The new ‘change’ mantra: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama spoke to supporters during a rally in Manchester, N.H., Saturday. ‘For the change we need’ is his new slogan. (Chris Carlson/AP)
McCain vies with Obama over ‘change’
The campaign argument could be decided by which group of voters shows up at the polls.
By Alexandra Marks | Staff Writer/ September 14, 2008 edition
Reporter Alexandra Marks discusses the different kinds of ‘change’ that McCain and Obama represent.
Alexandra Marks
The presidential race boils down to a fierce battle over one word: change.
For most of the campaign, Democrat Barack Obama has ridden his theme of “Change we can believe in” to victory over his primary opponents and to a fairly consistent lead in the national polls.
But since the Republican convention earlier this month, John McCain has tried to rip that mantle from Senator Obama, switching his own motto from being the candidate of “experience” to the “maverick who will bring change to Washington.”
The McCain camp has also changed tactics, unapologetically going negative with campaign ads that both Republicans and Democrats have criticized for being full of distortions. It appears to be working: The race is now neck and neck, with some polls showing Senator McCain ahead.
The Obama campaign, in turn, is beginning to hit back, attacking McCain as a tired Washington insider with close ties to lobbyists and deploying Bill and Hillary Clinton on the campaign trail. The campaign has changed its motto to “For the change we need,” and it is being urged by worried Democrats to go as negative as the McCain camp has – in a way, playing by the rules of the negative playbook that Obama had said he wanted to rewrite.
The ferocity of the fight over who is the better champion of change is one more indication that 2008 could be one of those rare defining elections that ushers in a new era in American politics.
“This is a critical election and it could be a realigning one as far as the [nation’s] agenda and the nature of the electorate,” says Doug Muzzio, a political analyst at Baruch College of the City University of New York. “The election will ultimately turn on which electorate comes out to vote – the one that’s existed in the last two elections [of older conservatives] or a new generation, an electorate of younger voters, the Obama voters.”
Different definitions of ‘change’
Change is a simple word, but it has many different meanings. Each candidate is championing his own definition. McCain is casting himself as a reformer of the Washington status quo – a man who can clean up corruption and bring more competent leadership to what already exists inside the Beltway, according to Barbara True-Weber, a political analyst at Meredith College in Raleigh, N.C.
“McCain is appealing for greater competency in foreign affairs, in particular military policy, and that is certainly his strong suit,” says Professor True-Weber. “The idea is that Washington is fundamentally sound…. all it needs is some tinkering and reform and to get back to basic principles.”
Obama, on the other hand, is touting a “fundamentally different kind of change,” based on a transformation of the Washington status quo to a more global, high-tech, and efficient government, says True-Weber.
“Because of Obama’s youth and background,… he understands that the fundamental ways of communicating are changing and that the world is much more global and that there are different modes of decisionmaking. He appeals to young people because they see the world that way, too.”
But for the electorate, it can be difficult to sort out which kind of “change” each candidate represents – especially amid a hailstorm of negative campaigning. A Gallup Poll released Sept. 12 found that since the Republican convention, McCain has started to close the gap on voters’ perceptions as to which candidate “would be effective in changing the way government in Washington works.” Obama is still ahead, with 61 percent, but 54 percent of adults see McCain as an effective change agent, too. That has created some anxiety among Democrats.
“Some Democrats are apoplectic. They believe they’ve smelled the aroma of Michael Dukakis and John Kerry,” says Larry Sabato, a political analyst at the University of Virginia. “They believe Obama is making the same mistake, not fighting back hard enough and not going on the offensive.”
McCain had to usurp the change theme from Obama if he had any chance of winning, says Mr. Sabato, because more than 80 percent of people believe the United States is on the wrong track. That’s the same reason McCain has had to abandon a high-road campaign strategy and go negative, say he and other analysts.
“You can lose pretty or win ugly,” says Sabato. “Those are the choices today in American politics, and we know that the McCain campaign has chosen to win ugly.”
