Barack Obama for President

Started by Elven Sex Goddess, January 10, 2008, 06:20:47 PM

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Elven Sex Goddess

Has anyone else notice the gushing free pass the junior senator from Illinois has gotten from the media and press.   

Having recently moved this past year from Chicago.  I find that not much as been said or pointed on the Rezko indictments for kick backs from the government in the estimate of six million dollars.       Ties that go back to 1990 and continue between the two.   As Barack's wife worked for Rezko.    On a national level, even when the Chicago Sun-Times runs a story on such.  It is largely ignored and brushed under by the national media and pundits.

So like on a local level where the Chicago Mayor Daley is like the teflon man as those around him in his immediate circle are constantly falling under federal indictments.   This trait Barack has seemed to learn.   So then the great 'yes we can' to change.   Is actually yes were bringing the country Chicago style politics, the good ol boy patronage system.   

Sakujo

Do you have more info about the Rezko case? All I know is that Obama bought a home from him, as well as a side area, and Rezko only actually obtained the side lot the day of closing. Obama was cleared of any knowledge of Rezko's fraud in other areas, but I have no idea what those areas are or about this stuff with Obama's wife.
Quote from: TyTheDnDGuy on October 16, 2007, 07:52:07 pm
"Intelligence reports are useful only to the intelligent."
-- Robert A. Heinlein

Elven Sex Goddess

Here is the article that got me thinking. 

http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/184540,122306obama.article

I would also suggest searching on the Chicago Tribune site, also any of the Chicago Television stations.  From WLS - ABC, to WMAQ - NBC and of Course superstation WGN news. 

I do not think Barack is guilty of any wrong doing.  I am just curious as to why he gets a pass. 

VandalSavage

Quote from: Asherah on January 10, 2008, 06:34:19 PM
I do not think Barack is guilty of any wrong doing.  I am just curious as to why he gets a pass. 

He gets a pass because he is not guilty of any wrong doing.

The story went nowhere, having nowhere to go.

OldSchoolGamer

Pretty much everyone running for office has something from their past they'd rather not dwell on.

Can we sincerely claim to be any different? 

Who makes a better leader?  Someone who's lived a simon-pure, cloistered, boring life, or someone who's been around the block and actually been out into the world and tried enough things to actually make mistakes from time to time?

Next we'll probably hear Clinton and the Republicans criticizing Obama for "changing his views" on at least one major issue.  This begs the question: why is it desirable that a person permanently fix their worldview when they're in their early 20s and never modify it even in light of new experiences, expanded knowledge, and changing times? 

Apple of Eris

It only takes 20 years for a liberal to become a conservative without changing a single idea.
- Robert Wilson
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VandalSavage

Quote from: appleoferis on January 10, 2008, 11:22:34 PM
It only takes 20 years for a liberal to become a conservative without changing a single idea.
- Robert Wilson

"Wilson's great gift to us all is to have ripped the blindfold off Melpomene and given the Muse eyes."
--Arthur Holmberg

This Wilson sounds like he'd be right at home here on Elliquiy.  I know I like ripping off blindfolds for dramatic purposes.

Apple of Eris

Unfortunately, Wilson died, I'm pretty sure, last year or so. Though it'd be kind of cool to have a ghost on E.
Men are those creatures with two legs and eight hands.  ~Jayne Mansfield
To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first, then call whatever you hit the target. ~Ashleigh Brilliant

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Elven Sex Goddess

#8
Barack is a great orator, that inspires and commends the events.   Yet all I asked is why he is getting a free pass.  Not from any of his political rivals in either party.   Or the extreme focus groups of either side.   Well except for perhaps FOX.   All the other stations are giving him a free pass.  Not just in what I suggested above.  But the overwhelming NV in his senate voting record.  Where he either was absent or abstained from voting either a yea or a nay.

And the two sided immigration.

Removing Incentives to Enter Illegally

To remove incentives to enter the country illegally, we need to crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants. Barack Obama has championed a proposal with Senators Charles Grassley (R-IA), Ted Kennedy (D-MA), and Max Baucus (D-MT) to create a new employment eligibility verification system so employers could verify that their employees are legally eligible to work in the U.S., making it fair to legal workers and tougher on employers.

Yet his vote on;

Key Vote

Denying Legal Status for Immigrants Convicted of Certain Crimes

Key Vote

Denying Legal Status for Immigrants Convicted of Certain Crimes

Senator Barack Obama voted NO.

