Month: September 2008

Headline from the (near) Future: Pelosi Sworn in as 44th President

(Washington, D.C., 21 Jan 09) Nancy Pelosi (D, California) was sworn in as this nation’s first female President by Chief Justice John G. Roberts on the steps of the US Capital building this morning after neither the House nor Senate were able to resolve last November’s Electoral College tie between Barack Obama and John McCain.

“The people of America must be able to rely on their elected representatives to fulfill the responsibilities set out in the Constitution of the United States. I will serve as President until such time as Congress settles this great question, guided by the results of the popular vote, the advice of my Cabinet nominees and in consultation with the two candidates. As already announced my Cabinet will by drawn from the ranks of qualified women and men of both parties.

“However, unless informed otherwise by relevant legal authorities, I intend to retain my vote in role calls and the Presidental resolution as a member of the California delegation in the House of Representatives and to return to the Speaker’s office once the House finds a majority will.”

Under the Constitution, a new President must be inaugurated by January 20 and as Speaker of the House of Representatives Pelosi was next in line for the top job. This unprecedented event came after both candidates won 269 Electoral College votes in the Nov. 4 balloting, throwing the race into the hands of Congress. Senator Obama won the popular vote by a nearly 2,000,000 vote margin.

The House is required to elect the new President but with conservative Democrats throwing support to McCain neither party could muster the 26 state block votes to win the post. The Senate was caught up by parliamentary procedures that enabled several senators to block Democratic VP Joseph Biden despite his party’s nearly 10 seat majority.

While both houses are expected to eventually make permanent selections, statements in recent days from Roberts clearly made today’s dramatic interim outcome necessary. Obama and McCain separately told reporters they accepted Pelosi’s elevation as important for an orderly transition from the Bush Administration but expect her’s to be among the shortest of Presidential tenures.

“America must have a Commander-in-Chief sitting in the Oval Office and through the wisdom of our Founding Fathers the answer to this crisis is simple,” said Senator McCain at the National Press Club this afternoon. “I thank President Pelosi for her prompt agreement to step in and expect the Congress to immediately put aside party politics and elect a new President and Vice President as their duty and the people of this great country require.”

Legislators have only had two weeks to decide this issue since the new Congress was sworn in just after the new year. The House of Representatives appear closer to breaking the deadlock, with rumors and unattributed news reports claiming that either Nevada or Rhode Island will switch from the Republican to Democratic columns within days.

“America’s Constitution has once again demonstrated its greatness and the foresight of its authors by providing for the difficult situation in which we find ourselves,” Senator Obama said on CNN this afternoon. “President Pelosi has my full support and confidence and I will work with her to ensure the nation moves forward without respite to deal with the huge economic and security problems left to us by President Bush.”

The Senate needs at least several days to perhaps a week to clear away several procedural matters presented by Republican senators from Wyoming, Alabama and Texas but once done Senator Biden should become Vice President with at least 53 votes. If this happens before the House completes work, he would immediately become acting President.

Should neither house be able to get a majority result, President Pelosi will remain in office until the 2012 elections. She can stand for the office in that race but under the 22nd Amendment having served more than two years in the current term would not be eligible to run again 2016.

Liverpool 2-1 Manchester United: Woo ha!

Because of the Setanta crap this game wasn’t available to the vast majority of American fans but I was quite happy to read this headline on BBC Sports just now:

Ferguson lambasts Man Utd display

Lovely words for any Reds fan, eh? Especially with Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres starting on the bench from injury, our captain only coming on at the 68th minute, and the Red Devils’ five years of league dominance continuing with a smart early goal by Tevez off a brilliant pass by newly bought Dimitar Berbetov, one would hardly have expected the result.

10 points off our first four Premier League matches has us at the top of the table (pending Chelsea’s outcome in a couple of hours) and Man Utd only four off three matches. We have an interesting run of five games, probably mostly winnable: at Marseilles for the opening Champions League game midweek, new boys Stoke City–who are beating Newcastle 0-2 after 70 minutes today–next Saturday, a Carling up tie with League One side Crewe, the ‘away’ derby with Everton and finally yet another CL clash with Dutch power PSV Eindhoven.

Is this the year the title drought ends? Sir Alex and his teams have taken 10 league title in that time to climb within one of Liverpool’s all-time record but one can only hope today’s hard working result foretells just that ending!

World Cup 2010 Qualifying, Day 1: USA look terrible

Even taking account of the downpour in Havana and very poor officiating–though nowhere as bad as that in the Hungary-Denmark match–USA played down to the level of competition and were lucky to get a 1-0 win over a team that has exactly zero players on club rosters outside their island nation.

Bob Bradley went with a five man midfield but despite the extra man were not able to get Brian Ching a single good opportunity. The one goal we had, from Clint Dempsey in the 40th, was down to a lucky bounce after the Cuban defenders beat Dempsey on the initial cross and Ching was able to touch it back to Clint.

The top goat, besides the coach, was Maurice Edu. Fresh off a decent performance at the Olympics and a $5 million transfer to Rangers, he was horrible all night with his passing. Either short, too soft, to the wrong place, wherever, if the US had given up a goal it would most likely come off a bad Edu pass.

Landon Donovan is next on my list. While I can’t point to the same kind of specific miscues as with his fellow midfielder, Landon was never the attacking engine he should have been. After all, of his American all time team record of 35 goals, six came in two previous matches against Cuba. Tonight the closest he came was a couple of shots well high from distance and, in general, he played too deeply to be the connection between balls out of the back and Ching.

Somehow Heath Pearce started at left back for the seventh consecutive game. I cannot believe that we don’t have a better option. Where are Jonathon Bornstein, Jonathon Spector or even Eddie Lewis? Heck, if Bradley wanted a five man midfield he could have gone with Onyewu, Bocanegra and Frankie Hejduk in a 3-5-2, pushing Dempsey up top with Ching and inserting Sacha Kljestan into the XI. We probably would have won by three or four goals!

Next up for the US is a much tougher match Wednesday against Trinidad & Tobago, who managed a 1-1 draw at Guatemala today. We’ll have Steve Cherundolo back (from a ridiculous two yellows in a game suspension), maybe see Kljestan, Marvell Wynne or Ricardo Clarke in the starting lineup and the game is in Chicago, so for once we may have more supporters than the visiting squad.

Elsewhere French soccer fans must be wondering the hell has happened to a team that won the World Cup/Euro double back in 1998/2000. They lost to an Austrian team 3-1 by giving up essentially two own goals and a penalty kick! How Domenech will keep his job if the lose the game against a very tough Serbian side==remember, he didn’t win a game in the Euros in June and the team went out at the first round–I do not know. Teflon coach or not.

Italy needed a last gasp score to beat Cyprus 2-1, England (missing the injured Steven Gerrard) could only manage two against micro-minnows Andorra and Spain (missing Fernando Torres) snuck past Bosnia-Herzegovina just 1-0.

Israel apparently has a decent shot of making it to the Finals and an injury time goal gave them a precious point against a very difficult Swiss side after going behind 2-0. Liverpool’s Yossi Benayoun got the first and Chelsea’s Ben Sahar the equalizer. The Sabras travel to Moldova midweek, so hopefully the full three points from that.

What’s the timde difference from the West Coast to Johannesburg?