Negativity is a risk for McCain
But that, too, could backfire on McCain, because he has built his reputation as a “straight talker” by assailing the very style of smear tactics he’s now engaging in.
“He’s running a risk because, if anything, McCain is now probably worse than Bush [in terms of using negative tactics],” says David Bositis, a political analyst with the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in Washington.
But a large question mark also surrounds what impact Obama’s Web-based campaign will have come Nov. 4. Back in 2004, Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean also relied on registering and inspiring young new voters. Prior to the New Hampshire and Iowa primaries, his strategists were dismissing polls showing him to be losing ground, noting that many young people have only cellphones and, thus, weren’t being picked up pollsters who rely on land-line numbers. Mr. Dean never made it past the primaries.
“Dean also didn’t really have much in the way of organization, but what has been one of the most remarkable things about Obama’s campaign has been that he’s been such an incredible organizer,” says Mr. Bositis. “He’s used the Web and texting and a whole series of new techniques, so it’s hard for us to know what’s really going on.”
After his loss, Dean took over the Democratic National Committee and implemented what was at the time a controversial 50-state strategy that has revived many moribund local Democratic operations. Many Democrats now credit that in part for their successes in the 2006 midterm congressional elections.
But it’s unclear whether that change will have an impact on the presidential level.
“To quote Buffalo Springfield, for what it’s worth, ‘Something’s going on here, but it ain’t exactly clear,’ ” says Professor Muzzio.
Other analysts are skeptical that anything has really changed.
“I’ve heard it too many times: We’re registering tons of new voters, we’re changing the calculus of American politics,” says Sabato. “I’ve lived too long and I’ve heard it too often – maybe in an extremely close election it will make a difference, but I still don’t think it will win the election.”
Sabato also notes that the race for the Electoral College, which Obama has dominated for months, now appears to be tightening. “It’s looking a lot like 2004 again,” he says. But he cautions that there are at least 50 more days to go in what’s proved to be a volatile and fast-moving campaign.
Comments
2. Jean B | 09.14.08
Assuming that Obama appeals only to the younger generation is not accurate. As an age 65 American, I want to live in a country that supports peace, values people of all nationalities and faiths, supports excellence in education, works towards solving global warming by replacing CO2 producing energy sources with clean energy. I want to live in a country that values truth, compassion and brotherly love and applies its values in it interactions with all its global neighbors. The last 8 years have been extremely painful, as the country I love has resorted to whipping up fear and vengeance to solve problems rather than compassion, understanding and negotiation. I want change and I hope Obama can get the support to make it happen.
3. John | 09.14.08
It saddens me to read comments by intelligent people who seem to have forgotten that America was not founded on entitlements and welfare policies. America was built on the backs of hard-working men and women who gave their LIVES to be free from the tyranny of government.
It’s quite clear to me that Mr. Obama–and to a lesser extent, Mr. McCain–wants everyone in America to be not just EQUAL, he wants everyone to be the SAME. Excuse me for telling the truth. We are NOT the same. We are DIFFERENT.
This fundamental flaw in thinking is what is bringing America to it’s economic and spiritual knees.
5. bart | 09.14.08
Ya, the One, the One Empty, corrupted One.
Obama purchased his home with help from some felon, paying 300,000 dollars less than the market value………….
hmmmm, I do not trust Maxist, tell you the truth, they tell you they will take the money from the rich and give to the poor, you know what, they do take money from the rich, but…they will never give the money to the poor.
THEY KEEP THE MONEY TO THEMSELVES……….OR THEIR BUDDIES WHO HELP THEM….
