Obama to explore 2008 White House run; EXPERIENCE MATTERS: Look at Bush in 2000!
Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on January 16, 2007 - 5:38pm.
Democratic politics
Hello Everyone:
Please see the quotes below about Bush's lack of foreign policy experience back in the 2000 election for what I think will be a real eye opener as we are looking to 2008!
Here is the news story from MSNBC where Obama announced today that he was filing a presidential exploratory committee:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16652674/
Obama to explore 2008 White House race
Ill. Democratic senator says he'll announce final decision on Feb. 10
Updated: 10:03 a.m. CT Jan 16, 2007
In this article, Obama uses Washington to try and divert attention away from his own lack of experience:
Obama tried to turn his biggest weakness -- his lack of experience in national politics -- into an asset.
"The decisions that have been made in Washington these past six years, and the problems that have been ignored, have put our country in a precarious place," he said.
"America's faced big problems before," he said. "But today, our leaders in Washington seem incapable of working together in a practical, commonsense way. Politics has become so bitter and partisan, so gummed up by money and influence, that we can't tackle the big problems that demand solutions."
He said Americans are struggling financially, dependence on foreign oil threatens the environment and national security and "we're still mired in a tragic and costly war that should have never been waged."
Obama has nice hopes and dreams but what has he said about how he will specifically implement what he plans to do, what is his detailed plan for Iraq that is a serious alternative to Bush's plan, and what has he done to demonstrate that he is the MOST qualified person to inherit and fix the huge foreign policy mess in Iraq (and possibly Iran) that the next President will inherit from Bush on 1/20/09?
Obama will also be caught in a huge "Flip-Flop" if he runs now because he specifically promised NOT to "run for president or vice president in 2008:"
http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10141#comment-164430
Russert to Obama: "Are you ready to be president?" & Flip-Flop!
MR. RUSSERT: Well, nine months ago, you were on this program and I asked you about running for president. And let’s watch and come back and talk about it.
(Videotape, January 22, 2006):
MR. RUSSERT: When we talked back in November of ‘04, after your election, I said, “There’s been enormous speculation about your political future. Will you serve your full six-year term as a United States senator from Illinois?” Obama: “Absolutely.”
SEN. OBAMA: I will serve out my full six-year term. You know, Tim, if you get asked enough, sooner or later you get weary and you start looking for new ways of saying things, but my thinking has not changed.
MR. RUSSERT: But, but—so you will not run for president or vice president in 2008?
SEN. OBAMA: I will not.
(End videotape)
Here is where the tough questions are asked of Obama:
http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10141
TRANSCRIPT: Howard Kurtz asks the tough questions on Obama & gets wrong answers!
Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on December 17, 2006 - 10:15pm.
Has Obama specifically answered these tough questions yet?
Here is where the tough questions are asked of Edwards:
http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10250
Edwards EMail: "I will announce that I am a candidate for president of the U.S."
Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on December 28, 2006 - 9:06am.
Has Edwards specifically answered these tough questions yet?
Here is where the tough questions are asked of Hillary:
http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10140
TRANSCRIPT: Matthews asks Hillary spokesman Wolfson the tough questions on Iraq!
Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on December 17, 2006 - 10:14pm.
Has Hillary specifically answered these tough questions yet?
Obama, Edwards, and Hillary have NEVER answered in detail yet what their specific plan for Iraq is that is a serious alternative to Bush's plan and what have they done to demonstrate that they are the MOST qualified person to inherit and fix the huge foreign policy mess in Iraq (and possibly Iran) that the next President will inherit from Bush on 1/20/09 while Gen. Clark has been consistently answering these tough questions for years now:
http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10487
Bush, Tony Snow & Hannity's latest Iraq Talking Point shows why "Clark in 2008!"
Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on January 12, 2007 - 5:00pm.
It is not enough to just criticize what Bush and Washington politicians have done over the last six years because that criticism alone will NOT answer the tough questions about Iraq or solve any problems!
For those who think that proven foreign policy experience does not really matter, just look below about what was said of Bush back in the 2000 election about his lack of experience. A lot more will be on the line with foreign policy in 2008 than was back in 2000!
Totally inexperienced people like Edwards and Obama would have to surround themselves with many advisors and then basically go by what feels right to them just like how Bush is doing as opposed to Gen. Clark where you already know for sure what you are getting based on his proven past experience!
Can America really afford to take another chance on another so-called "rock star" or "media darling" like Obama or Edwards who have no serious foreign policy experience going into 2008 (just like Bush going into 2000) when election 2008 will probably focused almost exclusively on who is the MOST qualified person to inherit and fix what Bush leaves to his successor in Iraq and possibly even Iran on 1/20/09?
I do not think so. That is what I think Clark supporters should be talking about now to other Democrats, to the media, and to Independent voters along with the many disillusioned Republicans who are out there!
Mitch Dworkin
http://www.securingamerica.com/
http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/9331
OPEd: USA TODAY: Next move in Iraq?
Submitted by Wes Clark on November 21, 2006
http://www.securingamerica.com/ccn/node/7191
Listen to Gen. Wes Clark fight for Dems on Sean Hannity's radio program: An excellent example for all of us to follow and what we all need to be doing to help fight back against extreme right wing Neocon smear propaganda!
