Change I find unbelievable
Okay, so in the last week Barack Obama has changed his support for FISA telecom immunity, NAFTA renegotiation, handgun bans, and his pledge to take public campaign financing. Now these aren’t necessarily little things like pandering to religious conservatives by talking about originalist judges. These are major policy shifts that Obama used to seize the left and win the primaries with. At this point it is clear that Obama could advocate immediate strikes on Iran and drilling of ANWR and the left would applaud and say, “I told you that’s what needed to be done! That is leadership!”
So just where is Obama on the current war? The conservatives here have said repeatedly that when the Dems win the White House, the reality of the office will show just how foolish their calls for immediate withdrawl were. The Obama team understands this and have scheduled their man to fly to Iraq very soon. These events are not lost on McCain blogger Michael Goldfarb (formerly of the Weekly Standard).
Playing to the Democrartic party’s antiwar base, Obama pledged to withdraw troops regardless of the facts on the ground. He opposed the surge, and even warned that it would make the violence worse. And as progress became apparent, he stubbornly refused to recognize the gains our troops were making.
Yet now that Obama has indicated he will take any position needed to seize the center, it looks like Iraq will be his next flip-flop:
So what issue will he shift on next? After looking at the numbers from yesterday’s Quinnipiac battleground polls, we’re betting Iraq. It turns out that Americans as a whole aren’t nearly so eager for surrender as the left-wing of the Democratic party, and Obama isn’t much for staking out unpopular positions.
I don’t really find the new positions Obama has staked out or will stake out soon, objectionable. I just find myself repulsed by the way the media and his apologists haven’t the slightest bit of courage to call him on them (except for Glen Greenwald). Change you can believe in, my ass.
gurusteve
E the Wise
Andre the Defiant
pg - your humble messenger
hairybeast
thompaine
Drowning Creek
Mo K.
When you have no “principles” except victory at any cost, you’ll pretty much say and do anything to get elected. But at least he’ll outlaw SUV’s and make us turn the air conditioning down. Thank goodness.
Dave - the Infidel Sage
30 Jun 08 at 9:28 pm
E, you just don’t get it. Barack Obama is the Son of God, the incarnate Savior of the world. He’s infallible, don’t cha know? Who are we as mere mortals to probe his positions on issues.
Obama has not had his metoric rise because of his positions. His supporters could care less about them. To put it diplomatically, they have never exactly been into the whole policy thing. Obama is Bobby Kennedy, Nelson Mandela, and Jesus Christ wrapped up a single, divine spirit, who has graciously agreed to grace America with his leadership.
DFV the Scribe
1 Jul 08 at 10:07 pm
Close Veatch, I think you meant that he is Ronald Reagan, right? Let’s start naming everything we see after him! Seriously, before you start lecturing the next generation about idolizing someone who is pretty darned good, but not exactly a superhero, pull that mote out.
Andre the Defiant
1 Jul 08 at 10:36 pm
Except that Ronald Reagan actually did a few things (major understatement) before we ’started naming things’ after him. Obama served exactly 143 days as a United States senator before he started running for president and his only accomplishments so far have been to defeat Alan Keyes and Hillary Clinton in different races and starting to flip flop on everything from flag pins to public campaign financing to possibly even Iraq. Yep, let’s start carving his face on “the rock” just to the right of Theodore Roosevelt. He’s obviously earned it already.
Dave - the Infidel Sage
1 Jul 08 at 11:26 pm