Comments for Change We Can Believe In? at http://www.urbanelephants.com , comment 1 to 28 out of 20 comments http://www.urbanelephants.com Tue, 07 Sep 2010 16:14:23 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-3846 http://www.nypost.com/seven/05112009/postopinion/opedcolumnists/bams_darfur_sins_168603.htm Speaking of Darfur during the campaign, Obama said: "As president of the United States, I don't intend to abandon people." Yet he is. About genocide, he said, "We can't say 'never again' and allow it to happen again." But it is happening again. Worse, some worry that the mastermind of all this suffering, Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, is manipulating Obama's special envoy to Darfur, retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Scott Gration. Bashir has charmed outsiders who believe (erroneously) that he sincerely desires to work to end the suffering. Activists were especially alarmed when Gration provided an overly sunny report of Darfur's ground situation and told some privately that it could be time to ease sanctions and remove Sudan from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. Activist Shannon Sedgwick Davis dismisses the idea that Obama is too busy with the economy to address Darfur. "That's an easy out," Sedgwick Davis says. "He has an amazing team that surrounds him for issues just like this and he needs to empower them to do much, much more. That's what they are there for. Hillary Clinton isn't sitting in her office trying to balance the budget." - Jay Golub Mon, 11 May 2009 13:55:08 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-3559 http://www.nypost.com/seven/04172009/news/columnists/prez_plots_course_for_caribbean_trade_wi_164821.htm "HAVING clearly shaken the pro tectionist promises he made to labor unions during his campaign, President Obama embarks on a trade tour of our closest neighbors, and appears ready to embrace this opportunity to dramatically alter the American hemisphere." I love this stuff. He says one thing, does another - so different than the rest of the political world, huh? - Jay Golub Sat, 18 Apr 2009 06:31:04 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-3326 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/26/world/europe/26czech.html?ref=business So much for Obama improving our stance with our European allies, something Bush was blamed for not enhancing while in the White House. It's funny how reality and theoretical campaign rhetoric don't match... - Jay Golub Wed, 25 Mar 2009 07:35:53 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-3272 http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0309/20289_Page2.html Obama blows up the budget deficit... "President Barack Obama’s new budget will produce a string of annual deficits averaging in excess of $926 billion over the next decade and more than triple what taxpayers pay each year in interest charges on the national debt, according to new estimates released Friday by the Congressional Budget Office." funny, but when the Huffington Post was covering this topic in July, they were implying that it was McCain who was the reckless spender and Obama's people were saying ... "We can't afford not to invest in some major initiatives such as health and energy and middle-class tax cuts," said Obama economic adviser Jason Furman. "And we also can't afford not to pay for those initiatives." ...I guess we can "afford" not to pay for these initiatives now? - Jay Golub Sat, 21 Mar 2009 05:04:41 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-3051 http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090311/ap_on_go_pr_wh/obama_spending "He acknowledged that the system of influential lawmakers inserting earmarked projects has bred cynicism, and he declared, "This piece of legislation must mark an end to the old way of doing business." you gotta' love a hypocrite. So NEXT time he will stop earmarks....LOL! - Jay Golub Wed, 11 Mar 2009 12:39:29 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-3028 And the American People will begin to see this and if the GOP is smart, we'll run strong Republican candidates in the House and take back Congress. Divided Government with the GOP in the House will definitely help this country. - Daniel Peterson Tue, 10 Mar 2009 15:07:54 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-3027 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/10/chas-freeman-out-intel-ch_n_173645.html can't anyone who Obama appoints to work for his administration stand scrutiny? The President's inability to fill his cabinet, especially at the Treasury, is becoming a risk to the fiscal state of our country. This guy really isn't ready for prime time... - Jay Golub Tue, 10 Mar 2009 13:01:54 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2850 http://www.nypost.com/seven/02282009/news/columnists/obamas_phony_pullout_157314.htm Another instance of the same-old, same-old. Obama's pullout is not a pullout at all. As Peters puts it... "Consider his big sound bite: "Let me say this as plainly as I can: by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end." What does that mean?... We're not going to leave 50,000 support troops in Iraq without combat units to protect them. We'll just ban the word "brigade" and call our shooters "task forces"...The reality all along has been that Obama can't cut and run." And the funny part is that the liberals actually believed he was going to pull the troops out as soon as he took office...LOL! Instead, he'll effectively bring home less than 10% of the troops by the end of this year and then slowly bring troops out over 2010, with the goal of leaving 50,000 troops behind until THE END of 2011 - just in time for him to run for re-election. Of course, this all depends on our enemies playing by the rules and there being no set-backs in Iraq. Which in that case, it's doubtful we even get that far in troop removals. Obama, like all Presidents, can not afford to just walk away from Iraq or other military committments. Either way, saying our "combat mission" will be over at least one year before all of our troops come