The Doctor, The President & the birth certificate by David Kupelian (World Net Daily News) Oct. 5, 2010

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The doctor, the president and the birth certificate

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Posted: October 05, 2010
1:00 am Eastern

© 2010

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A decorated Army flight surgeon, after 18 years of service including year-long tours in Honduras, Bosnia and Afghanistan, now risks his career and faces almost certain court-martial and imprisonment.

Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin claims there's a serious conflict between adhering to his military oath and obeying deployment orders coming down the existing chain of command with Barack Obama at the top – since the president's constitutionaleligibility to be commander in chief has never been documented.

Although some scoff, Lakin is acting "exactly" as "proper training dictates," confirms retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas G. McInerney, a Fox News military analyst who served as vice commander in chief of USAF forces in Europe. Likewise, the former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, Roy Moore, agrees Lakin "has every right to question the lawfulness of the orders of the commander in chief."

Moreover, just like Lakin, 3 out of 5 Americans – 58 percent according to a recent CNN poll and 61 percent according to a"60 Minutes/Vanity Fair" poll – are not convinced Barack Obama was born in Hawaii as he has long claimed. The Constitution requires in Article 2 Section 1 that every president be a "natural born citizen."

So, now this veteran Army doctor, who would much rather continue serving his country than go to prison, is respectfully telling the military tribunal judging him that he needs for Obama or his representatives to prove that the president is occupying his office constitutionally.

In simple terms, Col. Lakin wants to see Obama's birth certificate.

A special report with evidence galore: "The Case for Impeachment: Why Barack Hussein Obama Should be Impeached to Save America"

Not the computer-generated summary document that almost everyone in the media mindlessly and ignorantly refers to as "Obama's birth certificate," but the actual document that virtually everyone reading these words possesses – showing the hospital of birth (to date, no hospital on earth officially claims Obama was born there), the attending physician or midwife and similar information that actually proves where and when he was born.

For Obama, at long last, to produce the documentation proving his eligibility to be commander in chief is critical not just to Lakin's defense, said McInerney, but to the preservation of the nation itself.

Indeed, in an extraordinary affidavit he filed with the court in Lakin's defense, McInerney, who also served as assistant vice chief of staff of the Air Force and commander of the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing, made this bold statement:

The President of the United States, as the Commander in Chief, is the source of all military authority. The Constitution requires the President to be a natural born citizen in order to be eligible to hold office. If he is ineligible under the Constitution to serve in that office, that creates a break in the chain of command of such magnitude that its significance can scarcely be imagined.

Adds McInerney: "Officers in the United States military service are – and must be – trained that they owe their highest allegiance to the United States Constitution."

So, what does the officer presiding over Lakin's court-martial say in response to all this?

Army Col. Denise R. Lind, acting as judge in the case, has so far ruled that Lakin will be denied access to any of Obama's records as well as testimony from any who may have access to his records. Her reason for what amounts to denying Lakin the right to defend himself is, according to Lind, that producing such evidence about Obama in a military tribunal could be – and I'll quote her exact word – an "embarrassment" to the president.

Let's make this crystal clear: Lakin's whole argument is that the sacrosanct chain of command may well have been corrupted by a usurper – and millions of Americans agree he has valid reason to suspect this is the case. Yet the presiding officer in the hearing has ruled that neither Lakin nor his defense team may present any evidence bearing on Obama's eligibility to be president – because it might be embarrassing.

Instead, the only "defense" Lakin is being allowed, by Lind's order, revolves around whether a deployment order was given (no one contests this) and whether he refused to obey it (no one contests this either). In other words, this is shaping up as a sham proceeding in which Lakin cannot defend himself, reminiscent of the kind of justice the old Soviet Union used to mete out in kangaroo courts, followed by imprisonment.

Since when does "embarrassment" – especially since the embarrassment in question wouldn't even occur unless Obama actually were indeed lying and usurping the office of the presidency – have anything to do with administering justice?

Truly an amazing and consequential case, both for Lakin and for the nation.

Why, then, have you not heard anything about it from the rest of the media?

Because it's the "mainstream media" – which Rush Limbaugh calls the "state-run media" – that gave us Obama as president in the first place, and which continues to run interference for him to this day. (Who can forget the "thrill going up" Chris Matthews' leg and Newsweek's Evan Thomas rhapsodizing that Obama was "sort of God"?)

Moreover, when it comes to the question of Obama's constitutional eligibility, the media, including much of the "conservative" or "alternative" media, remain in denial – with the exception of WorldNetDaily, which has endured constant ridicule and marginalization for daring to cover what the CEO of a major radio syndicator recently told me was "the story of the decade."

Fortunately, most conservative talkers – with the notable exception of Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck – admit this is an important, albeit radioactive, story. Beck and O'Reilly, both immensely talented commentators whom I enjoy watching, live in a "birthers-are-crazy" bubble in which they reassure each other there's just nothing to this "conspiracy theory" – you know, the one 3 out of 5 Americans now suspect is true, according to repeated polling. Meanwhile, virtually the entire rest of the talk-radio world acknowledges the issue's legitimacy – from Rush Limbaugh ("All [Obama] has to do is show a birth certificate") and Sean Hannity ("What was so wrong in saying that, 'Can we see your birth certificate?'") to Lou Dobbs ("I don't understand why he shouldn't produce a birth certificate") and Michael Savage ("the presidency may have been usurped by a foreign power"). Not to mention politicians, from U.S. congressmen ("Those are legitimate constitutional concerns")to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin ("I think the public rightfully is still making it an issue").

