Open Thread: McCain’s Speech With Reactions, And The Protesters
This is the open thread for tonight’s speech. As new info becomes available, the post will be updated.. In the meantime, what’s your reaction to Obama appearing on The O’Reilly Factor?
Via MM is the text of the speech:
Thank you all very much. Tonight, I have a privilege given few Americans ” the privilege of accepting our party’s nomination for President of the United States. And I accept it with gratitude, humility and confidence.
In my life, no success has come without a good fight, and this nomination wasn’t any different. That’s a tribute to the candidates who opposed me and their supporters. They’re leaders of great ability, who love our country, and wished to lead it to better days. Their support is an honor I won’t forget.
I’m grateful to the President for leading us in those dark days following the worst attack on American soil in our history, and keeping us safe from another attack many thought was inevitable; and to the First Lady, Laura Bush, a model of grace and kindness in public and in private. And I’m grateful to the 41st President and his bride of 63 years, and for their outstanding example of honorable service to our country.
As always, I’m indebted to my wife, Cindy, and my seven children. The pleasures of family life can seem like a brief holiday from the crowded calendar of our nation’s business. But I have treasured them all the more, and can’t imagine a life without the happiness you give me. Cindy said a lot of nice things about me tonight. But, in truth, she’s more my inspiration than I am hers. Her concern for those less blessed than we are ” victims of land mines, children born in poverty and with birth defects ” shows the measure of her humanity. I know she will make a great First Lady.
When I was growing up, my father was often at sea, and the job of raising my brother, sister and me would fall to my mother alone. Roberta McCain gave us her love of life, her deep interest in the world, her strength, and her belief we are all meant to use our opportunities to make ourselves useful to our country. I wouldn’t be here tonight but for the strength of her character.
My heartfelt thanks to all of you, who helped me win this nomination, and stood by me when the odds were long. I won’t let you down. To Americans who have yet to decide who to vote for, thank you for your consideration and the opportunity to win your trust. I intend to earn it.
Finally, a word to Senator Obama and his supporters. We’ll go at it over the next two months. That’s the nature of these contests, and there are big differences between us. But you have my respect and admiration. Despite our differences, much more unites us than divides us. We are fellow Americans, an association that means more to me than any other. We’re dedicated to the proposition that all people are created equal and endowed by our Creator with inalienable rights. No country ever had a greater cause than that. And I wouldn’t be an American worthy of the name if I didn’t honor Senator Obama and his supporters for their achievement.
But let there be no doubt, my friends, we’re going to win this election. And after we’ve won, we’re going to reach out our hand to any willing patriot, make this government start working for you again, and get this country back on the road to prosperity and peace.
These are tough times for many of you. You’re worried about keeping your job or finding a new one, and are struggling to put food on the table and stay in your home. All you ever asked of government is to stand on your side, not in your way. And that’s just what I intend to do: stand on your side and fight for your future.
And I’ve found just the right partner to help me shake up Washington, Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska. She has executive experience and a real record of accomplishment. She’s tackled tough problems like energy independence and corruption. She’s balanced a budget, cut taxes, and taken on the special interests. She’s reached across the aisle and asked Republicans, Democrats and Independents to serve in her administration. She’s the mother of five children. She’s helped run a small business, worked with her hands and knows what it’s like to worry about mortgage payments and health care and the cost of gasoline and groceries.
She knows where she comes from and she knows who she works for. She stands up for what’s right, and she doesn’t let anyone tell her to sit down. I’m very proud to have introduced our next Vice President to the country. But I can’t wait until I introduce her to Washington. And let me offer an advance warning to the old, big spending, do nothing, me first, country second Washington crowd: change is coming.
I’m not in the habit of breaking promises to my country and neither is Governor Palin. And when we tell you we’re going to change Washington, and stop leaving our country’s problems for some unluckier generation to fix, you can count on it. We’ve got a record of doing just that, and the strength, experience, judgment and backbone to keep our word to you.
You know, I’ve been called a maverick; someone who marches to the beat of his own drum. Sometimes it’s meant as a compliment and sometimes it’s not. What it really means is I understand who I work for. I don’t work for a party. I don’t work for a special interest. I don’t work for myself. I work for you.
