Obama hits back at McCain before VFW
Democrat Barack Obama accused Republican rival John McCain this morning of launching false political attacks instead of offering answers on the Iraq war.
"That is John McCain’s prerogative," Obama told the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Orlando, Fla., which McCain addressed on Monday and said that Obama was wrong about the war and would give up recent gains. "He can run that kind of campaign, and -- frankly -- that’s how political campaigns have been run in recent years. But I believe the American people are better than that. I believe that this defining moment demands something more of us.
"If we think that we can secure our country by just talking tough without acting tough and smart, then we will misunderstand this moment and miss its opportunities. If we think that we can use the same partisan playbook where we just challenge our opponent’s patriotism to win an election, then the American people will lose. The times are too serious for this kind of politics." Obama added.
Obama sought to remind the audience that, unlike McCain, he opposed the Iraq war from the beginning, and while the surge of US troops last year might have reduced violence, the war distracted the United States from fighting al Qaeda in Afghanistan and elsewhere.
"In the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, I warned that war would fan the flames of extremism in the Middle East, create new centers of terrorism, and tie us down in a costly and open-ended occupation. Senator McCain predicted that we’d be greeted as liberators, and that the Iraqis would bear the cost of rebuilding through their bountiful oil revenues. For the good of our country, I wish he had been right, and I had been wrong. But that’s not what history shows," Obama said.
He stood by his plan to withdraw combat forces from Iraq within 16 months, and chided McCain for eventually joining him in calling for more forces in Afghanistan.
"We must also recognize that we cannot succeed in Afghanistan or secure America as long as there is a terrorist safe-haven in northwest Pakistan," Obama added. "A year ago, I said that we must take action against bin Laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights and Pakistan cannot or will not act. Senator McCain criticized me and claimed that I was for 'bombing our ally.' So for all of his talk about following Osama bin Laden to the gates of hell, Senator McCain refused to join my call to take out bin Laden across the Afghan border. Instead, he spent years backing a dictator in Pakistan who failed to serve the interests of his own people."
UPDATE: The McCain campaign responded specifically to Obama's criticism that McCain has been less enthusiastic about going into Pakistan's tribal borderlands with Afghanistan to hunt down bin Laden.
“Unlike Barack Obama, John McCain doesn’t have to compensate for a lack of credibility on the international stage with inflammatory and public threats against American allies," McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds said in a statement. "The American people know that John McCain will hunt down terrorists wherever they are, and have a choice between strength and experience versus Barack Obama’s rhetoric and theatrics.”
In his speech at the VFW, Obama called on McCain to stop questioning his policies based on character.
"I have never suggested and never will that Senator McCain picks his positions on national security based on politics or personal ambition," Obama said. "I have not suggested it because I believe that he genuinely wants to serve America’s national interest. Now, it’s time for him to acknowledge that I want to do the same.
"Let me be clear: I will let no one question my love of this country," Obama added. "I love America, so do you, and so does John McCain."
Obama was out this morning saying "Make no mistake, I love this country". It's unbelievable we have a candidate for president whose past activity requires he say this to the voters.
This election is a complete no-brainer. Obama recognizes the disaster we have on our hands and wants a clean break from Bush's failed policies, "accomplished" at our expense by perverting government, trashing the constitution and everything it stands for, and antagonizing other countries, all because of his greed for power. McCain has said he agrees with most of Bush's policies. If Obama wins, we could end up with the drastic reversal of course that we need. If McCain wins, things will improve slightly (since no one could be as bad as idiot George), but otherwise things will remain as they are. If that's okay with you, vote for McCain. If you want significant change, you'll be foolish not to vote for Obama. No-brainer.
Mikeinphilly is the definition of "no brainer".
Billw, It has nothing to do with Obama's "past activity", it has to do with the ignorance of alot of people. Some people are willing to accept everything they read as "gospel truth". They don't look into the facts, or maybe they DON'T WANT to look into the facts! For these ignorant people, it gives them a really good reason not to vote for Obama. It makes their ignorance acceptable in their own minds. Anyone with any intelligence (unfortunately, not you) has checked on all the smear and lies, and found them to be just that.....smear and lies!
Billw said:
"Obama was out this morning saying "Make no mistake, I love this country". It's unbelievable we have a candidate for president whose past activity requires he say this to the voters."
But McCain has been saying that in his TV commercials and in other forums... As he puts it, he's... the American president Americans have been waiting for. I guess Reagan, Kennedy, Papa Bush, and all the other US presidents before him were just exotic carpetbaggers?
