Barack Obama will be swiftboated & will get eaten up alive if he is the nominee!

Hello Everyone:

I have already documented why I think that Barack Obama would be a very weak general election candidate if he is the 2008 Democratic nominee:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/13433

ANALYSIS: Why I think that Obama would be a very weak general election candidate

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on September 24, 2007 - 9:01am.

This weakness of Obama was very obvious to me again in the October 30 Democratic candidates debate when he gave this very naive "No" answer to a key question from Brian Williams about his being swiftboated:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21562193/

Democratic Presidential Candidates Debate for October 30
Read the transcript from the special coverage

updated 11:16 a.m. CT, Wed., Oct. 31, 2007

DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES PARTICIPATE IN A DEBATE

SPONSORED BY MSNBC

OCTOBER 30, 2007

BRIAN WILLIAMS, MSNBC ANCHOR: "Senator Obama, we’re going to transfer into a new area here. A question specifically for you because you’re in a rather unique position. It’s about religion and misinformation. Governor Romney misspoke twice on the same day, confusing your name with that of Osama bin Laden.

Your party is fond of talking about a potential swiftboating. Are you fearful of what happened to John McCain, for example, in South Carolina a few years back; confusion on the basis of things like names and religion?

OBAMA: No, because I have confidence in the American people.

OBAMA: And I don’t pay much attention to what Mitt Romney has to say—at least what he says this week. It may be different next week.

But there is no doubt that my background is not typical of a presidential candidate. I think everybody understands that. But that’s part of what is so powerful about America, is that it gives all of us the opportunity—a woman, a Latino, myself—the opportunity to run.

And, listen, when I was running for the United States Senate everybody said nobody’s going to vote for a black guy named Barack Obama; they can’t even pronounce it. And we ended up winning by 20 points in the primary and 30 points in the general election.

The way to respond to swiftboating is to respond forcefully, rapidly and truthfully. And I have absolute confidence in the American people’s capacity to absorb the truth, as long as we are forceful in that presentation.

OBAMA: And we are seeing it. As we travel all across the country, we have received enormous support, in states where, frankly, there aren’t a lot of African-Americans, and there aren’t a lot of Obamas.

(LAUGHTER)

WILLIAMS: Let’s take this opportunity to fit in what will be the second of three breaks tonight..."

While the mainstream media has been very focused on Hillary since this debate, I have not seen this specific point about Obama brought up yet which is definitely a key issue concerning his electability in my opinion!

When Obama said that he did not fear swiftboating "because I have confidence in the American people," that shows to me that he is clearly out of touch with what millions of people are being influenced by and how powerful that Rush Limbaugh and his talk radio media empire is right now:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/13578

ANALYSIS: Why Rush Limbaugh is so powerful & what many media pundits do not get!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on October 10, 2007 - 1:47am.

Rush Limbaugh reaches more people in one week than The NY Times, USA Today, and Newsweek combined according to this CNN transcript:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0710/22/gb.01.html

GLENN BECK

Aired October 22, 2007 - 19:00:00 ET

BECK: "Listen to this. "New York Times," the nation`s paper of record, reaches about 5.5 million people every week. "USA Today" is the most widely read newspaper in the country. They reach 11 million people a week. You toss in "Newsweek" magazine just for good measure, they reach an additional 3 million per week. That means "The New York Times," "USA Today," and "Newsweek" reach just under 20 million people every week. So how many crazy white right-wingers are listening to talk radio and Rush Limbaugh? Just over 20 million.

When Rush Limbaugh is reaching roughly the same number of people every week as an episode of "American Idol" -- and, by the way, more than those that read the three biggest news outlets in media history -- nobody should really tell those 20 million Americans that their opinion makes them political outsiders or second-class citizens..."

Obama is also way out of touch when he said in that debate transcript "I don’t pay much attention to what Mitt Romney has to say" in reference to "Governor Romney misspoke twice on the same day, confusing your name with that of Osama bin Laden." You do not ignore enemy swiftboat attacks, you need to respond to them very quickly which is a lesson that John Kerry learned too late back in 2004!

This is not the first time that Obama has not taken enemy attacks seriously. Right below are audio links from Rush Limbaugh's website that mock Obama and below that is a Limbaugh article from May 2, 2007 titled "Obama Laughs Off "Barack the 'Magic Negro'" Song."

The bottom line about this point is that Obama should be fighting back against Mitt Romney's and Rush Limbaugh's attempts to define him, he should definitely NOT be ignoring it and laughing at it!

Authors Mark Halperin and John F. Harris summarize this important point very well in my opinion talking about both the 2004 and 2008 elections in their excellent book titled "The Way to Win: Taking the White House in 2008" which I recommend:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/03/AR2006100301030_pf.html

The Way to Win: Taking the White House in 2008
Chapter 1: The Way to Lose

By Mark Halperin and John F. Harris
Tuesday, October 3, 2006; 6:08 PM

"The bottom line was that the Bush campaign and its allies did a better job than the Kerry campaign and its allies in using the Freak Show -- its magnification of the personal and negative -- to define the opposing candidate. But the story as told in this chapter is a tactical one. What is more important for the next presidential election is the strategic reality that the Freak Show does not affect both parties equally.

The dynamic in 2008 will be the same as it was in 2004. There are structural issues in politics and media that now favor Republicans over Democrats. Freak Show politics will represent only a moderate threat to Republicans and give them a major advantage as they try to define the opposition on unfavorable terms. On the other side, Freak Show politics offers virtually no advantages for Democrats, but will again present a huge threat to any politician hoping to keep control of the narrative of his -- or her -- life story..."

I articulated further about that book in this post:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/8841

ANALYSIS: A great Washington Post article about how the media affects Democrats!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on October 5, 2006 - 2:03pm.

