Bin Laden's Death: Reaction

NBC News/MSNBC provides reaction to Osama bin Laden's death.

President George W. Bush

President Barack Obama called Bush in Dallas at 9:04 p.m. central time to inform him that bin Laden was dead and they spoke for four minutes, a Bush spokesman said.

The Sept. 11 attacks were a defining moment of Bush's presidency. He launched the war in Afghanistan and the hunt for bin Laden spanned the rest of his presidency. His statement:

"Earlier this evening, President Obama called to inform me that American forces killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of the al Qaeda network that attacked America on September 11, 2001. I congratulated him and the men and women of our military and intelligence communities who devoted their lives to this mission. They have our everlasting gratitude. This momentous achievement marks a victory for America, for people who seek peace around the world, and for all those who lost loved ones on September 11, 2001. The fight against terror goes on, but tonight America has sent an unmistakable message: No matter how long it takes, justice will be done."

Bonnie McEneaney, 57, wife of Eamon McEneaney, who died in the 9/11 attacks

"It doesn't bring back all the wonderful people who were killed 10 years ago. It's long overdue."

"I'm completely numb. I'm stunned," she told msnbc.com.

Jack Lynch, 75, who lost his son, New York City firefighter Michael Francis Lynch

"The first thought I had in my mind was that it didn't bring my son back. You cut the head off a snake, you'd think it would kill the snake. But someone will take his place. People like him still exist. The fact that he's gone is not going to stop terrorism."

"I understand that bin Laden was an evil person. He may have believed in what he was doing. I'm not going to judge him. I'm sure some people will look at this and they'll be gratified that he's dead, but me personally, I'm going to leave his fate in God's hands."

Lee Hanson, 78, of Easton, Conn., who lost his son, Peter, daughter-in-law, Sue, and 2 1/2 year-old granddaughter, Christine — the youngest victim of the 9/11 attacks.

They were aboard the second plane that hit the World Trade Center
"It's taken a while to do it, but we've done it. It's a really good thing to get out there — if you fool around with the U.S., you will be caught."

"Many segments wil try to avenge this ... There's still a great danger there."

Still, he said: "There's no such thing as closure."

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg

"After September 11, 2001, we gave our word as Americans that we would stop at nothing to capture or kill Osama bin Laden. After the contribution of millions, including so many who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, we have kept that word.

"The killing of Osama bin Laden does not lessen the suffering that New Yorkers and Americans experienced at his hands, but it is a critically important victory for our nation - and a tribute to the millions of men and women in our armed forces and elsewhere who have fought so hard for our nation.

"New Yorkers have waited nearly ten years for this news. It is my hope that it will bring some closure and comfort to all those who lost loved ones on September 11, 2001."

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo

"The death of Osama Bin Laden is a historic moment that represents a major step in our country's efforts to defeat terrorism around the world and should bring a sense of justice to the victims of 9/11 and his other attacks.

"We will never forget those who were lost, their families and those who risked their lives to save others.

"New Yorkers endured Bin Laden's most devastating and destructive attack, and his death brings back the horrific images and emotions of that terrible day. However, his death also reminds us of our strength, courage, and unity as a people in our response to his actions.

"The Administration's vigilance and dedication to hunt down Osama Bin Laden has never wavered and I applaud their commitment to this cause. I also applaud our men and women in uniform who have fought tirelessly against terrorism and to defend freedom.

"The threat to our state and our nation unfortunately does not die with Osama Bin Laden. We must remain vigilant in preventing terror acts and continue to do everything to keep our state and nation safe and secure."

House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio

"This is great news for the security of the American people and a victory in our continued fight against al Qaeda and radical extremism around the world. We continue to face a complex and evolving terrorist threat, and it is important that we remain vigilant in our efforts to confront and defeat the terrorist enemy and protect the American people. I want to congratulate — and thank — the hard-working men and women of our Armed Forces and intelligence community for their tireless efforts and perseverance that led to this success. I also want to commend President Obama and his team, as well as President Bush, for all of their efforts to bring Osama bin Laden to justice."

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor

"Nearly a decade ago, in the days after 9/11, President Bush said, 'Whether we bring our enemies to justice or bring justice to our enemies, justice will be done.' Tonight, we've learned that justice has been done. The man with the blood of more than 3,000 Americans on his hands, the man who forced us to begin to think the unthinkable - is now dead.

"Families who lost loved ones at the hands of Bin Laden and his terrorist organization have grieved for far too long and this sends a signal that America will not tolerate terrorism in any form. The men and women of our armed forces and intelligence community have fought valiantly for the last decade and this is a major victory and testament to their dedication. I commend President Obama who has followed the vigilance of President Bush in bringing Bin Laden to justice. While this is no doubt a major event in our battle against terrorism, we will not relent in our fight against terror and our efforts to keep America safe and secure."

Rep. Peter T. King, R-N.Y., chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security

"I commend President Obama on the announcement of the killing of Osama bin Laden.

"Today, the American people have seen justice. The leader of the United States' top enemy has gotten what he deserves for orchestrating the deaths of nearly 3,000 innocent Americans on September 11, 2001.

"In 2001, President Bush said 'we will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail.' President Bush deserves great credit for putting action behind those words. President Obama deserves equal credit for his resolve in this long war against al-Qaeda.

"This great success would not have been possible without the tireless work of countless brave men and women who have served around the world in this War on Terror."

Sen.Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y.

"This is a thunderous strike for justice for the thousands of my fellow New Yorkers — and citizens from all over the world — who were murdered on 9/11. It took close to ten years, but the world's most wanted terrorist has finally met his deserved fate. New York's heart is still broken from the tragedy of 9/11, but this at least brings some measure of closure and consolation to the victims and their families.