--------------------
http://www.npr.org/news/national/election2000/coverage/issues/foreignpolicy.html
June, 2000
Bush - Foreign Policy (14.4 | 28.8)
All Things Considered, June 5, 2000
NPR's Ted Clark reports on questions raised about presidential candidate George W. Bush's inexperience in foreign affairs. Foreign policy rarely is a major factor in the electorate's choosing of candidates and, so far, Bush's lack of experience in this area has not hurt his ratings.
http://ap.grolier.com/article?assetid=0431361-00
Bush, George Walker
Bush, George Walker (1946- ), 43d president of the United States…
2000 Presidential Race. Just prior to the GOP nominating convention in July 2000, Bush chose former defense secretary Richard Cheney as his running mate. Cheney strengthened the GOP ticket by adding what Bush clearly lacked, foreign policy and defense-issues experience. Although widely considered weak and inexperienced in foreign policy, Bush offered an appealing set of policy proposals on the domestic front—the more important area for influencing presidential election outcomes. His social security plan to partially privatize retirement accounts and his education initiatives, including school choice, enabled the GOP presidential nominee to challenge the traditional Democratic advantage on these issues. In line with long-standing Republican interests, he promised massive tax cuts as well. (See Cheney, Richard Bruce.)
http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/10/18/press.column/index.html
Bill Press: Gore finally hits his stride
But nowhere is Bush's lack of experience more obvious, nor more critical, than on foreign policy. Especially when contrasted with Gore. Asked what would qualify him to resolve the conflict in the Middle East, Gore rattled off an impressive string of accomplishments and experience -- from volunteering to serve in Vietnam to helping hammer together the most recent Middle East peace summit.
Bush bragged: "I've been a leader." Meaning: he's been governor of Texas, since that is his only record of public service. He's lucky the audience didn't break out laughing.
As governor, Bush has zero foreign policy experience, except for occasional, perfunctory meetings with Mexican officials, standard fare for any border state governor, but surely no preparation for brokering a tough agreement between Israeli Prime Minister Barak and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/shields&gigot/july00/s&g_7-25.html
What does the VP selection say about Bush?
JIM LEHRER: Okay. Moving right along, the... it was said on our program last night, it's been said elsewhere, that the selection of the vice presidential candidate says as much about the man doing the choosing as it does the person chosen. What does this say about George W. Bush that is important that we should know?
PAUL GIGOT: I think it suggests he's not afraid to be surrounded by strong deputies. He doesn't feel that -- he wants somebody like Cheney with his wealth of experience being able to talk to him. There's a certain modesty about that, healthy, particularly given George Bush's lack of foreign policy experience. You know, that's somebody you can count on. It tells me that Bush is confident of winning, that he thinks he can win on his terms, because he didn't make the overtly political choice, political defined as political calculation for the election. I mean, Cheney doesn't give him a state.
http://edition.cnn.com/2000/WORLD/europe/12/14/election.media/index.html
European press debate Bush win
December 14, 2000
Web posted at: 9:49 AM EST (1449 GMT)
LONDON, England -- Over a month after many European newspapers had to hastily change their first editions George W. Bush was back on the front pages.
Once again it is the British tabloids that have the most fun with the serious business of deciding the 43rd U.S. president.
Highlighting concern at Bush's perceived lack of foreign-policy experience, the tabloid Mirror printed a globe with an arrow pointing to Britain, under the headline: "P.S. We are here."
"It's the son wot won it!" proclaimed The Sun, punning on the second generation of Bush leadership and its famous "It's the Sun wot won it" headline, when the paper grabbed credit for British Prime Minister John Major's 1992 election victory.
He is going to form an exploratory committee. And why not? He has struck a cord with many younger voters, like Eugene McCarthy did in 1968. What is amazing to me is that Hillary Clinton is polling so low in the popularity contests. I hope of course that Wes decides to form his own exploratory committee, then the mustards off the hot dog baby! Oh ya! Run Wes Run!
FYI
Update!! The Clark for President in '08 Group on the Democrats.org site has 250 members. The largest group in all catagories on the Party Builder site, now that's a Wow! If you have not joined yet...And you support Wes for President, please join! Here's the link, Thank you.
http://www.democrats.org/page/group/WesClarkforPresident2008
Hi John:
I appreciate your comments and feedback!
I think that Obama is an excellent Senator for Illinois and he is a great public speaker BUT I do not think that he is even close to being qualified to be President now!
Obama not having any serious foreign policy experience at all in a post-9/11 world and his bluntly promising both in 2004 and 2006 NOT to run for President or VP in 2008 will be huge liabilities to him!
Comparing Obama to Gen. Clark on foreign policy experience is like comparing a college freshman to an experienced college professor in my opinion!
I appreciate you posting your link to support Gen. Clark!
And thank God qualified or not you can run for President!
I do not fear any Democrat that throws his or her hat into the ring. I agree with you on foreign policy experience and I know Wes is the best choice for America at this time. And I trust Americans now more than ever to sort out the candidates from now until November of '08. And when they do, they will see that the leader we need to move America forward to reclaim it's greatness and respect around the world is Wesley Clark, the next President of the United States of America.
I agree with what you are saying about his right to run, "this is America!"
I just hope that the "rock star" and "media darling" status that Obama is getting now wears off soon and that he has to answer the same tough questions that Gen. Clark has been answering for years now!
I also hope that Gen. Clark can get enough serious media coverage to be able to connect his message with the entire country!
The thing about Obama and Clark are that they are both highly intelligent people. Many times this does not fair well for their type of candidacy; in the long run, with many in the electorate. It amazes me that more times than not Americans elect people like George Bush (God, by his own anointing) or John Edwards (God help us) or a Bill Clinton (God bless him).
It is a popularity contest; the Presidency is not usually an issues contest. If it were it would be President Dean or Kerry we would be re-electing next year. We can go on and on about issues and experience but when you’re hot you’re hot in America and that means many times whether you’re voted in or out.
I have heard and watched General Clark many times, he is a highly charismatic person, very comfortable with people one on one; and boy can he deliver a speech, truly a man among men. My hope is if General Clark decides to run that he show more of his personal side, his family, sharing the many stories I know he has about his formative years, the days when times were tough and making the most of what you have when you don't have a lot, he is such a likable person. I think General Clark needs to transpose himself from behind that camera to the living rooms of millions of average Americans, and take off that tie once in a while!
