Category: Obama

The Obligatory Obama taking time off to be with ill grandmother posting

For the record, I think what Obama is doing, is totally awesome.

Considering what is going on with my Dad right now, I have to agree with this guy here.

Anyone who would knowingly insult a man’s dying grandmother and the man who’s showing the compassion to go and see her, especially at end stretch of the presidential campaign, well, that person ought to be shot.

Can you see now, why I am not a Republican? Not to mention John McCain’s insulting comments, during a time like this, I can only believe that is going to hurt him in the polls.

I’ve made my share of mistakes during my tenure of being a Blogger, I admit that. But to knowingly insult someone like that. It simply shows your colors man. I’m sorry, I cannot agree with that.

Dude, where’s MY Union?

I was reading this morning over on a Liberal blog, about the return of the middle class and unions. As a Moderate, I will confess, I have no quarrels with unions. But as a bit of a Conservative, I do criticize them and their double standards.

This entry at firedoglake by someone calling themselves Joe Fish is of interest:

As a member of a union that I have to wonder about sometimes (ALPA, the Airline Pilots Association) I think it’s certainly worthwhile to talk for a minute about the Employee Free Choice Act and the role of unions in building a stronger middle-class and hence stronger America. Why do I wonder about ALPA? More on that in a minute…

A quick and simplistic review for those not old enough to remember the ultimate Federal Union Buster, Ronnie Reagan and his most excellent (in his mind) PATCO adventure. In 1981 the air traffic controllers union decided to go on strike and the controllers were fired by Reagan for violating a federal law banning strikes by governmental unions, although previous strikes by other governmental unions like the Postal Workers had not been punished by terminating their employees. Reagan’s views of unions was the same as virtually every other major republican figure of the 70’s and 80’s; that unions were the creation of the devil and the antithesis of American/Free Market capitalism and thus should be put down like Old Yeller… with a single shot to the head, but without the emotion.

This, of course, is a stretch of the truth and a bit of poetic license. Reagan was forced into the position that he was put in, by the union. Reagan knew that if the air traffic controllers had struck, commerce would have been interrupted and it could have led to a shut down in the economy. Reagan saw that and took action. One must remember, the economy was still shaky from the disastrous Presidency of Jimmy Carter.

Where does this apply to me? My Father is a U.A.W. member, I am very appreciative and grateful for the many great things that the Unions did for him. I am here today, because of that. I am also, as a history buff, very aware of the role that the unions had in the forming of this area here. However, as a man, I must ask the unpopular question, asked by many of the children of the Union members:

What exactly has the unions done for me?  The sad, but truthful answer is, nothing at all. Has the union ever approached my Father and offered me a job in the plant, where my dad worked, No. The closest thing I ever came to getting a job offer from the Union, was G.M. sending me for a test to see if I had the smarts to work for the company. Me and 10,000 other people. The test I took, there were people at this testing session with 2 year college degrees, who were having trouble with it. Needless to say, I never got a call to work for the company.

The sad truth is that the unions have simply become protectionists. There was a time when the unions had a legitimate role in defending auto workers from the out of control hiring and firing polices of the auto companies here in Detroit. But because of the greater control and stricter labor laws in America. Unions have lost their value. Not to mention the various trade agreements, passed by the Democratic President Bill Clinton, which was viewed by many unions as a “selling up the river”, caused the unions to lose their foothold in the organized labor movement.

This is not to say that I think that unions should be eliminated, not at all. I think if the unions want to be brought back into the mainstream and taken seriously again, the Democrats need to work to make them strong again. Like renegotiating trade agreements and if said countries will not, Op out of them. This was a early campaign promise of Obama. I wonder if he will honor it? This would cause the unions to become strong again. Also, giving tax breaks to companies who hire new blood, without all the restrictions, would be a bonus as well.

So, until this, I ask the question; Dude, where’s my union?

Depressing Quotes of the Day: Rush Limbaugh and Redstate Prove my Points

Remember what I wrote earlier about Colin Powell’s endorsement of Obama?

Well, it seems that Rush Limbaugh and someone over at RedState has basically proven my point.

Rush Limbaugh wrote to Jonathan Martin the following:

“Secretary Powell says his endorsement is not about race,” Limbaugh wrote in an e-mail. “OK, fine. I am now researching his past endorsements to see if I can find all the inexperienced, very liberal, white candidates he has endorsed. I’ll let you know what I come up with.”