"This is a massive accomplishment for the countless military and intelligence personnel who have been urgently dedicated to this task for the past decade. Because Bin Laden's evil dogma has poisoned the minds of so many others, we cannot let up in the war on terror. This successful mission sends a definitive message to those who would test the resolve of the people of the United States of America: do not doubt our resolve; if you do us harm, we will find you, we will mete out justice, and we will prevail."

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

"I am overjoyed that we finally got the world's top terrorist. The world is a better and more just place now that Osama bin Laden is no longer in it. I hope the families of the victims of the September 11th attacks will sleep easier tonight and every night hence knowing that justice has been done. I commend the President and his team, as well as our men and women in uniform and our intelligence professionals, for this superb achievement.

"But while we take heart in the news that Osama bin Laden is dead, we must be mindful that al-Qaeda and its terrorist allies are still lethal and determined enemies, and we must remain vigilant to defeat them."

Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (she was national security adviser on 9/11)

"Absolutely thrilling. I am overwhelmed with gratitude and continue to be amazed at what our military has achieved."

British Prime Minister David Cameron

"Osama bin Laden was responsible for the worst terrorist atrocities the world has seen — for 9/11 and for so many attacks, which have cost thousands of lives, many of them British. It is a great success that he has been found and will no longer be able to pursue his campaign of global terror.

"The news that Osama bin Laden is dead will bring great relief to people across the world.

"But above all today, we should think of the victims of the poisonous extremism that this man has been responsible for. Of course, nothing will bring back those loved ones that families have lost to terror. But at least they know the man who was responsible for these appalling acts is no more."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

"This is a resounding triumph for justice, freedom and the values shared by all democratic nations fighting shoulder to shoulder in determination against terrorism."

Ayers: John McCain is a War Criminal

Bill Ayers hasn't changed. He's still a radical and an extremist.

He hasn't abandoned his terrorist, anti-American, subversive past. His mindset is basically the same.

Last week, Ayers was on Larry Elder's radio program. Listen to Ayers, the man who gave Obama his entry into politics:



Transcript

BILL AYERS: The Weather Underground, indeed, did take responsibility for a handful, maybe a dozen, you know, extreme acts of vandalism. That's true. That's true.

And so compared to what was going on everyday in Vietnam, including the illegal bombing of cities, which John McCain took part in, and he is, of course, a war criminal, as is everyone.

As several people admitted when they came back, including the Vietnam Vets Against the War, war crimes were not a matter of choice. They were a matter of policy - bombing vast stretches of countryside because you had extra ordnance. That's what John McCain did. So he actually killed people. I actually didn't kill people.

Who's the, who's the one who should account for themselves?

Obviously, Ayers doesn't respect the veterans of the Vietnam War. He considers those Americans to be guilty of war crimes.

His efforts to overthrow the U.S. government were just acts of vandalism. He minimizes his role in plotting against America and organizing violence.

From Prairie Fire:

PRAIRIE FIRE is written to all sisters and brothers who are engaged in armed struggle against the enemy. It is written to prisoners, women's groups, collectives, study groups, workers' organizing committees, communes, GI organizers, consciousness-raising groups, veterans, community groups and revolutionaries of all kinds; to all who will read, criticize and bring its content to life in practice. It is written as an argument against those who oppose action and hold back the struggle.

PRAIRIE FIRE is based on a belief that the duty of a revolutionary is to make the revolution. This is not an abstraction. It means that revolutionaries must make a profound commitment to the future of humanity, apply our limited knowledge and experience to understand an ever-changing situation, organize the masses of people and build the fight.

Ayers calls for "armed struggle against the enemy" - America.

How can this "armed struggle" be deemed a legal war?

It's a disgrace that he paints John McCain and Vietnam vets as war criminals while considering himself to be just a vandal.

I wonder if Obama, in his heart, thinks like Ayers. I wonder if Obama agrees that John McCain and Vietnam veterans are war criminals.

We know Obama thinks Iraq is a "dumb war." Does he think Vietnam was a "dumb war," too?

We know that John Kerry, speaking on behalf of Vietnam Vets Against the War, told of war crimes committed in Vietnam.

It's so odd that Kerry wants to be considered a war hero, yet he sounded like Ayers when he testified before the Senate Committee of Foreign Relations in 1971.

According to Ayers, if you served in Vietnam, you're a war criminal. You committed atrocities in an illegal war.

He despises John McCain and Vietnam vets. He doesn't dance around the issue. He voices his anti-Americanism without hesitation.

McCain: "Accountable"

Daily Kos Appeals to Dems Considering McCain

This post at Daily Kos caught my attention because of the misspelling. I don't want to put words in onanyes' mouth but I think "Democrats an Independents" should read "Democrats AND Independents."

Onanyes argues:

I've heard some Obama and Clinton supporters say that they would either sit out or vote for McCain if their choice didn't obtain the nomination.

I argue that this is a very bad idea.

More below the fold.

Note: I didn't even touch on many other significant points (e. g. his gaffes over the Middle East).

Onanyes provides seven reasons that McCain is not right for Dems and Independents:

1. McCain is not the "straight talker" that he claims to be, nor is he a maverick.

2. McCain does not have a scandal free past. Remember the Keating Five? McCain was one of them.

3. McCain exercises poor judgment in public; witness his seeking and getting Reverend Hagee's endorsement and witness his joking about bombing another country.

4. McCain does not respect women.

a. He called his wife a "c--t" in public.
b. He joked that Chelsea Clinton is ugly because Janet Reno is her father.
c. He did not express disapproval when a supporter called Senator Hillary Clinton a bitch.

