Barack Obama - ISSUES

[And Such Were Some Of You]

Barack Obama - ISSUES

[anointedteacher]

Obama 4 Change

[And Such Were Some Of You]

Yeah sis, we know he is 4 change. I was just posting where the 3 candidates stand on the issues that way everyone can view them and post if they choose to.

[anointedteacher]

I just wanted to bring on the top.... so more ppl to notice him ;D

[And Such Were Some Of You]

ROFL

You are too funny today! Trust me when I say people are noticing him just fine.

[And Such Were Some Of You]

Just thought the election should focus on the issues, so I am bumping this thread.

[anointedteacher]

Obama tells Israel he's committed to its security By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent
2 hours, 12 minutes ago

SDEROT, Israel - From the solemnity of a Holocaust museum to a dusty village battered by Hamas rockets, Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama on Wednesday professed "an unshakable commitment to the security" of Israel, whether the threat comes from terrorists, Iran or elsewhere.

"The way you know where somebody's going is where have they been. And I've been with Israel for many, many years now," he said on a day that bore striking similarities to campaigning in the United States.

In his public remarks, Obama sidestepped a question of whether he would condone an Israeli attack to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. But he said he was confident that in several private meetings he had not left Israeli politicians with the impression that, if elected president, he would be "pressuring them to accept any kinds of concessions that would put their security at stake."

Obama packed more than a half-dozen meetings, a stop at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, a helicopter tour of the country and a visit to a house hit by Hamas rockets into his only full day in Israel during his trip to the Middle East and Europe.

He also rode past an Israeli checkpoint into Ramallah on the West Bank, where he assured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of his support for a two-state resolution of the region's long animosities. Later, entering a session with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Obama said his talks with Abbas indicated "there's a strong sense of progress being made" toward peace. Olmert nodded and said, "Indeed."

Obama's major focus was clearly reassuring Israelis — and by extension millions of Jewish voters in the United States — of his commitment to the survival of the Jewish state. He leads his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, among Jewish voters, but his support falls short of what Democrat John Kerry drew four years ago.

Obama's trip is financed by his presidential campaign, and he flew to Israel from Jordan on Tuesday night about his chartered Boeing 757 emblazoned with his trademark slogan, "Change We Can Believe In."

If his campaign aides were looking for memorable images during the day, they got them, from Obama donning a skullcap at the Holocaust memorial, to President Shimon Peres saying, "God Bless You" outside his official residence, to a stop at a house under reconstruction in Sderot where he saw firsthand the destruction caused by Hamas rockets.

"People are committed," he said, making a fist and thumping his chest three times.

Shielded by intense U.S. and Israeli security, he then traveled a short distance to the local police station. There, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and local officials showed him racks filled with debris from Hamas rockets that have landed in Sderot in the past seven years. In 2005 Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip a mile away.

The same racks formed a made-for-television backdrop for a news conference attended not only by U.S. reporters, but also Israelis whose satellite trucks jammed the parking lot across the street.

Eli Moyal, the local mayor, gave Obama a souvenir T-shirt — merely the latest he has received since he began running for president — and the senator also came away with a gift of a piece of rocket as artwork, attached to a wooden plaque.

Gaza Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum had a less-favorable response to Obama's visit to Sderot:

"Hamas considers the remarks of the Democratic candidate today to be part of the American policy of bias towards Israel and giving legitimacy to Israeli crimes against our people. His remarks today give cover for the occupation's nonstop crimes against our people."

The subject of Tehran's presumed drive to gain a nuclear weapon — and the threat that would pose to Israel — was a recurrent theme throughout the day.

The American presidential candidate said, "Iranians need to understand that whether it's the Bush administration or an Obama administration, that this is a paramount concern to the United States."

He said he favors both "big sticks and carrots" to persuade Iranians to switch course.

"What I have also said, though, is that I will take no options off the table in dealing with this potential Iranian threat. And understand part of my reasoning here.

"A nuclear Iran would be a game-changing situation, not just in the Middle East but around the world. Whatever remains of our nuclear nonproliferation framework, I think, would begin to disintegrate. You would have countries in the Middle East who would see the potential need to also obtain nuclear weapons."

At his news conference, Obama brushed aside a question of whether he had backed off his statement this spring that Jerusalem should be the undivided capital of Israel. Palestinians also lay claim to the city as the capital for any state they establish as the result of peace talks, and the two sides have agreed that the final decision is to be negotiated.

Criticized by Abbas after he made that comment, Obama subsequently amended it. "Well, obviously, it's going to be up to the parties to negotiate a range of these issues. And Jerusalem will be part of those negotiations," he said. He added that "as a practical matter, it would be very difficult to execute" a division of the city.

Abbas issued a statement saying he and Obama had not discussed the issue in their hour together.

Asked by an Israeli reporter about the matter, Obama said, "I continued to say that Jerusalem will be the capital of Israel. And I have said that before and I will say it again. And I also have said that it is important that we don't simply slice the city in half. But I've also said that that's a final status issue."

Obama departs on Thursday for Germany, where he is scheduled to deliver an outdoor speech before a large crowd. He also has stops planned for France and England before flying back to the United States on Saturday.

