Obama regrets saying soldiers' lives 'wasted'
Apologizes for remark in Iowa campaign stop
February 13, 2007
BY LYNN SWEET Sun-Times Columnist
DURHAM, N.H. -- In his first stumble, White House hopeful Barack Obama on Monday took back words from the day before, when he said the lives of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq were "wasted."
Following his Springfield launch on Saturday, Obama wrapped up a three-day swing in the key primary states of Iowa and New Hampshire, ending at a University of New Hampshire rally where he assailed the "trivialization of politics" where "it is all about who makes a gaffe."
In this case, that would be Obama, the Illinois Democrat.
During his first press conference as a presidential candidate at Iowa State University, Obama, discussing his opposition to the Iraq war, said the war "should have never been authorized, and should have never been waged, and on which we've now spent $400 billion, and have seen over 3,000 lives of the bravest young Americans wasted.''
He immediately realized he made a mistake, he later told a reporter. Even the most severe war critics in Congress have been very careful to praise U.S. troops and say nothing that could upset mourning families.
Obama, in an interview with the Des Moines Register right afterward, told the paper, ''I was actually upset with myself when I said that, because I never use that term,'' he said. ''Their sacrifices are never wasted. . . . What I meant to say was those sacrifices have not been honored by the same attention to strategy, diplomacy and honesty on the part of civilian leadership that would give them a clear mission."
By Monday, reporters covering Obama making his first visit as a presidential candidate in New Hampshire, asked Obama, campaigning in a Nashua home, if military families deserved an apology.
"Well as I said, it is not at all what I intended to say, and I would absolutely apologize if any of them felt that in some ways it had diminished the enormous courage and sacrifice that they'd shown. You know, and if you look at all the other speeches that I've made, that is always the starting point in my view of this war.''
At a rally in the gym at the university here -- not quite the stemwinder Obama delivered for University of Illinois at Chicago students on Sunday night -- Obama made a similar point about the Iraq war deaths, talking about the need to "bring that war to a close."
Those who died, he said, were "extraordinarily brave soldiers."
The first presidential election for me was the '52. I was eight years old and DDE had come to Chicago and their motorcade took them along a street close to our house. Along with my Mom, we stood and waved and thought it was great to actually see a man who could become president. I also remember going to the polling place with her that November in the basement of a home in our neighborhood. Yes, they had paper ballots. She voted for Ike, my Dad voted for Stevenson.
Sorry to go off topic, but wouldn't it be great if we could read about the gaffes that some of our great presidents have made while campaigning. Certainly, it had to have happened. No one is perfect and that is my point. We are all human. Obama did not mean that the soldier's lives were wasted. Joe Biden didn't mean that black people are dirty. Their statements are taken so literally and left on their own or twisted into whatever the media wants it to be.
YIF
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dithersPosted:
Wed Feb 14, 2007 8:00 am
And Trent Lott probably didn't mean what his remarks about Strom Thurmond were twisted into.
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dithersPosted:
Wed Feb 14, 2007 8:04 am
The Ever-'Present' Obama
Barack has a along track record of not taking a stand.
BY NATHAN GONZALES
Wednesday, February 14, 2007 12:01 a.m. EST
Finally and officially, Barack Obama is running for president. His symbolic announcement, in the Land of Lincoln, called for a new era in politics. Obama downplayed his thin federal experience while championing his record on the state and local level, and he talked about the need to change Washington, set priorities, and "make hard choices."
"What's stopped us is the failure of leadership, the smallness of our politics--the ease with which we're distracted by the petty and trivial, our chronic avoidance of tough decisions," Obama said in his announcement speech. But a closer look at the presidential candidate's record in the Illinois Legislature reveals something seemingly contradictory: a number of occasions when Obama avoided making hard choices.
While some conservatives and Republicans surely will harp on what they call his "liberal record," highlighting applicable votes to support their case, it's Obama's history of voting "present" in Springfield--even on some of the most controversial and politically explosive issues of the day--that raises questions that he will need to answer. Voting "present" is one of three options in the Illinois Legislature (along with "yes" and "no"), but it's almost never an option for the occupant of the Oval Office.
We aren't talking about a "present" vote on whether to name a state office building after a deceased state official, but rather about votes that reflect an officeholder's core values.