Also in that debate transcript, Obama boasted of winning his Senate seat "by 30 points in the general election." What he did not mention is that he was up against a very weak Republican opponent in Alan Keyes who was not even being fully supported by the Party in that race mainly because of how he had upset the Republican establishment:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5897569/

Keyes: Cheney's gay daughter practicing ‘selfish hedonism’
Gay Republicans group denounces Ill. Senate candidate's comments

updated 12:09 p.m. CT, Thurs., Sept. 2, 2004

Furthermore, for Obama as a so-called "top-tier candidate" to be promising "a Forceful Stand Against Clinton" this late in the campaign is absolutely ridiculous in my opinion:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/28/us/politics/28obama.html?_r=2&hp&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

Obama Promises a Forceful Stand Against Clinton

By ADAM NAGOURNEY and JEFF ZELENY
Published: October 28, 2007

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 27 — "Senator Barack Obama says he will start confronting Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton more forcefully, declaring that she had not been candid in describing her views on critical issues, as he tries to address mounting alarm among supporters that his lack of assertiveness has allowed her to dominate the presidential race..."

People definitely have to ask themselves this very serious question: If Obama cannot effectively stand up to Hillary right now (who is basically acting civil toward him), then how in the world will he ever be able to stand up in the general election to a very tough GOP nominee like Rudy Giuliani who will be assisted by Rush Limbaugh, hundreds of other extreme right wing Neocon talk radio show hosts all over the country, The RNC, and FOX News?

The obvious answer to that question in my opinion is that Obama will get eaten up alive if he is the 2008 Democratic nominee and that he will very quickly have all of Hillary's high negatives and probably even more after he is negatively defined by his political enemies to the entire country!

Bill and Hillary Clinton in my opinion have clearly demonstrated so far that they have the proven ability and have the best possible chances of all the "top-tier" 2008 Democratic candidates including their wives of being able to seriously fight back against the 2008 Republican nominee, Rush Limbaugh and his extreme right wing media empire, and the Neocon GOP attack machine:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/8655

Keith Olbermann comments on Bill Clinton's Fox News interview with my analysis!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on September 26, 2006 - 1:47am.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/13001

Chris Matthews on Dems: "I don‘t see a big beefy alternative to Hillary Clinton"

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on August 12, 2007 - 7:30am.

Barack Obama is probably a very sincere person as well as being a good Senator for Illinois BUT he is in way over his head running for President right now in my opinion!

Mitch Dworkin

http://www.securingamerica.com/

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10756
StopIranWar.com: "War is not the answer"
Submitted by Wes Clark on February 21, 2007 - 11:40am.

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.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html

Illustrating Absurdity...

Rev. Sharpton Sings:
"Barack the Magic Negro (That's What the LA Times Called Him)"

Rush Limbaugh also has audio parodies of Obama comparing him to Osama Bin Laden and mocking his ears:

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html

Parody Song: Kennedy Sings Obama Osama

Obama Ear Parody:
• The Perot Big Ear Institute

-----------------------------------------------------

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_050207/content/01125108.guest.html

Obama Displays Maturity, Laughs Off "Barack the 'Magic Negro'" Song

May 2, 2007

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Paul W. Smith, frequent guest host on this program, had on his program Barack Obama -- and he had to ask Barack Obama about "Barack the 'Magic Negro.'" He did. He did! We have the audio coming. He set it up. It's not on the little bite that we have, but he told Obama the roots of this, the LA Times article by David Ehrenstein, a black man, wrote the piece on the "magic negro" and so forth, and then he said to Obama after setting it up that way. He said, "I have to do this because Rush is on our radio station. We're going to see him tomorrow. You've heard the parody song 'Barack the "Magic Negro"'"?

OBAMA: (Laughing.) You know, I have not heard it but I've heard of it. I confess that I don't listen to Rush on a daily basis. On the other hand, I'm not one of these people who -- who takes myself so seriously that I get offended by -- by every -- every comment made about me. You know, the -- you know, what Rush does is entertainment, and although it's probably not something that I listen to much, I don't --

PAUL W. SMITH: But you said not every day, so you do listen a little then, and why wouldn't you?

OBAMA: I don't mind. I don't mind -- I don't mind folks poking fun at me. That's part of the job.

RUSH: Barack Obama. That's right, Barack Obama laughed it off. He laughed it off. He said I'm an entertainer, and he doesn't mind being made fun of, poking fun at him. That's part of the job. Snerdley's looking at me with mouth wide open and agape. What do you not believe about this? (interruption) Yeah, look, we don't need to belabor this. But there's a reason he's laughing it off. A, it's funny. B, the roots of it is the Los Angeles Times. C, there's nothing to accomplish by doing something other than this. I don't want to go into it any further, but this is a classy way to deal with it. This is the way he should have dealt with it if anyone asked. It's the first time he's, probably, been asked about it, but this is the way for these guys to deal with it. Blow it off. Laugh it off. "No big deal." Now, he didn't react that way when Maureen Dowd wrote about his ears. We have that bite, just to show you how he's maturing in the campaign. He is inexperienced in this foxhole, but let's go to sound bite number four. This is back in December, December 10th last year in New Hampshire, and he held a press conference and he made a beeline right after the press conference straight to Maureen Dowd, MoDo, of the New York Times, and had this exchange with her.

OBAMA (off mic): You talked about my ears, and I just want to put you on notice: I'm very sensitive about -- What I told them was, ''I was teased relentlessly when I was a kid about my big ears.'"

DOWD (purring): We're trying to toughen you up.

