Colin Powell vs. Joe the Plumber
Rush Limbaugh and others were more biting and suggested the endorsement was a function of identity politics. Still other observers suggested Powell’s move was either sweet revenge directed at the GOP or a play for the accolades of elite opinion makers.
Whatever the rationale for Powell’s endorsement, it remains to be seen if there is some segment of the undecided electorate (generally white working-class voters) that will respond to this move, or alternatively some portion of McCain voters who will be so assured by Powell’s endorsement that they feel comfortable switching sides.
The last two weeks of the race come down to message and turnout. On the message front (George H.W. called it “the vision thing”), McCain seems finally to have hit his stride. His pitch is simple: the recession will get worse with an Obama agenda of higher taxes, big spending, protectionism, and at best lukewarm interest in domestic oil and gas development. He even uses the “s” word — socialism. Conversely, he presents himself as the reformer with a low tax, budget freezing, and pro-drilling agenda.
Almost as noteworthy is what isn’t on the McCain radar screen. McCain has, for all intents and purposes, abandoned any serious effort to go after Obama on his bizarre associations with leftwing groups, convicted felons and ex-terrorists, although his campaign continues to send out press releases and conduct media calls on ACORN’s involvement in coast-to-coast voter registration fraud. Foreign policy had likewise receded from the scene, a remarkable turnabout from earlier in the campaign, until Joe Biden’s mega-gaffe on Sunday suggesting that Obama supporters should be prepared not only for the new president to have his “mettle” tested but for the situation where it is “not gonna be apparent that we’re right.”
Meanwhile, Palin continues to thrill the base. She talks about social issues and ACORN and makes the pitch that small town and rural voters have been overlooked and scorned by the Democrats and their elite MSM allies. And instead of trying to work with the enemy, the McCain camp is now showing her off to that constituency via the conservative media.
Between now and election day Obama’s task is simple: guard against complacency and continue to bang the drum that McCain=Bush. In this he is greatly aided by a phenomenal, record-breaking fundraising haul of $150M in September. Only a few MSM pundits dared remark that if it had been a Republican reneging on his promise to accept public financing and then tried to “buy the election,’ the backlash would be fierce.
Judging from the last couple of days, the MSM media seems more impressed by the Powell endorsement than voters do. The “Joe the Plumber” bump in the polls for McCain which began in earnest with last week’s debate seems, for now, to have exceeded the Powell bump.
But the challenge remains a daunting one for McCain. He trails in national polls and a series of state polls and is being vastly outspent on last minute campaign ads. Is there time for him to pull it out?
Nancy Pelosi says the election is over.
Conservatives beg to differ. The voters will settle the matter in two weeks. One surprising ray of hope for McCain: with the most unpopular president and the worst economy in generations he remains in the thick of the race. That alone tells us something about voters’ comfort level with his opponent.
I noticed that it wasn’t exactly a ringing endorsement urging others to vote for Obama. It was just a simple statement of for whom he was voting. It was kinda like Bill Clinton-speak. He waited, conveniently, until it was a pretty safe bet.
I accept his explanation of his concern for McCain’s recent behavior patterns, politely hinting at diminishing capacity, with Palin waiting in the wings. To a man who has spent his adult life in foreign policy, her weakness in this area is unattractive.
I disagree, but I get where he’s coming from. To me, it’s a non-issue. Or to put it another way: shocka!
Rightly or wrongly Powells endorsement of Obama will be seen purely as identity politics.
It was the same with Oprah Winfrey – for so long she played up to the fact that she was all for women and womens rights and empowerment of women blah, blah, blah, but as soon as the race for the Democratic nomination distilled down to Obama and Clinton she sided with the black guy over the women because racial identity clearly was more important than gender to her.
It might not be true of Powell but with 95% of the black vote deemed to be in the bag for Obama its hard to really think any differently.
On that basis his endorsement of Obamais pretty meaningless….except to those who are going to vote for him anyway.
Powell’s endorsement can’t possibly help; it’s a non-issue in that respect. His reasons for choosing Obama were telling. They weren’t race-related, he assures us, but the reasons were fluff with no substance. That was interesting. Especially since Republicans have helped Powell gain such prominence, and McCain helped get his son a key post in the fed govt. What a back-stabber, Colin Powell has been this week, once again. Why didn’t he help Libby and the whole Bush White House staff, by telling the truth outright, that it was Armitage who “leaked” (which was not technically a leak) Plame’s name? And why hasn’t he spread the word since he left office that Saddam WANTED the world to think he had WMD (Piro’s discovery) ? This man Colin Powell is either guilty of insubordination, or stupidity, or just has a massive chip on his shoulder and wanted to sell books.
Colin Powell – Obama had him in the tank for two months
as an October surprise, does he really add anything? Just an endorsement. To say that it takes Obama’s experience off the table is totally ludicris, and he even said on MTP he didn’t want to serve in a cabinet. Go to Markleveinshow.com for 10/20 he had a great retort on Powell
Frankly I believe the polls are still heavily biased DEM and McCain will win this thing. He loses Iowa, Co or NM in the red states and gains a huge lift in Pennsylvania.
A huge factor 15-20% of the dem Hillary vote that is mad and felt big O stole the nomination from will cross party lines.
Joe the plumber has changed the momentum. THose a little worried about who Obama is, are more so now. The redistribute the wealth line was Obama’s “Dukakis riding in the tank” moment. McCain didn’t make this clear enough early and certainly missed some opportunities but when middle America goes to vote, in the privacy of that booth, the socialist inexperienced guy isn’t going to cut it.
Reagan plucked Powell from obscurity. George H. W. Bush put him in as Chief of the Joint Chiefs. The media made Powell the Great Man during and after the Gulf War. Ah, why wasn’t Schwarzkopf the great General of the War or other front line Generals? Powell was black. The Liberal White MSM had tried everything to raise blacks to their standards since FDR. It hadn’t worked.
So, after Powell retired, wrote his book and went on his book tour/campaign as a Republican, the media promoted him as the new Republicanism, the new Black Hope, etc., etc.
When George W Bush won in 2000, he kissed up to the media in the campaign by bringing Powell on board, but by that time, Powell’s MO of leaks, back-stabbing, bad-mouthing of the people the media didn’t like was clear. Bush knew Powell and thought he could control it, so he made him Secretary of State. But the passive-aggressive, back-stabbing, know-it-all Powell continued his pro-media ways. Bush was stuck with him until after he won re-election and then got rid of him as soon as he could.
Now, Powell The Safe is out there again. After letting Lewis Libby hang in the wind for 2 years, when Powell knew that it was his Deputy, Richard Armitrage, who leaked Plame’s name to the press in that media scandal. The back-stabbing, passive-aggressive creep is out there again to do the media’s dirty work and put the knife into the media’s enemy of the day, John McCain.
The media created Great Man, gets one more Media Puff Campaign. Dirty deeds done dirt cheap. Powell has the morals of a teenage girl in the midst of a battle of cliques. Rumor-mongering, bad-mouthing, back-handed compliments, dishonesty, and smiling while sticking the knife in, that’s my General Powell.
