Lets Get Political...

I look at it this way, Rayz. When I was in the military, I had to conduct business that required me to have a top secret security clearance. They interviewed anyone I ever knew, just about. My character was on the line for any association I ever held in my adult life.

The POTUS has an infinitely more serious need for a security clearance. Could Obama get a TS if he were to undergo the same scrutiny I did? What were his associates like? What was his business dealings like and with whom did he deal? I can tell you with absolute certainty I would not have gotten my TS if I had past or current associates like he does.

While I am not really excited about the choices this year, the POTUS has to be vetted in this area for me personally.

To be honest, I am sick of having to vote for the lesser of two evils rather than being excited about a candidate. This has been happening for some time in politics.

On the other side, McCain claims to be a conservative and in my opinion, that is not true. He simply claims that now to gain the conservative base. I cannot find myself happy about him either.

So I have to resort to the basic issues for me personally ( this list is not all inclusive):
-- the candidate's stand on abortion
-- the candidate's stand on our military
-- the candidate's stand on economic issues (taxes, free trade, etc.)
-- the candidate's foreign policy experience
-- the candidate's domestic policy experience

Depending on how the candidate falls on these issues will probably be the one I vote for. Not because I necessarily like the candidate, but because I am an American and should exercise my right to vote. It has become impersonal for me anymore--I just can't get excited about this any longer.

By the way, I would have loved to see the dynamics of the run if McCain had picked Condaleeza Rice.

 

If there is one bright spot in all this, it is his selection for VP. I have followed her in the past and she is a great person.

As Rayzer said, this move was brilliant, and will add some excitement to the race.

 

The change America needs is not going to come from a presidential candidate, the change America needs is for the media to take pride in this country and actually report on things that matter.

The economy going south has been so badly exaggerated by the media it forced the country into a recession.

Say what you want about either campaign but when MSNBC has breaking news on their screen and it questions Governor Palins credentials by how many houses she brings to the ticket then I think we know what needs changed in America.

I am not going to discuss politics - I am getting sick of both parties. I am starting to become more Libertarian as time goes on.

 

I plan on voting for Bob Barr the Libertarian candidate this year. I am from Illinois and support Obama because i do not like the direction this country has gone in the last 8 years. I am not saying that it was all republicans fault but its time for a change and McCain isn't it.

 

Obama does have experience working along side Republicans. He cosponsored the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act with Tom Coburn, who is a Republican senator from Oklahoma. The act basically made information regarding federal funding of organizations available to the public in a searchable online database.

Not to mention the prospect of having a president who is liked by a large number of people in other countries. When I saw the speech that Obama made in Germany, I realized that it was the first time in a long while that I had seen a sizable group of people in a foreign country waving an American flag that was not on fire.

 

Whether Obama was eight years old when Ayers was actively hating this country is irrelevant if Obama still associates with him today, which he does. It isn't about selling state secrets Rayz. Its about character.

You know as well as I do that we can't possibly trust the media to be unbiased for either side. We have to research it on our own and decide, based on the standards we have personally set, who closest meets the ideals we desire to see lead this country.

As for me, I like this poster:

 

The weak dollar is mainly due to the trade deficit. Fortunately a weak dollar can help with trade because it makes buying American products more affordable compared to foreign and can help elevate or stabilize its value. Lets hope this happens soon.

The mortgage industry is a disaster and cant really be blamed on politicians. The industry did this to itself by handing out loans like loan sharks to subprime markets. Additionally, people should not be allowed to borrow 120% of the value of something and consider it a secured loan.

The gas prices have soared mainly due to increased fraud in speculative trading. There needs to be controls put on how they can drive the cost of oil based on fictitious speculation. Taxing the oil companies revenue is not the solution to the price of gas. THe oil companies will pass the tax onto the middle class and the gas will be over $6.00 a gallon.

There is only one solid way to lower the cost of gas in the US. Lower the demand on foreign oil. There are few ways to do that, alternative fuel sources or increase domestic exploration and drilling. Both of these are years away from making a real difference, however just the action of doing it will alter the landscape for the futures traders.

Pretty sad when China and Cuba are drilling 50 miles off our shores but we cant.

 

Hello all... I know, long time no see.

Until Ms. Palin was going to be the GOP VP candidate, I really didn't want to vote for either of the Presidential candidates.

All I've heard from the Dems was "Change" but no substance. Just like Kerry's "I Have a Plan". And the typical talking points from Mccain.

However, as pointed out earlier about security clearances, one of the main items that needs to be looked at is charactor and actions. And here is how I sorted them out.

Obama.... Slick, great speaker, looks good, weak voting record. (Votes present so as not to have a record that can be used for/against him.) Take a stand and stick with it. Whether right or wrong, I'd have more respect if you just stuck to a position instead of changing with the latest poles.

Biden. Old white guy with three decades of Washington time. (That's the problem, we need change and he is not it!!!)

McCain... Pretty much a RINO. Gives to much to the Dems in the spirt of teamwork. Another old white guy who's probably been in the game to long.

Palin... WOW... In her short time in politics, not only said she would make changes, but has made changes. Fought the old boy network and won. Working on energy issues (Not just talk) Turns down my tax dollars for stupid projects. (oh ya!!)

Friday morning, I had all but figured Obama/Biden had the election won. Tight, but they would win. Now, I think Mccain/Biden have the stronger ticket.

 

Hi!

Well, that's the Washington dynamic. A senator stands up and says, "I have a really bad idea!", and his counterpart on the other side of the aisle jumps up and says, "And I can make it worse!"

Well, following the polls is what the Democrats do. Love them or hate them, at least you can say that they really do try to do what they think the people want them to do.

I find that a better metric for a Senator's record is legislation introduced and sponsored. On this, Obama has actually been fairly prolific, with a definite government-accountability angle, which I like (I can get behind any reduction in government power).

Yeah, Biden isn't particularly exciting.

What exactly does someone have to do to be a "true Republican"? Be careful of the "no true Scotsman" fallacy -- sometimes you find that nobody can live up to the ideals that you've built up in your head.

You know, sometimes the Democrats are right on an issue. This sort of team mentality is exactly the problem with American politics lately. Additionally, I don't think McCain goes against the party to give anything to the Democrats, he's a Reagan-style old-school Republican.

I honestly don't understand the buzz about Palin. She's okay, but ultimately a fairly unremarkable, party-line Republican. Her rapid rise and government-accountability angle actually remind me a lot of Obama. Although the recent allegations regarding her possible improper use of the office to fire a state employee are a huge problem for me, if true.

I don't know about that. Biden covers Obama's perceived weaknesses pretty well. I'm not really sure what Palin does for McCain, as they both have the same perceived weaknesses. Still, I wouldn't call either ticket particularly strong. Even the Libertarians are kind of milquetoast this year -- they really could have done better than Barr. I don't think I can bring myself to cast my usual symbolic but ineffective vote for the Libertarians in a state that always goes to the Democrats this year.

 

Man I'm dissappointed in this thread. I know we can get much more heated than this! You could barely boil water at the rate were going.

With all the dirt thats come out this week on Palin its a field day in the press. And for those that think its just wrong to even bring up anything that might besmudge her reputation, remember this is politics, remember everyone involved and all of the other well known and experienced canidates have had their background constantly dug through and thrown into their faces, so yeah anything and everything in her past and personal life is fair game as soon as she decided to accept the VP nomination especially since there is a good chance she could end up running this country.

I've just been enjoying watching the Republican spokesmen constantly backtrack, dbl talk, and flat out get angry when anything negative gets brought up about Palin, but they've been running plenty of smear adds and trashing the other side for quite a while now. If you can't take the heat...