RUSH: I don't know, could you hear that very well? What Obama said was, "I was teased relentlessly when I was a kid about my big ears," and Maureen said, "We're just trying to toughen you up." Now, it sounded like Helen Thomas, but it was Maureen Dowd. The voices of those two are distinct. So he's matured quite a bit. I want to thank Paul W. Smith for sending this along and asking Obama the question.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: One other thing, for some of you Nervous Nellies out there. We've been talking about this Barack Obama sound bite with Paul W. Smith, and as I told you, Paul W. Smith told him before he asked the question, what he thinks of the parody "Barack the 'Magic Negro.'" He gave him the source of it, this LA Times piece. What I think that Barack Obama knows is that the parody, for people who listen to this program in a continuous fashion, do it in a contextual way -- and Obama knows this -- I have railed against the liberals out there who are trying to say he's not black enough. The LA Times has run three such pieces, two of them devoted expressly to that topic: Is Obama black enough? The UK Times did one late last week. There have been three of those, and then, of course, you had the "magic negro" story. That parody doesn't make fun of Obama at all. The parody, all it does is make fun of the left, and that's what all of these parodies do. That's what everything that we do on this program does. It has an element of truth in it which makes it funny but it's also oriented toward making a point.

We've always called it "illustrating absurdity by being absurd." There's nothing more absurd than a bunch of Democrats out there wringing their hands, liberal media types over whether or not some candidate is black enough, while they're shouting, "Racist, racist, racist!" at every conservative they know -- and it's not conservatives talking about Barack's skin color until they do, and then we parody it, and then they call us racists. Well, it doesn't wash, and Obama knows it. You have these knee-jerk liberals out there, these Nervous Nellies, that are just waiting for anything to pounce, and they do, and they get it wrong each and every time they do. So there's nothing of substance here to criticize. You can only be critical of it if you're panicked or if you are reactionary and don't know what you're talking about, which describes much of the left.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Tim in Tucson, you're next on the EIB Network, sir. Hello.

CALLER: Hello, Rush. Uh, yeah, I was just going to say, about your Barack Obama, the magic dragon piece, I think that's really dangerous, and the reason why is, uh, --

RUSH: Have you heard it?

CALLER: Yeah, yeah, I've heard it.

RUSH: Do you know the roots of it?

CALLER: Yes. Yes. Yes.

RUSH: What are they?

CALLER: Well, it's basically, due to white guilt.

RUSH: No, no, no. I mean, who was the first to originally use the phrase "Obama the 'Magic Negro'"?

CALLER: Dave Ehrenstein, a non-white male, a black male.

RUSH: Way to go. Way to go. Way to go. Way to go. And do you know why I have Reverend Sharpton singing it?

CALLER: Uhhhh, no.

RUSH: Well, because after Joe Biden, another Democrat, said after Obama was in the race, it's great, we finally have a black candidate that's "clean and articulate" running for president. The New York Post ran a story about Sharpton being a little jealous because he takes a bath every day and he was a presidential candidate and here's Biden and these other Democrats talking about how clean and articulate Obama is, and the New York Post story said that there might be a little jealousy here. So, there's a timeline. Everything in that parody is indeed a parody of what liberals and leftists are saying.

CALLER: Okay, well, let me tell you why I think it's dangerous. All right? You being a white male and being a, you know, collectively the smartest, most powerful people on the planet, you're very influential, and I'm afraid that that piece, it plays to your -- some of our -- your racists in your audience that need a measuring stick. So I think it's really -- it's really dangerous.

RUSH: What's dangerous is you characterizing members of an audience that you don't know as "racists," and you're doing this, again, from a standpoint of ignorance. I'm glad you called, because I actually am glad to have the opportunity to tell you this. As I have said repeatedly, it breaks my heart to see how minorities in this country are treated by the people who claim to be their champions, because those people who claim to be their champions are the exact opposite. It is not I nor is it this audience who are racists. I didn't come up with this whole concept of Barack and this "magic negro" thing. It is leftists in this country who are obsessed with skin color and gender and sexual orientation and grouping people into those categories and then seeing them as victims, and when you see them as victims, you don't see their full potential. You deny it. You see people who are incompetent, and it breaks my heart. We are conservatives. We want the best for everybody. We believe that we're human beings. I don't look at Barack Obama and say, "Is he black enough?" Liberals write pieces about Barack Obama and ask, "Is he black enough?" on the basis of does he have roots to the civil rights protests and movement in this country.
It ought to be irrelevant. What kind of racism is that? To disqualify a Democrat presidential candidate who happens to be black because he doesn't have ties to the civil rights movement! I'm not the one doing it. It's liberal Democrats that are writing these pieces and making these claims. I'm not the one that said, "Hey, we've got an articulate black guy on our side now!" Joe Biden, a Democrat, said this. I am not holding Obama up as an object of abuse. They are. They are disrespecting Obama and who he is as a human being by judging him strictly and solely on his genetic makeup and his skin color and to a certain extent, whether or not he has direct ties to protests in Selma, Alabama, and wherever in the 1950s and sixties, Brown vs. Board of Education. My audience doesn't look at him that way. If my audience has a choice of voting for Barack Obama for president, if he ends up being the nominee, people in this audience, Tim, are going to make up their minds on the basis that they agree with his policies.

The people in this audience are interested in the future of the country for themselves and their kids, and we care about ideas here. I am a conservative. I think liberals are wrong and I think they pose a threat to the things I believe in. I like to parody them and make fun of it by illustrating absurdity by being absurd. This is what I do. It's what I've done for 18 and a half years. There would never have been a "Barack the 'Magic Negro'" had Sharpton not gotten all bent out of shape over Biden's comment and had all these columns not been written in the newspapers about is Barack black enough. I'm not making fun of Obama. I'm making fun -- and he knows this, by the way. I'm making fun of the people who are disrespecting him as a human being, and that ain't me! We in the conservative movement, sir, we want prosperity, excellence, achievement for as many people who desire it. Liberals in this country look at people and don't see that that's possible in many cases, and so they say, "They're victims! We need government programs here, government programs there," and they have no confidence in people to succeed.