Although most of these good folks are still somewhat afraid of the issue – nobody likes to be mocked and attacked mercilessly – at least they acknowledge occasionally that it's a valid and important issue.

Maybe things are starting to change. I increasingly see conscientious pundits threading this scary needle – first engaging in the obligatory distancing of themselves from the "birthers," and then agreeing with them. A typical "non-birther birther" would be National Review's Andrew McCarthy, a former federal prosecutor and highly respected analyst, who after making clear he doesn't give credence to conspiracy theories, nevertheless argues that Obama seriously owes it to the American public to come clean with the major documentation of his past, including his birth certificate.

For the record, this is exactly what I – and Joseph Farah and Jerome Corsi and Aaron Klein and pretty much every other journalist at WND – believe. After exhaustive research, we don't know where he was born, and neither do you. Not only does he continue to conceal his birth records, but also the rest of his life's documentation – his school records, Occidental College records, Columbia University records, Columbia thesis, Harvard Law School records, Harvard Law Review articles, scholarly articles from the University of Chicago, medical records, files from his years as an Illinois state senator, Illinois State Bar Association records, and on and on. All the documents that are a routine matter of public record for all other presidents are, for Obama, hidden. And if you try to access them to find out what he's hiding, you're called a conspiracy nut.

Meanwhile, we're about to witness the spectacle of a true patriot, a decorated military physician who wants nothing more than to save more lives and continue to serve his country, a man of admirable conscience and backbone, being court-martialed and sent to Fort Leavenworth prison as a sacrificial lamb because the "judge" – just like the establishment press and so many others for whom Obama is "too big to fail" – is fearful of "embarrassing" the president.

If this isn't an outrage, then we have lost our capacity for moral indignation in America.

Barack Obama, if he indeed has been lying about his constitutional qualification to serve as president, should be more than embarrassed – he should be impeached. But that's for next year.

Right now, dear reader, help Col. Lakin. Later will be too late. His court-martial is scheduled for Nov. 3-5.

1. Send a contribution, whatever you can manage, to Col. Lakin's Legal Defense Fund.
   
   
2. Write, call and e-mail your congressmen and senators about this case. Call talk radio shows. Forward this column to your friends. Do what you can and make your voice heard!

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David Kupelian is an award-winning journalist, managing editor of WorldNetDaily.com, editor of Whistleblower magazine and author of the best-selling book, "The Marketing of Evil: How Radicals, Elitists, and Pseudo-Experts Sell Us Corruption Disguised as Freedom." His newest book is "How Evil Works: Understanding and Overcoming the Destructive Forces That Are Transforming America."

The Perfect Stranger

The Perfect Stranger

By Charles Krauthammer
Friday, August 29, 2008; A15

Barack Obama is an immensely talented man whose talents have been largely devoted to crafting, and chronicling, his own life. Not things. Not ideas. Not institutions. But himself.

Nothing wrong or even terribly odd about that, except that he is laying claim to the job of crafting the coming history of the United States. A leap of such audacity is odd. The air of unease at the Democratic convention this week was not just a result of the Clinton psychodrama. The deeper anxiety was that the party was nominating a man of many gifts but precious few accomplishments -- bearing even fewer witnesses.

When John Kerry was introduced at his convention four years ago, an honor guard of a dozen mates from his Vietnam days surrounded him on the podium attesting to his character and readiness to lead. Such personal testimonials are the norm. The roster of fellow soldiers or fellow senators who could from personal experience vouch for John McCain is rather long. At a less partisan date in the calendar, that roster might even include Democrats Russ Feingoldand Edward Kennedy, with whom John McCain has worked to fashion important legislation.

Eerily missing at the Democratic convention this year were people of stature who were seriously involved at some point in Obama's life standing up to say: I know Barack Obama. I've been with Barack Obama. We've toiled/endured together. You can trust him. I do.

Hillary Clinton could have said something like that. She and Obama had, after all, engaged in a historic, utterly compelling contest for the nomination. During her convention speech, you kept waiting for her to offer just one line of testimony: I have come to know this man, to admire this man, to see his character, his courage, his wisdom, his judgment. Whatever. Anything.

Instead, nothing. She of course endorsed him. But the endorsement was entirely programmatic: We're all Democrats. He's a Democrat. He believes what you believe. So we must elect him -- I am currently unavailable -- to get Democratic things done. God bless America.

Clinton's withholding the "I've come to know this man" was vindictive and supremely self-serving -- but jarring, too, because you realize that if she didn't do it, no one else would. Not because of any inherent deficiency in Obama's character. But simply as a reflection of a young life with a biography remarkably thin by the standard of presidential candidates.

Who was there to speak about the real Barack Obama? His wife. She could tell you about Barack the father, the husband, the family man in a winning and perfectly sincere way. But that takes you only so far. It doesn't take you to the public man, the national leader.

Who is to testify to that? Hillary's husband on night three did aver that Obama is "ready to lead." However, he offered not a shred of evidence, let alone personal experience with Obama. And although he pulled it off charmingly, everyone knew that, having been suggesting precisely the opposite for months, he meant not a word of it.

Obama's vice presidential selection, Joe Biden, naturally advertised his patron's virtues, such as the fact that he had "reached across party lines to . . . keep nuclear weapons out of the hands of terrorists." But securing loose nukes is as bipartisan as motherhood and as uncontroversial as apple pie. The measure was so minimal that it passed by voice vote and received near zero media coverage.

