All Things Probama

[HuskyCaucasian]

WOW!! Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid comes out firing HARD at McCain...

McCain “doesn’t have the temperament to be the president of the United States. Everyone who’s ever worked with John McCain knows of his temper. It’s explosive to say the least.”

 

 

[HuskyCaucasian]

Flip-Floper Flips Again...

McCain Backtracks on Social Security Tax Hike

 

ABC News' Teddy Davis and Gregory Wallace Report: Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., hammered Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., on Tuesday for proposing higher Social Security taxes. The presumptive Republican nominee neglected to mention, however, that he was open to a similar approach in 2005.

 

On a Feb., 23, 2005, edition of "Meet the Press," NBC's Tim Russert asked McCain if he would support "as part of the solution to Social Security's solvency problem, that you lift the cap so that you would pay payroll tax, Social Security tax, not just on the first $90,000 of your income, but perhaps even higher?"

 

“As part of a compromise," said McCain, "I could, and other sacrifices, because we all know that it doesn't add up until we make some very serious and fundamental changes.”

 

Amazing how the "maverick" is so bold when he doesnt have to actively court the far right, but changes his stance to appease those he needs. Talk about "old school" politics at its finest.

 

[mr_genius]

hiding from the swift boats

 

Funny thing is McCain totally defended Kerry during the swift boat thing. Now look at what Kerry is doing. Maybe those guys that served with Kerry were right, he's a total weasel and will turn on anyone at any time for personal gain.

Edited June 11, 2008 by mr_genius

[bmags]

"McCain was also caught in a flat-out lie about Obama's climate change plan:

 

"Sen. Obama has no record of being involved in this issue that I know of. I will stick by my record and my commitment of many years to reduce greenhouse gas emissions."

 

Uh, minor problem here, John McCain. You co-sponsored the Obama-McCain Climate Change Reduction Act with Obama and yes, Lieberman.

 

http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2007/1/12/17937/0703"

 

user comment from tpm.com

[BigSqwert]

From bicycleretailer.com

 

Industry Urged to Attend Obama Fundraiser

 

CHICAGO, IL (BRAIN)—Hundreds of e-mails and phone calls went to retailers and suppliers Monday urging them to come to Chicago Thursday night to attend a fundraising event for Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

 

F.K. Day and his wife, Leah, are hosting the event at their downtown Chicago home. Day, co-founder and executive vice president of SRAM, is also president of World Bicycle Relief.

 

Trek’s John Burke, Specialized’s Mike Sinyard, Cannondale Sports Group’s Jeff Frehner, Fuji’s Patrick Cunnane, Raleigh’s Steve Meineke, QBP’s Steve Flagg, Chris Fortune from Saris as well as Tim Blumenthal from Bikes Belong and IMBA’s Mike Van Abel are supporting the 7 p.m. reception.

 

Many in the industry are intrigued by Obama’s views on cycling and its relationship to issues like health, transportation, energy and environmental policy and the event is a chance for them to ask questions and listen to the candidate’s response, Day said.

 

Day, who supports Obama, said they had contacted Obama’s campaign staff six months ago offering to host a fundraiser. Day got a call last Wednesday saying the candidate would be in Chicago this week and could he pull off a reception on such short notice.

 

Day canceled a trip and a family reunion so the industry would have an opportunity to hear Obama speak about his vision for cycling and its potential role in U.S. policy.

 

“This is a chance to ask specific and probing questions. How would they (an Obama administration) implement those policies and how could the industry help. I think if we can raise these issues now, then it could be good for the world,” Day said.

 

For example, World Bicycle Relief raised $1.5 million to manufacture 24,000 locally to help people who survived the 2005 tsunami that swept over parts of Southeast Asia. Currently, the organization is supporting Project Zambia to provide 23,000 bikes to community home-based care volunteers and disease prevention educators.

 

Day said he hopes that 100 people will attend and as of Monday upwards of 40 had pledged to come to the $2,300 per person fundraiser. “We only started Friday and it’s taken awhile to spool up our effort to get the word out,” he said. For more information, e-mail Day at [email protected].

 

Wouldn't mind being a fly on the wall at this event. I'd love to hear Obama's ideas on this matter.

