Tuesday, April 22, 2008

LeeTerry.com


Lee Terry (finally) has his new website up for the 2008 campaign. And we have to say that it is probably the best campaign website up these days, as far as the look, ease of use, photos, videos, etc. The "Issues" section has excellent blurbs on each point, though maybe could use a link to more fleshed out information.

Now all that being said, we here on Leavenworth Street are equal-opportunity fun-of makers, so with that...

The main thing that jumps out at you is...Lee himself! Ahggh! Whoa, dude! OK, ok, we see you. Hey, it may be time to visit a tailor and get the sleeves on that shirt taken in a bit. And what's the story with the shirt pocket? It got starched into his armpit, or something. But, hey, that's nothing compared to...

That shot of Lee in his suit on the "about Lee" page. Nice shot and all, I think we've seen it before. But you have to be careful about where you crop the photo.
Hey, where are his hands??! Is that one of those giant "David Byrne" suits? It kind of reminds us of when a kid puts on his dad's suit. We just hope he's not sporting big giant shoes at the bottom of the shot.

And finally, there's that shot of Lee joyously reading the paper on the "News" page. We snarkily put our own caption on it...

But beyond all that, very good site.

***

And on the point of other breaking campaign news, Scott Kleeb has auditioned for the part of "Brandon Walsh" for the new "Beverly Hills, 90210".

***

The Recall-Fahey petitions are due today.

It's our feeling that if the petitioners had enough signatures, we would have known by now, as they would have let the cat out of the bag. The fact is, this recall is short-sighted, as there's an election next year and the sentiment about the new stadium is even at best.

We put our odds on them turning in 21,000+ good signatures at 5 to 1 (because, still, people will sign anything...).

51 comments:

Anonymous said...

To Lee Terry: If you want to look cool, do some welding in a cowboy hat. It makes you look more qualified to hold office.

Anonymous said...

That caption is dog-gone funny.

Anonymous said...

SS, are you making fun of The Talking Heads? Any early alternative music fan would be ashamed of you!

As for the website, I love the flooded blue background.

And the cartoon is more likely to be B.C. or Dilbert!

Anonymous said...

Lee Terry IS Dilbert.

Anonymous said...

This website is one of the best I've seen in years. Lee Terry is a good guy who is smart and trustworthy. Make fun all you want, but Lee is a true leader who is honestly looking out for us each and every day. He has worked hard all which is more than I can say for Jimmy boy.

Anonymous said...

omaha repub:

How many times in the past have you mentioned welding and cowboy hat? Are they articles of some sexual fantasy that you have for Kleeb or do you just like to continually dwell on the same subjects?

Aren't there more important issues for you to worry about?

Anonymous said...

I think that ball park is the best idea Omaha has put together in years. This helps out downtown redevelopment. Has anyone been to a St Louis Cardinals game & stayed overnite downtown? That is about as fun as it gets. I hope the recall Fahey petitioners have wasted a lot of their time.

Anonymous said...

Best campaign website so far! I love the edginess and it's great to see a Republican come into 21st century website design.
Now as far as which candidate would win a photo contest, well, I might agree with Street Sweeper that it wouldn't be Congressman Terry, but I'll take leadership and experience over a nice tailored suit. Way to go Lee!

non-disillusioned republican said...

A true leader isn't a lap dog for the President. A true leader takes at least one tough stand in Washington after ten years. A true leader doesn't turn his back on what is right for fear of political retribution. I've known Lee since his City Council Days. I was a supporter...but I'm not blind. Open your eyes: Lee Terry is not a true leader. Lee Terry is looking out for himself. It's time for him to go.

Anonymous said...

Um, yeah. Lee Terry is a "true leader" and "honestly looking out for us"??? I think I just threw up a little bit in my mouth.

Anonymous said...

I agree with the sentiment, but isn't it time we put "threw up a little in my mouth" jokes back where we found them?

Dodgeball came out in 2004, after all.

Anonymous said...

