Schwarzenegger: I’ll take Obama’s call ‘when he’s president’
July 13, 2008, 1:05 pm
Filed under: Barack Obama, Bush, Economy, News, Politics, john mccain | Tags: arnnold schwarzenegger, arnold, Barack Obama, energy crisis, obama, off shore drilling
Filed under: Barack Obama, Bush, Economy, News, Politics, john mccain | Tags: arnnold schwarzenegger, arnold, Barack Obama, energy crisis, obama, off shore drilling
Schwarzenegger: I’ll take Obama’s call ‘when he’s president’
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David Edwards and Nick Juliano
Published: Sunday July 13, 2008
This standard set of Democratic talking points received another airing Sunday in a prominent politician’s interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos. Except this time a Democrat wasn’t the messenger. It was California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, one of the most prominent members of the Republican Party and an endorser of John McCain’s presidential candidacy. Schwarzenegger agrees with Democratic candidate Obama on energy, environmental and education issues as well as on the need for a timeline to withdraw from Iraq, but he also is friends with McCain, who gained a reputation as a maverick in the Senate although he’s been reaching out more to the right-wing base of his party. Perhaps demonstrating a lack of confidence in his own pick in November’s election, the movie star-turned-politician said he would be willing to entertain serving in Obama’s White House “when he’s president.” On This Week Schwarzenegger was asked about reports that Obama would consider naming him “energy czar.” Stephanopoulos tried to pin Schwarzenegger down on the question, asking if the governor “would at least take that call” from Obama offering such a position. “I would take his call now, I will take his call when he’s president. Any time” Schwarzenegger said. Perhaps realizing the pronouncement he just made, he backtracked a bit. “Remember, no matter who is president, I don’t see this as a political thing, I see this as we always have to help no matter what the administration is.” The popular Republican governor of a solidly blue state also tried to sell McCain as more of a maverick than the candidate has been presenting himself as. Stephanopoulos reminded Schwarzenegger of McCain’s recent endorsements of offshore drilling, and President Bush’s economic and health policies. “What is being said on those presidential campaigns is one thing. But what people have done in the past is something else,” Schwarzenegger said, promoting McCain as a Maverick who is “interested in molding his ideas together with Democratic ideas” to find compromise. “Sounds like you’re saying don’t listen to what he says on the campaign trail,” Stephanopoulos charged, to which Schwarzenegger insisted he just wanted to remind voters to judge McCain on his record. Schwarzenegger seemed also to struggle in his defense of McCain when the host reminded him of his endorsement for a timeline to withdraw troops from Iraq. He reminded viewers that McCain wouldn’t mind not pulling out of Iraq for a century, a declaration that liberal groups and anti-war activists have hammered him over. “I made clear that I believe in the timeline, but I said we should never leave, and just walk out the door,” Schwarzenegger said, contrasting his position with an argument that no candidate is making on the campaign trail. “it could take years … but I think that Sen. McCain is absoultey correct to be honest with the people and to look at them in the eye and to say, ‘I cannot promise you we will not have some troops in there in Iraq in many more years from now. It could be 100 years, he said that.” Schwarzenegger continued McCain’s argument with the caveat that we’vd had troops in Germany and Japan since World War II ended in 1945. This video is from ABC’s ThisWeek, broadcast July 13, 2008. |
Barack Obama’s has great ideas on energy and the environment, and his proposals seem in line for a country hungry for change. Meanwhile, John McCain’s campaign-trail pronouncements are at odds with his previous positions, leading voters to take what he says now with a grain of salt. Oh yeah, and he’s OK with keeping troops in Iraq for 100 years.
Obama to Gen. Clark: I got your back!
