The Khalidi Gambit: McCain Attacks Obama for Connection to Palestinian Activist Whose Work McCain Helped Fund

I am so tired of this guilt by association crap.
The McCain camp is acting like a bunch of 3rd grade children, and it is very embarrassing.
Obama said it best:
“To pluck out one person who I know and who I’ve had a conversation with who has very different views than 900 of my friends and then to suggest that somehow that shows that maybe I’m not sufficiently pro-Israel, I think, is a very problematic stand to take,” Obama said. “So we gotta be careful about guilt by association.”

In regards to Khalidi, however, the guilt-by-association game burns John McCain as well.
During the 1990s, while he served as chairman of the International Republican Institute (IRI), McCain distributed several grants to the Palestinian research center co-founded by Khalidi, including one worth half a million dollars.
A 1998 tax filing for the McCain-led group shows a $448,873 grant to Khalidi’s Center for Palestine Research and Studies for work in the West Bank. (See grant number 5180, “West Bank: CPRS” on page 14 of this PDF.)
The relationship extends back as far as 1993, when John McCain joined IRI as chairman in January. Foreign Affairs noted in September of that year that IRI had helped fund several extensive studies in Palestine run by Khalidi’s group, including over 30 public opinion polls and a study of “sociopolitical attitudes.”
Of course, there’s seemingly nothing objectionable with McCain’s organization helping a Palestinian group conduct research in the West Bank or Gaza. But it does suggest that McCain could have some of his own explaining to do as he tries to make hay out of Khalidi’s ties to Obama.
OK..release the tape and show Obama at a dinner with the guy….McCain gave his organization a half-million dollars. Is the McCain campaign trying to hang itself?

McCain has a whole lot of associations the Obama camp refuses to release. With less then 6 days to go I say this race is over and not just over, over by a landslide.

McCain is getting traction from his economy talk but when he goes off on these “guilt by association” bits he gets burned. Nobody cares about this especially because McCain funded Khalidi’s institute.
This is a wild throw at the last minute.

Does Obama have any friends he doesn’t have to throw under the bus? Haven’t seen one yet.

Obama knew Khalidi so well that in Obama’s own words they shared intimate dinnners toghether at each other’s homes, and that Khalidi tought him to sympathize with the Palestinians.
Khalidi’s book thanks Bill Ayers for the primary help in writing his book. Obama wrote praise for Ayers’ book on juvenile justice in the Chicago Tribune.
This hasn’t been reported by ABC.

Well now we don’t see the Palestinians calling from Gaza to vote for McCain now do we. They are calling Americans to vote for Obama, perhaps you should throw that angle in there.

McCain`s hypocrisy. It is not a smart thing to throw stones when u live in a glass house. Well that`s McCain and nobody is surprised.

FEAR is the only way Republicans know how to run a campaign. I think the American people are tired of being afraid.
Vote change, vote hope, vote Obama.
We’ve seen what happens when we stay the course.

Republicans know the level of stupidity of most Americans that`s why they keep playing on their intelligence. Look at their ads and stump speeches.

Ah, the old “not an advisor” and “kids go to the same school” routine.
Obama’s problem is (or would be, if the press reported it more) he changes his stories about his acquaintances as new facts come to light. There’s never any reason to believe he’s being forthright the first time. This is the man, after all, who didn’t admit he was on the board of the CAC with Ayers until a few weeks ago.
Wright, Pfleger, Ayers, Rezko, Klonsky, Farakhan (son), Khalidi.
Who are Obama’s non-radical friends? Why does he never introduce us to any of them?

I believe the fact that Obama has stated that Ayers is just a person in his neighborhood, then a tape shows up, indicating that Ayers was with Obama during these questionable speeches, sheds light on whether his statements are true or false.

Get ready for the triumph of the willfully ignorant. McCain/Palin are so utterly dishonest and corrupt that it is frightening. If they can Lie their way to the WH we no longer deserve our position in the world.

What a disaster the MSM is. This is terrible! The LATIMES must release the tape. William Ayers was present also!!!
No way no how nobama

This is an excellent post of Jake’s that helps round out the Obama-McCain-Khalidi story

Yes, be careful about guilt by association. But how about association and association and association and association and association? Hyde Park sounds like quite neighborhood.

So, as I read this, the McCain camp refused to answer about McCain’s funding Khalidi as far back as 1993?
Yet he demands to know the relationship of Obama with Khalidi?
Does anyone else sense that the McCain camp may be lying weasels?

Someone named Aston Grimaldi from Dune Capital has offered $150K for an unedited copy of the full tape. What’s wrong with seeing the tape?

So, it’s come to this: John McCain randomly kicking sand in the GOP kindergarden sandbox as he throws another temper tantrum. And to think some of you (happily a minority) really think this person is emotionally qualified to be the leader of the free world. Well, better luck in 4 years when the RNC chooses to run Palin for president — now that will make the GOP look like a serious joke!

What hasn’t the McCain/Palin campaign tried? Labels only work for the lo-info voters that are already in the tank. Unfortunately, they also tend to incite those very same lo-info individuals.
As for Obama/Biden, they have not made issues out of:
AIP, Trooper-Gate, Pipe-Line Gate, Prego- Daughter/Vandal-Son Drug Users-Gate, Sen. Stevens_Gate, Rev. Muthee, Rev. Hagee, G.Gordon Liddy, Keating Five, Bermuda-Gate, Dope Stealing Wife-Gate, No-Military_Records-Gate.
All that very real mud has been left in the McCain/Palin cesspool while Barack Obama and Joe Biden have run an admirably clean, issue, promise and hope oriented campaign.

Heavens!! According to McCain we should never have dinners, conversations, any affiliation, even in the most skirting way with ANYONE who might have a strong disagreement with or a different view of the world from the hypocrites and the hate-mongers he has chosen to associate with!!
Oh my, we might learn something from those people and that’s NEVER a good thing! Information is bad. Learning about others different from us is bad.
Give me a freaking break!! I am sick to death of these “guilt by association” gimicks. Are our leaders supposed to isolate themselves so they are “pure?”
Maybe if you actually had some contact with someone unlike yourself you might have a more informed opinion!! Egads!! That would be terrible. Informed opinions, what an evil thing.
I have many friends who have vastly different views and opinions than my own. I have learned a great deal from them and hope they have learned from me. Intelligent people can have differing views, opinions and thoughts. We can also agree to disagree most respectfully.
BUT NOT WITH THIS BUNCH!! You talk about free-speech being defiled by Obama??!! Try looking in the mirror. As long as others agree with you, it’s OK. Otherwise, we’re all libs, Dems, biased media, and terrorists.
And why? Because there is only ONE way and that’s THE RIGHT WING WAY! The way of hate and division. The evangelical (only our God is the right God and only our way of worship is right), uber-conservative arm of the Republican party has made a mockery of free speech and the values of the Republican Party.
I pray that the moderates and true leaders of the Republican party can see what these people, these haters, have done to your party. If you can’t, look at the people who support the GOP in huge blocks. The haters, the fear-mongers, the Rovian disciples. The people who cling to the “if you’re not with us, you’re against us” creed. These are the people you have been pandering to for the better part of 15 years? These are the people you call your base?
VOTE ON NOV. 4TH TO RID THIS COUNTRY OF THE BATE-MONGERS AND THE FEAR SPREADERS WHO HAVE HAD SUCH A STRANGLE HOLD ON THIS COUNTRY FOR FAR TOO LONG!!!! DON’T ALLOW THESE PEOPLE TO STAY ONE MORE SECOND IN THE WHITE HOUSE.
IF YOU WANT TRUE FREEDOM, VOTE!! IF YOU DON’T, YOU HAVE NO ONE TO BLAME BUT YOURSELVES IF THE GOP STEALS ANOTHER ELECTION!!!!
I am done here and refuse to engage in any dialouge with anyone who spews hate, ignorance, lies and fear. And until the GOP denounces and disposes of the tactics of division, hate and fear, I will never vote Republican again.

Obama keeps side-stepping every hard issue that is put in front of him. He will never own up to anything, it reminds me of the teenager that keeps saying “I didn’t do it” “Prove it”, but then won’t even own it when the proof is in front of him. He still has not produced a copy of his long form birth cert. No seal no deal. He is not a natural born citizen of the USA. Mark the Drum maker says ” Obama,BEAT IT”

Here’s the sad part. Foxnews is running this story… I guess an Obama presidency is starting to kick in. Yet they don’t run McCain’s connection.

Obama and Ayers funded Khalidi’s group via the Woods Foundation. I am tired of Obama saying, “Um, ah, um, he’s a guy I sort of knew… we taught at the same institution”. For cripes sake he and Khalidi ate dinner at each other’s homes and they babysat each other kids as well. I am tired of Obama getting a pass on ALL his ‘friends’. They are WAY more than friends. Obama, Ayers, Dorn all at same dinner for Khalidi… sounds like a terrorist meeting

Who is not being truthful, McCain that held back his financial relationship with Khalid or Obama that discussed his relationship with him a couple of months ago?
A pro-Palestinian and anti-Irael Organization funded by an Institute chaired by McCain, shows the hypocrisy of McCain.
All Jews should demand a reckoning of what the money advance by McCain to Khalid was used for.
=========
I don’t see any evidence that McCain “held back” his financial relationship with Khalid’s organization. I also see no evidence the organization was anti-Israel.
It would be interesting to know what the funds were used for. This was a problem pre-9/11, as I recall. Charity groups that nobody suspected were actually funneling money to terrorist and radical causes. Although I see no evidence Khalid’s group did that, there was certainly a time we were very naive in the name of diversity.
As I said, I have no idea if Obama is being honest about his relationship. He doesn’t have a good track record in that area. That should bother you.
That tape is being withheld from the public for a *reason*.

Next McCain will be accusing Obama of being part of the Keating Five.

The guy is a respected professor, first at a very conservative institution (U. of Chicago) and now at Columbia. He’s not a terrorist. He doesn’t support violence. He’s a Palestinian who doesn’t happen to agree with Israel’s policies toward his people. Is that not allowed in the US anymore? How many decent people will the McCain campaign be willing to trash to win an election?

Why can’t the LA Times release the tape and be done with it.
What do they have to hide?
The flimsy excuse that they don’t want to divulge the source is ridiculous.
They can release the tape while not divulging the source, it’s done all the time. Right, Jake?
Release the tape and leave it to the American people to decide its import.
This is American isn’t it? Where “we the people” have a right to review the tape and weigh its worth.

At this rate, some time today or tomorrow, McCain will blame Obama for his picking Palin as VP.
Ole John will come out saying that Palin was an Obama plant and she proves that Obama is un-American.
Wow, what’s next

Rashid Khalidi, Reverend Wright, Father Phleger, Tony Rezko, Bill Ayers, Bernadine Dohrn, Frank Marshall Davis….COME ON PEOPLE! These aren’t just acquaintances, they’re freinds of Obama’s. There’s a pattern of poor judgment here.

You know why I am not voting for Obama… he didn’t know anything about Rev. Wright and what he was saying for 20 years…. he didn’t really know about Ayers and he thought he had repented…. he knew nothing about ACORN and their fraudulent practices… oh and by the way, Rezko, ahhhhhh, I just did some legal work for him…. and on and on and on…. I can’t vote for this guy because he is a moron or at least an idiot….. he, by his own words, knows nothing about what goes on in his own life…. how can I even expect him to know what is going on in America

LA Times doesn’t want to divulge the source…..try one of the following….
1. Unnamed sources tell us….
2. Senior officials reveal…
3. An unnamed source who wishes to remain anonymous…
These are examples used by the LA Times, and all other mainstream media outlets all the time.

Obama give us our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as you forgive those you trespass with.
Obama loves Marxist, socialist, terrorists and illegal contributions, if he was an Adulterer his name would be William J. Clinton.
Go Obama go!

Steve_NJ,
Keep pushing the inevitability button.
Your supposed youth voters will decide to sleep in rather than vote thinking, like you, it’s in the bag.

During the same period beginning in 1992, Timmons worked closely with the two lobbyists, Samir Vincent and Tongsun Park, on a previously unreported prospective deal with the Iraqis in which they hoped to be awarded a contract to purchase and resell Iraqi oil. Timmons, Vincent, and Park stood to share at least $45 million if the business deal went through.
Jim Hensley, Convicted Felon;
G. Gordon Liddy, Convicted Felon;
Charles Keating, Convicted Felon;
Raffaello Follieri, Convicted Felon;
Rick Renzi, Under Indictment;
Rick Davis, Freddie Mac Lobbyist who was still on the payroll until a few weeks ago;
Charles Black, Lobbyist for Dictators;
Richard Quinn, White Supremist;
Pastor John Hagee, Bigot;
Pastor Rod Parsley, Bigot;
Todd Palin, Member of Secessionist Group;
Andrew McCain, Resigned Manager Failed Savings and Loan
Fox New biggest right wing joke other than 700 Club !

McCain/Palin have brought division to this country, calling on for the worst in people, not their best, I thought we lived in the UNITED STATES….

Jane, Those are the same reasons why I’m not voting for Obama. I’ve taken it one step further though. I’m no longer a Democrat and will vote straight ticket Republican in protest of the DNC and freinds and their poor judgment.

Obama has more skeletons in his closet than any other presidential candidate, and he is YOUNG! I can’t wait to see the rest of still hidden and future skeletons to come out. You are who you are in part by association. Think this is unfair? Imagine if McCain was associated with the KKK, Abortion bombers and had his campaign (and property) partially financed by a now jailed businessman….. Oh well, it goes to show who really is in charge.

Remove the plank from your own eye McCain. I’ve seen the pictures through the years of who McCain has had associations with and it’s just as bad if not worse than Obama.