Thought experiment. Assume John McCain had retired from politics. Would he have testified to Obama's political courage in reaching across the aisle to work with him on ethics reform, a collaboration Obama boasted about in the Saddleback debate? "In fact," reports the Annenberg Political Fact Check, "the two worked together for barely a week, after which McCain accused Obama of 'partisan posturing' " -- and launched a volcanic missive charging him with double-cross.

So where are the colleagues? The buddies? The political or spiritual soul mates? His most important spiritual adviser and mentor was Jeremiah Wright. But he's out. Then there's William Ayers, with whom he served on a board. He's out. Where are the others?

The oddity of this convention is that its central figure is the ultimate self-made man, a dazzling mysterious Gatsby. The palpable apprehension is that the anointed is a stranger -- a deeply engaging, elegant, brilliant stranger with whom the Democrats had a torrid affair. Having slowly woken up, they see the ring and wonder who exactly they married last night.

letters@charleskrauthammer.com

Read more from Charles Krauthammer at washingtonpost.com's new opinion blog, PostPartisan

Just an empty shirt!

This guy says well what others are thinking and can't put into words.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/28/AR2008082802852_pf.html

McCain: Obama Will Kill Economy & Jobs (Stephen Franks CA. Political News & Views) June 10, 2008

McCain: Obama Will Kill Economy and Jobs

Tuesday 10 June 2008, by admin

We are now in the midst of the general Election. Clearly Obama supports raising consumer prices and taxes, supports the largest tax increase in American history and wants to close down the American energy industry. Those are just part of the economic disaster of Barack Obama.

McCain is correct, Obama would be the second term of Jimmie Carter. Both support and apologize for dictatorships in the Middle East. Both want to talk to terrorist instead of taking action (remember the 400 day hostage crisis that ended the Carter administration).

Obama supports the special interest, unions, that can killed millions of U.S. jobs and open the borders to illegal aliens. McCain wants to deal with the illegal alien problem, Obama just wants to open the borders.

If we have disagreements with John McCain they are nothing compared to the disaster that we would have if Obama is elected. Pass this article to your friends, let them know their is a choice in November—they must vote and must not throw away their vote.

What do you think? Is McCain or Obama better for the economy?

McCain paints Obama as job-killing liberal

by Jitendra JoshiT, Agence France Presse, 6/10/08

Republican John McCain said Tuesday his White House opponent Barack Obama's economic platform would kill jobs and growth, vowing instead to keep big government out of entrepreneurship.

The Arizona senator spelled out the difference in governing philosophy that he said would be a critical choice in November's election, as he sparred with Obama for a second day over the economic crisis engulfing many US families.

"No matter which of us wins in November, there will be change in Washington. The question is what kind of change?" McCain told the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) here in a well-received speech.

"Under Senator Obama's tax plan, Americans of every background would see their taxes rise — seniors, parents, small business owners, and just about everyone who has even a modest investment in the market," he said.

The Democrat would enact "the single largest tax increase since the Second World War" and index the federal minimum wage to inflation, "which is a sure way to add to your costs and to slow the creation of new jobs."

McCain's accusation rests on Obama's commitment to rolling back multi-billion-dollar tax cuts enacted under President George W. Bush, and applying higher taxes on those earning more than 250,000 dollars a year.

In riposte, Obama said McCain was guilty of fuzzy mathematics and again mocked the Republican's self-confessed weakness in economic expertise.

"I've said that John McCain is running to serve out a third Bush term. But the truth is when it comes to taxes, that's not being fair to George Bush," the Democrat told reporters in St Louis, Missouri.

"Senator McCain wants to add 300 billion dollars more in tax breaks and loopholes for big corporations and the wealthiest Americans, and he hasn't even explained how to pay for it," he said.

The 250,000-dollar threshold for annual income would mean that 98 percent of workers would pay no more taxes, Obama said, and middle-class families would get tax relief starting at 1,000 dollars to offset surging costs of living.

The Illinois senator also took aim at McCain's incremental approach to reform of healthcare, whose rocketing costs are one of the biggest headaches for small businesses, along with gasoline prices topping four dollars a gallon.

Touting his own plan to dramatically increase healthcare, Obama earlier went on ward rounds with a hospital nurse in St Louis, on the second day of a two-week campaign tour that is taking him deep into Republican territory.

Obama, 46, is capitalizing on profound disquiet about rising unemployment and home foreclosures, plus opposition to the Iraq war, to accuse McCain of offering "four more years" for the hugely unpopular Bush.

McCain, 71, has a new line of retort, saying Obama would represent a second term for 1970s president Jimmy Carter, a throwback to an era of runaway spending by the government and economic stagnation.

The economy has dominated the two contenders' hard-hitting exchanges since Obama's opponent in the Democratic nomination battle, Hillary Clinton, quit the race at the weekend.

In Washington, top Democrats put on a show of unity after the bruising primary season, detailing how the national party will merge its activities into the Obama campaign's to pursue an election strategy across all 50 states.

Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean said the race between the African-American Obama and Clinton had seen "some ugly moments" of racism and sexism.

But he stressed: "Today, we stand united as a Democratic Party, focused on putting an end to the idea of a third Bush term, which we would get with John McCain."

House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi had a message for the angry Clinton supporters who are now threatening to vote for McCain in protest at Obama's primary triumph.

"Women and blue-collar workers, whatever their race, have the most to gain by the election of Barack Obama as president of the United States and the most to lose by the election of John McCain," she said.