Obama to Gen. Clark: I got your back! (Updated xMany)
July 1, 2008, 9:07 pm
Filed under: Barack Obama, Bush, Economy, News, Patriot Act, Politics, Ted Kennedy, bill clinton, feminism, fisa, hillary clinton, iran, iraq, john mccain, michelle obama, religion | Tags: Barack Obama, gen clark, john mccain, wes clark
Filed under: Barack Obama, Bush, Economy, News, Patriot Act, Politics, Ted Kennedy, bill clinton, feminism, fisa, hillary clinton, iran, iraq, john mccain, michelle obama, religion | Tags: Barack Obama, gen clark, john mccain, wes clark
Obama to Gen. Clark: I got your back! (Updated xMany) 
by Bob Sackamento [Subscribe]
Tue Jul 01, 2008 at 02:11:22 PM PDT
From The Page:
The Senator says his call Monday for supporters to avoid denigrating military service was not a reference to Wesley Clark’s comment about McCain. “I think in at least one publication it was reported that my comments yesterday about Senator McCain were in a response to General Clark. I think my staff will confirm that was in a draft of that speech that I had written two months ago.”
Also says Clark does not owe McCain an apology…McCain campaign accuses Obama of repudiating his own repudiation, and says, “Apparently Barack Obama now thinks that smear attacks on John McCain’s military service are fair game.”
- Bob Sackamento’s diary :: ::
Per The Page: “Obama: Clark does not need to apologize to Mccain.” More on not apologizing from 1st read (link at the end of this diary), hat tip Beachmom–
He did not answer the first part of the question directly and later Obama, who said he had not spoken with Clark, seemed to bristle when asked why he had not talked with him and whether he felt the former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO owed McCain an apology, suggesting voters had more pressing matters on their minds.
“I guess my question is why, given all the vast numbers of things that we’ve got to work on, that that would be a top priority of mine?” he said.
Now that’s the Barack Obama I know and love!
My loose paraphrase of the video above: Obama rejects the swiftboat analogy and posits that Mccain is an asshat for crying about the General’s remarks. Then he gives his boilerplate “Senator Mccain is heroic blah blah.”
I think I’ll buy that second bumper sticker now. Someone tell Markos to drop his 2300 check in the mail 
Update: FYI, here’s the original diary on this topic: http://www.dailykos.com/…
Another update: (hat tip beachmom) The following is an additional Obama quote via MSNBC’s First Read-
“I guess my question is why, given all the vast numbers of things that we’ve got to work on, that that would be a top priority of mine?” he said. “I think that, you know, right now we’re here to talk about how we can make sure that kids in Zanesville and across Ohio get the kind of support that they need and communities that are impoverished can start to rebuild. I’m happy to have all sorts of conversations about how we deal with Iraq and what happens with Iran, but the fact that somebody on a cable show or on a news show like Gen. Clark said something that was inartful about Sen. McCain I don’t think is probably the thing that is keeping Ohioans up at night.”
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/…
Video with the above quote below
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/7/1/17854/43360/137/544985
Why NOT To Vote For McCain
June 28, 2008, 10:00 pm
Filed under: Barack Obama, Bush, Economy, Funny, News, Politics, Racism, bill clinton, feminism, hillary clinton, john mccain, michelle obama, religion | Tags: Barack Obama, john mccain, taxes, tax cuts, gaffes, flip flop
Filed under: Barack Obama, Bush, Economy, Funny, News, Politics, Racism, bill clinton, feminism, hillary clinton, john mccain, michelle obama, religion | Tags: Barack Obama, john mccain, taxes, tax cuts, gaffes, flip flop
Why NOT to vote for McCain
FLIP-FLOPS click here
GAFFE LIST click here
100+ reasons NOT to vote for McCain
(with sources cited )
*IRAQ & MILITARY AFFAIRS*
- Skipped over a dozen votes on Iraq in the Senate. (source)
- “Because I know that as successful as I believe we will be, and I believe that the success will be fairly easy, we will still lose some American young men or women.” (source)
- “We’re not going to get into house-to-house fighting in Baghdad. We may have to take out buildings, but we’re not going to have a bloodletting of trading American bodies for Iraqi bodies.” (source)
- “But the point is that, one, we will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” (source)
- “But I believe, Katie, that the Iraqi people will greet us as liberators.” (source)
- “It’s clear that the end is very much in sight.” (source)
- Was indirectly responsible for the deaths of 21 shopkeepers in Baghdad’s Shorja marketplace, after visiting and saying it was perfectly safe.(source)
- “There are neighborhoods in Baghdad where you and I could walk through those neighborhoods today.” (source)
