Mark Nickolas is the managing editor of the Political Base, which was launched in October 2007 by his partner, CNET co-founder Shelby Bonnie. Previously, Mark published the widely-read Kentucky political blog BluegrassReport.org.

Prior to joining the digital world, Mark spent a decade in Democratic politics. He was a staffer to Vice President Al Gore during his 2000 presidential campaign, and was one of the original Florida recount staffers. In 2002, Mark served as Sen. Tim Johnson's (D-SD) deputy campaign manager during his 524-vote re-election victory. In 2003, he managed then Kentucky Attorney General (and current Congressman) Ben Chandler's gubernatorial campaign, and then managed Chandler's successful bid for Congress in the February 2004 special election. and his re-election later that year.

Originally from Oakland, California, Mark is a 1989 graduate of the University of California, Berkeley. He presently lives in Helena, Montana with his long-time partner, Chantel McCormick, and their three cats.

E-mail: mark@politicalbase.com
Site: www.politicalbase.com

Blog Entries by Mark Nickolas

Neanderthals At Fox News Resurrect Elian Gonzalez In Latest Effort To Undermine Obama (Seriously)

77 Comments | Posted November 21, 2008 | 01:20 PM (EST)


It seems that nothing is going to get in the way of the continued marginalization of the RNC communications' shop -- as known as Fox News -- now that they've helped to sweep Republicans out of power in Washington for many years to come. Just when you think that Fox...

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How Far Will Obama Take 'Team of Rivals' Approach? ... Hillary? McCain? Romney? Lieberman?

98 Comments | Posted November 14, 2008 | 12:15 PM (EST)


Turns out that Hillary Clinton (D) and President-elect Obama (D) met yesterday in Chicago, presumably to talk about the possibility of her being named Secretary of State.

My two cents: I love the idea. It would be great if Obama named Clinton as his very first cabinet appointment...

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More Shameful "False Equivalence" By The Traditional Media To Annoy You

107 Comments | Posted November 12, 2008 | 01:43 PM (EST)


One thing that's as shameful as the ever-present problem of 'false balance' that the traditional media rams down our throat each day, is the misleading stories they publish which are rooted in the fallacy of 'false equivalence.'

In a nutshell, false equivalence is an exercise where a reporter holds...

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Will Prospect Of Palin In Senate Save Stevens From Expulsion?

51 Comments | Posted November 5, 2008 | 01:53 PM (EST)


Not to rain on our post-election parade...but here's some food for thought...Among the yet-to-decided U.S. Senate races is the Alaska seat where 7-count convicted felon Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) is seeking re-election. The last count I've seen shows him with a modest lead.

While it seems quite likely that...

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The Simple Distillation Of McCain's Message Problem

4 Comments | Posted November 3, 2008 | 05:31 PM (EST)


One of the most important challenges in running a political campaign is distilling and defining a central message or rationale for your candidacy. Equally important is to do the same for your opponent. The best campaigns manage to effectively define themselves and their opponent.

Along those lines, one of the...

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McCain Took $51,400 From Partners Of Law Firm Founded By Charles Keating, Including Own Nephew

25 Comments | Posted October 30, 2008 | 05:10 PM (EST)


Twenty years later and John McCain (R) is still lining his campaign pockets with contributions associated with Charles Keating, who you'll recall was Cindy McCain's business partner prior to the infamous Keating Five scandal which tarnished McCain's own political career.

On July 31, 2008, campaign finance records show...

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What Political Malpractice Looks Like (The B Team That Ran The McCain Campaign Into The Ground)

133 Comments | Posted October 27, 2008 | 06:32 PM (EST)


Yesterday's big New York Times story on the state of the presidential race says the final days will find both campaigns buried in red states:

Mr. McCain and his running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, are planning to spend most of their time in Florida, Ohio, Virginia,...

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Last Month: WaPo Fashion Editor Declared Palin's Wardrobe Had "Nothing To Do With Fashion" (Another Reason To Stop Listening To Critics)

11 Comments | Posted October 22, 2008 | 05:36 PM (EST)


If you want another prime example of why we should stop relying on (or even listening to) the opinion of critics -- be they political pundits, movie critics, or fashion editors -- allow me to highlight last month's widely-read fashion assessment of Sarah Palin's (R) wardrobe by Washington Post Fashion...

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Will Giuliani's Top Staff Lose Two Presidential Campaigns In One Year?

25 Comments | Posted October 9, 2008 | 02:27 PM (EST)


Back in June, many of us laughed and laughed at the idea that John McCain (R) and the RNC was putting the top staff to Rudy Giuliani's (R) disastrous presidential campaign to run the general election ground game.