I do not think that this is an election in which we might disagree as Republicans or Democrats on issue, but one where one of the candidates – Barack Hussein Obama (in case someone doesn’t like the middle name, there are a lot of politicians, Hillary Rodham Clinton, for one, who uses her entire name) – has some very far left people in his past, his present, and I am almost certain, his future: namely, Ayers, Jeremiah Wright, Rezko, Khalidi, Farakkan, just to name a few. Look these people up and you will see that they either supported the bombings, was in the PLO, or strong leanings toward the Muslim terrorist community. I could go on and on, but I will not. It is very strange to me that so many people are just giving him a pass on these issues as they do pertain to our national security. In these times, this is most important, because it does not make any difference about anything if someone gets elected to the highest office in our country and thinks that Iran is a tiny country (no matter who their leader is) and who has said that he wants to erase Israel off the map. This is disturbing and should be to everyone.

philosopherkingtomas,
None from your list comes close to one from the Obama (D-ACORN) list:
William Ayers – bombed the Pentagon, etc. and remains unrepentant, wishes he could have done more.
Nice try though.

Give me a break! Okay, now John McCain wants to try to negatively tie Obama with someone that McCain himself gave over $1 million dollars in support to??? PLEASE!!! And for you nimrods who are trying to claim that there is somehow a difference, if you honestly believe that John McCain NEVER sat down to dinner, lunch, for drinks, or anything with someone that he gave over $1 million dollars to, then I have a bridge in San Francisco that I want to sell you!

Look at Obama’s staff and you will find his friends from Pakistan running his internet campaign funds, his chief advisor was born in Iran. Keep looking people, it is not just associations, it is his closest advisors that need to be scrutinized.

How utterly pathetic and painful to watch these republicans die a slow and painful death as the consquences of their anti-Americanism collapse down upon them.

Have something damaging to a candidate you support? What to do?
1. Make yourself a confidential source for no reason.
2. Make the media outlet promise not to release the tape.
Candidate protected!
There is obviously something damaging in this tape…if McCain had a similar situation it would be everywhere and he would be at about 30% in the polls.
And to the charges of “guilt by association…” Association matters. I think it was negative that McCain spent any time with Liddy. I think it is more negative to spend a lot of time with Ayers (which I believe Obama did and is lying about it).
What if McCain associated with a KKK grand dragon and a farewell dinner? Ok or not ok. In my view, both Ayers and Khalidi are the equivalent.
Just because Ayers’ soft-spoken manner has allowed him to fool even republicans in the Chicago area into thinking “he’s not that bad” doesn’t mean he isn’t horrible. He is just as bad as David Duke or any other figure who has cleaned up his public image.

Voting for Obama Will mark the end to the special relations to the state of Israel, and will certainly boost the standing with the Arab world, connecting with hammas and hisbula will get positive reaction from Teheran, and tolerating a nuclear Iran will help the USA…..

“Why doesn’t the Obama campaign demand that that the tape be released”
…as if we don’t know… because we know that the McCain campaign would chop out 3 to 5 words, take them out of context, and montage them over a shot of the Twin Towers burning.
We’ve seen what they did with a 4 minute conversation between the not-really-Joe, the not-really-a-Plumber.
And I doubt that they’d include the fact that an organization that McCain is STILL the chairman of has given the man’s organization close to a million dollars.

I’m an independent and I’ve finally reached the last straw with McCain. I really think he’s an honorable man and I was supporting him until today, but this latest attack by his campaign has put me over the top. He has been taken over by the neo-cons and I’m sick of itI know in my mind that he doesn’t relly believe what he’s saying, but the neo-cons will stop at nothing. They have changed a graet man into a walking idiot. I feel sorry for him that they’ve ruined his campaign, but I’m now decided on my vote for the Democrats.

–Look at Obama’s staff and you will find his friends from Pakistan running his internet campaign funds, his chief advisor was born in Iran. Keep looking people, it is not just associations, it is his closest advisors that need to be scrutinized.– My boss is Iranian (his Father is full blooded) and Cuban (his Mother is full blooded Cuban). So what, that doesn’t make him less American. I’m glad Obama has had this level of interaction with different races. Does help his foreign experience!

Why is it that everytime McCain tries to tie Obama to something, if you look around enough you will find an association of his that matches the association that Obama has? Does McCain not realize that he has his own ties that might come into questioning? Does he even care at this point? What does this gain him in the end? Nothing,

Iowa got it right the first round, Ohio will get it right the last round. go OBAMA! Another Veteran for you!

This is to Russ R who says that McCann does not have anything to admire.
I guess being in a Vietnam hellhole for 5 years, having your entire body ravaged, (we do not know entirely what horrible things he did have to endure ), he could have come back to the United States but stayed with his men, and when he did come back to the United States, he did not whine. McCann is not a whiner, he is a survivor.
For your information, it is because of men like John McCann, that you and others like you can say your peace about your stupid ideas.
You should be ashamed of yourself. You might disagree with the other party politically, but attacking someone personally is an entire different thing.
Shame on you.

Is there anybody the Republicans do not hate? Our unconditional support of Israel has caused a lot of damage in the world. Palestine has a legitimate position in the world that we ignore. Why not try to bring peace? John McCain “fight on fight on” is still fighting the Vietnam War and believes war is inevitable and necessary. “It’s a dangerous world”. That is exactly what many people feel about the US.

Can someone tell me how this country is considered the best place to be in the world? Just take a look at the responses on this blog. Hell, look at this so-called journalist report if you want to call it that. It makes one think about our future.
In this political climiate it is ok to call someone a terrorist without having any evidence what-so-ever. This so-called terrorist that John McShame is associated with and gave lots of money to!
You people are so un-American. Your hatred for Obama does not hurt him in the least. You are only hurting yourselves. The world is changing and there is nothing you can do to stop it.
John McShame has more “questionable” people in his past, but you only are concerned about Obama’s. McShame knows he has the ignorant vote, the low informed vote, the rich white man vote, so that is his base. Fortunately, you people do not matter anymore.
Take the time to educate yourselves tonight and listen to Barack’s speech. You might learn something other than how to hate.
Finally, your so-called war hero left his wife and children for another rich female. Your war hero was deeply involved with Keating 5, G. Gordon Liddy, etc. Your war hero has chosen a running mate that he himself knows is not fit to run the PTA let alone become tbe a heart beat away from the Presidency. Your war hero is an angry old man with no idea how to bring this country together. Your war hero has no clue as to how to take this country forward. NONE!!!!! This is not an opinion, this is FACT. Why do you think respectable Republicans, not your ilk, but respectable Republicans are endorsing Barack?
Good day and if you are distraught on November 5, there are planning of places to live in Iraq!!!!!!

At this rate, McCain will be hitting Obama over the head with having a grandmother who lives in Kenya!! McCain needs to get a grip on reality and stop finding fringe topics. It has gotten old really fast.

Hey, Political Puncher, when are you going to exhibit some genuine journalistic outrage that the LA Times is suppressing evidence into Obama’s true character. The video’s don’t lie. Let the people decide for themselves, rather than have some spinner color the story to suit the agenda du jour.

This crap has gone far enough. McCain has tried and failed in his hate-mongering tactics. Seems his years as a POW have left him bigoted and racist. I applaud Obama for having the open-mindedness that allows him to form a well rounded opinions that will also assist him with presidential decisions instead of going off angry and kicking the other guy like McCain would.

It’s not guilt by aasociation. It’s a pattern of seeking out radically minded people for social, business and political relationships. And then LYING about it when caught.

Yes, McCain is desperate not to have our contry run by Obama, Palosi and Reed. God help us all.

This is the biggest bunch of #&$^! That is just so ignorant. If you are funding a group and you don’t check into them then you are stupid. Oh wait, we’re talking about McSame and he is that stupid!!! Have you checked into Keating 5, how about McCain’s first wife and how he treated her, how about all his associations??? Believe me there are plenty that should be questioned. But you know I haven’t seen one Obama ad that brings up McCain’s past and why is that? Just like he said in an interview – I don’t want to run a campaign like that.

I think every once in a while, the country needs to be slapped in the head to remind us what tax and spend feels like. So, if Obama wins, we can all remember back to the days of Jimmy Carter… For those of you too young to remember, we are sure youre going to love it. The good news is, it will get so bad, that the republican party will get back to real conservative positions and put forward a candidate that will once again pick up the liberal pieces. Remember, Jimmy Carter brought us Ronald Reagan. So libs, you may get what you ask for…but be very careful, because you may get what you ask for.

People who believe that they are entitled to something, are bound to get hurt when it begins to slip away. McCain feels that America owes him the White House and he sees his last chance slipping away everyday. He is becoming a sad figure to watch.

Yawn!!!
OBAMA/BIDEN

I,for one miss Bill Clinton. At least he only hung out with questionable woman….

McCain the hypocrite, he is close to the very same person and yet he attacks Obama. What a joke!! AP state polls show Obama with huge leads in NV, PENN, NH, VA, COLO, OHIO, and even a +2 in NC and FLA. Typical desperate garbage!!

McCain…for the sake of America, the nation you claim you love, do the patriotic thing and withdraw from the election and your position as Senator. You have done this country a great disservice by dividing it and promoting hate and bigotry. You could have ended your career with honor and respect, but instead choosed to end it in disgrace.

Whose whining now? It’s everybody’s fault, and if JOHN MCCAIN asks for something he should get it, after all he is JOHN MCCAIN. But he will be denied the biggest prize of all “The Presidency”, why, because he is JOHN MCCAIN!!

You name a radical or a crook and Obama has connections to him.
If Obama and his media supporters think they have nothing to hide about the khalidi tape then why dont they realised.
It is pathetic really for Obama to have so many radical links and which he does not want scrutinised.

Remove the plank from your own eye McCain. I’ve seen the pictures through the years of who McCain has had associations with and it’s just as bad if not worse than Obama.
Posted by: DobermanSpencer | Oct 29, 2008 11:31:48 AM
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I totally agree!!! McCain should be ashamed of himself for having taken the low road, especially when he said he would not run this type of campaign. He can’t seem to keep his word now, what makes anyone think he will keep it if he wins? He is acting like a petulant child. Obama on the other hand, has conducted himself in a Presidential manner and is always taking the high road as he could have used any number of McCains’s and Palin’s former/current associations against them!

One more thought, Obama has alwasy spoken pro-Israel so it doesn’t surprise me at all that he would want to learn all he could from someone who is so anti-Israel. This speaks volumes as to the kind of man Oabama would be in both domestic and foreign situations. To even think that inexperience in matters as these will be a detriment to him is comeplete and utter hogwash.

So everyone on this blog has friends who agree with everything you believe in or have the exact same thoughts as you? Come on. Do we live in the real world or what? Are you people kidding me? If we expected all of our friends to have the same belief system or agreed with everything we believed in, we would have no friends.
So because I don’t believe in abortion, I shouldn’t have friends who do? I mean if you want to be real, be real here. Just because a friend or associate has different feelings or ideals, doesn’t mean you will have them too. Or you can’t be friends. Or having friends with different views or ideals should taint you. Come on. If you live in that type of world, you must have boring conversations with your friends, associates and co-workers.

So this is saying that McCain was on the board of an organization that gave this guy, who he is implying is a terrorist, a half a million dollars??? Then he has the chutzpa to give Barack Obama a hard time because he toasted him at a going away party??

I hae to agree with Khalidi. I have never understood our weird alliance with Israel or their occupation. They can get away with anything and the U.S. sides with them. On the other hand, McCain is a two-faced, immature idiot who has no business running for President. He is appalling.
Posted by: Kris | Oct 29, 2008 11:47:16 A
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I do not understand how people can be bigoted against Jews and then stand up and say we have to defend Isreal. Joe the Plumber said yesterday that Obama would mean “death to Isreal”…does he even know where Isreal is? The Palestinians have been suffering a great deal themselves every since the recreation of Isreal after the WWII. No one ever looks at the fact that we took the land of these people and gave it away to make Isreal after the Holocaust. I have great admiration for Jewish people, they have suffered…but Isreal is used a political ploy in a lot of cases. And Joe the Plumber took the cake yesterday.

Let’s talk about associations. Google “mccain transition chief saddam”
Obama only served with his shady associates. McCain is hiring his to help run the country.

For This McCain HAS FINALLY WON THE ELECTION BY 271 BY 269. THAT IS FINALLY!!!!!SEE YOU MIDNIGHT TUESDAY

New Headline! McCain sat on group that funded Palestinian ant-semitic terrorist! This “guilt by association” meme gets a little tricky.

Since Palin is going to speak and address their energy policy, maybe she can explain why most of the oil that is drilled in Alaska goes to the Far East like China instead of the USA.

Let’s talk about associations. Google “mccain transition chief saddam”
Obama only served with his shady associates. McCain is hiring his to help run the country.

Barack Obama cannot simply be forthcoming on some of his relationships and his worldly views with all Americans – because most Americans are simply ignorant when it comes to world politics. Most Americans focus on the American “&#&@# YEAH” viewpoint portrayed in the comedy movie “Team America World Police”.
Sorry guys, but Barack Obama is the BEST choice for president, he has a very well rounded view – he’s pro American, but he considers all viewpoints which makes him a far better leader than John McCain.

I wonder what’s on the tape that has the bots in a tizzy?

It sure is suspicous as to why the LA Times is burying the tape and won’t show the public. That is very disturbing and not what the media is suppose to do. It sure raises questions!!! Why not show the public and let them decide? Half of America doesn’t care about his other associations so why would they care about this, unless there is something much worse.

