In a Tuesday CNN interview, Ford CEO Alan Mulally went as far as to claim a healthy Detroit was essential to the U.S. economic recovery.

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Despite pleas from the Big Three, Congress remains skeptical. Still, the general consensus is Democrats favor a bailout while most Republicans are opposed. And who can really blame either side’s position? Unionized labor, which the auto industry epitomizes, tends to vote Democrat. The Republican Party’s historically anti-union stance is well documented.

While there is no doubt the American auto industry is poorly managed and has been for quite some time, does lending them $25 billion really matter? The loan could save up to 2 million jobs, and considering Congress already threw $700 billion at a poorly managed banking industry, what’s another $25 billion?

And as for Republican opposition to helping Detroit because of a faulty business model, it appears the only jobs they feel are worth saving are white collar, not blue.

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Also, nearly half of Huntington’s 65 and over population have lost all their teeth. The city also has a 19% poverty rate and a 15% college graduate rate.

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Republicans “are sowing the seeds of hatred and division, and there is no need for this hostility in our political discourse.” Lewis said. In an effort to clarify his position, Mr. Lewis later claimed he wasn’t trying to link Wallace and McCain. “My statement was a reminder to all Americans that toxic language can lead to destructive behavior. I am glad that Senator McCain has taken some steps to correct divisive speech at his rallies,” he said.

Still, McCain campaign surrogates remain unappeased. Speaking today on “Face the Nation,” Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said: “The idea that John McCain and Sarah Palin are conducting themselves like George Wallace is just incredibly offensive.”

As Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama pulls further and further ahead in the polls, the McCain Campaign has opted to attack his character. Among the more inflammatory attacks is Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s claim that Mr. Obama, “pals around with terrorists,” in reference to a tenuous link between Mr. Obama and 1960s radical Bill Ayers.

These attacks have drawn harsh, and in some cases, unsettling responses from McCain supporters, including “terrorist” and “kill him” at some recent events. In fact, audience response against Mr. Obama at a recent campaign event was so negative Mr. McCain said Sen. Obama “is a decent person” and “not a person you have to be scared about” being president.

You have to give it to the McCain campaign. They whip supporters into a frenzy with a storm of half-truths and innuendo, then whine the victim card when called on it.

When you’re running from the issues instead of on them, I guess you have to do whatever it takes.

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When asked by CNN’s Larry King if John McCain’s reference to her husband as “that one” was offensive, Mrs. Obama answered, “No.” She later added, “They (the American people) want real answers about how we’re going to fix this economy and get the health care benefits on track so, you know, this is part of politics.”

Finally, somebody “gets” it. Instead of trying to score cheap political points by playing the “indignant outrage” card that is unfortunately a staple in American politics, Mrs. Obama is sticking to relevant issues.

Sarah Palin should take notes.

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Watch How To Rig An Election

In a September 10 article published in the Michigan Messenger, Mr. Carabelli is reported as saying, “We will have a list of foreclosed homes and will make sure people aren’t voting from those addresses.”

Mr. Carabelli, chairman of the Macomb County Republican Party, distanced himself from the quote a few days after the story broke. He now denies making the statement. The online journal remains firmly committed to the story’s accuracy.

Now that Republican Presidential nominee John McCain pulled out of Michigan today, conceding that state’s electoral votes go to Senator Barack Obama, we can only hope Mr Carabelli will find more productive ways to spend his time than filing frivolous lawsuits.

Like learning to keep his big mouth shut!

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Considering how much voters hated the plan, it really shouldn’t come as a surprise the bailout vote fell short. The resulting plunge in the stock market, the largest one day loss ever, should be even less of a surprise.

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Despite directives from party leadership and the knowledge that something must be done for the sake of the country, House Republicans voted against the bill in order to gain political ground in November’s elections. By blaming the unpopular bailout on Democrats, House Republicans wanted to lay claim to an undeserved populist label and distance themselves from the Bush Administration.

It didn’t work and conservative commentators, the very same people who spent last week blasting the bailout, now support it. Among those with a change of heart is former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Unfortunately for Republican presidential hopeful John McCain, Speaker Gingrich repeatedly urged Mr. McCain to oppose the bailout.

Meanwhile, Mr. McCain “suspended” his campaign last week and, in a fit of cheap theatrics, returned to Washington to help broker a deal. And what a deal it was. Two-thirds of House Republicans voted against a bailout supported by President Bush, Republican House Minority Leader John Boehner, and Mr. McCain himself. This in turn caused the stock market to shed 700 points, or roughly a little over a trillion dollars.

And so Rome burns while the Republican Party eats their own.

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The cause of the financial crisis is defaults on mortgages which have lead to widespread foreclosures. These bad mortgages are crushing banks and other financial institutions. Once passed, the bailout will permit the  Treasury Department to buy up to $700 billion in problem mortgages.

The government believes it will recoup most if not all of the $700 billion when the housing market resets. This is the same government that preaches personal responsibility and extols the virtues of a free market.

America, don’t hold your breath waiting to get that $700 billion back.

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And that fallout comes in the form of middle America’s disgust with the market, as they see the bailout helping Congress’s rich friends. A bipartisan poll conducted by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich found most Americans opposed to a Wall Street bailout.

Most Americans are sick of being held to a higher standard than either their elected officials or the business elite. We are constantly picking up the tab for deregulated markets, risky investments, and ill-advised overseas ventures. Meanwhile, we’ve seen real wages decline, jobs move overseas, and health care becoming less and less available.

Washington needs to listen to what the American people are saying. If Congress is going to spend our money, then they should spend it on us.

If not, then give it back!

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And that focus is causing considerable worry in some Republican circles. In the few interviews she has consented to, including a recent one with CBS Evening News Anchor Katie Couric, the Alaskan Governor comes across as an incompetent neophyte.

A weak showing in next week’s debate with Senator Joe Biden could make or break Mrs. Palin’s viability as a legitimate candidate.

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Perchlorate has contaminated soil, groundwater and drinking water in 35 states as well as the District of Columbia. It has also seeped into 153 public water systems spanning 26 states that provide drinking water to between 20 to 40 million people.

EPA assistant administrator for water, Benjamin Grumbles, said, “Science, not the politics of fear in an election year, will drive our final decision.”

“Until then, final numbers and strategies are mere speculation,” Grumbles added. “We know perchlorate in drinking water presents some degree of risk and we’re committed to working with states and scientists to ensure public health is protected and meaningful opportunities for reducing risk are fully considered.”

This is just the latest in a series of controversial EPA decisions and should end up saving the Pentagon, the biggest user of perchlorate, hundreds of million of dollars in cleanup costs.

Again, another example of our government  working for us. Mr. Bush can find $700 billion for a taxpayer funded Wall Street bailout, but whines and cries over cleaning up drinking water and improving health standards.

Maybe if Halliburton or Blackwater expanded their operations to include environmental cleanup the administration would have a change of heart. After all, has Mr. Bush ever said “no” to them?