home - 50,000 of them, BTW - is parcing words as a manner Bill Clinton would be proud of... - Jay Golub Sat, 28 Feb 2009 03:49:44 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2842 http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jLKFtyGbAkuaTzq6YaTcRz90MSjw Another aspect of Mr. Obama's deception. He states that Bush did not reflect the real expenses within the Federal budget by hiding certain expenses. Obama calls his budget an "honest accounting" of the cost of the federal operation. Yet, his assumptions - especially the ones that help him to his stated goal of reducing the deficit within his own term in office - include GDP growth of 3.5% in 2010 and 4% in 2011 - predictions that are not supported by any analyst I've heard speak. In reality, many are citing that the economy may not be growing at all by the end of Obama's term in office. And if that's the case, not only will he be unable to reduce the deficit, he probably will not be able to balance the budget under the already increasing tax environment. My prediction is that by the end of this year, new tax increases will be needed to pay for the spending this administration will be supporting. Change we can believe in? No....just the same old thing... - Jay Golub Fri, 27 Feb 2009 10:52:46 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2624 http://www.nypost.com/seven/02172009/postopinion/opedcolumnists/rahms_rent_is_just_the_tip_of_ethics_ice_155536.htm now it's Rahm's turn... "The SEC later fined Freddie $50 million for its deliberate fraud in 2000, 2001 and 2002. Meanwhile, Emanuel was paid more than $260,000 for his Freddie "service." Plus, after he resigned from the board to run for Congress in 2002, the troubled agency's PAC gave his campaign $25,000 - its largest single gift to a House candidate. That's what friends are for, isn't it?" is there anyone in this adminstration who ISN'T ethically challenged? Who's next to resign? Like I've been saying since Obama threw his "pastor" under-the-bus last year, this is not "change we can believe in." It's the same-old, same-old that we've grown used to in Washington D.C.... - Jay Golub Tue, 17 Feb 2009 03:42:15 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2407 that picture of Obama in the slideshow has him looking really tired and almost beaten. He's only a few weeks into this thing - I hope he can handle it. - spunky Wed, 04 Feb 2009 11:34:58 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2392 http://www.nypost.com/seven/02042009/news/politics/woe_is_o_on_worst_day_yet_153469.htm I love this guy. He's only a few weeks into his adminstration and the list of failures is already starting to stack up. Here's the scoreboard: Two picks who had to drop out of the process because they are potential thieves (Daschle and Richardson) along with a few who were just caught committing petty larcecy (Geithner and Holder). The funniest part about his vetting process is that the one person who sailed right through is Hillary and her world-traveling, millionaire husband. No wonder they hit it off so well. All of these "screw ups," as Obama admitted yesterday, and they haven't even started to put policy ideas together. Change we can believe in, huh?....;) - Jay Golub Wed, 04 Feb 2009 04:16:27 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2340 Of course the average American wants a hand-out. Who wouldn't if given the choice? We are doomed to become just another social welfare state with high unemployment and lower standards of living - largely because the GOP gave up its principles. - spunky Mon, 02 Feb 2009 03:17:59 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2337 "Sure they report it. But what's missing this time is the blood crazed, piranhas in the water style of destruction that routinely accompanied the slightest whiff of even the mildest sort of wrongdoing on the part of any members of the now departed Bush administration!" Great point, Stu. And if you point it out accurately enough, the media will just laugh it off as sour grapes. Yet, maybe we need to accept what I wrote about Barney Frank, that the "average American" wants a larger piece of the economic pie. Those in favor of more public support for American's "needs" will certainly be favored in the media as they are favored politically. Even the most accurately prudent politician will certainly risk losing re-election if he crosses public opinion in this area. Think about what that means to the political process in America. I hope we can get some momentum on our side to stall this move... - Jay Golub Sun, 01 Feb 2009 19:09:53 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2334 Jay wrote: "What does it say about this transition team and Obama's decision making processes that so many of his picks have clear vetting problems? did these nominees hold back the information and if they did how is it that Obama and Americans can trust them going forward? If they told Obama the truth, why did he still pick these people?" More important, what does it say about the media which, had this been people in the Bush administration, would have gone into a frenzy with attendant cries for impeachment, repetitive allegations of a "culture of corruption," and demands to know "what did the president know and when did he know it?" Calls for investigations would have been the barest minimum we could have expected from the big media like the NY Times, CNN, etc. So isn't it incredible that the media, which so damaged a Republican presidency by such tactics, simply seems to have no sense of its own double standard here or how its admiring stance toward the new administration simply makes it all "go away" for the new president and those around him? Sure they report it. But what's missing this time is the blood crazed, piranhas in the water style of destruction that routinely accompanied the slightest whiff of even the mildest sort of wrongdoing on the part of any members of the now departed Bush administration! It seems that it's not justice that's blind in our society. It's the press. SWM - swmirsky Sun, 01 Feb 2009 13:22:31 