Wes Clark is the diamond among many pieces of cubic zerconia out there right now, but will Americans be able to tell the difference? His is a classic American success story that needs to be told. Yes, Iraq, Iran etc. we know all that now, but you know in history there is always an Iraq or Iran, call it Vietnam or Somalia or Kosovo.
Well I have ranted enough, the last point I want to make is this, I know this decision for General Clark is a hard one. Money and a message that strikes the right cord with Americans is a highly volatile and fleeting thing. We believe in the man and his message, but will enough of America "see the light" so to speak is the real question. I believe they will, if given the chance.
I'd put Bill Clinton up against anybody, including Clark and Obama, in the brains department. But his immense affability almost obscured it. Edwards is no dummy, either.
Clinton achieved success in politics by making friends. Edwards won cases by being personally appealing to the jury.
I'm out on a limb here, but I wonder what it feels like to rise through the levels of command in the military. I wonder if as one rises in the hierarchy, the officer can afford less to be chummy. A certain aloofness is probably required.
A senior commander makes decisions that can put people at grave risk. They have to decide which people and which units might have to be sacrificed in the interest of the mission and keeping larger numbers of people safe. He won't want to have to deside between a bosom buddy and a more unkonwn. They way to do that is not to have any bosom buddies.
It's the "loneliness of command."
Stan Davis
Lakewood, CO
If not now, WHO? If not now, WHEN?
BE THE CHANGE you wish to see in the world.
I think you have something their Stan when you talk about aloofness and being a senior commander. If that is the case Wes Clark does not have far to go! Actually I believe he already has all he needs to grab people and make an impact on them. Wes does not seem to lack the ability; maybe he just needs some practice. As far as being flexible, I happen to think Wes Clark is going to be the fastest and most adaptable candidate around if he believes it is needed.
will be an unnecessary issue used to help take attention away from the real issues by the RNC and the extreme right wing media when so much is wrong in Iraq and all over the world if he is nominated in 2008:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/02/AR2007010201359.html
Effect of Obama's Candor Remains to Be Seen
Senator Admitted Trying Cocaine in a Memoir Written 11 Years Ago
By Lois Romano
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 3, 2007; Page A01
Long before the national media spotlight began to shine on every twist and turn of his life's journey, Barack Obama had this to say about himself: "Junkie. Pothead. That's where I'd been headed: the final, fatal role of the young would-be black man. . . . I got high [to] push questions of who I was out of my mind."
The Democratic senator from Illinois and likely presidential candidate offered the confession in a memoir written 11 years ago, not long after he graduated from law school and well before he contemplated life on the national stage. At the time, 20,000 copies were printed and the book seemed destined for the remainders stacks.
Today, Obama, 45, is near the top of polls on potential Democratic presidential contenders, and "Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance" has regularly been on the bestseller lists, with 800,000 copies in print. Taken along with his latest bestseller, "The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream," Obama has become a genuine publishing phenomenon.
Obama's revelations were not an issue during his Senate campaign two years ago. But now his open narrative of early, bad choices, including drug use starting in high school and ending in college, as well as his tortured search for racial identity, are sure to receive new scrutiny...
You be the judge of how the media is treating Obama:
http://newsbusters.org/node/10204
Networks Swoon Again for Barack Obama, Tout His 'Big Step' Toward Presidential Bid
Posted by Brent Baker on January 16, 2007 - 21:28.
Just as when Democratic Senator Barack Obama said he was considering a presidential campaign last October, his announcement Monday -- via a Web video that he has set up an exploratory committee -- unleashed media excitement. The CBS Evening News treated it as one of the two big stories of the day: “I'm Katie Couric. Two major stories tonight: A vicious attack in Baghdad....And Senator Barack Obama takes a big step toward running for President. He says it's time for a change.” After that tease, Couric announced: “Hi everyone. He's generated a lot of excitement. And now it looks like Senator Barack Obama is, indeed, jumping into the presidential race. We'll have more about that in a moment.”
Over on ABC's World News, which devoted more than four minutes to the topic, anchor Kate Snow trumpeted how “Democratic rising star Barack Obama takes a major step toward a run for the White House.” She soon trumpeted how “the presidential race got a major jolt today. The man who could become the first African-American President took a major step toward becoming a candidate.” Snow even spun a negative into a positive: “His political resume is rather thin, but in the 2008 race, that could be a plus.” NBC anchor Brian Williams teased “a big step tonight for Barack Obama” before touting how “a bit of political history was made today, kind of, when Illinois Democratic Senator Barack Obama almost declared his candidacy for President.”
NBC Nightly News, at least, held it's Obama story to a 1:30 piece from Chip Reid and Williams, unlike ABC and CBS, took 20 seconds to note the opening of an presidential exploratory committee by Republican Tom Tancredo.
Of the coverage aired on the three networks, only ABC's Jake Tapper uttered the “liberal” label in connection with Obama: “In recent trips to key early primary states Iowa and New Hampshire, Obama drew praise for presenting fairly traditional liberal views as fresh and inspiring.”
Last October 23, my MRC CyberAlert item, “ABC & NBC Hail 'Remarkable' and 'Exciting'
Obama Presidential Bid,” recounted the media's excitement after Obaama announced on Meet the Press that he was considering a presidential run. That thrill continued, as detailed in my NewsBusters item that night: “For 2nd Night, Nets Trumpet 'Political Phenom' Obama, a 'Sensation' and 'Rock Star.'”
The teases and story set-ups on the January 16 evening newscasts on ABC, CBS and NBC:
ABC's World News with Charles Gibson (4:15 to Obama story)
Kate Snow's tease:
“On his mark: Democratic rising star Barack Obama takes a major step toward a run for the White House. Why is a first term Senator causing such a stir?”
