Is There A Single Issue Obama Hasn't Flipped On?

1. Surge

Obama on the troop surge, via his website and podcast on January 2007:

I have to say that it is a chilling prospect, the notion that we would send tens of thousands of additional American young men and women to compound the tragic mistake that has already been made over the last four years.

“… In the face of this quagmire, the notion that we would put tens of thousands more young Americans in harm’s way without changing our fundamental strategy, a strategy that’s failed by almost every imaginable count , makes absolutely no sense. In escalating the war with a so-called surge of troops, the president would be overriding the express concerns of Generals on the ground, the bipartisan Iraq Study Group and the American people.”

Iraq War: “At a time when American casualties are down, at a time when the violence is down, particularly affecting the Iraqi population, is that the right time to try and set time tables for withdrawing all American troops? I mean you talked about…the end of 2009,” Kroft remarked.

“Yeah, absolutely. I think now is precisely the time. I think that it is very important for us to send a clear signal to the Iraqis that we are not gonna be here permanently. We’re not gonna set up permanent bases. That they are going to have to resolve their differences and get their country functioning,” Obama said.

“And you pull out according to that time table, regardless of the situation? Even if there’s serious sectarian violence?” Kroft asked.

“No, I always reserve as commander in chief, the right to assess the situation,” Obama replied.

(Source: 60 Minutes via Dirty Harry's Place)


The Threat of Iran: Obama's comments in Oregon yesterday:
I mean think about it. Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, these countries are tiny compared to the Soviet Union. They don't pose a serious threat to us the way the Soviet Union posed a threat to us....You know, Iran, they spend one-one hundredth of what we spend on the military. If Iran ever tried to pose a serious threat to us, they wouldn't stand a chance.And we should use that position of strength that we have to be bold enough to go ahead and listen. That doesn't mean we agree with them on everything. We might not compromise on any issues, but at least we should find out other areas of potential common interest, and we can reduce some of the tensions that has caused us so many problems around the world.
Today in Montana, Obama changed his tune:
Iran is a grave threat. It has an illicit nuclear program. It supports terrorism across the region and militias in Iraq. It threatens Israel's existence. It denies the Holocaust...

(Source: Weekly Standard)

Decriminalization of Marijuana: While running for the U.S. Senate in January 2004, Obama told Illinois college students that he supported eliminating criminal penalties for marijuana use. In the Oct. 30, 2007, presidential debate, he joined other Democratic candidates in opposing the decriminalization of marijuana.

(Source: Washington Post)

Running for President or Vice President of the United States: On the January 22nd edition of “Meet the Press,” Tim Russert and Obama had the following exchange:Russert: “When we talked back in November of ‘04 after your election, I said, ‘There’s been enormous speculation about your political future. Will you serve your six-year term as United States senator from Illinois?’”Obama: “I will serve out my full six-year term. You know, Tim, if you get asked enough, sooner or later you get weary and you start looking for new ways of saying things. But my thinking has not changed.”Russert: “So you will not run for president or vice president in 2008?” Obama: “I will not.”

(Source: Audacity of Hyprocrisy)

On the troop surge, on Bill O’Reilly, September 5, 2008:

“I think that the surge has succeeded in ways that nobody anticipated,” Obama said while refusing to retract his initial opposition to the surge. “I’ve already said it’s succeeded beyond our wildest dreams

2. Campaign Finance:On a questionaire by the good government group Common Cause, Obama wrote, "If I am the Democratic nominee, I will aggressively pursue an agreement with the Republican nominee to preserve a publicly financed general election."

And during an April 27 apperance on Fox News, Obama declared, "I have promised that I will sit down with John McCain and talk about can we preserve a public system."

Guess not.

NAFTA: On February 29th, the Obama campaign told Canadian Television (CTV) that no message was passed to the Canadian government suggesting that Obama does not mean what he says about opting out of NAFTA if it is not renegotiated.However, the Obama camp did not respond to repeated questions from CTV on reports that a conversation on this matter was held between Obama’s senior economic adviser, Austan Goolsbee, and the Canadian Consulate General in Chicago.Earlier Thursday, the Obama campaign insisted that no conversations have taken place with any of its senior ranks and representatives of the Canadian government on the NAFTA issue. On Thursday night, CTV spoke with Goolsbee, but he refused to say whether he had such a conversation with the Canadian government office in Chicago. He also said he has been told to direct any questions to the campaign headquarters.CTV didn’t stop there. They announced that their sources, at the highest levels of the Canadian government,” reconfirmed the story to CTV and one of their primary sources provided a timeline of the discussion to CTV.

