Yes, you heard it here first. Barack Obama has chosen Senator Biden to be his running mate. I just got the text message about 2 minutes ago, as I'm sure most of you did. The full text of the text message is included in this diary.

I gave in and made an open thread. Either this will be ignored and scroll into oblivion as new VP threads make their way into the noise, or we can distill all this fervor a little bit.

VP VP VP VP VP VP VP VP.

A decision has been made.

New York Times

Mr. Obama’s advisers said he reached his VP decision while on vacation in Hawaii. They said it marked the end of what proved to be an unexpectedly intense process, condensed because he did not want to start actively vetting potential running mates before Mrs. Clinton quite the race in June.

New York Times

In the 26 states and the District of Columbia where registration data were available, the total number of registered Democrats increased by 214,656, while the number of Republicans fell by 1,407,971.

More below, including completely unrelated poll question.

Great article, video series, and photo essay that follows Union General William Sherman's war-route through Tennessee, Georgia, and the Carolinas in the present year to examine the slowly changing culture of the south and its impact on the election.

The article questions the role of the past in the present, and how accepting - or not - the evolving South has become, as well as how far it has to go. In addition to old black-white racism wounds, the new scapegoat of illegal immigration is impacting the cultural debate as well. The article begins:

George W. Bush and Barack Hussein Obama have unsettled the South: the first with a reckless war and a weakened economy, the second with the color of his skin, the foreignness of his name, the lofty liberalism of his language. Suddenly the palliative prosperity that salved old, deep wounds no longer seems adequate to the task.

The article was written after a roadtrip by the son of Deliverance writer James Dickey. Links and more below the fold.

John McCain is a racist, sexist bigot.

Born in 1936, the year of FDR's second re-election, the beginning of the Spanish civil war, the publication of Gone With the Wind, and the completion of the Hoover Dam, McCain is a man of the past stuck awkwardly in the present. Here are some unmistakable instances of racial prejudice.

On his campaign bus recently, Sen. John McCain told reporters, "I hated the gooks. I will hate them as long as I live." Although McCain said he was referring only to his prison guards, there are many reasons why his use of the word "gook" is offensive and alarming. Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2000

Does McCain still hate Asians?

From the Knoxville News-Sentinel: In addition to professing a hatred for the liberal movement and gays, the accused murderer, Jim Adkisson, also had copies of books written by Bill O'Reilly, Michael Savage, and Sean Hannity in his home, along with bullets and other weapons.

Police found right-wing political books, brass knuckles, empty shotgun shell boxes and a handgun in the Powell home of a man who said he attacked a church in order to kill liberals "who are ruining the country," court records show.

More disgrace below the fold...

Reid said he would consider writing a joint letter with Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) demanding that superdelegates make their endorsements public.

"The three of us, we may write a joint letter [to superdelegates]," said Reid. "We might do individual letters. We are in contact with each other."

Reid's comments suggest that the party’s top three officials are contemplating a high-level intervention if the primary season concludes in June without a nominee and many superdelegates still undecided.

He also implies a big endorsement is in the works. Continued:

Disclaimer: I have genuinely come to dislike the Clintons and the Clinton campaign in general, as my previous diaries and comments can attest. I was an Edwards/Obama supporter, then completely Obama by March of last year. I have been an ardent supporter of Obama ever since. However:

We need one of two press conferences this week. One by the Obama campaign or one by the Clinton campaign. See below.

This is just a short diary on a relatively easy action you can take - Now! Google has recently unveiled a new maps system that allows you to plan trips (from vacations to everyday excursions) using solely public transportation. With gas prices rocketing and global warming on many minds, this new technology is a step in the right direction.

The problem? U.S. cities are woefully underrepresented!

A person's bookshelves and favorite books offer an understanding of how one's mind works. There is much to be ascertained from the reading of a particular book or genre - those precious moments of time used on hardcovers of information reflect a personal desire for such information, and that reflects personality traits. What a person allows in is almost as important as what one lets forth from their mouth.

Below is a list of some favorite books from Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John McCain, and Bill Clinton.

According to John "Anger Management" McCain's website,

"accountability and transparency are the pillars of essential reform" (link to site, if you dare)

But! Oh noes!

"While both Democratic candidates for president have released several years worth of full federal tax returns, John McCain has not. As a self-professed champion of disclosure and ethics, John McCain should explain why for the past 26 years he has not seen fit to provide this important financial information to voters. Presidential candidates have disclosed several years worth of returns for decades, John McCain stands as a disturbing exception." DNC

So for those of you arguing that the Clintons' tax returns are a nonstory, how do you feel about the McCains'? According to MSNBC:

A McCain spokesman tells First Read that the Arizona senator will release his tax returns after they're filed, the week of April 15.

ABC News is reporting that the Clintons have made "well over" 50 million in personal income since leaving the White House, mostly from Bill Clinton's speaking arrangements. Here's a snippet from the article:

An independent review by ABC News has found that since leaving the White House seven years ago, the senator and her former president husband have made well over $50 million, much of it from paid speeches made by Bill Clinton.

A review of Sen. Clinton's annual ethics filings found that her husband has earned $47 million in fees from more than 280 speeches he has made around the world.

They all are for different people and to differing degrees. An LA Times blog dissects the recent NBC/WSJ poll. Interesting results below the break.

NYT published details of a new government study that measured income and life expectancy from the 1980s to present. Perhaps the results aren't surprising, but it's just another reason why electing a good Democrat for President is so important this year.

Religion aside, today (Easter) is about self-renewal. Our nation needs a substantial self-renewal to reverse this dangerous and dismal trend. The article demonstrates the effects of unequal economic policies in real terms. People are living shorter lives than their rich counterparts; from healthcare to education to dietary information, we're leaving the poor behind in greater and greater numbers.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is America, mind you.

There's been a lot of talk about Republicans crossing over to jeopardize the results in favor of a prolonged Democratic fight. Most commentators cite right-wing radio's call to vote for Hillary and further split the party. Some people are forgetting the cross-overs based not in spite but genuine interest in the party and its nominees. I've collected some articles from the MS primary over the past few days. The articles don't cite many ulterior motives in today's vote - but rather agreement on policy issues with the Democratic nominees or disagreement with John McCain.

Before you read this, let me clarify some points.

I'm not advocating abolishing superdelegates or in any way challenging the rules as currently set. I believe in following the rules of an election. That said, I really cannot envision the superdelegates overruling pledged delegates and in some way rebuking the popular vote of Americans across the country "for the sake of the party". It would be absolutely insane. But some superdelegates are advocating just this in subtle, hypothetical fashion. This from the Washington Post today.

False hope.

"We can't have false hopes. We've got to have a person who can walk into that Oval office on day one and start doing the hard work that it takes to deliver change." - Hillary Clinton

How very, very true. You know, the only ratcheting of false hopes in this election is coming from the Clinton campaign. There will never be a "dream ticket". There's no way Hillary Clinton will stand toe-to-toe with John McCain on national security. Her false hope is that this party will somehow forgive her for making us all look like fools, that we'll shrug off her rooting for McCain while providing him ample ammunition against Obama. It's politics, right? Her completely false hope is that we will coalesce around the fearmongering, untruths, and full onslaught of negativity that has consumed and fueled her campaign's recent 'successes' - that we'll come around. Mrs. Clinton, in case your political taoism isn't allowing reasonable advisers to get your attention, I'll write it down for you: You lost the race weeks ago. Your false hope is that you can rebuild this party.