Obama: "VAST MAJORITY OF BUSH NOMINEES ARE IN THE MAINSTREAM AND I GIVE HIM CREDIT FOR THAT"

:wow::wow::wow::wow::wow::wow::wow:

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/01/obama-in-2001-r.html

“The proof in the pudding is looking at the treatment of the other Bush nominees," Obama said. "I mean for the most part, I for example do not agree with a missile defense system, but I dont think that soon-to-be-Secretary Rumsfeld is in any way out of the mainstream of American political life. And I would argue that the same would be true for the vast majority of the Bush nominees, and I give him credit for that.

:wow:

What was the roll call on Rummy, anyway? He was one of the less controversial nominees in 01.

Edit: According to that article, not a single Senator opposed him.

But Obama's 2001 position is hardly scary, shocking, worthy of the draw-drop icon, or somehow demonstrative that he's not qualified to be president in 2008.

Feingold did not object to Rumsfeld. Wellstone did not object to Rumsfeld. (For that matter, Clinton and Edwards didn't either.)

Bush's nominees, excepting Ashcroft, were largely outside the mainstream?

THEY'RE THE ENEMY OBAMA. OMFG!

:eyes:

:wow:

beginning.

You know, back before 9/11, before Afghanistan, before Iraq, before the warmongering and war on terror, back when Rumsfeld was trying to make the army faster, lighter, and more high-tech. You remember the Revolution in Military Affairs? We're going to become a small, light, highly-mobile army for pinpoint peacekeeping?

I supported Rumsfeld's nomination in 2001, and I was bitterly opposed to Bush. Rumsfeld promised to gut the bloated, Cold-War-Era behemoth and replace it with an army suited to Somalia, Kosovo, and the like--you know, the wars it looked like we'd be fighting back in 2001. Then came 9/11 and he turned into a monster.

I guess this is one of the times when experience would matter.

the "Washington insiders".

to make the war(s) possible.
Obama's judgment is not as good as some want to believe.

:eyes:

judgment is any better. Outside of his missile shield idea, Rumsfeld was not a controversial nominee. And was confirmed unanimously.

I do not disagree with that vote. Ashcroft was the big confirmation at that time, and Rumsfeld was and the consensus of the Senate at the time. at the time, and I would not attack HIllary on voting to confirm.


Thing is, there a dozens of reasons I prefer Sen. Obama. Judgment is only one, and I still don't think you've shown me that Hillary is better in that area. By the way, Obama isn't anti-war. He was against THIS war.

is based on being anti war and having better judgment than HRC. Looks like BHO does not.

I agreed with the Rumsfeld nomination. I did not agree with the IWR. There is the difference between Hillary and Obama/myself.

that he may have voted for the IWR - after all, it was in the mainstream to do so.

out against DR.

interpretation.

time is not a peacenik like Dennis Kucinich. I know it's hard for your binary little brain to comprehend.

It just boggles the mind that people gobble this up and see in Obama what they want to believe.

every issue. I still have no idea what his beliefs are.

This just cements it further for me.

I want a candidate that will punch the lights out on the GOP.

And I haven't been convinced Obama is going to be tough to the GOP.

"Evidence" my ass.

:)

meaningless

People like Rummy and Cheney were not always this hardcore .....but here we are.

Rumsfeld and Cheney haven't changed in two decades. They've been involved with the Friedman school since Nixon. :crazy:

who thinks that Rumsfeld "turned bad" .... come on, he hasn't changed.

he was proposing he take the Pentagon and in the stances he was proposing. If you don't see that, you were not remotely following the military.

While he remained interventionist throughout, early Rumsfeld was in favor of quick military actions, and opposed to prolonged occupations. In fact, it was his antipathy towards nation-building that led him to fuck up Iraq as bad as he did; he wanted to move on and move on quickly.