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BS Ranch Perspective:

It is true that McCain paints Obama as somebody that will take any or all raises or money that you might have, to pay for the National Debt. However what McCain forgets is that Obama has said on his web site and during the debates that he is going to open up Negotiations with Countries where Communications have been closed for a good reason, that reason is that they Communicate but that country doesn't do so in good faith, and they have proven themselves to be untrustworthy, by lying to us every-time we have been to the table to discuss the closing of their Nuclear testing and plans to gain a Nuclear bomb. Obama is hoping that he will go to Russia and they will just turn off all their Nuclear Bombs and destroy them forever. Obama has also said through Talk that Northern Korea will follow suit, it is his behalf that we have not talked enough with N. Korea and the talking that he does and also the dismantling of the United States Nuclear Defensive arms that are just waiting to be used in defence of our safety if any of these countries Gains the Nuclear Bomb, and decides to use it.

Star Wars Defense System has been shut down even though there has been successful tests that were done with that system, but it was expensive, & the President didn't see the payment of the system with the large amount of Debt that the country has. Obama wants to withdraw from Iraq and decrease the size of our Military Branches by a Considerable Amount, Not to mention Shutting down our Defensive Facilities that look out for our Countries Safety right now, We will not need it any more with all our Nuclear Weapons Dismantled and discarded. To show those Countries that Obama negotiates with that he is a man of his word, and he is willing to take the extra step, and hopefully those countries that he is negotiating with such as North Korea or Russia and I for one am hoping that if Obama wins that he is right in his plans, because I for one feel very uncomfortable trying to learn another language at my age.

BS Ranch

AP tally: Obama clinches Democratic Nomination (Associated Press via The Press Enterprise June 3, 2008)

BS Ranch Perspective:

It appears that the Clinton Dynasty has pulled out and they are going to wait until she is much older and wiser, when she can do much more for New York as a U.S. Senator. While Obama, a "Christian" whom has a minister and friend of some 20 years who is very bias and 'Racist' to his flock, and when questioned about it, "we don't under stand!"

All because we were never slaves bought or sold as property, and so how could any other race but black understand what he is talking about!! Well, there has not been any Races bought or purchased for some 100 years!! So, I don't believe that any of the current Blacks in our society have any understanding of what it is like to be purchased as property!

Obama, carries a Muslim name, the name given to him by his father, a Muslim, whom is probably an enemy of the United States of America, and is a Good Explanation why Obama never covers his heart with his right hand in respect when the National Anthem is being played at the beginning of any function. It looks rather strange when all the Senators are standing at the beginning of the Senate Opening and Obama is he only one that is standing with his Right hand not covering his heart!

Obama never wore a heart pin on his lapel when every other Senator was wearing them via Memo request by other Senator's in respect to those that lost their lives in the WTC (World Trade Center).

How can we trust a man that is willing to meet with terrorists that we have cut off ties with for years because of the loss of trust that they have demonstrated time after time with talks that were done with them in the past! But Obama wants to lift the silent treatment, and start trading with them in a normal fashioned, and see what will come of it. These talks are a mistake, since the pipeline of communication was closed in the past for a good reason, and there is no reason that I see that the pipeline of communication should be reopened again!! Our Enemies like North Korea, and Iran, and even Cuba will take advantage to go against us in some way. They will use any new technologies to promote & bolster their knowledge of bombs ways to kill more Americans, and Obama will be the one that makes this all happen!!

BS Ranch

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AP tally: Obama clinches Democratic nomination

By DAVID ESPO and NEDRA PICKLER
Associated Press Writers

AP Photo/Jae C. Hong

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois sealed the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, a historic step toward his once-improbable goal of becoming the nation's first black president. A defeated Hillary Rodham Clinton maneuvered for the vice presidential spot on his fall ticket.

Obama's victory set up a five-month campaign with Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, a race between a 46-year-old opponent of the Iraq War and a 71-year-old former Vietnam prisoner of war and staunch supporter of the current U.S. military mission.

McCain was plainly eager for the race to begin, and accused his younger rival of voting "to deny funds to the soldiers who have done a brilliant and brave job" in Iraq.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois sealed the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, a historic step toward his once-improbable goal of becoming the nation's first black president. A defeated Hillary Rodham Clinton maneuvered for the vice presidential spot on his fall ticket.

Obama's victory set up a five-month campaign with Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, a race between a 46-year-old opponent of the Iraq War and a 71-year-old former Vietnam prisoner of war and staunch supporter of the current U.S. military mission.

Obama, a first-term Illinois senator who was virtually unknown on the national stage four years ago, defeated Clinton, the former first lady and one-time campaign front-runner, in a 17-month marathon for the Democratic nomination.

His victory had been widely assumed for weeks. But Clinton's declaration of interest in becoming his ticketmate was wholly unexpected.

She expressed it in a conference call with her state's congressional delegation after Rep. Nydia Velazquez, predicted Obama would have great difficulty winning the support of Hispanics and other voting blocs unless the former first lady was on the ticket.

"I am open to it" if it would help the party's prospects in November, Clinton replied, according to a participant who spoke on condition of anonymity because the call was private.

Obama's campaign had no reaction to Clinton's comments, which raised anew the prospect of what many Democrats have called a "Dream Ticket" that would put a black man and a woman on the same ballot.

The fast-paced developments unfolded as the long Democratic nominating struggle ended with primaries in Montana and South Dakota.

Only 31 delegates were at stake, the final few among the thousands that once drew Obama, Clinton and six other Democratic candidates into the campaign to replace President Bush and become the nation's 44th president.