Snow's introduction:
“To political news now. The presidential race got a major jolt today. The man who could become the first African-American President took a major step toward becoming a candidate. Senator Barack Obama opened an exploratory committee to raise money and hire staff. His political resume is rather thin, but in the 2008 race, that could be a plus. ABC's senior political correspondent Jake Tapper joins us now.”
CBS Evening News (3:00 on the Obama story, not counting Couric's top of show tease and intro)
Couric's tease:
“I'm Katie Couric. Two major stories tonight: A vicious attack in Baghdad....And Senator Barack Obama takes a big step toward running for President. He says it's time for a change.”
Obama in exploratory site video: “I've been struck by how hungry we all are for a different kind of politics.”Couric at top of newscast:
“Hi everyone. He's generated a lot of excitement. And now it looks like Senator Barack Obama is, indeed, jumping into the presidential race. We'll have more about that in a moment.”
Couric set up fpr the Obama story:
“Now to the Barack Obama story. After months of speculation, the freshman Senator from Illinois says yes, he does want to be the next President of the United States. The official announcement will come next month. But today he said he's forming an exploratory committee. Gloria Borger is our national political correspondent. Gloria, Obama had a thoroughly modern way of getting his message out today.”
NBC Nightly News (1:30 on Obama)
Brian Williams' tease:
“A big step tonight for Barack Obama. One step closer to running for President. Is it a game-changer for the Democrats?”
The story intro from Williams:
“And in this country, a bit of political history was made today, kind of, when Illinois Democratic Senator Barack Obama almost declared his candidacy for President. Officially, he's forming an exploratory committee, which usually means, unofficially, he's running. Chip Reid will explain all of it for us tonight. He's on the Hill. Chip, what are we seeing here?”
Brent Baker's blog | login or register to post comments
Categories: 2008 Presidential | Barack Obama | CBS Evening News | NBC Nightly News | World News
are not necessarily right about everything but this is still interesting to watch in my opinion:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/
Web exclusive: Matthews on Obama's strengths
Jan. 16: Hardball's Chris Matthews talks candidly about Barack Obama's strengths and weaknesses. • WATCH VIDEO
http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?f=00&g=cf6d383d-1230-45cd-a32c-1afbf77b1060&p=Source_Hardball&t=c1150&rf=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/&fg= (00:46)
• Web exclusive: Obama is set apart
http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?f=00&g=609b4c6f-2001-40e8-bbc8-61127dafc543&p=Source_Hardball&t=m5&rf=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/&fg= (02:10)
• Does Obama have what it takes?
http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?f=00&g=02e855d9-c104-410d-9175-ac5adc5fa24b&p=Source_Hardball&t=c1150&rf=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/&fg= (10:53)
Take this for what you think it is worth, it is what much of "the media" seems to be pushing now:
http://wcbstv.com/politics/local_story_017074523.html
Jan 17, 2007 9:01 am US/Eastern
Hillary Works To Reclaim Political Initiative
Obama Announcement Puts Burden On Unofficial Front-Runner
Some Call Obama 'The Anti-Hillary'
http://wcbstv.com/slideshows/local_slideshow_341155909
(CBS) NEW YORK Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is throwing his hat into the ring for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. He's the sixth Democrat to officially enter the race. Now, the focus is on Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), who remains officially un-declared -- but not necessarily for long.
Obama's announcement is seen as a direct challenge to Clinton. So much so that her staff is scrambling to reclaim the political initiative.
Fresh back from a trip to the Middle East, Clinton appeared on the major talk shows Wednesday morning, amid speculation that she would push forward the date of her announcement for president.
On one early morning broadcast, Clinton called the road to the Democratic nomination "the beginning of a long process" She dodged questions about her own plans to enter the race for the nomination.
She was more outspoken about the war in Iraq, however.
"The Bush administration has frankly failed to put any leverage on this government," Clinton said on CBS' "The Early Show." She did not say whether she would vote to block funding for Bush's troop increase.
New Kind Of Candidate?
If, as Marshall McLuhan once said, "The medium is the message," then Obama's announcement on the Web rather than on TV hints of a new kind of candidate.
In his announcement, Obama spoke of "a different kind of politics."
But his candidacy is also setting up an old-fashioned political dogfight against the up-to-now perceived frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, Clinton.
In fact, some are calling Obama the anti-Hillary.
It's a race full of symbolism.
The man who could be the first black president is facing off against the woman who could be the first female president.
It is a potential contest of one who opposed the Iraq war from the beginning versus one who voted for it.
But it's already more than a two-person race.
Former senator and vice presidential candidate John Edwards made his own waves this weekend when he came into Clinton's New York territory with a speech at Riverside Church.
Waiting in the wings is former Vice President Al Gore, who actually won the popular vote for president in 2000.
Clinton is expected to highlight her long political experience versus Obama's mere two years in the Senate.
Clinton has called Obama "terrific" and an "exciting personality," but has also gently jabbed at his lack of experience. Clinton has said that voters would decide if Obama is experienced enough to be president.
For his part, Obama will be invoking Abraham Lincoln from his home state of Illinois. Lincoln had served only two years in the House before he was elected president in 1860.
BY JOHN METAXAS, CBS 2 NEWS
with a grain of salt because of Morris' ideology and the fact that he is motivated a lot by his of sheer hatred of Hillary Clinton:
http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/Comment/DickMorris/011707.html
January 17, 2007
DICK MORRIS
Obama’s first blunder
Presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) made his first misstep a few days ago when he joined only a handful of Democrats in opposing a Senate reform banning the increasingly widespread practice of legislators hiring their family members on their campaign or PAC payrolls. Obama has not heard the last of this vote. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), who opposes wives cashing in on their husbands’ positions, voted righteously in favor of the reform and will probably use the Illinois senator’s vote against him in the presidential primaries.
