[2008] Democrats

For two years as National Securtiy Adviser? I'm not even goign to go into her record in depth, but let's just say she was a little behind the curve on a certain issue which had deadly results, that much is entirely clear. Not to say it was all her fault, or even to assign blame, but she did fail to recognize a certain thing in general as a threat, and spend most of her first year in office working a missile shield to protect us from the soviets.

Does that mean Stephen Hadley is now your second choice?

 

It was there at first, but not anymore.

 

Alright glynch! Show yourself!

 

Will this squash all the talk about Obama not being black enough?

I mean look at that fro.

And is he ballin with Steve Nash?

 

Take it to the hoop, Barry Obama!!!"

I wish I was apart of the "choom gang."

 

a part!

 

Obama was in a gang? Interesting.

 

And so was I. Our base was a tree house and we fought monsters, rewarded ourselves with Snickers and hated icky girrlss.

I guess that disqualifies me for political office.

 

I'm not too up on any of the choices presented on the Democratic side and out of that choice am slightly leaning towards Richardson. I'm not immune to the Obama fest but I also question his experience. He's a great speaker but as far as legislation or other major accomplishments his track record is non-existent to short. The luster on Obama is still there but its possible once the press and everyone starts looking him more critically that luster might come off fast.

Edwards is a great speaker but he's too much of a protectionist, unfortunately all of the Dems are to some degree, for me and besides his Senate term in regards to accomplishments wasn't remarkable.

The one democrat I would've like to see run is Feingold. I don't agree with many of his policies but he strikes me as the most thoughtful and conscientious Senator out there.

 

I think the reason guys like Basso and TJ attack Obama so much is they view him as the biggest threat to win. So naturally TJ would vote for Hillary as someone who'd be easily ripped apart.

I mean, c'mon, people got behind Ross Perot. And George Bush I was a horrible governer of Texas and had a track record of failure - so I wonder about the experience question.

I think Barack has something that we haven't had in a while - certainly not from Bush - leadership skills and real intelligence. Like I said, why else would right-wing nuts try to vilify Obama?

 

i'd love it if Kerry ran, he's such a brilliant orator, and has great strength of character and consistency of purpose. in short, he's just brilliant...

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not sure where you got it that i've attacked BalaCk Hussein Osama- in fact, in one of the other 19 threads dealing with this same issue, i'm made it clear i'd consider voting for him. my only point it we don't know him yet, and it's hard to commit to someone that is such a, relative, enigma. and his popularity now is due to two things. his race, and his charisma. people are just projecting their own hopes on him. at some point, we'll learn more about him he may live up to the hype, he may crash and burn. right now he's the boy in the bubble:

It's a turn-around jump shot
It's everybody jump start
It's every generation throws a hero up the pop charts
Medicine is magical and magical is art, think of
The Boy in the Bubble

and here's some background on mr. Hussein Osama:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/17/AR2007011701343_pf.html

[rquoter]Obama's Past Offers Ammo for Critics

By RYAN KEITH
The Associated Press
Wednesday, January 17, 2007; 2:45 PM

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama may have a lot of explaining to do.

He voted against requiring medical care for aborted fetuses who survive. He 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 U.S. 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.

Obama _ who filed papers this week creating an exploratory committee to seek the 2008 Democratic nomination _ may also find himself fielding questions about his actions outside public office, from his acknowledgment of cocaine use in his youth to a more recent land purchase from a political supporter who is facing charges in an unrelated kickback scheme involving investment firms seeking state business.

Obama was known in the Illinois Capitol as a consistently liberal senator who reflected the views of voters in his Chicago district. He helped reform the state death penalty system and create tax breaks for the poor while developing a reputation as someone who would work with critics to build consensus.

He had a 100 percent rating from the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council for his support of abortion rights, family planning services and health insurance coverage for female contraceptives.

One vote that especially riled abortion opponents involved restrictions on a type of abortion where the fetus sometimes survives, occasionally for hours. The restrictions, which never became law, included requiring the presence of a second doctor to care for the fetus.

