That’s the case if you believe what you read in the Sydney Morning Herald. The Aussies claim Obama will win a landslide victory and they don’t base it on speculation, they base it on the polls as they stand now. According to three renowned political scientists, and I’m pulling this directly from the SMH, “While no election outcome is guaranteed and McCain’s prospects could improve over the next 3½ months, virtually all of the evidence that we have reviewed - historical patterns, structural features of this election cycle, and national and state polls conducted over the last several months - point to a comfortable Obama/Democratic Party victory in November,” the three men wrote in Sabato’s Crystal Ball newsletter.

As a member of the media, I can assure you that at least at the local level, we don’t gather in a room every morning making our game plan to mislead the public in order to maintain ratings. Personally, I report what I read and see and I’ve never been told to portray something in a particular way in order to fulfill some person’s agenda.

Are they right down under or have they spent too much time in the sun? It’s a question we’ll have the answer to in under 100 days folks!

Her name is Ann Venneman and she was the first term Cabinet Secretary of Agriculture for Bush.  That’s right, George H.W. Bush. According to Politico, Barack Obama’s vice presidential search team, led by Caroline Kennedy and Eric Holder, has raised Venneman’s name more than once in discussions. Apparently, she’s clashed with democrats and environmentalists, but according to the article:

Veneman, 59, has a biography that could be suited to Obama’s unifying message. A Republican raised on a California peach farm, she rose to become the nation’s first female agriculture secretary. In 2002 she was diagnosed with breast cancer, which was treated successfully. Today she serves as executive director of the United Nations children’s agency UNICEF.

For those of you who want to check out another presidential candidate…one we have seen before, you can see Nader tonight!

He’ll be at the Trinity United Methodist Church, 600 East 50th Street. There is a $5-10 suggested donation.

What to think about today’s cover of The New Yorker magazine? Everyone is talking about how Obama is offended, but I wonder how Muslims in the area feel.

Obama’s campaign response according to the Associated Press: “The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Senator Obama’s right-wing critics have tried to create,” said Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton. “But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree.”

Governor Perry’s fiesty spokesperson, Robert Black, just announced he is leaving his post at the Guv’s office to form his own consulting firm. Wonder if Perry will hire him to help him win re-election?

Good luck Robert!

Karen Hughes, who served as counselor to President Bush is now back working in Austin for a PR/Communications firm. Here’s an excerpt from the press release:

Burson-Marsteller, a leading global public relations and communications firm, today announced that Karen Hughes will be joining the firm as Global Vice Chair. The former U.S. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs will join Burson-Marsteller immediately. Hughes will be based in Austin and report to Worldwide President and CEO Mark J. Penn. She will focus on providing clients with senior level communications strategy and counsel. 

We broke a story on our 10pm newscast last night that an interoffice DPS memo written 10 days before the mansion fire reveals security problems not at the mansion….but the Capitol.

Apparently, the lone trooper at the mansion the night of the fire wouldn’t have even been there if the Highway Patrol division of DPS hadn’t been forced to pull him off Capitol duty. In addition, the sergeant who wrote the memo said because of Operation Border Star, security at the Capitol has been weakened…and troopers from the Capitol sent to the border are putting themselves at risk as well as the public because of their lack of training. “We should reconsider our district’s support of Operation border Star. Not only do we not have the manpower to spare, many of the troopers we are sending to the border lack current training and recent experience in patrol procedures which is unsafe fore them and the public. By sending troopers to Operation Border Star, security is weakened at the Capitol.”

Governor Perry’s spokesman, Robert Black, told us “I think that is simply one junior officer complaining to a superior and we believe that the Capitol is absolutely safe right now.”

Apparently, there have been more than 100 vacancies within the DPS since 2002 that the agency hasn’t been able to fill. Troopers say bad pay and benefits would definitely contribute to that problem.