 

Found this on Obama's website:

 

As president, Barack Obama will re-evaluate the transportation funding process to ensure that smart growth considerations are taken into account. Obama will build upon his efforts in the Senate to ensure that more Metropolitan Planning Organizations create policies to incentivize greater bicycle and pedestrian usage of roads and sidewalks, and he will also re-commit federal resources to public mass transportation projects across the country. Building more livable and sustainable communities will not only reduce the amount of time individuals spent commuting, but will also have significant benefits to air quality, public health and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

 

 

[bmags]

Funny thing is McCain totally defended Kerry during the swift boat thing. Now look at what Kerry is doing. Maybe those guys that served with Kerry were right, he's a total weasel and will turn on anyone at any time for personal gain.

 

excuse me, but there is a huge difference from defending attacks against a man's service and character, and attacking a politician's policies in how he will deal with our country at war. Huge differences, in my opinion.

 

As much as McCain is acting as if this is a misspeak, this is his policy. He wants us in Iraq for a long time, as we've been in Japan. He cares more about lowering casualties than withdrawing troops, he'll commit whatever is necessary to accomplish that. Yet, he's trying to act like this isn't his policy here.

[HuskyCaucasian]

excuse me, but there is a huge difference from defending attacks against a man's service and character, and attacking a politician's policies in how he will deal with our country at war. Huge differences, in my opinion.

 

As much as McCain is acting as if this is a misspeak, this is his policy. He wants us in Iraq for a long time, as we've been in Japan. He cares more about lowering casualties than withdrawing troops, he'll commit whatever is necessary to accomplish that. Yet, he's trying to act like this isn't his policy here.

[mr_genius]

excuse me, but there is a huge difference from defending attacks against a man's service and character, and attacking a politician's policies in how he will deal with our country at war. Huge differences, in my opinion.

 

 

 

you are excused.

 

and I could argue the same about the swift boat ads. character is important as it often shapes policy.

Edited June 11, 2008 by mr_genius

[BigSqwert]

Once again in case people have not noticed, this is a "change" election year.

 

 

[BigSqwert]

Interesting article about Obamacons from the New Republic.

The New Yorker is hardly the optimal vehicle for reaching the conservative intelligentsia. But, last year, Barack Obama cooperated with a profile for that magazine where he seemed to be speaking directly to the right. Because he paid obeisance to the virtues of stability and continuity, his interlocutor, Larissa MacFarquhar, came away with the impression that the Illinois senator was an adherent of Edmund Burke: "In his view of history, in his respect for tradition, in his skepticism that the world can be changed any way but very, very slowly, Obama is deeply conservative."

 

As The New Yorker's assessment shot across blogs, many conservatives listened eagerly. A broad swath of the movement has been in open revolt against George W. Bush--and the Republican Party establishment--for some time. They don't much care for the Iraq war or the federal government's vast expansion over the last seven-and-a-half years. And, in the eyes of these discontents, the nomination of John McCain only confirmed the continuation of the worst of the Bush-era deviations from first principles.

 

But it was hardly inevitable that this revolt would translate into enthusiasm for the Democratic standard-bearer. After all, you could see similar signs of unhappiness four years ago, and none of that translated into mass defections to the John Kerry camp. And, despite Ann Coulter's vow to campaign for Hillary Clinton over John McCain, the old bête noir of the right would have never attracted many conservatives. That's what makes the rise of the Obamacons such an interesting development. Conservatives of almost all ideological flavors (even, gasp, some supply-siders) have been drawn to Obama--out of a genuine affection and a belief that he may actually better embody movement ideals than McCain.

 

There have been a few celebrated cases of conservatives endorsing Obama, like the blogger Andrew Sullivan and the legal scholar Douglas Kmiec. But you probably have not have heard of many of the Obamacons--and neither has the Obama campaign. When I checked with it to ask for a list of prominent conservative supporters, the campaign seemed genuinely unaware that such supporters even existed. But those of us on the right who pay attention to think tanks, blogs, and little magazines have watched Obama compile a coterie drawn from the movement's most stalwart and impressive thinkers. It's a group that will no doubt grow even larger in the coming months.

 

The largest group of Obamacons hail from the libertarian wing of the movement. And it's not just Andrew Sullivan. Milton and Rose Friedman's son, David, is signed up with the cause on the grounds that he sees Obama as the better vessel for his father's cause. Friedman is convinced of Obama's sympathy for school vouchers--a tendency that the Democratic primaries temporarily suppressed. Scott Flanders, the CEO of Freedom Communications--the company that owns The Orange County Register--told a company meeting that he believes Obama will accomplish the paramount libertarian goals of withdrawing from Iraq and scaling back the Patriot Act.

