Trail Mix

by TED S. McGREGOR JR. & r & & r & "Lots of Work" & r & & r & That's part of Hillary Clinton's money quote from last Friday's visit, after she was obviously moved by her trip through the alternately ice-encased and pothole-pocked streets of West Central Spokane, one of the very poorest parts of the entire state. "I will remember coming to Spokane," Clinton told the crowd at the West Central Community Center, "driving down the streets and seeing there's lots of work to be done here."





Over at the Michelle Obama rally at the Fox, the streets had an impact, too. In her red coat and blue jeans, Joann Moquist was a colorful, if perhaps accidental, symbol of a bipartisan campaign to increase funding for computers and staff in school libraries as she handed out brochures to the mob waiting to hear Barack Obama's wife speak. At one point, Moquist dashed across Monroe Street and ripped her jeans as she was nearly swallowed whole by a giant pothole.





"Isn't that just perfect," she laughed. "Now I want it all -- good streets and good school libraries."





Happy Valentine's Day!





Now this is the old Republican Party we've been missing -- sophomoric, simple-minded and Hillary-hating. In a recent Republican National Committee e-mail, some soon-to-be-promoted genius penned this sonnet on behalf of their beloved potential opponent.





"Roses are red, violets are blue. I'll raise your taxes, and there's nothing you can do!"





Belch in Agreement


Everybody remembers how pivotal it was back in 2000 -- you know, the question of which presidential candidate you'd rather have a beer with. Nobody wants to hear how the planet is going to melt while putting on a buzz, but stories about that one time George W. Bush traded Sammy Sosa -- now that's good times.





To firm up the key question in 2008, the National Beer Wholesalers Association has launched an online survey to find out who you'd rather share a bowl of peanuts and a game of pool with -- drinking-age voters only, please. And by all means, enjoy your malted beverage responsibly -- drunkenly hitting on chicks is not part of the scenario, even if that Dennis Kucinich is the greatest wing-man of all time.





Check out www.whodoyouwanttohaveabeerwith.com to log in your pick. And if you're too loaded to hunt and peck all that on your laptop, you can also get there through www.nbwa.org.