FILE: ABORTION
Barack Obama is out of the political mainstream on abortion. Don’t take our word for it, just listen to Sen. Obama’s own statements. In his final debate with John McCain, Obama asserted that “nobody is pro-abortion.”
The political mainstream is a term thrown around by all politicians when they want to imagine their point of view as the one most Americans share. It's overused and is almost ALWAYS said without any figures to back up the statement, as in this case.
Second, he pledges to a Planned Parenthood gathering that the very first thing he’d do as president is sign the Freedom Of Choice Act, which—according to the bill’s own supporters — would abolish bans on partial-birth abortion and parental notification laws nationwide while implementing tax-payer funded abortions. All three positions are wildly unpopular with the vast majority of Americans, yet they are Obama’s top priorities
Let me say I am pro-choice, not because of any lack of religious conviction, but because I don't think the government should be telling people what to do with their bodies. In this case we have a bunch of conservatives forgetting they are conservatives when it serves their political interests. No one wants government in their lives, but someone else's life is fine. Also they claim Obama's views are unpopular, but don't back it up with any statistics about "our" views on the subject.
FILE: TAXES
As a skilled rhetorical magician, Obama presents himself as a tax-cutter. Even though he’s voted dozens of times to raise taxes, he assures Americans that 95% of us will have our taxes slashed under his plan. The Wall Street Journal isn’t buying it.
Most of the times Obama has voted to "increase" taxes can be attributed to him not voting to renew the ill-timed tax cuts of Bush. Every independent organization that covers taxes has agreed with most of the assertions on taxes the Obama campaign has made. Check out the Tax Policy Center for more.
Second, Obama is challenged by ABC News anchor Charlie Gibson at a primary debate in Pennsylvania. Gibson asks Obama why he insists on raising capital gains taxes (which affect millions of American investors) even after history has proven that raising said taxes actually decreases government revenues from the taxes, and cutting capital gains taxes actually brings more revenue into federal coffers. Obama has no answer, other than to blow off all the evidence, and say that raising taxes is the fair thing to do—practical consequences be damned.
I actually know something about this, being in the financial industry. The only people that an increase in the capital gains tax would effect are the very wealthy. MOST, let me repeat MOST capital gains by your average American go on their income tax, which would be cut anyway under Obama. The only people who really pay that tax are the wealthy, who don't pay any income tax because their income is derived from the money they make off of investing.
So far I'm still in the Obama camp guys, anything else?
FILE: RADICAL ASSOCIATIONS
Barack Obama does not want anyone talking about his radical associations. He’s even sought criminal prosecutions against those who have dared to speak out on issues that make him squirm. Average Americans are judged by the company they keep, and our leaders ought to be held to the same standard.
The same old trick and pony show they have been trying to make stick this entire election. Well how about McCains radical friends no one talks about? JOHN RAKOLTA, G. GORDON LIDDY, REVEREND JOHN HAGE, TERRY NELSON, RICHARD QUINN, GEORGE WALLACE, JR., and that's just for starters. No one in the media talks about those nut job friends of McCain. Oh, and lest we forget current President Bush, the most questionable association of them all.
The guys at Hot Air spend a LOT of time on the connections part, but I wont. Everything has been investigated in detail, and the only people who aren't satisfied by the results are the right-wing nuts.
FILE: FOREIGN POLICY JUDGMENT
Barack Obama gained much of his early traction by speaking out against the war in Iraq. He cites his initial opposition to the war as the crown-jewel example of his judgment on foreign affairs. Although many people credit him for being “right” on the war from the beginning, it’s indisputable that he did not have an actual vote on the war resolution. As a state senator from a liberal, antiwar district, one wonders how much political risk he assumed by speaking out against a Republican-led conflict. Regardless, after he was elected to the US Senate, Obama was faced with an actual vote on a controversial issue: The surge. John McCain and others said the strategy was the only way to salvage the war and recover from our missteps there. History has proven them correct. Obama not only opposed the surge, but actually predicted it would make matters worse. In other words, he was spectacularly wrong on his biggest foreign policy judgment call since joining the Senate. He stubbornly refuses to admit he was wrong. This may be the kind of judgment that’s expected from a partisan rookie Senator, but not a Commander-in-Chief
Let me just say this, the "surge" came long after the war was supposed to be over, so as far as I'm concerned this was a police action in a foreign country. I'm still confused about how so many people can claim the surge was proven to be the correct choice. Many studies have indicated that by the time we sent more troops in the violence was already on the decline because the opposing groups had isolated themselves into islands of ethnicities. And about "stubbornly refusing to admit he was wrong", I seem to remember a certain candidate for president who stubbornly refuses to admit going to war with Iraq was wrong. Hypocrisy, they name is the right-wing nut.