The media will have one more use for Powell after McCain gets elected, it’ll be to criticize McCain’s foreign policy moves and attack the GOP base. Powell’s a Washington DC hothouse flower, he couldn’t survive anywhere else. Why doesn’t he do something useful and say, take up plumbing?
There is no question in my mind that Powell is endorsing Obama because he’s black. I used to have respect for Powell but I don’t any longer.
Don’t look now but McCain has a “I’m Joe the Plumber” video submittal contest on his website. Looks like he’ll be showing the nation many Joes!!! that’s encouraging, let’s hope he can pony up the money, find a time slot Obama hasn’t booked already and get this out effectively
http://www.johnmccain.com/joe/
Colin Powell is a genuine American patriot, a hero, and he has earned my respect and gratitude. I think his endorsement does carry weight, and God forbid, if Obama is elected… at least I hope Colin Powell will be a key advisor to him and not Bill Ayers & Co. I was not impressed with Mr. Powell’s record while Secretary of State, it appeared to me that the career bureaucrats within the State Department were running him rather than the other way around, many of whom are anti-Bush. This endorsement, if nothing, seems to me to be more of the same. Mr Powell wants to be liked more than he does stand on conservative principles. But, who ever said he was a conservative? He’s not! Look at what he said about the Supreme Court… one of the main reasons he gave for endorsing Obama was to prevent two more conservative judges on the Supreme Court. So, I think Mr. Powell is actually showing his true political colors, he’s a good man, but a tad liberal on the politics, and that’s something I think isn’t too shocking after his performance while Secretary of State.
I can’t say whether Powell’s endorsement helps or not. Most conservatives I know never liked Powell (I never liked Powell) and I was completely unsurprised by his Obama endorsement. Those who plan on voting for Obama will cheer this, those that plan on voting for McCain will see this as another piece of evidence that Powell was never a republican although he claimed he was. I for one thought he was a failure as secretary of state.
I also do not believe he owes the republicans anything no matter how they have promoted him in the past. They knew what they were getting, if they feel betrayed then shame on them.
I’m not sure how independents react. But as far as i am concerned this was a racially motivated choice. Obama may be a good speaker and he certainly is smart. He is unqualified for the job given the resume he has.
Colin Powell was what we call a Pentagon general. He served his country honorably and then got caught up in the intrigue and politics of washington, and never left. Bush I promoted him because he was at the time politically desirable. His battles with some of the field generals were pretty telling.
He lost all credibility as SecState when he hung Judith Miller and Libby out to dry. That is the lowest form of politics. No one deserves prison for crimes they did not commit. He will be judged much more harshly by history.
Matt:
Well said, and sadly true.
Colin Powell was a political general, not a warrior general. Schwarzkopf was the warrior general that won the Gulf War. I suspect Powell was on the side of those wishing to end the war prematurely – directly leading to the the current Iraq War. Wesley Clarke is another example of a political general. They change direction with a shift in the wind. They’re just another breed of politican. yawn.
Oh, yeah… one more point Mr. Powell made that was almost laughable, but more scarey than laughable: “this will ELECTRIFY the world”. What does that tell you about the mentality here?
Powell throwing his towel in for Obama carries as much weight as Wesly Clark throwing in as a democrat (i.e., none). Re is correct in that Powell was a political general and never a warrior. He has lost any vestiges of respect from conservatives for his defection. I don’t know if his endorsement is racially motivated or not, but it sure smacks of political opportunism. Just another disappointment.
This is nothing new about Powell. He has always been a moderate conservative in foreign relations and a liberal on domestic issues.
He was a front line officer in Vietnam and for that I thank him. As a Pentagon officer he was a good polititian which isn’t altogether bad but later his practice of politics as Sec of State were rather unsavory.
I have lost all respect and admiration for Mr. Powell. What a backstabber. With all of Obama’s past ties with shady criminals I can’t fathom why Mr. Powell could even think of supporting him. Shows what his true “colors” are now. No pun intended.
Should have said Obama’s past and “present” ties with shady criminals, terrorists, muslims, liars, theives, murderers ect.
It’s interesting hearing how people who couldn’t stand Powell when he advocated for the war, calling him a traitor and Uncle Tom…all of a sudden have so much respect for him because he’s backing Obama. Right.
Obama is going to make history as the first black president of the US; Powell, and many others who are jumping on the Obama bandwagon, wants to be part of that history. It’s that simple.
Plus, show me one black person who publicly is NOT supporting Barack Obama. “Bro’s before Joe’s!” should be Powell’s new saying.
Poor Kelly – Life is such a mystery
Poweell was never going to convince folks like you. However, I think you will find he has a lot of respect from the independents who might have been sitting on the fence. As to Joe – unfortunately he did not get his facts right and that tends not to impress any but the already converted
colin powell makes $100,00.00 per speach,, so joes dream of making what it takes powell to do in 2 1/2 days( 1hr to 45 minutes on average)by buying a plumbing contracting company a fairy tale,,NO<<
making the money powell does by not doing much work has made him a bleeding heart liberal like our hollywood actors,,
It is quite obvious that race was the deciding factor in Powell’s endorsement of Obama. What I find is amusing is that Obama would even welcome the endorsement. Wasn’t Powell part of the same bunch of war criminals who lied in order to get the US to invade Iraq and steal the oil? So far, I haven’t heard Obama saying that he doesn’t need the endorsement of someone who worked for George Bush.
The odds are in John McCain’s side. He will likely win in spite of politically correct himself. There is just too much race talk in the air. The Anointed One was supposed to be “above race.” Chrales Krauthammer is not the only one who now believes this was a lie. Too many non-racist white people are legitimately wondering if they will be victimized during an Obama administration. They are, after all, considered to be a cancer on the Earth by the leftist establishment. I am adamantly convinced that there is tacit agreement between left-wing ivy league whites and Barack Obama: if they behave themselves—he will leave them alone and only go after the “unclean” white masses.
The disgusting David Duke will be the true beneficiary during an Obama presidency. He will attract the whites who will feel constantly crapped on. The John McCain/Sarah Plain ticket is the only hope for better race relations in our country. Obama will set back progress at least thirty years.
“Only a few MSM pundits dared remark that if it had been a Republican reneging on his promise to accept public financing and then tried to “buy the election,’ the backlash would be fierce.”
Whether it’s schizophrenia or multiple personality disorder liberals in general are mentally unstable. The Colin Powel endorsement is a perfect example of their say anything, do anything, the truth has nothing to do with the facts mental disorder. Let me prove it.
If Colin Powel had endorsed John McCain for POTUS we would have seen wailing and gnashing of teeth of biblical proportions as liberals crawled out from under every rock in the galaxy to spew their venom. Colin Powel would have suffered a “high tech lynching” the likes we havn’t seen since Clarence Thomas for his role in selling the Iraq war and WMD’s to the U.N. and the American people.
Fortunately for Obama, Colin Powel is a RINO. Although I respect Colin Powel for accepting Ronald Reagans offer to serve in his administration and his subsequent service to GH and GW Bush if you look at Colin Powels standing on social issues he is a far left liberal. There was a time immediately following his departure from GW Bush’s administration where he spoke publicly about being pro-death, pro-condom in schools and anti-parent’s rights regarding a students pregnancy.