6. Daniel | 09.14.08
Watching this race as an undecided voter.. I feel that the media is to blame for this mis information.. any intellegent individual can see that Sarah Pallin is an idiot. She is a “good old boy herself”
further if Barack would like to pull ahead perhaps he should go out and have photos of himself working out in a gym or running… John Mccain would have no comeback.. then he should go out and get all of his celebrity friends that have endorsed him and have a very photgraphic media event…
sex sells pehaps he should surround him self with alot of young men and women voters… at a few college campuses… the bottom line he needs to play the media game the same as john mccain.. shock and awe… other wise alot of very fickle folks are going to vote for the old man who could be then replaced by the barracuda as a president.. talk about grounds for impeachment…
7. James Matthew | 09.14.08
WAR IS GOOD BUSINESS AND A HUGE MONEY-MAKER
With his holdings in Halliburton and Kellogg, Brown & Root, Vice-President Cheney has become a Mega, Mult, Multi-MILIONAIRE due to contracts negotiated for the Iraq War. Bush has set himself up with Oil contracts that will bring his family Millions, if not Billions for years to come. John and Cindy McCain are worth well over $100 Million and the Washington Lobbyists LOVE them. Karl Rove has become rich beyond his wildest dreams. The Iraq War is not about defending the USA, it is about building wealth for those who are in power (ie: the Bush Family, the Cheney Family, the McCain family, the Rove family and now the Palin family). Never mind that the wealth is being built at the expense of the lives of our American soldiers. When Billions are to be made on a war, the Elite Washington Republicans can always find a way to justify to the Public why they are sending our Best and Brightest to fight and die. Watching America’s youth die is no fun for Bush, Cheney, and McCain, but it *is* necessary if wealth is to be built for their families and friends. As Dick Cheney and Karl Rove would say, “If you’re going to bake a cake, you have to break a few eggs”. Why would McCain and Palin change this system? If elected, they stand to become as rich as Bush and Cheney. And, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. If elected, McCain/Palin/Rove won’t bring change, just more of the same.
8. Glenn B. | 09.14.08
I agree with Jean B. I am not a spring chicken, nor am I a cooked goose. I want to live in a country respected for its collective reason positive effect on diplomatic relations. I travel all over Europe and the Middle East for business. In 2002-03, America was becoming loathed abroad for the aggressive, destructive policies of its administration. But now, in 2008, the American people themselves are loathed, for having re-elected in 2004 the Bush ‘regime.’ I know, because a day of travel does not go by without a colleague, new business associate, or new acquaintance overwhelming me with criticisms of American government, administrative deceit and an uneducated, ‘fat’ and lazy electorate all too happy to usher in the next round of autocrats (or plutocrats, or any other ‘crat’ you can think of)so long as its right and ability to eat junk food while watching ‘reality’ television keeps it from facing the global reality. Barack Obama IS a visionary, and for the first time in my life I’ve taken an active interest in politics, have familiarized myself with the issues, and with the characters and track records of all involved, and I feel honored to have ‘met’ in my lifetime such a bright, ‘turned on’ and present LEADER as Obama.
9. chris | 09.14.08
Anyone who actually thinks McCain will bring about any real change to Washington is delusional. This guy is just a puppet of the Right and the choice of Palin has only solidified the old Republican ideas that make the rich richer and the poor poorer all while being socially intolerant. Barack Obama is the one who will fix the economy, Barack Obama is the one who will refuse to let Big Oil influence energy policy, and Barack Obama will work to provide health care to every American. Vote for change, hope, and the future of this great nation.
Obama 08!
10. Spruce | 09.14.08
John, What you don’t get is that Republican economic policy IS what has brought this country to its knees. Deregulation of everything, poor leadership, and no oversight means that the greedy run wild. They have run wild and they have ruined it for us. Liberals believe in hard work, they pay their taxes although they critically question how those taxes (and our children’s future) have been spent enriching the defense industries and the energy companies. I hope you and other Republicans get it straight - Democratic presidents in the past 50 years have had a much lower debt/GDP ratio than Republicans (Reagan was by far the worst).
Of course, when liberals protest against their govt. they are called un-American by flag-waving conservatives who blindly follow party line instead of true patriotism, “My country, to support when right, and to correct when wrong”.