5. McCain thinks that we are better off after having Bush for 8 years.

6. McCain admitted that the Iraq war was for oil and then tried to backtrack.

7. He is clueless on healthcare.

Onanyes concludes:

Folks, if you are an independent or a Democrat, then John "more of the same" McCain is not for you.

There you have it -- the Left's talking points against McCain.

Pretty weak if you ask me.

Can We Ask? Yes We Can.

Do you have a question for Barack Obama?

Check out CanWeAsk.com.

Obama, McCain, Hamas: "Losing his Bearings"

Fact: Barack Obama can't handle the truth.

Mentioning his middle name, the name his parents gave him, is a smear.

Mentioning that Ahmed Yousef, Hamas' top political adviser in the Gaza Strip, wants to see Obama become president is also a smear.

I am so sick of Obama's whining. Whenever someone utters something truthful, but something the Obama camp deems to be negative, Obama cries "smear campaign."

That diversion doesn't fly.

NEW YORK -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Thursday that Republican John McCain was "losing his bearings" for repeatedly suggesting the Islamic terrorist group Hamas preferred Obama for president.

That brought an angry response from McCain's campaign, which accused Obama of trying to make an issue of McCain's age.

Age is a touchy subject for McCain, who turns 72 in August and would be the oldest person to be sworn in as president if elected.

The two senators have focused more intently on one another in recent weeks as Obama has moved closer to becoming the Democratic nominee. Thursday's back and forth between Obama and surrogates for both candidates foreshadowed a likely argument for the fall campaign.

...At the root of the dispute is McCain's decision to call attention to a Hamas adviser's apparent affinity for Obama. The adviser, Ahmed Yousef, said in a recent interview: "We like Obama and hope that he will win the election."

McCain used those comments in a fundraising appeal and has cited them in interviews.

Asked about the matter Wednesday during a taping of "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," McCain said: "It's indicative of how some of our enemies view America. And I guarantee you, they're not going to endorse me."

In an interview Thursday with CNN, Obama accused McCain of trying to smear him by repeating the comments.

"This is offensive, and I think it's disappointing, because John McCain always says, 'Well, I'm not going to run that kind of politics,'" Obama said. "And then to engage in that kind of smear, I think, is unfortunate, particularly since my policy toward Hamas has been no different than his."

The Illinois senator added: "For him to toss out comments like that, I think, is an example of him losing his bearings as he pursues this nomination. We don't need name-calling in this debate."

Transcript of Wolf Blitzer's interview with Obama.

The comments that McCain tossed out happen to be the truth. If Obama finds the truth disappointing, so be it.

Obama can't slam McCain for acknowledging a fact. It's on the record. It aired on WABC radio on the John Batchelor Show.

Obama shouldn't be critical of McCain. He has a beef with Hamas. A terrorist wants Obama to win the election. That's reality. Deal with it.

McCain isn't distorting anything. He's not lying like Obama does, such as when he deceives people about the meaning of McCain's "100 years in Iraq" statement. McCain hasn't lost his bearings. Since when is telling the truth losing one's bearings?

The supposedly eloquent Obama either intentionally took a shot at McCain's age by saying "losing his bearings," or he's too dense to understand the negative connotation of the words.

Is Obama really as stupid as he is smug?

I think he knew exactly what he was saying.

His arrogance is very unbecoming.

No Pastor Problems for McCain

It's ridiculous to suggest that John McCain's connection with figures such as John Hagee and Rod Parsley even remotely resembles Barack Obama's relationship with Jeremiah Wright.

From FOX News:

If turnabout is fair play, then John McCain critics believe his association with controversial pastors should be held to the same scrutiny as Barack Obama’s ties to Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

After all, they point out, one of McCain’s religious supporters, John Hagee, called the Roman Catholic Church “the great whore.”

Another, Rod Parsley, referred to Islam as a “false religion” that America was called on to destroy.

Still, when McCain’s link to both men came to light, the backlash was negligible compared with the furor Obama has faced for nearly two months over his relationship with Wright, his former pastor.

“McCain got a bit of a pass on that,” Democratic strategist Bob Beckel said.

Political analysts and the McCain campaign say it was the difference in his relationships with those pastors — more than the news media’s decision to use kid gloves — that spared him the kind of public trial Obama endured.

Hagee and Parsley are just supporters, McCain’s campaign points out. Obama’s relationship is personal, with Wright having officiated at the candidate’s wedding and baptized his two children.

“I didn’t attend Pastor Hagee’s church for 20 years,” McCain said last week, taking a shot at Obama. “There’s a great deal of difference in my view between someone who endorses you and other circumstances.”

But while Obama has repeatedly moved to reject and denounce such supporters, McCain will only go so far. And critics warn the issue could come back to hurt him.

Both Dems and Republicans have drawn support and endorsements from controversial people.

That's nothing new.

Obama's 20-year personal relationship with the racist Wright is in a totally different league. Obama's dramatic refusal to disown the hate-spewing Wright, and then his sleazy, lame about-face press conference cannot be compared to the support McCain has received from controversial pastors. Those associations are distant. I don't think McCain considers Hagee or Parsley to be like uncles to him.

No, McCain doesn't have pastor problems.

John McCain and the C-Word

From FOX News:

An audience member ambushed John McCain on Thursday at an otherwise placid town hall meeting in Des Moines, Iowa, with a surprise question about whether he had ever called his wife by an obscene term.

The man stood up and first said he wanted to ask the Arizona senator about a “mental health and mental health care” concern.

“Previously I had been married to a woman who was very verbally abusive to me,” the man said. He paused and asked, “Is it true that you called your wife a c***?”

The crowd booed, and McCain responded:

“No, no — you don’t wanna, you don’t wanna. You know, it’s a great thing about town hall meetings, sir,” he said. “But we really don’t — there’s people here who don’t respect that kind of language. So I’ll move onto the next questioner in the back.”

