at a steep discount.

From New York Magazine:

Follieri has ties to McCain as well. Shortly after he entertained the Republican candidate on a rented yacht in Europe in 2006, he hired the lobbying firm Davis Manafort for his Catholic Church business initiative. The company was founded by top McCain adviser Rick Davis.

So here's the hurricane, perhaps: expect to see a photograph later today of McCain spending his 70th birthday on Follieri's yacht.