Yes, it is difficult to respect anyone who voted for Bush/Cheney twice given what they have done to our country…or to respect those who eat up the conservative trash-talking shock jocks. Why do Republicans complain so much? Why don’t they offer solutions instead of just attacking someone or some group? Why do they incite their base to denigrate the educated? I would urge Republicans politicians to start treating their base with some respect, give them information not empty phrases, not fear.
11. C. Nelson | 09.14.08
Obama continues to claim the mantle of “change”. It brings on nice happy images. So let’s see: if elected Obama would be a President with absolutely no foreign policy experience, no executive experience, and no military science knowledge or experience. He spent most of his previous adult life in the chosen company of urban terrorists, left-wing extremists, angry racist ministers, and Chicago machine politicians. Yes, he would certainly bring change, but the devil is in the details!
12. Dennis | 09.14.08
One of the reasons McCain’s campaign may appear to be “more negative” than Bush’sis that there is so much more negative to say about his opponent. Obama launched his political career, after wiping his most serious opponent’s name off the ballot, in the home of American terrorist, unremorseful cop-killer, William Ayers. He opposed a state legislative proposal outlawing infanticide with the same wording that pro-choice Senators Boxer, Feinstein, & Kennedy had all supported, and now he lies by denying what is clear in the record. When a young upstart woman pokes some fun at him in accepting her nomination to be Vice President on the McCain ticket, he calls her a liar and a pig!! And do not try to B.S. me like you liberal media friends. All you have to do is listen to his lipstick on a pig comment while his broes are laughing in the background to know that he is refering to Sarah and not a sow. Someone with pigs ears and a 20 year close relationship with a racist minister should be more careful.
13. Brad L | 09.14.08
I have admired John McCain for many years. My wife and I gave him money for his primary campaign in 2000. I have met him twice and was impressed both times. But I am very disappointed in him now. His choice for vice president struck me as ridiculous when it was announced. I suspect many people will come around to that point of view as the campaign moves forward. Worse for me, I don’t understand how he can credibly claim to be the candidate for change. Isn’t this patent nonsense? Everything he has always stood for has to do with traditionalism, not change. Why is he backing away from what he really believes? Worst of all, I can’t stand his advertising. I would have bet a lot that he would campaign in a principled and dignified way, but not even close. As I say, very disappointing . . .
14. Spruce | 09.14.08
John, What you don’t get is that Republican economic policy IS what has brought this country to its knees. Deregulation of everything, poor leadership, and no oversight means that the greedy run wild. They have run wild and they have ruined it for us. Liberals believe in hard work, they pay their taxes although they critically question how those taxes (and our children’s future) have been spent enriching the defense industries and the energy companies. I hope you and other Republicans get it straight - Democratic presidents in the past 50 years have had a much lower debt/GDP ratio than Republicans (Reagan was by far the worst).
Of course, when liberals protest against their govt. they are called un-American by flag-waving conservatives who blindly follow party line instead of true patriotism, “My country, to support when right, and to correct when wrong”.
Yes, it is difficult to respect anyone who voted for Bush/Cheney twice given what they have done to our country…or to respect those who eat up the conservative trash-talking shock jocks. Why do Republicans complain so much? Why don’t they offer solutions instead of just attacking someone or some group? Why do they incite their base to denigrate the educated? I would urge Republicans politicians to start treating their base with some respect, give them information not empty phrases, not fear.
15. Patrick | 09.14.08
3.) John
It seems that you forget what history shows. Yes, our country has certainly moved away from laissez-faire economics in favor of welfare-capitalism. But what you must also realize is that the New Deal and all of the reforms it brought ushered in prosperity that has only led the United States to become stronger. The only weak patches between then and now were during the periods when we cut welfare programs and anything else that help the poor.
