Had a little time on my hands this morning and scanned some right-wing blogs (see list below). To my surprise the consensus on the right fringe seems the be that Barack Obama is some kind of leftist. Huh? Can think of two explanations for this lack of fact-based thinking:
a) Painting Obama as a leftist will scare voters away and make him unelectable, i.e., its a conscious strategy to influence the election.
b) Right-wingers have lost all connection with reality as it exists and actually believe that Barack Obama is Che Guevara re-incarnated.
I think you have to be far out in right field to view Senator Obama as some kind of leftist. Obama is a centrist. That’s why he has a chance of being elected. Obama will very likely be the next president of my country, even though he as lost my active support due to his vote in favor of the odious FISA "compromise" bill.
Europeans are VERY enthusiastic about a prospective Obama presidency. I was in Germany recently and heard nothing but praise for Obama. The consensus there is that ANYTHING is better than the current U.S. executive leadership, so the hurdles and expectations for Obama are low and easy to top. One of my German friends told me that he personally believes that a black (or semi-black) candidate will not be able to win a Presidential election in the U.S., no matter how dismal the performance of his opponent. He said that "people may profess to support him, but when they enter the privacy of a voting booth, they will not vote for him". I bet 5 dollars against that assessment. We shall see.
Small sample of sites that portrait Obama as a leftist, comparable to Che Guevara. Amusing, I think.
http://www.floppingaces.net/
http://conservemus.com/
http://www.okshooters.com/forums/showthread.php?t=33098
http://notoriouslyconservative.blogspot.com/2008/07/unpatriotic-obama.html
http://porcupinerim.wordpress.com/2008/06/15/co-stars-che-guevara-and-barack-obama/
http://tmq2.wordpress.com/2008/05/06/obamas-dream-team-marx-guevara-wright-farrakhan-et-al/
Conservemus responded on 03 Aug 2008 at 8:17 am #
Here’s a link to a four part series by Investor’s Business Daily that destroy’s the myth of Obama’s centrist stances. He is a leftist and all you have to do is look at what he has supported throughout his career. He has certainly tried to move to the center in the last few weeks because he knows that his left stances don’t stand a chance in a national election.
His #1 most liberal senator ranking by National Journal supports that among other things.
http://www.ibdeditorials.com/series8.aspx
JJG responded on 07 Aug 2008 at 5:39 pm #
Thanks for the link to IBD’s article series about Obama, the tone of which is a little shrill (”leftist gulags”) and about as fair and balanced as Fox News. Let’s talk specifics. I’ll list the cornerstones of Obama’s political agenda and current poll numbers pro and con. Then you can decide how far to the “left” Obama is:
Universal Healthcare
Obama supports it
The American Pubic: Two in three Americans believe the US Government should guarantee that all Americans have health insurance. Source
Iraq
Obama supports withdrawal timetable
The American Public: 59% support a withdrawal timetable. Source.
Let Bush’s Tax cuts for the wealthy expire
Obama supports this position and believes these cuts made the economic situation worse
The American Public: 75% agree with Obama. Source
I’d like to go on, but my time is limited and am currently travelling. Please let me have some specific “leftist” positions of Obama that put him outside the American Centre. What I truly do not understand is why so many American’s seem to have political positions that are squarely in conflict with their own economic interests. Example: If you are a working man like me, then you pay around 30% in Federal Income taxes. Warren Buffett pays less than that. Is that fair, I ask you? Should Mr. Buffet maybe pay at least as much as you and I do? Hmmm? Sounds like a no brainer. Yet I think there are some Americans that make much less money than I do (and still pay 30% in taxes) that have been indoctrinated to believe that giving Mr. Buffet al lower tax rate somehow is a good thing. It’s a strange world!
Right-Wing Blog on the Left? « TMQ2 responded on 15 Aug 2008 at 4:12 pm #
[...] don’t really care how far off track JJG Journal or any other blog is when it defines whatever it’s writing about. But considering TMQ2 is [...]
USpace responded on 17 Aug 2008 at 8:46 pm #
Good stuff here. Most of The Left doesn’t know they are Leftists. Just watch Obama swing Left when/if he’s elected. When its his “pay grade”, he’ll show his true colors again.
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absurd thought -
God of the Universe says
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you don’t like socialism
or huge central governments
.
absurd thought -
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you ignore race and gender
and just vote on politics
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you think humans are equal
and none should be made victims
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absurd thought -
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if you believe you have rights
as an individual
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absurd thought -
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loving capitalism
and trusting the market
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because you hate dictators
and don’t blame America
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absurd thought -
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because you can prove
welfare hurts poor people
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absurd thought -
God of the Universe says
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you think schools are for children
and not for the unions
.