- “General Petraeus goes out there [Iraq] almost everyday in an unarmored Humvee.” (source)
- “I meant that there are neighborhoods that are safe in Iraq, and he does go out into Baghdad, and the fact is there has been significant progress…” (source)
- “I’m not say that they [VIPs] could go without protection. The president goes around America with protection. So I certainly didn’t say that.” (source)
- Unidentified Reporter: “[On 26 Mar] You said there are areas in Baghdad that you can walk around freely.” McCain: “Yeah, I just came from one.” (source)
- McCain’s escort through Shorja was 100+ soldiers, sniper teams, 10 armored humvees, 3 blackhawk helicopters, 2 apache gunships, predator drone coverage; McCain was wearing a bulletproof vest and allowed to take off his helmet only when authorized. (source)
- Says that Obama can’t understand Iraq since he hasn’t been there since 2006. (source)
- Voted against extending troop deployment times in the USA to match deployment times in Iraq. (source)
- Voted against repealing a capital gains tax cut which would have funded soldiers. (source)
- Voted consistently from 2003-2007 against additional funding for Walter Reed Army Medical Center. (source 1, source 2, source 3)
- Voted to table a bill that would have provided funding and equipment for Guard and Reserve units. (source)
- Voted against additional funding for the mental health care of troops. (source)
- Actively opposed the GI Bill that would increase education benefits to soldiers; was one of three senators who didn’t vote on it; one was in the hospital and one was at a funeral; he was campaigning. (source)
- When asked if he had an idea of when troops would be coming home, said “No, but that’s not too important. What’s important is the casualties in Iraq. (source)
*ECONOMICS*
- “I’m going to be honest: I know a lot less about economics than I do about military and foreign policy issues. I still need to be educated.” Denied saying this in a primary debate. (source)
- “The issues of economics is not something I’ve understood as well as I should.” (source)
- Added Arthur Laffer and Phil Gramm to his campaign economics staff. (source 1, source 2)
- “I don’t have the kind of expertise to know exactly whether he has cut interest rates sufficiently or not.” (source)
- Debate question, are Americans better off than they were 8 years ago: “I think you could argue that Americans overall are better off, because we have had a pretty good prosperous time, with low unemployment and low inflation and a lot of good things have happened. A lot of jobs have been created.” (source)
- Today Show, soon after, when asked the same question: “Oh no. No.” Bloomberg TV, same question: “In fact, I think Americans are not better off than they were eight years ago, when you look at what’s happened to middle-income Americans.” (source)
- Says that he can save $100 billion by cutting earmarks; campaign later denies this claim. Has said saving $100B would not come from military; this would necessitate a 18.5% across the board cut in every other discretionary spending program, including education, veteran’s health, highways. (source)
- Favors repealing the alternative minimums tax, 90% of the benefits going to six-figure families; this would cost $1.6 trillion over 10 years; claim of an average of $2000/family mostly weighted by highest earners.(source)
- Says that Obama and Clinton want to create the largest tax increase since WW2; it would be the fifth-largest and is not even an increase, but merely allowing Bush’s cuts to expire. (source)
- Opposed Bush’s tax cuts, then supported Bush’s tax cuts. (source)
- Wants to cut capital gains taxes. (source)
- Wants to remove federal gasoline taxes. (source)
- Claimed that 401ks are taxed by the capital gains tax (they are not) and used this to further his point that “[Obama] obviously doesn’t understand the economy.” (source)
- Claimed Obama wanted to double the capital gains tax; Obama said no more than double (which is what it was under Clinton) and probably much lower. (source)
- Has 118 lobbyists working for his campaign. (source )
- Has Phil Gramm as a chief economic advisor, even though he opposed cracking down on tax havens, like those used by bin Laden, shortly after the 9/11 attacks. (source )
*FOREIGN POLICY & COUNTER-TERRORISM*
- On The Daily Show (source):
STEWART: There was one comment– and this could have been taken out of context as well– you felt that Hamas endorsed Obama? Did they officially–
McCAIN: A spokesperson from Hamas said they wanted Senator Obama, but that’s– that’s –
STEWART: Do you feel bad you said that? Because that is– if you think about it–
McCAIN: A spokesperson said that, and I think –
STEWART: And you take Hamas at their word?
McCAIN: No, but it’s indicative of how some of our enemies view America. I guarantee you, they’re not going to endorse me.