...The question came out of a new book called “The Real McCain,” by Cliff Schecter, that alleges McCain publicly called his wife Cindy that word in 1992. The McCain campaign has called the book “trash journalism” and called the alleged incident a “complete fabrication.”

This is such a bizarre presidential election. It's Twilight Zone weird.

Anyway, I think McCain handled the question very well.

If ever there was a moment when McCain might have gone ballistic in public on the campaign trail, it was when that guy ambushed him like that.

He maintained his composure. Impressive.

I guess McCain's explosive temper isn't all that uncontrollable after all.
_______________

Video here.

Cindy McCain and Jay Leno

In this photo provided by NBC, wife of Republican presidential hopeful John McCain, Cindy McCain, left, speaks with Jay Leno during the taping of 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' in Burbank, Calif., Wednesday, April 30, 2008. (AP Photo/NBC,Paul Drinkwater)

I don't know much about John McCain's wife Cindy.

I know a lot about Hillary Clinton's spouse. (Actually, I know more about Bill than I want to know.)

I also feel I'm getting to know quite a bit about Barack Obama's wife Michelle. She's very active out there on the campaign trail. As the Dem primary process lingers on, I'm learning more about the sort of person she is.

To date, Cindy McCain has been in the shadows compared to Bill and Michelle.

That's why it was nice that Cindy was a guest on Wednesday's Tonight Show.

She made a stunning entrance, wearing a bright yellow jacket and slacks. When I say bright, I mean BRIGHT.

Jay Leno was a gracious host. He was very courteous.

They didn't talk politics. Only when Cindy told of the family gathering to discuss McCain's potential run for the presidency did she even mention any issues at all. She said she was impressed that her kids were asking questions about things that matter to them, like global warming and the war. They wanted to know what their dad would do as president.

(Don't they ever watch him on Meet the Press?)

Leno didn't bring up the Democrats at all. Not once. Cindy didn't either. She only said he'll be a great president.

What I learned about McCain's wife, Cindy:

--They have seven children, four together.

--She drives race cars.

--McCain is a bad driver.

--She's a pilot.

--When she first met McCain, he was following her around an hors d'oeuvre table at a party. She was avoiding him because she thought he was weird.

--McCain looks cute in dress whites.

--They both lied about their ages. She said she was four years older and he said he was four years younger. They didn't find out the truth about their ages until they applied for a marriage license. She said their marriage was based on a "tissue of lies."

--She said McCain is not too old to be president. She said that this summer he is going to hike the Grand Canyon rim to rim with two of their sons. She brought along McCain's walking stick and invited Leno to join them.

--She was addicted to painkillers after spinal surgery. She hid her addiction from McCain. When he confronted her about it, then she stopped using.

--She had high blood pressure. She thought she could manage it through diet and exercise. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough. She had a stroke four years ago. Rehab wasn't easy, but she has recovered.

--When discussing how McCain's campaign hit rock bottom last summer, Leno complimented his determination to keep going. Leno said, "He's a tough old bastard."

Cindy agreed.

DNC Attack Ad: 100 Years

It's a lie.

Obama as a Liability

From the New York Times:

Senator Barack Obama is starring in a growing number of campaign commercials, but the latest batch is being underwritten by Republicans.

In a sign that the racial, class and values issues simmering in the presidential campaign could spread into the larger political arena, Republican groups are turning recent bumps in Mr. Obama’s road — notably his comment that small-town Americans “cling” to guns and religion out of bitterness and a fiery speech by his former minister in which he condemned the United States — into attacks against Democrats down the ticket.

“The public, week by week, is becoming more familiar with his big-government, far-left vision for America,” said Ed Patru, a spokesman for Freedom’s Watch, an advocacy organization that is portraying Mr. Obama as ultraliberal in an advertisement running in Louisiana before a special election for a House seat.

Republicans say the new focus on Mr. Obama reflects their view that he remains the more likely Democratic presidential nominee since he continues to lead Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in convention delegates. It also shows that Republicans, who have for months characterized Mrs. Clinton as the contender who would most energize Republican voters, now see vulnerabilities in Mr. Obama that could be liabilities for other Democrats on the ballot.

“There were times when Republicans reacted with just horror that he would lead the ticket,” said Stuart Rothenberg, a nonpartisan political analyst. “Now there is not the sense of him being invulnerable, the magic bullet. I think there has been a major change.”

The growing Republican emphasis on Mr. Obama could also help Mrs. Clinton plead her case that she is more electable, bolstering her argument to superdelegates that Republicans are poised to pounce on her relatively untested opponent.

...At the same time, some Democrats privately said the new Republican push could be a backdoor effort to buoy Mrs. Clinton, the candidate Republicans initially saw as the Democrat who would most rally Republicans and spur fund-raising. It has not been lost on Republican strategists that they can give pause to superdelegates leaning toward endorsing Mr. Obama.

...Democrats say Republicans are going to vilify either Democratic contender and distort his or her record in an effort to weaken the nominee and drag down fellow Democrats.

“We know they will use Karl Rove/Lee Atwater tactics no matter who the nominee is,” said Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Republicans have lost their credibility on the issues they want to scare people on, like national security, so they will try a different strategy.”

Oooh, those evil, scheming Republicans.

Imagine. "Democrats say Republicans are going to vilify either Democratic contender and distort his or her record in an effort to weaken the nominee and drag down fellow Democrats."

What have the New York Times and the Washington Post and other media publications been doing to McCain? And what have NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, and MSNBC been doing to McCain?

They certainly have not been taking the high road.

When the Republican nomination was still up for grabs, the lib outlets vilified and distorted the records of the Republican candidates, particularly the more conservative Republicans.

After McCain clinched the nomination, the New York Times actively campaigned to drag him down.