For example, in 1997, Obama voted "present" on two bills (HB 382 and SB 230) that would have prohibited a procedure often referred to as partial birth abortion. He also voted "present" on SB 71, which lowered the first offense of carrying a concealed weapon from a felony to a misdemeanor and raised the penalty of subsequent offenses.
In 1999, Obama voted "present" on SB 759, a bill that required mandatory adult prosecution for firing a gun on or near school grounds. The bill passed the state Senate 52-1. Also in 1999, Obama voted "present" on HB 854 that protected the privacy of sex-abuse victims by allowing petitions to have the trial records sealed. He was the only member to not support the bill.
In 2001, Obama voted "present" on two parental notification abortion bills (HB 1900 and SB 562), and he voted "present" on a series of bills (SB 1093, 1094, 1095) that sought to protect a child if it survived a failed abortion. In his book, the "Audacity of Hope," on page 132, Obama explained his problems with the "born alive" bills, specifically arguing that they would overturn Roe v. Wade. But he failed to mention that he only felt strongly enough to vote "present" on the bills instead of "no."
And finally in 2001, Obama voted "present" on SB 609, a bill prohibiting strip clubs and other adult establishments from being within 1,000 feet of schools, churches, and daycares.
If Obama had taken a position for or against these bills, he would have pleased some constituents and alienated others. Instead, the Illinois legislator-turned-U.S. senator and, now, Democratic presidential hopeful essentially took a pass.
Some of these bills may have been "bad." They may have included poison pills or been poorly written, making it impossible for Obama to support them. They may have even been unconstitutional. When I asked the Obama campaign about those votes, they explained that in some cases, the Senator was uncomfortable with only certain parts of the bill, while in other cases, the bills were attempts by Republicans simply to score points.
But even if that were the case, it doesn't explain his votes. The state legislator had an easy solution if the bills were unacceptable to him: he could have voted against them and explained his reasoning.
Because it takes affirmative votes to pass legislation in the Illinois Senate, a "present" vote is tantamount to a "no" vote. A "present" vote is generally used to provide political cover for legislators who don't want to be on the record against a bill that they oppose. Of course, Obama isn't the first or only Illinois state senator to vote "present," but he is the only one running for President of the United States.
While these votes occurred while Obama and the Democrats were in the minority in the Illinois Senate, in the "Audacity of Hope" (page 130), Obama explained that even as a legislator in the minority, "You must vote yes or no on whatever bill comes up, with the knowledge that it's unlikely to be a compromise that either you or your supporters consider fair and or just."
Obama's "present" record could hurt him in two very different ways in his bid to win the Democratic presidential nomination and, ultimately, the White House. On one hand, those votes could anger some Democrats, even liberals, because he did not take a strong enough stand on their issues. On the other hand, his votes could simply be portrayed by adversaries as a failure of leadership for not being willing to make a tough decision and stick by it.
Obama is one of the most dynamic and captivating figures in American politics at this time, and he has put together an excellent campaign team. He clearly is a factor in the race for the Democratic nomination in 2008.
But as Democrats--and Americans--are searching for their next leader, the Illinois senator's record, and not just his rhetoric, will be examined under a microscope. As president, Obama will be faced with countless difficult decisions on numerous gray issues, and voting "present" will not be an option. He will need to explain those "present" votes as a member of the Illinois Legislature if he hopes to become America's commander-in-chief.
And Trent Lott probably didn't mean what his remarks about Strom Thurmond were twisted into.
I think that you are right, and I also think that his undoing came from his own party.
YIF
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FashionistaPosted:
Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:35 pm
Obama Says U.S. Ready for a Black Leader
By JIM DAVENPORT (Associated Press Writer)
From Associated Press
February 17, 2007 8:48 PM EST
ORANGEBURG, S.C. - White House hopeful Barack Obama, taking a fellow black lawmaker to task, said Saturday voters are ready to elect a black president.
"At every turn in our history, there's been somebody who said we can't," the Democratic senator from Illinois told a nearly all-black audience of about 2,000 at Claflin University.
"Some people said we can't do this, we can't do that, so we shouldn't even try. If I have your support, if I have your energy and involvement and commitment and ideas, then I'm here to tell you, 'Yes we can.'"
The comments drew the loudest ovation during a question-and-answer session in his first campaign swing through South Carolina, an early voting state.
The first-in-the-South contest here is seen as a test of candidates' abilities to reach black voters. Half of the state's Democratic primary voters are black.
