Candidates Diverge On Women's Issues
It's women's week on the presidential campaign trail, judging from the attention that Barack Obama and John McCain are lavishing on female voters and issues especially important to them.
Obama, campaigning here Thursday with former Democratic rival Hillary Rodham Clinton, criticized McCain's opposition to an equal-pay Senate bill, his support for conservative-leaning Supreme Court justices and his abortion-rights objections.
"I will never back down in defending a woman's right to choose," Obama said at a "Women for Obama" breakfast fundraiser.
McCain, the Republican from Arizona, planned a similar day Friday when he will meet with female business owners in Minnesota and then hold a women-oriented town-hall meeting in Wisconsin. Asked about women in an interview this week, McCain said he wants to "make sure that any barriers to their advancement are eliminated."
Obama makes similar remarks, but the two differ sharply on their approach to several key issues. Obama would require employers to expand family and medical leave, for example, while McCain said Thursday it should "be subject to negotiations between management and labor."
"Senator Obama believes that big government is the answer," he said.
Women, who tend to make their choices somewhat later than men in presidential races according to some surveys, have been a coveted group for decades. Previous elections have focused on "soccer moms" and "security moms," for instance.
Women have leaned Democratic in recent elections, while men have tilted Republican. The width of the "gender gap" can determine which party wins the White House.
Obama led McCain among women, 42 percent to 37 percent, in an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll conducted in June. McCain would be happy to stay that close, because President Bush narrowly defeated Democrat Al Gore in 2000 while losing women by a larger margin: 54 to 43 percent. In 2004, John Kerry won 51 percent of the female vote, to Bush's 48 percent.
Obama's campaign is largely directed at younger, single, well-educated women, many of whom support abortion rights and want the same pay and opportunities that men have in the workplace. His biggest hurdle, for now at least, may lie in his own party: placating Democratic women who backed Clinton and felt she was treated unfairly by the news media or even Obama himself.
Since defeating Clinton in the primaries, Obama's strategy has been to praise her heavily at nearly every stop, and to draw as sharp a distinction as possible with McCain on key issues.
On Thursday, Obama cited recent Senate legislation designed to counteract a Supreme Court decision limiting the time workers have to file pay discrimination lawsuits. Obama said McCain "thinks the Supreme Court got it right."
"He suggested that the reason women don't have equal pay isn't discrimination on the job - it's because they need more education and training," Obama said, eliciting groans from the audience.
Obama backed the Senate legislation that would have made it easier for women to sue their employers for pay discrimination. McCain opposed it, saying at the time: "I am all in favor of pay equity for women, but this kind of legislation ... opens us up to lawsuits for all kinds of problems."
McCain, who calls himself a "proud conservative," takes a much more hands-off approach to most regulatory issue, making it easy for opponents to accuse him of not using the government's powers to help struggling women. They point, for example, to his vote against a Senate amendment that would have required insurance companies to cover birth control products.
Many insurers cover products such as Viagra, prompting cries of unfair treatment by some women's groups.
Asked this week what he could do to attract more female voters, McCain said: "I don't have a specific policy at the moment, except to, again, I think my support of small business and the fact that I will not raise people's taxes. One of the greatest areas of participation of women in America is small business."
The two candidates differ sharply on abortion rights, which McCain has long opposed. Obama says McCain would appoint Supreme Court justices who would overturn the Roe v. Wade decision affirming a woman's constitutional right to an abortion.
"Senator McCain has made it abundantly clear that he wants to appoint justices like (John) Roberts and (Samuel) Alito," Obama said Thursday. "And that he hopes to see Roe overturned."
Underscoring his point, Planned Parenthood endorsed Obama this week. Given the two men's differences on reproductive issues, Obama told the breakfast audience, the group's decision was hardly "a nail-biter."
© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Obama, campaigning here Thursday with former Democratic rival Hillary Rodham Clinton, criticized McCain's opposition to an equal-pay Senate bill, his support for conservative-leaning Supreme Court justices and his abortion-rights objections.
"I will never back down in defending a woman's right to choose," Obama said at a "Women for Obama" breakfast fundraiser.
McCain, the Republican from Arizona, planned a similar day Friday when he will meet with female business owners in Minnesota and then hold a women-oriented town-hall meeting in Wisconsin. Asked about women in an interview this week, McCain said he wants to "make sure that any barriers to their advancement are eliminated."
Obama makes similar remarks, but the two differ sharply on their approach to several key issues. Obama would require employers to expand family and medical leave, for example, while McCain said Thursday it should "be subject to negotiations between management and labor."
"Senator Obama believes that big government is the answer," he said.
Women, who tend to make their choices somewhat later than men in presidential races according to some surveys, have been a coveted group for decades. Previous elections have focused on "soccer moms" and "security moms," for instance.
Women have leaned Democratic in recent elections, while men have tilted Republican. The width of the "gender gap" can determine which party wins the White House.
Obama led McCain among women, 42 percent to 37 percent, in an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll conducted in June. McCain would be happy to stay that close, because President Bush narrowly defeated Democrat Al Gore in 2000 while losing women by a larger margin: 54 to 43 percent. In 2004, John Kerry won 51 percent of the female vote, to Bush's 48 percent.
Obama's campaign is largely directed at younger, single, well-educated women, many of whom support abortion rights and want the same pay and opportunities that men have in the workplace. His biggest hurdle, for now at least, may lie in his own party: placating Democratic women who backed Clinton and felt she was treated unfairly by the news media or even Obama himself.