Rev. Jeremiah Wright: Barack Obama repudiated what he called “inflammatory and appalling remarks” made by his Chicago pastor.Obama said he had not been present during the sermons in question.Obama told MSNBC, “Had I heard them in church I would have expressed that concern directly to Rev. Wright.”Please note, he says that he would have expressed concern, not repudiate, the words. (Source: Audacity of Hypocrisy) Previously Obama had said "I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can my white grandmother — a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe."

Jerusalem: "Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel, and it must remain undivided," Obama declared Wednesday, to rousing applause from the 7,000-plus attendees at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee policy conference.

But a campaign adviser clarified Thursday that Obama believes "Jerusalem is a final status issue, which means it has to be negotiated between the two parties" as part of "an agreement that they both can live with."

Palestinian Elections In 2006: Obama Says That He Opposed Palestinian Elections In 2006. Obama: "There is no room at the negotiating table for terrorist organizations. That is why I opposed holding elections in 2006 with Hamas on the ballot. The Israelis and the Palestinian Authority warned us at the time against holding these elections, but this administration pressed ahead. And the result is a Gaza controlled by Hamas, with rockets raining down on Israel." (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At The Annual AIPAC Policy Conference, Arlington, VA, 6/4/08)

But During His 2006 Trip To The Middle East, Obama Met With Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas And Said The Election Represented An "Opportunity...To Consolidate Behind A Single Government." "Illinois Senator Barack Obama's journey to the Middle East took him to the West Bank Thursday for a meeting with the man elected to replace Yasser Arafat. ... For a time Thursday in the West Bank there was only the clatter of cameras as the newly elected president of the Palestinian authority, Mahmoud Abbas, met with Illinois Senator Barack Obama. At a meeting with Palestinian students Thursday, Obama said the U.S. will never recognize winning Hamas candidates unless the group renounces its fundamental mission to eliminate Israel, and Obama told ABC7 he delivered that message to the Palestinian president. 'Part of the opportunity here with this upcoming election is to consolidate behind a single government with a single authority that can then negotiate as a reliable partner with Israel,' said Obama." (Chuck Goudie, "Obama Meets With Arafat's Successor," ABC 7 News, http://obama.senate.gov, 1/12/06)

 

Have you flipped yet on your man-love, adoration, and worship of Adolph Hitler yet?

How about your hatred of blacks, Jews, Mexicans, etc.? Have you flipped on that hatred yet to more tolerance?

Just checking...

 

Honestly, Pabst, I read your first supposed "flip" and I can't even identify what the flip is supposed to be.

It's not even close to McCain thinking that Bush's wiretaps circumvented the law, and now claiming the exact opposite.

 

Sorry Dave, I somehow lost my "paste" of his O'Reilly comments. I'm sure you saw them. I suppose not as much a flip as just a wrong decision. Pretty big thing to get wrong though if one is arguing they'd be the better Commander in Chief.

Logically on this single issue one could surmise McCain is supremely qualified. Obama would've abandoned Iraq leaving us in defeat and opening the door for tests from other rogue nations. Instead McCain argued on behalf of the successful surge. If Obama's opposition to the Iraq War is so bona fide, so steadfast, then why the hell is Joe Biden on the ticket?

If Obama is considered qualified based on his alleged opposition to the war should he not be equally accountable for his opposition to the surge? Is it too hard for him to say” I was wrong about the surge, it worked”?

 

John McCain -- 61 Flip-Flops and Counting


http://www.alternet.org/election08/90956/

 

Sorry, no, I didn't see them. I'm sure they made your point brilliantly, though, 'cause your post certainly didn't.

Umm... Obama wouldn't have gotten the country in the mess in the first place.

As for the surge working, you can see the successes at icasualties.org

 

Jesus H Christ you guys sure do post an awful lot of OPINIONS as if they're facts.
In this case on something you CANNOT possibly know. No matter how bad you would like to think you do.

 

At the time, Obama made speeches against the war. So yes, we know that he wouldn't have entered the war.

 

OK, if this was the case, let me also speculate.

He would have not even gone into Afghanistan.
He would be stuck with Clinton quagmire of containing Saddam.
which would have been in the 18th year.

Had he been forced to go into Afghanistan we would be seeing 4000 causalites by now.

I can't see a world with us not going to war being better then the situation we have now

 

Had Bush finished the job in Afghanistan...

but he didn't, he allow Bin Laden to escape, thereby allowing the fear machine to continue, which led us into Iraq, which allowed Afghanistan to degenerate to the present condition, which allow Bin Laden to move into Pakistan, which allowed Iran to gain strength...

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