"It's unbelievable we have a candidate for president whose past activity requires he say this to the voters."
What past activity would that be, being the subject of lies spread by anonymous e-mails from right-wing fanatics? Obama hasn't done anything that requires him to say this, the press and the right-wing radio liars and blogs, etc., are the ones doing it.
Billw, nice try, but it's not Obama's past that requires he say that he loves his country, rather, it is the Rovian orchestrated personal attacks on Obama by the McCain campaign that prompted his remark. Your statement merely reinforces Obama's point.
@1: "It's unbelievable we have a candidate for president whose past activity requires he say this to the voters."
That's a gross misrepresentation that has been in play since Obama announced his candidacy. "Past activity"? What are you referencing, an oppositional talking point? At the very least, everything that he has been able to accomplish has been because he is an American citizen. He's proud of that and he loves this country for that and then some.
What's unbelievable is the idea that there are still people who would suggest that political candidates can't run for office based on wanting to serve the country they love. Notable examples: Sen. John McCain, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sen. Barack Obama.
I only have a simple question: Where were all these brave Republican leaders who claim to be tougher than the rest of us while Russia kicked the faces of the Georgians without fear of retribution?
I had heard a lot of talk but saw no walk. After indicating his full support for Georgians before and after the Russian invasion, did Mr. McCain offer a solution? Neither did vacationing Mr. Bush. So, where is the beef?
Mr. McCain acts like the entire nation owe him for his service in the Navy, and he is willing to compromise anybody to be elected. Example: The past debate and the controversy around "the cone of silence." I would have expected more of Rick Warren. The give away was that for a person who cannot speak three sentences without a cue card, the answers were too fast, and sometimes, before the questions were finished. What a charade! Shame on McCain, and Mr. Warren if he was a willing participant. The opening exchange between McCain and Warren adds fuels to the fire, and if the rumors are true, they both lied and cheated.
Many other men and women have served our country with dignity and greater
honor, in and out of the military. McCain's arrogance is that he believes only he is a true patriot.
McCain's past is not all that clear, besides his failed first marriage there are many questions about his past connections during the Keaton’s and other affairs of judgment gone wrong. His most ardent supporters don't want anybody to talk about any of these. The whole idea is to keep a code of silence unless one is willing to sound un-patriotic.
Litttle by little, the "true" is coming out. For those who really want to know, the Internet and Google are a big help to break the McCain's code of silence about his past.
McCain's message appears to be working. Recent polls show him now tied with Obama. I don't agree with his message, and it seems to be the same old smear tactics that Rove & the right wing have used since 1999. It's a shame that people are falling for this, because I have not seen any substantial outlines for resolving our nation's current problems, which are in many cases as bad or worse than any time in our history. McCain is getting Obama off message, so the people of this country are being denied a true political debate on the issues. I
t doesn't matter which one of these candidates is to blame, neither are truely worthy of being president. the Geezer has no message & Obama has done nothing but preach. I did not like the Bush Machine preaching to me, & I certainly do not want Obama & his fanatics preaching to me. I want our country fixed. I would also go so far as to recommend that after the shenanigans of the Saddleback Conferences, Obama, might be wise to refuse to do any more debates at all with McCain. His Campaign is obviously going to use any devious method it can think of in order to undermine the sanctity of the debate system. Here we go again with the shenanigans of Florida & Ohio. I wondeer which state the Republicans have in their sights this year for the voting scandals?
At Saddleback Christian Conference, Barack Obama was speaking as a Christian to Christians. McCain was speaking as a politician to Christians. I believe the Christian audience was more enamoured of Obama who was speaking their language than McCain who was not.
Every campaign season GOP scare -- Dems will raise your taxes! George Bush did not Raise Taxes and yet, are we any better off for it? We have to wake up from this rheteroic which distorts the issues and the truth. Not raising your taxes only means that something else will have to be raised like your medical insurance or car insurance, bank and financial fees, etc. Raising your taxes is not the issue, the issue is what will the candidate do for the country and the American people, for jobs, schools, cost of education and health care. Let's not get it twisted. It is time to wake up from the scare tactics and embrace real change that is positive and not words with no deeds which only leads to the decaying of America
You don't need Washington experience to be experienced. You need to be smart, foreward thinking, independent of big business and oil companies, knowledgeable about economics and the Constitution. It doesn't take rocket science to know how to get along with other people around the world -- treat others like you would want them to treat you.
'The massed power of goodwill,
the dynamic effect of intelligent and active understanding, and
the potency of a trained and alive public opinion,
which desires the greatest good of the greatest number
are beyond belief.
