A friend passed along an e-mail from ChuckSchumer.com touting their new website. Since I always like to peruse new sites and see what they've done, I quickly clicked through. Since I used to do reviews for TP and PDF regularly, I may as well share my thoughts.

Before I get to the functionality, let me just ask two questions. First, did the left do some sort of study that says people trust their sites more if everyone has a halo? This site continues the "ethereal/otherworldly" trend of casting the glow. If this was the big plan to appeal to religious voters, I just don't get it.

Second, when do we hit the law of diminishing returns on making every site look like a BarackObama.com spinoff? I saw this with the Bush-Cheney '04 site when everyone up to and including John Kerry and Hillary Clinton knocked off the site. Let me state for the record, there's no magic in layouts. They may be clean and easy to use, but that's something you can accomplish many ways. The more important thing is what you do with what you have.

That brings me to the functionality of Schumer's site. With this review I'm going to start a new approach and do this Clint Eastwood style. I'll spell out the good (what it does well), the bad (where it falls flat) and the ugly (the one thing I, personally, absolutely hate). The ugly will always be the one thing I like the least about a particular site.

I realize I'm inviting much ridicule from my friends on the left, but I'm going to write this post anyway, and I'm going to leave the title intact - Why Twitter Matters & The Left Should Be Nervous. It's no doubt going to generate some giggles among the online intelligentsia in the Democratic Party. That's ok with me.

I have, for several months now, seen a string of posts and tweets from these same lefty friends that are either mocking or dismissive of the Conservatives nascent efforts on Twitter. Here's one example courtesy of TechPresident's own Micah Sifry.

It's positively quaint to listen to Republicans murmur optimistically about their "dominance" on Twitter. #polc09, #tcot, #p2

The very first time I saw a comment like that, it reminded me immediately of comments I had seen and heard before. They were the openly dismissive comments directed by complacent and cocky Republicans at the Democrats efforts online.

Will the openness and transparency promised at all levels of government come to pass? Or will the people be thwarted, yet again, by the law?

Those are questions that have been running through my head the last few days. I am keeping an open mind toward the Obama administration and the promises they have made regarding a new era of visibility into our government. I truly hope that a level of accountability can be brought to our government. I would love for the people to be able to see the sausage being made because it may turn them off of pork.

In one of the first accounts I read of the new technology paradigm, however, I was left questioning that commitment to transparency.

As Sarah noted yesterday, the White House website got a facelift at 12:01 yesterday as the typically stuffiness of the White House web site smacked headlong into the calming blues of the Obama campaign/transition sites.

I thought I'd take a moment and share some thoughts.

From a design and technical standpoint, the site is fine. It's fairly light on content (and it's all static), but they're less than 24 hours in, so what can you really expect.

Recognizing that the site is content light, and technically "adequate" what else is there to talk about before they add depth? Well, that leads to most of my discussion...

I'm off to Las Vegas tomorrow to spend three days perusing the latest and greatest tech gadgets at the annual Consumer Electronics Show. While much of that is geared toward another endeavor, I'll be keeping an eye out for tools and technologies that could be used for political purposes.

If I see anything that looks like it has potential for attracting, communicating with, or mobilizing voters/activists, I'll snap some pics, write up a blurb, and let you know about it.

In the meantime, if you've got anything you'd like me to look for, or something I must see, leave me a comment.

As the battle for the RNC Chairman gig heats up, Americans for Tax Reform is hosting a debate among the half dozen candidates vying for the job. The debate is happening now at http://rncdebate.org/. The live webcast by ATR is a step in the right direction for the GOP.

It's not specifically a tech-politics related event, but it's good to see the right opening up and broadcasting the debate publicly. ATR also opened up the discussion to the public and took questions online.

I'll recap the event afterward with thoughts. (UPDATED)

Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend the Emerging Issues Policy Forum in Jacksonville, Florida. This was an odd event. I was attending on behalf of the day job, but I was talking about how campaigns are using the Internet. It was all part of a discussion on the "real world" applications of the broadband platform.

Most of the attendees are legislators and public utility commissioners who gather to discuss the latest in telecom policy. This year they also wanted to explore the way broadband is enriching the lives of Americans.

Matthew Burton posted yesterday on the Daschle health care video over at Change.gov. His question?

Is this video something that we tech-politics geeks should be excited about?

Honestly, if the subject was just the clip I would answer with a resounding no. I don't think the video itself was anything terribly interesting or revolutionary.

However, Greg Elin over at the Sunlight Foundation has sort of a different perspective that gives the effort a bit more meaning for me.

A DoD program meant to assist military personnel in registering and voting is drawing Congressional fire over the hiring of a new overseer. A bipartisan group of Congressmen is irked that the Federal Voting Assistance Program has failed to meet the goal of making it easier for those in uniform to participate in the democracy they protect.

While not specifically an Internet issue, the Government Computer News (Yes, I read it. I'm that geeky) article had two passages that caught my eye.

Liza Sabater and I were trading lighthearted tweets about this the other day, but the more I think about it, the more I really think I'd like to see it.

I suggested to Liza that Obama should continue the out of the box thinking. Rather than having stuffy balls in ballrooms across DC, the campaign should cordon off the mall, and have one, massive, open to the public Inaugural Ball.