Obama responded to comments this past week by Democratic state Sen. Robert Ford of Charleston, who helped mobilize black voters for former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards in 2004, but has switched to Hillary Rodham Clinton in the 2008 presidential race.
Ford said Tuesday that Obama, a first-term senator, has much to prove. "The media made this guy bigger than life," Ford said. "This guy isn't tested and they made him a rock star."
Ford said one reason he was supporting Clinton, the New York senator, is that he is skeptical Obama can win the presidency and worries his nomination could hurt other Democratic candidates.
"Every Democrat running on that ticket next year would lose - because he's black and he's top of the ticket. We'd lose the House and the Senate and the governors and everything," Ford said.
Ford drew widespread criticism for his comment and later apologized.
U.S. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., introduced Obama, saying "Run, Barack, run."
"Obama is able to run today because Rosa Parks sat down," Clyburn said. "He is able to run today because Septima Clark stood up."
Parks, in 1955, refused to give up her bus seat to a white man in Montgomery, Ala., sparking a mass boycott by thousands, mainly black women domestic workers who had long filled the buses' back seats.
Clark was an educator and activist for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People decades before the nation's attention turned to racial equality.
Clyburn says he is not endorsing a primary candidate.
State Democratic Party Chairman Joe Erwin tells candidates the race is open and the black vote is not monolithic.
Darcel Lancaster, an 18-year-old Claflin freshman, spent nearly two hours waiting in the morning's chill to be the first in line to see Obama. The biology major said she wouldn't commit to Obama's campaign.
"I'm going to look more into others," she said.
She doesn't expect him to win every black vote - including hers.
"Some people think he's not black enough," Lancaster said. If she picked Obama, it wouldn't be because of his race, she said. "He's not full black," Lancaster said.
U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut spoke earlier Saturday at a Richland County Democratic Party breakfast to a crowd of less than 100.
Both Dodd and Obama had to shorten their South Carolina visits to get back to Washington where they voted for a Senate resolution opposing sending more U.S. troops to Iraq. The nonbinding measure fell four votes short.
Later Saturday, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine of Virginia endorsed Obama's candidacy.
"Just the opportunities we have had to work together, my sense of where the nation is and what the nation needs makes me believe that the senator is the right candidate," Kaine said at a news conference with Obama outside Virginia's Executive Mansion in Richmond.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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FashionistaPosted:
Fri Feb 23, 2007 8:06 pm
Obama Ridicules Cheney's Iraq Comments
By KELLEY SHANNON (Associated Press Writer)
From Associated Press
February 23, 2007 6:15 PM EST
AUSTIN, Texas - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama ridiculed Vice President Dick Cheney on Friday for saying Britain's decision to pull troops from Iraq is a good sign that fits with the strategy for stabilizing the country.
Obama, speaking at a massive outdoor rally in Austin, Texas, said British Prime Minister Tony Blair's decision this week to withdraw 1,600 troops is a recognition that Iraq's problems can't be solved militarily.
"Now if Tony Blair can understand that, than why can't George Bush and Dick Cheney understand that?" Obama asked thousands of supporters who gathered in the rain to hear him. "In fact, Dick Cheney said this is all part of the plan (and) it was a good thing that Tony Blair was withdrawing, even as the administration is preparing to put 20,000 more of our young men and women in.
"Now, keep in mind, this is the same guy that said we'd be greeted as liberators, the same guy that said that we're in the last throes. I'm sure he forecast sun today," Obama said to laughter from supporters holding campaign signs over the heads to keep dry. "When Dick Cheney says it's a good thing, you know that you've probably got some big problems."
A spokeswoman for Cheney, traveling with him in Australia, said they had no comment on Obama's remarks.
Cheney told ABC News earlier this week that Blair's announcement was good news, calling it an affirmation that parts of Iraq have been stabilized.
Obama's Austin appearance was part of a campaign swing across the country to raise money for his two-week old candidacy and build his reputation nationally.
While in Texas, Obama raised money in Houston Thursday night, where he said he'd like to see an end to the "tit-for-tat" that dominates politics.
The Obama and Clinton campaigns fired off dueling press releases this week over a top Hollywood donor who was a supporter of Bill Clinton but is backing Obama in this race.
Obama told the Austin crowd that they should try to recruit their friends to support his campaign. "I want you to tell them, 'It's time for you to turn off the TV and stop playing GameBoy,'" Obama said. "We've got work to do."
