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Silly us to get down on Gore for using more than 20 times the average American's consumption of energy while lecturing the rest of us about our own wastefulness. The deal is, we just can't comprehend how he's avoiding damaging the environment with his magical, lefty ways.

From Gore, via Think Progress:

1) Gore’s family has taken numerous steps to reduce the carbon footprint of their private residence, including signing up for 100 percent green power through Green Power Switch, installing solar panels, and using compact fluorescent bulbs and other energy saving technology.

2) Gore has had a consistent position of purchasing carbon offsets to offset the family’s carbon footprint — a concept the right-wing fails to understand. Gore’s office explains:

What Mr. Gore has asked is that every family calculate their carbon footprintand try to reduce it as much as possible. Once they have done so, hethen advocates that they purchase offsets, as the Gore’s do, to bringtheir footprint down to zero.

It’s the latest in a series of desperate attacks by Drudge to paint Gore as a hypocrite...

These are the lengths that climate skeptics must go to suppress actionon global warming. There is no meaningful debate within the scientificcommunity, so the right-wing busies itself with talk about how muchelectricity Al Gore’s house uses — and even then they distort the truth.

The lengths weren't really all that great. The story pretty much writes itself when the self-proclaimed guru of global warming uses 20 times as much power as the rest of us. I mean, two times as much? I could see that. I'd probably still point out the hypocrisy, but 20 times? I'm no enviro-freak, but I turn out the lights when I leave a room and shut off the water while I brush my teeth, and it keeps my bills quite a bit more modest than Gore's $30K a year. We right-wingers can't help it if the plain facts of Gore's lifestyle make every normal person in America go, "Wait, he's lecturing me? What a jerk!"

I wonder how many "carbon offsets"-- trees I buy that other people promise to plant for me to soak up all the emissions my lifestyle creates-- I'd have to buy to take care of my $27-a-month power bill, huh? I'd hate not to be carbon-neutral, like Gore is.

Treacher:

Not to mention that if I can barely afford my electric bill when Ikeep my thermostat at 68 degrees in the winter and only turn on thelights at night to keep from tripping and breaking my neck when I getup to take a piss, how am I supposed to afford "carbon offsets"?

It'sgreat that he's using solar panels and all that, but notice he's notdisputing how huge his electric bill still is. What the hell is hedoing in there? Is he a Terminator from the future and requiresconstant recharging? (That would explain pretty much everything.)

It seems one can only save the environment these days if he has enough extra money to spend on making up for his own consumption. I can't believe lefties would exclude so much of America from this great crusade based on their income. It's disgraceful. Well, I guess all the poor folks could just have their power cut off, period. If all of us who can't buy carbon offsets did that, in the dead of winter or summer, we'd shortly offset ourselves, if you know what I'm sayin'. Problem solved.

Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore just addressed the conservative blogger briefing at The Heritage Foundation.

Most of his time was spent discussing substantive issues, such as national security (Gilmore has tremendous national security credentials, having served as Chairman of a national commission on prevention and response to terrorism).

But just before the meeting broke up, Gilmore broke some blogger-specific "process" news that was especially interesting to those at the meeting: He pledged to be the first President to maintain a personal blog.

Because it came up in response to a direct question (very late in his briefing to us), it does not appear to be the case of a candidate merely seeking to pander to the blogosphere.

And while this proclamation may sound trivial to some -- or possibly sensational to others-- Gilmore gives a good reason for embracing this technology. He explained that he has used both radio and television to communicate important information to his constituents. As he explains, why not use this technology, too?

He also believes that the blogosphere is a way to go over the heads of the establishment media, and get his message directly to the people.

From a political standpoint, Gilmore is doing just what he needs to do. Frontrunners can afford to take safe positions and not rock the boat. It seems to me that this was a missed opportunity for every other candidate. Kudos to Gilmore for being the first. The other candidates just got trumped.

Read Rob Bluey's post.

This is what the Romney team is saying about the Boston Globe Story:

Outside consultants routinely offer input and analysis – both solicited and unsolicited – on the dynamics of a political campaign.

The observations cited in the Boston Globe’s unverified document, reportedly composed by an outside consultant, are reflective of well-known or commonly reported observations about the current field of presidential candidates that have already been published in the media.

Strategists are paid to put together memos on campaigns.  Nobody says that a strategists' PowerPoint is Gospel.  Reading in between the lines, I think this is probably much ado about nothing.

This is a "sexy" story, in the sense that we're seeing the "tan lines" of a political campaign -- the stuff you're not supposed to see.  As far as I can tell, that's the only hook that makes this story, in and of itself, newsworthy.  But the bigger question is: Does this story confirm a narrative that is developing about Romney?   