I think it would be a good idea if all our politically active men go home tonight and take a look at themselves in their bathroom mirror. THEN...go sign up at a fitness center! Or, keep eating those free, high cholesterol meals and drinking those martinis...set a good example to our youth!

Anonymous said...

I find it really difficult to get past that initial picture of Lee on his site. How goofy! And it keeps playing and playing and playing when you navigate around the pages. Ugh!

Eric said...

We're complimenting that web site? Is this a joke? It breaks some very basic rules of good design and web etiquette.

Number 1: Don't auto-play video and audio on the loading of the website.

Number 2: Give the user some way to stop the audio/video without closing the page.

Number 3: Don't "welcome" people to your website.

Schrock Innovations could have come up with a better web site than that.

Anonymous said...

martha,

Lee needs to let those in Washington know that ketchup IS NOT a vegetable. Have you seen what our schools are serving our children in the cafteria?

This mom packs lunch for her children!

Taxes versus our children's dietary health!

Anonymous said...

Eric,

I could not agree more that you should not open with video or welcome people to your website. That is so 1990's.

Anonymous said...

Eric,

re: your # 3...what about Johann's Web Site intro?

Come election time, Republicans are eager to welcome you with open arms. "Come into my web, said the spider to the fly".

Anonymous said...

At least with Johanns website, you can skip the intro when you visit his site. Not only that, but it is a splash page, rather than on the front page.

Anonymous said...

WOW! Eric and anonymous. Sounds like you guys lost the bid on the website. How small minded. Oh well! Maybe you should get a life and look at the issues being discussed. Or can you spell issue?

Anonymous said...

To Dilbert: I'm just astonished the Ranch Hand finds political meaning in welding with a coyboy hat. Hell if welding makes you qualified to be a US Senator, the dems should have run one of the AFL-CIO boys at the Ironworkers union.

Eric said...

Yes, how dare I critique Lee Terry's website on a blog post about Lee Terry's website. To paraphrase Street Sweeper, this site ain't about issues, it's about politics.

Sorry that I forgot to consult my Good Little Republican Handbook before saying something bad about Lee Terry. Let's see what does it say about "New Republican Website" -
"bat your eyes, make fun of cowboy hat wearing Democrat"

OK, here goes:

Wow, that Lee Terry sure does know how to put a website together. It's blue (my favorite color!) and has a page with issue positions! How thoughtful!

Somebody should tell Scott Kleeb that this is a political campaign, not the set of Brokeback Mountain!

Anonymous said...

Wouldn't it have been fun to see Mike dressed as a dairy herder, sitting on a stool milking a Holstein for his website's intro?

C'mon, Mike...show us that you are one of wee little folks. Lead us to the promised land.

Street Sweeper said...

I'm going to jump in here and state that ALL comments and critiques about the website are acceptable here.

I would agree to a certain extent that maybe Lee's "intro" should have been on a splash page, or maybe stop-able. However, I think the fact that he jumps out at you is unique, and I can see why they didn't just want to have it on a skipable splash. But I wouldn't argue that it's perfect.

But I don't have a real problem with "welcoming" people to the site. It should be as personable as possible for a pol. It's not a soap company. You're "buying" the whole person, and not just some concept of him.

So continue to fire away.

(And if you don't think the campaigns read these comments and adjust things accordingly, take a look at the new size of that cropped pic of Lee.)

Aaron said...

As I'm reading the debate here about whether Lee Terry is honest, and a good leader...one example comes to mind. Upon being elected in 1998, Terry signed a term limits pledge, swearing to only serve six years in congress. Can y'all count? It's 2008, thats a little past Lee's promised term limits. Hypocrite. Also, his flagship committee membership is on the House Energy and Commerce committee, one where he claims to support legislation helping the environment and to curb global warming. However, Lee consistently opposes bills supported by the majority of environmental groups- earning him a 10 percent approval rating from the League of Conservation Voters.
So, lets be serious here, Lee Terry is no leader- he is a corrupted, lying politician and we deserve better leadership.

Anonymous said...