Obama arranged an evening appearance in St. Paul, Minn., sending McCain an unmistakable message by claiming his victory in the very hall where the Arizonan will accept his party's nomination in early September.

Clinton was in New York for an appearance before home-state supporters. Officials said she would concede Obama had the delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, effectively ending her bid to be the nation's first female president.

McCain, who wrapped up the Republican nomination months ago, campaigned in Memphis.

Obama sealed his nomination based on primary elections, state Democratic caucuses and delegates' public declarations as well as support from 22 delegates and "superdelegates" who privately confirmed their intentions to The Associated Press. It takes 2,118 delegates to clinch the nomination at the convention in Denver this summer.

The young senator's success amounted to a victory of hope over experience, earned across an enervating 56 primaries and caucuses that tested the political skills and human endurance of all involved.

Obama stood for hope, and change. Clinton was the candidate of experience, ready, she said, to serve in the Oval Office from Day One.

Together, they drew record turnouts in primary after primary - more than 34 million voters in all, independents and Republicans as well as Democrats.

Yet the race between a black man and a woman exposed deep racial and gender divisions within the party.

Obama drew strength from blacks, and from the younger, more liberal and wealthier voters in many states. Clinton was preferred by older, more downscale voters, and women, of course.

Obama's triumph was fashioned on prodigious fundraising, meticulous organizing and his theme of change aimed at an electorate opposed to the Iraq war and worried about the economy - all harnessed to his own gifts as an inspirational speaker.

With her husband's two White House terms as a backdrop, Clinton campaigned for months as the candidate of experience, a former first lady and second-term senator ready to be commander in chief.

But after a year on the campaign trail, Obama won the kickoff Iowa caucuses on Jan. 3, and the freshman senator became a political phenomenon.

"We came together as Democrats, as Republicans and independents, to stand up and say we are one nation, we are one people and our time for change has come," he said that night of victory in Des Moines.

As the strongest female presidential candidate in history, Clinton drew large, enthusiastic audiences. Yet Obama's were bigger. One audience, in Dallas, famously cheered when he blew his nose on stage; a crowd of 75,000 turned out in Portland, Ore., the weekend before the state's May 20 primary.

The former first lady countered Obama's Iowa victory with an upset five days later in New Hampshire that set the stage for a campaign marathon as competitive as any in the past generation.

"Over the last week I listened to you, and in the process I found my own voice," she told supporters who had saved her candidacy from an early demise.

In defeat, Obama's aides concluded they had committed a cardinal sin of New Hampshire politics, forsaking small, intimate events in favor of speeches to large audiences inviting them to ratify Iowa's choice.

It was not a mistake they made again - which helped explain Obama's later outings to bowling alleys, backyard basketball courts and American Legion halls in the heartland.

Clinton conceded nothing, memorably knocking back a shot of Crown Royal whiskey at a bar in Indiana, recalling that her grandfather had taught her to use a shotgun, and driving in a pickup to a gas station in South Bend, Ind., to emphasize her support for a summertime suspension of the federal gasoline tax.

As other rivals fell away in winter, Obama and Clinton traded victories on Super Tuesday, the Feb. 5 series of primaries and caucuses across 21 states and American Samoa that once seemed likely to settle the nomination.

But Clinton had a problem that Obama exploited, and he scored a coup she could not answer.

Pressed for cash, the former first lady ran noncompetitive campaigns in several Super Tuesday caucus states, allowing her rival to run up his delegate totals.

At the same time, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., endorsed the young senator in terms that summoned memories of his slain brothers while seeking to turn the page on the Clinton era.

Merely by surviving Super Tuesday, Obama exceeded expectations. But he did more than survive, emerging with a lead in delegates that he never relinquished, and he proceeded to run off a string of 11 straight victories.

Clinton saved her candidacy once more with primary victories in Ohio and Texas on March 4, beginning a stretch in which she won in six of the next nine states on the calendar, as well as in Puerto Rico.

It was a strong run, providing glimpses of what might have been for the one-time front-runner.

Personality issues rose and receded through the campaign:

Clinton's husband, the former president, campaigned tirelessly for her but sometimes became an issue himself, to her detriment.

And Obama struggled to minimize the damage caused by the incendiary rhetoric of his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, an issue likely to be raised anew by Republicans in the fall campaign.

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Associated Press Writers Nedra Pickler, Beth Fouhy and Devlin Barrett in Washington, Stephen Majors in Columbus, Ohio, Jim Davenport in Columbia, S.C., and Libby Quaid in Memphis, Tenn. contributed to this story

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Click here for copyright permissions! Copyright 2008 Associated Press

Obama Doges Farrakhan Issue (Newsmax March 5, 2008)