It was such a break from America’s perception of him as a rational, thoughtful person he didn’t speak out for long on social issues. It was like a kid wallking in and seeing his/her Aunt Minnie stepping out of the tub butt naked… oooohhhhh, yuck! It was fairly traumatic.
I will admit I do not know what it is like to be half white and half black in America. Colin Powel feels a strong kinship along racial lines with Barack Obama and I am fine with that. But the fact remains, you can pick virtually any topic or issue and the liberals will play both sides against the middle to manipulate useful idiots in to their camp.
The intellectual dishonesty from the left is not some cute little character flaw that gave us a smile when Ronald Reagan said “Wellll, there they go again” it has devolved in to a full blown mental disorder of which they have the perfect poster children in Barack Hussein Obama and Joe “gaffe a minute” Biden. God help us.
What is telling in the Colin Powell vs. Joe the Plumber endorsement circus is the role of the “mainstream” news media. Powell is, in essence, a creation of the MSM, and remains one of their darlings. His undistinguished performance as SOS, including the Libby betrayal, has drawn protective silence from his media apologists. And Powell’s endorsement of Obama reeks of reward for that silence. Powell’s half-hearted endorsement confirms him as a bought-and-sold commodity of a biased and thoroughly corrupted media.
Joe the Plumber has drawn the MSM’s scrutiny and distain for asking THE QUESTION that resulted in THE RESPONSE that shook both campaigns. MSM goons, seeking to destroy Joe’s credibility/integrity, have instead enraged working people across America, who may have finally woken up to the unabashed media bias that sought to destroy a common man while granting a veritable pass to a seriously flawed presidential candidate.
Here is to the hope that this episode not only energizes voters to seek the truth as to who the real Obama is…and what does he really stand for?….but that it will cause the average ” Joe/Jo” to realize he/she must seek answers to those questions from sources other than the corrupt and biased mainstream media.
Why I Am Voting For Barack Obama
I have read all the endorsements and editorials about why various people support Obama, and I’m convinced. Let me summarize what I have read.
First, you can just TELL that he will be a great President. Look at all the hope that radiates from him. Listen to his soothing voice. Surely those are the qualities we want in a President. We wouldn’t want to scrutinize his record or associations or anything like that – that would be racist. Just look at him. Just listen. So soothing. (You are getting sleepy… Sleepy…)
Second, he will make us much more popular among the European socialists. You know who I mean – the folks who flocked to see the charismatic leader in Berlin. If only Ronald Reagan had worried a little more about those folks’ opinion, they would all be living in a workers’ paradise right now. A Soviet Socialist Workers’ Paradise. No wonder they hate us. But its not too late. I read about the last time Germans flocked to see a charismatic leader in Berlin, and that worked out alright. Eventually.
Third, I believe that he is telling the truth about all of the centrist positions he adopted three months ago (e.g., supporting nuclear energy, offshore drilling, tax cuts, etc.), and is lying about all the positions consistent with his lifelong views (e.g., massive wealth redistribution, surrender in Iraq, opposition to surveillance of terrorists, etc.) And even if he tries to do those far left things, the level-headed centrists in Congress will steady the ship. You will, won’t you Nancy? Harry? Sure you will.
Fourth, he didn’t pick that awful Palin woman for his running mate. No, he picked a Senator who has a 30 year track record of being wrong on every issue, ever. And who is so smart that he knows things nobody else knows. Like how we helped the French kick Hezbollah out of Lebanon. I mean, who knew? Only Joe Biden knew. How knowledgeable can you get? Palin has so little experience! All she’s ever run is a city and a state. Why, she has no meaningful executive experience at all! Obama, on the other hand, has run a terrorist’s charitable fund – which is the perfect experience for honing your skills at giving out money to radical groups and political cronies.
Nobody really wants to say it, but with the black population in general there has always been an undercurrent feeling of resentment for the society they live in. With Obama they appear to see some sort of vindication, to bad because that race based point of view will only hurt them when they come to realize that their guy Obama is going to turn out to be an Uncle Tom. His socialism is only going to hurt the country in general, and the people who look to a socialist for redemtion most of all.
Look, if Colin Powell is a “centrist” or at least a moderate…and he endorses Senator Obama, then there is a “c’mon in, the water’s fine” element to that endorsement. (as with Christopher Buckley, I suppose…albeit with more sizzle than steak to that one)
I’m not sure of the motivation, but I suspect that nobody likes to be called Condiskeeza or a “house servant”…or worse, by the disgorgings of Wright, Farrakhan, Pfleger and their ilk.
The entrenched media maintain somber faces while “dutifully” reporting the slurs, “just to show what the street cred is for non-leftist leaning blacks”.
So, perhaps poor Gen. Powell is not so much claiming an identity as he is reclaiming one. When you are a junkie for media adoration, it is tough being part of the team that is constantly picked on and ridiculed. Gen. Powell was never one for finishing off a fight, or even staying in it if the exit wasn’t graceful.
He is outwardly cool under pressure, has a first class intellect and a first class demeanor. And when the he needs to, he will throw anyone under the bus, even his grandmother…or the party that gave him prominence in the first place, so that his endorsement would have any meaning at all. Has a familiar ring from someplace.
I never cared for Colin Powell…there was always a feeling of “distrust” with him…I always felt that he didn’t so much as feel what he said as just parrot what was politically correct. He could have come out been truthful, or shut up and stayed out of this, but no, here he is, again, being politically correct. What does this male want for goodness sake? He is still young, vital and is on the trash heap of history…no one listened and nothing to do…so? We now know why.
Weren’t the left calling Colin Powell a war criminal a few years ago? And now they are lapping up his endorsement? Hypocrites
Sadly you all harbor deep bigoted views like most Republicans. As your blow hard Rush Limbaugh stated on hos Propaganda show “he endorsed him because he is black” in an effort to make the endorsement about Race. What about the 20 Retired Generals and Admirals show their support for Barack Obama at the Democratic National Convention? Almost all of the were White. He made a choice to endorse the man that he thought was best for the job at this time in our nations history. I tell you what heal your twisted racist souls and vote for the right person to get us out of this sh*t hole that the current Republican commander and chief got us into or you will be in soup lines with Americans of all colors. Wait maybe that is what you need to experience to understand that we are all regardless of Color Americans who want a better future. Stop being Sheep being lead to the cliff.
Working class people who vote Republican are like a Chicken voting for Col Sanders!
I’ve got a piece up about Powell’s endorsement of Obama. It’s long, so here’s a teaser and the link:
“Our metaphoric John Galts are speaking up!
On politico, of all places, there is a rough 60/40 “pro-McCain” opinion split (as judged by me, dammit after reading the first 100 comments) calling a big “bullsh*t” on Powell’s statement that his decision has nothing to do with race.
My first instinct, too, was to call this bullsh*t.