This dynamic power has never been employed.
It can today save the world.'
Djwhal Khul
Hey Bill Ayers ,uh ..um.. hey do you remember when you were with the Weather Underground back in the 1960's, uh and you were setting off those bombs? Uh, um, like that was awesome.
Barry O
So we spent a trillion dollars, lost 4,000 lives, suffered over 30,000 needless casualties, killed in excess of 100,000 Iraqi civilians, in order first to attract some al queda forces to Iraq, then kill several thousand of them, and then send them off to Afghanistan.
Baghdad has been almost totally destroyed. 150,000 American troops are needed to keep the peace at a cost of over two billion dollars a week with no end in sight, and you say we would do it again?
I fought in the Viet-Nam war and heard the same type of rhetoric from Robert McNamara, General Westmoreland and LBJ.
John McCain was promoting the invasion of Iraq as far back as 1994. I believe it was because of oil and keeping the supply in the hands of our OPEC partners- and not because of any threat to the United States from Iraq.
No matter how you spin it, this war will go down in history as a horrible mistake.
To Bill W: Obama is responding to accusations from the Rove-Bush-McCain machine...the same type of campaign tactic that McCain confronted in South Carolina in 2008. What's unbelieveable is that the John McCain of 2008 is now using that strategy.
Hey Bill, it is not Obama's past activity that requires he say he "loves the USA," it is purely a direct response to the constant barrage of scurrilous attacks from McCain and his pack of lying dirty dogs. History shows clearly that Iraq was a mistake and distraction from war on terror. McCain was wrong then, and he is wrong now. Since he is so wrong on policy, and has no clue or has flip-flopped on every other important issue we face -- economy, health care, environment, his only path to victory is to question Obama's character and patriotism. It's been said that calls to patriotism are the the last refuge of the scoundrels who have been running the USA into a ditch the past 8 years -- wasting our money on unnecessary unjustified war in Iraq, disgracing our honor by supporting torture, destroying our credibility for foreign policy.
The wider implication of the iraq war is our inability to do any thing about Russia when it invades a sovereign country. We lost the moral authority and the diplomatic leverage to engage Russia.And i do not think we can militarily do a thing to stop Russia from advancing its ambitions.So O bama is the best choice for president.
THE ONLY THING I HEAR JOHN McCAIN TALK ABOUT IS THE WAR AND TERRORISM .ANYBODY THAT DOES NOT HAVE A SENSE OF REASONING SHOULD VOTE FOR McCAIN. I TRULY BELIEVE THAT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE SO HUNGRY FOR CHANGE ,I WOULD VOTE FOR DAVID LETTERMAN OR ANYONE ELSE THATS FOR CHANGING OUR COUNTRY AND PUTTING NEEDS FIRST.
Billw, nice try, but it's not Obama's past that requires he say that he loves his country, rather, it is the Rovian orchestrated personal attacks on Obama by the McCain campaign that prompted his remark. Your statement merely reinforces Obama's point.
I think its unbelievable that we have a senile moron running for president Bill, but then again what else can we expect from our beloved political institutions.
Frankly, I am not thrilled with either candidate for the Presidency of the USA. If someone does not salute the flag for some religious reason (like the Jehovah Witnesses for example), that is their right not to do so. However, they are not the best candidates for running for the Presidency of the USA. I was leaning towards Sen. Obama (with some hesitancy) but after his trip to Europe and the Middle East and hearing what he said ("Citizen of the World" )and seeing that his plane has HIS Symbol and not the flag of the USA, then I say to myself, "he might be a bright guy and good at theatrics but, to run for the Presidency and not even have the flag of the USA on the tail of your plane"? He has a lot to learn and should not be running for the Presidency of this country. He needs a few 'battle scars'!
Significant change is what we need!!! McCain thinks we are stupid and can not see how dirty he really is. God forbide that we should take away Big Oils tax breaks. After all they are doing so much good for america. McCaain will stop at nothing to be President. God help us if he gets elected. We can not stand 4 more years of Republican failed policy's. GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!
How is the McCain camp response logical? Saying Obama is threatening allies by mentioning Pakistan is different than saying McCain will HUNT DOWN terrorists wherever they are, how??? Because Obama actually had a specific example of where these terrorists are and an idea of how to get them and McCain just wants you to know he'll go hunting?
Is it because the right needs to protect Pakistan somehow? Don't actually go and get them, where you know they are...just talk tough and call yourself a Maverick and keep pointing out you were in the Vietnam War.