We want a great country. That means as much achievement and as much accomplishment and as solid a moral code as we can have. Not that everybody's going to follow it, but we need the line. We need the guardrails. It's all about kids. It's all about the future, kids and grandkids, and that's what we want. This is why Obama, when given the chance to rail back at me didn't. He laughed it off, said eh, Rush is an entertainer. He's gotta be able to take being poked fun at here. The problem is, he wasn't the one being poked fun of. Al Sharpton is. David Ehrenstein is, and all the other authors of these pieces that ask: Is Barack Obama black enough? There are no racists in this audience, or not as a rule. There are racists everywhere. But I'll tell you what, this audience is not comprised of racists. It's not comprised of people who hate. The largest audience in radio talk show history could not maintain itself for this many years if it were based on hate, if it were based on lies, if it were based on untruths. The people in this audience are among the most informed, surveys have indicated. The people of this audience are among the most educated -- and you people on the left who refuse to accept this are never going to understand what you're truly dealing with in a competitive sense when you try to take this show out.

Your attacks are feeble. They're not based in any kind of truth, and to call here and to say that I am giving aid and comfort to the racists in this audience, is as insulting as anything you could say to me. Because it means that you think this audience is a bunch of mind-numbed robots who don't have anything but hatred, racism, or some other ism in their heart. When in fact, when I listen to Democrats today and Democrat supporters, I hear so much rage and hatred that I don't believe it. I've been listening to it for three years. I hear so much racism. I hear so much sexism. The next story in the stack. I have two stories here on why women hate Hillary, by a woman. I have a story about this female candidate for the president of France, Ségolène Royal. Women hate her. It's women writing this stuff. I'm going to talk about it. People like you, Tim, are going to sit there and tell me that I'm abusing Mrs. Clinton. I'm taking your buddies in your media, and I'm regurgitating what they say. One of these stories is in The Times, another one is in the Washington Post. You know, better to examine your own house for racism, sexism, bigotry and all these things, before you start throwing these accusations around, because you have no clue what you're talking about.

END TRANSCRIPT

Left Obsessed with Obama's Blackness…

(Los Angeles Times: Obama the 'Magic Negro' - David Ehrenstein)
(UK Times: The great black and white hope? - Tom Baldwin)
(Chicago Tribune: Report: Obama's kin owned slaves)
(UKDM: A drunk and a bigot - what the US Presidental hopeful HASN'T said about his father...)
(LA Times: Redefining 'black' - Louis Chude-Sokei)
(LA Times: Occidental recalls 'Barry' Obama)
(LA Times: Is Obama the new 'black'?)
(NewsBusters: LATimes: Obama Not 'Black Enough'?)
(GMA Speculates on Obama & Race)
(TIME: Is Obama Black Enough?)
(NYDN: Obama: Growing up black, but African, too. He does not share our heritage)
(LA Times: Some wonder: Is Obama black enough?)
(KNS: Is Obama 'black enough' if his roots don't include slavery?)
(Salon: Colorblind. Barack Obama would be the great black hope in the next presidential race -- if he were actually black - Debra J. Dickerson)

Read the Background Material...

InTheseTimes: Why Women Hate Hillary
WP: You've Come a Long Way, Maybe
IHT: Is Ségolène Royal stooping to win votes in France?

*Note: Links to content outside RushLimbaugh.com usually become inactive over time.

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_103007/content/01125107.guest.html

Obama: All Buzz, No Substance; Hillary Stuck at 46-49% in Polls

October 30, 2007

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: I got a note last night from a friend. The friend had just read an LA Times story. The LA Times story was about Barack Obama. The writer of the story, and many of the people interviewed in the story, were having a tough time understanding why Barack's doing horrible in the polls, but is such a superstar raising money and appears to be such a superstar in person. So this person asked him, "What's your take on this, because I know you are the expert on this and you can explain this." This is really simple. By the way, we have a big Democrat debate tonight, folks, and Joe Biden is out there saying, "You know what, I'm sick and tired of this campaign being about money." Of course you are when you don't have any. When you don't have any, you have to make it about something else. Anyway, I wrote back and I said, "Barack Obama," who, by the way, the latest quest for the Drive-Bys, "Will Obama take off the gloves? Will Obama try to gain ground by decking Mrs. Clinton tonight at the Democrat debate on PMSNBC?" They're all obsessed with it, every one of them, I don't care where you go, whatever network, "Will Obama take off the gloves?" Too late to take off the gloves. It doesn't appear that he's got the oomph to do it anyway because he's all tied up in having this new tone, this new way, this getting rid of all this negative partisanship, so to go negative and partisan would be a problem.

Anyway, here's how to explain why Barack Obama is nowhere in the polls, raising a lot of money, and apparently is a rock star on stage. I'm not sure that that's true, but that's the image. It really boils down to something very simple: all hype and no substance. If you look, Barack Obama's actually said a bunch of stupid things, like he would invade Pakistan, whether they asked us to or not, to go get Bin Laden. He'd meet with the world's tyrants in the Oval Office to find out why they hate us. Barack Obama is a classic illustration of something. The media have made Obama who he is. Remember all those incessant, never-ending puff pieces, TIME Magazine, Washington Post, New York Times, six, seven months ago? That was done to create an obstacle for Mrs. Clinton. She's the inevitable candidate. So they had to put somebody out there and then build 'em way up to make it look like Mrs. Clinton could win a fight, that she could overcome some obstacle rather than just sail through as the inevitable candidate. We were all sitting here, said, "What the hell is this about?" He's been in the Senate less than two years. He's written two memoirs. He's not old enough to have written one. What's the reason for this? This is pure media "puff piecery". It was pure hype, no substance whatsoever. All buzz.