Reaganomics and all of the similar succeeding cut taxes and welfare policies have only raised unemployment and weakened the ability of the consumer masses to buy. While the tax-cutting policy helps out the rich at the expense of the poor, even that would not be sustained. Without purchasing power, the rich will not be able to sustain their businesses because there will be fewer purchases.
Disturbing trends are showing us why the United States economy is slumping: since 2001, family health care premiums have risen by 78 percent while wages have risen only 19 percent. It seems that wages are relatively stagnant and are unable to keep up with the increase in supply. During the 1920s, wages were also stagnant and unable to keep up with the rising supply, one of the key ingredients for the Great Depression.
You cannot say something so cliche like “It saddens me to read comments by intelligent people who seem to have forgotten that America was not founded on entitlements and welfare policies. America was built on the backs of hard-working men and women who gave their LIVES to be free from the tyranny of government.” unless you forget the entire history of the United States and force yourself to be blind the evidence that it gives.
16. robert | 09.14.08
those first two comments were righteous. i’d vote republican if i thought they cared about anything except their pocketbooks.
go obama
17. Ben Hardy | 09.14.08
Suddenly John McCain is all about “change,” yet he is the conservative candidate and the definition of conservativism in my dictionary (Merriam Webster’s Collegiate, 1993) is “the tendency to prefer an existing or traditional situation to change.” Maybe change means “Quick, change the McCain campaign slogan.” After all, all those messages about Obama’s “inexperience” sound hollow with Sarah Palin on the ticket.
18. K30 | 09.15.08
I know the South Side of Chicago where Barack Hussein Obama has worked and represented for more than 8 years. From the school.net, the mean rating of the public school of the South Side area is 2 over a scale of 10. How come its rating is so low with all the inspiring, eloquent, and magic helps from Obama for almost a decade? I want to make sure Obama will spend the next 8 years in Chicago to lift the public school rating to at least a 5 and to improve the welfare of South Side residents, so that he did not have to pay $38,788.0 for the private school tuition of his daughters.
Please help show the world that the audacity of hope from Obama simply the audacity of hypocrisy. Keep Obama in South Side of Chicago for the next 8 years.
19. Erik | 09.15.08
I agree with some of these comments. Voting third party is the only thing that makes sense to me.
20. Pietro | 09.15.08
I will vote for McCain because of Sarah Palin, the inspiring governor, housewive, mother and politician, a clean politician who valued life! Secondly, as a member of asian minority group and I believed other non-white minorities will share the same view with me and vote for McCain. We see many key positions are assigned to us during in the last 10 years. Afro, latinos, asian, you name it, are treated equal in this country. If Obama won the election I doubted that we will see asians, latinos or indians holding key position.
21. Dan C. | 09.15.08
The Republicans practice plutocracy. They speak out against assistance to hard working American families who fall on hard times while bailing out big businesses that have poor leadership. It is amazing that we refuse to cover the health care of families of working Americans, but ensure the comfort of irresponsible, and criminal, CEOs and CFOs who gave themselves huge bonuses in the face of the disasters they designed. It is exasperating to listen to conservatives whine about welfare and the lack of government support for Lehman Bros, all in the same breathe. What about the “FREE MARKET”?
Yes, this country was built on the backs of hard working American (also immigrant–remember the Hunkies of the steel industry) who died working in factories owned by privileged and protected “Capitalist”. I think we should ensure they could take their children for primary care and not face bankruptcy in the light of medical disasters they could not avoid.
I agree with McCain…the Republicans have abused their power. I disagree that they are the only ones who can make it right. For real change, elect Obama/Biden!
22. John | 09.15.08
You couldn’t get a job at McDonalds and become district manager after 143 days of experience.
You couldn’t become chief of surgery with 143 days of experience as a doctor.
You couldn’t get a job as a teacher and be the school superintendent with 143 days of experience.
You couldn’t join the military and be promoted to colonel with 143 days of experience.
You couldn’t get a job as a reporter and be made the nightly news anchor with just 143 days of experience.
BUT….