Obama Dodges Farrakhan Issue

Wednesday, March 5, 2008 7:48 AM By: Ronald Kessler Article Font Size

It's one thing for Barack Obama to have a minister, friend, and sounding board who supports and admires Louis Farrakhan and whose church gave him an award. It's another thing for Obama to dissemble about it. That's what Obama did recently when he told Jewish leaders in Cleveland, "An award was given to Farrakhan for his work on behalf of ex-offenders, completely unrelated to his controversial statements." In fact, the award, named for Obama's minister Jeremiah Wright Jr., was given for "lifetime achievement" and for Farrakhan's "influence on the African-American community." The presentation of the award last December and the accompanying article in Trumpet, Wright's Trinity United Church of Christ magazine, never mentioned ex-offenders. On the contrary, the article in the November/December issue of Trumpet begins by calling Farrakhan — who refers to Jews as bloodsuckers and whites as blue-eyed devils — an "icon." It ends by saying that he "truly epitomized greatness." The article quotes Wright heaping praise on Farrakhan, whom he helped in organizing the Million Man March in Washington in 1995. Wright lauded Farrakhan as one of the giants of the African-American religious experience in the 20th and 21st centuries. "When Minister Farrakhan speaks, black America listens," Wright said. "His depth on analysis [sic] when it comes to the racial ills of this nation is astounding and eye-opening. He brings a perspective that is helpful and honest." Hailing Farrakhan's "integrity and honesty," Wright went on to say, "His love for Africa and African-American people has made him an unforgettable force, a catalyst for change, and a religious leader who is sincere about his faith and his purpose." Obama has said he found religion through Wright in the 1980s and consulted him before deciding to run for president. He prayed privately with Wright before announcing his candidacy last year. After Newsmax broke the story of the award to Farrakhan on Jan. 14, Obama issued a statement purportedly addressing the issue. However, Obama ignored the main point: that his minister and friend had spoken adoringly of Farrakhan and that Wright's church was behind the award to the Nation of Islam leader. Instead, Obama adroitly said, "I decry racism and anti-Semitism in every form and strongly condemn the anti-Semitic statements made by Minister Farrakhan. I assume that Trumpet magazine made its own decision to honor Farrakhan based on his efforts to rehabilitate ex-offenders, but it is not a decision with which I agree." In fact, not only is Trumpet owned and produced by Wright's church out of the church's offices, Wright's daughters serve as publisher and executive editor. Entranced by Obama, the media largely ignored the story. Having gotten away with sidestepping Wright's adoring comments about Farrakhan, Obama went further on Feb. 24 when he spoke to Jewish leaders in Cleveland. This time he flatly said that the award was because of Farrakhan's work with ex-offenders. To date, no news outlet has pointed out that Obama's claim is false. While Tim Russert asked Obama during the last Democratic debate about Farrakhan's support of him, he never pressed him about his relationship to Wright. In his comments to Jewish leaders in Cleveland, Obama continued to tiptoe around Wright and what he stands for. As in the past, without specifying how he disagrees, Obama said he does not "necessarily" share Wright's views, which include blaming America for the 9/11 attacks because of what the minister calls its racist and violent policies. Obama told the Jewish leaders that the award to Farrakhan "showed a lack of sensitivity to the Jewish community." That is an understatement. If John McCain's minister, friend, and sounding board gave an award to white nationalist David Duke, would Obama have said the gesture showed "insensitivity" to blacks, or would he have issued a searing condemnation expressing outrage? Obama went on to explain away Wright's anti-Zionist statements as being rooted in his anger over the Jewish state's support for South Africa under its previous policy of apartheid. As with his claim that the award to Farrakhan was made because of his work with ex-offenders, Obama made that up out of thin air. Wright's statements denouncing Israel have not been qualified in any way. Wright has equated Zionism with racism and has compared Israel with South Africa under apartheid. "The Israelis have illegally occupied Palestinian territories for over 40 years now," Wright has said. "Divestment has now hit the table again as a strategy to wake the business community and wake up Americans concerning the injustice and the racism under which the Palestinians have lived because of Zionism." Those views run parallel to Farrakhan's, who has said that there will be "no peace for Israel, because there can be no peace as long as that peace is based on lying, stealing, murder, and using God's name to shield a wicked, unjust practice that is not in harmony with the will of God." Much as most of us would appreciate the symbolism of a black man ascending to the presidency, what we have in Barack Obama is a slippery politician whose closeness to Wright underscores his radical record. Aside from showing poor judgment, it is inconceivable that Obama could be so close to Wright for more than two decades and not share at least some of his views. Obama's longtime ties to Wright, his failure to forthrightly condemn him, and his dissembling on his church's award to Farrakhan only confirm that Obama is not to be trusted in the White House. Ronald Kessler is chief Washington correspondent of Newsmax.com. View his previous reports and get his dispatches sent to you free via e-mail. Go here now. © 2008 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Minister Off Obama Team for Contraversal Sermons (Assoc Press March 15, 2008) Obama Denounces Pastor's 9/11 Comments, (This Pastor has been at Obama'

BS Ranch Perspective

 

Obama has been going to the same Church for over Twenty Years!! These are this candidates Comments that he is not a United States Hate Monger, yet the Church that he Attends admires People Like Luis Farrakhan then he makes comments like the United States Were asking for the Attacks of Sept. 11, 2001! I think that these are the belief's of this Presidential Candidate, After all if this was a church that you were visiting and you heard this Sermon you would change to another Church, and think that this Pastor was a Creep! 

 

If you were going to this church for over Twenty Years and suddenly the Pastor came out with a sudden change of his sermons you would suddenly feel offended by the Church that you were at for over Twenty years and leave and go to another Church! Then if you were at a Church for Twenty Years you would know this Pastor, Especially if you were a Congressmen and even though you were elected to the U.S. Congress, The Pastor of Your Church Does Reflect upon Your Beliefs, and if Obama believes that we were asking for September 11, 2001, then it is no wonder that he didn't want to go to WAR Against Anyone for the Wrongful KILLING of UNITED STATES CITIZENS, Who were just trying to make a living and nothing more!!