There's a lesson here, folks. Barack Obama needs to be very careful, because when the media make you, they can destroy you. When you are the result of media buzz, and not substance, and not achievement, and not accomplishment, and yet the media is building you up to be something larger than you've achieved on your own, they can destroy you, too -- and he'd better be careful. It's the same thing with Jon Stewart and this Colbert guy. These guys have audiences of maybe a million people each and yet they have all this buzz, they're huge. If the media ever turns on either of these guys, they're finished. Why do you think Imus was able to be taken out? Imus was able to be taken out because for the last ten years he really didn't have any ratings to speak of. He was the product of media buzz because all of his media buddies were guests. There was a lot of bzz bzz bzz talk. When the media turned on Imus and his liberal buddies went for the tall grass, what was there to save him? It's like live by the sword, die by the sword. Live by the buzz, die by the buzz.

This is the risk that Obama is running into. It's why the media has not been able to destroy Clarence Thomas. It is why they have not been able to destroy a lot of people, like me, that they haven't made. All that having been said, though, not one vote has been cast here, and I remember this time in 2003 the Hillary Clinton of that period was Howard Dean. Remember that? John Kerry, the haughty John Kerry, was borrowing money from his wife to stay in the campaign. Now, the difference is, Dean didn't have a war room that destroys enemies and anyone who gets in their way like the Clintons do. There are some similarities. But the point is that not one vote's been cast yet. Hillary's negatives are pretty high...

END TRANSCRIPT

Read the Background Material...

• Los Angeles Times: Polls Don't Reflect Obama's Star Power

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-obama29oct29,0,6297250.story?coll=la-home-center

• Townhall: Hillary Under 50% vs. Ron Paul

http://www.townhall.com/blog/g/d9b7986f-9b35-4922-8950-da4b33cd0d7f

• NRO: The Cast-Iron Low Ceiling and High Floor of Hillary Clinton - Jim Geraghty

http://campaignspot.nationalreview.com/post/?q=MmZkMjZkMmYxMmQ2ZDY1MzgxYjVlMTU3MmU5YmQyMGI=

• New York Times: The Democratic Target in Tuesday's Debate

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/29/the-democratic-target/

*Note: Links to content outside RushLimbaugh.com usually become inactive over time.

2008 general election IF he is ever nominated!

If I could spot these things, then the 2008 GOP nominee and the extreme right wing Neocon media will probably be able to see them as well:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/13433

ANALYSIS: Why I think that Obama would be a very weak general election candidate

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on September 24, 2007 - 9:01am.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/12713

Obama's inflated donor numbers & the ridiculous statement he made about Iraq!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on July 19, 2007 - 5:27am.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/11596

TRANSCRIPT & ANALYSIS: Larry King specifically asks Obama about his "experience"

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on March 27, 2007 - 3:41pm.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/11033

ANALYSIS: Reasons why Obama will have a very difficult time if he is nominated!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on February 12, 2007 - 6:00pm.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10998

ANALYSIS: Obama is trying to shift attention away from Foreign Policy Experience

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on February 9, 2007 - 3:24pm.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10648

TRANSCRIPT: Obama Promised one year ago Today NOT to run for President in 2008!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on January 22, 2007 - 2:23pm.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10547

Obama to explore 2008 White House run; EXPERIENCE MATTERS: Look at Bush in 2000!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on January 16, 2007 - 5:38pm.

John Edwards in my opinion has also shown that he does NOT have the proven ability to be able to credibly fight back either which I have thoroughly documented:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/12576

ANALYSIS: John & Elizabeth Edwards did NOT "fight back" against Ann Coulter!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on July 5, 2007 - 2:45am.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10782#comment-178377

John Edwards has no concept how to deal with "swiftboat" attacks

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on January 31, 2007 - 1:31pm.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/12296

Edwards leading in Iowa; How the GOP will eat him up alive if he is the nominee!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on June 5, 2007 - 1:40pm.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21478425/

'Hardball with Chris Matthews' for Oct. 24
Read the transcript to the Wednesday show

Guests: Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, Rep. Duncan Hunter, David Obey, Garry Kasparov, Howard Fineman, Chrystia Freeland, Donnie Deutsch

MATTHEWS: Welcome back to HARDBALL. The Round Table is here. Howard Fineman is “Newsweek‘s” chief political correspondent and an MSNBC political analyst. Donnie Deutsch is the host of CNBC‘s “The Big Idea,” and chairman of Deutsche Incorporated. Chrystia Freeland is the US managing editor for “The Financial Times.” Bloomberg News and the “Los Angeles Times” have a new national poll out showing Hillary so far ahead it is unbelievable; 31 points ahead of Obama nationally. And up in New Hampshire, look at this, two to one over Obama. Hillary, she‘s crushing the guy, Howard.

What is go on in this race? It‘s not just that Obama is losing. He‘s really fallen off the pace here.

HOWARD FINEMAN, “NEWSWEEK”: I think it has a lot to do with Hillary. I think she‘s showed by the way she‘s run the campaign and the numbers she‘s getting—they have an accumulating affect of answering the question of whether she‘s electable. It doesn‘t answer it completely because some of the test match ups against Republicans are still close. But in terms of being an effective candidate who seems to have the ability to overcome her own negatives, she‘s kind of won the war with herself so far. She‘s beating her own negative perceptions as a winner in these numbers, and that helps her heading into the actual voting.

