Monday, 1 December 2008: Part 1

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

Today we will all spend some time today trying to sort out in our minds what happened in Mumbai (Bombay) last week, who did what, and what happens next?

But a few other things will be going on today also:

Last spring, Edward "Uncle Teddy" Kennedy was supposed to receive a honourary degree at Harvard last spring, and deliver the commencement address. Illness prevented that, but today, he will receive the award.

The honor is in recognition of Kennedy’s lifelong commitment to public service and his tireless efforts as a champion for a range of social issues including health care, civil rights, labor, employment, the environment, and education.

Vice President-elect Joe Biden will attend.
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Spunky is in Georgia today, stumping for Saxby Chambliss. Even her home town newspaper is not impressed.
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The Big Three return to DC today. Of course, the question will be they're supposed to be bringing a plan to save them: will they bring something worthwhile? The fun question is: how will they get there?


Seriously, the Big Three will have divergent paths today. If you read that NY Times link, it mentions that Chrysler may need a new partner. What the Times doesn't mention is that Cerberus, which bought a controlling interest (80%) in Chrysler in 2007, wants its money back. Cerberus claims that it was misled by Daimler-Chrysler. Let me repeat: Cerberus wants ALL its money back: that's over $7.2 billion. (USA Today, 28 November 2008, page 4B.)
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Over in Illinois, Governor Rod Blagojevich is still looking for someone to replace President-elect Obama in the Senate. He spoke with Rep. Luis Gutierrez, who turned him down. According to Gutierrez: Governor Blagojevich shared with me today that he was very interested in me as a candidate for the U.S. Senate seat, but that his preference is to appoint someone who will run for a full term in 2010.

But there's more. Richard M. Daley is up for re-election as Chicago's mayor in 2011. Gutierrez may be looking to run against him. To do so, he needs to solidify support amoungst the city aldermen sooner rather than later, and staying in the House would provide a better opportunity to do so.