You would think both would go hand in hand. 

Or his voting record recently on abortion.  Where does he stand, it is hard to tell when he out of the three times has been NV twice. 

Senator Barack Hussein Obama Jr. (IL)

Current Office: U.S. Senate
Current District: Junior Seat
Office Seeking: President (Announced, General)
First Elected: 11/02/2004
Last Elected: 11/02/2004
Next Election: 2010
Party: Democrat
      
Abortion Issues
(Back to top)
Date    Bill Title   Vote
10/18/2007   Prohibiting Funds for Groups that Perform Abortions   NV
09/06/2007   Prohibiting U.S. Assistance for Groups that Support Coercive Abortion   NV
03/17/2005   Unintended Pregnancy Amendment   Y

I would like to point out on the last three bill above.  That Hillary had the exact same voting record.  For that matter from the time both have been in congress.  Their voting records have been fairly close.  Yet Hillary will be dissected and chopped.  While Barack seems like the teflon man. 

And finally, I would like to point out.  That through nothing has come again of the Rezko indictment regarding Barack Obama.  It is still under investigation.  I would also like to point out that nothing came out of the Star investigation regarding Hillary in the 90's that.   Yet in a country where you are innocent until proven guilty.  She has been condemned as guilty.

VandalSavage

#9
The vote in question for "Denying Legal Status for Immigrants Convicted of Certain Crimes" was on Senate Amendment 1184, introduced by John Cornyn. 

It would have prevented people who had, within the past 15 years, been affiliated with gangs, or connected with terrorism, or convicted three times of a DUI (even a misdemeanor), or had been convicted of any crime connected with a firearm (including possession), or had been convicted of an aggravated felony, or had been judged by the Department of Homeland Security to have not been a good person, or who had been convicted of a domestic abuse crime, a violent crime or violation of a restraining order, or who had committed false identification or fraud, to be permanently barred from citizenship.

It was a long list; consequently, the amendment was shot down, 51-46.



As for missing the votes on denying funding to abortion providers, I am not sure.  Those were campaign dates, I know.  Perhaps the feeling was that those amendments would be shot down for being unconstitutional - which, if one reviews them, they clearly are.

I could not say.

VandalSavage

Quote from: Asherah on January 10, 2008, 11:58:23 PM
And finally, I would like to point out.  That through nothing has come again of the Rezko indictment regarding Barack Obama.  It is still under investigation.  I would also like to point out that nothing came out of the Star investigation regarding Hillary in the 90's that.   Yet in a country where you are innocent until proven guilty.  She has been condemned as guilty.

True, there is the Starr investigation - Whitewater - which merited little.  And 'Travelgate'.  And 'Filegate'.  Cattle futures trading.  All the investigations that went, ultimately, nowhere.

I don't think there is any doubt she was a target.

But there are more recent scandals, too.  Peter Paul, for instance.  And Norman Hsu.  And all the rest of the scads of Chinese Americans who, though they make only minimum wage, somehow manage to each donate thousands to the Clinton campaign.

There is also the intimidation of the media, the control of message - look all over Google to find incidents of Clinton campaigners told they cannot talk to the press; control that Chris Matthews describes as "a little fascistic".  He is not alone in that opinion.

And then there is the repeated planting of questioners in the audience - even after she said she would never do it again, the refusal to take questions and the misrepresentation of what she had said on topics ranging from authorizing the Iraq war to the use of nuclear weapons.

All this amounts to wearing one's teflon very thin.

Lastly, I should note that I am tired of seeing the e-mail alleging that Barack Obama is a terrorist Muslim sleeper agent emanating from Clinton campaign quarters.  I thought that particularly pernicious attempt at provoking xenophobia with outright lies was over and done with when several staffers resigned over it.  Apparently not.  It is again circling the internet, sent out - surprise, surprise - the day before the New Hampshire primary.


Elven Sex Goddess

I never said the Clinton campaign was a saint.  All I asked was how come the national media does not ask the same questions or go after Barack Obama.  Why so many just jump on his bandwagon.  Why because he is the candidate of change.  Heck the rhetoric of change is the exact same message that Edwards was saying in 2004.

The two question, use the fluff question was wrong.  However, with the swift boat like atmosphere and in the last two elections.  Where the democratic candidates with honest blunders in wording were shredded by the republican machine.  It is understandable that you want to  keep a tight control around the candidate.

