Tag: Barack Obama (page 58)

The AP reports on Barack Obama's changed opinions on issues over time. Chief among them:

• The death penalty

  In 1996, when he was running for a seat in the Illinois Senate, Obama's campaign filled out a questionnaire flatly stating that he did not support capital punishment. By 2004, his position was that he supported the death penalty "in theory" but felt the system was so flawed that a national moratorium on executions was required.

  Today, he doesn't talk about a moratorium and says the death penalty is appropriate for "some crimes — mass murder, the rape and murder of a child — so heinous that the community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage."

• The Patriot Act

  When he ran for the Senate, Obama called the act a "shoddy and dangerous law" that should be replaced. After he took office, the Senate considered an update that Obama criticized as only a modest improvement and one that was inferior to other alternatives. Still, Obama ended up voting for that renewal and update of the Patriot Act.

The article says Democrats are unlikely to attack him on his changing positions for fear of seeming negative, but Republicans may not show such restraint. Another person interviewed in the article thinks Republicans will use a different argument:

"If Obama is the Democratic candidate, I don't think the Republicans will be attacking him on a particular issue," said Dianne Bystrom, director of the Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University. "They'd be attacking him on his experience."

Update: Obama is now criticizing John Edwards' record. I thought negativity didn't play in Iowa....

USA Today has released a new poll of New Hampshire voters. It's a toss-up between Hillary and Obama, but there is a 5% margin of error rate. Even so, there are a few differentiating clues.

• Who are you leaning towards? Note, this was asked of Democrats and those leaning towards a Democrat but without a preference.

Hillary 32%, Obama 32%, Edwards 18%

• How certain are you to vote for that person?(Note, this was asked of Democrat voters not those leaning without a preference)

Hillary 20%, Obama 18%, Edwards 10%

CBS' Harry Smith interviews Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in Iowa, trying to get them to reveal something of their personalities with questions like what's on your iPod, what's the first thing you do when you wake up, last thing before going to sleep, what's the last movie you saw, etc.

Here's the video. See for yourselves, they sure are different.

CBS notes in a companion article that Obama has a hard time showing emotion and empathy, even in a pre-arranged setting, suggesting he struggles "to feel the pain." It doesn't come naturally to him. Example: His campaign invited six voters in New Hampshire with hard luck stories to meet the candidate. Here's what happened. [More....]

The New York Times yesterday featured an article about Barack Obama's voting record as an Illinois Senator -- and his penchant for voting "present" instead of yes or no on controversial bills.

Why does someone vote "present" instead of yes or no?

Because it takes affirmative votes to pass legislation in the Illinois Senate, a "present" vote is tantamount to a "no" vote. A "present" vote is generally used to provide political cover for legislators who don't want to be on the record against a bill that they oppose.

When I asked the Obama campaign about those votes, they explained that in some cases, the Senator was uncomfortable with only certain parts of the bill, while in other cases, the bills were attempts by Republicans simply to score points.

I think he voted present to dodge the political bullet a "no" vote would have caused with some constituents or organizations. If he believed a bill was bad, like the bill banning partial birth abortion, why not take a stand and vote it down?

For example, in 1997, Obama voted "present" on two bills (HB 382 and SB 230) that would have prohibited a procedure often referred to as partial birth abortion....

....In his book, the "Audacity of Hope," on page 132, Obama explained his problems with the "born alive" bills, specifically arguing that they would overturn Roe v. Wade. But he failed to mention that he only felt strongly enough to vote "present" on the bills instead of "no."

This leads to the question, will he have the courage of his convictions as President? Unlike in Illinois, his options if elected to the Oval Office will be "yes" or "no." Can we count on Obama to take a stand?

More...

Bump and Update: It's a done deal. Lieberman has endorsed John McCain for President.

*****

Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard reports Sen. Joe Lieberman will endorse John McCain for President in New Hampshire tomorrow.

This is not surprising to me -- it's just two of your father's Oldsmobiles sticking together. MSNBC asked in January whether a McCain-Lieberman ticket was not a possibility.

More....

Calling her the "most prepared to lead," the Des Moines Register tonight endorsed Hillary Clinton as the Democratic candidate for President. A video from the Editorial board explaining their endorsement is here. "Every stage of her life has prepared her for the Presidency." The editors say while Obama inspired their imagination, Hillary inspired their confidence.

From working for children’s rights as a young lawyer, to meeting with leaders around the world as first lady, to emerging as an effective legislator in her service as a senator, every stage of her life has prepared her for the presidency.

That readiness to lead sets her apart from a constellation of possible stars in her party, particularly Barack Obama, who also demonstrates the potential to be a fine president.

....Determination to succeed and learning from her mistakes have been hallmarks of Clinton’s life....In the Senate, she has earned a reputation as a workhorse who does not seek the limelight.

Tested by rough politics and personal trials, she’s demonstrated strength, resolve and resilience.....Indeed, Obama, her chief rival, inspired our imaginations. But it was Clinton who inspired our confidence. Each time we met, she impressed us with her knowledge and her competence.