___

[anointedteacher]

Barack Triumphs,
by Cameron Turner on Jul 22, 2008

urbanthoughtcollective.com/2008/07/22/cam-turner-barack-obama-rick-ross/

My wavering enthusiasm for Barack Obama has been restored by the Democratic nominee’s triumphant tour of the Middle East. Obama has allayed fears that he might be backing down on his commitment to withdraw our troops from Iraq within the first 16 months of his presidency. What’s even more exciting is how the Iraqi government has gotten behind his plan – forcing President Bush to grudgingly agree to a “time horizon” for transferring security duties to the Iraqis.

John McCain thought he was playing an ace when he challenged Obama to go to the Persian Gulf region for talks with Iraqi and Afghan leaders and U.S. military commanders. McCain thought he would expose Obama as a foreign policy novice but, instead, he gave Obama the opportunity to demonstrate, once again, that he is a charismatic, commanding, highly intelligent and politically skillful leader who inspires confidence wherever he goes. Has any candidate ever looked more presidential than our boy Barack has in the last few days?

[anointedteacher]

Obama visits Western Wall By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent
56 minutes ago

JERUSALEM - Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama paid a predawn visit to the holiest place in Judaism on Thursday, bowing his head in prayer at the Western Wall.

Obama placed a small note inside a crevice in the ancient wall, a custom observed by many. He made his brief stop as he completed a trip to the Middle East in which he met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders as well as Jordan's King Abdullah II.

Orthodox men at the wall for morning prayers ran down the steps to get a look at Obama. Many reached out to shake his hand, although one booming voice called out, "Obama, Jerusalem is not for sale!"

Obama's visit lasted less than 15 minutes. He was flying to Europe immediately afterward for stops in Germany, France and England before returning home over the weekend.

[anointedteacher]

Obama in Israel: One Tough Audience
By Hillel Schenker July 24, 2008


The possible election of Senator Barack Obama as the next President of the United States could have tremendous implications for Israelis, so why has there been no evidence of Obamamania in Israel during his intense, thirty-six hour visit to the country?

For one thing, Israel is one of the few countries in the world where George W. Bush would still win over 50 percent in the public opinion polls. So there is no yearning for change in the American leadership, as there is among many Americans, and with most of the people around the world.

Israeli leaders have their own tzures (problems, in Yiddish). Prime Minister Olmert is competing with Bush in America when it comes to plummeting in the polls, and the latest news about investigations into his behavior, together with the latest tractor-terror attack in Jerusalem, pushed Obama onto the side columns of the day of his visit.

A few hours before his arrival on Tuesday evening, the song they were singing in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv (where Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated fourteen years ago) was not Yes We Can, but Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree. The occasion was the ending of the three-year regular army service of Gilad Shalit's military pals. The buddies of the young corporal with the intellectual, very non-macho appearance who was captured in an across the border raid by Hamas militants two years ago, convened together with his father, Noam, (who sounds like he's a supporter of the left-wing Meretz party) in the square which has hosted hundreds of thousands of Peace Now demonstrators, to lobby for government action to ensure Gilad's release in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

This is a clear reflection of the fact that Senator John McCain's story-narrative as a combat officer who was a prisoner of war resonates much more easily with Israelis than Obama's extraordinary story-narrative, which includes such exotic and unfamiliar stations as Hawaii, Africa, Indonesia, Harvard and the streets of Chicago.

And yet, there has been a tremendous amount of curiosity in Israel about Obama. He has been featured in a number of major stories on Israeli TV and in the print media. The day before his arrival, mass circulation daily Yediot Ahronot devoted the entire second and third page to very favorable articles about his impending visit. One wag noted that it was British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's misfortune to come right before Obama, causing his visit to go by almost unnoticed by the media and the general public. It was if he was "upstaged by the arrival of the Beatles."

There was a fierce competition among Israeli leaders to arrange quality Obama time, any time, with the man that they all understand has a real chance of becoming the next president of the United States. Even Likud opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu did not want to repeat the mistake he made with President Clinton, by getting off on the wrong foot. He made it very clear that he wanted to ensure the possibility of a positive working relationship in the future.

Particularly significant was the fact that Obama also made sure to find time to visit Ramallah and meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. This was in sharp contrast with Senator John McCain, who didn't include the Palestinians on his agenda when he came.

Unlike the Bush Administration and Senator McCain, Obama also expressed strong support for dialogue and negotiations with Syria. And with all the talk about a possible American or Israeli military strike against Iran's nuclear program, an issue which causes genuine anxiety for all Israelis, there is also a realization that unlike the situation in Iraq in 1981, there probably is no military solution to this problem, and Obama's advocacy of a concerted international diplomatic effort to confront it may be the most effective way to go.

Of course, the Senator said all the right words to reassure Israelis, and Jewish voters in the United States. And he made the obligatory visits to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, to the Western Wall (though not to the separation wall between much of the West Bank and Israel proper), and to the southern Negev town of Sderot, which has become a symbol to Israelis because of its suffering from the constant firing over the past seven years of Kassam missiles by Palestinian militants from Gaza. After all, he's a politician, and this was a political visit.