MATTHEWS: Chrystia, do you see it that way, as Hillary winning more than Obama losing?

CHRYSTIA FREELAND, “THE FINANCIAL TIMES”: Yes, I do and think Howard puts it really well, because I think one of the points that a lot of the people had raised about Hillary from the start was, sure, she might be a great president, but is she electable? That‘s something a lot of Democrats were asking. And the Hillary machine right now has just been so relentlessly efficient and Hillary has been such a good performer that people, at least Democrats, are starting to say, well, maybe she is.

The big question though is going to be what primary voters actually do, and what happens when she faces off against a Republican?

MATTHEWS: Let‘s take a look at this ad. It‘s an Obama ad. It‘s running in New Hampshire. Will this help him catch her in New Hampshire?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I‘m Barack Obama and I approve this message.

We are a beacon of light around the world. At least that‘s what we can be again. That‘s what we should be again.

When we break out of the conventional thinking and we start reaching out to friend and foe alike, then I am absolutely confident that we can restore America‘s leadership in the world. We‘re going to lead with our values and our ideals, by deed and by example. I want to go before the world and say, America‘s back. America is back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEWS: Donnie, you‘re the ad man. Is he winning with that one?

DONNIE DEUTSCH, “THE BIG IDEA”: No, he needs to be a fighter at this point. He‘s done the hope thing. The sizzle thing has been there. The only thing that‘s going to help him right now—and I think this ship has sailed—he goes after Hillary strong. He kind of takes the gloves off, start pounding her. I think we know people want to see a fight. If nothing else, it will put them in a discussion together.

I think, going back to your earlier premise, obviously, Hillary is winning. But he has been losing at the same time, because he has shown nobody—he hasn‘t shown anybody anything beyond the kind of the real glossy stuff. He has to get in there and start pounding.

MATTHEWS: Making that point, Howard and Chrystia, here‘s the Gallup poll; it shows what impact Oprah Winfrey‘s endorsement of him has had, zip. Four out of five say it doesn‘t matter, and the rest, the one out of five, are a wash. Howard?

FINEMAN: The point there is everyone already liked Obama. You didn‘t need Oprah to say, he‘s a great guy you‘d like to have a lunch time conversation with. That‘s not the issue. That ad I think is entirely symbolic of what‘s wrong with this campaign. That sounded like he was running for the Nobel Peace Prize, not for president. And if he says—he‘s—

He‘s got to get specific. If he says we need to talk to our adversaries, who he‘s talking about? If he says that he wants to get away from old thinking, who is he accusing of old thinking? There‘s no time now to read between the lines. I don‘t understand his reluctance. If he‘s going to have a chance, he‘s got to take on the Clintons by name, not just Hillary, but I must say Bill by name. Say that we have had 28 years of Bushes and Clintons on presidential tickets, and we‘ve got to turn the page, and I‘m the guy to do it.

And I don‘t see it. It‘s entirely too vague and too nice. He‘s got to stop being nice to everybody...

Some people in a national Democratic group of which I'm a member are incensed over this picture, from the Tom Harkin steak fry in Iowa, saying that the Repubs will have a field day with it:

Stan Davis
Lakewood, CO
Wes Clark -- Don't settle for less.
Make America All It Can Be!

Proud to be an American.

In my opinion this is a "photoshopped" image. Richardson is not this much shorter than Obama, and I'm sure Hillary is not 2 feet shorter than Richardson.

http://www.snopes.com:80/politics/obama/anthem.asp
I agree that flag waving in and itself means nothing. But with the other concerns that some people have as MItch has already outlined, not joining others on a stage and placing the hand over the heart during the national ahthem is, well, ill-conceived at best.

...a death wish for his candidacy. Crazy.

I agree with not wearing the lapel pin. Cripes, isn't it possible that's not even technically legal--"wearing" the flag?

OK, now I see where I got confused about the Pledge part. The email I got said he refused to say the Pledge. There's no confirmation of that, however. I do think that would be extremely immature and I want my President to be more mature than that. I think not saying the Pledge is rude whereas I think it's merely stupid to not put your hand over your heart for the national anthem if you plan to be involved in national politics.

If you follow the snopes link, you can also see images where he had his hand over his heart for the national anthem. I bet he never used to do it and realized how stupid it was for someone who's running for POTUS to not, so now he tries to remember but sometimes he forgets.

I never put my hand over my heart during the national anthem, I do for the pledge of allegiance, although I leave out the words "under God". What does that mean?

You're probably NOT running for political office, tho.

Would I have to change my long-standing habits? And couldn't that cause me some problems, too, in that I'd always have to be making mental notes about what I had to remember to do that I wasn't used to doing and in the midst of all that mental note taking, I'd revert back to my long-standing habits? My main point is that I thought this whole discussion was offensive. You know, any number of people here have been suggesting that if you don't support Clinton you've somehow bought into the right-wing talking points about her and that saying certain things about her is just giving ammunition to the Republicans to use against her, and yet here we have some who doing the same thing to Obama. And for what?

if you're running, you have to consider the consequences of every action you take in public view.

Has nothing to do with hrc or oba, as far as I'm concerned.

PS, I don't support hrc.

made a big deal about how he won't don a flag lapel pin to support our troops every day either. And I heard he didn't even support the war in the first place.

I find it a challenge to even stand for the national anthem myself these days. Particularly as it is so keen on bombs in the lyrics & all.

Daily Show: Fox Equates Obama's Lapel to Lewinsky Scandal

As Nelsons said, it's real. Read the snopes link. Sometimes he puts his hand over his heart and sometimes he doesn't.

In his defense, it's obvious he cares more about actual patriotism than symbols of patriotism. I have no problem with that. I think it's wise and I commend him for saying that publicly.