 

Libertarians (and other varieties of Obamacons, for that matter) frequently find themselves attracted to Obama on stylistic grounds. That is, they believe that he has surrounded himself with pragmatists, some of whom (significantly) come from the University of Chicago. As the blogger Megan McArdle has written, "His goal is not more government so that we can all be caught up in some giant, expressive exercise of collectively enforcing our collective will on all the other people standing around us in the collective; his goal is improving transparency and minimizing government intrusion while rectifying specific outcomes."

In nearly every quarter of the movement, you can find conservatives irate over the Iraq war--a war they believe transgresses core principles. And it's this frustration with the war--and McCain's pronouncements about victory at any cost--that has led many conservatives into Obama's arms. Francis Fukuyama, the neoconservative theorist, recently told an Australian journalist that he would reluctantly vote for Obama to hold the Republican Party accountable "for a big policy failure" in Iraq. And he seems to view Obama as the best means for preserving American power, since Obama "symbolizes the ability of the United States to renew itself in a very unexpected way."

 

You can find similar sentiments coursing through the Boston University professor Andrew Bacevich's seminal Obamacon manifesto in The American Conservative. He believes that the war in Iraq has undermined the possibilities for conservative reform at home. The prospects for a conservative revival, therefore, depend on withdrawing from Iraq. Thus the necessity of Obama. "For conservatives, Obama represents a sliver of hope. McCain represents none at all. The choice turns out to be an easy one," Bacevich concludes.

 

How substantial is the Obamacon phenomenon? Well, it has even penetrated National Review, the intellectual anchor of the conservative movement. There's Jeffrey Hart, who has been a senior editor at the magazine since 1968 and even wrote a history of the magazine, The Making of the American Conservative Mind; and Wick Allison, who once served as the magazine's publisher.

 

Neither man has renounced his conservatism. Both have come away impressed by Obama's rhetorical acumen. This is a particular compliment coming from Hart, who wrote speeches for both Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. They both like that Obama couches his speeches in a language of uplift and unity. When describing his support for Obama, Allison pointed me in the direction of a column that his wife (who has never supported a Democrat) wrote in The Dallas Morning News: "He speaks with candor and elegance against the kind of politics that have become so dispiriting and for the kind of America I would like to see. As a man, I find Mr. Obama to be prudent, thoughtful, and courageous. His life story embodies the conservative values that go to the core of my beliefs."

 

But, if you're looking for the least likely pool of Obamacons, it would be the supply-siders. And you can even find some of those. Take Larry Hunter, who helped put together the economics passages in the Contract with America and served as chief economist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He concedes that Obama is saying the wrong things on taxes but dismisses it as electioneering. Of far greater importance, in Hunter's view, is that Obama has the potential to "scramble the political deck, break up old alliances, and bring odd bedfellows together in a new coalition." And, what's more important, he views the Republican Party as a "dead, rotting carcass with a few decrepit old leaders stumbling around like zombies in a horror version of Weekend at Bernie's, handcuffed to a corpse." Unless the Republican Party is thoroughly purged of its current leadership, Hunter fears that it "will pollute the political environment to toxic levels and create an epidemic that could damage the country for generations to come."

 

I know what Hunter and the rest of the Obamacons are talking about. As a conservative, I share their disgust with a Republican Party that still does not see how badly George W. Bush has misgoverned this country. But, while I am sympathetic to the Obamacons and have a number of friends that are, I am not one of them. I'm not ready to join the other side.

 

Still, I have enjoyed watching the phenomenon, which has the potential to remake the political landscape. It will also produce some of the good comedy that inevitably accompanies strange bedfellows. The blogger Dorothy King, an archeologist and strong conservative, recently outed herself as an Obamacon. This was a culturally awkward position for her. She wondered, "Do I now, as a newly minted Obamaphile liberal elitist, have to serve my guests Chablis? Or would any old chardonnay do? ... Am I even meant to admit to going to the supermarket? Should I pretend to only go to the local Farmers' Market?" There, undoubtedly, will be much more of such dislocation in the months to come.

Edited June 11, 2008 by BigSqwert

[NorthSideSox72]

I'm also starting to doubt your claims about sniper fire when landing at Midway earlier this year.

OK, well, there was sniper fire in the general area. Ya know, the south side and all. Besides, that's not the point. I went to the war zone that is the south side of Chicago in order to help the people there. That's what's important. That and the photo op.

 

[Balta1701]

Wow, seriously? Wow.