"Everyone's going to use this and pound him over the head with it," said Daniel McConchie, vice president and chief of staff for Americans United for Life.

Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said voters will be able to judge distorted accounts of his votes against his legislative career in general.

"I don't doubt that if you take a series of votes and twist them and kind of squint, you can write a narrative the way you want to write it," Gibbs said. "I think what people understand is that (what matters) is taking the full measure of his career and the full measure of his legislative efforts."

Abortion opponents see Obama's vote on medical care for aborted fetuses as a refusal to protect the helpless. Some have even accused him of supporting infanticide.

Obama _ who joined several other Democrats in voting "present" in 2001 and "no" the next year _ argued the legislation was worded in a way that unconstitutionally threatened a woman's right to abortion by defining the fetus as a child.

"It would essentially bar abortions because the equal protection clause does not allow somebody to kill a child, and if this was a child then this would be an anti-abortion statute," Obama said in the Senate's debate in March 2001.

During his 2004 run for U.S. Senate, Obama said he supported similar federal legislation that included language clarifying that the measure did not interfere with abortion rights.

Such hot-button issues were the exception in a legislative career that focused more on building consensus to improve the justice system and aid the poor.

Gibbs noted Obama's leadership on legislation requiring police to videotape interrogations in murder cases. It started out as a controversial idea but ended up passing the Senate unanimously.

Allies and opponents alike say he listened to those who disagreed, cooperated with Republicans and incorporated other people's suggestions for improving legislation.

"He was looked upon by members of both parties as someone whose view we listened carefully to," said Republican state Sen. Kirk Dillard from Hinsdale, Ill.

Obama regularly supported gun-control measures, including a ban on semiautomatic "assault weapons" and a limit on handgun purchases to one a month.

He also opposed letting people use a self-defense argument if charged with violating local handgun bans by using weapons in their homes. The bill was a reaction to a Chicago-area man who, after shooting an intruder, was charged with a handgun violation.

Supporters framed the issue as a fundamental question of whether homeowners have the right to protect themselves.

Obama joined several Chicago Democrats who argued the measure could open loopholes letting gun owners use their weapons on the street. They said local governments should have the final say, but the self-defense exception passed 41-16 and ultimately became state law.

"It's bad politics to be on the wrong side of the Second Amendment come election time," said Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association. "It will certainly be talked about. You can take that to the bank."

On the other hand, Obama parted company with gun control advocates when he backed a measure to let retired police officers and military police carry concealed weapons.

Obama occasionally supported higher taxes, joining other Democrats in pushing to raise more than 300 taxes and fees on businesses in 2004 to help solve a budget deficit. The increases passed the Senate 30-28.

That's one reason Illinois business groups gave Obama a low rating, while labor groups praised him. But even Obama's allies say he refused to become a rubber stamp for their legislation.

"He always wants to understand an issue and think it through," said Roberta Lynch, deputy director for Council 31 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. "You have to make your case no matter who you are."

For six years, Obama served in a Republican-controlled Senate, so he and fellow Democrats only got a fraction of their bills signed into law.

During his last two years, Democrats controlled the chamber and he was the go-to guy on a variety of issues. He helped pass legislation overhauling Illinois' troubled capital punishment system and was a key figure in requiring a massive statewide study of traffic stops to look for signs of racial profiling. Although police groups opposed the legislation, they say Obama listened to their concerns and accepted some of their suggestions to improve the bill.

Even when he was in the political minority, Obama sometimes played a critical role. He helped write one of the rare ethics laws in a state known for government corruption and worked on welfare reform with Republicans.

He sponsored legislation to bar job and housing discrimination against gays, and he helped create a state version of the earned income tax credit for the poor. Obama also led efforts to reject federal rules that would have put workers' overtime checks in jeopardy.[/rquoter]

 

Sounds like a reasonable man who understands the viewpoints of both sides of an issue.

basso since, I'm sure you read Obama's book http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=122358&highlight=hope you can explain to us all the details of those votes.