 

The BS Ranch says that Obama is an Embarassment for a Presidential Candidate to Run as a Democrat let alone any Party!! I don't care if he has pulled the wool over the eyes of all the people in the Continental United States, and got them to vote for him, it is a sad day when they are going to vote Blindly for this Man without looking at his total Substance, as a man!! 

 

After all A Man who will not FIGHT for his Country, When it is UNDER ATTACK, and already Almost 4000 have died, and none of the enemy have paid any price, and Obama Says He didn't want to fight in a WAR Against the TERRORIST'S! I certently have questions as to what kind of American this guy is that goes to a Church that preaches Blake and White Division, known only as Reverse Racism!!

 

This man should not be voted for. OBAMA Needs to go home back to IL. and shown the door via his Congressional Seat as well!! I have to say that I have learned to much about this man to have any like for him as any Representation for this country at all!!

 

BS Ranch

 

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Election 2008

Minister Off Obama Team for Controversial Sermons

by Wade Goodwyn

Listen Now [3 min 10 sec] add to playlist

All Things Considered, March 15, 2008 · Barack Obama's minister, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, was removed from his honorary post on the senator's Spiritual Advisor Committee. The move comes after broadcast and publication of some of the pastor's more controversial speeches and sermons. Obama refused to repudiate the Rev. Wright but strongly condemned his remarks.

Obama Denounces Pastor's 9/11 Comments

from The Associated Press

 

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Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., left, shown here with his pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, March 10, 2005. Obama on Friday March 14, 2008 denounced inflammatory remarks from his pastor, who has railed against the United States and accused the country of bringing on the Sept. 11 attacks by spreading terrorism. Associated Press © 2008

 

 

 

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Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama D-Ill., speaks to press on the plane as he headed from Chicago to Washington, Thursday, March 13, 2008. Associated Press © 2008

 

 

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Friday denounced inflammatory remarks from his pastor, who has railed against the United States and accused the country of bringing on the Sept. 11 attacks by spreading terrorism.

Obama called the statements appearing on television and the Internet "completely unacceptable and inexcusable" in a Fox News interview and said they didn't reflect the kinds of sermons he had heard from the Rev. Jeremiah Wright while attending services at Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ.

Obama, a member of the church since the early 1990s, said he would have quit Trinity had such statements been "the repeated tenor of the church. ... I wouldn't feel comfortable there."

Earlier Friday, Obama responded by posting a blog about his relationship with Wright and Trinity on the Huffington Post. Wright brought Obama to Christianity, officiated at his wedding, baptized his daughters and inspired the title of his book, "The Audacity of Hope."

Obama wrote that he's looked to Wright for spiritual advice, not political guidance, and he's been pained and angered to learn of some of his pastor's comments for which he had not been present. Obama told MSNBC that Wright had stepped down from his campaign's African American Religious Leadership Committee.

"I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies," Obama said in his blog posting. "I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it's on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Reverend Wright that are at issue."

In a sermon on the Sunday after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, Wright suggested the United States brought on the attacks.

"We bombed Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye," Wright said. "We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back to our own front yards. America's chickens are coming home to roost."

In a 2003 sermon, he said blacks should condemn the United States.

"The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing 'God Bless America.' No, no, no, God damn America, that's in the Bible for killing innocent people. God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme."

He also gave a sermon in December comparing Obama to Jesus, promoting his candidacy and criticizing his rival, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

"Barack knows what it means to be a black man to be living in a country and a culture that is controlled by rich white people," Wright told a cheering congregation. "Hillary can never know that. Hillary ain't never been called a nigger."

Obama told MSNBC that he would not repudiate Wright as a man, describing him as "like an uncle" who says something that he disagrees with and must speak out against. He also said he expects his political opponents will use video of the sermons to attack him as the campaign goes on.

Questions about Obama's religious beliefs have dogged him throughout his candidacy. He's had to fight against false Internet rumors suggesting he's really a Muslim intent on destroying the United States, and now his pastor's words uttered nearly seven years ago have become an issue.

Obama wrote on the Huffington Post that he never heard Wright say any of the statements, but he acknowledged that they have raised legitimate questions about the nature of his relationship with the pastor and the church. He wrote that he joined Wright's church nearly 20 years ago, familiar with the pastor's background as a former Marine and respected biblical scholar who lectured at seminaries across the country.

"Reverend Wright preached the gospel of Jesus, a gospel on which I base my life," he wrote. "And the sermons I heard him preach always related to our obligation to love God and one another, to work on behalf of the poor and to seek justice at every turn."

He said Wright's controversial statements first came to his attention at the beginning of his presidential campaign last year, and he condemned them. Because of his long and deep ties to the 6,000-member congregation church, Obama said he decided not to leave.

"With Reverend Wright's retirement and the ascension of my new pastor, Rev. Otis Moss III, Michelle and I look forward to continuing a relationship with a church that has done so much good," he wrote.

Also Friday, the United Church of Christ issued a 1,400-word statement defending Wright and his "flagship" congregation. The statement lauded Wright's church for its community service and work to nurture youth and the pastor for speaking out against homophobia and sexism in the black community.

"It's time for all of us to say no to these attacks and to declare that we will not allow anyone to undermine or destroy the ministries of any of our congregations in order to serve their own narrow political or ideological ends," John H. Thomas, United Church of Christ's president, said in the statement.

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AP Religion Writer Eric Gorski in Denver contributed to this report.