From the time Barack Obama was sworn in as a United States Senator to the time he announced he was forming a Presidential exploratory committee, he logged 143 days of experience in the Senate. That’s how many days the Senate was actually in session and working. With 143 days of actual work experience, Obama believed he was ready to be Commander In Chief, Leader of the Free World–143 days.
We all have to start somewhere. The senate is a good start, but after 143 days, that’s all it is–a start.
AND, strangely, a large sector of the American public is okay with this and campaigning for him. We wouldn’t accept this in our own line of work, yet some are okay with this for the President of the United States of America. Come on folks, we are not voting for the next American Idol!
23. Carl Mayer | 09.15.08
Both candidacies are advocating change: one wants to change the world while the other wants to change us.
24. god | 09.15.08
welfare is a form of communism: workers distributing their money to people–need it or not–who dont work.
25. VOA | 09.15.08
Drill Now is a recipe for more of the same; it’s is 19th century thought. Obama offers the country an opportunity to advance into the 21st century. The plutocrats of the Repbublican party offer us nothing of the sort.
Who will pay for George’s war? How can Republicans yell “Country First” but ask for tax breaks in the face of a huge deficit?
I encourage people to read about McCain’s and Obama’s tax plans at:
http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?ID=411749
Big business will sell us down the river to China. Count on it.
Elect Obama/Biden for REAL CHANGE!
26. James Willis | 09.15.08
Change and reform are a part of a Republican smokescreen. The stated, but currently hidden, purpose of both Republican candidates is to stack the Supreme Court with ultra conservative Justices who will reverse Roe v. Wade.
However, the reversal and retardation of civil rights will not stop there.
A repeated sarcastic statement by Republicans is that the Democrats worry about terrorists being read their rights. I worry because an attack on anyone’s rights is an attack on everyone’s rights. I am concerned about the rights of the innocent person who happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I am concerned about the fear of terrorism being the basis for Salem style witch hunts. I am concerned about the fear of terrorism being the basis for repeating the grave injustice of the imprisonment of thousands of loyal American citizens of Japanese heritage during World War II. If we allow the fear of terrorism to destroy American civil liberties then the terrorist have won.
Also of grave concern are the repeated statements by Republicans degrading public service. The insults aimed at Senator Obama degrade the public service of everyone who has served as “less than a war hero.” For those who have honorably served nation, humanity and church this belittlement of service is most repulsive. What would America be without our veterans, scout leaders, youth sports officials, civic leaders, missionaries, church volunteers, and the thousands who serve nation, humanity and God in so many ways?
Furthermore, what is to become of the rights of women, minorities, those with alternative life styles and non-citizens? The Republicans appear obsessed with eliminating the right to sue companies when civil rights are violated. Without the right to punish the powerful through the civil court system will we ever see equal pay for equal work and the end of countless other forms of unethical, immoral and illegal discrimination? Can we depend upon government agencies to insure the safety of the products we purchase?
If America is to remain American, we cannot allow the fear of terrorism to destroy civil rights and drastically retard social progress. We must not allow our towns to be ruled by the necessary mentality of a war-time battlefield.
27. VOA | 09.15.08
Remember, Jesus ran his disciples as a commune: to each according to his needs. I don’t think he would be a capitalist. I don’t think he would support allowing children to go without health care. I don’t think he would support the ravaging of employees retirement accounts while the fat cats land softly with their unregulated golden parachutes. Do you?
28. Jim I. | 09.15.08
I also agree with Jean B. I am 52 and have been inspired by Obama’s message
like none before him. People also seem to let it slide that McCain had an
affair while married to his first wife. Lying to someone that you have
pledged loyalty to is the worst sort of ethical behavior. Why should we trust
McCain now?
29. Johnny Canuck | 09.15.08
The efforts to denigrate Obama are saddening.
Here is a man who when at law school was elected by his peers to be President of the Law review, and apparently did a good job, unifying rather than dividing.