I’ve fought corruption, and it didn’t matter if the culprits were Democrats or Republicans. They violated their public trust, and had to be held accountable. I’ve fought big spenders in both parties, who waste your money on things you neither need nor want, while you struggle to buy groceries, fill your gas tank and make your mortgage payment. I’ve fought to get million dollar checks out of our elections. I’ve fought lobbyists who stole from Indian tribes. I fought crooked deals in the Pentagon. I fought tobacco companies and trial lawyers, drug companies and union bosses.
I fought for the right strategy and more troops in Iraq, when it wasn’t a popular thing to do. And when the pundits said my campaign was finished, I said I’d rather lose an election than see my country lose a war.
Thanks to the leadership of a brilliant general, David Petreaus, and the brave men and women he has the honor to command, that strategy succeeded and rescued us from a defeat that would have demoralized our military, risked a wider war and threatened the security of all Americans.
I don’t mind a good fight. For reasons known only to God, I’ve had quite a few tough ones in my life. But I learned an important lesson along the way. In the end, it matters less that you can fight. What you fight for is the real test.
I fight for Americans. I fight for you. I fight for Bill and Sue Nebe from Farmington Hills, Michigan, who lost their real estate investments in the bad housing market. Bill got a temporary job after he was out of work for seven months. Sue works three jobs to help pay the bills.
I fight for Jake and Toni Wimmer of Franklin County, Pennsylvania. Jake works on a loading dock; coaches Little League, and raises money for the mentally and physically disabled. Toni is a schoolteacher, working toward her Master’s Degree. They have two sons, the youngest, Luke, has been diagnosed with autism. Their lives should matter to the people they elect to office. They matter to me.
I fight for the family of Matthew Stanley of Wolfboro, New Hampshire, who died serving our country in Iraq. I wear his bracelet and think of him every day. I intend to honor their sacrifice by making sure the country their son loved so well and never returned to, remains safe from its enemies.
I fight to restore the pride and principles of our party. We were elected to change Washington, and we let Washington change us. We lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption. We lost their trust when rather than reform government, both parties made it bigger. We lost their trust when instead of freeing ourselves from a dangerous dependence on foreign oil, both parties and Senator Obama passed another corporate welfare bill for oil companies. We lost their trust, when we valued our power over our principles.
We’re going to change that. We’re going to recover the people’s trust by standing up again for the values Americans admire. The party of Lincoln, Roosevelt and Reagan is going to get back to basics.
We believe everyone has something to contribute and deserves the opportunity to reach their God-given potential from the boy whose descendents arrived on the Mayflower to the Latina daughter of migrant workers. We’re all God’s children and we’re all Americans.
We believe in low taxes; spending discipline, and open markets. We believe in rewarding hard work and risk takers and letting people keep the fruits of their labor.
We believe in a strong defense, work, faith, service, a culture of life, personal responsibility, the rule of law, and judges who dispense justice impartially and don’t legislate from the bench. We believe in the values of families, neighborhoods and communities.
We believe in a government that unleashes the creativity and initiative of Americans. Government that doesn’t make your choices for you, but works to make sure you have more choices to make for yourself.
I will keep taxes low and cut them where I can. My opponent will raise them. I will open new markets to our goods and services. My opponent will close them. I will cut government spending. He will increase it.
My tax cuts will create jobs. His tax increases will eliminate them. My health care plan will make it easier for more Americans to find and keep good health care insurance. His plan will force small businesses to cut jobs, reduce wages, and force families into a government run health care system where a bureaucrat stands between you and your doctor.
Keeping taxes low helps small businesses grow and create new jobs. Cutting the second highest business tax rate in the world will help American companies compete and keep jobs from moving overseas. Doubling the child tax exemption from $3500 to $7000 will improve the lives of millions of American families. Reducing government spending and getting rid of failed programs will let you keep more of your own money to save, spend and invest as you see fit. Opening new markets and preparing workers to compete in the world economy is essential to our future prosperity.
I know some of you have been left behind in the changing economy and it often seems your government hasn’t even noticed. Government assistance for unemployed workers was designed for the economy of the 1950s. That’s going to change on my watch. My opponent promises to bring back old jobs by wishing away the global economy. We’re going to help workers who’ve lost a job that won’t come back, find a new one that won’t go away.