However, those symbols are very important to many people. I think it shows a lack of consideration for people who are both truly patriotic and really respect the symbols (people like Wes Clark), for Obama to not show simple, easy-to-do respect for the symbols.

I just mean it seems really immature to me. I understand where he's coming from and I understand and even agree with his not wearing the lapel pin. But to publicly diss the Pledge clearly demonstrates that he's never been in the room with someone like Wes when the Pledge is said. I wish we'd said the Pledge at the NCCM with Wes (we didn't, did we?) so that everyone could have been there in the room with him while saying it. If you've ever seen that, you would never not stand and place your hand over your heart, not out of respect for the flag itself, but out of respect for the people like Wes who have fought to defend it and had their buddies buried under it. And I'm not just talking about veterans either. Plenty of people have fought in one way or another for what our flag represents.

Don't get me wrong. I think he should be free to not stand, stick out his tongue, and thumb his nose at the flag. I think he should be free to burn the flag.

I think the failure to understand that doing those things shows a lack of respect for those who've fought for that flag really demonstrates an immaturity that I don't want in my President. I think he needs to grow up. After he does, perhaps he'll make a fine President. In fact, once he obtains that maturity, I think it will be a point in his favor in my mind that he both understands that true patriotism is more important than the symbols AND that respecting the symbols is necessary to respect the true patriots who fought for those symbols.

I thought everyone else did too.

Proud to be an American.

Like I said, I don't remember because shortly before the NCCM, RuthB and I went up to New Hampshire for the Flag Day Dinner with Wes and that experience is so engrained in my brain that it just overwhelms anything else. I swear, he had me almost in tears.

And I just think that someone who's going to be President probably should have exposed himself to enough different kinds of situations that he should have been through that.

I didn't see anyone who wasn't facing the flag and saying the pledge.

Proud to be an American.

Glad we did. Like I said, the first time I said the Pledge in the room with Wes, I nearly cried. I don't think I'll ever feel the same about it again. But it doesn't make me angry if someone else doesn't feel the same way. I just think if you want to be President, you should have been "around the block" enough times to know how genuinely important it is to some people.

Are we talking the Pledge of Allegiance here?
or the national anthem?

kinda different in my view

by Stan's subject line and the fact that their lips don't seem to be moving in the photo, it would seem it's the anthem.

...and what do you suppose Richardson is looking at?
The rest all seem to be looking a different direction.

Nat'l anthem at Harkin's event, where the photo was taken.

This is just another distraction, but I wonder what was going through Obama's mind when he was listening to the anthem and not placing his hand on his heart.

Proud to be an American.

...have been snapped as the anthem was about to start, maybe and he had just not raised his hand yet?

I can't imagine someone running for president not doing this.

And since Obama hasn't asked for a correction, it obviously was during, not before.

Proud to be an American.

...me either, can't even imagine it was a protest of the National Anthem

Obama brought down by one digital-nano-second in time at a fish fry?

(not wearing the pin I can see when you look at who finds them 'trendy'...I don't see hillary wearing one very often either)

This will kill him during the general election. The neocon email I received was all based around Obama's having attended a madrassa. For "proof" that Obama isn't true to the US, they included the photo. Cripes.

Proud to be an American.

...uncomfortable feeling from the get go, that Obama feels that he's above it all......that he doesn't have to "play the game"....that people will just flock to him. I'm beginning to think that fabulous 2004 speech was an anomaly.

He's never won a tough race in his life, and it shows. It's impossible to get through a campaign without making mistakes. No one does. But his mistakes are so stupid....most could easily have been avoided.

Way to cut to the chase.

Actually....more in the ethereal way. Adlai Stevenson suffered a bit from it too.

suggesting Obama run for president, is how the people flocked to Obama all around Illinois during his run for US Senate. And Obama fell for it I guess.

Proud to be an American.

Never pose for pics in front of a set of porta potties.
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2873282300084917448KgncxI

Proud to be an American.

Those Obama O,s could double as protective seat covers. ;)

They do look like that...

It was during.

I thought it was the Pledge. I agree--the national anthem is different. In that case, it was just stupid but not profoundly immature.

You need to scroll down a little. If he was going to raise his hand, he had plenty of time to do it!
http://www.snopes.com:80/politics/obama/anthem.asp

The main problem will be what the Republicans will do with this should he get the nomination. Not a pretty thought....

"What the Republicans can do with this"...as compared to what, Tricia?

If you watch the video, Obama was actually singing our National Anthem which, if the others were, was not visible. Clearly Obama was not standing in defiance of patriotic gestures, as implied.

Having watched the video twice, I think it can be said that Obama goofed his protocol...not great, but certainly not an indictable offense in my view.

I think we have much bigger fish to fry, and much more relevent swift-boatable issues to be concerned about amongst all of our top-tier candidates, the initial IWR vote, to name only one "offense" that most of our candidats share.

The Republicans are not above spinning anything WAY out of control. Think "swiftboat." Think "Willie Horton." Think the photo of Gary Hart and Donna Rice. Think John McCain or Max Cleland and their so-called "lack of patriotism." And, on our side, think "Macaca." I could go on and on.

It's not the truly big issues that can do in an election with the American people, it's the tiny but extraordinarily dumb things. And I worry that this "little marine animal" could of the poisonous variety.

Republicans can have a field day with this. Do I think it's fair? No, but I do think his "lack of protocol" is pretty dumb.

Any of our candidates will be viciously swift-boated by Republicans Tricia. If that is your primary concern in the next general election, I would submit that hillary has perhaps, the longer list of swift-boatable offenses than any of the others, due if nothing else, to the Clinton's tenure alone.

Some say she can handle it. Others say she cannot.