Thinking a bit harder about it though opens some interesting lines of thought. If we examine our list of assumptions about Colin Powell, what explains a political calculus that ends up with an Obama endorsement? ”
For the rest:
http://web.me.com/chris_nicholson/Site/desmondiswatching/Entries/2008/10/20_John_Galt_and_Colin_Powell.html
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s home district includes San Francisco. Star-Kist Tuna’s headquarters are in San Francisco. Star-Kist is owned by Del Monte Foods and is the major employer in American Samoa. It reportedly employs 75% of the Samoan workforce. Paul Pelosi, Nancy’s husband, owns $17 million dollars of Del Monte stock. In January, 2007 when the minimum wage was increased from $5.15 to $7.25, American Samoa was exempted from the increase. Thus, Del Monte does not have to pay the higher wage, making Del Monte products less expensive than their competitor’s. When the “new improved” bailout bill was passed, somebody added an earmark to the final bill to the tune of $33 million dollars that “[a]llows certain corporations to reduce their tax liability on income earned in American Samoa, at a cost of $33 million over two years.” http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/10/03/MNR813AHDN.DTL There is no way to track who did that, but it isn’t terribly difficult to connect the dots.
Pelosi has called the Bush Administration “corrupt”. She should know. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what stands only “two heartbeats away from the presidency.”
Powell read the writing on the wall and made his craven, vacuous decision. He reminds me of that scene in the movie, “Braveheart” where Robert the Bruce’s father, along with the other cringing elites, have just betrayed William Wallace. Robert is furious with this father who then says,
Robert’s Father: All men betray! All lose.
Robert the Bruce: I don’t want to lose heart! I want to believe as he does!
But, apparently Powell has a likeminded son too. Mike Powell is voting McCain.
It does not matter what you people think about Powell’s endorsement. It is what the independents think. If enough are influenced then McCain’s goose is cooked. You can call Powell all the names you want but the fact is that he has served his country honorably and this is the image that most (not the nuts on the right) have.
I am neither a Republican nor a Democrat but a true Independent who believes in facts and really believes in learning the lessons of our history.
So here is a simple fact for America -
1) During Ronald Reagan’s Presidency of 2 terms, between 1981-1989, we were at our economic best in a quarter of a century. We made the right choice in these 8 years as a country.
2) During George H. W. Bush Sr.’s Presidency of 1 term, between 1989-1993, we were at our economic worst in a quarter of a century. We made a huge mistake as a country but corrected it by keeping him in office for only 1 term.
3) During Bill Clinton’s Presidency of 2 terms, between 1993-2001, we were again at our economic best in a quarter of a century, even better than Reagan’s era. We made the right choice again in these 8 years as a country, despite his personal scandals.
4) Now, during George W. Bush Jr.’s Presidency of 2 terms, between 2001-this coming January 20, 2009; we have been at our economic worst in a quarter of a century, even worst than Bush Sr.’s era. We really made a huge mistake as a country on this one by not realizing that the apple really doesn’t fall very far from the tree. Yet we chose this apple again the second time around.
Now, really let this simple fact sink in America and take your time to think carefully this time around about how you want the direction of this country to go.
We made history with Reagan. We then made a mistake with Bush Sr. but corrected history by allowing him to only serve 1 term. We then made history again with Clinton, despite his personal scandals. Now, we have made 2 mistakes with Bush Jr. by allowing him to serve not once, but twice. So my last question to America is, guess which candidate shares the interests of both, Bush Sr. and Bush Jr.? I will let America answer this one. We are much, much smarter as a country to want to make history rather than make mistakes and to suffer yet again from our own mistakes by not using objectivity as our first and foremost agenda.
What people don’t understand is why some of us are so against the current Republican ticket, but we have an obligation to fight against history of ever being repeated again. Many of us out here are not fighting for the Democratic campaign but are fighting against an ideology.
1) An ideology that completely mirrors the ideology of this past 8 years.
2) An ideology that recognizes the few while completely disregarding the masses.
3) An ideology that believes in taking military action against Iraq, an incident that is completely unrelated to 9/11, without solidifying our claims beforehand. In the present, we have found no evidence of weapons of mass destructions or a tie to Osama Bin Laden. The devastation of this war has cost us over 4,000 of our brave troops and counting, over 1/2 trillion dollars of taxpayer’s money and counting, and over 1 million Iraqi lives unrelated to the terrorists or insurgency.
Cost of the Iraq War — http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home
4) An ideology that still believes that the Iraq War is the right war on terrorism when the Afghanistan War should had been the right war on terrorism, where Osama Bin Laden actually was until he slipped into the mountains and into Pakistan’s territory now. The Iraq War also diverted our attention away from the Afghanistan War. We now have extended our resources in two separate places and have heightened our risk to our troops, our expenses, and creating another dilemma that will take quite some time to finalize. The Iraq War will not go away overnight and it is now our obligation to see it all the way through for God knows how many more years. This has also been the most unpopular war in the eyes of the world’s communities.
5) An ideology that believes that we are at our safest state since 9/11, when a recent terrorist plot was still trying to enter Great Britain’s airports with liquid explosives heading directly to us, but thankfully the plot was foiled. While in Afghanistan, the terrorists are regrouping and strengthening and we have recently suffered another high casualty to our troops yet again within this past month. We currently have the least amount of alliances in the world’s communities due to this unpopular Iraq War. True national securities are the ties that bind us to our world’s communities and the ties that bind them to us.
6) An ideology that vetted one of the most inexperience VP ticket in history, from foreign policies to national defense. If God forbids that anything happens to this President if elected and is stricken with illness, this VP will be running the country. For a more compelling look at Sarah Palin’s VP readiness, please look at these links below —
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loUHRv3ipLE
http://www.salon.com/opinion/walsh/election_2008/2008/09/30/palin_gaffes/
7) An ideology that believes in “the fundamentals of our economy are strong” while we are facing the highest mortgage foreclosure crisis, high unemployment rate, and the largest collapse of our financial infrastructures since The Great Depression of 1929.
This is an ideology that many of us in America are against. Whether this ideology is in the Republican or Democratic ticket is not the main issue but the fact is that America does not want to fall into another 4 more years of devastation. We cannot afford this anymore.
Robert Hurley…. “folks like me?” What ever that means. There would never be a reason, person or anything else in this world that would make me vote for Obama. I love my country too much for some silly black man to ruin it for me. Yeah, I said it, now what? On another note…we should take all liberals out back and put a bullet between their eyes. ooohhhhhh…..
Wow, a black man voting for Obama what a shock. Truth is Powell was tagged as a closet Dem a long time ago. Yea, that report’s right up there with “Clay Aikman says he’s gay”.
I remember watching Oprah a couple of years ago when she had Obama on and she kept pressuring him to run for President and he kept insisting that he did not have the experience and that he wasn’t interested in being President anyway.
Now look where we are. I no longer watch Oprah.
Either way, there’s going to be a race war, and a civil war at that. I hate to say it and I don’t look forward to it, but the good days have come to an end.
Dark days are definitely coming to this nation. By the end of those day, there will be no American family not touched or affected in an intimate way by all that is to come. A lot of suffering and mourning is in the cards.
May God help us all.
I wonder how many of the other contributors to this thread believe the same as Kelly? She is definitely a sick freak but at least she comes out and says it.
Kelly – do I detect a cetain lack of compassion for your fellow man?
Bill Perron
You said “Nobody really wants to say it, but with the black population in general there has always been an undercurrent feeling of resentment for the society they live in. With Obama they appear to see some sort of vindication, to bad because that race based point of view will only hurt them when they come to realize that their guy Obama is going to turn out to be an Uncle Tom. His socialism is only going to hurt the country in general, and the people who look to a socialist for redemtion most of all.”