The third one, the email.   Where does it say it originated out of the Clinton campaign.  In truth the grievous part was the simple fact that it had been passed on.   An then the two women that were responsible were let go.

So here, is another one with Barack Obama.  This is in reference to lobbyists. 

http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/07/despite-rhetori.html 

So instead of going off and finding ten different things that Hillary or any other candidates may have done.  The simple question, is how come the national media does not run with this.  Other then sitting on the blogs.   

Actually my mistake was referencing Hillary.  The same national media has torn into Mike Huckabee.  Just grilling over every bit of his agenda on issues.  An making his religion an issue.  Yet not the same is afforded to Barack.   

kylie

I can think of a few possible reasons the media might not have dug so hard for hard questions/dirt (whichever you're really seeking) on Obama, if in fact they have not.  Or reasons they may not have chosen to launch those very busily yet.

1.  Until the first primary, it didn't seem so obvious that Obama would pull out a substantial lead.  Underdog break? 

2.  As Hillary is fond of repeating, he doesn't share her record on the national scale.  There is some risk that going after very local matters will have a greater appearance of pettiness and discrimination than tracking actions already done in the name of the White House.  There may also simply be less "presidential" dirt to dig up. 

3.  Not that this will explain every instance, but some members of the press do their homework before opening a story.  It's also possible they looked into _some_ ideas and concluded there wasn't much real substance to them, or that they would quickly be shown as false, immaterial, or irrelevant.  Doesn't reflect so well on the people asking, and makes Obama look even more saintly or unfairly treated than a consideration of positive issues would.

4.  I wonder if the Obama campaign treats the press differently than the others?  In terms of access or the way they're addressed, or the type of information they're given to work with?  Anyone?


     

Sianna

#13
QuoteSo here, is another one with Barack Obama.  This is in reference to lobbyists.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/07/despite-rhetori.html

So instead of going off and finding ten different things that Hillary or any other candidates may have done.  The simple question, is how come the national media does not run with this.  Other then sitting on the blogs.   

I think that the fact that you are giving a link to a ABC News blog on an Obama story and asking why the press isn't looking into his background is kind of cute.

rainshadow

Quote from: Asherah on January 10, 2008, 06:34:19 PM
I do not think Barack is guilty of any wrong doing.  I am just curious as to why he gets a pass. 
Another reason is because it is vastly a left-wing media and the media likes Obama. That's a pretty big reason. That, coupled with the fact that he was cleared, is a big reason as to why most people outside of Chicago don't know the details.

A more right-wing media would hit it hard if in fact there was a story to go with... but that would be a bad idea because Obama was cleared. The best that the right-wing media pundits can say is that he was investigated, but for them to hit him for something he's been cleared of would border on libel.
"The ticket to the future is always open. What happens in the future is our own responsibility." - Rem, Trigun

"Nothing says 'I hate war' like a good explosion in a populated area." -rainshadow

Moondazed

I have to say that I get pretty sick of hearing about how 'liberal' the media is.  It's profit-driven, that right there says that it's not going to offer authentic news.  As I stated in another thread... I pine for a media that offers straight facts and allows me, a relatively intelligent woman, to make up my own damned mind.
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Zakharra

Quote from: moondazed on February 17, 2008, 12:04:48 PM
I have to say that I get pretty sick of hearing about how 'liberal' the media is.  It's profit-driven, that right there says that it's not going to offer authentic news.  As I stated in another thread... I pine for a media that offers straight facts and allows me, a relatively intelligent woman, to make up my own damned mind.

Not really. Newpapers are hemorrhaging subscribers badly. Readership is down and some of the large players, NY Times, LA Times(?) have lost huge numbers. One reason is the Internet, another is the crap that they print that the readers are getting tired of. . The LA Times lost a large number in the last few years after printing stories that where blatant attacks and almost slander on people.

The editorial boards, reporters and publishers of most of the newsprint in the country is left/liberal leaning.  When new journalists are joining up to 'Make the world a better place', true news goes out the window.

Back on topic.. I think one reason the media is leaving Obama alone is they are tired of the Clintons. Who have run roughshod over the media for over 10 years.

rainshadow

Quote from: moondazed on February 17, 2008, 12:04:48 PM
I have to say that I get pretty sick of hearing about how 'liberal' the media is.  It's profit-driven, that right there says that it's not going to offer authentic news.  As I stated in another thread... I pine for a media that offers straight facts and allows me, a relatively intelligent woman, to make up my own damned mind.
Not all media is liberal though. A good portion of it is, but there are some conservative outlets as well. FOX News, for example, is heavily conservative. The point is, there is a slant depending on where you get your news, and that depends on -- you're 100% right here -- where the money is.

