WMD Owl Wrote:

Fort Bend Owl Wrote:I just watched the show. It was a very eloquent, moving endorsement. He's known and been a good friend of McCain for 25 years and he made it clear that he felt both could be good presidents.

But the bigger issue is what he feels the Republican party as a whole is doing. The movement to the right, the divisiveness, and the U.S.'s standing in the world is why he felt Obama was the right choice. There is a real generational gap both in America and the world, and he felt that Obama was the best choice to bring back our respect.

Powell has been POed at the Bush Administration and the Republican leadership for the past 4 years. He still feels hung out to dry for the WMD speech he gave before the UN.

Did the neo-cons run him out of the Administration? Sure they did. Powell is just getting his payback.

That was my first thought too. There's more to it than that, but that didn't help. Powell didn't fit in with the neo-cons so he was better off being out of the administration anyway.

smn1256 Wrote:

NIUFAN Wrote:Whats the surprise? Powell is voting for Obama because he is black. The same reason 95% of African-Americans are voting that way.

Don't you know it's not politically correct to say that a black person will vote for a black candidate because of his race?

As if black people would be voting for John McCain if Hillary was running.

smn1256 Wrote:

NIUFAN Wrote:Whats the surprise? Powell is voting for Obama because he is black. The same reason 95% of African-Americans are voting that way.

Don't you know it's not politically correct to say that a black person will vote for a black candidate because of his race?

(sigh) The overall conservative/GOP dismissal of Black voters is strikingly obvious when they say STUPID things like the above.

African-American voters gave over 70% voting support to John Kerry, Al Gore, Bill Clinton (twice), Michael Dukakis, and Jimmy Carter. Dukakis' campaign had to pay real attention to Jesse Jackson in 1988, as he won 13 primaries and garnered 7 million votes, but little campaign money.

The same Black electorate didn't do diddly for Al Sharpton, Lenora Funani, Alan Keyes, Douglas Wilder, or most notably, Carol Moseley Braun--who 1) was a U.S. senator from Illinois and 2) actually served a full term, noting a favored GOP criticism of Barack Obama.

It's okay to believe Obama is getting Black support solely because of his biracial heritage, ignoring the fairly loyal support of any Democratic candidate from the last thirty years. But it's equally appropriate to call those who'd think that way what they truly are: Dumbasses.

Its going to be interesting to see if/how Obama "mends fences" with Jackson after the election.

I think that the "Civil Rights Leaders" like Jackson et al are PO'ed because by and large Obama avoided them during this election cycle.

They will really be PO'ed if Obama keeps them marginalized after the election.

WMD Owl Wrote:Its going to be interesting to see if/how Obama "mends fences" with Jackson after the election.
I think that the "Civil Rights Leaders" like Jackson et al are PO'ed because by and large Obama avoided them during this election cycle.
They will really be PO'ed if Obama keeps them marginalized after the election.

I see a huge potential problem here.

Obama has taken great pains to try to portray himself as a centrist to win the general election. If he tries to govern that way, he's going to have to keep them marginalized. They're going to feel betrayed.

If he goes back to his leftist roots, then those who voted for him because they thought he was a centrist will feel betrayed.

I don't think he can win in 2012 if he betrays the center (although I'm guessing he's more likely to lose a primary fight to Hillary than to any of the current crop of republicans, but I wouldn't rule out a viable independent). I don't think the democrats can keep the house in 2010 if he betrays the center (although their margin in the senate will probably be too large to lose in one election cycle). I'm not sure he can maintain domestic tranquility if he betrays the left. I can easily see a return of the 60s "burn, baby, burn" days.

If he's good enough to bring this off, he's a whole lot better than I'm giving him credit for so far.

If he's not, then one result that I could foresee is for centrist republicans and centrist democrats to get together and form a center party, with the tax-and-spenders lopped off into a socialist party on the left and the religious right lopped off into something like a European Christian democrat party on the right.

WMD Owl Wrote:Its going to be interesting to see if/how Obama "mends fences" with Jackson after the election.

I think that the "Civil Rights Leaders" like Jackson et al are PO'ed because by and large Obama avoided them during this election cycle.

They will really be PO'ed if Obama keeps them marginalized after the election.

F Jackson, and anyone who has a problem with Obama. He doesn't need to kiss anyone's a$$.

Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:I see a huge potential problem here.

Obama has taken great pains to try to portray himself as a centrist to win the general election. If he tries to govern that way, he's going to have to keep them marginalized. They're going to feel betrayed.

If he goes back to his leftist roots, then those who voted for him because they thought he was a centrist will feel betrayed.

I don't think he can win in 2012 if he betrays the center (although I'm guessing he's more likely to lose a primary fight to Hillary than to any of the current crop of republicans, but I wouldn't rule out a viable independent). I don't think the democrats can keep the house in 2010 if he betrays the center (although their margin in the senate will probably be too large to lose in one election cycle). I'm not sure he can maintain domestic tranquility if he betrays the left. I can easily see a return of the 60s "burn, baby, burn" days.

If he's good enough to bring this off, he's a whole lot better than I'm giving him credit for so far.

If he's not, then one result that I could foresee is for centrist republicans and centrist democrats to get together and form a center party, with the tax-and-spenders lopped off into a socialist party on the left and the religious right lopped off into something like a European Christian democrat party on the right.

You know from Day 1 the fringe like "Code Pink" Moveon.org Soros ACORN, LaRaza, etc. will be demanding their legislation. They want to see the "Change" NOW.

I have no doubt Pelosi and Reed will accomodate the fringe and Obama will sign it.

The "Centrist Obama" will disappear around noon, January 22, 2009.

WMD Owl Wrote:You know from Day 1 the fringe like "Code Pink" Moveon.org Soros ACORN, LaRaza, etc. will be demanding their legislation. They want to see the "Change" NOW.

I have no doubt Pelosi and Reed will accomodate the fringe and Obama will sign it.

The "Centrist Obama" will disappear around noon, January 22, 2009.

That would be my guess. He's going to have to go one way or the other, and that way is true to his roots.