When a legislator hires his or her spouse on the campaign or PAC payroll, he is effectively converting contributions to his campaign committee into personal income that flows into the family’s checking account, blurring the line between contribution and bribe.
In the past, senators and House members routinely hired their spouses and other family members on their public payrolls. In the early 1940s, for example, Harry S. Truman hired his wife, Bess, to work on his Senate staff. She got $2,500 a year in salary at a time when senators themselves only earned $8,500. But nepotism on the public payroll is now banned. So inventive congressmen and senators have filled the void by hiring family on their campaign or PAC payrolls.
Hiring family members and paying them with campaign donations is, if anything, more pernicious than doing so with public funds. Where tax money is involved, the sin is against the taxpayer for wasting his funds. But where campaign contributions are involved, the congressman is profiting personally from the largesse of special interest donors. In plain English, that’s a payoff.
There is, of course, a certain hypocrisy in the Senate action since very few senators, in fact, hire their families on their payrolls. It is, though, widely practiced in the House of Representatives, where 30 members have their families on their payrolls. But senators are much less likely to do so. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who voted “present” on the reform, hired her son, Douglas, a lobbyist, to manage her PAC, paying him $130,000 over a four-year period. Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, then a Democrat, hired his son, Matthew, for $34,000 and his daughter, Rebecca, for $36,000 to work on his 2004 presidential campaign.
So the congressional ethics reform of 2007 boils down to this: The House banned the use of corporate jets but the Senate did not, even though senators are more likely to avail themselves of the luxury than is the average House member. The Senate banned hiring family members but the House did not, even though House members are far more likely to hire their significant others to work for them.
Obama’s inexplicable pro-nepotism vote may have been cast in sympathy with Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.), whose hiring of his wife, Sandi, to work on his campaign prompted an FEC ruling allowing the practice. Jackson might be afraid that the Senate action will catalyze a similar reform in the House, which could cut way back on his disposable family income.
But whatever the reason for his vote, Obama has screwed up. The public will not take kindly to a senator who pledged to clean up the political process voting to allow wives to be hired with special-interest campaign funds.
The FEC required, in allowing the practice, that the contract for the services of the family member contain the language customarily used between campaign committees and consultants. The FEC also ruled that any payment to a family member in excess of the fair market value of the services would be considered to be a “personal use of campaign funds.”
But, as usual, the FEC has missed the point. Any payment from campaign money to a spouse is, in fact, an appropriation of campaign funds by the member of Congress for his own personal use, however camouflaged or disguised. The Senate was right to ban the practice and the House should follow suit.
Morris, a former political adviser to Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss.) and President Bill Clinton, is the author of “Condi vs. Hillary: The Next Great Presidential Race.” To get all of Dick Morris’s and Eileen McGann’s columns for free by email, go to www.dickmorris.com.
scared to death about what Bush is doing in Iraq, what he may do in Iran, and they are desperate for some serious answers about how to possibly stop him while on the other hand a lot of these people are looking to inexperienced "rock stars" and "media darlings" for these answers as opposed to leaders with proven foreign policy and national security experience like Gen. Clark who has already answered their questions many times over!
This is NOT the time for on the job training!
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2007/1/17/222429.shtml?s=ic
Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2007 10:22 p.m. EST
Reporters Swarm Sen. Barack Obama After Candidacy Announcement
A photographer or two on the beach in Hawaii is nothing compared to the Capitol Hill swarm that greeted the newest presidential hopeful - Sen. Barack Obama.
Emerging from a lunch with colleagues Wednesday, reporters pressed the Illinois Democrat, who gave away little about his budding campaign. His appearance at a routine committee hearing drew every camera in the room, while the more senior senators who are thinking of running were ignored.
"Is there something rare at this table among competitors?" a smiling Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., remarked as he sat with Obama on his left and two other potential 2008 candidates - Sens. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Joe Biden of Delaware - on his right.
After months of hype, the freshman senator jumped into the White House race Tuesday by forming a presidential exploratory committee and disclosing that an official announcement would come Feb. 10. Obama got in the race despite saying a day earlier that he was concerned to find a photographer "lurking in the bushes" when he was on vacation in Hawaii with his family last month.
Obama avoided media appearances Tuesday when he announced his decision on his Web site. Reporters found him Wednesday as he walked into the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing to the rat-a-tat-tat of camera clicks.Biden, the committee chairman, could have been accused of trying to undercut his rivals. He forgot to call on Kerry and moved to cut off Obama when his allotted time was up.
"Mr. Chairman, how am I doing on time?" Obama asked as he wrapped up. Biden and Kerry had been whispering and laughing at a private joke while Obama questioned the panel of experts promoting a diplomatic strategy in Iraq.
"Eight seconds," Biden replied.
"I have eight seconds? That's enough to get one question in," Obama said.
But as he started to talk, Biden cut him off. "You're out of time, but go for it," Biden said with a wave of his hand.
"That was a quick second!" Obama protested, and continued with his question as senators are wont to do.
Biden gave Kerry his time after Nelson pointed out that the 2004 presidential nominee was being skipped over. Biden said he'd been out of the room on a phone call and lost track.
Shortly thereafter, most of the media left the room, too, on the heels of Obama.
The media reassembled - and grew in ranks - outside the weekly Democratic caucus lunch in the Capitol. Reporters surrounded Obama as he tried to leave, and he was asked how he plans to be a father while running for president.
"I always care about my kids," Obama said, stepping onto an elevator but unable to escape a the persistent reporter's follow-up question with her colleagues blocking the doors.
