Palin Pushes Florida Undecideds Towards Obama »
Posted By Aidenag 1 year, 3 months ago in Political NewsFive weeks ago, the St. Petersburg Times convened a group of Tampa Bay voters who were undecided about the presidential election. Their strong distrust of Barack Obama suggested it was a group ripe for John McCain to win over. Not anymore. The group has swung dramatically, if unenthusiastically, toward Democrat Obama. Most of them this week cited the same reason: Sarah Palin.
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Aidenag
Photographer by day, news junkie by night. My main areas of interest are politics and the environment.
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Aidenag1 year, 3 months ago
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techsupport1 year, 3 months ago
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It was definitely a gamble for McCain to choose such a polarizing figure as his running mate. Perhaps he didn't expect the backlash from the left, based on her approval ratings in Alaska. I guess it remains to be seen if the gamble pays off, and if so, where and how much. I've seen some recent polls that indicate her popularity is wearing off. Here's one:
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http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/archive/200...
I suppose the Palin backers would seize on the fact that the poll was commissioned by DailyKos, but it was actually conducted by the non-partisan Research 2000, which is a reputable and accurate polling firm. The article also mentions that a CBS news poll shows similar figures.
Personally I'm not surprised by this slippage. Sarah Palin seems a lot more similar to George Bush and D. Cheney than John McCain does, both politically and on a personal level, and we all know where their approval ratings are right now. It was only a matter of time before the general populace caught on to this. -
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Klarissa1 year, 3 months ago
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The Villages, a vast, upscale planned community north of Orlando, has about 70,000 mostly adult residents -- many of them military retirees -- who vote reliably Republican in statewide races. Tens of thousands inched along roads into the picturesque town square of the complex, where they stood in sweltering heat for about four hours as local GOP officials and a country band revved up the crowd.
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"Sa-Rah! Sa-Rah!" they chanted at every mention of her name, applauding loudly and waiving tiny American flags that were distributed -- along with free water bottles -- by local volunteers. The fire chief estimated the crowd at 60,000.
Admiring throngs mobbed the Palin family's arrival and departure, snapping souvenir pictures. Autograph seekers thrust campaign signs, caps with the McCain-Palin logo and copies of magazines with her face on their covers, and the Palins responded warmly. -
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UnusualSuspect1 year, 3 months ago
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One of my sisters lives in Wisconsin. She's been a life-long Republican (the black sheep of the family), but this year is different.
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She voted for Bush, obviously, in 2000 and 2004, but said she's not voting for McCain this year. I was taken aback! "What!" I said, "how can that be?" "You're not voting for a Republican?"
She said the addition of Palin to the ticket was the deciding factor. Now my sister (at least I thought) is a pretty hard core conservative, but she said that Palin's views on certain matters went beyond what she felt the country needed.
Just goes to show that people don't necessarily follow the party line, and in some cases, may buck it altogether... -
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Klarissa1 year, 3 months ago
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in 1995-200, Obama was in Chicago throwing away close to $150 million with no results.
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"Chicago received $49 million from a $500 million endowment by Walter H. Annenberg, the billionaire publisher, for school reform efforts nationwide, and the city added $98 million in matching funds for the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, a philanthropic campaign that financed enrichment projects at a third of the city’s 600 schools."
He was president of the project 1995 to 2000
Wikipedia says: "The project appears to have failed to achieve any of its stated, measurable educational goals. For example, a comprehensive study by the Consortium on Chicago School Research concludes:
"Results suggest that among the schools it supported, the Challenge had little impact on school improvement and student outcomes, with no statistically significant differences between Annenberg and non-Annenberg schools in rates of achievement gain, classroom behavior, student self-efficacy, and social competence."
http://www.propeller.com/story/2008/08/21/obamas-l...-
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Tangent0011 year, 3 months ago
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If you actually read the final report, there was not a single factor on which the failure could be blamed, much less a single person. In fact, in the case of the Breakthrough Schools that had more funding and internal enthusiasm for the project, there was indeed a measurable improvement.