We will prepare them for the jobs of today. We will use our community colleges to help train people for new opportunities in their communities. For workers in industries that have been hard hit, we’ll help make up part of the difference in wages between their old job and a temporary, lower paid one while they receive retraining that will help them find secure new employment at a decent wage.
Education is the civil rights issue of this century. Equal access to public education has been gained. But what is the value of access to a failing school? We need to shake up failed school bureaucracies with competition, empower parents with choice, remove barriers to qualified instructors, attract and reward good teachers, and help bad teachers find another line of work.
When a public school fails to meet its obligations to students, parents deserve a choice in the education of their children. And I intend to give it to them. Some may choose a better public school. Some may choose a private one. Many will choose a charter school. But they will have that choice and their children will have that opportunity.
Senator Obama wants our schools to answer to unions and entrenched bureaucracies. I want schools to answer to parents and students. And when I’m President, they will.
My fellow Americans, when I’m President, we’re going to embark on the most ambitious national project in decades. We are going to stop sending $700 billion a year to countries that don’t like us very much. We will attack the problem on every front. We will produce more energy at home. We will drill new wells offshore, and we’ll drill them now. We will build more nuclear power plants. We will develop clean coal technology. We will increase the use of wind, tide, solar and natural gas. We will encourage the development and use of flex fuel, hybrid and electric automobiles.
Senator Obama thinks we can achieve energy independence without more drilling and without more nuclear power. But Americans know better than that. We must use all resources and develop all technologies necessary to rescue our economy from the damage caused by rising oil prices and to restore the health of our planet. It’s an ambitious plan, but Americans are ambitious by nature, and we have faced greater challenges. It’s time for us to show the world again how Americans lead.
This great national cause will create millions of new jobs, many in industries that will be the engine of our future prosperity; jobs that will be there when your children enter the workforce.
Today, the prospect of a better world remains within our reach. But we must see the threats to peace and liberty in our time clearly and face them, as Americans before us did, with confidence, wisdom and resolve.
We have dealt a serious blow to al Qaeda in recent years. But they are not defeated, and they’ll strike us again if they can. Iran remains the chief state sponsor of terrorism and on the path to acquiring nuclear weapons. Russia’s leaders, rich with oil wealth and corrupt with power, have rejected democratic ideals and the obligations of a responsible power. They invaded a small, democratic neighbor to gain more control over the world’s oil supply, intimidate other neighbors, and further their ambitions of reassembling the Russian empire. And the brave people of Georgia need our solidarity and prayers. As President I will work to establish good relations with Russia so we need not fear a return of the Cold War. But we can’t turn a blind eye to aggression and international lawlessness that threatens the peace and stability of the world and the security of the American people.
We face many threats in this dangerous world, but I’m not afraid of them. I’m prepared for them. I know how the military works, what it can do, what it can do better, and what it should not do. I know how the world works. I know the good and the evil in it. I know how to work with leaders who share our dreams of a freer, safer and more prosperous world, and how to stand up to those who don’t. I know how to secure the peace.
When I was five years old, a car pulled up in front of our house. A Navy officer rolled down the window, and shouted at my father that the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor. I rarely saw my father again for four years. My grandfather came home from that same war exhausted from the burdens he had borne, and died the next day. In Vietnam, where I formed the closest friendships of my life, some of those friends never came home with me. I hate war. It is terrible beyond imagination.
I’m running for President to keep the country I love safe, and prevent other families from risking their loved ones in war as my family has. I will draw on all my experience with the world and its leaders, and all the tools at our disposal ” diplomatic, economic, military and the power of our ideals ” to build the foundations for a stable and enduring peace.
In America, we change things that need to be changed. Each generation makes its contribution to our greatness. The work that is ours to do is plainly before us. We don’t need to search for it.
We need to change the way government does almost everything: from the way we protect our security to the way we compete in the world economy; from the way we respond to disasters to the way we fuel our transportation network; from the way we train our workers to the way we educate our children. All these functions of government were designed before the rise of the global economy, the information technology revolution and the end of the Cold War. We have to catch up to history, and we have to change the way we do business in Washington.
The constant partisan rancor that stops us from solving these problems isn’t a cause, it’s a symptom. It’s what happens when people go to Washington to work for themselves and not you.