It sure is suspicous as to why the LA Times is burying the tape and won’t show the public. That is very disturbing and not what the media is suppose to do. It sure raises questions!!! Why not show the public and let them decide? Half of America doesn’t care about his other associations so why would they care about this, unless there is something much worse.

MayBee writes ———-I don’t see any evidence that McCain “held back” his financial relationship with Khalid’s organization. I also see no evidence the organization was anti-Israel
—————————————-
Isn’t this post contradictory? One moment you are accusing Khalid of supporting Palestine’s hard stance against Israel, the next moment, you are of the opinion that the Organization founded by Khalid is not anti-Israel.
MayBee darling, where do stand?

Oh my, did you know that Obama might be black? Fox News and the McCain/Palin campaign are looking into it! They are like a clown circus! The question is ? which one is Bozo?

Republicans grasping at straws once again. They have nothing left to fight with, no valid arguments to make, no intellectual conversation. There is nothing left to do but dig up dirt and hope the general public accepts it.
It will work with some that are looking for a reason to dislike Obama, but overall, most people will look at it for what it is – a pathetic attempt to repair a bad platform and a horribly mismanaged campaign.

You know we have to learn to respect each other vote. At the end of the day Yes, politicians are corrupt. Let’s not sit here and act like the guy, you are voting for is or has never been corrupted or linked to currupt folks. But, the real question is: Are you better off today than you were four – eight years ago?
Answer that question w/ honesty. Take into account, your finance, your health/health care, your job, your kids education, if you have, your education. Take that into consideration!!

I do not think Barack Obama is a terrorist, or anti-american. I do not believe that these relationships have any bearing on anything at all. What you have to look at is what Barack Obama is…he is first and foremost graduate of Harvard. Second, he is a scholar and when you speak of most scholars and you ask most true men of education, if given the chance would you like to exchange ideas with someone who is of the same ilk, but has different views that originate from halfway around the world…you can bet he would say, “Yes! I would love to exchange ideas, even if they do differ from mine.” Barack was toasting a scholar, one who is as intelligent and insightful as Barack is himself and made a potential enemy into a friend…when has anyone on the republican side ever done that…and admitted it, knowing it may hurt their campaign? When have they sat done with the enemy in the last 8 or so years and turned that person into an ally or at the very least someone who now has a respect for our own ideas? The RNC is getting ridiculous. How many people in Bush’s staff has either resigned or been put in jail or has been investigated? McCain knows Bush…hell, he voted with him 90% of the time over the last 8 years! Get a clue people, Obama is not the problem.

McCain also says Palin is ready for the Oval Office from day one. And I should listen to him?

MayBee writes ———-I don’t see any evidence that McCain “held back” his financial relationship with Khalid’s organization. I also see no evidence the organization was anti-Israel
—————————————-
Isn’t this post contradictory? One moment you are accusing Khalid of supporting Palestine’s hard stance against Israel, the next moment, you are of the opinion that the Organization founded by Khalid is not anti-Israel.
MayBee darling, where do you stand?

Has anyone noticed that the only response the McCain camp has for his associations is an attack on Obama? THEY NEVER ANSWER THE QUESTION!!

Is anyone beside my self wondering why we are letting foreign countries elect our President of the United States.Obamahas recieved millions of dollars from out side our country. Why are they so interested in him being elected? Are we so dumb as to let The United States to be controled by others.I belive people should find out for their self the real facts.

Posted by: OxyCon | Oct 29, 2008 11:47:48 AM
OxyCon, please make your list for McCain’s perceived associations and then sit it next to Obama’s. You do know McCain is 72 and I believe there might be a text/comment limit on this board. Do you get my point? You’ll need a scroll to document all of McCain’s associations over his 72 years.

If the LA Times thought this was legitmate it would have been released but we know the McSleaze campaign is desperate and will fake anything.

OMG! This is no joke. I thought he was kidding. McCain really has hired a guy who lobbied on behalf of Sadam Hussein!
Let’s talk about associations.
Google “mccain transition chief saddam”

Wow. I think the Republicans are now working on so many of us who are independent nerves. What is this suppose to mean, is it now that they want to tell us who and what Obama associated with. Is that going to give many people who have lost their homes, jobs or put food on their table?
Republicans are you perfect that you don’t have a skeleton in your closets. Now I know many people are going to change their minds and vote Obama because you all are ready to divide this country. Republicans have you search McCain past that he is perfect, we don’t need a perfect leader. Now it’s about time all independents are going to vote for Obama because you are haters.

This is so pathetic. I have friends from Russia who are very pro Poetin. Good descent people, they only have a different view then my.
And from what I read Rashid Khalidi is a moderate Palestine scholar who is critical about Israel. I think there is no Palestine on Earth who isn’t critical about Israel.
This is so incredible lame and small minded. It’s good to meet other people and challenge our views. This is called critical thinking.
And how about McCain. He picked a moron as VP, who palls around with Alaskan independence wacko’s. McCain, who palls around with dictators like Pinochet.

YOUR ARTICLE WOULD MORE ACCURATELY BE TITLED “OBAMA ATTEMPTS TO TIE OBAMA ….” Haven’t we had enough of this kind of thing??? Hasn’t McCain learned his negative campaining hurts him more than Obama. Especially at the last minute attempting to create an October surprise that is almost entirely fictitious. McCain’s campaign resembles Joe McCarthy’s more and more each day. McCain is pathetic and increasingly dangerous! I hope his loss November 4 retires him for good from American politics.

By not releasing the tape it appears that he is guilty as charged.

Thanks JPT,
I am glad someone is fact checking.
How about a story about reported voter intimidation in New Mexico or the one about voters being purged in Georgia?
Even without ties to McCain its hard to make a reasonable case that Khalidi is a terrorist. The right has tried to make the same claim about Edward Said, who is no longer even with us, so he can’t defend himself.

I voted today for Obama and against all the incumbents on the ticket. I feel great about my vote.I only vote for winners!

If Obama has nothing to hide then let him release the tapes and let Americans decide.
If he doesn’t do so then it only confirms that Obama is a coward who does not stand behind his own views, release the tapes and let the voters decide.

To Jean:
Yes, when McCain came back to America after 5 years in a hellhole, he began an affair with Cindy while he was STILL married to his 1st wife, the wife that raised his children while he was a POW. He dumped his first wife so he could marry Cindy, the multimillionare. Yeah, he’s a man of honor. He’s an adulterer.

okay, so please tell me how obama has a rounded viewpoint. Mccain has proven that he will always vote for what he considers right- REGARDLESS of party lines. obama, however, has the most liberal voting record in the senate. so, don’t tell me that he has a rounded view. because he doesn’t. also, people who constantly bash fox news for being conservative? that’s just ignorant. fox news is not conservative- its just not liberal like over 90% of the media is. apparently having one channel that presents the facts instead of adding a liberal spin on things is too much. so, if you all want to become dependent on lies, then go ahead, believe it. stop acting all pathetic too, like oh hope, please let obama win. really? has ANYONE checked into this guy’s records, his plans for the united states???? if you want america to become socialist/communist, then vote for obama. but if you actually believe in this country, and don’t want to see it fall then vote for mccain, because THAT is what it is going to come down to. and don’t tell me that we should look into mccain’s affiliations with this guy, because Obama has so much stuff he has been hiding it is insane. and yea, i know nobody has heard of this stuff, because, oh here it goes- THE MEDIA IS LIBERAL. they will not, unless they absolutely have to, check into a democrat’s stories. they will, and have, tear apart a GOP nominee to try and find the most trivial things. Does ANYONE even look into any of obama’s ties?? first, ACORN- the guy used to be a lawyer for them and he has supplied them with $800000 this year- and surprise, they were found to have many, many fraudulent voters. and do NOT say that obama’s ties with william ayers and rev wright are not relevant BECAUSE THEY ARE. you would NOT let a man that has ties with these terrorists take control of your life, would you? and STOP saying how palin has no experience, and that experience doesn’t matter. if you can say that palin has no experience, you have GOT TO SEE that in terms of time, obama has about the same. in terms of type of experience, palin kicks his ass. and John McCain is the best man for this job. experience DOES matter. think about it in terms of a regular job… like a doctor or a business executive, because that is what the presidency is, a job. if you don’t have experience for the job, then you are not QUALIFIED to do it. JOHN MCCAIN is the best man for this job. if you don’t believe it, just look into the facts, and i mean the facts, not twisted facts, because that is what over 90% of the media has been feeding america so far

I work as an Obama volunteer….And when I read stories like this and hear the racist rantings of Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh, it just compels me to do more to help Obama win the presidency….
I HOPE JOHN MCCAIN/PALIN LOSE BIG TIME!!!!

TO PLUCK ONE PERSON? I’m sorry Obama, how about Wright? How about Ayers? How about Khalidi? And by the way, that ‘ole Professor from Columbia?
I realize the press has done all it can to downplay those relationships but who the heck are you? What have we come to as a nation where we just fully ignore the brutal facts that Obama is a far left liberal with socialist and a friend of terrorist. And we are going to elect this guy as President? God help us.

McCain has finally done it. He has demonstrated more than ever why he SHOULD NOT be President. He is a hate mongering old fool that would do and say anything to win. This is not the guy you want as President. He has shown little regard for uniting this country, but instead in dividing it and destroying it. What a very small man he is.

So nice to see that McCain is so interested in the ISSUES Americans deal with everyday….not being able to pay the mortgage again this month, unemployement, medical bills, education, depleting 401Ks, veteran benefits….this garbage will really hit home with everyday Americans.

McCain is an idiot to pull a stunt like this when he has his own associations…

I saw a picture of Donald Rumsfeld shaking hands with Saddam Hussein! How could a dirty, rotten, traitor like that become Secretary of Defense? Come to think of it, the Bush family is friends with the Bin Laden family! I guess that means that George and Barbara are terrorists, too. Wait a minute! Muhammad Ali is from my hometown. How could I be so un-American! OMG, I just realized that Ringo Starr looks a lot like Yasser Arafat! Better get somebody investigating Ringo, he’s probably ‘one of them’, too. :-)

John McCain…. THE UGLY AMERICAN!

During the 1990s, while he served as chairman of the International Republican Institute (IRI), McCain distributed several grants to the Palestinian research center co-founded by Khalidi, including one worth half a million dollars.
A 1998 tax filing for the McCain-led group shows a $448,873 grant to Khalidi’s Center for Palestine Research and Studies for work in the West Bank. (See grant number 5180, “West Bank: CPRS” on page 14 of this PDF.)
The relationship extends back as far as 1993, when John McCain joined IRI as chairman in January. Foreign Affairs noted in September of that year that IRI had helped fund several extensive studies in Palestine run by Khalidi’s group, including over 30 public opinion polls and a study of “sociopolitical attitudes.”

Does American really need a college
professor with no business experience
nor military experience to lead our
country.

Ed in MA,
Even Rove won’t own this. He says McCain has gone too far.
Now how far over the line do you have to go before Rove thinks you went too far?

LOL Dee Dee!

Hello All,
I’m a Belgian and here in Antwerp, my hometown, I follow with great intrest the American Presidency Elections 2008. What I don’t understand is that over 50 million Americans don’t even have medical insurance. Here in Belgium this is not possible, because this is a national policy and everybody has one, employed or not. Even the companies had their own supplementary insurance for their workers and that costs them nothing more !!!! We think that is socialism (benifits for all) and not liberalism. Please vote for Obama, so that the USA becomes not a 3rd-land country and do something about the agression towards others. Thanks and good luck.

Kenito,
What business experience does McCain have?
And how does serving in the military prepare you to be President. Most people in the military follow orders, they don’t make decisions.
To be making decisions, you would have to have significant command responsibility (like Colin Powell).
McCain never had any significant command responsibility.
So what was your point?

Geez John, you sound and look more like a name calling third grader than President of the United States! No wonder you’re losing.

They are truely desperate.

None of Obama’s so called questionable relationships come close to the decades long relationship between the Bush family and the House of Saud. Talk about being in bed with terrorists….this has been the ruling administration of our country for the last 8 years and will certainly continue under a McCain/republican administration. So what if Obama knows a moderate Palestinian who is the professor of Arabic studies at COLUMBIA? Even Ehud Olmert and Tzipi Livni, and every Israeli prime minister, including Netanyahu, has sat down with the likes of Arafat and his progeny. How does anyone expect there to be peace if we continue to demonize even the moderates on the other side?

Oh my God, John McCain hope you know this is low very low

More meaningless attacks from McCain and company?
Yawn.
ZZZZZZZzzzzzzz ZZZZZZZzzzzz
This is just getting boring. Same thing every election from the Republicans.
They can’t win with their own candidates or their own policies so they canonly try and discredit their opponent somehow.

let me get this right. mccain is accusing obama of being friends with another american? why is khalidi referred to as a palestinian and not as an american?
when did we forget that america is made up of all different races and ethnicities? when did we forget that america is also made up of people with all sorts of differing opinions?
john mccain better watch out. i’m sure he has some american friends too.

Every time a new Obama embarrassment comes up he and his supporters want to talk about “the issues”. I am not sure where Sarah Palin’s wardrobe fits on their issues agenda.
Obama is playing this game. He wants us to look at each of his associations as if they are separate and independent. But its not his position on a board along side Ayers. Its his associations with Ayers, his wife, Rev. Wright, Khalid, etc. Why are all of Obama’s associations prior to his election to the Senate radical figures? Dems are being very disingenuous. If McCain had an even cursory association with a skinhead group, they would make a huge issue out of it as they did with Palin’s mythical association with the AIP.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., did a live interview with Radio Mambi in Miami this morning in which he went after Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., for his connections to a “PLO spokesman.”
McCain was referring to Rashid Khalidi, who five years ago Obama toasted at a going-away party before Khalidi headed off to New York City to become a professor at Columbia University.
I must of missed Jake’s previous story about this Khalidi guy. Since Jake is some kind of expert about this dinner I assume he wrote a post about it before.