McCAIN: A spokesperson from Hamas said they wanted Senator Obama, but that’s– that’s –
STEWART: Do you feel bad you said that? Because that is– if you think about it–
McCAIN: A spokesperson said that, and I think –
STEWART: And you take Hamas at their word?
McCAIN: No, but it’s indicative of how some of our enemies view America. I guarantee you, they’re not going to endorse me.
- Says talking to Hamas is naive; two years prior, in an interview with James Rubin of Sky News, said that negotiations with Hamas were inevitable, and the current (Bush) admin had to get used to that; in 2003 had said that even though Syria sponsored and harbored terrorists, it was worth talking to them. (source)
- Was in favor of negotiations with Cuba; no longer is. (source)
- Constantly confuses Shia and Sunni. (source)
- “There’s not a history of clashes that are violent between Sunnis and Shiahs. So I think they can probably get along.” (source)
- “One of the things I would do if I were President would be to sit the Shiites and the Sunnis down and say, ‘Stop the bullshit.’” (source)
- Says that Al Qaeda get training in Iran (source)
- Insists that Ahmadinejad was the leader of Iran, not Khamenei, despite reality being what it is.(source)
- Concerning Cheney: “I don’t know if I would want him as vice president. He and I have the same strengths. But to serve in other capacities? Hell, yeah.” (source)
- McCain refuses to answer a question about whether or not he supports Bush’s abstinence-only policy in Africa; when asked if he supported condom distribution, was silent; when asked about his policy on sex ed in the USA, said “I think I support the president’s policy;” when asked if he thought contraceptives helped stop the spread of HIV, said “You’ve stumped me.” Asked an aide for his policy paper on the subject; couldn’t find it; finished by saying “I’ve never gotten into these issues before.” (source)
- “We have had some success working with the Pakistanis in a low visible fashion. Should they be more helpful? Of course they should be. Should the Saudis be more helpful? Should the Jordanians be more helpful? Should the Egyptians? We are giving billions of dollars a year to the Egyptians, as you know, and they should be more helpful. Should the Mexicans be more helpful? Everybody should be more helpful.” (source)
- Republican John McCain’s campaign accused Barack Obama of having a dangerous and naive Sept. 10 mind-set toward terrorism because the Democrat spoke approvingly of the successful prosecution and imprisonment of those responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center bombings. (source)
- At a Town Hall meeting, was asked why we haven’t caught bin Laden yet; McCain got pissed, started rambling about the Diamondbacks and Yankees and Rudy Giuliani on a screen, said as President, Bin Laden would be caught (Guess this means Bin Laden is still safe for another few months) and people were laughing that McCain wasn’t answering the question.
*ETHICS*
- Moved to Arizona for political reasons; the day after his predecessor announced his upcoming retirement, Cindy bought a house in the district. (source)
- Was elected to congress in part due to his friendship with Darrow Tully, publisher of the AZ Republic, who gave him free editorial space; did not comment when Tully’s numerous war stories about himself (Tully) were revealed to be all lies.(source)
- Was part of the Keating Five. (source)
- Vigorously lobbied to have investigations of his friend Gov. Fife Symington halted; Symington was convicted of bank fraud, to which McCain said that Symington had been running the state well; when a different governor fell under similar circumstances, McCain went after him; when it was suggested that he showed preference to Symington that he didn’t show to Mecham, said “I really won’t answer that kind of insinuation… I do what’s best for the state. I do what’s best for the country.” (source)
- Voted to convict Bill Clinton on impeachment charges. (source)
- Chief Advisor of McCain’s campaign, Charlie Black, lobbied for numerous dictators in Asia and Africa; Black said he didn’t do anything wrong. (source 1, source 2)
- Richard Davis is one of McCain’s friends, advisers, and campaign chairs; Davis was paid $395,000 to lobby on behalf of the telecom industry; McCain, as chairman of the Commerce Committee, supported a Cablevision bid despite a government report saying that it would lead to higher prices. (source)
- Two campaign staffers forced to resign; they had lobbied on behalf of Myanmar’s repressive government in 2002. (source)
- Cindy, after an AP article outed her, sells her investments in mutual funds that invested in the Sudanese government. (source)
