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We are down to the wire folks with only seven days until election day. In that seven days we can expect McCain, Palin and the GOP to throw as much slime and diversion as they can muster to try to scare, terrorize and fool voters into voting for them.

We can’t let them get away with it. Not this time. Not this year. Not when so much is at stake.

I know that some of you are just ready for this election to be over. But, we are at a transformative moment in our country’s history where we can make a break from the failed politics of fear, hatred and division as practiced by Bush, Cheney, McCain and Palin.

Rather than offer solutions to deal with the financial, healthcare, energy and climate crises we are facing McCain, Palin and their supporters have tried to convince us that Sen. Obama is a closeted Muslim who is BFFs with terrorists, hates America and wants to teach six year olds about sex. None of that is true, of course, but that’s what you do when don’t have proposals to effectively deal with the challenges facing our country.

On the issue of LGBT civil rights, the differences between Obama and McCain could not be more stark.

As I pointed out in my posts, Gays Won’t Let Friends Vote McCain, No Way. No How. No McCain/Palin. and The LGBT Case for Barack Obama:

Barack Obama:

• supports an inclusive ENDA
• supports the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act
• supports the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell
• supports the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act
• opposes state constitutional amendments banning marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships

John McCain:

• opposes basic civil rights protections for LGBT Americans
• supports the ban on openly gay Americans serving in the military
• opposes gay adoption
• would appoint Supreme Court justices that would overturn Roe v Wade

In these seven last crucial days, please help get out the vote for Barack Obama.

With a week to go before election day, Sen. Barack Obama delivers his “closing argument” as to why we should elect him as our next president.

John McCain, Sarah Palin and the GOP will throw every bit of slime and diversion they can muster to try to scare, terrorize and fool voters into voting for them. We have to expose their lies and continue to talk to voters about why a victory by Sen. Obama is so crucial for us as LGBT people and for the country.

We must work as hard as we did when Obama and Sen. Joe Biden were down on the polls and Sarah Palin had just begun winking her way into the hearts of (male) right-wing ideologues. That’s why you should read the following and do all that you can to get out the vote for Obama and Biden on November 4.

TOP 5 REASONS OBAMA SUPPORTERS SHOULDN’T REST EASY

1. The polls may be wrong. This is an unprecedented election. No one knows how racism may affect what voters tell pollsters—or what they do in the voting booth. And the polls are narrowing anyway. In the last few days, John McCain has gained ground in most national polls, as his campaign has gone even more negative.

2. Dirty tricks. Republicans are already illegally purging voters from the rolls in some states. They’re whipping up hysteria over ACORN to justify more challenges to new voters. Misleading flyers about the voting process have started appearing in black neighborhoods. And of course, many counties still use unsecure voting machines.

3. October surprise. In politics, 15 days is a long time. The next McCain smear could dominate the news for a week. There could be a crisis with Iran, or Bin Laden could release another tape, or worse.

4. Those who forget history… In 2000, Al Gore won the popular vote after trailing by seven points in the final days of the race. In 1980, Reagan was eight points down in the polls in late October and came back to win. Races can shift—fast!

5. Landslide. Even with Barack Obama in the White House, passing universal health care and a new clean-energy policy is going to be hard. Insurance, drug and oil companies will fight us every step of the way. We need the kind of landslide that will give Barack a huge mandate.

If you agree that we shouldn’t rest easy, please sign up to volunteer at your local Obama office by clicking here:

http://pol.moveon.org/obama/office.html?source=blog&id=14534-4287560-uoUVCox&t=1

It seems there is a new threat to our country- an insidious danger that is seeping into our homes and everyday lives that must be stopped at any cost. That threat is intellectualism.

We have heard the some of the buzzwords of this political season- Folksy, Joe Six-pack, Elitist, and Arugula Eating. It seems the new “culture war” or wedge issue is intelligence. The Vice-Presidential debate only solidified the lines in this war. On one side, you had Palin- full of “folksy charm” and “you betcha” language. Then you had Biden, who had a command of the issues, but was called “boring” and (gasp!) “professorial” by the pundits.

Is this the point we have come to in our country? Do we really think that having knowledge about an issue is a liability? Have we learned nothing from the past eight years about voting for the person you “want to have a beer with”? Is being smart or intellectually curious a bad thing?

It seems the war is on and the Republicans have launched another surge strategy.

I have been absolutely dumbfounded as I have watched the level of discourse (and the ensuing media coverage) in this political season. There has always been a level of “east coast intellectual” bashing from the right, but this cycle it has been raised to a completely new level.

We have seen McCain release vapid attack ad after attack ad about “celebrity”, all the while being devoid of any facts or issues. We have seen Palin stumble through interviews, to the point of not even being able to name any newspapers she reads (very reminiscent of George W Bush, who famously said he doesn’t read). The media even praised Palin in the debate for being “down to earth” and a “breath of fresh air.”

How is dumbing down our country a breath of fresh air? Lowering the discourse to these levels (Paris Hilton, hockey moms, and lipstick- oh my!) has been staggering and disheartening to watch.

The war has not only been waged by promoting the “Joe Six-pack” quality (a term that makes my skin crawl and sounds incredibly offensive) of McCain and Palin, however. They GOP has taken to throwing around charges of elitism, arugula eating, latte and martini drinking to show how Obama and Biden- and by extension all Democrats- are “out of touch” with “real” Americans. It’s an amazing argument- by being too smart and thoughtful on issues, they just don’t understand anything. Want proof? They eat fancy salad and drink coffee.

It is also constantly being said that both Obama and Biden are too “professorial”, as if being an intelligent leader is a weakness. Professors are people who KNOW THINGS and can lead and teach others. How is that an insult? They simply know too much to be the leaders of the free world? All those pesky details floating around in their heads makes it impossible for them to lead? Huh?

How did we get here? I certainly don’t want just any old Average Joe to lead our country. I want someone who knows facts and issues. And if they don’t know something, I want someone with the intellectual curiosity to learn and find out! Pick up a newspaper, get online, and surround yourself with other intelligent people. Yet McCain can’t use the internet and Palin can’t name a paper she reads. Where is the intellectualism to be a true leader in this time of trouble in our country?

Let me be clear- I don’t care if politicians don’t seem “fun” or “folksy”- I don’t want to have a beer with them. I want them to lead. “Going with your gut” is not a viable option for this level of leadership. Quick sound bites or catch phrases don’t make you a good leader. I don’t care if you can hunt, were in the PTA, or wink at me- I want you to be educated about the issues facing our country.

Intellectualism is a quality we want in a leader. I would rather have someone who might be a bit dry and heavy on the facts than someone who is folksy and dead wrong any day.

But hey, what do I know? Maybe I’ll just stick to eating my elitist arugula salad and reading.