FILE: DISDAIN FOR THE HEARTLAND
Barack Obama was rated the most liberal United States Senator in 2007 by the non-partisan National Journal — farther left than Ted Kennedy, Barbara Boxer, and self-proclaimed socialist Bernie Sanders. He rarely mentions this extreme voting record as he campaigns throughout the heartland, just as he refrains from telling middle America what he really thinks of those who live there. Obama waits until he’s in San Francisco to do that. At a chic fundraising dinner, Obama sniffed that average Americans get “bitter” and “cling” to their guns and religion—as if these were shameful crutches. He may look down his nose at you, but he still wants your vote
This is just asinine. An "extreme" voting record? hardly. There is NOTHING extreme to vote on in congress, other than say maybe the patriot act? I also recall the statement these Hot Air Heads are talking about with the clinging to guns and religion, and he said it to make a point about why a certain segment of people voted the way they did. In fact, Obama is far more religious then McCain, and approves of gun ownership. I have seen few phrases taken out of context and strung together more terribly then this one.
ILE: THE RACE CARD
Millions of Americans oppose Senator Obama’s candidacy for many different reasons. For a small number of bigots, one of them is almost certainly race. That being said, Obama’s surrogates and media supporters have shown very little reluctance to ascribe racism to virtually anyone who supports another candidate. This is shameful. Worse still, Obama has personally played the race card several times, accusing Republicans in general, and the McCain campaign specifically, of whipping up race-based ugliness. When McCain’s objects, Obama has disingenuously denied he was referring to race in his initial comments. Really? On one occasion, Obama accused Republicans of trying to “scare” voters by mentioning that he “doesn’t look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills.” At another rally he made a similar claim, adding “…did we mention he’s black?” to his interpretation of the GOP’s supposed scare tactics. As someone who presents himself as a unifying figure, what does it say that he shamelessly injects racial politics into the campaign, casting aspersions on his opponents’ motives?
McCain HAS whipped up race-based ugliness, you only need to watch some of his political rallies on youtube. Lets also not forget who the KKK has endorsed. But let's be honest here, Obama is half-white and half-black. There are a lot of people who will not vote for him because of his African half. The Obama campaign has done everything within reason to move beyond race, but the right-wing nuts insist on dragging him back into the mud and then scream bloody murder when he splashes some of it on them.
FILE: LACK OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS
After an embarrassing exchange on a talk show, the Obama campaign scrambled to arm its surrogates with talking points about Obama’s grand legislative record. What did they come up with? Two bills—and Obama talks about them endlessly. One deals with securing loose nuclear weapons and was so uncontroversial that it passed on a voice vote in the Senate. The other created a “google for government” system, allowing citizens to track government spending. Both were laudable efforts for a wet-behind-the-ears legislator, but Obama wants to be President. Beyond those two meager accomplishments, what has he done? It’s a question that has baffled official campaign surrogates and regular Americans alike
Obama has sponsored and co-sponsored a HUGE number of meaningful bills in his short time in the U.S. Senate. He has a long history of public service, and I mean REAL public service by directly helping people, not the detached I'm riding in a limo everywhere and think I know how to connect with people kind of public service.
After reading this embarrassment I can say I've never been more supportive of Obama. This “closing argument” is nothing more than the same old, tired, discredited, republican talking points that they insist on puking up almost constantly.
Check out the entire embarrassment here at the Hot Air Blog.