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Nor was Obama 'president'. Paul Vallas was the CEO. Obama was the chairman of the board, which has very little to do with the day-to-day operations. For the most part, the board of directors for a non-profit are consumed mainly with fundraising.
http://eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/cont... -
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Klarissa1 year, 3 months ago
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TRIBUNE-REVIEW
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Friday, August 22, 2008
U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign paid more than $800,000 to an offshoot of the liberal Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now for services the Democrat's campaign says it mistakenly misrepresented in federal reports.
An Obama spokesman said Federal Election Commission reports would be amended to show Citizens Services Inc. -- a subsidiary of ACORN -- worked in "get-out-the-vote" projects, instead of activities such as polling, advance work and staging major events as stated in FEC finance reports filed during the primary.
FEC spokeswoman Mary Brandenberger said it is not unusual for campaigns to amend reports, even regarding large sums of money.
But, said Blair Latoff, spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee: "Barack Obama's failure to accurately report his campaign's financial records is an incredibly suspicious situation that appears to be an attempt to hide his campaign's interaction with a left-wing organization previously convicted of voter fraud. For a candidate who claims to be practicing 'new' politics, his FEC reports look an awful lot like the 'old-style' Chicago politics of yesterday."-
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BillieMaxer1 year, 3 months ago
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1. The Myth: McCain and Palin claim to be agents of change.
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The Truth: In a desperate attempt to revive McCain's "maverick" reputation, the McCain campaign is trying to co-opt Obama's slogan. But "change" is a tough act to pull off when your record almost exactly matches the current president's. According to a study cited by the Huffington Post, John McCain voted in keeping with the president's positions 100 percent of the time in 2008 and 95 percent in 2007.
2. The Lie: To burnish Palin's rep as a down-to-earth, no-nonsense fighter of government waste, the campaign keeps bringing up the state-owned jet Palin put on eBay. Today McCain stated: "You know what I enjoyed the most? She took the luxury jet that was acquired by her predecessor and sold it on eBay -- made a profit."
The Truth: As Politico points out, Palin did put the Alaska-owned plane on eBay. But she failed to sell it. Instead, the state had to go through a private broker to unload the jet and ended up losing money in the transaction. Or, the opposite of profit.
3. Flip-Flop: Offshore Drilling.
Original Position: In 1999, McCain made conservatives very unhappy by supporting a moratorium on offshore drilling.
Politically Expedient Position: McCain can't afford to make conservatives unhappy anymore; his campaign now depends on the rapturous love of a conservative base that is still suspicious of him from when he used to take intelligent positions. So he switched his position on offshore drilling. As Dana Milbank at the Washington Post writes, McCain recently argued that "those very same 'moratoria should be lifted' and proposed incentives for the states 'in the form of tangible financial rewards, if the states decide to lift those moratoriums.'"
4. The Lie: McCain and Palin have said up to 29 times and counting that Palin told Congress "'thanks but no thanks' on that Bridge to Nowhere."
The Truth: Palin strongly supported the Bridge to Nowhere and campaigned on the issue while running for governor of Alaska in 2006. It should also be noted that she never actually got the chance to tell Congress "no thanks," as Congress killed off the project, choosing instead to give a lump sum for all of Alaska's transportation projects, money that Palin gladly accepted.
5. The Lie: McCain keeps repeating, over and over and over again, that Obama's tax proposals will hurt the middle class.
The Truth: Obama's tax policy cuts taxes for people in the middle-income brackets, while his plan would increase taxes only for those with a family income above $250,000 and individuals who make more than $200,000. Not exactly the middle class. -
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BillieMaxer1 year, 3 months ago
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6. The Lie: McCain falsely claims he received every award from every veterans organization.
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The Truth: Despite saying it again and again, McCain is flat-out lying when he claims to have received the highest award from every veterans organization. As Think Progress reports:
He received a grade of D from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America and a 20 percent vote rating from the Disabled Veterans of America; Vietnam Veterans of America noted McCain had "voted against us" in 15 "key votes."
As for the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars -- with whom McCain claims to have a "perfect voting record" -- both groups vigorously supported Sen. Jim Webb's (D-Va.) GI Bill that McCain tirelessly opposed.