If there is nothing on the tape then show it and get it over with, if not speculation will lead to worse things.
Who cares if McCain served on the committee, no one seems to be bothered by Obama serving with Bill Ayers. Now they want to make it an issue? Sorry, can’t have it both ways.
Besides, I am not hearing that McCain went over and had dinner with them or exchanged stories.
Do not lose focus… it is about the tape and the LA Times.
Why has the Obama camp not spoken about this tape? Why is it that the mainstream media is not reporting this.. wake up people some thing has got to give.

Senator McCain before giving the interview in Miami and to the Jewish community, should have first called AIPAC and the Jewish Defamation League and the entire Jewish political camp – he’d find out quick that the organized Jewish vote for Obama is overwhelming. Now if Senator McCain was trying to sway a few votes from the ultra-conservative Orthodox wing – lots of luck Charlie Brown – that one was sown up months ago.

The Mccain approach to Mideast peace has brought anything but Peace. we have more war and more terrorism.
Its time for a change in approaches. Mccain’s tired old rhertoric is just a bunch of hot air with no results.

If it’s not a landslide Obama Victory then I think someone is tinkering with the ballots/votes AGAIN.
The polls say Obama leads by at least 7 points, Ohio and Florida is leaning towards Obama, and EVEN Arizona,(McCain’s home state)is neck and neck.
If the rallies are any indication with Obama recently drawing a crowd of over 60,000 and McCain drawing a crowd a few blocks away of only about 500 then this SHOULD BE A LANDSLIDE VICTORY! If it’s even CLOSE a LOT of people will be SURPRISED!
Way too much gosh darn negativity and nonsense from the McCain/Palin bunch, you betcha there is,GEE WIZ YOU BETCHA! The heck with em’.
Palin are you thinking American’s won’t understand you if you don’t talk like a backwoods hick? OR, is that truly how you always talk. WOW, and McCain picked YOU?!?! (McCainiacs on the loose and chasin moose and if you don’t vote for us we’ll hang ya with a noose.)
Nasty huh, I’m starting to sound like I belong in the McCain/Palin bunch. SORRY!
Darn it they sure get me riled up.
Obama/Biden”08″ will fix America.

Has anyone talk about Palin and her husband associate with a redical who condemn America and distroy the American flag. This is a nation that is comprise of all religons, and have NEVER put an exception to it. Why now in this election that people want to make Islamic look like an outcast. Has anyone talk about McCain pastor relationship?
All I have to tell the Republicans “Don’t start what you cannot finish” this cannot and will not make you win an election.
I think the Democrats have to stop being very diplomatic and hit McCain and his running mate hard to stop their nonsense. We are getting irritated by all these aligations and face the issues to convince independent and undecided voters.

Rove pretends to disown his own tactics ..it’s him and his clones doing the dirty tricks with Mccain’s full approval…their primary goal is the continued plundering and thieving of the U.S. treasury and laying the payment of the debt on future generations…that or the bankrupting of the public system so they can come in and privatize all U.S. assets at pennies on the dollar which they learned was possible from watching how similar events went down in Russia. Mccain and the old Bush Team have run the dirtiest campaign in modern History after Mccain said he would not run such a campaign. Read the 10/16 Rolling Stone Expose’ on Mccain and you will see the very Short Figurative Stature of this Jerk.

I am so tired of McCain and his whole smear and fear campaign. I voted early in SF and you can rest assured it was not for McCain. I voted for Obama because I believe his campaign has been much more honorable that the sleazy tactics that the GOP has used.
I hope the GOP lose seats across the board. Intergity is more important than winning. If Obama was to lose, I would still rest comfortably knowing I did what I felt was right for my family and for my country.

Another day, another radical Obama friend. This guy is not suitable to be my President. What do we know about him?? It’s not worth the chance.

> Besides, I am not hearing that McCain went over and had dinner with them or exchanged stories
Oh no, nothing as devious as having had dinner. All innocent McCain did was provide $450,000 in grant money to the man. It’s not like he ate with him or anything.
You Republicans are getting stupider by the day.

Rick fro Europe My sister lives in Donegal County in Ireland. Absolutely beautiful area and wonderful people. She lives in the south on the border of the north. I must admit it is a litle disturbing to know they still are fighting. I remember being stopped on our way home from bowling in Derry one night with about 8 kids in the van. We were stopped at the border by machine guns aimed at us. They were checking cars because there had been a bombing in Derry the day before, two people killed. My sister said this happens sometimes. I can’t help but wonder why Europe is so worried about our politics.

Our liberty, and our constitution is under attack by Obama and the liberal crazy folk.

McCain had every chance in the world to win this election. But then he picked Palin and flunked on the economic turmoil.
No style, no vision. Only election tactics.
Now with a rogue VP, republicans jumping ships, trailing in every battleground state his only weapon left is fear and smear tactics. Sad way to end a carreer.

Obama is the master of slick rhetoric. He covers up every association with a barrage of words as a smokescreen. Here, is is quoted as saying ‘a guy I had a conversation with,’ when in the LA Times article, he clearly says that he has had many conversations around the table with him, and intends to continue those conversations.
Obama just says what he thinks the listener wants to hear. He cannot be pinned down on any one issue. He is a deceiver who already is lowering the ‘middle class’ income level from $250,000 to $200,000, and Biden then to $150,000.

Dee Dee Lynn, here is my same question that I ask all liberals- why do you hate America?

Just a small list of McCain’s friends. The table can turn both ways “my friends”
Pastor John Hagee.
Thomas Muthee
Mustafa Abu Naba’a
Ali Jawad
Oliver North
Charles Keating
G. Gordon Liddy
Kemper Marley
Don Diamond
Marylin Shannon
And lets not forget Todd Palin and the Alaska Independence Party – Joe Vogler, Mark Chryson and Steve Stoll

WAIT A MINUTE, IS THIS COUNTRY FORGETTING ABOUT ITS OWN DOMESTIC TERROIST?? I’M GETTING SICK OF THIS DOUBLE STANDARD B.S., IF YOU MAD ABOUT OBAMA TIES, BE MAD ABOUT ALL OF POLITICIANS AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES WHO HAD TIES TO THE THOUSANDS KILLED 40 YEARS AGO. PLEASE, NOW YOU WANT TO BE MAD. BUSH CREATED OSAMA BIN LIDEN AND WHEN HE TURNED AGAINST HIM ON 9/11, HE KILLED SUDAN; INSTEAD OF HIM. I WONDER WHY!!!

LOLZ… Pathetic and deperate.. Typical GOP Fear and Smear… Give it a rest will ya?

Posted by: FactCheck
Hamas Gave Obama $30,000 but hey that’s OK and $100 million plus has been given to Obama’s campaign by “Anonymous” according to the Obama campaign.
Can you say gullible Democrats bring on the next WW/Civil War because they put hate before reason and facts.

America Obama is a christian family man who wants the best for his family who cares who he once had for dinner . You should look at the associates of Bush before throwing rocks in the Greenhouse.funny no one mentions Mccains hang ups it is far easier to focus on the black guy because he is diffferent and if republicicans dislike one thing its difference the whole world wants Obama to win and with good fortune and no fixing like in2000 the world will get its wish.

Is McCain a paranoid old man or just grasping at every straw he can? Obama has continued to stay on message and let the GOP mud bounce off. I’ll bet if anyone really cared we could go back and find a whole lot of really bad people John McCain has had meals/meeting with. I think he’s still having flashbacks of Vietnam.

Has McCain lost any shame and decency?
He has become the poster child for hypocrisy!

Posted by: BlueJersey | Oct 29, 2008 12:34:21 PM
What’s it like being part of a smear campaign, whining about McCain’s shoes, Pailin’s childern

This is just getting ridiculous! McCain has nothing to go off of anymore!………

Just more “be very afraid” garbage from the GOP…

The parallels are frightening. In the 1930s, the National Socialist German Workers Party (for all those who think the socialist=leftist, your wrong!) otherwise known as the Nazi Party rose to power by creating a climate of fear and hatred of everyone who was “different” from them. The Republican Party appears to be using similar tactics. The disparaging labels the Nazi’s used (Jews, Gypsies, etc.) have been replaced by “liberal”, “socialist”, “terrorist sympathizer”, “dangerous”, “anti-American”, etc. Unfortunately what the Republican Party does not understand is that the hateful spiteful labels they spew do have a lasting effect. Instead of uniting America, it divides us even further. Those of us that have spouses know quite well that hurtful words can linger a long time and perhaps cause permanent damage. So do we vote for more divisiveness or do we reject the hatred and intolerance and vote for inclusiveness and justice. I choose inclusiveness and real hope, I choose Obama. After all History is watching and those that don’t learn by it are doomed to repeat it.

Dave,
This liberal loves America – but more importantly she loves Americans. I’m not talking about just the ones that look like me, go to church where I go, or grew up in my region. I love Americans for their differences, for thier varying opinions and experiences. I love learning about what shapes their ideas and priorities and what their different goals for our future may be.
Obama/Biden 2008!

=( Sorry McCain. Your through!

I think everyone can agree that the news media has def been one-sided in Obama’s favor. If you ask me it is scary that the media has that much control. They are trying to tell me how to think by controlling the information that they readily have available. If they would just report things without their OPINION in an unbiased way. Then maybe I can process it and make my own decision and vote…hmmmm now there is a concept.
Booo on all you guys like CNN, etc that can’t keep your opinions to yourself and just do your job and report.

McCain doesn’t make decisions for that group. It is an honorary title. There was a story about it, that McCain had no real participation with that group.

Like Rev. Wright,William Ayres and his wife, Khalidi was a close friend of Obama’s. Obama chose to associate himself with Khalidi and was well aware of his anti-Israel views. Obama’s alliances with so many radical figures is troubling. What’s more troubling is Obama’s lack of candor in describing his relationships with these people. These are clear warning signals regarding Obama that the American electorate should heed.

This makes we want to vote for Barack Obama even more!
I think it is great that we’ll have a president who is willing to engage in conversation with those who may have differing thoughts than his own.
Change comes about through conversation – in fact, it is the only thing that ever has. Lets not be afraid to speak with others – we are all human.

louiville – so you’re saying you would promote a “civil war” if Obama is elected? Are you NUTS?

Geevill, perhaps you could explain McCain’s association with convicted felon G. Gordon Liddy?

And like McSame isn’t getting overseas donations:
Big campaign donors typically come with deep pockets and influence. But in Illinois this election cycle, no one not running for office himself has given more to the nation’s federal campaigns than Shi Sheng Hao of Roselle, a virtual unknown in business and political circles.
Before September 2007, Hao’s name had never appeared in the 15-year-old federal database of campaign contributors. Since then, however, his donations have topped $120,000 — including $70,100 on a single June day to Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
Over the same time frame, a network of Hao relatives has kicked in more. The take from this group over the last 13 months exceeds $269,000, a small amount to Democrats but most of it to McCain and the Republican National Committee, records show.
Hao didn’t register to vote at the northwest suburban address attached to his donations until October 2007, a month after he wrote his first political check, $25,000 to the RNC.

Is Obama Experienced?
Well, according to McSame, Obama is a
Muslim, a Terrorist, a Socialist, a Liberal and a Marxist just to name a few.
How much more experience could one man have?
I voted by mail for the next President of The United States last week.
President Barack Obama.
I also voted straight Democrat on the rest of the ticket. I’m a registered Independent.
The Titanic Express is sinking fast.
“Man the life Boats, she’s going down”!

Robin,
Usually, when I respond to the post of another, I quote the material to which I am responding. Not this time. I will not bother to reproduce your hateful words. How DARE you try to associate John McCain, an honorable, patriotic, just man, with the hateful images and figures you refer to in your post. McCain has nothing to do with church bombings or Jesse Helms. And your rants about the Bush family and Osama bin Laden would be laughable if you were so obviously serious.
So your point, if I can dig through the pile to get to the point, is that McCain is not to be allowed to criticize Obama? And that this has something to do with racism? How truly bizarre. John McCain does not have a racist bone in his body. And he can, and should, criticize his opponent in the campaign, just as Obama can, and does, criticize him.

John McCain is a stinking pile of hypocrisy.

any republican that makes a deal of this when McCain gave $400,000 to that mans organization – is officially an idiot

How dare he be friends with somebody who wants peace in the middle east and is a professor at Columbia University. Will the horrors never end?

Geevill,
If you google (I presume you can do that) the Times story from April, there is a description of what’s on the tape.
If you are going to tell me you don’t trust their account, then I presume you will have to concede that you can’t really trust there even IS such a tape, because the only reason anyone believes there is is that the Times said so…

More pathetic grasping at straws. Maybe we should go back to first grade and see who was in class with Obama and what each of them have become. I’m sure there’s more dirt there. Puleeze. This is EXACTLY why McCain’s in trouble. People are tired of this stuff, have SAID they’re tired of this stuff, and McCain doesn’t listen. What a surprise.

“According to tax returns the McCain-chaired IRI funded the organization Khalidi founded and served on to the tune of $448,873 in 1998 (click HERE to see the tax return) and to the tune of $389,621 in 1999 (click HERE) ”
So McCain not only palls around with terrorists, he gave them money!
McCain is Anti-Semitic!!!

This just in: Fox News reports Obama responsible for Prohibition.

Release the tape and let us decide for ourselves. It’s despicable for the LA Times to hang on to this. You can be sure if there was anything negative about McCain it would be out in a heartbeat.