- Suggested that, as a new idea, like divestment from South Africa to fight apartheid, we should divest from Iran; a bipartisan bill presented by Obama and Brownback in 2007 said just that exact same thing; McCain voted against it; one of his main campaign advisers lobbies for an Iranian steel company; McCain opposed divestment from South Africa at the time. (source 1, source 2, source 3, source 4, source 5, source 6)
- Used a picture of Gen. Petraeus in fundraising material (military members are not allowed to do this, and it was done without Petreaus’ knowledge or approval). (source)
- Collects $58,000 per year from the government in disability. (source)
- Refuses to return money taken from a fundraiser hosted by Clayton Williams, who said of rape, “As long as it’s inevitable, you might as well lie back and enjoy it.” (source)
*TORTURE & SURVEILLANCE*
- Having been tortured for five years, joined the party that prolonged his torture and blasted Romney at a debate for supporting torture. (source)
- Now McCain himself supports torture. (source)
- Voted against legal definitions of torture. (source)
- After the Supreme Court ruled that Guantanamo prisoners have some rights, “The United States Supreme Court yesterday rendered a decision which I think is one of the worst decisions in the history of this country,” McCain said. He went on to quote from Justice Roberts dissent in the case, rail against “unaccountable judges,” and say that the courts are about to be clogged with cases from detainees. Called it a case about “so-called, ‘Habeas Corpus,’ suits.” (source)
- Says that Bush’s warrantless wiretaps are legal. (source)
*KATRINA*
- Ate birthday cake with President Bush several hours after the levees at New Orleans broke; later, McCain blasted Bush’s tepid and slow response. (source)
- Voted against the Katrina Commission (twice). (source)
- Voted against extended Medicaid access for Katrina victims. (source)
- Voted against extended unemployment assistance for Katrina victims. (source)
*ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT*
- Said he supported a cap-and-trade system, but no mandatory caps. (source)
- Supports clean coal. (source)
- Wants to end the offshore drilling ban of 1981 (opponents include Republican Governors Schwarzenegger and Crist). (source)
- Voted against Everglades restoration. (source)
- Voted against closing a future market loophole that led to the Enron disasters in California; said the market needed less regulation, not more; the money saved from closing this loophole would have reduced medical and pharmaceutical copays for soldiers. (source)
- Voted against the Clean Air Act. (Citation needed.)
*DOMESTIC ISSUES*
- Voted against the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday; later said that he didn’t know much about MLK at the time, and that “I had not really been involved in the issue.” (source)
- “Still,…McCain has yet to find his voice on domestic issues–his response to a question about crime among teen girls veered from a Little Rock mentoring program to Nicaraguan drug lords to securing the Mexican border to the rural meth epidemic, then ended with the not-so-confident words, “I intend to enlist the help of the people who know these problems best.” (source)
- “I’m not for, quote, privatizing social security; I never have been, I never will be.” Then… “Without privatization, I don’t see how you can possibly over time make sure that young Americans are able to receive social security benefits.” (source)
- Does not support Amtrak. (source)
- Voted against the ERA. (Citation needed.)
- Voted in favor of tobacco subsidies. (Citation needed.)
*RIGHT-WING LUNACY*
- Said that the nation is founded on “Christian principles.” (source)
- Is in favor of prayer in public schools. (source)
- The description of McCain’s autobiography is by the author of The Unmaking Of Americans: How Multiculturalism has Undermined the Assimilation Ethic and Our Oldest Enemy: A History of America’s Disastrous Relationship with France. (source)
- When asked to name an inspirational author, said “Joel Osteen.” (source)
- Was against intelligent design being taught in schools; now supports it. (source 1, source 2)
- Describes Roberts, Alito his favorite justices. (source)
- Campaign actively sought Hagee’s endorsement until the “Hitler was a hunter” video came out. (source 1, source 2)
*AWFUL CAMPAIGNING*
- Calls Obama an elitist; sells golf equipment on his website. (source)
- His campaign stole a recipe from Rachel Ray / the Food Network website for Cindy’s website; was called on it; did it again with another recipe from the Hershey’s website. (source)
- “That’s not change we can believe in.” (source)
- “The media often overlooked how compassionately [Hillary] spoke to the concerns and dreams of millions.” Three days later denied saying this: “I did not [say that], that was in prepared remarks, and I did not [say it], I’m not in the business of commenting on the press and their coverage or not coverage” (source)
- Campaign staff didn’t know enough about computers to disable comments on campaign youtube videos.