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On the Net:

http://www.barackobama.com

 

 

Indicted Obama Fundraiser's Bond Revoked (Associated Press Jan. 28, 2008)

BS Ranch Perspective

The problem with this is the Richard testimony, Whether you were a Democrat or a Republican the fact remained that back in 1975 when Richard Nixon said that he didn't know about the Wrongdoing at the time that he said it, a great majority of people knew that he did. So, by his word that he took the majority of the monies that were Delivered to Obama's Political Campaign were in fact given to Charity or not, is a question that we are left to "Trust" him with? I guess the cooked books are the ones that we are left to look at as proof that the monies were given to the Red Cross for example.

But then we have to wonder how much did this guy actually give to the Campaign in the first place, there are a great many of made up names suddenly that can be also cooked onto those books to make it look like it was just him that had given just a little over $11,000.00 to Obama's Campaign there is a dark horse here that we are not seeing just like the one where his Church takes a Muslim that has for over Fifty years put down the White Race, the Jewish Religion, and the Oriental Race, all to bring himself and the Muslim faith up so as to make it better for him to make his pocket's full with the green of the poorest of poor. I am talking about Luis Farrakhan. What Christian faith would Honor such a man?? I ask you this??

Then you wonder what or if this is the man that you want as your President. Listen to Louis Speak, and then Listen to How Obama Speaks. He is a Muslim, and we are going to elect a Muslim right into the center of what we are fighting against.

BS Ranch

Indicted political fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko leaves Chicago's federal building in this Oct. 19, 2006, file photo. Rezko, who has poured thousands of dollars into Barack Obama's political campaigns, was arrested by federal agents Monday, Jan. 28, 2008, after his $2 million bail was revoked. Rezko has pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud, attempted extortion and money laundering, and is scheduled to stand trial Feb. 25. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Indicted Obama Fundraiser's Bond Revoked

By MIKE ROBINSON – 2 hours ago

CHICAGO (AP) — A judge revoked the $2 million bond Monday for indicted businessman Antoin "Tony" Rezko, who has raised thousands of dollars for Barack Obama and Illinois politicians.

U.S. District Judge Amy J. St. Eve said she grew concerned after learning Rezko received $3.5 million from a company in Lebanon; he had claimed that he had no income. St. Eve said she feared Rezko could be a flight risk.

The real estate developer and fast food magnate was arrested Monday morning at his home in suburban Wilmette. At an afternoon hearing, the judge ordered him into custody and scheduled a Tuesday hearing where Rezko's attorneys will attempt to get bond reinstated.

Rezko has pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud, attempted extortion and money laundering, and is scheduled to stand trial Feb. 25. He is accused of pressuring businesses seeking work before two state regulatory boards to make campaign contributions and payoffs.

Rezko had long been a fundraiser for Gov. Rod Blagojevich and for Obama, the presidential candidate and senator from Illinois. Neither Democrat has been accused of wrongdoing in the case.

Obama has said he had no indication of problems with Rezko when he accepted thousands of dollars in campaign contributions. When prosecutors unsealed their charges against Rezko in 2006, Obama gave $11,500 in Rezko contributions to charities.

Obama has since sought to distance himself from Rezko, even as his main Democratic rival — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton — invoked Rezko's name and his "slum lord business" during a recent debate.

The Obama campaign declined to comment on Rezko's arrest Monday.

Federal prosecutors say Rezko was deceptive in leading St. Eve to grant bond by claiming in April 2007 that he had no income of his own and was instead living off the generosity of friends and relatives.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Reid J. Schar said $3.5 million from a Lebanon-based firm had been distributed to various funds and individuals, indicating that Rezko had more money than he had led the court to believe.

"This defendant has played a shell game and I think misled the court about what his assets are," Schar said.

He said Rezko's $2 million bond was no longer adequate to make certain he would remain in the United States and show up for trial.

Defense attorney Joseph Duffy said "there isn't anything that suggests flight." He said Rezko, a U.S. citizen born in Syria, returned from overseas to face the charges against him.

Duffy said initially that the $3.5 million was a loan secured by part of a 62-acre parcel of land south of Chicago's Loop. But then in the middle of the hearing he interrupted to say he had just been informed that it was not.

Asked after the hearing if the $3.5 million was a secured loan, he said: "I don't know that."

Prosecutors also said that some of the people who put up property in Rezko's name are renting out or trying to sell the property, raising concerns there may not be enough collateral to secure Rezko's bond.

Schar said in the case of one man who posted his home as bond, Rezko funneled the home's exact value back to him.

Once the estimated eight- to 12-week trial is over, Rezko still will face federal charges alleging he swindled General Electric Capital Corp. out of $10 million in connection with the sale of two pizza restaurant chains.

It was learned last week that an associate of Rezko's had sent a $10,000 campaign contribution to Obama's U.S. Senate campaign using money from the alleged pizza scheme. Obama's campaign then sent $40,000 in Rezko-related campaign contributions to charity.

Earlier this month, Obama gave to charity more than $40,000 in past political contributions from seven individuals with ties to Rezko. The decision to donate the money contributed to Obama's House and Senate campaigns — but not his current presidential bid — came after a published report that Obama is the unnamed "political candidate" in one paragraph of a 78-page prosecution document that outlines the case against Rezko.

Obama also has had to answer questions about how Rezko became involved in the purchase of the Obama family home as well as other ties to Rezko that go back more than 15 years.

Obama says he did five or six hours of work in the early 1990s for community groups that partnered with Rezko in apartment house development projects. Obama says he never represented Rezko in those deals, but his law firm at the time did represent Rezko's real estate development company, Rezmar.

Associated Press writer Don Babwin contributed to this report.