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-2324 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/30/tom-daschle-tax-problem_n_162708.html Ahhhh....the hits just keep on comin'! Now it's Dashle's turn at "oops, did i do that?" so much for "change we can believe in." This will make the third nominee to Obama's cabinet that has significant trouble. Richardson, who appears to be in big trouble right now, removed his name from the process; Geithner slid through after a number of issues came up and now Daschle. I can't wait for the next one. What does it say about this transition team and Obama's decision making processes that so many of his picks have clear vetting problems? did these nominees hold back the information and if they did how is it that Obama and Americans can trust them going forward? If they told Obama the truth, why did he still pick these people? "Mr. Daschle concluded that he owed the taxes for free use of a car and driver that had been provided to him by Leo Hindery Jr., the founder of a private equity firm known as InterMedia Advisors, the officials said. Mr. Daschle was chairman of the firm's advisory board. In a financial disclosure statement filed this month with the Office of Government Ethics, Mr. Daschle reported that he had received large amounts of income from InterMedia, including more than $2 million for consulting and $182,520 in the form of "company-provided transportation." What could Tom Daschle "consult" on that would be worth $2 million? It is so obvious that they paid him to lobby, not consult. And if Obama is selecting people who are multi-million dollar lobbyists, what benefit does his rule have that his cabinet "can't lobby" while he's still in office? THEY ALREADY ARE ON THE PAYROLL OF BOTH THE ADMINISTRATION AND THE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS. Funny as well is that the Democrats are pushing for things that are "worker friendly," yet Richardson, Daschle and Clinton (via her husband) represent and have been "consulting" for major industries all over the country. If this is "change we can believe in," I'd like to see us go back to the old stuff....;) - Jay Golub Sat, 31 Jan 2009 04:03:50 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-1777 http://www.nypost.com/seven/01052009/news/columnists/with_friends_like_these__its_tough_to_be_147256.htm awesome stuff from the guy who invented the word "hope." I'm wondering whether this guy realizes how much garbage he'll have to wade through to work with his own cabinet. This is why his selection of superstar Democratic D.C. insiders will be his undoing... - Jay Golub Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:39:56 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-1185 http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2008/11/23/obama/ "So many progressives were misled about what Obama is and what he believes. But it wasn't Obama who misled them. It was their own desires, their eagerness to see what they wanted to see rather than what reality offered." So Obama promising the "redistribution of wealth," univeral healthcare, direct negotiations with Iran/North Korea without preconditions, re-negotiating NAFTA, Card Check Legislation passage and i could go on, were just imagining things? These promises were on Obama's website the day of the election, and the media of the Left wants liberals (this guy calls them "progressives"...lol) to admit they imagined all of this? This just re-inforces the addage believed by the left (and the mainstream media) that liberals can never do any wrong... - Jay Golub Wed, 03 Dec 2008 11:49:25 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-1137 it's official - Hillary won! I think being President right now is a disaster for anyone. Obama's going to wish he lost and came back again in 2012. Between the economy and the foreign turmoil that will occur due to the bad global economy, Barack will look like a deer in the headlights. Actually, i think he looks like that now. I read some of those DailyKos posts - those guys are nuts. They sound like conservatives trying to explain away Bush's signing of the Medicare Drug Benefits legislation. - spunky Tue, 02 Dec 2008 03:05:42 +0100 http://www.urbanelephants.com/index.php/home/64/324-change-we-can-believe-in.html#comment-1119 Hillary is appointed to take over at State and the responses keep on coming at Dailykos... "My beef isn't stritcly against Hillary, Rice or Janet. I like Susan Rice and Gov Napotliano. I just wanted to see that a democratic was offered the position of sec of def. Gates would have been my second choice if good solid democrats rejected the post. Why can't a democrat lead the defense department. We haven't had a democrat in that post since 1996. It's disgusting." "Not one Progressive anywhere to be found. Very disgraceful. At some point another democratic president will come to believe a democrat can lead the defense department." "seems to me that he'd rather have her on his team than 2nd guessing him for the next 4 years. Much like: Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer." This guy Obama has just lied his way to the White House and now the far Left is upset. Yet, there are many in thier movement trying to explain away his decision... "he is using reverse psychology because in reality all the republicans fear the ever living shit out of hillary. she is a huge notch on obamas belt to have her around, and its gonna be damn hard to defeat a team like his in 2012." "This is going to sound corny, but here goes. I think Obama has figured out the peace-making thing, which as Lincoln, Gandhi, and MLK said, is to make your enemy your friend. Obama has helped me to get over my Bush hatred, and now with Clinton, he's showing us how to really get over competition and infighting. I can't say enough how much Obama's leadership-by-example has helped me deal with my political, unhelpful anger." Gandhi???? For appointing Hillary to be Secretary of State Obama has become MLK??? These guys are AWESOME. If you don't read DailyKos, you really don't know what you're missing....;) - Jay Golub Mon, 01 Dec 2008 09:59:52 +0100