In spite of giving McCain its endorsement, there's been a whole lotta vilifying going on by the Times.

It's especially sleazy that the attacks weren't about matters that surfaced since the newspaper gave McCain its support.

The stories were tired, old ones that the Times tried to resuscitate.

Some examples:

Vicki Iseman non-scandal

McCain's Panama Canal Zone birthplace

Elisabeth Bumiller's piece on McCain's testiness

McCain's flirtation with leaving the Republican Party and his conversations with Dems about being John Kerry's 2004 running mate

All are utterly lame.

All are planted to raise doubts about John McCain and his conservatism.

All regurgitate old news to make stories out of nothing.

I suspect the New York Times plans to run more goofy slop on McCain, desperately throwing anything against the wall in hopes that something will stick.

The Washington Post is also part of the "Attack McCain" apparatus.

McCain's temperament questioned

It's so hypocritical to charge the Republicans with dirty campaigning, when the Dems and their mouthpieces in the media engage in it as well.

"Karl Rove/Lee Atwater tactics"--

What a joke!

Obama continues to lie about McCain and his line about being in Iraq for 100 years. It's an intentional distortion. Obama is lying to the American people about his opponent.

The reality is Obama is very vulnerable.

In addition to matters involving Jeremiah Wright and Bill Ayers being problematic, there's his extreme liberalism and inexperience and his disdain for gun-toting, religion-clinging Americans. His fear of the American flag doesn't help him either. Oh, yes... and he can't bowl.

As we get to know him, we see his arrogance and smugness, and his disingenuous. His disastrous performance in the last debate had to give Dems pause about Obama as their savior. What earlier seemed like a fresh face ushering in a new era of politics, now is exposed as the same old, same old.

The stunts like the fainting episodes at his rallies make Obama seem insincere. The snippy side of him, taunting Hillary Clinton, isn't very attractive.

He's a radical Leftist.

He's not a victim of dirty politics.

Obama drags himself down. The Republican Party really doesn't have to manufacture anything to do it for him.

The North Carolina GOP Ad

McCain asks NC GOP not to run ad

McCain Camp Under False Impression That NC GOP Obama Ad Was Killed
__________________

Obama "Willie" Horton Ad



Read what FactCheck.org has to say about the ad.

The record shows that Obama, while not a cheerleader for the death penalty, has supported it for a number of crimes – including terrorism. He voted for an Illinois law in 2003 that includes the death penalty for convicted terrorists.

Obama supports the death penalty for a number of crimes.

That's news to me. I'll have to remember that.

Wisconsin Right to Life Endorses McCain

This really comes as no surprise.

Wisconsin Right to Life has endorsed John McCain.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

The Wisconsin Right to Life Political Action Committee today announced its endorsement of Sen. John McCain in the 2008 presidential race.

Senator McCain has a stellar 100% voting record on protecting unborn children from abortion. He opposes the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion on demand in the United States and he voted to ban the gruesome partial-birth abortion procedure. He opposes taxpayer funding of abortion and supports legislation that would require parental notification prior to a minor's abortion.

Senator McCain opposes human cloning and the intentional creation of human embryos for research purposes. He has stated that he would nominate U.S. Supreme Court justices in the mold of Justices Roberts and Scalia.

Both Democratic presidential candidates, Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama have 0% right-to-life voting records.

Senator Clinton supports the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and is a co-sponsor of the so-called Freedom of Choice Act that would codify Roe v. Wade and invalidate most federal and state right-to-life laws. She supports the partial-birth abortion procedure and supports taxpayer funding of abortion. Sen. Clinton opposes legislation to require parental notification prior to a minor's abortion. She supports the cloning of human embryos for research purposes.

Senator Obama, like Sen. Clinton, is a co-sponsor of the so-called Freedom of Choice Act and supports taxpayer funding of abortion. He was not yet a U.S. Senator when the partial-birth abortion ban was voted on. Sen. Obama opposes laws requiring parental notification prior to a minor's abortion and supports the cloning of human embryos for research purposes.

"For those of us who believe the sanctity of human life is the bottom line issue in making our voting decisions, the choice could not be clearer" said Susan Armacost, WRTL/PAC Director.

John McCain vs. Barack Obama on Gas Taxes

From the Wall Street Journal:

Sen. Obama, who voted for a temporary gas-tax break when he was a state senator in Illinois, rejected a federal tax holiday as bad fiscal policy. The federal gas tax raises money to repair and expand the highway system.

In Illinois in 2000, Sen. Obama voted for a six-month, five-percentage point break on the state's 6.25% gas sales tax. The reduction of the tax, which goes into a general revenue fund, passed on a 55-1 vote and included measures designed to ensure that the benefits of the tax break reached consumers. At one point, Sen. Obama jokingly asked on the Senate floor whether it would be possible to install placards on gas-station pumps telling motorists he had helped win temporary price relief.

When some state legislators tried to make the suspension permanent before it expired, Sen. Obama spoke out against that measure but defended his vote for the holiday, according to transcripts posted on the legislature's Web site.

"I originally voted for the suspension because I thought that it was extraordinary circumstances, given the huge hike in prices," he said at the time. Gas prices averaged $1.52 a gallon in March 2000.

I understand that the efficacy of a gas-tax holiday is debatable.

However, the fact that Obama is politics as usual is not.

No wonder flip-flopper John Kerry endorses Barack Obama.

Bitter Defeat for Obama, Hillary "Likable Enough" in Pennsylvania

On Saturday January 5, 2008, at a debate in New Hampshire, the smug Barack Obama nailed it when he said, "You're likable enough, Hillary."

Last night, Hillary proved him right. Voters in Pennsylvania overwhelmingly found her likable.