- Campaign staff didn’t know enough about computers to disable comments on website store.
*NAVY CAREER & VIETNAM*
- Finished fifth from last in his class of 899 at Annapolis. (source)
- During the Vietnam war, wanted to bomb Soviet ships and thus initiate a third world war; during the Vietnam war, said he wanted to bomb more than military targets. (source)
- Blamed POW collaboration with NVA forces on “the divisive forces which had come into focus as a result of the antiwar movement in the United States.” (source)
- “I hated the gooks. I will hate them as long as I live.” (source)
*FAMILY MATTERS*
- Divorced his first wife Carol, who had waited for him while he was in Vietnam, who had been in a horrible car accident, for a multi-millionaire heiress he had met a year before the divorce; married Cindy one month after the divorce. (source)
- Admitted and was widely known to being unfaithful during his first marriage. (source)
- Cindy stole prescription medication to feed an addiction for 3 years; Cindy was accused (never convicted) of threatening an employee to keep quiet about the thefts. (source)
- His daughter did not switch parties from Independent to Republican until 2008. (source)
- Was revealed along with his wife to owe $100,00-250,000 in credit card debt. (source)
*CRAZY AND/OR OUT-OF-TOUCH OLD MAN*
- Constantly refers to his imprisonment by the North Vietnamese. (Various sources.)
- Does not know how to use a computer or the Internet (in 2008!). (source)
- At a Smith & Wesson plant, “I will follow Osama Bin Laden to the gates of hell and I will shoot him with your products.” (source)
- In 1989, flipped Sam Nunn the bird. (source)
- Said to Sen. Pete Domenici, “Only an asshole would put together a budget like this.” After Domenici told him no one had ever called him that, McCain said “I wouldn’t call you an asshole unless you were really an asshole.” (source)
- In 2000 Sen. Grassley said, “Are you calling me stupid?” McCain replied, “I’m calling you a fucking jerk.” (source)
- Screamed “Fuck you” at John Cornyn on the senate floor, followed by “This is chickenshit stuff,” when asked about provisions of his amnesty bill. (source)
- Keeps on him at all times a lucky compass, lucky feather, lucky penny, and sometimes a lucky rock; an aide carries his lucky pen; always wears his lucky shoes (LL Bean rubber-soled dress shoes). (source)
- “Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because her father is Janet Reno.” (199
(source) - “Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb Iran” (source)
- Slept through portions of Bush’s 2007 State of the Union address (source)
- Called the League of Democracies the “League of Nations.” (source)
- “I will veto every single beer.” (source)
- “We should be able to deliver hot water to dehydrated babies.” (source)
______
source:
http://www.kskirby.net/mccain.html
DO YOU WANT TO KNOW THE TRUTH BEHIND GAS PRICES? THIS IS NOT A CONSPIRACY!!
June 22, 2008, 6:16 pm
Filed under: Bush, Economy, News, Politics | Tags: Economy, gasoline, iran, News, Politics
Filed under: Bush, Economy, News, Politics | Tags: Economy, gasoline, iran, News, Politics
THIS IS NOT WRITTEN BY ME BUT BY MY FRIEND SHERRY..I WANTED TO SHARE IT
To Drill or Not to Drill
It’s easy to think at first glance that we should do more drilling.
I even was wondering that briefly myself until I started looking into it before I formed my conclusions
I even was wondering that briefly myself until I started looking into it before I formed my conclusions
There’s much more to this story than meets the eye
Bottom line is this is just another lie (surprise, surprise) that is being sold to people who will just accept it without doing any research, a way to pad more and more profits I don’t have all the facts yet — but I’m in the process of studying this out and I’m learning some interesting stuff
1st — these oil prices are being manipulated by the market, investors in futures They’re calling it the Enron Loophole I don’t understand much about economics, but people who do are screaming about this Keith Olbermann had an excellent segment last night about it
2nd — we already have places lying dormant that could reopened and don’t need to take these stepsMost oil leases on public lands go unused