Again and again, I’ve worked with members of both parties to fix problems that need to be fixed. That’s how I will govern as President. I will reach out my hand to anyone to help me get this country moving again. I have that record and the scars to prove it. Senator Obama does not.
Instead of rejecting good ideas because we didn’t think of them first, let’s use the best ideas from both sides. Instead of fighting over who gets the credit, let’s try sharing it. This amazing country can do anything we put our minds to. I will ask Democrats and Independents to serve with me. And my administration will set a new standard for transparency and accountability.
We’re going to finally start getting things done for the people who are counting on us, and I won’t care who gets the credit.
I’ve been an imperfect servant of my country for many years. But I have been her servant first, last and always. And I’ve never lived a day, in good times or bad, that I didn’t thank God for the privilege.
Long ago, something unusual happened to me that taught me the most valuable lesson of my life. I was blessed by misfortune. I mean that sincerely. I was blessed because I served in the company of heroes, and I witnessed a thousand acts of courage, compassion and love.
On an October morning, in the Gulf of Tonkin, I prepared for my 23rd mission over North Vietnam. I hadn’t any worry I wouldn’t come back safe and sound. I thought I was tougher than anyone. I was pretty independent then, too. I liked to bend a few rules, and pick a few fights for the fun of it. But I did it for my own pleasure; my own pride. I didn’t think there was a cause more important than me.
Then I found myself falling toward the middle of a small lake in the city of Hanoi, with two broken arms, a broken leg, and an angry crowd waiting to greet me. I was dumped in a dark cell, and left to die. I didn’t feel so tough anymore. When they discovered my father was an admiral, they took me to a hospital. They couldn’t set my bones properly, so they just slapped a cast on me. When I didn’t get better, and was down to about a hundred pounds, they put me in a cell with two other Americans. I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t even feed myself. They did it for me. I was beginning to learn the limits of my selfish independence. Those men saved my life.
I was in solitary confinement when my captors offered to release me. I knew why. If I went home, they would use it as propaganda to demoralize my fellow prisoners. Our Code said we could only go home in the order of our capture, and there were men who had been shot down before me. I thought about it, though. I wasn’t in great shape, and I missed everything about America. But I turned it down.
A lot of prisoners had it worse than I did. I’d been mistreated before, but not as badly as others. I always liked to strut a little after I’d been roughed up to show the other guys I was tough enough to take it. But after I turned down their offer, they worked me over harder than they ever had before. For a long time. And they broke me.
When they brought me back to my cell, I was hurt and ashamed, and I didn’t know how I could face my fellow prisoners. The good man in the cell next door, my friend, Bob Craner, saved me. Through taps on a wall he told me I had fought as hard as I could. No man can always stand alone. And then he told me to get back up and fight again for our country and for the men I had the honor to serve with. Because every day they fought for me.
I fell in love with my country when I was a prisoner in someone else’s. I loved it not just for the many comforts of life here. I loved it for its decency; for its faith in the wisdom, justice and goodness of its people. I loved it because it was not just a place, but an idea, a cause worth fighting for. I was never the same again. I wasn’t my own man anymore. I was my country’s.
I’m not running for president because I think I’m blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need. My country saved me. My country saved me, and I cannot forget it. And I will fight for her for as long as I draw breath, so help me God.
If you find faults with our country, make it a better one. If you’re disappointed with the mistakes of government, join its ranks and work to correct them. Enlist in our Armed Forces. Become a teacher. Enter the ministry. Run for public office. Feed a hungry child. Teach an illiterate adult to read. Comfort the afflicted. Defend the rights of the oppressed. Our country will be the better, and you will be the happier. Because nothing brings greater happiness in life than to serve a cause greater than yourself.
I’m going to fight for my cause every day as your President. I’m going to fight to make sure every American has every reason to thank God, as I thank Him: that I’m an American, a proud citizen of the greatest country on earth, and with hard work, strong faith and a little courage, great things are always within our reach. Fight with me. Fight with me.
Fight for what’s right for our country.
Fight for the ideals and character of a free people.
Fight for our children’s future.
Fight for justice and opportunity for all.
Stand up to defend our country from its enemies.
Stand up for each other; for beautiful, blessed, bountiful America.