In addition, his preferred "target" changed several times. He was obsessed over China at first; after 9/11 he shifted his focus to Afghanistan, then Iraq, then Syria/Iran, then back to Iraq. Obama explicitly disagreed with Rumsfeld's hardline stance on China, here vocalized as opposition to his missile shield.

It is notable that Obama *did* oppose the only way in which Rumsfeld was at the time expressing aggressive tendencies.

:wow: The PNAC/Rumsfeld agenda was the FP agenda in the early Bush years.

Third, I already talked about his influence in FP goals in my post, which you obviously did not read.

FP was more Feith, Pearle, and Wolfowitz's bag, and even they didn't "set" FP; they were in constant struggles with State. He did have some influence, and I already stated what influences he had and how his stances changed in those regards.

so full of rage that she angrily voted to confirm Rumsfeld...
just like everyone else in the Senate.

forgot to put in that relevant information. These remarks were made in the context of Obama's rejection of Ashcroft when he was nominated in early 2001.

Do you even have one gram of shame? Forget I asked. It's you. the merkymuck.

Rumsfeld was confirmed on a simple voice vote, so I gather there wasn't much opposition to him at the time.

http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/six_column_table/Bush_cabinet.htm

But nonetheless Clinton supporters: spare me.

Rummy was NOT out of the "mainstream of American political life" at the time.

that WAS the mainstream after Rudy-Day

do you not fucking read ENGLISH?

you need the following:

1. A job (IF you are qualified to do anything)
2. A girlfriend/boyfriend/blow-up doll
3. CLEAN YOUR ROOM! Your mom is getting pissed off and calling me hourly

.

:spray:

burn.
:)

I just posted something you'll love- Linc Chafee SLAMS Hilly in his new book.

Love the false outrage.

The weird thing is he's doing this for a woman who's been accused of being to cosy to Republicans herself.

good agitators only have to post the same thing once.

What does that make you think of Hillary?

http://archives.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/stories/01/29/hillary.nominees/

You are a joke. Your act is so tired.

Uh, WTF??!!!

You Shillbots sure like to repeat lies a lot.

So many Obama supporters were quick to criticize John Edwards for changing his earlier positions and apologizing --claiming Obama had been right from the start.

Well get ready... Repubs have an entire book full of quotes just like this one which Obama will have to change position on and issue an apology.

It will become a regular occurrence....

of rejecting Ashcroft in early 2001. Context is everything and keeping your mind just a tiny bit open is helpful- not that I particulary care whether you live in a dark and airless place.

it gives him "hits" to his ABC Site so he get's "perks on his job." What else is new with ABC and Tapper. They love to go for the jugular knowing the "Progressives" will post his shit everywhere as evididence about Obama's Reagonesque sympathies.

We shouldn't bite the bait. Play the Game.

for a vast majority of Amurikkkans and the rest of the world. Frankly, sounds like someone has got their thumb up their own ass.

were confirming Bush's nominees by voice vote.

December 7, 2000.

meaning Rumsfeld was clearly "in the mainstream."

days of the Gipper, I stand by my ignorant, stupid, naive moniker for each and every Dem voting to confirm Rummy.

"gifted" even.

to get Progressives over to his ABC Blog...to get us going on this? Give us a Break. Folks here aren't stupid we know what Obama's about...and everyone LOVES HIM, JAKE! Get OFF IT!

"So I don’t want to be pegged as being far left simply because I find certain aspects in John Ashcroft’s record to be divisive or offensive," Obama continued. "I think it’s legitimate for me to raise that. As I said before, if he brought before us a nominee who didn’t agree with me on affirmative action and yet said that, you know, I do think that and showed a history for showing regard and concern for racial justice, if he came before us and said I oppose a woman’s right to choose, or I oppose abortion, I find it religiously offensive, and yet I do respect, for example, the notion that we shouldn’t be solving these things with violence, historically, if that had been what was said, then I don’t think I would object. And I think that’s a fair position to take.”