As for Powell’s statement of concern this morning about the sort of Supreme Court justices a President McCain might appoint, Limbaugh wrote: “I was also unaware of his dislike for John Roberts, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Anthony Kennedy and Antonin Scalia. I guess he also regrets Reagan and Bush making him a four-star [general] and secretary of state and appointing his son to head the FCC. Yes, let’s hear it for transformational figures.”

and over at Redstate:

So Colin Powell has endorsed Obama. Let’s see, Powell is pro-abortion. So is Obama. Powell is pro-affirmative action. So is Obama. Powell has stated repeatedly that tax policy should ensure fairness. Obama likewise wants to “spread the wealth.” The endorsement of Obama only demonstrates what unpaid prognosticators could have told those million dollar a year experts years ago. Powell never was a Republican. He has been aligned with the Democrats from the day of his retirement from service.

On today’s talk show, Powell explains: “I think he is a transformational figure.” THAT’S what I’m afraid of. Hitler, Stalin, and Pol Pot were all transformational too, Colin.

Another note to moderate Republicans: Hey guys, are you happy with your fellow moderate? No? You should be–this is what you moderates do. They pretend in order to achieve status, and then attack the hand that feeds them–to maintain that status. Yes, you keep telling us that Palin’s conservatism is what is sinking McCain. Really? Do you think that McCain picking another moderate would have changed Powell’s position? If you do, I’ve got a nice bridge to sell you.

Affirmative action is now at its zenith here. A unqualified candidate for president who has never run anything; who has never governed anything; and who has policies precisely on line with Karl Marx–is going to be put into our highest office solely due to his race. Doubt me? Just ask if Obama would be where he is at if he were a white man. The answer is inevitable.

The Republican party must clean house or it is lost.

My goodness, the Republicans are not even trying to hide it anymore. It has went from nuance and inferring to outright blantant racism.  The part I put into red is what really disturbs me. The Republicans and Conservatives are now officially channeling McCarthy. The whole Idea is, if you cannot beat him, you slander him with racism and attempt to paint him, as some sort of communist. It is the oldest trick in the book.

The the guy from Redstate tries to claim that Moderates are ruining his party. What a damn joke. It’s the moderates that have kept the Republican Party from becoming the next Whig Party! Which is right where it is heading now. Some would say and good for it too. Myself, I think it is a sad place that the Republican Party is headed. Change is needed within that party, but not this sort of a change at all.

Colin Powell Endorses Barack Obama for President of the United States

My thoughts in a moment, But first the video:

Via MSNBC:

Originally, I was going to word this article much differently. But I scrapped it. This is my take on Colin Powell’s endorsement of Obama.

At first blush, someone like me would think, “Well, he is endorsing him because he is black.” But I personally believe that it goes much deeper than that. As Colin Powell said in this video, the G.O.P. and John McCain’s campaign took a stance in this election that to even me, was disturbing. McCain and the G.O.P. basically decided to paint Obama as a terrorist by proxy.

I have written in the past on this Blog, that I have been totally disgusted at the way that McCain and the Republican Party have been handling this election and how they have painted Obama. Now, before anyone calls me a hypocrite, let me explain, I totally understand that there has been race baiting on the left. But there has also been calls to incite violence on the right as well. This has been fueled by the inferring of the McCain campaign that Obama is a Black Terrorist by proxy. This was a fatal strategy and it could possibly cause McCain to lose hard in the election. To his credit, McCain did switch gears as of recent and began harping on Obama’s statement of “Spread the Wealth”. Which lead to the liberal take down of “Joe the Plumber”.

However, it is this writers opinion, that it is, quite sadly; too little, too late. The damage is done, independents view McCain and Palin as white racists, who are out to smear and discredit a Christian black man, who is running for President. Not to mention that Economy is just not on the side of the Republicans.

Not to mention how the current President ruined it for the Republicans. His out of control spending, the war in Iraq; which is turning around for the good, much to the chagrin of the Liberals. The attorney general scandal, the spying scandal, it just goes on and on. The fact is that this election is not on the side of the Republicans. It is, as I have written many times before, the Reagan Revolution in reverse.

Which beings me to another point I feel the need to make. The Republican Party and the Conservative Movement has to realize something and it is a realization that is quite a painful one for some to swallow. The Reagan Revolution and era in politics is over. We are living in much different times, than we were in 1980. The problem is, most Conservatives still believe that it is 1980! They need to update their message, make it more relevant for this day and age.