Stand up, stand up, stand up and fight. Nothing is inevitable here. We’re Americans, and we never give up. We never quit. We never hide from history. We make history.
Thank you, and God Bless you.
Rasmussen: By 10-to-1 Public Says Reporters ‘Trying to Hurt Palin’
Survey USA: Independents who think Palin’s an asset to the campaign jump 13 points overnight
CHAOS AT THE CAPITAL!! Massive Protest & Arrests in St. Paul
- I have a question for you: If the anarchists don’t believe in the rule of law, why not just have the cops take care of the situation without regard to the law?
Olbermann Has Angry Breakdown over 9/11 Video Tribute at GOP Convention
Just moments after MSNBC aired a video tribute to victims of 9/11, from the Republican National Convention on Thursday night, Keith Olbermann offered this angry rebuke of his own network for doing so:…
Others blogging:
- McCain’s RNC Speech - Live Blogging « Above My Pay Grade!
- Excerpts From John McCain’s Acceptance | The Daily Conservative
September 4, 2008 - 09:52 PM on September 4th, 2008
I thought it was a strong speech:
1. Education. The fact is that the schools are failing for many reasons, and the hardest hit students are those in the low income areas. I will speak for my state of MI and in particular, West MI. We have school of choice which many people are taking advantage of. They may not be able to afford to move to a better district, therefore they stay where they are, but get their kids into a better school system. Last year, the superintendent of the largest school district in the area, a district hemorrhaging students, threatened to cut off the program and force the students to stay in the district. I think the man has the potential to make a positive change, but it isn’t going to happen over night and these kids can not afford to wait. Many poor people, and in particular, the black population, are turning to the Christian schools and asking for and receiving either free or next to nothing tuition. Desperate times call for desperate measures and we need to really take a look at the voucher system. Why have the govt pay the failing district for your kid’s head count, when the school educating the kid should be the one receiving the funds? I believe my district receive $7200 per head, so take that $7200 and pay the school where my kid is attending.
2. Security. It speaks for itself.
3. Jobs. That was the most honest assessment of the situation. The jobs that left are not coming back. The days of getting that good factory job, where education is not required, are numbered. We were warned of this beginning in the 60’s. It was never a matter of if, but when. If you believe that we can legislate to bring those companies back to the states, then I have some swamp land you will definitely want to build on.
4. Energy. Drill baby drill and while one is drilling, another 10 should be bringing the replacements online.
September 4, 2008 - 10:34 PM on September 4th, 2008
Excellent speech. McCain is not as naturally skilled an orator as Obama, but he made it happen with determination and guts.
Palin rocks! Palin 2012!
I’m excited. I can’t wait for election day. I feel like a kid again, and this from someone who has been cynical for years…
September 4, 2008 - 10:49 PM on September 4th, 2008
I am really excited about this. I think that he did a great job with his limited ability to speak to large crowds.
September 5, 2008 - 03:59 AM on September 5th, 2008
I didn’t bother to watch any of the Republican spectacle, but I heard some McCain speech sound bytes. Nothing new. He just bragged about being a prisoner, which I don’t see how it would qualify anyone to be President. I didn’t watch any of the coverage about his empty running mate because I don’t need to. I have learned all I need to know from Daily Kos and other sources. It’s just a cheap ploy to draw the women’s vote. Well it won’t work because Sen. Obama is so suave and sophisticated he has the female votes sewn up.
Of course I am sure all the republicans did was repeat their slogans. the real talent, the real experience is all on the Democratic side. Senator Obama has overcome the adversity of being black in America, and that is something none of the country club republican crowd will ever understand. Yet he succeeded! He helped organize his community, then answered the call of a grateful community and went to the State legislature where he championed the rights of women to control their own bodies! By popular acclimation he graciously accepted the people’s demand that he enter the Senate, so he could continue his groundbreaking work on a National level. He already has toured Europe and shown more political acumen than Bush ever has!
He has already been accepted by the Europeans as President, so I fail to see the need for even wasting any more time on this election when we all know, whether we will admit it or stay in denial, that he and Biden will be moving into the White House in January.
Frankly, with Democratic control of Congress, I fail to understand why there even needs to be an election! The people gave control to the Democratic Party, that should automatically carry over to the Presidency! The Democratic Party should just appoint the next President itself! Its out right! And we ALL know who that would/will be!!!