I wonder how you would feel if white people were kept in slavery until the civil war then treated as second class citizens for another 100 years/ I remember being on an an honor guard for a funeral of a soldier outside of Columbia South Carolina in 1962. When we stopped for lunch the black soldiers had to eat in a blacks only restaurant. I gues you would have no resentment. As for the coming of socialism. Please define yor terms. What is socialism to you?
Newton:
What have you done to help your fellow man?
Joe Biden says the election of Obama may lead to a new conflict, terrorist attack, or a third war. A careful analysis of history says he may be correct.
http://strategicthought-charles77.blogspot.com/2008/10/can-we-afford-third-war-that-obama.html
I am the only one with balls enough to actually say it. I lost all compassion for liberals along time ago….but the race issue is no reason for voting against Obama….its his lack of morals. I know I must not have any for my views. In reality I don’t wish any harm on liberals, they will be judged soon enough.
I wonder Kelly who will be doing the judging. I am trying to read a book about compassion, but it is hard to put comapssion in todays political environment – every opponent seems to be a socialist, communist, marxist, prostitute or at least an American hater. Where are we able to talk on a common ground. What happens to the discourse when the other side wins
I doubt this will be posted seeing that I’m in disagreement with a large number of posts here, but her goes….it’s obvious to me why Powell endorsed Obama and it doesn’t have anything to do with black-ness regardless of your ridiculous counter-racist opinions (for the record I’m white so…don’t even go there).
It has more to do with Iraq AND the economy than anything else. It was obvious when Powell presented Bush’s case to the United Nations that he himself didn’t believe that our allegations had substantial ‘truth’ behind them and his disagreements with Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz I think are ample to show that. As such he noted Obama’s position and has respected it ever since.
In this campaign Obama has remained cool and calm under pressure – McCain, not so much. Although I deeply respect McCain I will not vote for him and this is why – when one of the Republicans was asked after the 2000 Convention why the majority of them did not vote for McCain, he said because they all new he could not control his temper after his outbursts and even out-right fist fights in Congress. Now can you imagine a man like that with access to a button that could obliterate the world ten times over? And during the debates, I saw that same McCain straining to contain his anger……and I think that Powell saw it too.
Robert Hurley – Every opponent seems to be…. Just Obama and his ilk. I have no compassion for them, because they are, indeed, all those things. Sorry. The far left and the far right have taken over their respective parties, so there’s a war on.
Oddly, the right has put forward a candidate who is distinctly NOT far right. The same cannot be said for the left. Obama and his allies really are America-haters. It’s not a smear, if it’s true.
I fully expect McCain to pull it out. Polls are notoriously wrong nowadays (like the mid-election-day prediction of Kerry winning) and there are more regular Joes than liberal-hand-out-elites in this country still, thank god. I am no fan of Bush and never voted for the man, but I would never make the mistake of letting my dislike of him make me vote for a socialist.
Biden and Obama are finally forgetting to watch their mouths, and the stuff coming out of them is very, very interesting. Wish it got more coverage in the MSM, but I think it’s getting out just the same.
I also think there will probably be riots if Obama loses. A certain segment of the population has shown a tendency to destroy their own neighborhoods at a whim, unfortunately. And then, complain about no police presence, all the while attacking the police. Rational! But that’s no excuse to let the man win.
Plus, no christian can vote for a man with Obama’s shitty record of attacking innocent life, without raising God’s ire. Something for the christians to think about.
Eppur Si:
Excellent points. Personally, I intend to buy a new car. I can’t afford one right now, but I am sure that as soon as Obama is elected, I will see a dramatic rise in my personal income. Also, I plan to buy some new clothes, because I am quite sure I will get taller, skinnier and better looking in the near future.
Oh, and Jeff, regarding your “simple facts”: You are simple, but they are not facts. If you insist on posting absurdly long comments, at least make them original. I can watch TV Land and get all the re-runs I want.
Marc Malone:
There you go again first you make up a slur, but you say it is not a slur. So clever – You probably fool a lot of people
Momof3 – No racism there
” A certain segment of the population has shown a tendency to destroy their own neighborhoods at a whim, unfortunately. And then, complain about no police presence, all the while attacking the police.”
Then there is this judgment from God through your mouth no doubt “no christian can vote for a man with Obama’s shitty record of attacking innocent life, without raising God’s ire. Something for the christians to think about.”
Obama graduated at the top of his class. McSame at the bottom of his. Obama was against the invasion and occupation from the beginning. McBush voted for it. Could it be that Powell feels Obama is just plain smarter than that wringly old relic with the quick temper and poor judgement???
You keep referring to the MSM (mainstream media) like it is one media cartel. With Rupert Murdoch’s media outlets (like Fox News) reaching 40% of all Americans you can hardly make the claim for a left wing media conspiracy.
McCain has said in that he “doesn’t really understand economics” so I am not sure how anyone could have faith in his plan.
Obama’s plan gives 90-95% of Americans a tax break. Middle class Americans will get a much bigger tax break under Obama than they will McCain. People making over $250,000 will see an increase in taxes under Obama while McCain will give a substantial tax break to those making more than $250,000. Remember we are talking about personal income tax not business taxes so it won’t have a negative effect on business.
McCain opposed making the Bush tax cuts permanent because he said we couldn’t afford it. Now he is embracing those cuts.
Under Bush high paying manufacturing jobs have flown out the window to China & other developing nations. Bush has rewarded those corporations with tax breaks for moving our jobs overseas. In return these companies have sold us vastly inferior products. At times our health has been compromised on purpose by products made overseas. Look at pet food or baby formula that had melamine in it. Melamine is a plastic resin that isn’t meant to be ingested and can kill us. Why do they put melamine in our food? Because it increases the protein content of the food cheaply. Where is the oversight? Well Bush & the Republicans gutted the FDA.
Who deregulated the markets? A Republican congress in 1999 with the Gramm Leach Bliley Act which is partially responsible for our financial mess.
Now McCain who voted alongside Bush 90-95% of the time says he will be the one to fix the financial mess. The Republicans turned the largest budget surplus in history & turned it into the largest budget deficit in history.
Elliot Spitzer & Attorney Generals from 50 states starting going after predatory lenders & Bush invoked a clause from an arcane law from 1863 to stop them. Bush actively stopped AG’s from going after predatory lenders in 2003. The Republicans in Congress even admitted there was a problem but did nothing. Please don’t tell me S109 as it would have deregulated GSE’s & the Repubs never took the bill out of committee.
During the Great Depression the Gov’t spent our way of the Depression. We are doing the same thing now with the bail out. During the Great Depression the Gov’t got all the money it spent back & we will again.
Regarding job creation as these manufacturing jobs fly out the window we don’t have to reward the corporations that ship our jobs overseas. China does not trade in a fair manner with us, yet they make a fortune selling us crap. Trying opening a company in China, guess what happens you need Gov’t approval & you must have a Chinese business partner so you are splitting your profits. Imagine if we tried that in America? We need a President to direct us towards a fair trade pact with China.