 

"arent you that plagarist?"

wow - a bush supporter mocking others oratory skills and strength of character! now ive seen everything.

good one dude!

 

http://selectsmart.com/plus/select.php?url=08frontrunners

Rank Item
(100%) 1: Sen. Barack Obama (D)
(88%) 2: Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D)
(87%) 3: Sen. John Kerry (D)
(84%) 4: Gov. Bill Richardson (D)
(83%) 5: Ex-VP Al Gore (D)
(78%) 6: Retired Gen. Wesley Clark (D)
(70%) 7: Ex-Sen. John Edwards (D)
(67%) 8: Sen. Christopher Dodd (D)
(65%) 9: Sen. Hillary Clinton (D)
(64%) 10: Gov. Tom Vilsack (D)
(63%) 11: Sen. Joseph Biden (D)

 

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100%) 1: Sen. Barack Obama (D) Information
(95%) 2: Ex-VP Al Gore (D) Information
(92%) 3: Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D) Information
(90%) 4: Gov. Bill Richardson (D) Information
(87%) 5: Sen. John Kerry (D) Information
(82%) 6: Retired Gen. Wesley Clark (D) Information
(81%) 7: Sen. Christopher Dodd (D) Information
(77%) 8: Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) Information
(75%) 9: Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) Information
(72%) 10: Ex-Sen. John Edwards (D) Information
(68%) 11: Gov. George Pataki (R) Information
(67%) 12: Gov. Mitt Romney (R) Information
(67%) 13: Sen. Joseph Biden (D) Information
(63%) 14: Ex-Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) Information
(55%) 15: Sen. John McCain (R) Information
(48%) 16: Sec. Condoleezza Rice (R) Information
(43%) 17: Ex-Rep. Newt Gingrich (R) Information
(42%) 18: Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) Information
(40%) 19: Sen. Chuck Hagel (R) Information
(40%) 20: Sen. George Allen (R) Information
(28%) 21: Sen. Sam Brownback (R) Information
(22%) 22: Rep. Tom Tancredo (R) Information
(16%) 23: Rep. Duncan Hunter (R) Information
(0%) 24: Sen. Russ Feingold (D) Withdrew from race.

 

Umm, you just attacked him right there - mocking both his race and religion.

The article you posted actually makes him appear a man of fairness and conviction, and the people attacking there are the NRA and United whatever (Anti-Abortion group) which attacks pretty much every democrat.

I don't see what you're trying to show here. As a moderate, it just seems weird you'd attack Obama and then praise Kerry and Hilary - two canidates that are extremely distasteful to a moderate such as myself. Perhaps you have another agenda.

 

Percent Rank Item
(100%) 1: Sen. Barack Obama (D) Information
(97%) 2: Ex-VP Al Gore (D) Information
(93%) 3: Gov. Bill Richardson (D) Information
(93%) 4: Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D) Information
(91%) 5: Sen. John Kerry (D) Information
(84%) 6: Retired Gen. Wesley Clark (D) Information
(84%) 7: Sen. Christopher Dodd (D) Information
(80%) 8: Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) Information
(80%) 9: Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) Information
(75%) 10: Ex-Sen. John Edwards (D) Information
(62%) 11: Sen. Joseph Biden (D) Information
(53%) 12: Gov. Mitt Romney (R) Information
(51%) 13: Ex-Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) Information
(48%) 14: Gov. George Pataki (R) Information
(48%) 15: Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) Information
(44%) 16: Sec. Condoleezza Rice (R) Information
(44%) 17: Sen. John McCain (R) Information
(37%) 18: Ex-Rep. Newt Gingrich (R) Information
(31%) 19: Sen. Chuck Hagel (R) Information
(26%) 20: Sen. George Allen (R) Information
(22%) 21: Rep. Tom Tancredo (R) Information
(17%) 22: Sen. Sam Brownback (R) Information
(6%) 23: Rep. Duncan Hunter (R) Information