To sum this up, I will basically say this, the endorsement of Barack Obama, by a well-known Black Republican should send a message to the Conservative community that you cannot finger a black man, who is running for President of the United States as a terrorist by proxy, because of his middle name, because of his skin color and because of people he has had past relations with. It just does not work. My only hope is, that the Republican Party and the Conservative Movement as a whole is listening to that message.

Update: My favorite quote from this interview was this:

And it is permitted to be said such things as, "Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim." Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he’s a Christian.  He’s always been a Christian.  But the really right answer is, what if he is?  Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer’s no, that’s not America.  Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president?

…

I feel strongly about this particular point because of a picture I saw in a magazine.  It was a photo essay about troops who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.  And one picture at the tail end of this photo essay was of a mother in Arlington Cemetery, and she had her head on the headstone of her son’s grave.  And as the picture focused in, you could see the writing on the headstone.  And it gave his awards–Purple Heart, Bronze Star–showed that he died in Iraq, gave his date of birth, date of death.  He was 20 years old. And then, at the very top of the headstone, it didn’t have a Christian cross, it didn’t have the Star of David, it had crescent and a star of the Islamic faith.  And his name was Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, and he was an American. He was born in New Jersey.  He was 14 years old at the time of 9/11, and he waited until he can go serve his country, and he gave his life.

The Photo that Colin Powell is referring to is this: (H/T The New Republic)

My friends, this photo says it all. We are all Americans. No matter what Rush Limbaugh or anyone else from the Republican Party might say. While I may have a disdain for those extremist Muslims, who want to destroy this nation, it is these type of Muslims like Kareem Rashad Sultan that give me hope, that the Extremism in the Muslim Religion can be destroyed once and for all.

I really must wonder, can Michelle Bachman look this woman in the eye and say that she is Un-American? 

The Obligatory Obama is ahead in the polls and McCain’s attacks posting.

First off about the Polls. It’s obvious, the economy is literally driving McCain’s campaign into the ditch. The attack ads obviously did not help, but more than anything, it is the economy, the Republican Party is just on the bad side of things. There’s no way around that or no way of spinning it at all. When the economy tanks the American people look to the opposing party to bring change. Which is what happened in 1980 with Reagan and after the stock market crash and subsequent depression in 1929, with FDR. This time the Republican Party is the Political Party that is one on the wrong side of the situation.

While I might not agree with some of Obama’s positions, I think sometimes, that Obama might just bring some jobs back to this area. I know that I could benefit from that. Obviously, Bob Barr is not going to be elected, even I understand that. While I am not going to come out as a flag waving Obama-bot. I will be the first to concede that change is needed in America and at the moment, Obama represents that. I don’t think the change will come at the speed that many are believing, but it will come, sooner or later.

As for the McCain attack ads and how it is affecting him in the polls; the issue is not what the ads said, it was how they were framed and presented to the American people. The entire problem was that John McCain was saying “Bill Ayers, Bill Ayers, Bill Ayers” and Black America and some the more uneducated on the far right, that believe everything that crosses their mailbox were hearing “He’s a black terrorist! He’s a black terrorist! He’s a black terrorist!” Needless to say this has not helped John McCain’s campaign at all. Not only that, but the picking of Sarah Palin was, as far as this writer is concerned, a tragic mistake. I say this because what McCain was trying to do, was appeal to his base. The problem is, you cannot win an election by appealing just to your base. But rather appealing to the Independent Voters or what are called “The swing voters.” They decide the election in the end, not the base of either party.

Obama on the other hand has appealed to Democrats and Independents as well, and also Conservatives as well; Chris Buckley is a prime example. I mean, Chris Buckley?!?! The son of the infamous staunch Conservative icon, William F. Buckley? Obviously, something is wrong with McCain’s campaign for Buckley to give McCain the cold shoulder. John McCain’s own brother blasted McCain’s campaign for not handling him properly.

Obama on the other hand has handled a very steady campaign, at times, in this writers opinion, playing certain “Cards” to their advantage, as they did with Hillary; much to the same effect as McCain’s campaign. This is just called good politics and good campaigning, and most shockingly it has worked.

So, the bottom line is this; John McCain while he might be great person of courage and valor, his campaign has been the Republican equivalent of Hillary Clinton’s campaign. To beat someone like Obama, you must be good, damned good, and sorry to say, but McCain just is not that; Good.