He served for 8 years in the Illinois senate. A CSM article in 2007 said he cast over 4000 votes. It is simplistic to suggest voting present on 136 occasions indicates indecision or incompetence. To me it is far better than being absent, and far better to register that you are unhappy with the legislation as drafted, than to sheep like vote for it.
Obama is someone who has thought deeply about the issues affecting the US and the world. Over 18 million voters in primary elections have voted for him. It is my understanding that he has been involved in a significant number of bills and amendments during his term in the Senate.
He projects a positive image around the world, something many Americans undervalue: do you think it is a good thing that so many people loath the current President?
Americans should guard against ‘fear’ governing their votes. Frequently in the past, the candidate who could scare the voters most won. For example, in 1960 Kennedy claimed there was a missile gap with USSR. In fact the US had approximately 2000 ICBMs; USSR had 200.
Fear and lying should not be the hallmarks of the successful campaign.
30. Thos. Paine | 09.15.08
I’m sorry, but in his 4 years in the Senate, what “change” has Obama actually brought to Washington? What “change” did he bring to Illinois when a state legislator? He talks about change, but has he actually ever changed anything?
McCain, meanwhile, actually has done things (some good, some less so, but he is human, after all) in Washington. I prefer to go with the person who has actually accomplished something besides putting together a snappy slogan.
31. Bill Zeme | 09.15.08
Barrack Obama believes bigger and more government is the solution. I’ve seen the government at work and it is not the solution. The only practical way to reduce the deficit is to reduce the size of government.
I’m tired of working extra hours and not being able to take vacation to make up for what government takes out of my paycheck while I see my fellow citizens that are employed at all levels of government working 35 hours a week and getting 6 weeks of vacation and having a higher standard of living.
32. VOA | 09.15.08
No one has increased the size of the federal government like the Republican presidents. That is a fact. Reagan and Bush mushroomed the executive branch both in size and power. Get the facts straight or stop talking. The Republicans are plutocrats to the core. Their relationship to big business makes them no friend to small business and no friend to those who make a modest income.
Google Warren Buffett on paying taxes. Go to taxpolicycenter.org. We have had ten years of of Republican power in Congress and the Executive branch combined. They recinded the regulations on big banks in 1999 (Republican Congress)that is a direct cause of the finacial crisis today. Reagan oversaw a huge savings and loan debacle. Bush is buying out Fannie and Freddie.
Hard working Americans have to stop buying into the Rovean talking points and sound bites. Do the research. Compare Obama’s tax policy (not perfect, but more responsible) to McCain’s (a disaster waiting for my children and their children).
Vote Obama/Biden for Real Change, now!
33. R. MacLeish Sr. | 09.15.08
So is Cheney vice president…look at the influence he’s had on our nation’s policies!
34. Dylan Voltaire | 09.15.08
Remember, McCain was implicated in the Keating 5 scandal. He’s no maverick. he is not working for the average American. He is overly ambitious to be President; enough so to sell out on all of his previous points of view and steal Obama’s message of change.
Voting McCain/Palin for change is like re-hiring the plumber who overcharged you and put in the pipes backwards, and paying double for the privilege. Get real!
Republicans want big government for their causes: big business, big religion, and big brother!
35. Valerie G. | 09.15.08
This gray head is a fervent Obama supporter too. After these last 8 years our country desperately needs a cool and calm intelligent mind in the WH.
McPain forgets that most of us know how hard he has worked to further the lax regulations that allowed the current financial crisis. The elites further widened the American income gap of haves from have nots.
We need to put in sensible regulation, we need a breather from the republicans.
