Do you have trouble maintaining an election?

[Reni]

I found out how he feels about Muslims all over the world, "“In the wake of 9/11, my meetings with Arab and Pakistani Americans … have a more urgent quality, for the stories of detentions and FBI questioning and hard stares from neighbors have shaken their sense of security and belonging,” he laments. “I will stand with them should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.”

 

Um no, he is talking about United States citizens being indiscriminately targeted because of their religious/cultural heritage and ethnic background.

[tugmoose]

No, it's pretty fucking easy.

 

I found out his father, stepfather, brother and grandfather were Muslims.

 

I found out he spent 2 years at a Muslim school in Indonesia.

 

I found a quote from his book,

[Spawn's dad]

Maybe it's because I don't spend much time here anymore, but it seems pretty clear that Jack is doing a fine job of yanking yr'all's chains.

[jakobnicholas]

I'm not saying I personally have a problem with Barack's Muslim background.

 

But if any of you think it's not going to be a problem...perception-wise....to many not-so-informed and Christian moderate Americans, well, you all are HUGELY mistaken.

[MrRain422]

How many of those people were going to vote Dem anyway?

[Mr. Kinsley]

Unfortunately, jakob makes a good point. There are a ton of really, really dumb people in America. Enough that when given a choice, we opted for W... twice.*

 

I read his post not as his views, but pointing out how low conservatives will go.

[jakobnicholas]

Unfortunately, jakob makes a good point. There are a ton of really, really dumb people in America. Enough that when given a choice, we opted for W... twice.*

 

I read his post not as his views, but pointing out how low conservatives will go.

 

 

What?!

 

It has nothing to do with what Conservatives will do or not do. Seriously, do you not agree that there will be some, (rightly or wrongly), who will be a little nervous about voting in a candidate who has a family history of being Muslim?

 

And I think it would be awesome if some day in America, the land of the free and opportunity for all, had a black President. But are some of you that thick to realize there is still a segment of America....mainly older Americans.....who will not cast a vote for a black President?

 

I just think Obama has a LOT going against him to win.

 

Of course, the Democrats will allude to McCain's age being a factor.....which will be funny. I guess it's OK to discriminate against age, but not race or religion.

 

 

If Obama wins and were to run against, say, Giulliani or Romney or Huckabee.....Democrats could feel better, because it would be a true Democrat against a right-leaning Republican. But I'm guessing there will be at least 20 percent of the population who are undecided.....and when behind the voting curtain, will feel safer voting for a moderate to left Republican McCain over a liberal Democrat who has written about his sympathy for the Muslim world.

 

 

As for dumb Americans voting for Bush, I blame the Democrats for putting forth dull, boring, "I'm smarter than you" candidates like Al Gore....holy crap was he a stick in the mud!

[cryptique]

It has nothing to do with what Conservatives will do or not do. Seriously, do you not agree that there will be some, (rightly or wrongly), who will be a little nervous about voting in a candidate who has a family history of being Muslim?

His father was a non-practicing Muslim. Obama himself was never a Muslim.

 

I understand what you're saying, and there certainly will be a segment of the population who will never vote for Obama for this and other reasons -- but in the vast majority of cases, those people weren't going to vote for Obama in the first place. I don't think his thin family connection to Islam (through a father he never really knew who wasn't much of a Muslim himself to begin with) won't turn out to be a major issue for Obama.

 

Hillary would have far higher obstacles to overcome in the general election, though most of them aren't her fault. A lot of people actually believe that she's had people killed. She's been a favorite punching bag of right-wing pundits since 1992, surpassed only by her husband. The mere mention of her name raises the hackles of a huge chunk of the electorate. There likely are thousands of people (tens of thousands? hundreds of thousands?) who wouldn't normally bother to vote at all but who would make a point of coming out to vote against Hillary.

 

Yes, Obama faces a struggle against the right-wing propagandists ... but what Democratic candidate wouldn't? The right has perfected the arts of political spin and character assassination, and really, their media blitz is the only thing that's going to make the 2008 presidential race competitive. If the voters were given an objective, side-by-side look at the Republican and Democratic nominees and their positions on the issues, the Democratic nominee would win in a landslide.

[bobbob1313]

If the voters were given an objective, side-by-side look at the Republican and Democratic nominees and their positions on the issues, the Democratic nominee would win in a landslide.

 

Ok.

[MrRain422]

It's true, this time around. Did you see the percentage of McCain's voters on Super Tuesday who identified themselves as being against the war, but then chose McCain as the best candidate to represent their views? It's clear that there's a lot of misinformation out there.

[cryptique]

Ok.

Polls have shown for years now that the electorate strongly favors the Democratic agenda. But that's not really what we elect people on -- look at the presidential race. Hillary's a cast-iron bitch, Obama's inexperienced, McCain's hotheaded, Romney's a Mormon ... there are a lot of people who don't care about issues or even party affiliation -- they vote for the candidate they like the best. That's why there was all that bullshit about Dubya being the candidate people would rather sit down and have a beer with. Fine, but is that a reason to vote for someone for president? Sadly, for a lot of people, it is.