You Obots certainly don’t even want to listen or learn. Maybe the preservation of Israel isn’t important to you, it may not matter how high your taxes go, etc. But, it matters to a lot of us. Obama’s ties to Khalidi run deep, they circle around through Ayers, Edward Said, Wright, Farrakhan, Qaddafi, and many others (I could name a long list).
When Wright became front page news and Obama had to throw him under the bus, Wright said, it was ok he understood, Barack was just being a politician and doing/saying what he needs to do.
When Obama had to take a stand on Israel, Abunimah said it’s ok, Barack is just being a politician and doing/saying what he needs to do.
You can look up the exact quotes yourself, but very similar. These people know an Obama is very different than the politician you are allowed to know.

Geevill: Liddy Liddy Liddy Liddy Liddy Liddy

I would like to see the “body language” of Barak during those speeches!
Why not release it??

Let’s see:
McCain wins, the elite become more elite while America crumbles. Those of us lucky enough to have healthcare insurance will be taxed on it. The elderly will lose more of their medicare benefits.
Obama Wins, the elite will lose their tax breaks, America will recover from the mess the republican have made of her, Those unfortunate people who don’t have health insurance will be given a chance to be insured, the elderly will continue to keep their medicare benefits, and I won’t have to pay for it.
That doesn’t seem like a tough choice at all!

Dee Dee Lynn
First of all our founding fathers are rolling over in there graves right now at this Marxist, Racist, canidate that the liberal elite media has coddled and protected.
This country was built on small goverment, self-reliance for it’s people and the “pursuit of happiness”.
American doesn’t guarantee happiness as China and Russia and many parts of Europe try to do.
I have waited in line at several London hopsitals with “free” healthcare that the goverments takes half its workforce’s wages to pay for. The lines are endless and the doctors are few and far between.
I have no problem with dissent but the problem with liberals is there uncanny ability to always side with our enemies.
Liberals always want to save people from oppression wherever America is currently not saving oppressed people (Darfur). At the very least Iraq was a humanitarian war that uncovered mass graves filled with 700,000 dead Kurds and torture chambers for Iraq’s olympians who failed to bring home the gold.
Liberals were against this war from the start, as they always are, which is the reason your party’s president took us to Vietnam, then caved into weatherunder ground hippie activists which in turn left MILLIONS OF SOUTH VIETNEMESE TO BE SLAUGHTERED BY THE NORTH VIETNEMESE. Never hear jane fonda discuss that- do ya??
My main reason i don’t want the gov’t taking my $$ to redistribute is because in America if you are poor it is 99% of the time due to poor choices that individuals have made in the past and continue to make. The food kitchen down the street from my work is packed with laz, fat, cigarette smoking degenerates. In other parts of the world people are poor through no fault of their own.

No Geevill,
I have not but I read the account in the Times.
And so again, I ask you, if you are going to challenge the accuracy of their summary about what is on the tape, then you have to challenge even the existence of the tape, because the only way we know it exists is by the Times’s story.
AND if you are going to argue that the Times is lying, well then we would have to conclude that they must be lying about the entire thing.

geevil, some of the comments are extreme. This is supposed to be a free country with rights for its people clearly defined. Don’t tell me people can not associate with other people and express what they feel like unless they do harm to others. come on, McCain has nothing left in his tool box. So whatever comes, he strikes with it. He is coming to almost blow to blow to win the election. It is sad. Go honorably and loose with honor and respect intact.

Wow. Next thing that might be revealed is that Michelle Obama was a member of a radical, anti-American group that wants to separate from the United States and a tape exist of Sen. Obama himself giving the keynote address to the very same group earlier this year, and the liberal media will not report it. Oh wait, that is another candidate.

rosalynn, I do not agree with any tactics that Palin or McCain are using, and they are not true christians. Don’t give up your faith because these people are trying to smear America and using the bible to do it. This is for everyone: Keep your faith strong. Come Nov. 4th, we WILL have the true leader, the one who, yes, has said some negative things about McCain, but they are true, and they are in defense to the lies McCain and Palin have have been screaming at their rallies, on the media. The one who will be able to fix this mess bush has made for us. The one that does have the middle class in mind. Come on, is there anyone still with their blinders on? Oh, and can you tell me this? When I was 6 months old, my dad had a friend that needed a place to stay for a few days, so my parents let him stay with them. A couple of years later, he murdered someone. Now, does that make my dad, my mom, my sister, or myself a murderer?

Gee, the pot calling the kettle black, now are we…you idiot McCain! What a loser today…and on the 4ht of November….
McCain’s negative campaign has switched me from voting for HIM to voting for OBAMA!
I am just plum sick of hearing his negative campaign….and this article PROVES he has his OWN ties to this person/group! What a JERK!
OBAMA/BIDEN 2008!!!!!!!

McCain and Liddy
McCain and Liddy
hang together til their both quite giddy
Let me tell you, brother
you can’t have one without the other
McCain and Liddy
McCain and Liddy
felonies a-plenty and they ain’t pretty
Let me tell you, brother
one’s as guilty as the other

“If Khadli and Ayes are not people to associate with then why do we have them as professors in our higher institutions”
Like geevill answered. because this schools are liberal cesspools. Cornel West, Ward Churchill, Bill Ayers, ….

I cannot wait to hear you Obots complain if he gets elected when you realize all of your rights have been stripped and we have become a socailist nation!!!

The msm doesn’t want to hear about this, they would rather talk about Sarah Palin’s clothes. It’s sad to see the media behave in such a ridiculous way.

If we are going to discuss loose associations, let’s discuss Ashley Todd and the two Neo-Nazis that were plotting to kill Obama. These three people were obviously McCain supporters. Since most Neo-Nazis hate Jewish people and if I apply the same rationale that Republicans are applying, then John McCain hates Israel. Since Neo-Nazis and the KKK obviously don’t want Obama elected, then I sure that a lot of them have donated to the McCain Campaign. So if I apply the same Republican rationale, then John McCain is a Neo-Nazi/KKK sympathizer. Ashley Todd lied about a Black Obama supporting attacking her, so she could further stir up racial tension. Todd worked for the McCain campaign, so if I apply this same rationale, then John McCain must also want to stir up racial tension so he can get more White Americans to vote for him. If this sounds as silly to you as it does to me, then I’ve made my point

Obama = work hard and give it to those who don’t work = socialism!!!

Usually a person waits until they are actually in power before they start trying to limit the freedom of the press with threats and intimidation.

Who claimed Khalidi is a terrorist?
Who cliamed Khalidi was an “advisor” (Obama’s stock denial)
He is merely another leftist professor buddy of Obama. Who happens to be anti-Israel like much of Mr. Obama’s neighborhood.

morebs, you’re blogging at an MSM news site. The story is being covered by MSM. In fact, the MSM covered in in April but McOld is just getting it now because he’s clueless and desperate.

Nate Forrest: Are you kidding….I hope you are a McCain Supporter…

People who never wated to vote are going to now, just because of all these alligations. Why didn’t the Republicans bring these ups months ago, they have just added more votes to Obama. Bush himself is a terrorist. Anyone who say Obama is a terrorist is a terrorist himself, because it’s only a thief that knows a thief.
Enough is enough.
You fools are making us afraid and will not vote McCain because he is a Republican and the Republicans love war
Republicans = War
Democrats = good healthcare, education, jobs, peace

McCain,
YOU ARE SHAMELESS.
There is a lot of contention and bad blood between both sides about the Arab-Israeli conflict, and both sides have legitimate grievances, but to compare being pro-Palestine to Nazi Germany and neo-Nazism is absolutely APPALLING.
There IS NO comparison.

TJ, THE CLINTONITE- Then have him ARRESTED!

samhiguchi,
You have every right to express your views but I take umbrage to your association that it’s because of affirmative action and or tokenism.
I’m sorry, but when I hear the “black guy” speak, he sounded a heck lot more intelligent then McCain. His campaign and strategies have been nothing short of brilliant.

“Okay…Who honestly believes that Barack Obama is a Muslim terrorist?? (raise your hands) Now, take the hand you just raised and slap yourself in the face with it…”!
That’s the funniest things I’ve read all day!! lol

Rockychance,
Here we go again.
Okay here are my standard (never answered) questions to the foolish people who keep repeating the Obama citizenship lie:
1. How did Obama’s mother KNOW he was going to run for President, and if she did NOT know, then why would she have attempted to cover up his “real” place of birth?
2. Why would she, at 9 months pregnant, fly to Kenya (you even got your lie mixed up guy, the lie is that he was born in Kenya) and give birth to him there when everyone else tries so hard to give birth here?
3. Phlip J Berg (the one who claims Obama is not a citizen) ALSO brought a lawsuit claiming the Bush administration planned and orchestrated 911 (they had that lawsuit dismissed). Was he telling the truth about that, and if not, why do you think he is telling the truth now.
4. The DEMOCRATICALLY controlled Senate passed a resolution in APRIL declaring John McCain (who was born in Panama) a natural born citizen and therefore eligible to run for the presidency. IF Obama were foreign-born (as McCain is) why would the DEMOCRATICALLY controlled senate pass a resolution for the Republican candidate but not the Democratic candidate?
Please, answer me. I have been waiting for so long for one of you conspiracy people to answer these questions.

Wow McCain acting like a hypocrite.
I am shocked.

Dee Dee all i will say is that our founding fathers would have sat for 1 minute in ol rev wright’s church and they would have left. Obama stayed for long time- even brought his kids to hear that racist lunatic. Obama wrote book titled after rev wright’s incredibly inspirational speeches “audacity of hope”. obama loved the guy until he had to “disown” him. obama liked ayers too, until he had to “disown” him. he liked his grandma too, until he needed to throw her under the bus for being racist. how can you call obama a uniter when his record shows he is more than comfortable with the most divisive language? i know, you agree with rev wright just like my liberal aunt and uncle. which is fine, this is a free country, but if obama would just admit that i could call him honest.

To all of you Obama haters get over it.
The BEST MAN for the job has won already: President OBAMA

This would be funny were it not so sad. This is nothing more than a last ditch, pathetic attempt to discredit Obama with pure nonsense. McLame has clearly lost his mind. How can he accuse Obama on this one when he funded this Bozo himself? Just another obvious example of erratic, desperate and POOR judgement by McLame. I will be SOOO glad when Obama has won and this is finally OVER!!

TheRealTruth,
McCain: When I look into Putin’s eyes, I see three letters: K G B
Palin: Perhaps! (in whether we should go to war with Russia over Georgia.
Bring on the Second Cold War, McCain! I can’t wait! More cowboy diplomacy please! Come on, let’s not only make ourself a third world country, run it into the ground, let’s also take the rest of the world with us!

Posted by: marythedesigner | Oct 29, 2008 10:53:22 AM
Does Obama have any friends he doesn’t have to throw under the bus? Haven’t seen one yet
—————————————-
marythedesigner
Obama said. “So we gotta be careful about guilt by association.” and I say that’s so true! So the question to you is: How many of your friends have you thrown under the bus, or how many would you be willing to? for things that they did or were accused of doing or not doing. LET HE WHO IS WITHOUT (A PERFECT FRIEND OR FAMILY MEMBER)CAST THE FISRT STONE. Everyone is so anxious to hate.

“If you are voting for Obama you are all a bunch of morons and you deserve what he will do. Unfortunately the rest of America will have to deal with the mess and then you all will claim you really did not realize the truth.”
Talking about morons. We are already in an economic mess, we are dealing with the 8 years mismanagement of Bush!
So thanks for all those who voted for Bush.

McCain and G. Gorgon Liddy, ANYONE?
Liddy = Watergate scandal burglar.

It is amazing how Obama’s only cohorts are extremely questionable! How come he has only anti-American, Jewish, white hating and crooked friends…I find this very disturbing! How come Obama does not have any “decent, America loving associates? Anyone else see the disturbing lifestyle of Obama?

mfmros,
I think you are confusing Obama’s associates with McCain’s.
Obama’s associates include Warren Buffett, Paul Voelker, Paul Krugman (Nobel Prize), Robert Rubin, Colin Powell, Al Gore (Nobel Prize), well the list goes on.
I think half of McCain’s associates were on Anderson Cooper’s 10 most wanted list.

mfmros,
NONSENSE!

MCCAIN AND PALIN ARE ACTING LIKE POND SCUM-AND HATE TO SAY THAT ABOUT A LADY!!- MCCAIN NEEDS TO GET SOME PRIDE AND TELL THE SAME TO PALIN -IF THEY ARE EVEN SPEAKING. EVIL IS AS EVIL DOES.

Just because Barack Obama once dribbled a basketball doesn’t make him Magic Johnson!!!
DESPERATION:
John “The Make-Believe Maverick” and Faux News should have vetted this through his “Whackjob Maverick” running mate for he went down this path. Apparently, she and Mitt Rommney are the new future of the republican right wingnut party.

Where are these starving desolate people you speak of?? In kansas city, our shelters and food kithcens are full of fat smokers. as for people losing houses well you can think the democrats for that. who would have thought forcing people to give loans to those who could never pay them back would backfire? but hey, we want everything to be “fair”. if you can’t afford a house- big deal! rent an apartment, i did for 8 yrs before i got a house

Very nice, John McCain contributing to the ignorance and xenophobia of Americans with his ridiculous charges.
Whatever dude. Your time in the sunshine will soon come to an end and then all Republicans will turn on you and you will become the Michael Dukakis of the Republican party.

