The Fact-Checker, by Michael Dobbs

wouldn't that be fruit mousse? :D Though a fruit moose would be quite the centerpiece!

Are you serious? When a Presidential Candidate gets caught red-handed PLAGURISING word for word from an unattributed source, it's a minor deal???

Obama heard crap for days over the "Just Words" flap and his speech just contained two words that were his friends.

Cindy McCain is probably not responsible, but John McCain should apologize to his trollop tootsuite!

Y'know, I'm not sure everything warrants a "-gate" after it.

Y'know, I'm not sure everything warrants a "-gate" after it.

Ya know, calling this "Recipegate" on one hand pokes fun of the idiocy of "Bittergate," on the other continues the trend of escalating piffles to scandals...

There is something pretty sad about this situation, though. Why would you post something so blatantly false (plagiarized at that) on your website that's completely nonessential to your campaign?

Makes me wonder if anything else on his website is a concoction... Makes me wonder if other parts of his image are a facade...

Reporters?

HaHaHa! They are so phony - just like everything else Republican. I'll bet she has a cook.

If this had been Michelle Obama, the media would be all over this demanding an apology!

If HRC gets the nod, will Cindy and Bill have a cook-off? If so, what would be the point?

I don't mind giving Cindy a pass, but it makes me furious when I think about how Fox and CNN would nail Michelle Obama to the cross over this. I guess this is was elite folks eat!!!!

You've got to be kidding. I'm a very strong Democrat and support Obama in the race, but this is an absolute non-issue. Does anyone really believe that national candidates and their wives sit down and write out recipes for whoever asks?! It's ALWAYS a staffer or intern who gets this job, and is totally irrelevant to the election.

How could this be? Cindy McCain always looks so genuine and spontaneous.

Ma Hillary's Down-Home Pennsylvania Roadkill Pie

My Paw taught me this'un while he wuz learnin' me to shoot out back of our shack on Lake Winola down Scranton way.

Grab yer 12 bore and a shovel and jump in the ol' Lexus truck and mosey on down the road a piece. You'll be lookin' fer a good-size coondog, or mebbe a possum. Scrape it up with the shovel (the shotgun is fer shootin' roadsigns).

Serve cold on a bed of Stars-n-Stripes and pink slips. If'n it's too bitter, add a dash of Crown Royal.

Ma Hillary's tip of the day: If you ain't got no job since the steel mill shut down, try bowling.

Praise the Lawd!

Sen. Obama hads consistently said that he is not receiving campaign money from Washington Lobbyist. As a matter of fact, he is using this assertion to bolster his image.

Why don't you check the facts on this one. I will bet my last dollar but this not only unbelievable but a complete lie.

Washington Post, there are some much more salacious stories out there and hotter even without an oven involved, right under your noses! Different candidate with an old friend that has the initials L.S.

To: Margaret Rockenbeck | April 15, 2008 8:09 PM

An absolute non-issue? Let's see:

The McCain campaign decides to put a "Cindy's Recipes" feature on its web site, for whatever reason. Now, don't tell me Cindy McCain and John McCain didn't pre-approved the decision, especially Cindy since her name would be used.

Question: Did Cindy and John really believe that there was such a thing as a "McCain Family Recipe"?

Answer: Apparently, they knew from the very start that there was no such thing as a "McCain family recipe" since all four featured recipes were lifted from somewhere else, three from FoodNetwork.com and one from Rachael Ray.

So, what kind of character does a candidate for President have who tries to foist a deception on the sovereign people to achieve a purpose? If elected, how many deceptions would McCain try to foist on the American people to suit his agenda? Should the American people not learn a lesson from the deception that is the Iraq War that Bush, with the help of McCain (not to mention Hillary), foisted on them?

And you say foisting deceptions on the people is an absolute non-issue?

To: Margaret Rockenbeck | April 15, 2008 8:09 PM

An absolute non-issue? Let's see:

The McCain campaign decides to put a "Cindy's Recipes" feature on its web site, for whatever reason. Now, don't tell me Cindy McCain and John McCain didn't pre-approved the decision, especially Cindy since her name would be used.

Question: Did Cindy and John really believe that there was such a thing as a "McCain Family Recipe"?

Answer: Apparently, they knew from the very start that there was no such thing as a "McCain family recipe" since all four featured recipes were lifted from somewhere else, three from FoodNetwork.com and one from Rachael Ray.

So, what kind of character does a candidate for President have who tries to foist a deception on the sovereign people to achieve a purpose? If elected, how many deceptions would McCain try to foist on the American people to suit his agenda? Should the American people not learn a lesson from the deception that is the Iraq War that Bush, with the help of McCain (not to mention Hillary), foisted on them?