Since defeating Clinton in the primaries, Obama's strategy has been to praise her heavily at nearly every stop, and to draw as sharp a distinction as possible with McCain on key issues.
On Thursday, Obama cited recent Senate legislation designed to counteract a Supreme Court decision limiting the time workers have to file pay discrimination lawsuits. Obama said McCain "thinks the Supreme Court got it right."
"He suggested that the reason women don't have equal pay isn't discrimination on the job - it's because they need more education and training," Obama said, eliciting groans from the audience.
Obama backed the Senate legislation that would have made it easier for women to sue their employers for pay discrimination. McCain opposed it, saying at the time: "I am all in favor of pay equity for women, but this kind of legislation ... opens us up to lawsuits for all kinds of problems."
McCain, who calls himself a "proud conservative," takes a much more hands-off approach to most regulatory issue, making it easy for opponents to accuse him of not using the government's powers to help struggling women. They point, for example, to his vote against a Senate amendment that would have required insurance companies to cover birth control products.
Many insurers cover products such as Viagra, prompting cries of unfair treatment by some women's groups.
Asked this week what he could do to attract more female voters, McCain said: "I don't have a specific policy at the moment, except to, again, I think my support of small business and the fact that I will not raise people's taxes. One of the greatest areas of participation of women in America is small business."
The two candidates differ sharply on abortion rights, which McCain has long opposed. Obama says McCain would appoint Supreme Court justices who would overturn the Roe v. Wade decision affirming a woman's constitutional right to an abortion.
"Senator McCain has made it abundantly clear that he wants to appoint justices like (John) Roberts and (Samuel) Alito," Obama said Thursday. "And that he hopes to see Roe overturned."
Underscoring his point, Planned Parenthood endorsed Obama this week. Given the two men's differences on reproductive issues, Obama told the breakfast audience, the group's decision was hardly "a nail-biter."
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We need Experience. We need Hillary and Bill.
Under the Clinton administration, the average income went from $43,000 to $49,000 a year. The budget was balanced and inflation, including oil and gas prices, were kept in check.
We can still have Hillary.
It IS up to US. All we have to do is let it be known that Hillary backers are NOT going to vote for Obama under any condition. Thats all it takes. If we don''t play thier game with them, there is no game and the candidate that most Democrats cast their votes for in the Primary will be the next President of the United States.
Write in Hillary''s name on the November ballot. Call your local voting place,
(on your registration card) and find out if you have to do anything special to receive a write in ballot. In some states you have to be registered as an
Independent. Do this before October 1st.
REMEMBER!! Obama is just the "presumptive" Democratic Candidate. The Super
Delegates, who can change their votes right up until the last minute, can
still make Hillary Clinton the Democratic Candidate at the Democratic National
Convention in August.
LET THEM KNOW YOU WANT HILLARY!!!!!
The press didn''t miss it. I saw it on line and on TV. Also, you misquoted. Obama said that it was "embarrassing." That''s different from being ashamed. And the context was that Europeans who visit the U.S. speak English, but when Americans visit Europe, most can only say "Merci beaucoup." When you listen to it, you hear that he was being humerous in his point. Also, he was talking to the crowd as adults with children. He didn''t say that the government should force it on students. He said that the people to whom he was speaking should make sure THEIR kids could speak Spanish or another language other than English.
Almost anything a candidate says can be used to create a controversy when taken out of context.
Listen to what he said and judge for yourself.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZprtPat1Vk&eurl=http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/blog/2008/07/obama_learn_spanish.html
That reminds me, the press missed the one yesterday about Obama saying that kids should learn to speak Spanish and that he''s ashamed that most American''s can only speak one language? There they go with that being ashamed of America again. Too bad he wasn''t ashamed when his minister shouted, "GOD DAAAAAAM AMERICA",
......Oh yeh, and the issue of Obama''s patriotism.....look for it to come back, big time.
Posted by confused25
You truly are confused! You don''t seem to understand that government is supposed to look out for the interests of its citizens. Instead, Congress and the Supreme Court are working as advocates and apologists for the large corporations.
We are seeing a resurgence of employee exploitation. The government agencies that are supposed to protect workers'' rights have largely been dismantled. Employers hire illegal aliens who are afraid to report abuses, and the companies are not held accountable.
Most Americans aren''t looking for a handout. They are looking for a return on the investment of their tax dollars. Right now, the main beneficiaries are businesses, politicians, and people in the top tax brackets. Working class Americans have a right to expect good schools, roads, bridges, public transportation, emergency services, public health, etc. Instead, politicians have fed themselves at the trough and funneled public money to private companies and individuals with little to no oversight. Meanwhile, our pay for enlisted soldiers is below poverty levels and treatment of our vets is a national disgrace.
American workers are necessary for the economic engine to work properly. When business interests and government officials loose sight of that, the economy and our democracy suffer.
Except, of course, that barrier of equal pay, which I voted against.
Asked this week what he could do to attract more female voters, McCain said: ''I don''t have a specific policy at the moment.'' LOL - that should get you the women votes!
LOL - the Senate has nothing to do with overturning Roe. If the Supreme Court gets a couple more conservative justices, they will overturn it, and that is McSame''s goal. Where do you get these brilliant ideas - from Rowdy?
Stay off these pages. There are only millions of pages on the Net where men can find porn and chatting. Don''t bring your slime in here. The people in here want to discuss news, current issues, and politics. If we wanted something else, we wouldn''t be in here.
When do we Americans take personal responsibility for our lives.
Posted by confused25
------------------------------------------------
That''s exactly what Barack Obama is saying.