[Gene Honda Civic]

http://www.thesockobama.com/index.html

[bmags]

you are excused.

 

and I could argue the same about the swift boat ads. character is important as it often shapes policy.

 

You're right, I shouldn't have said character is off-limits, but I do believe trivializing a man's war record when the other opponent did not even participate in the war was, hopefully in this new election, reprehensible. Obama has shown an ability to control his entire base, but I have seen comments poking fun at McCain's war record, I hope they stop.

[BigSqwert]

Wow, seriously? Wow.

Classy. Terrorist jab and now this. Scum of the Earth if you ask me.

[NorthSideSox72]

It amazes me that some people are still deluded into the idea that Fox News is only as far right as the MSM is far left. Really, I am not just saying this, it really does amaze me. I mean, its not even close. The MSM leans left, no doubt (though there is variation there, depending on the network). But Fox News is just blatantly, intentionally, fully in the right gutter. How is it that people can't see this?

 

[kapkomet]

Classy. Terrorist jab and now this. Scum of the Earth if you ask me.

 

 

It amazes me that some people are still deluded into the idea that Fox News is only as far right as the MSM is far left. Really, I am not just saying this, it really does amaze me. I mean, its not even close. The MSM leans left, no doubt (though there is variation there, depending on the network). But Fox News is just blatantly, intentionally, fully in the right gutter. How is it that people can't see this?

This is just plain ignorant. If this is all they have, Obama will win all 50 states.

[lostfan]

Is that Michelle Malkin?

[HuskyCaucasian]

Wow, seriously? Wow.

and they call themselves a legit news organization? That's low brow an "Daily Show" worthy, not "MSM"

[lostfan]

FWIW Fox cancelled E.D. Hill's show over the "terrorist fist jab" comment. But you know that's a pretty empty token firing because Hannity, who says much worse on a daily basis, still has a show, and anybody who ever brings Ann Coulter on as a guest for any reason will never even so much as get reprimanded. Basically E.D. Hill is Cedric Benson. "You're not good enough for us to be having to deal with this from you, if you were better, it'd be ok."

[HuskyCaucasian]

FWIW Fox cancelled E.D. Hill's show over the "terrorist fist jab" comment. But you know that's a pretty empty token firing because Hannity, who says much worse on a daily basis, still has a show, and anybody who ever brings Ann Coulter on as a guest for any reason will never even so much as get reprimanded. Basically E.D. Hill is Cedric Benson. "You're not good enough for us to be having to deal with this from you, if you were better, it'd be ok."

Hell, I'd rather have Hill around... she's far better looking than Coultergeist and insHannity

[lostfan]

Hell, I'd rather have Hill around... she's far better looking than Coultergeist and insHannity

Laurie Dhue doesn't work for Fox anymore... but she was SMOKING.

 

Malkin is decent looking but I just can't stand to look at her when her lips are flapping.

[HuskyCaucasian]

McCain's GOP Problems...

A lot was made of Obama not getting support from ONE democrat. How about 14, and possibly as many as 26+ not supporting good ol' John McCain?

 

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/new-ga...2008-06-11.html

 

At least 14 Republican members of Congress have refused to endorse or publicly support Sen. John McCain for president, and more than a dozen others declined to answer whether they back the Arizona senator.

 

Many of the recalcitrant GOP members declined to detail their reasons for withholding support, but Rep. John Peterson (R-Pa.) expressed major concerns about McCain’s energy policies and Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) cited the Iraq war.

 

[NorthSideSox72]

McCain's GOP Problems...

A lot was made of Obama not getting support from ONE democrat. How about 14, and possibly as many as 26+ not supporting good ol' John McCain?

 

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/new-ga...2008-06-11.html

I think this election will break some rules. There will be people crossing party lines both directions, the cabinet for either candidate will includes some people from the other party, and the electoral map will be very different. Should be interesting.

 

[EvilMonkey]

You're right, I shouldn't have said character is off-limits, but I do believe trivializing a man's war record when the other opponent did not even participate in the war was, hopefully in this new election, reprehensible. Obama has shown an ability to control his entire base, but I have seen comments poking fun at McCain's war record, I hope they stop.

His ENTIRE base? If you count the many lefty blogs as part of his base, you had the kids over at Koz making fun of McCain's teeth. Teeth which were knocked out while a prisoner. There were similar posts up at Huffpo, but those got pulled off. This whole political cycle is getting to be too much.