I haven't met Martha McKenna, so I can't speak to her capabilities beyond the fact that she was part of a team that has seen a great deal of success the last couple of cycles.

Martha just joined up with the DSCC late last year. She's an Emily's List alum and she's top-notch. A no-nonsense type who's willing to kick your ass to save it, like a catholic school nun.

I'm curious for an opinion from someone from Chicago or Illinois in general.

I've read in the past that Fitzgerald's real obsession is Mayor Daley and that his pursuit of Rezko, Blagojevich (for stuff un-related to the Senate seat business), and other local Cook County officials is all about finding someone who will "roll over" on Daley.

Is that plausible?

Blagojevich and Jackson, Jr had a face-to-face, sit-down meeting yesterday. The affidavit says that Blagojevich, on December 4, mentioned that he was meeting in-person with Senate candidate 5 "in a few days." Blagojevich hasn't had meetings with any other candidates in the last few days.

Senate Candidate 1 is almost certainly Valerie Jarrett. This does not mean she did anything wrong. In fact, probably the opposite.

Senate Candidate 5 is almost certainly Jesse Jackson, Jr. That's a shame 'cause I really like him.

Gotta give'em points for creativity. It's a real sign that they see the "change agent" label as a loose ball to dive after.

Axelrod is quoted in New York Magazine though hinting at the likely Obama campaign response: there's a scary side to being a maverick. Can you really trust a maverick in a time of war?

My sense is that Matthews will be gone in 6 months. He's going to make a run for US Senate in Pennsylvania or simply shift to doing the Chris Matthews Show and taking up his newspaper column again.

Olbermann is still the golden child at MSNBC, but they are doing this to discipline him and keep peace between he and Scarborough.

There's a decent chance Gregory is taking over MTP -- this move demonstrates the network's confidence in him -- although I think Ifill still has to be in the running.

Bingo!! That's the counter-attack. Expect it in a few days...

I am 100% confident Barack Obama and Joe Biden will win this election by 3-4 points. This convention bounce, notwithstanding.

As consolation, look at the difference between the head-to-head for LVs and RVs. The amazing organizing apparatus the Obama campaign has been building for months will have a tremendous impact on the final results.

There was definitely a sharp edge and a thinly-veiled snarl to her rhetoric. I could easily see it backfiring with moderates and independents. The problem: there was also a lot of charisma. That matters, too.

Maybe so. Critiquing it, I could tell that she was still getting the hang of it. And I think that there may have been too much edge and anger in her tone to really appeal to moderates.

But the right-wingers feel about her right now the way you may have felt about Obama on the night of July 27, 2004.

apologies for the screwed up numbering.

My thoughts:

1. That was a hell of a speech. Forget the content for a second: it truly excelled in terms of her presentation.

2. Don't be surprised to hear that the GOP raised $1-2 million overnight because of this speech.

2. There was a slight excess of edge and anger. If the Obama campaign is smart, they will use this as an opportunity to help define Palin as mean, heartless, and cold.

3. She's sticking with that utterly silly line about the "bridge to nowhere" -- she needs to be held accountable for that.

5. She's a serious talent. Don't underestimate her. I think Biden will be more than fine in the debates, but she'll be a net-plus for McCain over the next 60+ days.

Exceedingly good analysis.

No, I think the concern and complaint has been that folks have been going overboard in the assault by both veering away from policy and into family, and misconstruing some basic facts about her (the reality-based community still has an interest in truth).

That said, this statement is fair game, and good job by RandyMI for bringing it up. Palin's given some contradictory statements on Iraq policy and we need her to explain her views on Iraq and why she apparently views it as a holy mission.

The problem is that Wooten is more than an a$$hole. He's a public menace. Just look at the complaints against the guy. I'm fairly stunned that the guy hasn't been fired myself.

As regards Monegan, a quote from him: "For the record, no one ever said fire Wooten. Not the governor. Not Todd. Not any of the other staff." And even Palin's most determined opponents and critics in Alaska acknowledge that a big part of why Palin fired Monegan was a budget dispute. The reason for the investigation is because there's no reason to unskeptically accept either Palin's or Monegan's versions of the story wholesale. It's a classic "he said, she said" employment dispute.