And the only committee he is on is Energy and Commerce. That would make one tend to think that energy issues have been his main focus these last ten years. Why is he asking "us" to help come up with a solution for the country's energy problems -- shouldn't he have been doing that for the past ten years?

Anonymous said...

It's obvious that Lee's gang learned nothing from the debacle of 2006. As the new web intro clearly indicates - speaking with words is not Lee's strong suit. He should find a narrator to use for, well, everything. I'm talkin tv commercials to personal voicemails to reading bedtimes stories to his kids.

Or, he could ignore that advice and give us another intellectual property ad, the worst political commercial from a major candidate I've ever seen.

Anonymous said...

All you donkeys visiting here and posting are cracking me up. If Lee was such a poor Congressman, why can't you come up with candidates that can even put up a fight against him? He's trounced four of the five Dems he's faced, and Esch last year was a fluke, and he even got beat by 10 points.

The fact is, and I know you all can't take the facts, is that Lee has done a tremendous job of representing the 2nd District. He represents the values and wishes of its people. His votes are consistent with views of the District; his constituents service work is outstanding; and he is thoughtful in his approach to legislating.

And all your complaining about the war and energy prices: go take it up with your party leader Nancy Pelosi, who is too busy pandering to MoveOn to actually solve any problems.

The facts speak for themselves folks. Put up your candidate, take your beating and shut up, please.

Anonymous said...

Lee Terry is the incumbent. His website isn't going to lose the race for him...not unless it links to porn sites. I wonder what percentage of voters actually visits a politician's website. I know I don't. So much Internet, so little time.

Anonymous said...

If you have a better candidate in mind, by all means, prop 'em up and let the voters fire away.

Or better yet, why don't you shut up and run? The voters will be happy to shoot holes in you.

Anonymous said...

Hey Democrats keep complaining...wow what a sorry state you guys are in. Lee Terry has accomplished alot...his fuel efficiency standards that he developed with a DEMOCRAT was included in the Energy bill the President SIGNED INTO LAW in December. Which by the way will make our country less reliant on foreign sources of fuel and give us a break at the pump. THAT IS REAL PROGRESS no matter how you try and spin your crap.

Anonymous said...

I agree Mr. Terry is a true professional, he DOES represent the people. UNLIKE HIS OPPONENT JIMMY Lee has worked since he was 15 years old, hasn't had everything handed him on platter, doesn't have an ego the size of Texas, doesn't make a habit of hanging out in bars looking for chics, has made real progress in his time in Washington, if you ask Lee about embroynic stem cell research he'll give you the SAME answer EVERY time, has filed his FEC reports ON TIME and frankly Lee can be trusted. Period. That's the truth folks.

Anonymous said...

Interesting you bring up embryonic stem cell research. Why don't you ask Lee why he refused to endorse a republican incumbant pro-life candidate when that candidate was being challenged by a fiercely pro-choice candidate who admitted their intention was to promote embryonic stem cell research...?

And, by the way, Lee's story is hardly a pull 'em up by the bootstraps upbringing.

Anonymous said...

To Cal in the Big O: You mean Michael Scott, Shelley Kiel, Jim Simon, and Jim Esch are not strong democratic candidates. Hell let's get Stormy Dean to run then....lol

Anonymous said...

I agree that Terry is basically invincible and that everybody likes him, I just think he's a terrible public speaker and that his commercials last go-round were laughably bad.

No matter your side of the aisle, I think those are indisputable facts.

Street Sweeper said...

Regarding the website:

Again for those of you wondering about your influence, see the change to the intro video. Now it's on a regular video player, that you can stop, start, etc.

Personally, I think it loses something by not being big and in your face, but it makes it a little more managable.

Lee listens, people!
-SS

Anonymous said...

He listens alright...most intently when the topic concerns him.

Your devotion to Lee Terry seems the most obvious reason people call this a conservative blog.

Eric said...

You should send them a bill for consulting services SS. They'd pay good money for this kind of feedback from a focus group.

The change is definitely an improvement. I still wish it didn't auto-play, but the disco light/US-outlined American flag background kind of makes up for it. That's pretty bad-ass.