The day he left, a team of four Yediot Ahronot journalists wrote a gushing report summarizing the visit, using the headline, "Our Romance with Obama." The lead paragraph read, "Almost everyone who met Barak Obama yesterday - in the hotel, in the Foreign Ministry, at the President's Residence and in Sderot--was convinced: this is the next president of the United States. His enthralling, back-slapping personality suits the Israelis like a glove on a hand, and it recalled the romance that Israelis had with Bill Clinton."

The bland McCain would have no chance in a competition with Obama's charisma. After all, the most popular TV program here is the Israeli version of American Idol, A Star is Born.

Both Yediot Ahronot and Haa'retz emphasized Obama's commitment to be engaged in promoting the peace process from the first days of his Administration. "The Middle East will be at the top of my agenda," was the headline of an exclusive interview that Obama gave to Nahum Barnea, Israel's most influential political commentator.

As Uri Savir, former director-general of the foreign ministry and president of the Peres Center for Peace wrote in an op-ed in Yediot Ahronot titled, "Good for Israel," "Israel needs an American president who will accompany the peace process, including the setting of time-tables for progress towards a permanent agreement...Israel needs an active American involvement in the Syrian track...The election of Obama as president will be a positive turning point in America's image in the world, including in our region...", and will enable the American president to play a constructive role in promoting peace.

[Nikkol]

ASWSOY: I was about to start a separate thread...but when I saw this, I thought that my question would be very fitting here.

For those who are voting for Obama, why are you voting for him. I have heard ppl say because he's black and I want to support my own. Or because he's going to "bring our troops home" (whatever that really means) and that they don't want another "8 years of Bush" (which most ppl don't really know much about the policies to know exactly what that means either). However, I know that here we have a great deal of ppl that are voting for Obama and as someone that may be undecided about who they are voting for, not using the three points that most ppl have said, why are you voting for Obama?

Side Note: This could've been answered on many threads on many pages but I thought it would be more focused here.

[kitty]

Why am I voting for Obama....

I want the war to end... I think it is a crime to spend that much money a month that we can't afford to the point that our own country is in debt to places like China!!!

I want to stop companies from getting benefits from shipping jobs over seas... I certainly don't think they deserve tax benefits!

I want more money placed into education...

I want SS to be secure...

I want medical insurance plans that will cover previous conditions...

I don't want to bailout to only benefit large companies and banks... I like that Obama will help the common man by at least placing a 3 month stop nation wide on forclosures!!!!

I don't want the US to continue to go in debt to oother countries in general... I think that is dangerous to our way of life and liberty

I could go on and on... But I just start there.

Kitty

[livinganewlife]

Why I voted for Barack Obama……..

I voted for Obama because yes he is Black……and the color of his skin means more to me right now than anything else….

And of course Obama has issues and policies that I believe in…..Do I believe in them all NO!

But I voted for Obama because:

When I pushed the Electorate vote for Obama…I pushed that button for all my forefathers who fought so their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren could live in a day and time where there is a real opportunity for a Black man to become President…..

I voted for Obama on behalf of my grandparents who started out as sharecroppers and told me stories about how blacks had to bow their heads in Arkansas to the white man when speaking to Him and was lynched for just looking at a white person in the eye….

I voted for Obama on behalf of my grandparents who are now gone on to Glory, but for years and year’s even when I was growing up went to the polls every election just to make a difference in this country….. In the hopes that their one vote would one day change legislation; grant equality for everyone and the belief that one day their grandchildren could actually see this day….

I voted for Obama on behalf of my Aunt who has gone on to glory but was beaten as a little girl because she wanted to drink out of the white water fountain at Goldsmith’s in Memphis…all because Blacks didn’t have an equal chance to quench their thirst......

I voted for Obama on behalf of my deaf aunt, in which my Grandmother had to file a lawsuit against Galludeat College because they told my grandmother that black children where not equal in intelligence to the white deaf children enrolling in the college….and yes my aunt was one of the First Blacks to enroll in Galludeat College….and my aunt is anything but inferior she was deaf just like everyone else…but the only difference is that she was BLACK….. And today my aunt is over diversity for a Dept. in the United States Government

So to me this vote is personal and definitely skin deep!

[kitty]

Wow Living....

So deep... I think at times we honestly forget just how bad things were!

Thanks for the reminder!

And Yes... I am too am voting for Obama because he is Black... But ultimately it is because I agree with him. The fact that he is Black for me is just icing on the cake... The fact that he is coming out of Chicago, and his wife comes from my hometown community make me proud!!!


Kitty

[livinganewlife]

I don’t understand why black people are made to feel ashamed because they decide to vote for Obama just because He is black…

There are some white people who not are voting for him just because He is Black…..

I grew up in a family (as you can tell) where we didn’t just sit around and accept status quo……my folks went out there and made the difference so black people can sit around and “freely” have these discussions……


Even though we were COGIC we were revolutionists…….we was sanctified and revolutionist all at the same time..... (the shades are for my Panthers!) ;D

Also for the record, I talked with my grandfather before he passed away (and I have probably mentioned this before) but the majority of COGIC members were voting the Republican Party until like the 1960's....