In terms of politics, if you want a place that will feed you the facts and let you think for yourself... CSPAN is a great place to start. Commentary there is left to a bare minimum, and in most cases nonexistent.
"The ticket to the future is always open. What happens in the future is our own responsibility." - Rem, Trigun

"Nothing says 'I hate war' like a good explosion in a populated area." -rainshadow

Rydia

Quote from: Asherah on January 10, 2008, 06:20:47 PM
Has anyone else notice the gushing free pass the junior senator from Illinois has gotten from the media and press.   

Honestly, I'd contest that point in the first place.  It's very interesting that the theme of press bias is woven through the Clinton campaign's narrative of the story thus far. There are two basic allegations: that journalists look at Obama uncritically while subjecting Hillary Clinton to microscopic scrutiny; and that we react with hair-trigger reflexes when attacks on Obama have the slightest whiff of racism but don't seem to notice, or care, when Clinton is subjected to rank sexism.

The first charge is just bogus, in my view. Like Clinton, Obama has developed position papers on all the major issues. Clinton has been able to highlight the differences between her proposals and Obama's -- for example, the fact that her plan for universal health insurance includes a mandate, whereas Obama's does not. In debates, she has had the chance to challenge his approach and defend her own. It is not the media's fault if voters do not agree with Clinton that nominating Obama would be a "leap of faith," nor is it the media's fault if she is not effective at campaigning against her opponent.

It is true that the candidates' stump speeches are different: Clinton's is about experience and preparedness, Obama's about hope and change. But journalists didn't write those speeches, campaign speechwriters did. And any reporter or commentator who failed to note that Obama is an exceptional public speaker would not be doing their job.

Reporters are busy combing through Obama's personal, professional and financial history, just as they have examined the lives of the Clintons. Obama has facilitated this process by releasing his tax returns, which Clinton has declined to do. It is not unfair to point this out.

But it wasn't the media that decided she should take for granted all those states that Barack Obama has been winning.

Finally, a A thought experiment.
Check it out.

What are you doing just reading this profile?  Say hello to the friendly Rydia.

Hunter

Quote from: Asherah on January 10, 2008, 11:58:23 PM
Barack is a great orator, that inspires and commends the events.   Yet all I asked is why he is getting a free pass.  Not from any of his political rivals in either party.   Or the extreme focus groups of either side.   Well except for perhaps FOX.   All the other stations are giving him a free pass.  Not just in what I suggested above.  But the overwhelming NV in his senate voting record.  Where he either was absent or abstained from voting either a yea or a nay.

No offence intended but my experience with Democrats is that they are more two faced than Republicians.

Jefepato

Quote from: Hunter on February 27, 2008, 07:43:06 PM
No offence intended but my experience with Democrats is that they are more two faced than Republicians.

At this point, I don't think it's possible for someone with an ounce of decency to get anywhere near the highest levels of government and stay there for any length of time, regardless of party.

NightBird

Quote from: Hunter on February 27, 2008, 07:43:06 PM
No offence intended but my experience with Democrats is that they are more two faced than Republicians.

Really? But I'm a Democrat...

Hunter

Quote from: NightBird on February 27, 2008, 07:58:54 PM
Really? But I'm a Democrat...

I meant politicians, lover.  I know exactly how two faced you aren't.   ;D  You're one of the nicer people that I know.

Sugarman (hal)

Quote from: Hunter on February 27, 2008, 08:35:32 PM
I meant politicians, lover.  I know exactly how two faced you aren't.   ;D  You're one of the nicer people that I know.

Another Hunter insert foot in mouth...  ;D
"And in the end
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NightBird

Quote from: Hunter on February 27, 2008, 08:35:32 PM
I meant politicians, lover.  I know exactly how two faced you aren't.   ;D  You're one of the nicer people that I know.

*smiles*

Thank you, dear. A girl does like to be appreciated for her better qualities.


Quote from: halspeedyrp on February 27, 2008, 08:46:33 PM
Another Hunter insert foot in mouth...  ;D

*chuckles*

That's all right. I figured, given the nature of the discussion, that he was talking about people who run for office, but it was still WAY too much to resist chiming in!