First it was Rudy Giuliani who had his campaign plan leaked to the media. Now this ...

Today, the Boston Globe reveals they have obtained "an exhaustive internal campaign document," detailing Romney's campaign strategy.

According to the Globe:

The 77-slide PowerPoint presentation offers a revealing look at Romney's pursuit of the White House, outlining a plan for branding himself, framing his competitors, and allaying voter concerns about his record, his Mormon faith, and his shifts on key issues like abortion.

Here's a line that some Republicans might find concerning:

... the plan lists two ways Romney can set himself apart from Bush. The first says, simply, "Intelligence."

(I thought everyone was trying to get Bush's support? Guess not. Last week McCain takes a shot at Bush in California, and now this???)

The plan also implies Romney's team may be gearing up to launch a possible attack on Rudy Giuliani:

The plan also touches on what it calls Giuliani's ethical issues, including his relationship with Bernard Kerik , former New York police commissioner who withdrew from consideration to become US homeland security secretary amid allegations of improprieties. It raises Giuliani's "personal political liabilities," an apparent reference to his three marriages and bitter public divorce from his second wife, Donna Hanover.

Obviously, nobody wants their internal plans to become public. I don't want you to see my plans for taking over the world any more than Mitt Romney wants you to see his plans for winning the presidency.  But they are out there now. 

It should be noted that the mere fact that Romney's team is researching and gathering information on his opponents does not necessarily mean he is going to use this information in any sort of scurrilous way.  This is what campaigns do.  Good ones, anyway.

Another problem with any document like this is that it's hard to tell who actually wrote it. No doubt, it was a "strategist" -- not the candidate. As TR famously said, "Politics is like making sausage." The point is that the wrangling that goes on behind the scenes of any political campaign would generally not be viewed favorably by the general public. And, in an era when most Americans want less ribald in their politics, this story certainly won't earn him any points.  Still, this is "inside baseball."  It's the stuff that pundits talk about for a day or two.  But, as we saw with Rudy's leaked plan, this will almost definitely be a minor bump in the road. 

Another interesting phenomenon about all of these leaked documents is that 1. They don't tell us anything we don't already know (we know that Romney needs to address the Mormon issue, lack of war-time experience, etc.), but 2. It is still newsworthy to hear a candidate (or his team) admit their limitations -- and acknowledge they are playing the "game" of politics.

Lastly, is this just an example of the liberal media trying to stop a candidate from winning the nomination?  It is interesting that both of the campaign plans that have come to light have been on the GOP side...

I don't recall another year when so many internal campaign plans have been revealed. Is this going to become standard?

The Tennessee Policy Center caught him at it:

  Last night, Al Gore’s global-warming documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, collected an Oscar for best documentary feature, but the Tennessee Center for Policy Research has found that Gore deserves a gold statue for hypocrisy.

Gore’s mansion, [20-room, eight-bathroom] located in the posh Belle Meade area of Nashville, consumes more electricity every month than the average American household uses in an entire year, according to the Nashville Electric Service (NES).

In his documentary, the former Vice President calls on Americans to conserve energy by reducing electricity consumption at home.

The average household in America consumes 10,656 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, according to the Department of Energy. In 2006, Gore devoured nearly 221,000 kWh—more than 20 times the national average.

Last August alone, Gore burned through 22,619 kWh—guzzling more than twice the electricity in one month than an average American family uses in an entire year. As a result of his energy consumption, Gore’s average monthly electric bill topped $1,359.

Since the release of An Inconvenient Truth, Gore’s energy consumption has increased from an average of 16,200 kWh per month in 2005, to 18,400 kWh per month in 2006.

Gore’s extravagant energy use does not stop at his electric bill. Natural gas bills for Gore’s mansion and guest house averaged $1,080 per month last year.

“As the spokesman of choice for the global warming movement, Al Gore has to be willing to walk to walk, not just talk the talk, when it comes to home energy use,” said Tennessee Center for Policy Research President Drew Johnson.

In total, Gore paid nearly $30,000 in combined electricity and natural gas bills for his Nashville estate in 2006.

For more than ten years, medical science has provided mounting evidence that circumcision brings substantial health benefits. Last week, the release of data from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) made worldwide headlines and gave new impetus for an ancient practice.

“Circumcision’s Anti-AIDS Effect Found Greater Than First Thought,” the New York Times declared, updating the results of clinical trials involving 8,000 men in Kenya and Uganda. In December, initial analysis showed that circumcision reduced the risk of HIV transmission through heterosexual sex by at least 50%. The latest figures in The Lancet, the British medical journal, show that the actual risk reduction is closer to 65%.