Obama’s relationship with a number of known terrorist has until this story has been completely ignored by the press. These are not just organizations he has assisted, but he knows these terrorist personally, they have been in Obama’s home. Wake Up America ! ! Obama is selling you people a hat in a hand bag, smoke and mirrors. There is a definite difference assisting groups that distribute food and medicine – than knowing these terrorist personally.

“McCain didn’t have a personal relationship with Khalidi like Obama did; I call dinner parties and babysitting the kids a personal relationship.”
OMG.. We are now in what’s worse.
A candidate who funded the work of a “terrorist” or someone who is friend with a “terrorist”.
You just don’t get it. It’s the smear and fear tactics McCain is playing that is offensive. Mr. Khalidi is a moderate Palistine scholar and not a terrorist. And that is the reason why McCain’s organization funded his work.
It’s just plain dirty tactics and hypocrite to accuse Obama for having ties with Khalidi.

Brad…the polls are NOT accurate…there are millions of PUMA’s out there who are SAYING they will vote for Obama just to skew the polls….just like I did!!
Posted by: mfmros | Oct 29, 2008 1:26:18 PM
I don’t believe that for a minute. Maybe a few but real Hillary supporters would never vote for Palin. They are too smart for that.

OBAMA HAS TIES TO TERRORIST!!! THEN HE IS RUNNING ON THE WRONG TICKET!!!

Jake, you spend more time looking into McCain than Obama.
In.
The.
Tank.
Obama has a entire adult life pattern of hanging out with Marxist, communists, anti-Americans, anti-Israel friends. It is not guilt by association, it is guilt by reality.

Why doesn’t the news media put all the cards on the table, The La times should release the tape and let the American people decide what is relevant.

no actually the bad loans started with carter’s community reinvestment act 20 years ago. democrats have been forcing banks to be “fair”. no money, no savings, no credit history, but hey we’ll give you a loan. i’m not an idiot to THANK that there were not big CEO’s who pressured these loans also, but the CEO’s didn’t change the laws. bill clinton bragged numoerous times that more blacks and hispanics had home under his administration then ever before, but if they can’t pay their mortgage our economy tanks. i challenge you today to find a “poor” person who doesn’t blow $20 a week on cigarettes, i warn you it’s pretty hard to do!!!!

I”d rather live in a bad economy, than vote pro-abortion, same sex unions remember polotitians can promise you anything, wether u
you get it or not is another story

louisville, the reason gun sales are up isn’t because people are preparing for civil war! It’s more scare tactic hysteria…my relatives all promised me gun ownership would be history if Bill Clinton was elected, but that never happened either! But now the frantic right wing is sure their guns will be gone, so they have to “stock up” I guess. GOP supporters thrive on fear, drama and hysteria!

Looks like a chance for you Jake to use your investigative reporting skills and take a deeper look at McCain’s I.R.I.
I think you will find the good, the bad and the ugly.
McCain has been a Neo-Con all this time hiding his true self, but no longer especially since they are his key advisers now and it was Bill Kristol who picked Palin. These goes go deep into the underbelly. Barack hanging with a bunch of intellectaul professors,is suppose to scare us. McCain’s connections are way more dangerous and his Key advisor Schenumen is a lobbyist for Georgia who helped pushed then into going up against Russia. How does a war with Russia sound? Not good to me.

Jake… thanks for shining the light on McCain’s hypocricy. He gave nearly a million dollars to this Palestinian professor, but then attacks Obama for attending the guy’s birthday party? No Shame McCain.

angleblueeyes82,
first off, get her on birth control-seriously. next, have her go and sign up for gov’t assistance (there is plently to go around) I know because several of my family members have been sucking it dry for years. however, your sister is precisely the person who needs the assitance and who I am MORE THAN HAPPY TO GIVE MY TAX DOLLARS TO. My point is, the assistance is there already. What obama is trying to do is to create a nanny state similar to socialism where the gov’t handles all aspects of our lives. i don’t trust anyone to look out for me better than I can look out for myself!

FIRST, I DO NOT HATE AMERICA!!! I LOVE MY COUNTRY BECAUSE I KNOW MY ANCESTORS HELP BUILD IT!!! SECOND, I STATE THE TRUTH AND IF YOU CANNOT HANDLE IT, I SUGGEST YOU LEAVE!!! IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY, I’M VERY STRAIGHT FORWARD ABOUT THE BLACK FAMILY AND OUR MEN. OF COURSE, THE MEN GET UPSET, HOWEVER, THEY RESPECT THE TRUTH. T
HONESTLY, IT JUST TOUGH LOVE, WE ALL NEED TO COME TOGETHER, AND REALLY I’M AN INDEPENDENT AND THE DIVISIVENESS FROM THE MCCAIN/PALIN CAMPAIGN REALLY HIT A NERVE. OBAMA IS TRYING TO BRING US TOGETHER AND THAT IS THE BEST MEDICINE FOR OUR COUNTRY RIGHT NOW.
I WILL APOLOGIZE IF MY TONE IS MEAN, HOWEVER, I JUST WANT US TO BE FAIR.

PALIN TAKES ABOUT SOCIALISM:
WHAT IS TAKEN REVENUE FROM THE OIL COMPANIES AND GIVEN IT TO PEOPLE.
MCCAIN VOTED FOR THE 700 BILLION BAIL OUT. IF HE WAS A MAVERICK, HE WOULD HAVE VETOED IT.

Why not let the American people see the tape?
I don’t see an issue as to if they are friends or not, but I also don’t understand why seeing a video of the dinner is a big deal.

Word is out that he has been caught on video at the event pumping up the crowd of PLO-terrorist supporters yelling that Israel has NO right to exist.
Of course, this will not lessen his support among the American left as they see the destruction of the Jewish homeland as a prime goal, but some people of this country still believe you don’t reward thugs for blowing up buses, schools and wedding ceremonies.

Does it matter that McCain actually directed the funding to Khalidi?
Does it matter that every Palestinian is not a terrorist?
Look, McCain, a guy who was showing off and crashed his plane into the USS Forrestal, killing 133 sailors, just downright hates smart people. Which is why there are so few on his campaign, and so many lobbyists telling him what to do.

After doing research, seems to me that Obama is trying to understand and befriend both sides:
In 2000, he submitted a policy paper to CityPAC, a pro-Israel political action committee, that among other things supported a unified Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, a position far out of step from that of his Palestinian friends. The PAC concluded that Obama’s position paper “suggests he is strongly pro-Israel on all of the major issues.”
In 2002, as a rash of suicide bombings struck Israel, Obama sought out a Jewish colleague in the state Senate and asked whether he could sign onto a measure calling on Palestinian leaders to denounce violence. “He came to me and said, ‘I want to have my name next to yours,’ ” said his former state Senate colleague Ira Silverstein, an observant Jew.
As a presidential candidate, Obama has won support from such prominent Chicago Jewish leaders as Penny Pritzker, a member of the family that owns the Hyatt hotel chain, and who is now his campaign finance chair, and from Lee Rosenberg, a board member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

How predictable abcnews only prints a negative story about Obama when they can spin it against McCain.
Whether you are for McCain or Obama, please educate yourselves and make sure you are getting BOTH SIDES of story so you can make a smart educated decision based on what you have learned, not what you have been fed. abcnews, cnn and msnbc are all insulting the intelligence of their readers by only showing the news they want them to see.
abcnews is banking on everyone here being stupid enough to only read their material. It is shameful and criminal.
“To pluck out one person who I know and who I’ve had a conversation with…” These were – by Obama’s own account – multiple conversations over dinners prepared by Rashid Khalidi’s wife. Obama grossly misunderstated his relationship with Khalidi to get the jewish vote.
“His kids went to the Lab school where my kids go as well.”
Bill Ayers is just someone he knew in his neighborhood.
Tony Rezko gave him land.
Jeremiah Wright was just his preacher for 20 years that subscribes to Black Liberation Theology, but Obama knows nothing of it even after writing a book about this man.
Of course he’s crying “be careful about guilt by association” – he has so many of them he needs you to forget about.

WOW WHAT A REACH.. YOU DIDN’T DIG THAT DEEP FOR ANY STORY REGARDING OBAMA.. LOL
YOU REALLY MAKE ME LAUGH… ITS SO FAR GGONE WITH THE MEDIA WE AREN’T EVEN WWATCHING.

“bad loans started with carter’s community reinvestment act 20 years ago”
Wrong answer!
The CRA’s primary affect is on inner city housing. It did not change the criteria for loan qualifications. It did not force banks to make bad loans. It doesn’t have the authority to force banks to set aside prudent leading practices.
In fact, the FRB Board of Governors in 2008 says that CRA covered institutions have been able to service the low income segment profitably.
The right wing uses the CRA, as a cultural wedge. You listen to too much Rush. Go find out what the CRA is really about and then come back.

ex replican in Ohio:
Your comment re cindy mccain is just ugly and shallow. She has spent her life in service of the less fortunate. Lets not forget Barack admits in his book the use of cocaine. Based on your logic he should put in jail as well.
This is exactly what the debate/discussion does not need…

Jen – I agree. And I called Wallsten – and he was kind enough to call back. But his source was not anything credible – it was a woman with a serious ultra right wing agenda and a pattern of malice and lies. Wallsten’s defense was that you have to associate with a lot of unsavory people to get a story sometimes. I believe the words he used were “a wide net.” But at least he had the guts to talk to a reader.
My guess is that the Times didn’t release the tape because it wouldn’t do their story much good. The Times and the Tribune are both owned by a self-proclaimed Zionist who has no reason to protect PLO sympathizers. In his defense, I think he’s done a fair job of keeping his own views out of the newsroom.

KM,
Your defense of the CRA is absurd. Also – FANNIE MAE set the lending standards for it’s own loan programs – and once those lower standards were in place – they could be used by anyone – black or white – inner city or rural.
Barney Frank, Franklin Raines, and other Democrats caused this housing crisis and blocked every effort by the President to stop this train wreck before it happened. Even biased outlets like those doing skits on Saturday Night Live admitted this -
This crisis was accurately predicted more than 9 year ago in a NY Times article on the lower credit standards being implemented by then Fannie Mae CEO Franklin Raines. Google (NY TIMES FANNIE MAE September 30, 1999) Also GOOGLE (NY TIMES FANNIE MAE September 11, 2003) to see WHO tried to stop it FIVE YEARS AGO – and WHO BLOCKED IT!!

I getting so Mad at McCain/Palin and their hate talk. Who do they think they are to question someones Patriotism? They aren’t Fox news. G_D I be glad McCain is out of it.

Funny how somebody can go from being an academic worthy of a half-million dollar grant to a dangerous radical, just about the time when you are getting the stuffing knocked out of you in an election.
Here’s a really wacky notion – sometimes you can be friendly with a person you utterly, completely disagree with. Of course, if you give a half a million dollars to somebody you completely disagree with, that’s a little harder to understand, don’t you think?

Desert Rat, Absurd. So, it’s okay for McCain to have a relationship with Khalidi, but Obama can’t? HUH? I think being a colleague is aprofessional relationship. And you can stop with the smear campaign. Your buddy John the dolt is the one spreading the hate along with his Aryan brothers. He wouldn’t know the truth if it hit him in the face.
Obama on the other hand has stayed on message and has shown so much diplomacy and intellectualism. I’m guessing the message is too difficult for you to understand.

So wait a second. You can’t be friends with someone who’s a Palestinian and run for president? This article very clearly states that Khalidi was AGAINST suicide bombings in Israel. Let me repeat that. Khalidi was AGAINST suicide bombings in Israel. All of a sudden because this guy is an Arab and Obama and him were friends, Obama needs to defend his choice of friends?

FYI
Khalidi was born in America
and he is a Christian.

Hi Mara – you misunderstood the reason for my post. Someone brought up Cindy McCain’s addiction and it was used merely as a reminder that Obama is not blameless in that arena. I do not fault him for it at all for it, nor do I think it has any effect on his leadership skills today.

While McCain was in Captivity. Obama was snorting lines with his friends from school and taking trips to middle east on Money we have no idea where it came from.

Jeff, I too as an African American believe in associations. My question to you and your fellow McCainites is should McCain have quit the senate, or publicly renounced Strom Thurmond, Jesse Helms, G gordan liddy, and Govenor Wallace since he has done work and hosted fundraisers with them?? Or is this only a 1 way street??

Straws. Grasping at straws. The race is over. Palin should go back to abusing her power in Alaska. G’bye!

Thanks for the update Jake. Why not look into the other groups the IRI funds. This is a very powerful group, and I wonder if they are always working in our best interest, and also who gives then the authority to do what they do. Both WAPO and the NY times have reported about McCains strong ties to very powerful lobbyist and some of these are part of the IRI.

learningisajoy – “If one is so dogmatic that they refuse to even talk to people unless they share the same strict viewpoints there will be no dialog, no growth, no mutual understanding and certainly no peace.” Very wise….even if I don’t agree with you on other things. I loved reading it – thanks.

Wait a minute. I think I missed something: what crime did Khalidi commit?
Isn’t “reach accross the isle” (or the world) and “talk to people in the other side” Obama’s proposals?
I bet that Obama had conversations with other professors in the University of Chicago: Thaler, Becker, Myerson, Fama (to name a few) that had very different ways to think about the world (even among themselves).
If you want someone that says “I have this position and I will not talk to anyone with a different point of view” then propose a change in the Constitution and reelect George W Bush. Ops… I forgot that even George W Bush is changing his opinion.

If it’s such a non-story, let’s hear the tape, or at least a full transcript of it.

Learningisjoy, very well stated. After eight years of Bush, many of the righties forget the idea of hearing from all side, forming your own opinion, and the idea of NUANCE. It’s always and forever: “Yerr either with us, err aginst us!!”

hotandspicy
I guess that means it could not have been Obama’s fault!

