Obama's Sort-of Campaign Trip To Jordan
(CBS)
(AMMAN, JORDAN) Barack Obama arrived at the airport for his flight to Israel in style, in a sporty Mercedes Benz. So what? Well, that Benz was driven by none other than King Abdullah of Jordan, who gave the Illinois Senator a lift after a meeting and dinner earlier today at His Majesty's palace.
Despite only being a candidate and a freshman U.S. Senator, Obama kept King Abdullah waiting ten minutes before their one on one meeting. His Majesty, who returned early from a trip to Denver, clearly didn't seem to mind, though.
Meantime, after being repeatedly pressed about whether Obama is campaigning or politicking, chief strategist David Axelrod admitted that the presumptive nominee is sort-of campaigning.
"The answer is, of course, any event outside of a CODEL is a campaign event. But it is not a political rally. He will not engage his American political opponents," Axelrod said.
Obama may not be officially campaigning and he isn't president, but he sure looked the part today.
He arrived at a military controlled airfield in Amman on an Osprey V-22, with his traveling sidekicks Sens. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Jack Reed, D-R.I. Not one, but four, aircrafts dramatically landed at Marka airport as campaign aides, secret service, and a small protective pool waited for the arrival. Obama soon strutted off of the second V-22, sporting wrinkled khaki pants, a blue oxford and a helmet in hand.
As he was greeted by Charge d' Affaires Dan Rubinstein, Obama smiled and chatted all while ignoring the 5 or so reporters sweating away in an enclosed pen on the tarmac. Maybe he didn't hear the shouts because he was wearing ear plugs. Or may be he was just avoiding the press.
Obama was then whisked off in a 20-car motorcade to the posh Four Seasons Hotel, where he changed and freshened up for a press conference at the historic Citadel.
At the presser, reporters heard a first hand account from the Senators about their trip, but it was clear who the Big Dod was. After taking questions from reporters for roughly 20 minutes, Obama asked Hagel if he wanted to answer one, but he shrugged and let Obama take one for the team.
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The commander-in-chief wannabe showed up in Iraq for a few photo opportunities and should have stopped there. As soon as he opened his mouth he quickly reminded everyone how little he knows about foreign affairs or the military. This fraud would not even pass an FBI security clearance to get into the service as a private because of his association with the bomber, Bill Ayers.
Obama is unqualified and unfit to lead the best military in the world.
Posted by cfin5 at 07:22 PM : Jul 22, 2008
*** yeah, I will agree with you that there isn''t a great choice on either side this election. However, with that being said, Mccain scares me more than Obama. If Mccain would come out with an economic plan to fix it that the rich don''t continue to get more tax breaks. I think Romney or Huckabee would have been a much better choice, just like Edwards would have been a way better choice for Democrats if they wanted to win in a landslide. I usually lean Democrat for economic reasons, which is why I really liked Romney''s Immigration idea, which is allow more legal immigrants in every year, but in return, no amnesty for immigrants that came here illegally. I thought that was fair. Mccain is for open Amnesty. I can''t stand Mccain because of that one issue alone! Romney disgusted me when he spoke at the Elder president bush''s ranch. The bush connection made me want to throw up. The Repubs should have distanced themselves way aside from bush, but already failed in doing so! I hope Obama wins this election! Otherwise, get prepare to learn how to speak Spanish if Mccain gets voted in. I hate Mccain!
I saw already several articles of this author- all the same boring and in no sense.
Can we get here somebody, who has a bit more brains to show us the sense of this visit, but not the color of the shirt.
Thank You for consideration.
Posted by greenfun
Perhaps this is so because the "war" we are engaged in was started on the basis of lies, continues due to corruption, never should have happened in the first place, and those responsible refuse to "negotiate".
Regardless of tradition, we are now in a position where our brothers, sisters, and children are dying for the sake of lies and profit of Bush''s klan, and I personally don''t care who can "negotiate" us out of it, as long as we get out of it, and hold those people who caused it responsible for their lies and corruption.
To heck with tradition, it is not worth the lives of a million innocent Iraqis, or the lives of our own..
CNN Reporters: Obama "Presumptuous" & Negotiations Overstep His Authority as a Senator
Last night on Anderson Cooper 360, two CNN political analysts charged that Senator Obama overstepped his authority as a United States Senator in acting as a negotiator with the Iraqi government and publicly disclosing statements made during those interviews.
During an interview with Anderson Cooper, David Gergen, CNN''s Senior Political Analyst stated, "Barack Obama made the first mistake of his trip, in my judgment, in releasing a statement in which he said exactly what Maliki had said in those conversations.
We have a long tradition in this country that we only have one president at a time. He''s the commander in chief and the negotiator in chief. I cannot remember a campaign which a rival seeking the presidency has been in a position negotiating a war that''s under way with another party outside the country.