GOP Assails Obama For "Negative" Views

Democrats Accuse McCain Backers Of Trying To Assassinate Obama's Character

(CBS)  On the heels of Gov. Sarah Palin's statement yesterday that Sen. Barack Obama does not see America as "a force for good in the world," Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., accused the Democratic presidential nominee of "talking down America."

Referring to his visit to Germany where he said of America, "We've made our share of mistakes," Wilson said, "We've always had this history of saying, well, you know, 'Politics end at the water's edge.' And it didn't for Barack Obama. He has been critical not only of the president but of American policy and hence has kind of a negative view of America in the world."

"We are an exceptional country," she said on Face The Nation. "We are a force for good. And we need to talk about the good things we do."

But the Republicans' attacks themselves came under attack by Obama's supporters.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said that because of his growing lead, the Democratic candidate will face increasing attacks. "He's leading in the polls," she told host Bob Schieffer.

"He's leading in most of the battleground states. And this is going to be a month, I think, of character assassination. And so the Republican position is to try to assassinate Barack Obama's character and try to place him in a position where the trust that he has built dissipates, the credibility that he has dissipates.

"I hope it isn't successful," she said, "and we must not let it be successful. Too much is at stake in this election. And you know, it's a hard thing for me to listen to this when you know the major problems that this nation faces.

That's what we ought to be talking about, not slamming one's character like this," Feinstein said.

Gov. Palin's attacks were also criticized - as was her performance at last week's vice presidential debate - by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, D-Mich. (left) "Her strategy was to be folksy and try to speak over the moderator and over the questions that were asked," said Granholm, who thought the performance would not go down well with Michigan voters suffering in the economy.

"In Michigan we are hurting so bad we don't want to hear just, you know, 'By golly,' 'Ah, shucks,' 'Doggone it.' We want to hear what are you going to do to help everyday citizens?

"I think that's what people out there want to see. Whether Sarah Palin can wink at everybody and try to charm them to death, I think that that's a question of style over substance. And at this point people are tired of style - they want to know what are the facts that are going to help me as an everyday citizen."

Supporting Palin was House Minority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo. (left), who said, "I think she's as qualified to be president as Senator Obama is. And I think after some time as vice president, she's going to be extremely ready, if she has to take over as president.

"You know, Senator Clinton said that at the debate … Governor Palin was confident, she was engaging. I think the American people saw somebody that was not business-as-usual in Washington, and they don't want business as usual. They're ready for change."

In discussing the financial crisis, Blunt tried to make the case that President Bush and Senator McCain had been advocating for the kinds of regulation that might have prevented the near-meltdown of the financial industry, but that "Democrats were saying these government agencies have plenty of regulations."

"[McCain's] been out there for years as a pain in the side of these agencies advocating more regulation, more change. We could have stopped a lot of this problem from happening three or four years ago. The president was asking for that, but the Congress wouldn't deliver. John McCain was one of the leading advocates for that kind of, that regulation."

Also on the program, columnist David Brooks (left) of The New York Times said he thought Palin had done well in the debate, despite the nervousness of Republicans beforehand: "They were looking at that debate from behind a couch, terrified. And she did two things: She showed she wasn't George Bush and she showed she's something different.

"Now, it's not my cup of tea, but she did what she set out to achieve. And I sort of like the fact, her confidence and her poise. I mean, in this country everybody thinks they can be president, whether they deserve it or not. And she thinks that. I sort of admire the gumption in that, and the cleverness, which she displayed."

However, Brooks admitted that he thought Palin was not qualified to be president of the United States.

"I like experience," he told Schieffer. "I like somebody who's read a few more books, experienced a few more things."

Noting the viciousness of the campaign as it gets closer to Election Day and McCain falls further behind in the polls, Brooks said that the conservatives were waging the kind of campaign that is out of sync with what voters are now interested in:

"They don't understand how the same political tactics that they've used before, going after liberal, liberal, liberal, that's not going to work now because something has overshadowed it. And that overshadowing, that economic anxiety is just going to dominate the next five weeks. There's no way around that. And if they're not touching that, then they're not touching the core issue. And John McCain has not done it. And he hasn't done it over the weekend, where they've been attacking Obama for being too liberal or not loving America enough.