It is unlikely we will win these unskilled mfg jobs back so what do we do? With the prospect of the world running out of oil & global warming looming large the future lies in green jobs. The nation that finds solutions to the energy problem & global warming will be economically prosperous. McCain’s answer drill, drill, drill, not exactly a forward thinking or practical strategy.
These ‘independents’ swayed by Powell’s endorsement are just like Powell.
Relying on others to define their image for them, too spineless to stand up for their own convictions, and always weighing the best opportune time for their own benefits. Desperately claiming what they are not, and not fooling anybody else.
Do you think that Joe Lieberman endorsed McCain just because Lieberman’s jewish? or because he’s white?
Lieberman doesn’t endorse many anti-civil rights, anti-regulation, anti-choice right wing republicans, same as Powell doesn’t endorse libs often.
Making the accusation that Powell is racist, when he specifically stated race had nothing to do with it, shows the prejudice of the person questioning Powell, not the character of the general (his trip to the UN did that).
And what “book” are you reading Robert Hurley? I won’t be the one judging anyone. Your whole response makes absolutely no sense at all.
The fact that so many people feel that Powell did this because Obama is black are for a lack of a better word – short sighted. Obama was black last year, will always be black. Same with Powell.
The fact that no one wants to really look at the reasons the man gave is what should give you all pause. McCain says he can stand up to his party, but he can’t speak up at his campaign rally’s until everyone in the Media says he should. Then we get the crazy lady who says he’s a muslim and then McCain pulls her microphone? Please. It’s all just ‘convenient’ to be anything other than a staged attempt to recover some strength and turn the tide that he’s clearly lost. I can respect the man, but I don’t like his politics.
And the sheer mention that Powell should endorse the Republican ticket simply because he’s the resident Uncle Tom is just as silly as calling Obama one.
This is an insane and deluded column.
You might start with the basic premise- that the polls are tightening. I guess you have your own sources. Please share them with the rest of us.
As to Joe, well he showed he know nothing about actual proposals and policy, and the only people who think this is a metaphor for anything meaninful are in the dwindling minority of angry McCainiacs.
Its time to come out of what Ron Suskind noted as your alternate reality. Oh, I forgot, he’s probably part of the liberal elite media, isn’t he?
MCAIN should be glad. We don’t need his endorsement.I think he’s looking for a job.
That’s right, denigrate an accomplished American statesman and general and elevate some ignorant white geek all based on their presidential choices. Sounds like the usual right wing juvenile rants.
always right, what exactly are you trying to say? Heavens, should you come up with anything insightful and intelligent, we all might pass out!
Jennifer Rubin is a two bit partisan hack, Her utterly banal and silly diatribes about the MSM not reporting on non events and non facts that she thinks is important is so cheezy. Blaming the MSM for the fundamental problems with the McCain Palin ticket is a totally narcissistic copout like the morons who ranted about Bush Derangement Syndrome every time W effed up. They will lose cause they, along with legions of simple minded bloggers(like JR) and talk show hosts, have based the whole narrative on pandering to ignorant, paranoid hate filled reactionary geeks and forgot about everyone else. You don’t have to be a liberal or an elitist to see Palin as a dimwit. Sorry, but after the election is over and that contemptible Obama admin starts messing things up, I will blame the kind of geeks that make the base of the GOP up: ignorant, hypocritically Christian, anti-intellectuals who never rise above cheap putdowns.
Powell’s endorsement does matter and it was not about race. He stuck to the issues and the candidates’ demeanor; he didn’t mention race once. While Powell may not have a lot of fans in the Bush Administration and the neocon wing of the party, he is widely respected and admired by moderates and independents–these are the swing voters. His thoughtful summary of the current status of the campaign was a huge blow to McCain. Basically what he said was that McCain loses on judgment and he is right.
For all the ranting about “hate filled” reactionaries, do you guys doubt for a moment that Leftists like Javelin don’t hate their political opponents?
Anyway, Powell’s a lot like Obama in that his image is more “real” than the man. He’s another “bright”, “articulate”, “good Negro” whom the media pandered to and projected positive qualities upon. Powell was described as a mediocre student in his youth who didn’t stand out to superior officers except in terms of skin color. In the 80′s he was fortunate enough to be in the right place when Reagan and Bush I needed a “token” for ID-politics purposes. Now that he reverts to racial tribalism when the environment seems to favor Dems, nobody should be surprised.
obama is up 6-7% in the polls. he is leading in virginia, pennsylvania, and all of the reliably democratic states. the only narrowing is in ms. rubin’s vision.
it was not the “mainstream media” who created joe. it was mccain and his equally incompetent campaign brass who snagged “joe” like they landed palin, without fact checking. oops.
this all sounds like whistling past the cemetary.
I will side with Joe the Plumber over Colon the washed up General.
On another note go to Debka.com and read how Iran may have a nuclear weapon by Feb 09. Who do you want to answer that 3 AM phone call now?
I prefer Joe the plumber over Colon the washed up general.
On another note go to Debka.com and read how Iran will have a nuclear bomb by Feb 09. Who do you want answering that phone call at 3 A M now?
a mccain spot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dCubK5XgOo
Poor kelly – I guess I was foolish to think we could have a dialogue based on reason and facts rather than invective and accusations. Try making a list of all the terms people use here in place of arguments
I am very much looking forward to reading this site on November 5.
So much paranoia, so much denial, so much bile.
It must be eating you all up from the inside.
“it was mccain and his equally incompetent campaign brass who snagged “joe” like they landed palin, without fact checking.”
Wow. Let me get this straight. The 0bamessiah APPROACHES a citizen, flubs the answer to a question, and the 0-bots are out in full force attacking the person who asked it?
Well, them 0-bots sure are devoted to their prophet – I’ll give them that.
Okay, all you experts out there. Obama’s average poll lead was about 5 points on Friday. Today there were 4 new polls – all of them reputable and with large sample numbers – that put his lead at between 10-14%. So Colin Powell’s endorsement was doesn’t matter? Right. Here’s what I know:
1) The fact that Colin Powell endorsed a Democrat is eating away at you like acid. If you watched Meet the Press, you would have seen him state his reasons – and there were many – eloquently and sincerely. There were as many pro-Obama points as there were anti-McCain points. It’s just killing you, isn’t it?
2) There was a certain segment of the voting public – active and retired military, plus others – who really WANTED to vote for Obama, but they needed someone to tell them “It’s okay”. And Powell did that. Does that account for an instant 5% bump? Probably not. The rest is the overwhelming disapproval of McCain’s shameless negative message. People are tired of the negativity, and they are tired of campaigns based on fear. It worked in 2000 (not really) and 2004 (maybe). Not this time.
nicely put, Glasshalffull.
if nothing else, Powell’s endorsement keeps McCain’s team blabbering about how it isn’t important, gives leverage to those within the GOP who want to start pointing the finger of blame, and keeps me laughing.
difficult for McCain to get any traction when everyone’s talking about Powell.
after GOP stole the 2000 election is great to be on the winning side.
flub what questioN?
NONE
25oK stance was clear
there’s one endorsement that nobody wants to talk about on this site – George W. Bush.
where is he on the campaign trail?
why won’t McCain allow himself to be photographed with him?
how happy was McCain that Bush couldn’t make it to the convention, so that they did not have to share the stage?