“Look,” said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which financed the trials. “This is a one-time, permanent intervention that’s safe when done under the appropriate medical conditions. If we had an AIDS vaccine that was performing as well as this, it would be the talk of the town.”

He said that the $15 billion U.S. AIDS initiative and the World Health Organization were considering paying for circumcisions in high-risk countries. Daniel Halperin, an AIDS specialist at Harvard, cited a positive trend leading to greater acceptance of circumcision among African men. A review of 13 surveys in different African communities showed that 29 percent to 87 percent of uncircumcised men said they would be willing to be circumcised as protection against AIDS.

For religious Jews, these developments look intriguing, but neither startling nor particularly significant. We’ve been circumcising our baby boys for 3,000 years because of holiness, not health. Some research may suggest medical benefits from this sacred rite, just as the Biblical dietary laws may (or may not) confer health advantages to keeping kosher. The point of both practices, however, isn’t physical, it’s spiritual: making distinctions in behavior (and even in the most intimate part of the anatomy) based on a covenant with God. Of course, we welcome the good news about using a timeless procedure to protect against a modern pandemic, but encouraging studies in the Lancet won’t alter our basic commitment to circumcision any more than some prior research eagerly trumpeted by circumcision’s opponents who deny the utility of the practice.

Meanwhile, there are various factors about this horrible plague of AIDS that deserve special attention from all those who take Scripture seriously.

For many years, we’ve known that the best way to contract AIDS is to engage in a practice (male homosexual “intercourse”) strictly prohibited by the Bible.

Now we learn that one of the best ways to protect against the disease is to follow a procedure solemnly commanded in the Bible (circumcision).

These observations in no way prove that AIDS represents some sort of divine scourge, or that a supernatural God goes out of his way to reward those who are circumcised.

The emerging facts, however, provide haunting reminders that the Bible doesn’t outline the way the world should work in some Messianic future, so much as it describes, with sometimes uncanny accuracy, the way the world does work in the painful and imperfect present.

Rep. Alan Mollohan (D- W.V.)

They do know how to breed 'em there, don't they?

Like HamNation?  Our own Mary Katharine Ham has been nominated for the Vlog Hot poll.  Cast your vote for everyones favorite Vlog!

(Note that you can now vote more than once!)

Congrats, guys! One of my favorite reads.

Check in with them now if you haven't before.

Update: All right, I fixed it again. I think the blogging tool is just messing with my mind. If it doesn't work this time, Google away.

Well, at least the afflicted were not disproportionately representative of any one racial group, right? I mean, where I come from, we want our victims of devastating conflagrations to "look like America," don't we?

Ahh, the loss of perspective in my hometown is something else.

The Chamber of Commerce wants you to be part of a March on Washington to stop Labor Unions from ending "secret ballots".  And here's the best part:  You won't have to trudge through the mushy snow in the cold to do it!

Here's how:  Just sign up and create a “virtual you” to March on the National Mall in Washington, D.C, and then look for your icon on a satellite image. It's as simple as that.  (Okay, creating a virtual "you" involves picking your gender, hair color, and clothing color.  It would be very cool if we could get a bit more specific.  Still, this is pretty cool).

Sign up and your avatar can be placed on the national mall, next to mine (or away from mine, if you prefer). And here's the best part: Your avatar won't get cold!

In all seriousness, this is a great example of how a conservative cause is getting the jump on MoveOn style tactics for creative interactive campaigns.  YouTube is sooo yesterday. Kudos to the Chamber for embracing real cutting-edge technology.

The Corner is updating throughout the day while the jury is deliberating.

One juror has been dismissed for receiving outside information about the trial, but deliberations continue with 11.

And, Just One Minute is always a go-to for this info.

H/t Conservative Grapevine.

If you've ever seen the movie Spinal Tap, you'll recall the scene when the band (who is touring America) yells to the audience: "Hello Cleveland! (Trouble was, they weren't in Cleveland).

Despite the pitfalls of mistaking the city you're actually in (they were a rock band, after all), it is quite common (and even suggested) for political candidates to try to mention the hometown restaurant -- or local high school football team -- when giving a stump speech.

Hotline's On-Call blog proves regional references aren't just for candidates. Seems Democrat strategist Chris Lehane has started using them, too:

Lehane: "If you're running as a transformative candidate, you have to be careful not to degrade the brand you're offering. Taking a whack at Bill Clinton with Democratic primary voters is like taking a whack at Derek Jeter when you're trying to appeal to Yankee fans" (DeFrank, New York Daily News, 2/23). Still more Lehane: B. Clinton "is as popular with Democratic primary voters as Cal Ripken is with Baltimore Orioles fans" (West, Baltimore Sun, 2/23).