From the New York Times:

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton scored a decisive victory over Senator Barack Obama on Tuesday in the Pennsylvania primary, giving her candidacy a critical boost as she struggles to raise money and persuade party leaders to let the Democratic nominating fight go on.

If Mrs. Clinton did not emerge from the bruising six-week campaign with a race-turning landslide — she still trails Mr. Obama in the popular vote and the delegate count — her victory nonetheless gives her a strong rationale for continuing her candidacy in spite of those Democrats who would prefer to coalesce around Mr. Obama.

Indeed, in her victory speech in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, Mrs. Clinton used the words “fight,” “fighter” and “fighting” repeatedly — not only to promise financially struggling Americans that she would protect them, but also to convey that she had the resolve and confidence to stay in the race.

As for Mr. Obama, the loss only hardened the determination of his advisers to overwhelm Mrs. Clinton’s campaign with his substantial financial advantage — he took in $42 million in March to her $21 million — and with the cold calculus that he is still solidly ahead in their pursuit of the 2,025 delegates needed to win the Democratic nomination. In his concession speech, he kept the focus on the presumptive Republican nominee, Senator John McCain, a subject Mrs. Clinton avoided in her address.

...And she also defiantly acknowledged the Democrats and the pundits who have called on her to end her candidacy.

“Some people counted me out and said to drop out, but the American people don’t quit, and they deserve a president who doesn’t quit either,” Mrs. Clinton said to fervent cheers and applause at her victory party, where she was joined by former President Bill Clinton and their daughter, Chelsea, as well as two key supporters in the state, Gov. Edward G. Rendell and Mayor Michael Nutter of Philadelphia.

While Mrs. Clinton repeatedly sounded economically populist notes in her speech, Mr. Obama touched on those themes but was also more expansive in his remarks on Tuesday night, sharply criticizing Mr. McCain, as offering “more of the same” of President Bush’s policies. Mr. Obama left Pennsylvania late Tuesday to make his remarks in Indiana, which holds its primary on May 6, along with North Carolina.

Hillary trounced Obama with her 55 percent to 45 percent victory.

No wonder Obama put the focus on John McCain in his post-PA primary remarks. He didn't want to focus on his BITTER defeat. In effect, by zeroing in on McCain, he was saying that he's got the nomination. He can't be bothered wasting more time on Hillary.

Yes, it's a long shot for Hillary; but this race is not over yet.

In spite of so many high profile endorsements for Obama and calls from them for Hillary to drop out, American voters aren't abandoning her.

The libs are beginning to get nervous.

The New York Times sounds a warning in its editorial, "The Low Road to Victory."

The Pennsylvania campaign, which produced yet another inconclusive result on Tuesday, was even meaner, more vacuous, more desperate, and more filled with pandering than the mean, vacuous, desperate, pander-filled contests that preceded it.

Voters are getting tired of it; it is demeaning the political process; and it does not work. It is past time for Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton to acknowledge that the negativity, for which she is mostly responsible, does nothing but harm to her, her opponent, her party and the 2008 election.

If nothing else, self interest should push her in that direction. Mrs. Clinton did not get the big win in Pennsylvania that she needed to challenge the calculus of the Democratic race. It is true that Senator Barack Obama outspent her 2-to-1. But Mrs. Clinton and her advisers should mainly blame themselves, because, as the political operatives say, they went heavily negative and ended up squandering a good part of what was once a 20-point lead.

...By staying on the attack and not engaging Mr. Obama on the substance of issues like terrorism, the economy and how to organize an orderly exit from Iraq, Mrs. Clinton does more than just turn off voters who don’t like negative campaigning. She undercuts the rationale for her candidacy that led this page and others to support her: that she is more qualified, right now, to be president than Mr. Obama.

Mr. Obama is not blameless when it comes to the negative and vapid nature of this campaign. He is increasingly rising to Mrs. Clinton’s bait, undercutting his own claims that he is offering a higher more inclusive form of politics. When she criticized his comments about “bitter” voters, Mr. Obama mocked her as an Annie Oakley wannabe. All that does is remind Americans who are on the fence about his relative youth and inexperience.

Yes, the Dems have a real mess on their hands.

I think it's wrong to slam Hillary for being "mostly responsible" for the negativity. She's had to raise issues about Obama that the lib media have failed to raise. It's not Hillary's fault that the media aren't doing their jobs because so many of them have that bizarre infatuation with Obama.

The Times calls for the super delegates to step in, and soon.

...It is getting to be time for the superdelegates to do what the Democrats had in mind when they created superdelegates: settle a bloody race that cannot be won at the ballot box. Mrs. Clinton once had a big lead among the party elders, but has been steadily losing it, in large part because of her negative campaign. If she is ever to have a hope of persuading these most loyal of Democrats to come back to her side, let alone win over the larger body of voters, she has to call off the dogs.

The super delegates can wait. Let the voices of the American people be heard.

"Call off the dogs"?

The lib media are the dogs. When they went starry-eyed and started swooning over Obama and turning on Hillary, she had a choice: respond or quit.

She didn't quit.

Furthermore, this editorial fails to acknowledge that Hillary has won over nearly as many of the voters as Obama. The popular vote is very tight.

I think the party elders screwed up when they went with the flavor of the month Obama and allowed themselves to be swept up in Obama-mania.

Obama isn't the savior of the Dems that he seemed to be just a couple of months back. He carries a lot of negative baggage, too. Hillary isn't the only one with problems in that area.

Though Hillary won big and Obama lost big last night, I think the real winner is John McCain.

John McCain Visits Bucyrus International

John McCain was in South Milwaukee today.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

John McCain, the certain Republican presidential nominee, reiterated his call today to take strong action to address the nation's sluggish economy, including measures intended to help struggling businesses and families.