But you did get your 'tough blog' on one of 'the others', (as I suspected you would sooner or later altho I don't see Obama's 'anthem issue' as esp. relevent)

So that's a good thing. :)

but we are talking here about a particular incident. Hillary will have a hard time, but she knows it. And she is tested for being able to face it and not topple over. I am not sure about Obama or Edwards--totally untested.

Sybil, what do you mean "you did get your tough blog on one of the others.."? I have no idea what you are talking about. Please explain.

Tricia, you asked (on your blog I think) why "the others" weren't being asked the tough questions. And you weren't seeing it anywhere. And you weren't seeing it here.

But you will see it here...here it is.

I told you I am asking the tough questions of all of them, most especially the sitting-senator-candidates.
And it's true. I am. The top-tiers and otherwise, as a matter of course. I'm funny that way...

I don't honestly believe any of them have been tested against direct swift-boat attacks as presidential candidates. Not even hillary. Most esp. with Bill at her side.

I didn't catch the context.

I think we do need to discuss the tough questions regarding all of them, especially if they are in the context of what will help us all counter the slurs and criticisms of the eventual nominee. I do not take Hillary's nomination for granted. That's why I am concerned about this Obama incident.

Also, we CAN contact the campaigns directly if we are worried about what we see on the streets. They listen.

Not only that, but if they're asking to be president, they need to be doing their day-jobs. Definitley.

Ahh, but the Repubs can't talk about the bigger fish to fry. That's why they pick on a hunting picture, a windsurfing picture, a picture of a guy in a tank, and now a picture of a guy not holding his hand over his heart. They create such a brouhaha over trivia to obscure the disasters they've created.

Stan Davis
Lakewood, CO
Wes Clark -- Don't settle for less.
Make America All It Can Be!

Indeed, and if hillary is the nominee, they will most probably run the video of her "Mahatma Gandhi ran a filling-station in St. Louis" joke. Any one of them is going to take a swift-boating.

Now the big-fish-question is: In the meantime, can any one of them (as a part of their day-jobs) stop a cheney-strafing on Iran? And/or explain away why they did not stop it during the GE cycle?

Lookout, there's your big swift boat comin' atcha!
ohyea, it was kerry's flip-flopping alright, not his wind-surfing suit.

I've seen that happen at large gatherings - it's actually kind of fun to watch everyone try to orient themselves.

Proud to be an American.

Myself I believe there many other reasons why Obama just isn't the man for the top slot. He's like the cool kid who's too cool to hang around with the other cool kids. Because he's cooler.

It looks sulky to be up there on a stage, resisting putting your hand over your heart as a protest... but he does kind of play that consciencious objector card constantly. When you're running for the nomination to be POTUS in the Democratic Party of the United States of America. Cripes, this is the land of the compulsory

Actually he looks kind of spaced out. Does he always respond this way or was he out of synch by accident?

He makes everything about HIM. It's perfectly "okay" for anyone to do & we all have a deep & abiding right to respond to the flag, pledge, anthem as we wish. But considering the context it looks bad. And it makes the party bad. Again, "it's about Obama."

I don't know. I never had the sense he was running to win. I have the sense he's running to occupy a spot on the slate to block others out. His whole bid is years premature.

not to say that conscientious objectors are somehow negative

Medal of Honor recipient
http://www.desmonddoss.com/

"Whoso would be a man must be a non-conformist." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Oh yes! We DID say the Pledge of Allegience. I was standing next to Wes.
I believe there was some discussion at the time about some attendees not including the "under God" part, and others that did. For the record, Wes included that part. (me too).

Custom is when the national anthem is played you turn to face the flag. I don't see anyone in that photo doing that. There is a video on Raw Story showing Biden and Edwards clearly facing the flag. Harkin isn't exactly facing the flag and Dodd is somewhere in between. Are Biden and Edwards most patriotic? I can clearly see Biden's hand placement but not Edwards. So I guess Biden wins. Yep, Biden. Definitely. The. Most. Patriotic.

yea, that's why I asked what Richardson was looking at? The flag? or schmoozing the audience?

...with his hand on his heart?

So. What were the others looking at then?

it will be interesting to see when I get home.

Proud to be an American.

...that Obama was actually singing along?
The only one that I could see doing so. Is that a sign of "actual patriotism"? (catchy rendition)

...and those in the audience? altogether lurching and milling and holding up their two-fisted signs.

Surely we can get a better national anthem. One people can actually sing. And one that doesn't include bombs.

I never sing along, not because I'm not patriotic but because I care about the comfort of the people around me. I didn't know I couldn't sing until I was five years old and mom constantly told me to keep it down when singing in church. I was devastated.

I probably cost Hillary some votes...

yeabut, Obama_was_singing the National Anthem.

Maybe he got so caught up in the spirit of it that he forgot to put his hand over his wooden heart?

It would seem to me that defiance in the face of patriotic gestures is an empty charge. Thanks for posting the link to the video, Ruth.

fwiw, I have never said "the God phrase" since they inserted it into the Pledge when I was a high-school senior. (They should never have given us that course on the Constitution that year, mebbe. It used to be required to graduate high school.) Call me "unpatriotic".

"Bombs bursting in air..."? yea, that could go too.

...meantime, swift-boat everybody.

Yeawell, I'm sure some people will use his singing against him, too. He's got a lot of rhythm, ya know. Sings. Dances. Gets down.

Have you heard the most popular song being played on Rush Limbaugh? No? These are the times we are living in.

Rush Limbaugh's Barack the Magic Negro
http://youtube.com/watch?v=xm6hlj-BV0s

Limbaugh-racist-hate-mongering
in a constant stream of verbal
diarhhea

we already know this well enuf

I could have happily lived out
my days with no youtube

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