How are you going to be a father to your kids running for president? "Well, these are all considerations that I'm taking into account as I make my decisions about moving forward," he said, drawing farther into the elevator and away from outstretched arms jostling tape recorders.
Another reporter asked for Obama's reaction to a proposal by likely rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., to cap the number of troops in Iraq. He didn't directly answer, but only said there are many proposals that Democrats are considering as they try to reverse President Bush's troop increase.
Asked if he will offer his own idea, Obama said cryptically, "That will be coming soon."
Finally, another elevator offered an escape - at least for the day.
© 2007 Associated Press.
are concerned in my opinion!
KO's examples of past Presidents all refer to a pre-9/11 world and when the next President at that time was NOT going to inherit the same kind of foreign policy mess that the next President will inherit from Bush on 1/20/09!
I was very surprised to hear Craig Crawford say last night on Countdown "I‘ve always thought it was more of a personality contest" in the transcript below:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16689439/
'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' for Jan. 17
Read the transcript to the Wednesday show
Guests: Howard Fineman, Craig Crawford, Jonathan Turley, Tom O‘Neill
OLBERMANN: When the question of inexperience is brought up, that phrase is used in either of their cases, is this just a front for qualms about race or gender? I mean, by inauguration day 2009, each of these senators will have held national elected office longer than four of the last five presidents had combined before they were elected president.
I mean, national experience wasn‘t an issue for Carter, Reagan, Bill Clinton, Bush 43. Is it the code word now regarding, you know, Oh she‘s a woman, Oh, he‘s not a white guy? Is that what we‘re talking about now?
CRAWFORD: I think that‘s a possible side effect of that discussion.
I‘ve never been a big believer in the experience bar to elective office. As you say, if you look at history, it‘s hard to believe in that. I‘ve always thought it was more of a personality contest. Presidential campaigns are not much different than student council elections in that respect.
And that is where Obama has a real leg up. He‘s showing a lot of personality and charisma on the road. Hillary‘s got a ways to go. I think she‘s got it in her, Keith, but we haven‘t seen it yet. If she can show some personality, that would trump the worries about experience.
If Obama really thinks that he can be a serious Presidential candidate, then he had better learn how to deal with these kind of cheap shot, "swiftboat" type attacks very quickly because stuff like this is only the beginning of what he will get from the other side if he decides to run:
http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_011807/content/rush_on_a_roll.guest.html
You Can Always Count on Ditka;
Does Obama's Smoking Make Him Cool?
January 18, 2007
BEGIN TRANSCRIPT 
RUSH: Would you believe it if I told you there was politics on ESPN yesterday? I would believe it, too, if I told it to myself, even though when I was there it was taboo. This is yesterday on Pardon the Interruption. The co-hosts, Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser, were talking to Mike Ditka, the former coach of Da Bears and also the New Orleans Saints. Wilbon said, "You toyed with running for the Senate against Barack Obama a few years ago. He's running for president now and has been very clear about picking the Bears. Does that seem risky for you for him to go out...? I don't think he go out on a limb but he went out, came right out publicly and picked the Bears."
DITKA: You don't want to get me in politics now do you? I met a guy on the street corner the other day; he's going to file to run for president, too. Anybody can take a shot at it. I got nothing against Obama. My goodness, nobody would know who he was if I would have ran.
RUSH: Nobody would have known who Obama is if Ditka would have run for the Senate. Next question from Kornheiser: "Well, you should declare right now for something. You want to declare for any office right now?"
DITKA: I declare for the United States of America. I'm an American and I'm proud. I don't want to hear all this old jumbo mumbo, "We're a bad country. We got this wrong, that wrong." I love the country, period! The good overweighs the bad by far, and if people don't understand that, they should get the heck out.
RUSH: Mike Ditka on Pardon the Interruption yesterday from Chicago. (Laughing.) You can always count on Ditka. What he's talking about, the first question about Obama picking the Bears, here's Obama running for the presidency and you've got the New Orleans Saints -- which are "the United States Saints." They're out of New Orleans, and of course Katrina is a political tool in the Democrat Party, and Obama didn't just go homer on us and pick his own team, the Bears, he dissed New Orleans and the Saints! He said, "They don't have a prayer. Their fantasy comes to an end." I maintain this is dividing the country. Here's a guy who patently portrays himself as a uniter, and he was dividing -- and using the poor people of New Orleans! Their whole sense of self-esteem resolves around the Saints, and here's Obama, the great, compassionate, understanding, "godlike to the godless," just telling the godless in New Orleans he ain't going to be their godlike figure.
Speaking of Obama, this is interesting. The AP has started a miniature anal exam of Obama. "Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama may have a lot of explaining to do. He voted against requiring medical care for aborted fetuses who survive." May I read that to you again? "He voted against requiring medical care for aborted fetuses who survive." Can you picture this? Some doctor attempts to abort the fetus, it lives. Obama does not want the surviving aborted fetus, attempted aborted fetus, to get any medical care! It must die, even if it survives the abortion! Wait 'til the Clintons get hold of this one. "He also supported allowing retired police officers to carry concealed weapons but opposed allowing people to use banned handguns to defend against intruders in their homes," and the list of sensitive topics goes on. "With only a slim two-year record in the US Senate, Obama doesn't have many controversial congressional votes which political opponents can frame into attack ads, but his eight years as an Illinois state senator are sprinkled with potentially explosive land mines, such as his abortion and gun control votes."
Well, maybe we're talking about primaries here, but I'm telling you: this guy is a full-fledged, card-carrying down-the-wall liberal. You know what his biggest problem may end up being? I don't know, but it may be. This guy is a huge smoker. Did you know that? Well, of course he keeps it out of the public, but he still smokes. From what I understand, he smokes a lot. I've got two sound bites. Grab sound bites 13 and 14. I keep telling the broadcast engineer we're going back to sound bites four, five, seven. I haven't gotten there since the first hour. Up first is the Manhattan Institute's John McWhorter. This is on Fox News Channel, the Big Story with John Gibson yesterday, and also Young Democrats of America Malia Lazu. Now, Gibson says, "Obama's dirty little secret is he's a cigarette smoker. The question is: Would you vote for a smoker as president? John, is that kind of an impediment for him?"
