Spitzer running for Senate?

Since admitting to his liasons with a professional prostitution service and subsequent resignation as Governor of New York State, Eliot Spitzer has done a remarkable job of improving his image in the last year. He is now a media star, lending his expertise and knowledge of economic and political matters to various cable news outlets, detailing with exact precision the unscrupulous and nefarious practices of Wall Street and the financial sector, while simultaneously criticizing those in the Obama Administration for not doing what's necessary.

But could a political comeback be in the making? Since his resignation and the swearing in of David Paterson as New York Governor, polls have shown that New York residents would prefer to have Spitzer as governor than Paterson.

There is now word that Spitzer has been discussing with close friends about a possible return to the political arena, according to The Daily Beast. Lloyd Grove has spoken to three Spitzer confidantes, with one telling Spitzer that a return to politics is out of the question, while the other two did not discourage him. Spitzer of late has been asked repeatedly if he would run against New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, to which he has denied.

In late 2009, a friend of Spitzer's commented to the Daily Beast:

He wants to be relevant. I think he keeps toying with it—running against Kirsten Gillibrand or running for comptroller. He doesn't have to raise the money. He already has the money, if he decides to do it. I told him he had to consider if this was something he wanted to drag his family back through again, especially if there is anything else [that is, a fresh scandal] out there…I hear that Silda [Spitzer's wife] doesn't want him to do it.

Not only has Spitzer become a darling of cable news networks and public speaking engagements, but he also recently addressed his discretions directly in an interview with BigThink.com, in which he provided humility by admitting his personal failings, and on appeared on The Colbert Report, in which he rolled with Stephen Colbert's jokes:

Ben Bernanke, who oversaw the collapse of not only the United States but pretty much the entire world financial system and brought our economy to its knees, has been reappointed as head of the Fed. Does this give you hope for being reelected governor of New York? Because, may I remind you, he screwed everybody!

I just became a big fan of Ben Bernanke.

And the Sheriff of Wall Street has his many fans, as he's needed now more than ever before. Here's a recent Spitzer appearance on Democracy Now!, in which he discussed the banks, the bailouts, the Obama Administration's handling of the banks and regulation, Tim Geitner, Ben Bernanke, and all things relating to current economic and political matters:

Jack Layton has prostate cancer

Federal NDP Leader Jack Layton announced at a press conference this afternoon in Toronto that in late 2009 he was diagnosed with treatable prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is a treatable and relatively lesser fatal form of the disease. Layton's father, Robert Layton, a former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister in Brian Mulroney's government, was also diagnosed with prostate cancer, and in May 2002 died due to complications from prostate cancer and Parkinson’s disease. Layton would emphasize at the press conference that "Like my dad, I am a fighter and I am going to beat this". Layton's wife, fellow NDP MP Olivia Chow, was also previously diagnosed with thyroid cancer, but succesfully battled the disease in 2005 and has been healthy since.

Layton will not be stepping down temporarily as the federal NDP Leader. He will continue to serve as both leader and MP for his riding, Toronto-Danforth. Layton will also undergo cancer treatment in Toronto, which has already begun.

Since being elected leader in 2003, Layton has significantly raised both the profile and the electoral successes of the NDP. The NDP currently holds 37 seats in the House of Commons (57 under a proportional representation electoral system). Under Layton's reign, not only has the party's seat totals dramatically improved, but the party's total voter percentage or share has doubled, as has its public funding.

My thoughts are with Jack, his family, and supporters, while hoping for a speedy recovery.

Shocking: Many Republican voters believe Obama is a racist, socialist foreigner

The DailyKos website commissioned the non-partisan Research 2000 research firm to conduct a poll measuring the beliefs, perceptions and attitudes of the Republican base, specifically concerning President Obama. There's really no surprise here, as the base holds the most insane and ludicrious beliefs or perceptions regarding the Commander-in-chief. Congratulations are in order for Fox News and the Republican leadership for their non-stop stream of ludicrious talking-points, lies and smears:

• 39 percent of Republicans believe Obama should be impeached, 32 percent said he should not be voted out of office, 29 percent are not sure.

• 42 percent of Republicans believe Obama is a natural citizen, 36 percent believe he was not born in the United States, 22 percent are not sure.

• 36 percent of Republicans believe Obama is not racist, 31 percent believe he is a "racist who hates white people" (what Fox News's Glenn Beck has previously stated), and 33 percent were not sure.

• 63 percent of Republicans believe Obama is a socialist, 21 percent believe he is not, 16 percent are not sure.

• 43 percent of Republicans believe Obama does not want the "terrorists to win", 33 percent aren't sure, 24 percent believe Obama wants "the terrorists to win".

• 55 percent of Republicans are not sure if the community organizing group ACORN stole the 2008 presidential election, 24 percent said they did not steal the election, 21 percent of believe ACORN stole the election.

• 58 percent of Republicans believe their home state should not secede from the federal union of the United States, 23 percent believe that their state should secede or seperate from America, 19 percent aren't sure.

• 53 percent of Republicans believe Sarah Palin is more qualified to be president than Obama, 33 percent aren't sure, and 14 percent believe Obama is more qualified to be president than Palin.

There are also some disturbing numbers concerning gay rights and the seperation of church and state in the poll. Now couple all of these poll findings with the right-wing opposition to and skepticism of the science of climate change, and evolution, and well, you'll see why the rest of the world may sometimes have negative views or perceptions of Americans. I just wonder though if an anti-gravity movement is next.