 

It was obvious in 2000 who the more competent candidate was, but Gore didn't have much of a personality, so he lost. Put Obama up against McCain, and we'll see who gets the swing votes. McCain can't compete in a personality contest against Obama ... but he'd do pretty well against Hillary.

[EL the Famous]

I just think Obama has a LOT going against him to win.

 

i don't put an extreme amount of faith in polls, especially at this stage...but when you throw in that the terrorism issue is not as high as it has been in the previous contest and the aforementione polarizing figure that (right or wrong) Hilary is even to those who would consider themselves Democrats...i think you are selling him way short.

 

WASHINGTON - Democrat Barack Obama has a narrow lead over John McCain in a potential presidential matchup' date=' while Hillary Rodham Clinton is about even with the Republican front-runner, an Associated Press-Ipsos poll indicated Monday.

 

The survey is the first look at voter sentiment since last week's Super Tuesday presidential contests around the country and Mitt Romney's departure from the GOP race. Obama and Clinton are battling in a Democratic campaign that may take weeks or even months to resolve, while McCain, an Arizona senator, is the likely Republican nominee.

 

Obama, an Illinois senator, led McCain in the poll by 48 percent to 42 percent when people were asked which one they would prefer if the presidential race were held now. Clinton, a senator from New York, got 46 percent to McCain's 45 percent in their matchup.

 

The poll shows Obama leading Clinton in the race for the Democratic nomination, 46 percent to 41 percent. McCain is well ahead of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who has remained in the Republican contest, by 44 percent to 30 percent. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has 9 percent.

 

The survey was conducted from Feb. 7-10 and involved telephone interviews with 1,029 adults. It had an overall margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

 

Included were 520 Democrats, for whom the margin of sampling error was plus or minus 4.3 points, and 357 Republicans, with a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 5.2 points.[/quote']

[Duck-Billed Catechist]

i don't put an extreme amount of faith in polls, especially at this stage...but when you throw in that the terrorism issue is not as high as it has been in the previous contest and the aforementione polarizing figure that (right or wrong) Hilary is even to those who would consider themselves Democrats...i think you are selling him way short.

You just like Obama because he's your cousin.

[cryptique]

You just like Obama because he's your cousin.

I suspect that if Obama were my cousin, I would get so much ass.

[Duck-Billed Catechist]

I suspect that if Obama were my cousin, I would get so much ass.

Even if your aunt was named Stanley Dunham?

[EL the Famous]

please stop turning every thread into an RTT...and making fun of my aunt.

[jakobnicholas]

i don't put an extreme amount of faith in polls, especially at this stage...but when you throw in that the terrorism issue is not as high as it has been in the previous contest and the aforementione polarizing figure that (right or wrong) Hilary is even to those who would consider themselves Democrats...i think you are selling him way short.

 

 

I have a picture in my head of the old Coca-Cola commercial ("I'd like to teach the world to sing, in perfect harmony.....")....and there's Obama, leading a throng of people.

 

He's on a roll, for sure. He's young, attractive (some say....I agree wiht Michael Savage....he's a little Alfred E. Newman looking), and is a phenomenal speaker. Of course, noone is actually listening to what he says, nor considering the details or realistic possibilities of his plans, but right now the dude is on fire.

 

Unfortunately for Barack, it's not even Valentine's Day yet. Something tells me McCain and others will shed some unflattering light on Obama's policies.

 

 

We'll find out in November won't we?

[cryptique]

Unfortunately for Barack, it's not even Valentine's Day yet. Something tells me McCain and others will shed some unflattering light on Obama's policies.

No more so than what the Dems will be able to shed on McCain's. The man flat-out admitted that he doesn't really understand much about the economy. His ignorance may be par for the course in presidential candidate history, but to have actually said it provides a hell of a weapon for the Democratic nominee.

 

Also, the war is deeply unpopular, and McCain's inextricably tied to it. Obama's strength against McCain would come in no small part from his consistent opposition to the war.

[MrRain422]

of course, noone is actually listening to what he says, nor considering the details or realistic possibilities of his plans, but right now the dude is on fire.

 

No one, eh?

[Sir Stewart]

No one, eh?

Yeah, there are some wildly uninformed statements flowing from him (jakobnicholas).

[JUDE]

Obligatory 'Go Hillary 08' post for 2-11-08

[EL the Famous]

We'll find out in November won't we?

 

i seems so, yes.

[Reni]

I am still floored that there are people that seriously listen to Michael Savage

[bjorn_skurj]

I am still floored that there are people that seriously listen to Michael Savage

I like the sex column his brother does.

[Mr. Kinsley]

John McCain has inspired the nation!