Politics and sex, an apt combination in light of the deep economic and political turmoil currently rippling through the United States.

Controversy abounds in the U.S. with less than a week away from the National Presidential Election. Carl Rove has instigated a last desperate attempt to demoralize voters and disenfrancise Democrats by spinning the hate-mongering wheel he does so well.

From late night comedians to political commentators, the jokes are rampant regarding Sarah Palin’s wink in Obama’s latest campaign ad, further combined with last week’s fiasco with Palin’s wardrobe, which costs the Republican National Committee a whopping $150,000 at taxpayers’ expense.

Rovians working on Sarah Palin’s camp has a few more campaigning days before Election Day, which has edged the party to desperation mode. In the latest attack, Conservatives are calling the Obama camp sexist for including an image of her winking in his recent ad. Nevermind the fact that the underlying message in his ad was the substance, or lack of, in McCain’s choice of VP. Here’s a suggestion, perhaps Palin should just stop winking at the camera.

Calling foul and spitting mad, the Conservatives have now embraced feminism. Their message seems somewhat counter-intuitive, vote for the candidate that you can relate to as a mother, woman, feminist. Counter-intuitive since Palin has little in common with the vast majority of women voters.  Yet, Rovians are resorting to sex and gender to galvanize women voters to empathize with Palin’s model as a wife, working mother of five, and politician.

This pure desperation attack is a last ditch effort to revive a campaign that shows Barack Obama leading in almost double digits in most national poll. Obama has taken the lead by focusing on having a dignified and intellectual stimulating campaign, a position that the Republican Party has been unable to maintain in the last few months. Obama has avoided being drawn into meaningless and distracting discussions of Palin’s exterior portrayal and has consistently stayed on the issues. Not once did he say about his running mate that he was “proud” of him, something that McCain has used in a few instances when referring to Palin. That is sexism.

As I said in my earlier post, Hillary Clinton finally stepped aside and expressed her support of Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination for the Presidential Election this November ‘08. It is now the beginning of the Democratic hate-fest sponsored by the Republicans.

In the news, there are numerous articles outlining the beginning stages of the hate wheel rolling all over Obama. For instance, right wing social conservative Fox News headlines that “Johnson Steps Down From Obama VP Team, Marking First General Election Casualty” falsely implying that Johnson, who was on the team Obama is using to vet for his vice president candidate, is somehow plays a bigger role than that. Apparently, by keeping Johnson on the team would indicate that Obama is hypocritical and by getting rid of him, Obama is caving into pressure. I appreciate Obama’s honest response that in this campaign - there’s no time to vet the vetters, especially in this writer’s opinion, there are so many important issues facing America. Nonetheless, there’s no stopping Fox New’s residential hate bomber, Michelle Malkin, from name-calling, innuendos and all around attacking Obama for being “best friends” with Johnson, and through some unnamed sources has managed to get special treatment in one loan in 1998. No revelation of sources, just lots of hating. There’s no winning with these Obama haters.

Another FOX News headline, “Does Obama Really Not Mind High Gas Prices (As Observed by GOP)?” stating that Obama believes that America should shoulder the high costs of oil, when in actuality, he is stating that it should be a gradual increase. John McCain’s campaign has ignored the fact that they just voted for Big Oil profits and their cronies in the White House want to increase the supply of oil, making prices lower, but at the same time, increasing America’s dependence and consumption of oil. Is that really a solution to the problem? Leave it to Fox News to distort and twist the truth. At least Obama is looking for a long term solution to ease America from its dependence and focus on green alternatives and alternative fuels. Where are the right wing conervatives’ solutions? Oh right, they want to reduce gas prices by a few cents, thereby giving them the sound bite to declare they have the people’s interest at heart.

To further distort and spread lies, Malkin has gone on air and called Barack Obama’s wife, Michelle, “Obama’s bitter half.” This is based on Michelle Obama’s comments about how she’s never been so proud of America as she is now. While her husband’s people quickly clarified her statement to mean that she’s proud of the way America has responded to this election year, with record turn outs from young voters and minority voters - Malkin did not miss an opportunity to dispense her hate bombs in the foray to advance her own agenda. Malkin constantly picks on peripheral issues and take things out of context to advance her own neo-nazi conservative voice.

In case you have not heard some of her arguments, here’s a sample -she thinks the Japanese internment was not only justified, but was also necessary in the name of national security. Another issue? Lets deport illegal immigrants, even those who may have professional degrees and lived in the United States for decades, even those who have paid their taxes and have United States citizen children - all in the name of national security. Oh, and she also believed the John Kerry, back in the 2004 election, had shot himself intentionally while in the Vietnam War so that he could undeservingly receive the three purple hearts. All from either unnamed sources, or sources that have since recanted, and further hateful allegations.

I digress. Now it’s just between Barack Obama and John McCain, but don’t think that it will be a clean fight from hereon. Better take off those kiddie gloves because the smear campaign has only just begun.