I would be glad if one of you head-in-the-sand denialists could explain why this is not discussed
I watched as GWB’s campaign lied first about McCain and then about Al Gore to position their coke snorting, born again, frat boy as an experienced leader. Then I watched as GWB’s cronies attacked a man who’d won the purple heart for valor in combat for his country and say he was a liar and a thief. While their man who had lied to lead us to war and whose economic policies had lost more American jobs than any President since Hoover was made out to be courageous and wise.
Now the American public is seriously rethinking our relationship with this conservative model of governance and the American public is the target of the attack. WOW! No concept of responsibility here. Conservative principals and leaders wreck this country and its the American public that is too stupid to see the truth about the Democratic candidate and it’s the party that has been out of power for the last eight years that is to blame for the mess.
Conservatives took us to an unnecessary war, drove the debt up by Trillions, withdrew regulation from the markets, took rights from American citizens that even their conservative SC said was over reaching its power, gave away no bid contracts, failed to anticipate blatantly obvious risks and consequences, and then stonewalled any accountability or responsibility for the disaster they wrought.
If we want to give another party and a new leader their chance to show us what they can do, then we’ll do it. Your insane rants and bizarre rationalizations wont stop us.
Something I wrote must have REALLY hit home.
Bush isn’t going around with McCain because Obama’s main argument, no matter how stupid, is that McCain is just Bush with a limp. It is only smart to give no creedence to this argument by staying away from each other.
As far as Colin Powell, who cares. I have felt for a long time that unless Jesus descends from heaven and endorses someone they don’t mean much. Very very few people will make a decision based off an endorsement, especially since the people that could be persuaded at this point don’t follow politics closely enough to even understand why some people view Colin Powell as a big deal.
Personally Colin Powell doesn’t matter to me. He was never a conservative just barely a Republican. And no matter how bad it sounds, his endorsement was completely based on race. Powell has been called an Uncle Tom in the past for being a Republican and wasn’t very popular for making the case to the United Nations to invade Iraq. This was merely his opportunity to start making amends with the black community so he could be considered “black enough.” Just a week or so before that we saw him dancing like an idiot on stage with some rap group. Do you really think we would have seen Colin doing this 5 years ago? Can you imagine the nasty things that would have been said about Powell if he didn’t support the first black Presidential candidate? Plus, his endorsement makes no sense based on what he has supported in the past and supposedly stood for. To see his political and social views suddenly do a complete 180 degree flip and not attribute any of that to race is ignorance.
Steve: “What a back-stabber, Colin Powell has been this week, once again.”
Ironic statement since it was Powell who went up in front of the UN promoting a fallacious statement for going to war with Iraq at the behest of the Bush Administration. This action virtually destroyed his public career, so shouldn’t he be entitled to a feeling of betrayal?
Oh, my…
I have missed the copious amounts of Teh Stoopid as displayed by the PJMers!
Who do you people think you are questioning Powell’s words? He explicitly stated it was NOT about race and pointed out that if that was the case, he could have endorsed Obama at any time.
He put into words what many of us are thinking:
Look at the two candidates. Look at their VP choices. Look at how they have been handling themselves, their campaign and this economic crisis.
He came to the obvious, logical conclusion: Obama/Biden.
On a positive note:
McCain received Al-Qaeda endorsement;
Palin still doesn’t know what a VP does; and
Her new Repug shopper is also a RoboCaller.
Man, oh, man…the McCain campaign explosion is amazing to watch.
I am sure Ms Rice will vote for Obama as well .
In truth Two President Bush’s Liberals picked two black Liberals .
Trying to be moronically inclusive .
In 1996, I was praying for Colin Powell to run against Bill Clinton. I still think we’d be better off if we’d had a Powell presidency rather than the final 4 yr. of Bill Clinton.
I am disappointed that Colin Powell has endorsed Obama. McCain is the better part of the choice we now have. I wish that fate had somehow given us a situation in which Obama was endorsing Powell.
proud elitist – Cut Palin some slack, wouldja? She was couching her answer for the benefit of an 8-yr-old. At that level, she was essentially correct: helps the Prez and presides over the Senate. She’s certainly not going to talk about stepping in if the Prez dies to an 8-yr-old. She’s not going to use adult concepts. She did the right thing.
I don’t care what McCain’s jumped up gofer does. Shops for Palin? Does robcalls? Whatever.
Powell did say it was about race, although not primarily. He finds Palin intolerable. His life has been focussed on foreign policy. I get it. I’ve always found Powell intolerable. He could’ve been Prez years ago, but refused to run when the country would have elected him. That told me what I needed to know about HIM. Armchair QB.
Marc…
I won’t cut Palin an ounce of slack. If she can’t answer for an 8 year old (of which she has a kid around that same age of her own), she doesn’t know the answer.
It is NOT about race, once again.
Powell essentially repudiated McCain and his decisions.
Powell refused to run, if rumor is true, because his wife was so vehemently opposed to it and was afraid he would be assassinated. You may not agree with his decision to not run, but he chose his family.
Be in denial all you want. Fact is Powell repudiated McCain. He did not side with the other black guy.
If you have been paying attention, many conservatives have also been repudiating McCain. For similiar reasons as enunciated by Powell.
You can’t convince a person to change their opinion by arguing them out of it! I just see two sides attacking each other, sometimes in a very humorous manner, (to me at least) but not really saying anything important. It’s kind of like, “blah, blah, blah.” It’s just a bunch of personal attacks, and no real ‘meat’ if you will. Lots of put downs, and attempts at making the other guy (or gal) feel inferior and stupid and uneducated. Kind of like 5 year olds saying, “you are a pumpkin head.” WOW…really hurts, doesn’t it? Give me, oh, about 5 seconds, and I’ll get over it! Typical of political discussion….everyone is right, and “they” have the answers! I just think politicians are all corrupt, and stupid…and we are all stupid for supporting the system as it is. Both Democrats and Republicans are corrupt, and they do not represent We The People. Obama…McCain…Powell…Bush…all corrupt…all politicans extrordinaire….none will ‘rescue’ America!
Here is why Mr. Powell’s endorsement of Obama matters: It is not that his indorsement will sway a huge number of voters. Rather it is an indication that the GOP has already lost a huge number of voters. Black Republicans are going to be voting for Obama in large numbers, and not because of race. Rather because we as a party have been too slow and too timid in denouncing racist remarks made by those who claim to speak in our behalf. The remarks are not nearly so numerous as portrayed by the MSM, but there have been some real ones, and it only takes a few to really upset people. And honestly, even one is too much. There is no point in complaining about hypersensitivity. It is a cop-out anyway; during the early 1990s soldiers and veterans took great offense at some of the slights coming from the Clinton administration. I know, I was one of those offended. Should the feelings of soldiers be considered more delicate than the feelings of Black Republicans and Independants? Clearly no! There is also no point in complaining about unfair media coverage. We are not only too slow to denounce racists who claim to be our supporters, we are too weak in responding to charges of racism. When the Democrats or liberal reporters accuse us of racism or imply that we are racisits, too often we just shrug it off. This is a mistake. It allows some people to assume we must accept the charge as true, and it leaves others thinking that we do not care enough to fight back. We need to stand up to these charges or they will stick whether they are true or not. Finally, we need to dispense with any idea that winking at racism helps us by appealing to those Southerners who came over to the GOP from the Dixiecrats. In practical terms it probably does not help because Black Republicans out number Dixiecrats. In moral and ethical terms, it is not even a question; we should not be making an accomodation with evil in the form of racism any more than Obama should be making an accomodation with evil in the form of Bill Ayers. It is that simple. If Dixiecrats leave the party, let tham go. Maybe they can go dirty up the Democrats instead.