Asking our government to critique its “most favored nation” attitude towards Israel does NOT make one an anti-semite. Being friends with a Palestinian does NOT make you a terrorist (or your Palestinian friend one, for that matter). Asking our leaders to use critical thinking does NOT make one anti-American. And knowing professors or asking their advice does NOT make you an intellectual snob out of touch with the “real” America. I always thought intelligence and education were good things–but in the atmosphere of this election, any questioning makes one suspect of treason. I have always believed, and will continue to do so: My country, when right, to be kept right; when wrong, to be made right. Critique of imperfect policies and protest of injustice is the American way!!!!

Sure McCain wants it released, so he can splice it up and put together a misleading attack ad. You would think there were no serious issues facing our country since McCain/Palin seem to think attacking is what is important.

km – Rrroowwwl! I’m not interested in fighting with you, love. I am objective in the sense that I do not search for material solely to back up my own opinion. I look at both sides and see which coincides the most with my core beliefs. If someone here brings something up that I wasn’t aware of, I research it to find out if I need to re-assess my opinion. I am firm in what I believe is right, but I don’t like being ignorant, either.

Seriously, I have not been around more people who are voting for Barack for all the wrong reasons. Present facts people!!!!! Anyone who is a liberal and THINKS they know what they’re talking about then check out the video that Howard Stern put out interviewing Obama voters!! They have NO IDEA!!! I hope someone who is voting for Barack actually knows what they are talking about.

Who is Hatem El-Hady and why is he important?

McCain and Palin are saying the tape is important because it depicts Obama nodding in agreement with speakers saying very negative things about Israel. The only function of this article is to disseminate Obama talking points without even mentioning the real question — did Obama agree with anti-Israel statements or not?
The LA Times will leak information that blows the cover of CIA anti-terrorist activities because the public has a right to know, but applies a different standard to hide the truth about Barack Obama.

I’d like to see Obama demonstrate that first-class temperament of his by sitting there placidly while some tool recites a poem accusing the Israeli government of terrorism in its treatment of Palestinians. Wouldn’t you…?
On the other hand, if the tape surfaces, you won’t need to play connect the dots by bringing up Wright and Ayers. Voters will do it themselves.

Just look at Obama’s comment to distance himself. It is so typical (Wright, Ayers, Farakhan, Rezko):
Obama in recent months has distanced himself from the man the Times says he once called a friend. “He is not one of my advisers. He’s not one of my foreign policy people,” Obama said at a campaign event in May. “He is a respected scholar, although he vehemently disagrees with a lot of Israel’s policy.”
How can anyone blindly follow his message of “change” when he is so blatantly secretive and dishonest about his past. He has never even released ANY records of his time at Columbia and Harvard, including his thesis! Wake up America, this is a guy who wants to be PRESIDENT!

I think some of these posts indicate that we are going through a “boy that cried wolf” experience. The Republicans have been the “boy” who turns everything about a Democratic candidate into a fear factor and now it has come back to haunt them. Obama really does have some awfully radical associates, but the majority of voters will not believe it because they have heard the call to fear too many times. Perhaps this election will force the Republicans to avoid calling “wolf” and the Democrats to learn that some candidates are not as “sheep” as they would like people to believe.

Diana in California,
Just curoius. Do you really believe in that you wrote OR do you want others to believe it?

What if he Obama was the friend of this guy? To be friend of a palestinian is bad and to be friend of a jewish person is good. Are you people kidding? Is that what American has come to be? Is that the perception you folks want the world to know about America? You folks have to be careful with your nonsense.

Another desperate attack on Obama in a long line of them. It’s pathetic really. McCain’s tactic seems to be whatever he himself is guilty of project it onto Obama. It’s almost over folks. I predict a tidal wave election, super majority to follow.

lets just make sure when we try to link obama to some terror organization, we mention mccain’ ties to this group also.
i understand the man is a professor now.
obama had dinner with him
mccain gave is group money.

Dear Linda/Michigan:
This is not a case of Obama surrounding himself with people of all possible opinions.
This is a close Obama friend that he had dinner with weekley, and for whom Obama hosted a tribute going away dinner, at which dinner anti-Semetic speeches were given in Obama’s presence, of which dinner the LA Times as a video tape.

This election is MY future.
Please get out there and VOTE!
GOD HELP US IF JOHN MCCAIN BECOMES PRESIDENT!
*Obama/Biden ’08*

it’s just sickening to me the nonsense spewed out of threwd lady. just recently, she’s been critical of bush’s policies, by her own logic, doesn’t that make her un-american?
here is a guy, khalidi, who is an american citizen– who bothered to get himself an education and who bothered to READ about things to form an educated, OBJECTIVE opinion about the goings on in the world.
what is wrong with palin? is she just angry that she doesn’t know any highly educated people that actually have independent thoughts and ideas? are we all to just folling blindly without really reading any of the facts?
khalidi is an expert in middle eastern issues for crying out loud. who better than to be critical of things that he sees as wrong? he was NEVER a spokesperson for arafat. and that’s d*mn right that israel hasn’t acted perfectly just as the u.s. hasn’t always perfectly– and i hope that we always have a voice to speak out against the wrong we see going on the world.
it’s too bad palin doesn’t have a brain of her own. it seems to be that she’s just jealous she never bothered to get a real education. i think she’s too busy reading the enquirer.

good– i hope they release the tape as well as put on prime time tv all the available footage of palin’s own minister spewing anti-semite hate speech and the other witch hunting pastor’s blessing of her to become successful.
i hope that her husband’s group, the alaska independence party, gets their widely available video put on prime time tv with joe vogler saying, “the fires of hell are glaciers compared to my hatred of america and i won’t be buried under their d*mn flag” AND, i hope they put the vid of her right after it where she tells them to keep up their good work.

Did McCain forget that he gave Rashid Khalidi money? This fear-mongering is absolutely ridiculous and upsetting. Why is he getting up on his soapbox now when this “news” broke in April. McRage does not wear desperation well. If there is anything to this relationship or with any of Obama’s pals, it will surface by other means. The internet hides nothing.

Universities are full of people with diverse opinions. That is what higher education is about. Exposing yourself to a variety of ideas. It doesn’t mean you buy them all. Ayers didn’t work so now McCain is trying to use an article written in April by the LA times because he is desperate. It’s amusing that its okay for McCain to pal around with G Gordon Liddy and to chair an organization that funds Khalidi but Obama is suspect for knowing him and Ayers. McCain is fearmongering and I just hope Americans are smart enough to see through it.

john mccain wouldn’t even want to give our own congress a “blank check” to do as they please cause he’s afraid the democrats won’t make good decisions.
and we’re supposed to just blindly support every single thing israel does? we’re to sanction every single one of their actions? he won’t even support his OWN countrymen 100% of the time but we’re to ALWAYS support israel no matter what?
this is ridiculous. i’m sick of the uneducated nonsense coming out of their mouths. good lord. palin really needs to pick up a book sometime and shut up until then. she really needs to take a long look in the mirror because she aint no christian.
i don’t know what bible she read but nowhere in mine do i find jesus telling me i can’t associate with certain people.
we didn’t become a great country by one set of ideals or ideas. heck, we wouldn’t even all those gold medals at the olympics if it weren’t for our diverse nationalities in this country. america is the best because we are a melting pot of the best ideas in the world.
an american born citizen, khalidi, a scholar of middle eastern studies, is not supposed to have an opinion?
what HELL is this world coming to?

i’d like someone to go up there to alaska and ask how many people are racist– then we’ll ask if palin knows about it and if she chose to cut them off as friends… THEN.. we call her a racist because of her associations.
she makes me sick.

If Khalidi is Palestinian then he is an Arab. If he is an Arab he is a semite. If he is anti-semitic then…oh but wait I should have checked my logic at the door. Being anti-Zionist does not an anti-semite make. Do you people realize the many Orthodox Jews are anti-Zionist? Could they possibly be anti-semitic?
Another question: Is it better for me to an anti-semite or anti-American? And what if I were pro-American and anti-semitic? Is it possible to be one and not the other? As an American can I be anti-Zionist? Or must I be a Zionist to be a good and patriotic American? And if Al Qaeda committed a terrorist act by “boat-bombing” the USS Cole did Isreal commit an act of terrorism by bombing the USS Liberty? And if McCain can go to Viet Nam and forgive his captors the same ones responsible for the actual killing of over 58,00 Americans whay isn’t it acceptable to meet with a leader of a country that hasn’t even come close to that number. For that matte why can he go to Viet Nam a communit country with American bloob on it’s hands and then still want to enforce and embargo on Cuba. A country where not one American soldier has been killed. Oh that’s right there was the Spanish-American Wat and San Juan Hill and all that, but isn;t Spain and ally now?

For those commenters posting about Obama’s drugs, I want to set you straight on what I learned about drugs, I am 65 years old but when young, I not only did every drug available, I did them off and on for about 10 years. They didn’t effect me then and they certainly don’t effect me today. So let me ask you, do any of you know anyone who has NEVER tried illegal drugs when young? I have a feeling no one can tell me that they don’t “know “someone. I don’t know anything about drug availability today, but back then {1960 -1970] drugs were prevalent and everyone alive did some type of drug [btw, I was a professional working for the government}. So illegal drugs cut through all socio-economic levels. But what I am trying to get at here is that "who gives a d*mn who did what drug when they were young"? It just doesn't matter. It was done in youth! All that really matters is that we woke up one day and decided that the fun was not worth the money nor the risk and stopped drugs forever. At least Obama was honest in saying he had 'used'!
However, the greater story here is about Palistine and Isreal. The primary reason I wanted Obama to become POTUS is because I see him as someone who will listen to all sides of an issue before making any statement or decision [problems like this 'challenge' his mind and he intellectually enjoys the banter which help in his attempts to weigh and solve all issues. I also believe that is the primary reason why Rev Wright was so important to him since he too has a first rate, superior intellect and a great sense of humor]. I would like someone to tell me how the Palistinians can even have a speck of ‘hope’ to keep their own land and be treated as “human beings” [rather than the animals Isreal wants to believe they are] if there is no respect or even humanity shown to them by Isreal? By the same token, this ‘SAME treatment MUST absolutely apply’ to the Jews in Isreal. It has to be a give and take by both sides so they both can live together harmoniously, as well as PROSPER. They MUST BE ABLE TO “CONVERSE” or a ‘lasting peace accord’ will never be achieved. I can’t help but believe that Obama is the right person who can help them achieve a ‘permanent’ peace largely due to his conversations with his friend Khalidi [and everything he learned from him] along with all his knowledge of Isreal. If Isreal does NOT want to live in peace, then someone has to find out ‘why’ they are so ‘adverse to peace’ so it can once, and for all, be rectified.
For anyone to ‘fault’ Obama for trying to understand issues about other cultures is absolutely WRONG. It also does NOT mean that Obama accepts either one side or the other.
WHY should we listen to or believe anything Goldfarb has to say about McCain’s connection with Khalidi and IRI when McCain ‘should be forced’ to speak for himself on this topic? Goldfarb is NOT McCain, and on this subject, he should NOT be speaking ‘for him or in lieu of him’. McCain supported Khalidi’s IRI group with financing all these years knowing its purpose, so perhaps McCain can NOW explain ‘his reasons for that support’.
But McCain traveling down this road today to publicly point out that Obama has QUESTIONABLE AND SUSPICIOUS BAD BLACK AND FOREIGN RADICAL FRIENDS? Because McCain wants to make certain he cuts deeply into Obama’s leads in all the ‘RED’ states that he ‘took for granted’ because after all his good buddy Bush won them, so why couldn’t he just ‘assume’ those RED states would automatically support him.
I also believe that McCain is just ENVIOUS! Obama has raised so much money from ‘ordinary citizens’ who support him and can afford to be on all cable stations tonight at a heftu price and McCain can’t do the same- that’s called “jealousy” or “green with envy”!
I also want answers about McCain’s friends such as; G. Libby felon/terrorist, Phil Gramm lobbyist, Rick Davis lobbyist, Steve Schmidt lobbyist, to name but a very few. We need to INSIST the MSM do an indept investigation on his ‘friends’ because they too are HIGHLY SUSPECT and QUESTIONAL!
I am so SICK OF McCAIN’S, PALIN’S AND SUPPORTERS BS I could SCREAM! Palin did a GOOD JOB once again “MEMORIZING” HER POLICY SPEECH today, but let’s NOT KID ourselves, if she couldn’t “memorize” speeches or talking points, she’d be up a creek without a paddle because she can’t construct a concise sentence and speak ‘out loud’.
Tuesday night just can’t get here soon enough!

If McCain thinks Khalidi is so bad, then why did McCain agree to give Khalidi’s Palestine group a hefty $440,000 grant?
McCain’s desperation is painful to watch. He tried to whack Obama with this Khalidi event and ended up whacking himself instead.

If Obama was willing to stoop as low as McCain: Is this the pot calling the kettle black? From Huffington Post (exceprt from much longer article):
“A 1998 tax filing for the McCain-led group shows a $448,873 grant to Khalidi’s Center for Palestine Research and Studies for work in the West Bank. (See grant number 5180, “West Bank: CPRS” on page 14 of this PDF.)
The relationship extends back as far as 1993, when John McCain joined IRI as chairman in January.

Rashid Khalidi is a scholar indeed. CPRS was a research center that did descent work. They are not really the issue here. But the issue is that it seems having any ties to Palestinians is in itself a crime. Does not that remind you of the 1930s and 1940s in Europe, the 1950s in the US, Stalin’s USSR…etc. What national or ethnic group is next? Going down this road means that in no time, candidates will have to be completely insolent from the world and must have been grown in a bubble with no contacts with the real world.