McWHORTER: Obama is seen as so very, very cool. I think a lot of people find him sexy, and I think even in today's America, there's a sense that there's something vaguely sexy about cigarettes. You've got fire in your hand.
RUSH: (Groans.) Now, I love John McWhorter, and John McWhorter is brilliant, but where's he been? Is anybody portraying cigarette smoking as sexy? Well, Hollywood does. I'm going to infuriate some of you people, but it looks cool! People who know how to smoke cigarettes look cool. Why do you think Hollywood does it? They're freaking out in there on the other side of the glass. Dawn's face is turning four shades of red. I'm not talking about it IS cool; I'm saying it can be made to LOOK cool. Why do you think Hollywood does it? Why do you think movies show it? Why do you think kids end up trying it? It looks cool. They make it look cool. It's one of the big seductive problems with it, and this guy is effectively saying it here. He's saying, "There's something vaguely sexy about cigarettes. You've got fire in your hand," and now what he's saying is Obama can make smoking sexy! What if Obama is seen smoking in public and it is said -- because nobody wants to criticize him because he's above criticism, because he's a godlike figure to the godless, and you don't criticize gods, or godlike figures? What if the whole anti-smoking bunch has to come out because they're a bunch of libs, too, has to find a way to justice Obama's coolness? (whispering) Because he's got fire! If he's got fire in his hands, what has he got in his pants? You hear all of these things. Here is Malia Lazu, and Gibson says, "What do you think about Obama's secret?"
LAZU: I think Americans will be happy that his vice doesn't lead him to pages or to choking his mistress. I mean, all humans have vice, and he has one, but what Americans want is they want a change and they want that hope that Obama sparks in people.
RUSH: So smoking, we have been told, is hideous; it is deathly. It kills. We've got Nazi-like smoke laws in New York City. You can't smoke and they're trying to get smoking driven out of people's homes in various parts of the country -- and yet when it's revealed that the godlike Obama -- godlike to the godless, Barack Obama -- smokes? Why, it's a just a vice, and, why, everybody has these vices! And of course Americans will be happy! (Laughing.) The way these people think! "Americans will be happy that his vice doesn't lead him to pages or to choking his mistress." I can just see this now. The American people -- you know who you are, you're All-American people -- when you learn that Obama smokes, is your first reaction, "Gosh, I'm so glad he doesn't mess around with the pages!" Would you be happy -- and who, by the way, chokes their mistress? I can't place it. (interruption). Ohhhhhh, the guy the beat for the Senate? No, no. No, no. That would be Alan Keyes! Alan Keyes didn't choke anybody but himself. Yeah, and you can't make that look cool. You can make smoking look cool, but you can't make choking your mistress look cool. Obama could, but nobody else.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: Okay, time for a correction. It was not Barack Obama's opponent who choked his mistress. What happened in that case, Obama's opponent in Illinois that dropped out wanted his wife to engage in kinkiness -- sex clubs, having his wife perform while he watched. The guy's name was Ryan. It was the guy who lost in Pennsylvania, Don Sherwood, who was accused of choking. Well, he admitted it. He choked his mistress. It's not that a mistress wasn't choked. We just chalked it up to the wrong guy. Now, ladies and gentlemen -- Hillary, those of you in the Clinton camp -- you had better get your act together. Listen to this. This is the latest from AP. "Just because New York's former state comptroller is backing Hillary doesn't mean that Barack Obama can't call. Carl McCall said that Obama is trying to make inroads on Clinton's home turf, and he was among the Democrats to hear from Obama." Carl McCall ran for governor in 2002 but the DNC sold him out. "He was the state's first black candidate for governor from a major political party," but the DNC sold him out. We raised more money for him than the DNC gave him.
"While McCall said that he was sticking with Clinton," (laughing) of course he will, "'The Obama thing is interesting, maybe even exciting. I think will appeal to a lot of people.' McCall said he planned to meet with Obama, has been reaching out, coming to New York soon, wants to meet with some people." This is twice he's moving in now on Hillary's turf! This is (laughing) fascinating to watch
END TRANSCRIPT
Read the Background Material...
(The Hill: Mike Ditka emerges as possible Senate candidate -07.08.04)
(AP: Obama record in state legislature offers possible ammunition for critics)
(NYDN: Hollywood Hil's? Barack is gaining)
(AP: Obama Reaches Out to Clinton Supporters)
*Note: Links to content outside RushLimbaugh.com usually become inactive over time.
foreign policy, or national security which is what the vast majority of people in the country want to hear about RIGHT NOW and what election 2008 will probably be mainly focused on!
Dear Mitch,
Send this video to friends and family so they can learn more about Barack.
On Tuesday, when I announced my intention to form a presidential exploratory committee, I told you all that the one thing I learned from my travels across this country was how hungry Americans are for a different kind of politics.
Within hours, you proved how true this is. Thousands upon thousands of you emailed and contributed and signed up to help. I am truly humbled by your response, and inspired by your desire to change America.
We face many challenges in this country. But big as they are, it's not the magnitude of our problems that concerns me. It's the smallness of our politics.
There is a sense today that politics has lost its purpose - that somewhere between the 24-hour news cycles and the talking heads, between the negative ads and the personal attacks, between the partisanship and the gridlock, politics has stopped speaking to what matters in the lives of the American people.
I believe that you and I can change that.