We may very well loose this election, with real consequences for our country, in part because we were to slow and too timid in denouncing racism. If we want to win elections in the future, and if we want to be the party that we say we are, we must take a strong consistant stand against racism.
Hank
PS: Full disclosure: I am white, and I am voting for McCain on foreign policy issues. But I understand why other people, especially Black Republicans, will be voting for Obama. We really shot ourselves in the foot here.
John Q Public – I’m not li-i-stening. (hands over ears) Blah, blah, blah, blah!
Dude, you’re doing the very thing you’re ranting against.
proud elitist – You simply didn’t read my post fairly. Palin did answer the question essentially correctly, couched in a manner appropriate for an 8-yr-old. There’s no exact right way to do it.
Powell also did say that race WAS a part of the decision, just not primarily. That’s what I said. As to his wife being opposed, I know. I also don’t care. His country was calling. He’s a General, and shouldn’t shy from the duty because he might get assassinated. They all run that risk. If Obama loses, think you not McCain might have an increased risk? Or vice-versa?
I said I get where he’s coming from. I disagree, that’s all. In my opinion, he chickened out. He lost my respect. I can make a viable argument for my case, with which you don’t have to agree. I conceded understanding of Powell’s point of view, and why I don’t value it much. I allowed him his argument. That’s more consideration than you gave me.
Powell is the one of the most political generals in history and loved Poppy Bush. Poppy Bush and Barack Obama? The man loves power and knows how to ride a winner. At least he thinks.
I have asked Obama supporter after Obama supporter to tell me why they LOVE him. No major accomplishments, no record of change, unflinching support of his corrupt bosses in Illinois.
They always come down to the same thing: He’s smart.
And by voting for him it makes them feel like others will think they are smart, too.
Obama is smart. Flattery will get you everywhere. And the middlebrows munch it up.
Morgo, you’ve made a significant non sequitur.
The people you asked said they’d vote for him because he’s smart. Now, that’s undoubtedly not the only reason, but even if it were you haven’t shown that it’s insufficient reason to elect the man.
You don’t vote for the smart man because people will think you’re smart by association, you vote for the smart man because he’ll make smart decisions. While it may not always be the case that the best educated make the best decisions at least argue against modern educations instead of an electorate that feels that they’re making an informed choice (and not just voting with their egos).
It’s not ego that drives the kind of passion Obama supporters feel for him, it’s raw idealism, and while you may disagree with that, don’t attack their character to salve your political pride.
Powell just lost me, plain and simple. He knows Obama is the worse thing that can happen to this country, I think the definition of Socialism is “redistribution of the wealth”. I now respect Joe the Plumber more than I do Colin Powell. He’s kissing ass where Joe simply kicked it.
Powell should just go away.
First he fas conned by the French foreign minister now he has beened conned by Bambi.
This is a wimp.
I voted for Obama because he’s the best man for the job. However, if i’d known it was going to piss off so many airheads and neocons, I would have done it because he’s black.
Forget Powell’s endorsement.
Here’s one you can believe in – and for the right reasons:
drudgereport.com has the link to Charles Krauthammer’s endorsement of McCain.
Well worth the read. At Washingtonpost.com as well.
POWELL IS A TOTAL FRAUD-LET ME GIVE YOU THIS EXAMPLE-POWELL IS PART OF A GROUP THAT TRYING TO BUY THE WASHINGTON NATIONALS BASEBALL TEAM. YOU KNOW WHO THE LEAD INVESTOR IN THIS GROUP IS? NONE OTHER THAN THE BIGGEST HATE AMERICA SCUM IN AMERICA, GEORGE SOROS.
COLIN POWELL-AN ASS-KISSING DC GENERAL? INDEED HE IS. COLIN POWELL-NOW SIDING WITH ANTI-MILITARY SLEAZEBAG WILLIAM AYERS AND ANTI-AMERICAN SLEAZEBAG JEREMIAH WRIGHT(DO YOU ATTEND A “BLACK LIBEARTION THEOLOGY” CHURCH,COLIN?). COLIN POWELL NOW SIDES WITH THE COMMUNISTS AND MOSLEMS WHO WERE SHOOTING AT HIM AND THE MEN HE COMMANDED DURING BOTH VIETNAM AND GULF WAR 1. COLIN-THIS SO-CALLED ENDORSEMENT IS ABOUT ONE THING-YOU ARE NO LONGER A “POWER PLAYER” AND YOUR NEED TO BE FAMOUS BEFORE THE MEDIA ELITES DRIVES YOUR EGO. TOO BAD YOUVE SOLD OUT ALL YOUR VALUES(INCLUDING A MAN WHO SERVED IN NAM WHEN YOU DID) FOR A MAN WHOSE CURRENT ASSOCIATES INCLUDE A MURDERER AND A BOMBER TARGETING MEN LIKE YOURSELF. I FIND YOU DISGUSTING.
WHOS THE IDIOT WHO SAID OBAMA GRADUATED AT THE TOP OF HIS CLASS? HOW WOULD YOU KNOW? HIS RECORDS FROM HIS SCHOOL YEARS ARE SEALED IDIOT. TAKE YOUR COMMIE POSTS TO THE DAILY KOS.
OBAMA IS SMARTY? HANGING AROUND WITH WILLIAM AYERS AND JEREMIAH WRIGHT ARE “SMART”? PALLING AROUND WITH TONY REZKO AND RASHID KHALIHI IS “SMART”? ANSWERING A QUESTION WITH THE COMMENT”I WANT TO RESDISTRUTE INCOME” IS SMART? HATE TO TELL YOU COMMIES-THIS GUY IS AN AIRHEAD. HES NOTHING BUT A FINE PUBLIC SPEAKER BEING COVERED UP FOR BY A SHILL(COMMIE) MEDIA AND A FRONT MAN FOR A GROUP OF VARYING COMMUNIST OR ISLAMIC GROUPS,WHO BY THE WAY PROBABLY DONT LIKE EACH OTHER EITHER. TOO BAD BOYS-IF THE OBAMINATOR WERE TO WIN,HIS ADMIN WILL CAUSE A CIVIL WAR. AMERICANS WILL NOT TOLERATE HIS COMMIE IDEAS AND HIS PANDERING TO ISLAMIC SUPREMACISTS.
John McCabush graduated 894th in a class of 899. That makes him to stupid to be the leader of the free world. Do you ever wonder who made if possible for him to be allowed in a fighter jet. Don’t you have to wonder that if he’d been just a little bit smarter he never would have gotten shot down in the first place. And what’s all the hubbub over Colin Powell’s endorsement? When it bothers you how another person ‘chooses’, then you’re an idiot like Rush Limbaugh.