Recall that Giuliani's campaign manager -- Mike DuHaime -- is McCain's...

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Media Idiocy: Don't Blow VP Debate Or You Might Win

3 Comments | Posted October 2, 2008 | 03:58 PM (EST)


Here's a quickie.

If you've been watching cable news today no doubt you've noticed their obsession over how the vice presidential candidates will perform this evening, especially whether Joe Biden (D) will make a gaffe and whether Sarah Palin (R) will give us another 'moose in the headlights' moment.

But...

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What A President Obama's Cabinet Might Look Like?

92 Comments | Posted October 1, 2008 | 01:53 AM (EST)


POST-ELECTION DAY UPDATES:

President Obama Cabinet Update, Analysis and Odds

Obama Names Transition Team

The Political Doppler Effect

President Obama: Barack Obama Becomes America's 44th President (Electoral Maps)

Obama's Victory Speech (Video, Text)

Potential Obama Cabinet Home Page

Barack...

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Momentum Shift Complete -- McCain Not Leading In Any Daily Tracking Poll

Posted September 18, 2008 | 01:12 PM (EST)


The momentum shift away from John McCain (R) is now complete as none of the four daily tracking polls show him in the lead this morning. The final holdout -- Rasmussen -- now has the race tied, and it's the only daily tracking that shows McCain within 4 points. I...

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S&P 500 Down 14% Since Bush Took Office -- So Much For Social Security Privatization

Posted September 17, 2008 | 04:36 PM (EST)


Today, the stock market took another major tumble, with the Dow Jones dropping 450 points (more than a 4 percent drop).

But much more importantly is the fact that the broader market (S&P 500) fell 57 points to 1,156 (almost a 5 percent drop). I say "more importantly" because one...

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Bye Bye McCain Bounce -- National Tracking Polls Show Race Shifting Back To Obama Over Past Four Days (UPDATED)

Posted September 16, 2008 | 02:35 PM (EST)


The anxiety and bed-wetting that many Democrats have been experiencing about the state of the presidential race over the past few weeks should be subsiding as the Palin effect is wearing off and we're seeing clear signs that the McCain bounce is over and the pendulum is swinging back to...

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Feds Finally Seize Failed Bank That McCain's Son Ran

Posted September 8, 2008 | 02:47 PM (EST)


One item that I've discussed a great deal here has been that of the failing bank (Silver State Bank) that John McCain's son -- Andrew McCain -- ran as a member of the bank's board of directors and its audit committee. (See previous stories below)

Well, we have an update....

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Cat Got Your Tongue, James Dobson?

Posted September 5, 2008 | 11:52 AM (EST)


Here's Focus on the Family's James Dobson during the 2000 presidential race, condemning John McCain (R):

McCain has accepted huge contributions from the gambling industry and apparently is comfortable with the proliferation of gambling in American society.  He has also accepted large contributions from producers of alcohol.  McCain...

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2004: GOP Blasts John Edwards As Too Inexperienced To Be VP...2008: GOP Leaders Say Sarah Palin A Great VP Pick

Posted August 31, 2008 | 01:04 AM (EST)


Maybe the most remarkable thing about John McCain's (R) choice of the woefully inexperienced Sarah Palin (R) to be a heartbeat away from the oldest man who would ever be elected to the presidency, and a three-time cancer survivor, is the truly shameless hypocrisy of Republicans over this pick.

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'10 Questions' With Montana's Populist Cowboy Governor Brian Schweitzer

Posted August 30, 2008 | 09:42 PM (EST)


The day after Gov. Brian Schweitzer's (D-MT) very well-received speech at the Democratic Convention, Political Base's managing editor, Mark Nickolas, spent some time with him.

====================================================

10 Questions With Gov. Brian Schweitzer
Montana Governor Discusses His Convention...

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More GOP Woes: Abramoff To Testify and Be Sentenced On Day Of McCain's Acceptance Speech

Posted August 28, 2008 | 03:59 PM (EST)


While this morning's Gallup national tracking poll is already showing a clear convention bounce for Obama (even though he hasn't yet spoken), from McCain 46-44 to Obama 48-42, there are a number of very clear obstacles that Republicans are going to have to navigate next week to avoid the...

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Excuse Me, Pat Robertson, But Why Is God Sending Another Hurricane Towards New Orleans For The Start Of The GOP Convention?

Posted August 27, 2008 | 09:48 PM (EST)


Remember all the jackass comments by whackjobs such as Rev. Pat Robertson and Rev. Jerry Falwell on why God sent planes into the World Trade Center on September 11th and why he sent Hurricane Katrina to level New Orleans?

So, I ask these same charlatans, why is God...

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