And you say foisting deceptions on the people is an absolute non-issue?

"Bittergate" seems to be a "gate only in the mind of the media who seem hellbent on creating news since the polls in PA show that it's had precious little effect.

This is ridiculous, for fact-checking purposes. One of the things a good cook does, who is not a professional or full-time homemaker, is to collect good existing recipes and incorporate them into their stable of base recipes. This is especially true the more simple and elegant of a cook one is, where high-wuality ingredients and details of their handling and presentation are key.

About half of my "family recipe" contributions are not my own manufacture! This doesn't mean my collection isn't a great one or a "family" collection!

My first reaction was "who cares"?

Besides, Cindy is one right-eous MILF.

"Righteous," get it?

BUT THEN I THOUGHT MORE ABOUT IT...and some folks here are correct. IF Michelle Obama had pulled this kind of a gaffe, or her holiness Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton, the MSM+FOX would have a field day! And WaPo would lead with the story.

Life just ain't fare, sometimes, is it?

("fare" -- get it?)

I better go now. My mom is calling me.

Granted this is not an end-of-the-world transgression, but it is an example of a candidate who will try to get away with as much as he can, including plagiarizing the works of others. (Yes, copyright infringement is a crime). What is infuriating is the fact that you become part of the McCain publicity machine by taking your marching orders from McCain's campaign spokesman.

You lose any credibility you might have had my making light of the issue by putting the chef's hat on the Pinocchio. What's the matter? Didn't have enough time to send them donuts like you sycophant bretheren in the AP?

You are the joke.

dang, they didn't even change the font!

Ha ha. Such whimsy.

Then I looked into Cindy's background, and waddya know:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cindy_Hensley_McCain

1. an affair with McCain while he was in a "troubled marriage" - where I come from, that's still adultery.

2. Former addiction to drugs. Okay, no problem with that. Who's perfect, right? But it can affect your judgement.

3. Firing the guy who blew the whistle on you for embezzling. See #2.

What's your take on this, Mr. Factchecker, hmmmmm?

J'accuse!

I don't care for Dobbs's columns, and I don't think he is fair.

If Michelle Obama had done this, she would be crucified, and the republican/ lazy media spin would be that she is a lazy, out of touch elitist who doesn't actually know how to cook.

Cindy McCain is a smoking hot republican, so it's a non-story, even though it is a clear example of outright deceit by the McCain campaign.

A small example that highlights a huge "character" flaw right? That's what the republican media machine is all about.

People copy stuff off of the internet all of the time; probably everyone has recycled information when they lacked content. Do I really think that Cindy knew about this? Of course not; She's been around the block longer than an overzealous intern...only a newbie would be dumb enough to submit something unedited like that.
As to why she wouldn't review it first, well, she probably has p.r. people who do her proofreading, duh. As long as the recipes they were given were without errors, why would they doubt the intern as to their authenticity? You know there are glitches in every machine. Think about it.

To: Annette Keller | April 16, 2008 10:01 AM

My understanding of a "family recipe" is that it's something that has been handed down from generation to generation. It's sort of a "heirloom". Maybe, it's a recipe for clam chowder that great grandma used to prepare that has been handed down to family members through the years. There's a sense of proprietary claim to it.

Recipes just collected from everywhere for family use do not quite qualify as "family recipes" in the real sense of the term.

It seems to me that if you entitle a tab on your webpage, "McCain Family Recipes", that even the most neophyte intern would know that you actually need to get those recipes from the "McCain Family", and if Cindy didn't know, WHY didn't she know? Seems like she should have been contributing to the recipe page or not had one at all. Furthermore, it calls into question, for me, what else is real or unreal about the website - are those John McCain's views or some intern's, and does John contribute to and/or know what's on his website, under his name?

Totally PI thought:

You're being very unfair. It shows that: Either Cindy bleaches OR at least one blond has a friend who reads Rachel Ray.

For further credit: Find out if she can actually follow the recipe.

Totally PI thought:

You're being very unfair. It shows that: Either Cindy bleaches OR at least one blond has a friend who reads Rachel Ray.

For further credit: Find out if she can actually follow the recipe.

Here's another thing to consider. "Interns" are getting blamed for everything, yet I, as a recent college graduate and age-mate to these supposed interns, have a hard time believing that there are this many stupid people out there. Yes, I know there are stupid people.

But it probably went like this:
PR: Lets do something to show Cindy is down-home like everyone else. Cooking? Good idea. Lets make a page of recipees.
Intern: Good idea. When can I talk to Cindy about recipees she uses?
PR: Cindy doesnt have time to talk to you, you lowly intern. Just pull some crap off the internet and make it good.

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