Anonymous said...

omaha repub
do you have a problem with one the AFL-CIO boys running for office?
just curious.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Sweeper that it loses something by the new format, although it's nice that you can stop it now. What I don't understand is why they didn't re-shoot the image of Terry once they saw it made him look absolutely ridiculous. The new disco style American flags (to use Eric's term) make him look even more bizarre. Cool idea, but lousy image.

Anonymous said...

Not at all Mr. Blue Collar. They would be more qualified than Mr. Kleeb. 1) They have actually worked for a living and 2) they probably don't weld in a cowboy hat.

Anonymous said...

Well, it looks like Lee's beer gut and man-tits are developing nicely.

Aaron said...

All,
Sure the Energy Bill that Lee Terry helped shape passed. Yippee. The thing is, it wasn't nearly as strong as it needed to be. Sure they raised efficiency standards 40 percent, but nowhere in that energy bill was a provision on how the US would/should tackle the HUGE problem of climate change. Terry still has his head in the sand, promoting hydrogen fuel cells, a technology that is far from perfected, as the installation costs for a mere 400kw is $1,000,000 dollars. Terry should change his views, shifting towards more doable renewable energy solutions, like wind, solar, geothermal and wave. That's why Lee Terry is an incapable leader, he has his head in the sand, and is unable to hear what us Nebraskans truly need.

Anonymous said...

Hey Butt-Head(A.K.A. Aaron),

You should learn before you speak! HR 3221 (The Energy Bill, in case I lost you already) had an Amendment attached to it that encourages geothermal use in building and requires the GSA to develop building codes as such. Lee Terry fought for this amendment after learning of the benefits of geothermal heating and cooling from a businessman in Nebraska-not a lobbyist in D.C.

If you actually bother to look at the Energy Bill, you might be surprised to find a lot of conservation efforts. It seems you may be blinded by partisian behavior, but let me remind you what Team gave you the Energy Bill that you feel does nothing for the environment, YOUR TEAM!

Go curl up with your hemp blankie and suck on that one for a while.

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Hemp Blankies: When is Esch getting his drug test at Charles Drew?

Anonymous said...

I don't think Jim has time for such stupid tests. What with his thriving law practice, his family real estate venture, and now running full time for Congress he probably doesn't even have time to go poo.

Maybe somebody does that for him, too?!

Anonymous said...

While Jim is getting his drug test, why doesn't someone ask Mrs. Lee Terry Jr. why she goes to parties where teens are served alcohol...? At least there's evidence to back up that accusation.

Anonymous said...

Lee and his wife are two of the most responsible and respectable people I know. They are well liked...stop spreading rumors please. They are truly part of a nice family...picture perfect. Wish we had more husbands, wives, moms, dads and families like them in our world.

Aaron said...

See, the thing is, no one is "picture perfect". To hold this belief is not only ignorant, but also unfortunate- if the view of picture perfect is having a wife, nice children, a dog, a minivan and a nice suburban home; in other words, the status quo. Do we really want leaders who represent the status quo? While the two might not be directly linked, there is certainly some correlation, and I would by far rather have a leader who potentially has done drugs in the past than one that forsakes experience for boring mediocrity.

Anonymous said...

I am sure that all of the middle class feels mediocre now.

Thanks for the wake up call, could I get some coffee with that?

Anonymous said...

Dear Anonymous at 7:12p.m.,

You said about Robyn Terry, "...why she goes to parties where teens are served alcohol...?"

You must not know Robyn Terry. She's the mom in the neighborhood that walks kids back to their house when they don't have their skateboarding helmets on.

She's a stickler for the rules/laws.

Word to the Wise - when your siblings are underage and have pictures of themselves drinking on facebook profiles - MIND THE GLASS HOUSE...

Anonymous said...

Facebook...really? Is this the negop again? Word to the juveniles: stop trying to use facebook as a political tool/threat. It's enough that you went after a candidate...do you really want to start bringing people's kids/siblings into the debauchery? More than a few present/past elected officials would prefer to keep their kids out of it, for good reason.