Given McCain's grades at the Naval Academy, maybe he thinks 20 percent approval is actually really good.
7. Flip-Flop: Immigration Reform.
Original Position: McCain was once a proponent of an immigration plan that would combine securing the borders with a temporary worker program and a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
Politically Expedient Position: With his poll numbers dipping and under attack from Republican opponents during the primaries, McCain switched his position on immigration. As the AP reports, instead of supporting broad immigration reform, McCain's first and foremost priority now is to secure the borders. All that other, less important stuff, could come ... whenever. Stated McCain: "I got the message. ... We will secure the borders first and then go on to other issues."
8. The Lie: An attack ad (ironically called "Fact Check") by the McCain campaign claimed that Factcheck.org, a nonpartisan election-accuracy watchdog, accused Obama of spreading misleading information about Sarah Palin.
The Truth: Factcheck.org did not attribute Internet rumors about Palin to the Obama campaign. The organization was in fact debunking information about Palin spread online though anonymous e-mails and Web posts.
9. The Lie: The very same attack ad seems to purposefully misquote an article in the Wall Street Journal. The ad states that the Obama campaign sent a team to Alaska to "dig dirt on Governor Palin."
The Truth: The article actually stated they were sent to "dig into her record and background." Also, as it turns out, the article was wrong to begin with. Obama did not send a team to Alaska to dig into anything. What are the chances McCain will pull the ad and apologize?
10. The Lie: An attack ad by the McCain campaign says Obama is "against troop funding."
The Truth: According to Factcheck.org, Obama has only voted against one war-funding bill, "after Bush vetoed a version that contained a date for withdrawal from Iraq." -
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BillieMaxer1 year, 3 months ago
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11. The Myth: McCain echoed his wife's dubious claim that Alaska's proximity to Russia makes Palin qualified to tackle the complex foreign policy issues facing the next administration. When asked if Palin is up to the challenge of dealing with "an insurgent Russia," McCain responded, "... Alaska is right next to Russia. She understands that."
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The Truth: As Steve Benen, writing for CBS News, points out:
Palin has never been to Russia. She's never demonstrated any expertise on U.S. policy toward Russia. She doesn't have any background in international relations at any level. But for Republicans, the fact that she's lived in a state near Russia is somehow a qualification for national office. ... It's the dumbest argument I've ever heard.
12. The Lie: A McCain Web ad affixed the clever moniker "Dr. No" to Obama, claiming Obama says "no" to energy "innovation" and to "the electric car."
The Truth: In fact, according to Factcheck.org, "Obama proposed a $150 billion program of research into a wide variety of clean-energy technologies last year." Also, Obama is not against the electric car. He's against McCain's ridiculous plan to award a $300 million prize to the person who fixes a glitch in electric car battery technology.
13. The Lie: McCain says that Obama wants kids to learn "about sex before learning how to read."
The Truth: McCain's attack ad "Education," in which he blatantly lies to try to make it look like Obama wants to educate kindergartners about sex, cites a bill that was a piece of legislation in the Illinois state senate. The bill was meant to add disease prevention to already standard Illinois state-approved sex-ed classes. That means, in cases of education in kindergarten, nothing more than child predator prevention. For McCain to exploit a bill that protects small children from deviant criminals in our society is disgusting. -
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BillieMaxer1 year, 3 months ago
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15. Flip-Flop: Windfall profits tax.
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Original Position: McCain has said he would look into a windfall profits tax, a smart thing to do when gas prices are through the roof and oil companies are reporting record profits. While speaking in North Carolina on the campaign trail, McCain said:
I'd be glad to look not just at the windfall profits tax -- that's not what bothers me -- but we should look at any incentives that we are giving to people, that or industries or corporations that are distorting the market.
Politically Expedient Position: Of course, McCain was singing a different tune while talking with oil industry insiders in Texas, where he made fun of Obama's support of windfall profit taxes:
He wants a windfall profits tax on oil, to go along with the new taxes he also plans for coal and natural gas. If the plan sounds familiar, it's because that was President Jimmy Carter's big idea too -- and a lot of good it did us.