I believe there is a different kind of politics waiting for us. It's a tradition of politics that has stretched from the days of the country's founding to the glory of the civil rights movement. It's a tradition based on the simple idea that we have a stake in one another, and that what binds us together is greater than what drives us apart. And if enough of us believe in the truth of that proposition - and enough of us act on it - then we might not solve every problem facing America, but we can certainly get something meaningful done during the time we share on this Earth.
This is the journey on which I'm asking you all to join me. This is the kind of America I believe we can have.
Many of you have asked what else you can do to help, and I appreciate that. For starters, you can talk to your neighbors and friends. You can call your mom or dad. You can forward folks this email and ask them to sign up for our effort. But most of all, you can keep speaking out and standing up for the issues that matter to you and your family.
http://www.barackobama.com/video/about.php
Years ago, as a community organizer in Chicago, I learned that meaningful change always begins at the grassroots, and that by working together, ordinary people can accomplish extraordinary things.
We've already started down that road together, and as I continue to travel around the country and decide what role a presidential campaign can have in bringing America together, I look forward to meeting and speaking with more of you about your hopes for our future.
Thank you again for supporting our effort, and please ask others to join us. Together, we're going to make history.
Sincerely,
U.S. Senator Barack Obama
Paid for by Obama Exploratory Committee
and look at what we got!
So it is NOT enough for Obama and Edwards to just call themselves "a Washington outsider," criticize Bush & Cheney for their "Washington Experience," and the think that will make up for the serious foreign policy experience that they clearly lack:
http://magazines.enews.com/doc.mhtml?i=w060102&s=lizza010606
WHY BUSH CAN'T STAND UP TO HOUSE REPUBLICANS.
The Insider
by Ryan Lizza
Only at TNR Online | Post date 01.06.06
George W. Bush has always fashioned himself a Washington outsider. One of his most powerful campaign themes in 2000 was an above-it-all reproach of 1990s Beltway partisanship. "[My] background may lack the polish of Washington," he said at his nominating convention. "Then again, I don't have a lot of things that come with Washington. I don't have enemies to fight, and I have no stake in the bitter arguments of the last few years." It was a shot at Newt Gingrich as much as Bill Clinton.
Bush ran against Washington even though it meant distancing himself from, and sometimes even attacking, his fellow Republicans running Congress. One of his finest moments on the campaign trail came in late 1999 when Tom DeLay and House Republicans, engaged in some accounting gimmickry to balance the budget, pushed a plan to delay tax credits owed to low-income Americans. Bush decided it was the perfect opportunity to bash the Washington GOP. "I don't think they ought to balance their budget on the backs of the poor," he announced. The comment created front-page news and enraged Republicans on the Hill. DeLay took the line personally. He shot back dismissively, "It's obvious the governor's got a lot to learn about Congress."
Even as president, Bush has been remarkably adept at maintaining outsider bona fides. His speeches, especially in campaign years, are salted with populist anti-Washington expressions--"up there in Washington," "as some of them like to say in Washington." He spends long vacations clearing brush at his compound in Texas to keep the outsider image alive. If he has strong relationships with House members or privately seeks their counsel on policy, it's a closely held secret. He and the Texas aides that populate his White House still sneer at the town's establishment.
And yet for the last two years, as a Senate committee, Florida prosecutors, a large team of FBI agents and Justice Department lawyers, and the detailed reporting of every major news organization have slowly unraveled the story of how Republican Washington actually works, Bush has remained silent. Tom DeLay, fighting money-laundering charges in Texas, is at the center of a public corruption investigation in Washington. Republican Representative Duke Cunningham took millions of dollars in bribes from a defense contractor. Republican Representative Bob Ney is alleged to have been paid to pressure a casino owner who was later murdered by the mob. Conservative columnists have been bought off. Conservative activists have apparently played financial shell games to fleece Indians. If anyone should be disgusted by all of this, it's Bush. It turns out he was right: Washington is a cesspool.
So naturally, this week, when Abramoff's twin plea agreements broke the scandal open with the awful details of how Washington really operates, the reform-minded, outsider Republican expressing the most public outrage was ... Newt Gingrich. Bush, meanwhile, is like a guy who dressed up in a fireman's costume and suddenly finds himself in the middle of a burning building with no idea what to do. He came to Washington in the garb of a reformer and is presiding silently over a town corrupted to its core.
What happened? Bush became an insider. Over the last six years the Bush White House has integrated itself seamlessly into the GOP's Washington machine. The nexus of Republican lobbyists, members, and aides that bred Abramoff and seems likely to bring down Ney, DeLay, and others is the same one that created victory after victory for Bush. For the last few years, the alliance DeLay built with K Street seemed like a pretty good deal. DeLay conditioned lobbyists to work almost as hard on Bush's agenda as their own (though quite often they were the same thing). Bush benefited nicely from one side of this deal, the one that helped produce all those close wins in the House. It's only recently that the flipside of this transactional relationship has been exposed in any detail.
And for Bush, 2006 is the worst possible year to try and extricate himself from this alliance and attack congressional Republicans. For the first time in his presidency, Bush needs House and Senate Republicans more than they need him. Unlike 2002 and 2004, Bush isn't an asset to congressmen up for reelection. But if Bush is to accomplish anything in the final years of his presidency, his one overriding goal this year will have to be maintaining GOP control of Congress. There is no advantage for Bush in railing against his corrupt colleagues if it means more of them may lose their jobs. The more likely scenario is that the White House will continue to treat the scandals as isolated incidents and eventually get behind some modest lobbying reform. It took him a while but, as DeLay predicted, Bush has finally learned about Congress.
Ryan Lizza is a senior editor at The New Republic.
http://www.drudgereport.com/
OBAMA'S PAPERS...
Barack Obama takes first step in presidential bid...
Video announcement on his website...
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