John Kerry was in the Vietnam War. Bush was skipping his one weekend a month National Guard service. But 4 years ago, the right said Kerry's experience had nothing to do with today's war and international climate.
However now it means everything.
Doesn't anyone see this????? They're playing you!
Obama should stop talking nice but talking tough like John Mccain not in an attack mode but a true leader talk and tone.But it seems he (Obama) always try to fight back even though it's not worth replying to every word Mccain use to define the true point of an issue or his statements.It's like he's waiting for anything Mccain raise to talk about but he need busy talking about what is he going to change and how is he going to do it without contradicting individual citizens right.In other words a balance plan and how that plan executed effectively and how it benefit each individual person in this country and not creating a barrier between a person and a business that help each other.
Maccain has no moral authority to question Barack's patriotism. He went to war and when he was captured betrayed his country and claimed it on torture. Why did the others not betray America when they were tortured? Maccain's moral background is very questionable. He cheated on his wedded wife and left her when she was sick. Maccain debased women with cruel jokes. This man has an abominable character and questionable temper, and he has the audacity to question somebody else's character. John Maccain is an old cranky angry man, unfit to be president
Maccain has no moral authority to question Barack's patriotism. He went to war and when he was captured betrayed his country and claimed it on torture. Why did the others not betray America when they were tortured? Maccain's moral background is very questionable. He cheated on his wedded wife and left her when she was sick. Maccain debased women with cruel jokes. This man has an abominable character and questionable temper, and he has the audacity to question somebody else's character. John Maccain is an old cranky angry man, unfit to be president
waaaaahh... John McCain questions my patriotism.... waaaaaaaaahhh...Im a victim again today.. waaaaaaaaaah...Rove is a booogieman and lives under my bed.... waaaaaaaaaahh....someone's questioning my judgement...waaaaaaaaahhh....someone's questioning the fact that my first act as politician was a fundraiser in the home of a domestic terrorist...waaaaaaaaaahhh...someone's questioning that my spiritual mentor is a nut bag...waaaaaaaaaahh.. Did I mention Im black?...waaaaaaaaaahh..and I don't look like George Washington...waaaaaaaahh...and Im statistically tied with that "tired and old" wrinkly white haired dude playing out of the "tired and old" playbook...waaaaaaaaaaahhhh...and nobody gives me credit for my war stance a a state senator ......whhhyyyyyyy??
"Give me a break" and "If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen." Two best lines of the campaign so far. This article is why weenies don't become Presidents but end up in the ash heap of America's discarded Democrat nominees.
This is the same Obama who just threatened "McCain doesn't know who he's messing with!".
What kind of gangsta street rap is that?!!
Is this the kind of gangsta street president we're going to have? Is that how he's going to deal with world leaders?
The real Obama is showing through as he comes under pressure.
Mcain should not presume to be president. He willfully went agaisnt our government and spoke out of turn. Okay he spoke tough now what The Russians has called our bluff and now we look like chumps. To back Mcain couldnt foresee that would be the outcome to his bravado. Lastly how is he brave old men dont fight wars young men fight wars because old men cant get along.
Time is over.
McCain, too old to lead.
Sarah Palin!
Wise keeper and a McCain’s 7 houses protector.
Too young and full of lack of experience to lead.
Sarah Palin = Bush and Big oil companies,
McCain = Personal interest, first.
The US interests, after!
McCain’s 7 houses before,
The US, after!
By choosing the novice Sarah Palin as his running mate,
McCain is giving us a proof of his real lack of wisdom, judgement, vision
and understanding of the American people’s needs.
Merely a response to the posts:
Politics is politics, and it is naive for anyone to think that one side is using a "smear" campaign while the other side is not. If you listen to everything that is said, perhaps you should try to be more critical. Regardless of who wins the election, there will always be broken promises and disappointments. This is the nature of politics--please as many people as possible while angering the fewest.
Completely discarding or blindly advocating the current foreign policy without evaluating its advantages or disadvantages is not only irrational but unproductive. Simply put, keep what works and change what does not work. Just because Bush made mistakes does not mean that a completely opposite stance is required to make meaningful changes.
The war in Iraq is and will always be the greatest blunder of the Bush administration. I do not deny this statement, but once a mistake has been made, is it not our duty to do whatever we can to correct or take responsibility for the injustices that have occurred? Let's start a war in a country, then leave them in ruins to sort out a mess that the US created. Sound reasonable?
My suggestion? Follow that little voice in your head.
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
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