"We know that America is facing challenges today," said McCain, who mentioned problems with home mortgages and job layoffs. "These are tough times now and (people) are hurting...I believe it's the responsibility of government to act quickly and decisively."

McCain's comments came a day after he unveiled a wide-ranging economic plan in Pennsylvania, which holds its presidential primary Tuesday. The visit to Bucyrus International was McCain's first to Wisconsin since winning the state's GOP primary in February and subsequently locking up the party's nomination.

With Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton locked in a delegate-by-delegate battle, McCain is able to focus on the fall campaign, including potential swing states like Wisconsin. While no Republican has won the state since Ronald Reagan in 1984, Wisconsin was among the closest in the past two elections and GOP leaders see an opening here.

McCain's visit was not open to the public. About 300 business, civic and political leaders attended, as well as members of the media.

With discussion between McCain and others, it was designed to amplify the proposals McCain made Tuesday. He has framed them as fitting his smaller-government philosophy while delivering tax-relief to middle-class families and others.

Proposals range from a "gas-tax holiday" to doubling the federal tax exemption for dependent children and offering taxpayers the chance to choose a simpler tax system.

McCain called for an end to partisan bickering. He wants Congress and the president to work together to improve the economy for the good of the country and to better the lives of the American people.

That sounds like a promise of change and a message of hope to me.

Election 2008: Pope Benedict and the Catholic Vote

From the New York Times:

Many years have passed since the Democratic Party was as much a part of American Catholic identity as weekly Mass and parochial school. But it still came as a shock to many Democrats to lose the Catholic vote, a key group in must-win states like Ohio, in the 2004 presidential election.

It is an experience they are determined not to repeat.

I think that opening sentence is awful.

At one time, more Catholics voted for Democrats than Republicans. OK, but don't say that affiliation with the Dems was as integral to American Catholic identity as weekly Mass. It never was.

That's terrible. Identity as a Catholic has no politics. Catholic values can affect one's politics but that's not the same as one's identity as a Catholic.

The presidential candidates are in the middle of an escalating battle for Catholic voters — most immediately between Senators Barack Obama of Illinois and Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York in the Pennsylvania Democratic primary, but also between the two parties as they look ahead to the general election. This struggle is an important part of the backdrop for Pope Benedict XVI’s trip to the United States starting Tuesday, which has drawn gestures of respect from all of the presidential contenders.

There is widespread agreement that American Catholic voters are far more diverse than monolithic. Even so, both the Clinton and the Obama campaigns have hired Catholic outreach directors, deployed an army of prominent Catholic surrogates testifying on their behalf and created mailings that highlight their commitment to Catholic social teachings on economic justice and the common good.

Dismayed at losing so many Catholic and other religious voters to the Republicans in 2004, Democrats talk far more often, and more comfortably, about their values and the importance of their own faith these days.

Essentially, they have tried to broaden the definition of “values” issues beyond abortion rights, on which they disagree with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and many religious conservatives.

There is no way for any candidate to devise a plan to win over Catholic voters. As a group, we are far too diverse.

Furthermore, I'm not viewing Pope Benedict's visit to the U.S. in terms of the presidential election. I don't associate the Holy Father with Obama or Hillary or McCain. The Pope isn't coming here to address American politics.

...Mrs. Clinton, a Methodist, carried the Catholic vote overwhelmingly in Ohio, Texas and several other major states that have held primaries and caucuses this year, according to surveys of voters leaving the polls; she hopes to do so again in Pennsylvania, which holds its primary next week. (Aides say she is particularly popular among nuns.) In an open letter to Pennsylvania Catholics, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., two children of Robert F. Kennedy, wrote, “Catholics have a partner in Hillary Clinton, one who will work to advance the common good of all Pennsylvanians and all Americans.”

Catholics certainly don't have a partner in Hillary Clinton if they're interested in advancing the common good for all unborn Americans.

...[O]n Friday, the Obama campaign unveiled its national advisory council of prominent Catholics, including elected officials, theologians, academics, nuns and social advocates. On a conference call, Representative Patrick J. Murphy — who represents Bucks County, Pa., and prefaced his remarks by noting that he was St. Anselm’s Altar Boy of the Year in 1987 — said that Mr. Obama spoke “to the better angels in all of us.”

Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, another prominent Catholic supporting Mr. Obama, noted: “I don’t agree with him on some issues. We disagree on abortion.” But Mr. Casey said he believed that Mr. Obama, as president, would advocate for “the least, the last and the lost.”

Obama is so radical when it comes to abortion that he refused to take a stand against infanticide. He's very much like Russ Feingold in that respect.

Casey's assertion that Obama would be an advocate for "the least, the last and the lost" isn't true. Obama selects only some of "the least, the last and the lost" to defend. He doesn't want to protect the unborn. He wouldn't even agree to protect a child "accidentally" born during a botched partial birth abortion. Obama would not protect the disabled, like Terri Schiavo.

...“We’re going to devote substantial resources to winning the Catholic vote,” said Frank Donatelli, deputy chairman of the Republican National Committee. “I think the natural home of Catholics is the Republican Party.”

The campaign of Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, recently rolled out his National Catholics for McCain Committee, with Senator Sam Brownback, Republican of Kansas, as a co-chairman.

Mr. Brownback’s chief of staff, Rob Wasinger, said Mr. McCain was “the full package” for Catholics, with his opposition to abortion and his support for overhauling immigration laws, a major issue for Hispanic Catholics. Against this backdrop, the pope’s words and gestures will be scrutinized not just by the faithful and the theologians, but also by political professionals in both parties.

By far, McCain's position on prolife issues makes him a superior candidate compared to Hillary and Obama, but he's not quite the full package. McCain has repeatedly voted to increase taxpayer funded embryonic stem cell research.

