Barack the Vote?

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Christina_in_color
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Barack the Vote?

Post by Christina_in_color » Jan 9th 2008, 9:15 pm

I'm a political cynic. In my 24, going on 25 years of life, I've never once trusted a politician. There's something about Barack Obama that draws me in, and through the political darkness I feel hope. Genuine hope. I don't want to get caught up in the excitement of a charismatic man, only to be disappointed when he doesn't deliver, but Obama is a leader. He reaches people in a way that other candidates cannot and seems to tread across party lines. It's important to govern for all the American people and not just factions of the public. That's why I'm leaning towards Obama, but I'm still going to keep an open mind about other candidates to form a justified opinion before the general election.

What do you gals/guys think about the Republican and Democratic candidates thus far?

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stburr91
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Re: Barack the Vote?

Post by stburr91 » Jan 11th 2008, 5:19 pm

I don't know about Obama treading across party lines. I don't know any Republicans that support him.

I hate to say this because you seem to like Obama, but the Clintons cut a deal with the Democratic party to run Obama, because he is the only person that Hilary can beat. The Clintons wanted a candidate that has as little experience as Hilary, and they wanted Obama's race, to offset Hilary's gender disadvantage in an election.

Clinton and McCain are the most likely to win their party's nomination. Neither are a great choice, but McCain is probably the better candidate. He's got the experience, and being a RINO, he will upset the Democratic sheep the least. Add to that, there are so many that would never want to see another Clinton in The White House, McCain has got to be the front runner right now.

Now if we're talking about interesting candidates, Ron Paul wins hands down. He doesn't have a chance of winning his party's nomination, but he has some very interesting ideas. If any candidate can cross party lines, it's Ron Paul.

So far it's been the same old thing, every candidate is just making the same campaign promises that everyone knows they will never keep.
What's amazing is when you can feel your life going somewhere. Like your life just figured out how to get good. Like, that second."

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Christina_in_color
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Re: Barack the Vote?

Post by Christina_in_color » Jan 12th 2008, 7:40 am

I'm not offended by any challenge of my ideas. What source are you paraphrasing in regards to the Clintons making a deal to run Obama? I'd love to check it out for myself. I wouldn't put it passed Hillary and Bill to do something like that. After the underhandedness involving Hillary's campaign financing for the Senate, that situation is entirely believable. This is the woman whose campaign slogan for President was "I'm in, and I'm in to win." I've spoken to a lot of passionate Hillary supporters in recent months. A vote for Hillary is a vote for Bill back in office as well, and that appeals to a lot of people.

Richardson seemed the most presidential of the Democratic candidates, due to his age and experience, before he dropped and would probably make a good V.P. Edwards is similar to Obama in his vigor but has no chance of winning. I'm interested to see who his supporters back after he drops. Even though Hillary is the clear front runner, Obama's unique personal story intertwined with similar stances on hot-button topics to his Democratic opposition and the commitment to avoid mud-slinging politics (as a whole) has brought a lot of people to his side. I've heard Obama called the Wizard of Oz and his supporters ignorant for believing in his hope. After weeding through numerous articles, interviews, and television coverage, I understand that he's not perfect but still have reason to believe that he's not the empty vessel that some make him out to be.

Actually, we agree that McCain and Hilary will probably win their respective parties' nominations, but I'm not enthusiatic about either of them. Foreign policy will play a large role in deciding the race between McCain and Clinton, and though many Americans are in favor of bringing our troops home, McCain will be seen as the more competent diplomat. Enough voters distrust a woman to deal with foreign dictators in a time when enemies and alliances are so important that it'll handicap her chances. I'm not saying she can't win, but it is unlikely. Her near teary New Hampshire moment can be seen as a weakness (though I don't think tears necessarily constitute a lack of strength). I view that moment as a brief unveiling of self-pity for her loss of Iowa, but that's another story altogether.

As for Ron Paul, he's got some interesting ideas. I admire his independent thinking, and like all the candidates, don't agree with him on everything. You could make a strong case for his ability to cross party lines, but Obama is no stranger to crossing this divide. Besides an evenhanded approach that got him elected president of the Harvard Law Review, he's recently named Republicans to the Associated Press that he works well with and would continue to work with as President. Naming a few Republicans in itself is not a big deal, but I have spoken to Republicans who support Obama. Again, I stress that he's not a miracle man, but he's certainly less polarizing than others, namely Mrs. Clinton.

Have you been keeping up on the Republican side of things? The Republican debate in South Carolina wasn't televised in my area, but I hear Fred Thompson performed extremely well. I'm from California, which might explain why it seems that we get more coverage of the Democrats than the Republicans. I am neither Democrat nor Republican, so I'm trying to keep my eyes and ears on the contenders from both sides. Plus, there's a good chance that another Republican will be in the White House, though I personally won't be too thrilled about any candidate that agrees too much with the negative approach of G.W. Bush.

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Brunkster
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Re: Barack the Vote?

Post by Brunkster » Jun 20th 2008, 2:15 pm

Well, if the Clinton's did prop up Obama's candidacy (and this site is the only place where I've seen any mention of that) it certainly backfired in a big way.

In the interest of full disclosure, I was actually a Biden supporter until he dropped out. I really liked Wesley Clark in '04 and there has been a lot of talk about him being a VP candidate on the Obama ticket. Now that would be really exciting for me.

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stburr91
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Re: Barack the Vote?

Post by stburr91 » Jun 21st 2008, 10:19 pm

Obama needs foreign policy help in a big way, so he better find someone with some experience in that area.

The dems had this election wrapped up, and they had to do is run a decent candidate. They left the door wide open for McCain by running such a weak candidate. I still think McCain is the front runner.
What's amazing is when you can feel your life going somewhere. Like your life just figured out how to get good. Like, that second."

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