So much for that “Kill Him!” Narrative!

It seems that the narrative about someone yelling out “Kill Him!” about Obama at a Palin rally.

Patterico as always is on the story:

Everyone in the country seems to think someone yelled “Kill him!” at a McCain/Palin rally, about Barack Obama. It’s just not true.

The “Kill him!” phrase was originally reported by the Washingon Post — and it was clearly yelled about William Ayers and not Barack Obama.

I quoted the relevant language in this post:

“And, according to the New York Times, he [referring to Ayers — P] was a domestic terrorist and part of a group that, quote, ‘launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and our U.S. Capitol,’” [Palin] continued.

“Boooo!” the crowd repeated.

“Kill him!” proposed one man in the audience.

That is unambiguously a call to kill Ayers, not Obama. As TNR writer Michael Crowley said in a comment to this post of his (h/t L.N. Smithee):

I took “kill him” to mean Ayers–not Obama. It’s just a far, far likelier explanation given the context. That’s still an ugly thing to shout–but on the other hand Ayers probably would have gotten the death penalty had his bombs actually taken a life. If I thought people were actually yelling that about Obama I would feel very differently.

Indeed. [UPDATE: Dana Milbank, who originally reported this, agreed. According to a Politico blog entry: “Milbank said that his impression was that the man meant Ayers, not Obama.” Thanks to “no one you know.”]

So, when the left claims that people are yelling at Palin rallies to kill Obama. You can safely know that it is nothing more than a well manufactured lie. A lie manufactured by a Media that is in the tank for Obama.

Surprising? No. Shocking, Not hardly. Thanks for the Karl Rove and his group of Neo-Conservative idiots, we are going have Liberalism shoved down our throats for the next 4 to 8 years. If we’re not destroyed by a terrorist attack before then.

Others: protein wisdom, Weekly Standard,

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This can’t be good…

Stanley Kurtz over at National Review has up a pretty damning piece on Obama and his ties to Wright and extremist Afrocentrists.

The quote:

Given the precedent of his earlier responses on Ayers and Wright, Obama might be inclined to deny personal knowledge of the educational philosophy he was so generously funding. Such a denial would not be convincing. For one thing, we have evidence that in 1995, the same year Obama assumed control of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, he publicly rejected “the unrealistic politics of integrationist assimilation,” a stance that clearly resonates with both Wright and Carruthers. (See “No Liberation.”)

And as noted, Wright had invited Carruthers, Hilliard, and like-minded thinkers to address his Trinity congregants. Wright likes to tick off his connections to these prominent Afrocentrists in sermons, and Obama would surely have heard of them. Reading over SSAVC’s Annenberg proposals, Obama could hardly be ignorant of what they were about. And if by some chance Obama overlooked Hilliard’s or Carruthers’s names, SSAVC’s proposals are filled with references to “rites of passage” and “Ptahhotep,” dead giveaways for the anti-American and separatist ideological concoction favored by SSAVC.

We know that Obama did read the proposals. Annenberg documents show him commenting on proposal quality. And especially after 1995, when concerns over self-dealing and conflicts of interest forced the Ayers-headed “Collaborative” to distance itself from monetary issues, all funding decisions fell to Obama and the board. Significantly, there was dissent within the board. One business leader and experienced grant-smith characterized the quality of most Annenberg proposals as “awful.” (See “The Chicago Annenberg Challenge: The First Three Years,” p. 19.) Yet Obama and his very small and divided board kept the money flowing to ideologically extremist groups like the South Shore African Village Collaborative, instead of organizations focused on traditional educational achievement.

This is pretty disturbing for a man who wants to be President. I just do not buy Obama’s line of, “I didn’t hear Wright’s sermons”. This goes much farther and might give Obama more trouble.

Others: The Corner, Hot Air, Confederate Yankee and YID With LID

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*Sigh* Oh man…….

Why in the hell does John McCain do stupid stuff like this? Rolling EyesSigh

Seen at the Jed Report:

I’m a Conservative Libertarian and I know this is not true. At worst, Obama’s supporters have boo’ed McCain. I’ve never seen or heard any of them call him a Traitor or a terrorist. That’s just simply wrong and McCain projecting. The bad part is, Dana Bash didn’t call him on it.

