Yeah I know Obama sold us out on FISA, the Fourth Amendment and the opportunity to hold Bush and the telecoms accountable for the most criminal abuse of the Constitution in American history, and that he appears ready to sign on to a bill giving presidents vast new powers to spy on citizens without any court oversight, but that’s just one issue.
Besides, he’s still with us on a lot of stuff.
Like the separation of church and state!
Obama to expand Bush's faith-based programs
Reaching out to religious voters, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama called for expanding President Bush's program steering federal social service dollars to religious groups and — in a move sure to cause controversy — supported some ability to hire and fire based on faith.
Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, criticized Obama's proposed expansion of a program he said has undermined civil rights and civil liberties.
"I am disappointed that any presidential candidate would want to continue a failed policy of the Bush administration," he said. "It ought to be shut down, not continued."
Uh, never mind. But hey, he’s still for getting us out of Iraq soon!
Obama to 'refine' Iraq plan
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) on Thursday backed off his firm promise to withdraw combat forces from Iraq immediately and instead said he could "refine" his plan after his trip to Baghdad later this month.
Earlier, a top Obama adviser had said that the senator is not "wedded" to a specific timeline.
Yeah but at least he's for cutting the Pentagon's obscenely bloated budget and killing Bush's insane missile defense program.
Obama to maintain military spending
DEMOCRATIC candidate Barack Obama is unlikely to make any quick cuts in US defence spending as president despite pledging to rely less on military power than George W. Bush, an adviser to the Illinois senator said today.
"It's hard to see how we could spend less on the military in the near term," Richard Danzig, a former navy secretary who advises Senator Obama on national security, said.
Mr Danzig said Senator Obama supported current efforts to build a missile defence system to protect the United States and its allies from attack by rogue nations.
All right, scratch that. But what's important is that he's for stopping Bush's insane saber-rattling over Iran!
Obama: Iran threatens all of us
Sen. Barack Obama said Friday the use of military force should not be taken off the table when dealing with Iran, which he called "a threat to all of us."
OK, maybe not. But he’s still Our Guy cause he still agrees with us on the need to include serious labor and environmental standards in our trade deals by renegotiating NAFTA!
Obama Goes Soft on Free Trade
Unfortunately, Democrat Barack Obama, who sent so many smart signals on trade issues when he was competing with Hillary Clinton for his party's presidential nomination, appears to now be backtracking toward the insider territory occupied by McCain. Obama's interview with Fortune magazine-- headlined "Obama: NAFTA Not So Bad After All" -- is the best news the McCain camp has received since Mike Huckabee folded his run for the Republican nomination.
OK, bad example. But hey, at least he’s for helping us elect better Democrats to Congress!
Obama has Georgia on his mind
Barack Obama is featured in a new radio ad in Georgia endorsing second-term moderate Rep. John Barrow, who represents a competitive district that runs from Augusta to Savannah.
The ad, picked up by TPM, is particularly notable because it contradicts conventional wisdom that conservative Southern white Democrats might fear down-ballot backlash from Obama’s candidacy because his record is more liberal than their own.
"We’re going to need John Barrow back in Congress to help change Washington and get our country back on track," Obama says in the ad.
Unlike Obama, Barrow supported the war in Iraq although he opposed the president’s 2007 surge strategy. His war voting record has earned him a level of opposition from the party’s left, as has his support of other Bush policies. He faces a July 15 primary challenge from Regina Thomas, a more progressive state senator. Obama’s endorsement is particularly noteworthy because Thomas is African-America, and the district’s population is 45% African American.
Uh, never mind. But he agrees with us on the need to limit the often discriminatory use of the death penalty and stopping the rightward march of the Roberts-Scalia-Thomas-Alito court!
Obama disagrees with high court on child rape case
Democrat Barack Obama said Wednesday he disagrees with the Supreme Court's decision outlawing executions of people who rape children, a crime he said states have the right to consider for capital punishment.
OK, fine. But at least he's for preserving a woman's right to choose!
Q&A with Barack Obama
I have repeatedly said that I think it’s entirely appropriate for states to restrict or even prohibit late-term abortions as long as there is a strict, well-defined exception for the health of the mother. Now, I don’t think that "mental distress" qualifies as the health of the mother. I think it has to be a serious physical issue that arises in pregnancy, where there are real, significant problems to the mother carrying that child to term. Otherwise, as long as there is such a medical exception in place, I think we can prohibit late-term abortions.
But he’s still...he’s still...a Democrat!
Whatever.