...says the sentence after the one you cherry-picked.

:thumbsdown:

"Discussing his opposition to Attorney General nominee John Ashcroft, Obama praised newly-elected President Bush's new nominee for Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld.

“The proof in the pudding is looking at the treatment of the other Bush nominees," Obama said. "I mean for the most part, I for example do not agree with a missile defense system, but I dont think that soon-to-be-Secretary Rumsfeld is in any way out of the mainstream of American political life. And I would argue that the same would be true for the vast majority of the Bush nominees, and I give him credit for that.

"So I don’t want to be pegged as being far left simply because I find certain aspects in John Ashcroft’s record to be divisive or offensive," Obama continued. "I think it’s legitimate for me to raise that. As I said before, if he brought before us a nominee who didn’t agree with me on affirmative action and yet said that, you know, I do think that and showed a history for showing regard and concern for racial justice, if he came before us and said I oppose a woman’s right to choose, or I oppose abortion, I find it religiously offensive, and yet I do respect, for example, the notion that we shouldn’t be solving these things with violence, historically, if that had been what was said, then I don’t think I would object. And I think that’s a fair position to take."

Ashcroft and Norton were voted against.

Obama was referring to the same ones when he said "majority were in the mainstream".

Do you do ANY research or do you just post what the Clinton campaign E-mails you and then you get your check a couple of days later?

I'm sure as hell not.

Ashcroft in early 2001. You do know that your darling little Hilly voted for all but 2 of bushie's appointments, don't you? Fucking hypocrish is sick making.

I should note that this video clip did not come to me from the Clinton campaign or anyone affiliated with her operation -- though I suspect it may be something her campaign tries to use against Obama, to paint him as insufficiently Democratic.

The underlying question that this clip raises with me is -- what else is there about Obama that we don't know about? What other clips? What other comments?

Obama is on the cusp of doing well on Super Duper Tuesday and has still never had a negative TV ad run against him, and it seems clear that Hillary Clinton is correct in her implication -- he has not been fully "vetted."

There's a lot voters -- and the media -- do not know about him.

it's not just one thing, it's all the little ones that add up.

it all adds up.

i don't feel like deciphering code.

don't they?

quote, which is Pre-Rumsfield, and I'll carry your water over the hill. Good luck.

Shameless hypocrite, absolutely shameless.

It's shameless spam, but you do manage to find the worst, most damning quotes.

"Obama praised newly-elected President Bush's new nominee for Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld. ... 'I don't think that soon-to-be-Secretary Rumsfeld is in any way out of the mainstream of American political life.' " LOL. Clinton should employ you for oppositional research.

I've learned something from the spammers, annoying though they are. Obama did say that, though it was back in 2001. By itself, nothing too horrible. But when you combine it w/Obama's more recent statements regarding Reagan, uniting w/Republicans, shaking hands w/Bush, etc. a definite pattern starts to appear.

may have ever had, spammers. Marie26 salutes your efficiency.

got to give them that. There should be a limit to how many threads someone can start, but if they're determined to spam, I prefer OP's w/some information over "OMG! I CAN'T TAKE THIS COUNTRY ANYMORE!" It'd be less obnoxious they'd just start their own "thread for the week" though, and keep kicking it w/their new attacks/links - kinda like a blog that people can choose to read or avoid.

How is she any better?

I was for Edwards. IMO both Obama & Clinton are corporate enablers, but Clinton is more upfront about it.

Then why does she have so many people fooled?

He's a friggin' spineless coward.

doesn't support.

Some other candidates would have been wise to learn that lesson.

He gives credit to bush for his nominees?:puke:

Oh right. 2. One of them being Ashcroft, who Obama opposed.
Not like you would actually, like, bother to read the context of the quote.

McCain jokes "Why is Chelsea so Ugly?" That would win the election for Democrats

Bill Clinton: John McCain and Hillary are 'very close'


Not that's jaw-dropping!