No wonder the man is losing. Striaght Face

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A sobering quote…

Electing Obama might be worse then we thought. Nailbiting

Quoting Steven Green at Vodkapundit:

If (when?) Obama is elected, by my estimation there’s an at least even chance that the newly-reconstructed FCC will reverse course and attempt to apply the New Fairness Doctrine to blogs.

[…]

Libertarians/Conservatives like “Jay” and myself underestimate liberals/progressives — and what we’re guilty of is projection. But when we’re drunk and honest, we have to admit: We’re effing pikers. To restate more plainly: We don’t want power, and don’t know how to wield it. We’re pikers.

Progressives have no such qualms. Given power, they’ll take more and they’ll exercise it ruthlessly. Look at the Democrats in Congress these last two years. In not even 24 months, they’ve sunk to depths it took the Republican Congress six or more years to sink to. Their unpopularity levels are even worse than the Republicans’ in 2006. And what will happen in November? The Democrats will win seats — because they know how to wield their power to deliver the goods to please their corrupt, greedy, grabby, needy base.

And don’t you forget it. And I can prove it.

Run my pet theory past your favorite progressive. If they’re less than honest, they’ll deny it. If they’re honest, they’ll answer you with a smug little smirk — smuggier and smirkier even than my best smug smirk — so smug and so smirky that it will make you want to punch them with a cinder block.

Try it. I dare you. And once you’ve seen the results, you’ll understand: When it comes to real power, we’re the pikers and they’re the masters…

…and their time is coming.

Prepare to fight.

P.S. For my hipster Libertarian friends out there, you need to get this through your thick skulls. Republicans, given the kind of power the Democrats are about to accrue, would maybe take away your right to get a completely totally naked chick to grind on your lap in a publicly licensed bar. The Democrats will do their damnedest to take away your right to speak. There’s the First Amendment, and then there’s the First Amendment. Be careful what you wish for.

This is quite scary on many levels. Because if Obama gets elected, the thought police, which is in effect to an extent now, will really be in effect, if Obama gets elected.

….and at this point, it is looking like John McCain does not have a prayer, according to the polls.

Others: The Other McCain, Pajamas Media, The Sundries Shack and Ed Driscoll.com

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McCain’s latest under the Bus….. Bill Kristol?!?!?!

Now this is quite the shock! Surprise

Bill Kristol offers McCain some advice for his campaign:

It’s time for John McCain to fire his campaign.

He has nothing to lose. His campaign is totally overmatched by Obama’s. The Obama team is well organized, flush with resources, and the candidate and the campaign are in sync. The McCain campaign, once merely problematic, is now close to being out-and-out dysfunctional. Its combination of strategic incoherence and operational incompetence has become toxic. If the race continues over the next three weeks to be a conventional one, McCain is doomed.

He may be anyway. Bush is unpopular. The media is hostile. The financial meltdown has made things tougher. Maybe the situation is hopeless — and if it is, then nothing McCain or his campaign does matters.

But I’m not convinced by such claims of inevitability. McCain isn’t Bush. The media isn’t all-powerful. And the economic crisis still presents an opportunity to show leadership.

The 2008 campaign is now about something very big — both our future prosperity and our national security. Yet the McCain campaign has become smaller.

What McCain needs to do is junk the whole thing and start over. Shut down the rapid responses, end the frantic e-mails, bench the spinning surrogates, stop putting up new TV and Internet ads every minute. In fact, pull all the ads — they’re doing no good anyway. Use that money for televised town halls and half-hour addresses in prime time.

And let McCain go back to what he’s been good at in the past — running as a cheerful, open and accessible candidate. Palin should follow suit. The two of them are attractive and competent politicians. They’re happy warriors and good campaigners. Set them free.

….and McCain promptly tosses Bill Kristol under the bus:

Well, you know Bill is entitled to his perspective. And I used to work for Bill. And I can tell you personally sometimes he’s brilliant and sometimes he’s not. And this is one where it’s the latter category. You know, I think unfortunately he has bought into the Obama campaign’s party line.

The Video:

Must.not.make.wisecrack.about.blonde.bimbo. Must.resist!

Someone, please! Stop the spinning or I’m going to puke! SickHypnotizedSilly

Seriously, If John McCain keeps this up, he is not going to have a base, for long. You just cannot cross your base like this, for very long and win an election.

Then again, he is like, what? 10 points behind? So, perhaps at this point, maybe he doesn’t care.

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