Congratulations, Hillary.

Bill Clinton was the hour-long guest on the Charlie Rose show last night. Video should be up on the site soon, but Marc Ambinder has some quotes:

Bill Clinton said Americans who are prepared to choose someone with less experience, are prepared to "roll the dice" about the future of America. "It's less predictable, isn't it? When is the last time we elected a president based on one year of service before he's running?"

On John Edwards: "He is great, Edwards is really good..."

On who else has the experience to be President: Richardson, Biden, Dodd. What Obama has: good skills.

On change, he adds (from the transcript on Lexis.com, not Ambinder):

I think by far the most important question in this day and age for the next American president is, who is the best agent of change, not the best symbol but the best agent? Who has proven the ability to make positive change?

Hillary starts her five day, 99 Iowa county "hill-a-copter" blitz Sunday.

During a speech in Iowa today, a voter asked John Edwards why Iowans should vote for Edwards over Obama. Edwards gave two reasons, one he called substantive and one political.

As president, Edwards said, he would be more successful in fighting the powerful corporations and interests that he says control America’s health-care system and other important areas.

Obama, he said, would take a more conciliatory approach. “He talks about bringing drug companies, insurance companies, oil companies, etc., to the table and working with them and negotiating and compromising,” Edwards said. “I just think that’ll never work. If that would work, it would have worked years ago. If that worked, we’d have universal health care. We don’t.”

....we need somebody who’s ready for this battle.”

On the political side, Edwards said he's more electable. [More....]

Hillary Clinton's New Hampshire campaign advisor Bill Shaheen resigned today after yesterday's ill-advised and unauthorized comments about Barack Obama's drug use.

Bill Shaheen, a national co-chairman for Clinton and a prominent New Hampshire political figure, had raised the issue of Obama's youthful drug use during a Wednesday interview, published on washingtonpost.com.

"I made a mistake and in light of what happened, I have made the personal decision that I will step down as the co-chair of the Hillary for President campaign," Shaheen said in a statement released by the campaign Thursday. "This election is too important, and we must all get back to electing the best qualified candidate who has the record of making change happen in this country. That candidate is Hillary Clinton."

Hillary apologized to Barack Obama today on the tarmac as they waited for a plane from D.C. to Iowa for the debate.

It was an unfortunate, regrettable incident. There's no room for these kind of errors this late in the game. Shaheen did the right thing by resigning.

Ike Turner died Wednesday at age 76.

Turner, was born in Clarksdale, Miss., and was brought up there by his mother after his father, a minister, was beaten to death by a white mob. As a child Ike spent time at the local radio station, WROX, a hub for Delta blues performances. According to Mr. Turner’s autobiography, the D.J.s taught him how to cue up and segue records, sometimes leaving him alone on the air when he was 8 years old.

....in 1958, he heard Anna Mae Bullock, who joined the group and quickly became its focal point as Tina Turner. The band was soon renamed the Ike and Tina Turner Revue.

Here's a photo retrospective.

If Big Tent Democrat were here (he's still on vacation) he would be writing about these posts.

• Digby: Partisan Soljahs on the Obama-Krugman flap.

• Eriposte at Left Coaster:

I have seen enough of Sen. Obama's supposed "post-partisan" non-ideology in action to know that, while he will certainly be better than any Republican as President, he is definitely not my #1 choice in the Democratic primary. I have deep concerns about what an Obama administration would be like - one that will likely be interested in compromise as an end in itself, while repeatedly ditching the progressive netroots as he has been inclined to do already (even before winning), when his soaring rhetoric meets the reality of the not-so-soaring ideology of Congress and the Republican Noise Machine. It is probably the expectation of this dynamic, along with Sen. Obama's willingness to repeatedly throw progressives under the bus, that has Obama supporters like Andrew Sullivan - who once infamously tarred swaths of the left in this country as a fifth column - energized and welcoming of his candidacy.

• DpAndrews at MyDD: Obama has Republicans Licking Their Chops

A new New York Times/CBS Poll taken Dec. 5 to 9 finds Hillary Clinton maintaining her lead nationally over Barack Obama. But what about Oprah?

Forty-four percent of Democrats said Mr. Clinton’s involvement would make them more likely to support Mrs. Clinton. The poll found just 1 percent said they might be swayed by the involvement of Oprah Winfrey.

More results:

• Democrats are happier with their candidates than Republicans.

• Demorats view Hillary "as a far more electable candidate" than Obama or Edwards in November.

  63 percent of Democrats said they thought Mrs. Clinton has the best chance of all the Democrats in a general election, compared with 14 percent who named Mr. Obama and 10 percent for Mr. Edwards.

  .... Not only did substantially more Democratic voters judge her to be ready for the presidency than those who believed Mr. Obama is prepared for the job, the poll found, but more Democrats said Mrs. Clinton could bring the country together than those who said Mr. Obama was someone who could unite different groups.

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