“The Republicans are just hoping and praying he’ll say something about abortion and gay marriage, and the Democrats are terrified he will,” said the Rev. Thomas Reese, a senior fellow and political scientist at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University. “But at the United Nations, he will also say a lot of things to the left of Hillary and Obama.”

In fact, some conservatives worry that the war in Iraq, opposed by the Catholic Church from its inception, is hurting the Republican Party among Catholic voters — just as it is with other independent and swing voters.

“There’s one big question mark hanging over the Catholic vote, and that’s the Iraq war,” said Deal Hudson, an informal adviser to Mr. McCain and a longtime adviser to President Bush on Catholic matters.

There's no "one big question mark hanging over the Catholic vote."

Of course, the war in Iraq is of great concern to most Americans. It's an issue that's sure to factor into this election. However, I don't think it will determine the Catholic vote, mainly because I don't think there is a "Catholic" vote.

Catholics are far too diverse to be defined as a voting bloc.

In spite of how the media are approaching the Pope's visit, he isn't coming to America to endorse a candidate for president. I don't think Catholics in America are looking for that. The Pope is on a spiritual mission. He wants to encourage change and give us hope. (He sounds like a candidate, doesn't he?)

Whatever the Holy Father says to Americans, I'm sure he won't pander.

John McCain in Milwaukee on Wednesday

John McCain hasn't been in Wisconsin since February. On Wednesday, he's returning to Milwaukee.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

McCain plans to visit the Milwaukee area Wednesday to discuss his economic plans. Full details haven't been released yet, but his campaign said the event, at Bucyrus International, will feature two discussion panels with business leaders, academics and others on the topics of "Investing in People and Making Government Work Better," and "Spurring Innovation and Fostering Growth and Economic Freedom." McCain has scheduled a major economic speech Tuesday at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

This will be McCain's first visit to Wisconsin since the state's February primary and since he clinched the GOP presidential nomination.

Democrats have lambasted the trade deals that McCain voted for in the Senate, and accused him of offering a third Bush term on the economy.

Asked how his economic policies would differ from President Bush's, McCain said: "Spending, spending, spending. This Administration let spending get completely out of control. We mortgaged our children's futures and it led to corruption, and we presided over the largest increase in the size of government since the Great Society."

Asked about Obama's controversial comments Friday about voters in small towns who are bitter over job losses, McCain said:

"The comments were elitist and condescending, there's no doubt about that (to) anybody who reads them. Americans don't cherish their rights in the Second Amendment because of the economy. They don't cherish their right to go exercise their freedom of religion because of the economy."

...On political matters, McCain said he thought Wisconsin was winnable for him, but called it a "significant challenge." The state hasn't voted for a Republican since Ronald Reagan. But it was the closest state in the country in 2004, and, like 2004, is expected to be one of the most targeted "blue" states by Republicans this fall.

Asked which Democrat he expects to be running against in the general election, McCain said, "I don't know. It doesn't matter. I have no preference."

McCain really does have an advantage over Obama and Hillary.

While they tear each other apart, McCain can move forward. He doesn't have to go on the attack. All he has to do is respond to questions about the Dems' latest blunders.

He gets to play the role of the color commentator as the Dems do battle.
____________________

Here's the text of a fund-raising e-mail from McCain Campaign Manager Rick Davis:

Dear Friends,

We've all said things that we've regretted. Sometimes they result from a mere slip of the tongue and sometimes they reveal deeply held beliefs that you'd rather not communicate to the world.

A few days ago, at a San Francisco fundraiser, Barack Obama described Americans who live in small towns or other areas that have experienced a loss of jobs as "bitter" people, adding that it didn't surprise him that they, "..cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

These words are revealing on a number of levels, and expose the out-of-touch beliefs to which John McCain offers stark contrast. Today, John McCain offered a different account of small town America:

"During the Great Depression, with many millions of Americans out of work and the country suffering the worst economic crisis in our history, there rose from small towns, rural communities, inner cities, a generation of Americans who fought to save the world from despotism and mass murder, and came home to build the wealthiest, strongest and most generous nation on earth.

They suffered the worst during the Depression, but it did not shake their faith in, and fidelity to, America. They did not turn to their religious faith and cultural traditions out of resentment and a feeling of powerlessness to affect the course of government or pursue prosperity. On the contrary, their faith had given generations of their families' purpose and meaning, as it does today."

These hard working men and women aren't "bitter". They love their country, their faith, their family and their traditions. They are the heart and soul of this country, the foundation of our strength and the primary authors of its essential goodness - Barack Obama should get to know them.

If Barack Obama is the Democrat nominee in the general election, the American people will have a clear choice between two different visions - Senator Obama's liberal, elitist philosophy and John McCain's faith in the small town values that continue to make America great. John McCain will not forget them or write them off. Neither should Barack Obama.

We are up against a large fundraising hurdle if Barack Obama is the nominee and we need your help now. Even before the general election begins, the differences are clear, we must do everything we can to make sure these beliefs don't make it into the White House....

P.S. - Barack Obama's belief that small town Americans are "bitter" exemplifies the differences in this election. We cannot allow this elitist philosophy to make its way into the White House. Please contribute today.

Obama really stepped in it at that San Francisco fund-raiser.

"Bitter" sticks.

John McCain on The View

Obama's "100 Years in Iraq" Lie

Barack Obama is still lying about John McCain. He lied today on Today.



(Hot Air)

_______________

I think Obama helps McCain by continuing to distort his words.

"Clearly Sen. Obama is being disingenuous, because he knows better… Clearly, I said, just as we've been in Germany, South Korea, etc., that's a presence after we win the war, but I don’t think the American people will buy it."