Letters to the Editor
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@ljwalker regarding list of Obama problems
I read your list of things you have against Obama. Do you have a similar list for Hillary Clinton? Or do you just give her a pass for everything?
Here are some replies.
ljwalker: "1] Lack of national/international experience"
What is Hillary Clinton's international experience? As we are discovering, many of her claims of inernational experience are turning out to be exaggerated or false. I have a feeling this "we dodged sniper fire" thing is going to get more play this week. There's no way the media won't have fun with that one. As for "lack of national experience," what do you mean? Clinton has one term of senate experience more than Obama does, but Obama has more total elected legislative experience. Clinton gets points for having served as First Lady. But what else? It's almost as if people are trying to give Clinton experience credit for being older.
ljwalker: "2] His ties to Antoin Rezko for so many years"
Not much of an issue. Few voters have a clue what this is all about, other than the fact that people keep saying "Rezko" and there's some guy named Rezko who is in a trial and who Obama knew (along with many other legislators). Obama's home purchase has already been thoroughly investigated and there's no evidence or even accusation that Obama did anything that wasn't above-board. The Rezko thing seems more of a general smear or negative association than anything else.
ljwalker: "3] His own use of "racism" against the Clintons"
We've been over this, but there's very little evidence of Obama himself trying to use racism charges against the Clintons. Jesse Jackson Jr. said some things early on and has since been reeled in. Obama played down charges of racism for the MLK/LBJ comparison. Same with Bill's bitter Jesse Jackson comparison, which people objected to spontaneously. A regional staffer who sent an un-sanctioned memo to an individual who asked for examples of racism ended up getting into trouble, and it was pretty well proven this wasn't standard Obama campaign practice. Obama's speech on race established his position on such matters (have you read the whole thing?). Meanwhile, what is your take on the Ferraro comments? They were hardly innocuous.
ljwalker: "4] His flip-flops on Iraq"
No flip-flops there. Obama has been against the war all along. He funded the troops after the war was already in full swing, but that's not the same thing at all. Obama's position on Iraq is completely internally consistent with his statements and policy. Hillary Clinton is the one with the real Achilles' heel on Iraq, as she helped make it all possible, for reasons that still don't hold up to scrutiny. Nor has she taken responsibility for it, dodging the question at every opportunity.
ljwalker: "5} His acceptance of Wall Street money in his campaigns"
I don't see how anything about Obama's campaign funding is in any way worse than it is for Clinton. Do you?
ljwalker: "6] His inability to effect change (of the sort he speaks about) either in Illinois or the U.S. Senate"
Obama's record in the senate in 2 1/2 years is more impressive than Clinton's after 6+ years. Not sure what your requirements are for "effecting change," but if you mean passing meaningful legilsation than Obama qualifies. If you mean something else then please, do tell.
ljwalker: "7] The negative way his colleagues in the Illinois Senate and in the U.S. Senate have portrayed him: "taking a powder" on controversial votes; referring to him as a "dilettante" in the U.S. Senate"
Who? When? And more important: Who cares? It's hard to imagine any politician not having some enemies. What have Hillary Clinton's colleagues said about her? Anything negative at all? Hmmm.
ljwalker: "8] His wife's comments"
You're scraping the bottom of the barrel. Michelle Obama's comment (was there more than one controversial statement?) about being proud of the U.S. has been pretty well examined. I'm not sure what some minor misinterpretation has to do with Barack Obama's qualifications anyway.
ljwalker: "9] His judgment about Rev. Wright"
This is already stale, and it's getting older and more bogus with every ticking second. Obama has proven quite capable of shaking off these sorts of things. The actual "judgment" problem for Obama is pretty nebulous -- it amounts to there being guilt-by-association-with-out-of-context-soundbites.