Tickets to the rally were free, but Obama asked the attendees to give even $5 or $10. "I don't want to have to raise money in Hollywood all the time," he said.
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dithersPosted:
Thu Aug 02, 2007 1:56 pm
I think Obama's campaign is beginning to implode. Too many missteps on the foreign policy scene in recent days beginning with his tiff with Hillary during the last debate over what she describes as irresponsibility and naivete on his part after he said he would be willing to meet leaders of rogue states like Cuba, North Korea and Iran without conditions.
Then a day or so ago he said that as commander in chief he would remove troops from Iraq and put them "on the right battlefield in Afghanistan and Pakistan." He said he would send at least two more brigades to Afghanistan.
He warned Pakistani President Musharraf that he must do more to shut down terrorist operations in his country and evict foreign fighters under an Obama presidency, or Pakistan will risk a U.S. troop invasion and losing hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. military aid.
Despite any shortcomings on Pakistan's part it is not a good option IMO to threaten sending uninvited troops into one of the few Middle Eastern countries we can count among our allies. I also can't imagine the rabid anti-war extreme left-wing of his party would be too wild about the idea.
And now today he told an AP reporter that he would not use nuclear weapons 'in any circumstance'... 'I think it would be a profound mistake for us to use nuclear weapons in any circumstance,' Obama said, with a pause, 'involving civilians' Then he quickly added, 'Let me scratch that. There's been no discussion of nuclear weapons. That's not on the table'...
So what's it going to be? Sounds as if he spoke out on something that his handlers hadn't laid out ahead of time for him.
He's starting to sound wet behind the ears - as well he should since he is.
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paxPosted:
Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:27 am
Sen. Barack Obama used a question during a campaign event Saturday to explain his unusual approach to politics.
“How do we get rid of that huge divisiveness in this country?,” a voter asked Obama in Anderson, Indiana. “The president sets the tone,” the Illinois senator said before explaining the bipartisan approach he’d take if elected to the White House. But, I’m also going to try to show this during the course of the campaign,” he added. “Sometimes you take some hits. Even during this campaign, I’ve been taking some hits.”
“One of the things that I learned in the school yard was: the folks that are talking tough all the time, they’re not always that tough. If you’re really tough, you’re not always looking to try to start a fight. If you’re really tough, sometimes you just walk away. If you’re really tough, you just save it for when you really need it,” Obama said.
“I’m not interested in fighting people just for the sake of scoring political points.” “If I’m going to fight somebody it’s going to be fighting over the American people and what they need.”
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FashionistaPosted:
Tue May 06, 2008 11:20 am
No free lunch or breakfast for Obama
Democratic presidential hopeful, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., right, is reflected in the mirror as
he greets a diner at Four Seasons Family Restaurant in Greenwood, Ind., Tuesday, May 6, 2008,
as voters in both Indiana and North Carolina crowd polling places Tuesday for the states'
primary elections. Jae C. HongFrom Associated Press
May 06, 2008 10:24 AM EDT
GREENWOOD, Ind. - There are no free lunches in politics. Barack Obama may have learned that about breakfasts as well when he stopped by the Four Seasons Family Restaurant on Tuesday for some last-minute politicking.
On the day of primary elections in Indiana and North Carolina, Obama trolled for last-minute undecided votes in this Indianapolis suburb.
"Take this, we'll seal the deal," a man in a booth eating breakfast with three male companions told the Illinois senator as they chatted about the election. He held up their breakfast check. Agreeing, Obama snatched the bill quickly.
"I've got your check," Obama said.
The man, Steve Czajkowski, 39, tried to grab it back, telling Obama he was only joking and that he didn't expect the presidential candidate to pay for their breakfasts. But Obama persisted and walked off grasping the check firmly.
Czajkowski, who told reporters the check totaled about $25, said, "I like his message. I like the way he's running his campaign."
But had Obama won his vote? Well, not exactly, said Czajkowski, who said he working as pastor at the Greenwood Community Church,
"I'm Canadian," he said.
---
Compiled by Tom Raum
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
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paxPosted:
Tue Aug 05, 2008 9:34 am
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Location: Wish You Were Here
paxPosted:
Thu Aug 14, 2008 11:37 am
A positive ad. More uplifting than the negative ads McCain is running during the Olympics, imo.
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