So which is the senator for? A tax that will help the people, or a favor for your buddies in big oil? We may never know.
16. The Lie: CBS's Katie Couric thinks Obama is using sexism against Palin.
The Truth: A misleading attack ad released by the McCain campaign titled "Lipstick" ends with CBS's Katie Couric saying: "One of the great lessons of that campaign is the continued and accepted role of sexism in American life." The ad implies that Couric is talking about the Obama campaign's treatment of Palin, but in reality the quote is from before Palin joined the McCain ticket; Couric was talking about Hillary Clinton. CBS was so upset over the dishonest way that Couric's quote was used that it forced the McCain campaign to take the ad dow -
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NoWayMan1 year, 3 months ago
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Florida undecideds are following the national trend.
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nationwide things are swinging back towards Obama.
Obama now leads in the real clear politics poll average by 2.6%.
Last Monday McCain was up 1.6%.
so, thats a swing of 4.2% in Obama's favor.
the only poll where McCain still holds a lead is in the Battleground Poll, where McCain holds a 1% advantage.
Last week, he had a 4% advantage in this same poll. so even in the Battleground Poll, the tide is turning towards Obama.-
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antibrainwasher1 year, 3 months ago
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McSENILE and Creationist Palin. The most unqualified morons ever to run for office, any office, in the history of the country.
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The fact they are competitive, means america is doomed. The country cannot survive with that many stupid people. Democracy is a sham if the people voting cannot distinguish crap from shinola.
If you are voting repugnicon at any level, you are a complete slime ball traitor, a yellow bellied coward incapable of questioning your own values and judgement, and the unexamined life is not worth living. You republican are nothing but passages for food, you are the burden to bear for the rational people, and its too heavy a load.
You have almost completely destroyed the country with your reaganomic trickel down where the rich take everything, and then we bail them out. USA: for the rich, by the rich, of the rich. And you warlmart anti-aboartion moron mega curch evangelical slime are killing the country. You repugnicons are less than the slime that grows on dog crap. -
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nikkibabe1 year, 3 months ago
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Guys, she may see Russia from her bathroom window but she cannot see Wall Street.
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How can she fix the crisis that took 7 years to build up and explode without knowing where Wall Street exists?
Go and shoot another moose, lipstick! You are good at that!-
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StevieGee1 year, 3 months ago
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See Russia from her bathroom window? Russia is 1500 miles from the governors mansion in Juneau and 1000 miles from Wasilia. The only place that you can see Russia from Alaska is a tiny windswept rock called Little Diomede. It's mostly uninhabited except for a radar station. If you split Alaska in half, Texas would be the third largest state.
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Andy28041 year, 3 months ago
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What can you say about someone who would not know the difference between a foreign policy and an insurance policy, Her idea of foreign travel is refuelling in Ireland. God help her when she comes up against Biden in The Vp debates. And to think if anything happened to J Mcain this absolute no nothing individual would lead america. And all of her speeches are from a script. In Europe they laughed there socks off when he anounced her as Vp. He may as well have anounced Billy Bob as his Vp.
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nikkibabe1 year, 3 months ago
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Palin welcome theme song:
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UNITED PAUPER STATES OF AMERICA.
Oh say, can't you see
we are one hell of a pauper state now
what so great being a pauper
it is money we don't have
oh China, lend us now or we crumble
for the land of the stupid
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nikkibabe1 year, 3 months ago
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Why you rednecks bring in Obama when it is not intended?
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Is it not a fact that Bush has brought this country in to deep debts, bankruptcy and hopelessness. Come on, accept the facts while having some fun at the expense of Republicans.
..... and the scum bags want a third term to fix they did not even want to acknowledge that they broke it!!! -
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BillieMaxer1 year, 3 months ago
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aniokly
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Get out from under the sack on your head Ani.You show your true colors every time you open your stupid mouth.If it came down to a head to head debate with LipStick, Obama's level of education would put the college pit bull to shame, but that will never happen, so stop your silly comments.If McSame debates without getting the answers first it will be no contest in favor of Obama, yup the Black guy and you just can't stand that,you are an embarrassing excuse for an American.
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