Congress now needs to start passing laws regulating the activities of the Republican party! Regulate it right out of existence.!
September 5, 2008 - 06:52 AM on September 5th, 2008
DA, your post says it all. Legislate republican activity? Isn’t that a barrier to free speech? Something akin to Nazi Germany? Daily Kos? Puhleese!
Sarah Palin ROCKS and I’m with Robert. I am now excited about this election. Newt Gingrich brought a good point on the O’Reilly factor. He said with Sarah Palins we are looking at the future of America for at least the next 30 years.
Go McCain/Palin!!!!!!!!
September 5, 2008 - 06:54 AM on September 5th, 2008
I am thrilled to hear a candidate for President finally support the right of parents to select the schools their children go to. The government education monopoly is a failure and we need open competition to improve. Private schools have been doing a better job for much less cost since the beginning. Government educators cannot see clearly to improve their system because they have convinced themselves that all they need is more money. They never consider dedication or allow themselves to look at the effectiveness of private schools to learn from. Parents, not government, must raise their children and make the decisions that impact their lives. Education is fundamental in every way to that process.
Go McCain!!
September 5, 2008 - 06:59 AM on September 5th, 2008
Dear DEMOCRAT ARTIST -
You are angry and willing to throw our republic and freedom away to achieve your agenda. You are the reason dictators are born. In the free exchange and competition of ideas yours has been tested and failed repeatedly. Perhaps you should study history instead of art!
September 5, 2008 - 10:35 AM on September 5th, 2008
“I’m excited. I can’t wait for election day. I feel like a kid again, and this from someone who has been cynical for years…”
————–
Now you know how I feel, and millions of others feel about Sen. Obama and this coming election.
And you were making fun of that “feeling” months ago, I remember…and now you got it too! (only for the other guy)
September 5, 2008 - 10:38 AM on September 5th, 2008
Why do you people respond to fake, insincere posts like “Democratic Activist”?
You should all know by now that it’s just a troll, pretending to be someone who they aren’t.
Be a smart fish. Don’t take the bait.
September 5, 2008 - 10:42 AM on September 5th, 2008
We made fun of the tingle running up Matthews leg as he was on the air!
September 5, 2008 - 11:46 AM on September 5th, 2008
My reaction to the No Spin Zone: No spin my foot! Just two liars sitting together talking about nothing. All an ego trip, and no need to even pack your bags.
O’Really? might as well pack his bags, he’s a loser as well, after that measly interview. BIG WASTE OF HOT AIR TIME!
Who is Bill O going to have on next, ungrateful Mean Michelle, after all that is Obama’s number one advisor.
“What a pity, and what a town without pity can-an an. . . do-ooo!”
September 5, 2008 - 03:29 PM on September 5th, 2008
SFL I understand what you’re saying. It’s just that I didn’t get energized until Sarah Palin joined the ticket. Here’s why I like her so much:
1. She got into politics for the right reasons, because she was fed up with the status quo.
2. She wasn’t afraid to take on the powerful, including in her own party. That’s what the Republican party needs; a GOOD housecleaning, a good shakeup, some chlorine in the gene pool…(I am currently registered Independent).
3. Even with her reaching the Governor’s office she hasn’t forgotten who she is, and more importantly, why she is there. What a breath of fresh air for the dank, stale world of politics!
4. She fought corruption, instead of benefitting from it (Rezko, anyone?)
5. She is such an accomplished person! Ever see her bio? She’s done it all. She’s a pilot, she was a start athlete in HS, she’s been a small business owner. She’s had a lot of life experiences.
6. I can totally identify with her. She isn’t some professional political hack who’s never had a real job, suckled from college on the teat of politics, now rewarded for fealty! She’s not some liar/lawyer manipulator professional politician. She’s one of us, and totally understands what real Americans go through, how they live and work and what they face. She’s EXACTLY what we need in politics.
Her record of personal and political achievements far outshine Obama’s, imo.
September 5, 2008 - 03:31 PM on September 5th, 2008
O’Reilly is an ass….now just a bigger one than he already was….and it just shows that FOX has gone over to the dark side completely.
Alan Colmes should be fired for his appalling vicious gossip campaign on Sarah Palin on his ridiculous blog LiberalLand [isn't that really known as HELL?]