Diane,
Can you post links to the videos you reference? I can’t find them anywhere.
The rest of your post…wow. I’ve met people with a tenuous grip on reality, but you really take the cake! Did you read Richard Clarke’s book (I’m assuming that’s who you are referring to who transferred the files to Bush and his team)? He details all the things Clinton *did*, and all the things that Bush *didn’t do* before 9-11, then all the things that Bush did after 9-11 that were EXACTLY what Clinton did while in office.
History will accurately and correctly reveal Bush as by far the worst president we have ever had.

To Realist:
Just google the following:
Pastor Jeremiah Wright or Trinity Church of Chicago;
Obama mocking the Bible;
Obama not saluting the flag;
Obama and the National Anthem;
And since you’re already googling check out:
Father Michael Pfleger of St. Sabine Church;
Louis Farrakan calling Obama the messiah;
Obama giving Hillary Clinton the bird;
Michelle Obama saying for the time in her adult life is proud to be an American;
Michelle Obama saying that America is a downright mean country.
You can find everything you want on the internet, also google Larry Sinclair.

I can’t believe how some people can read Huffington Post, Arriana Huffington is so full of hate that she even wished that Nancy Reagan would die. I only went into that source once, and never went back.
I used to watch news on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, MSNBC but now I only go to CNN to watch Lou Dobbs, now I’m a fan of FOX, C-Span, and read the news from various sources on the internet. The liberal media has lost all credibility because of the way they trashed Hillary Clinton throughout the primaries, and are now trashing Gov. Palin and her family. The liberal media has behaved so irresponsibly, like a bunch of unleashed rabid dogs against Gov. Palin, her family since her selection as VP, and they’ve been almost as mean against Sen. McCain and his wife Cindy. This has been the most divisive elections in my lifetime, thanks to the candidate of hope, unity and change. Yeah right!
I sincerely hope that there is no civil unrest and that we all act as responsible law abiding citizens and accept the elections’ results no matter who wins.

What a blunder by Obama. Doesn’t he know he has to swear a blood oath to protect the nation that all US Senators, Congressmen, and every President has sworn to protect more than any nation on earth….Israel.
Honestly, I’m sick and tired as an American that our politicians go out of their way to completely please the nation of Israel, from both the Democrats and Republicans, yet they could care less about satisfying us Americans. I was just researching and we give Israel an avg of $4 billion in grants (don’t have to paid back) per year…you’d think we would have them saluting us, but it’s the tail that wags the dog here. I’m told they’re our only friends…with friends like that…well you know the rest.

We need CHANGE, go ahead and CHANGE this country and the world as our candidate said . No more rich people.Every body should be equal, he just said “We all are going to be one people” Yes that’s CHANGE. Health care for everybody (don’t forget that) yes tha’s CHANGE. Money from the goverment to middle and lower class , yes , that’s CHANGE.
The worse crime of all this is to “Lie to the people with a noble idea”

Sick of the ignorant drivel of these GOP maniacs. You all simply refuse to use your brains. You Fly off the cliffs, chasing the stupid and unsubstantiated nonsense spewing from your candidate, NEVER delving into his past relationships and under handed dealings. DO YOU JUST NOT WANT TO KNOW?
Is it easier to just close your eyes to all of McCains backroom shenanigans and elect the worst possible answer to America’s problems? Step up and become AMERICANS who care about this country. ACT as if you care about AMERICA and not the need to be devisive, and yes racist. Isn’t it time you people embraced all of AMERICA instead of spreading lies and protecting your corrupt candidates’anti-AMERICAN views.

His kids went to the Lab school where my kids go as well.
____
Is that the same school where Axelrod claimed Ayer’s (adult) kids go as well?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Of course!! :wink: :wink:
Michelle Obama just went to one of Khalidi’s children’s wedding!!
But, of course they’re all in school together….Ayer’s are in college, Khalidi’s are married and Obama’s are in GRADE SCHOOL.
Obama lies.

I must object to Joe Benevides’ comment that the PLO is legitimate these days. Condoleeza Rice may like them quite a bit, and may have been able to give them over $600 million of our tax dollars this year alone, but they’re still in the business of killing Jews.
Readers should note that when Obama was working with Ayers at the Woods Fund, they funded the Arab American Action Network in Chicago which was founded by Rashid Khalidi and presided over by his wife, Mona Khalidi. The Woods Fund also awarded sizable grants to Jeremiah Wright’s Trinity United Church of Christ and (surprise!) ACORN.
Jake Tapper should know better than to draw a false equivalence between the CPRS, which does polling of Palestinian public opinion, and the Khalidis’ AAAN, which celebrates the “nakba” -that is, the catastrophe- of the restablishment of the nation of Israel.
Obama has said that no one suffers like the Palestinians, and his associates fall heavily into the Jew-hating category. He also says he would talk with Ahmadinejad who could have a nuke aimed at Israel within the year. Even though Obama stated four different positions on Jerusalem in four months, American Jewish liberals like to believe that he’s supportive of Israel’s security. That’s quite an astounding hoax the Obama campaign has going there. I wonder if they pay Tapper to keep it going, or if he only does so out of allegiance to the party?
The world hasn’t seen such blind loyalty since the Nazis rose to power in Germany.

The AAAN has never had any connection to terrorism. It’s a local Chicago community services organization. Part of its emphasis is on helping new immigrants adapt to life in America, including improving their English language skills, and to provide education and support to women in the community, especially victims of domestic violence.
The Woods Fund gave a total of $75,000 in grants to the AAAN for the services of a community social worker. Neither Obama nor Ayers chaired the Woods Fund board – there were a dozen members who met four times a year. Obama served as a board member for three consecutive years. During the two years the Woods Fund granted the $75,000 to the AAAN, they disbursed nearly $7 million in grants to other, similar organizations and effort. The AAAN received one of the smallest gifts because they only applied for a small gift to cover the social worker’s salary.
By contrast, McCain chaired the IRI when it gave a total of nearly $900,000 to the Center For Palestianian Studies which Rachid Khalidi founded and ran at the time of the donations. And nothing wrong with that, either. They do important work.
Of course it doesn’t matter to low-information types that Khalidi is a US-born American citizen, a moderate, has consistently denounced terrorism/suicide bombings, the Hamas government and its refusal to recognize/deal with Israel – that he has also headed up inter-religious organizations with Christians and Jews, has many friends in Israel (and warm things to say about selected Israeli leaders) and promotes only passive/peaceful forms of protest and resistance. Of course, none of that matters because he has Palestinian blood and a Palestinian name. He has dared to very occasionally criticize Israel for some of its policies (funny, when Noam Chomsky or Gideon Levy do it, they don’t get called “terrorists”), and tried to help the Palestinian delegation get a decent deal out of the peace process.
But it’s par for the course. The British called Gandhi a “terrorist”. Hoover called Martin Luther King a “terrorist”. The apartheid government in South Africa called Nelson Mandela a “terrorist”. And King George III called our nation’s Founding Fathers “terrorists”. Yet Khalidi has not marched or protested or gone on hunger strike or thrown crates of tea into a harbor. All he has done is teach, research, write books and answer questions.

Ana, I know Brigitte Gabriel. But what does she have to do with Rachid Khalidi?

Pan out, folks, I’m really sorry to do this but I must once again recommend Brigitte Gabriel’s books.
There are so many wonderful Americans on this blog. They are so full of the right ideas of tolerance and freedom.
You all deserve to prevail and keep on arguing about your wonderful country.
But, Ms. Gabriel explains how, it’s an ugly world out there. RELIGION, not politics is the driving force, and pure/fundamental Islamics believe that GOD is helping them rule over ALL of US, in our diversity. They don’t believe in diversity. And moderates are siding everywhere in the world right now, with more extreme views,to promote their culture ,as on Sharia Law, building of mosques and teaching/outreach of Islam, etc.
You must understand this and take it into account, or all the other reasoning falls apart. You must decide what you want, a Western culture or an Islamic one. All degrees of diversity will be swallowed up by one or the other as they struggle world-wide.
To reject the West, from which the idea of Democracy came, as “racist” or “white” will mean the end of life as we know and cherish it – our freedoms, rights, and diversities.
I believe Obama is conflicted about this large issue. This is what worries many people. World peace depending on how far ONE MAN has evolved PERSONALLY. A global-scale psychological drama. It seems unreal and abnormal, either positively or negatively, according to your ideas, BECAUSE IT IS abnormaland deeply disturbing. We need a NORMAL candidate, not pin all hopes on one messianic figure who may have deep flaws.Unifier-peacemaker-lightning rod-element of chaos….
Try to think more deeply, folks.
Again, let us pray and hope for a good outcome.

To Realist:
I’ve been watching and following the presidential elections on a daily basis since January of this year. I don’t need anyone to spin or tell me what I watched on T.V. or read from various sources. If I go on these blogs it’s because I find it very entertaining and interesting to read other people’s opinions, not to engage in a shouting or pi$$ing contest. Also, it’s nice to see my comments posted. I have read some of the most informed, funniest and stupidest comments.
Personally, I think Obama supporters act as if they’re hipnotized who idolize Obama and see him as a messiah, that if Obama asked his followers to commit suicide, many of them would.
Obama supporters were the first to attack Hillary’s supporters, calling them racists and all kinds of names if they did not vote for Obama. Now it’s against McCain supporters. I’ll even admit that my three sisters and I contributed to Hillary’s campaign when we’ve NEVER been fans of hers, we don’t even respect her, because she doesn’t respect herself, but we were so disgusted with Obama’s disrespectful, sexist, arrogant, and cynical attitude towards Hillary and women.
All media with the exception of FOX have been so biased in their favorable reporting of Obama from the very beginning, trying to decide for voters. I was deeply saddened and disappointed when Gov. Bill Richardson backstabbed the Clintons for endorsing Obama because he needed someone to retire his debt, and a possible consideration for VP. Colin Powell’s endorsement of Obama did not affect me at all, but I thought he was above that. I had never seen so many Democrat and Republican backstabbers going against the people who made them the political figures they became.
No matter who wins, our country is going to need alot of healing, and I hope we act as responsible and law abiding citizens. Let us not make a spectacle of our great country. The world is watching us! If McCains wins, I hope Barack Hussein Obama concedes without calling for civil unrest as he advised his cousin Odinga in Kenya, and where many people died. I know McCain will concede if he loses.
Retired USAF Hispanic Female for McCain/Palin 2008

I am so ready for this election to be over so that America can focus on issues that are relevant to our success as a nation. The hypocrisy in politics is exhausting and quite frankly I am looking forward to the end of the Karl Rove Republicans divisive and hateful way of getting people elected. The cheap name calling and innuendo is generally 95% false and misleading. Since when is a progressive tax policy “socialism”? John McCain doesn’t believe it but know that he can make Joe the Plumber believe it. I thought John McCain’s hero was Teddy Roosevelt, who initiated the progressive income tax. John McCain knows that Obama is not a terrorist, but let’s the innuendo boil. The GOP calls Obama a “rock star” and then turn Sarah Palin into a “rock star”. And McCain heads an organization that contributes $400,000+ to a Khalidi organiztion and then criticizes Obama. George Bush and his buddies have stuck their heads in the sand in any attempt to understand what is going on in the world. I am ready for a President with some intellectual accuity and understanding of the rest of the world instead of somebody who believes that power will always prevail. We have experienced a shoot from the hip cowboy President for eight years, who just doesn’t take thought and learning seriously, despite a privileged education and Harvard and Yale, that he squandered. Similarly, John McCain was given a privileged education at the Naval Academy and played hard and graduated 5th from the bottom of his class. Barrack Obama had to work hard, get scholarships, and be intellectually active to become Editor of the Harvard Law Review. People who are intellectually active, have conversations with people of all kinds. People like George Bush, Sarah Palin, and John McCain only have conversations with people who think like they do. That becomes incestuous – ie Rumsfeld and Chaney, and change and progress is not possible. Let’s get our heads out of the sand and away from sound bites and personal attacks and bring this country together.

Marythedesigner,
Give one example of Senator Obama throwing anyone under the bus. What a load of you know what.

Is the United States governed by Israel? No! To place such importance on ONE alliance is to put our country in jeopardy. To allow ONE country other than ours to dictate our foreign policy in such a way is to allow intrusion into our very foundation of government. To place such importance on this alliance as to negate the importances of other alliances is to jeopardize our national security.
I am part Jew, part Native American. You know how I see this? I see a Palestinian people sequestered into poverty just like the Native American. I see Israel as the Europeans coming to America. The Palestinians DESERVE their own land, their own pride, and their own LIBERTY. The Israelis also deserve as much. But for the Israelis to ignore this basic FUNDAMENTAL right as a human being and to keep pushing Palestinians off of land they once lived is an act of violence on the Palestinians.
It is more complicated than Christians wanting to preserve this land for the second coming so that God will kill the Jews and elevate the Christians to heaven (hypocrisy/heresy) – Fairy tales shouldn’t be the founding source for our foreign policy, especially one that is so sickening as the Christian “prophecy.” The only reason why Christians want the Jews to have that land is so the sacrificial Jew will be there to fulfill that bloody disgusting prophetic ritual of sacrifice.
As soon as we quit letting religion – of any sect – rule what we do as nations is when we may actually have peace.
To have someone like Obama who is willing to talk to both sides to find common ground is something I want for the country I live in. This indifference to the plight of the Palestinians is what is causing all these deaths. Once we realize this and wake up from the delusions is when we can finally take a step forward.
SHALOM! E Lo Hi No!

Asdf. That’s a word, idiot!