38. cat2008 | 09.16.08
The reason why America is falling apart because we focus too much on the symptoms and not the root. We all are responsible for the moral issues here in the United States and we are suffering as a result of it. We have completely taken GOD out of the equation. Yet when an incident like 911 happens he is back in our thoughts again only for a little while. Greed from the American people & leaders has led us to where we are. Also Sexual Immorality that leads to DISEASES, murder,poverty, and ultimately death. What really makes me sad is that we have all our hope in one candidate that claims “CHANGE”. Change needs to happen from within.Individuals need to make better decisions for themselves and their families. LIFE is a preparation for eternity. Don’t make a decision based off what you see, what party your family traditionally supports, and not because of your race.Do you know where each candidates stand w/foreign policy,healthcare,economy,etc? Educate yourself and make an educated decision not an emotional one. My hope is in GOD and he is in control whether or not we acknowledge what that means or not.
39. Edwin Lewis | 09.18.08
Old *** McCain has been around for 26 plus years in Washington, and now he wants us to think he can make changes. I laugh at this old, rotten teeth having man. His teeth are rotting as we read these lines, but they are rotting due to the lies he spit everyday. How can this man say that Palin has what it takes when he has not taken the time to get to know her or her credentials. That is what I am saying but even Palin said she has only met him twice before being put on the ticket. And lord please keep this world from falling apart. I know that the Republicans want to keep the money they have been sitting on for the past 8 years under old Retarded Bush! But **** what they say “Change is coming”. And dont you think that it is funny how Obama has been talking about change from day one, and now rotten teeth McCain is saying it at the end. His ticket is just for laughs and honestly all I do is laugh at the republicans that I work with for they are so determined that all Democrats are liberals, and leftist, and think like birds but that is not the question. I know that if the Republicans win I am moving to Bermuda and miss this bullcrappy lifestyle in the United States of ***es.
40. Nobama | 09.18.08
Obama most certainly does NOT appeal to the younger generation, who only see him as a threat to this country’s future. There are so many of us young Republicans who believe in the future, and do not want to see the ridiculous tax policies Obama represents, nor have an experienced person in office, or one who is naive in foreign affairs. And the racism, do you really want a racist President? Read his book folks! And I don’t know who’s conducting all these polls, must be the Democrats, because McCain is ahead of Obama here in southwest Florida! What I don’t get, is if he’s this self-made man who is worth $1 million plus, and struggled to get where he is today, wouldn’t he fit more into the Republican way of thinking, versus one who relies on the government for all the answers? That will be the day I want the government to make all my decisions for me! Hardly…
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1. Sherry Blair | 09.14.08
Many of us were inspired by Obama’s vision for hope and change. We joined the movement, united by his message. Even the media was inspired, marveling at this new phenomenon. He was the one with the vision before Hillary Clinton and John McCain. It came out of his character. The other campaigns began to fight the vision. They accused the media of favoritism. They attacked the happenstances of Obama’s life story, his associates, his family, his church, his ideals and dreams. They called him inexperienced and naive. When he didn’t respond in kind, the media said he was too weak, not a fighter. Over time, his message began to fade into the background of his defenses. The media constantly stirred the negativity. By the time the primaries were over, Obama had won, but his vision seemed impossible.
The truth is, he was right in the beginning. It is we who weren’t ready for change, we who couldn’t see the vision, we who couldn’t believe, we who couldn’t stand up to those who only believe in politics as usual, we who couldn’t rise above the negativity, and we who lost hope.
The Democrats and the Republicans are like the Hatfields and McCoys, year after year feeding their hate for each other. Neither of their presidential candidates is free to be who they really are. They are imprisoned by their party’s pain from the past. Will the party’s ever change? Will our country remain a divided nation, left and right locked into some everlasting inability to let go of the past? Will it lead into another civil war? Will we never give peace a chance? How painful does it have to be before we see we need to change?
Along comes Sarah Palin and she has hope. She is another child of the next generation. We like her, but she is only number two and doesn’t have Obama’s clear vision and ability to unite and inspire all Americans. Will we vote for her just because she hasn’t been torn apart yet, pretending it won’t happen to her?
Meanwhile, in the background, the independents are growing in numbers and independent candidates are becoming louder in spite of the media and partisan efforts to suppress them.