FOX should take a big lesson from US mag…..
But Murdoch is in the tank for Obama….
We have stopped watching everything but ’special report’…..and will not watch any other FOX shows until Colmes is G-O-N-E.
September 12, 2008 - 12:18 PM on September 12th, 2008
Bottom line is this: There are no “secrets”or conspiracy regarding Barack Obama’s candidacy. Feel free to send me any new ones you receive but I am confident I can find proof from unbiased sources that can disprove them.
I’m getting so upset about these smears. All I want is honesty and consistency. Do you want your President to practice family values? McCain does not because of his public infidelities. Do you want your President to have been born with a silver spoon in his mouth? Pick McCain. Do you want someone who has voted for veteran benefits every time? Pick Obama.
Do you want your President to come from the party that has the history of fiscal responsibility? Vote Democrat. Do you want your President to come from a party with a history of higher taxes on those with lower incomes? Vote Republican. Do you want your President to come from a party that has consistently favored big companies over small, millionaires over minimum wage-earners, management over labor and has no qualms about going into debt with China for an amount that most of us can barely comprehend? Vote Republican.
If someone were to say, “I am voting for McCain because I like him better,”I would respect that. That is an opinion that is based on emotion and cannot be proved or disproved with facts. But to say that you are voting for McCain because you are afraid that Obama is a secret Muslim, he favors “black”concerns over “white,”he is going to raise taxes on everyone, he will abdicate to the United Nations, he covertly hates white people and once in office, will sacrifice live babies to the Great God Zortog, is ridiculous. Truly, if there are people who can hold these beliefs in the face of the facts, I just hope the ballot is too complex for them to figure out.
Trying to pin Barack Obama with the values of his father is just as stupid as trying to do the same for me. My father is a racist, anti-Semitic bigot who has sympathy for the KKK. No one can say I agree with any of those views. And I left my church, too, because I could no longer approve of the messages from the pulpit. Did I stay with the church unnecessarily longer because it was more comfortable to do so? Yes, you bet. Can anyone ascribe those messages to me even though I was raised in that church and did not leave until I was 30? NO.
And about his race? Well, I doubt there are many folks in America who only have one color in their family tree. That’s the wonder and the beauty of this country. Regardless of your background, history, religion or race; you are just as American as someone whose ancestors came over on the Mayflower or who were already here greeting them.
And then there’s the big issue of abortion. I have never been pregnant when I didn’t want to be THEREFORE I have no idea what I would do in that situation. I can in no way know what that is like than I can know what it’s like to be black, Asian, physically-handicapped or male. I honor and respect the differences between me and other but no one is just like me. I think the most obnoxious statement one can make is, “I know how you feel.” The Hell you do!
All I know is if my daughter or my son’s future partner find themselves in that situation and decide for whatever reason to get an abortion, I want it done by the most qualified medical personnel available, in the most sterile environment possible and without any investigation or interference from any government body. I miscarried my first baby. Afterward, I had a D & C. If abortion had been illegal, I would have been interrogated and possibly arrested and made to stand trial to prove I really did want the baby and did not induce an abortion on myself. Government should not be involved in any way with deciding whom one should marry and when one decides to have a family. However, if you feel abortion should be made illegal for any reason, by all means, McCain is your man.
I have friends and family who support McCain for various reasons. I have no desire to debate them or try to convince them to change their vote. I love them all and know that they are all good people who are intelligent and reasonable. We just are not the same on every little thing! That’s okay! We have so much more in common than we do differently and it’s imperative that we never forget that.
I do not think the world will end with the election of either McCain or Obama. There will be benefits from either man and there will be difficulties with either man. All I want is for voters to study the facts and the issues and make their decision based on wisdom and intelligence rather than irrational fear. That may be too much to ask for but one can dream, right?
September 12, 2008 - 03:25 PM on September 12th, 2008
Lynette says:
“I miscarried my first baby. Afterward, I had a D & C. If abortion had been illegal, I would have been interrogated and possibly arrested and made to stand trial to prove I really did want the baby and did not induce an abortion on myself.”
Where do you live? My mother miscarried twice between 1956 and 1971 and was never questioned by the police.
Obviously, all the issues you mentioned are clearly above your comprehension level..