"This economic crisis changes the climate of the country. We were in a conservative era where conservatives could win running conservative vs. liberal campaigns. Because of this economic crisis and a bunch of other stuff, we're no longer in a conservative era. You can't win that way any more. You better win the way of this new era. And I'm afraid the Republicans are not adapting to this new era."

---

Read the full "Face the Nation" transcript here.

By CBSNews.com producer David Morgan.

[ubu2008]

Obama came out blaming John McCain for the whole mess when John McCain was trying to regulate Fannie/Freddie and Obama was receiving more money than anyone. He made the statements and now those statements are going to be addressed. Obama''s days of unchecked blanket statements need to end. He needs to deal with the American People with honesty. I know it will be hard if not impossible since he has been lieing for so long, but he needs to be honest for a CHANGE!

[chuck_tx]

"Four of the Keating 5 were DEMOCRAPS!
Posted by GetRealTex

Yes, shows McCain can truly ''reach across the aisle'' -for graft.

Posted by newbie43 at 03:29 PM : Oct 06, 2008"

Obama a hypocrite?

http://www.redstate.com/diaries/redstate/2008/oct/06/how-do-we-know-that-senator-obama-doesnt-car/

"How do we know that Senator Obama doesn''t care about the Keating 5?
Let me rephrase: how do we know that he''s being a hypocrite about it?
Because he''s brought in Senator John Glenn to stump for his campaign, that''s why."

[chuck_tx]

"www.KeatingEconomics.com

Posted by slownewsdays at 03:28 PM : Oct 06, 2008"

So what is Obama''s explanation for having John Glenn (Keating 5) at the "Boss" rally at Ohio State??

http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2008/10/06/copy/BOSS.ART_ART_10-06-08_A1_OVBH96K.html?adsec=politics&sid=101

"Annie and John Glenn greet Bruce Springsteen before his performance on the Oval at Ohio State University. Mr. Glenn, the former senator and astronaut, introduced the rocker."

[chuck_tx]

"Four of the Keating 5 were DEMOCRAPS!
Posted by GetRealTex

Yes, shows McCain can truly ''''reach across the aisle'''' -for graft.

Posted by newbie43 at 03:29 PM : Oct 06, 2008"

http://www.johnmccain.com/informing/news/PressReleases/3b02e8d1-0a08-4399-a43a-54e9b68e7bbf.htm

"So, you know based on all of the evidence, I concluded that there was no violation of any Senate rules, of any laws, of any ethical standards, and that''s, you know, that''s all I can really tell you. Unfortunately, he was kept in the case, as was Senator Glenn, because the chairman of the committee at the time, Howell Heflin did not want to proceed with only Democrats -- now I should add I''m a Democrat, but when you have a job like that, you call it straight. So he was subject to I think it was either 26 or 28 days of public hearings."

[chuck_tx]

"I have made every single donor to my campaign publicly available, while Senator Obama has taken in over 200 million dollars from undisclosed sources. We have already seen the potential for fraud because of his refusal to disclose his donors. His campaign had to return $33,000 in illegal foreign funds from Palestinian donors, and this weekend, we found out about another $28,000 in illegal donations. Why has Senator Obama refused to disclose the people who are funding his campaign? Again, the American people deserve answers."

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/News/Speeches/9d9b3a12-e2ea-4b9e-99d0-bb9e5c77b6f8.htm

[chuck_tx]

Even after he refused to lift a finger to prevent this crisis, when the crisis hit, he was missing in action. He didn''t start making calls to round up votes until after the rescue bill failed in the House and the markets crashed. We continue to see the price of delay today as the markets continue to fall. Today the DOW has fallen below 10,000. And yet, members of his own party said they felt no pressure to vote for the bill. Why didn''t Senator Obama work to pass this bill from the start? Why did he let it fail and drag out this crisis for a full week before doing a thing to help pass it?"

[chuck_tx]

"Senator Obama was silent on the regulation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and his Democratic allies in Congress opposed every effort to rein them in. As recently as September of last year he said that subprime loans had been, quote, "a good idea." Well, Senator Obama, that "good idea" has now plunged this country into the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

To hear him talk now, you''d think he''d always opposed the dangerous practices at these institutions. But there is absolutely nothing in his record to suggest he did. He was surely familiar with the people who were creating this problem. The executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have advised him, and he has taken their money for his campaign.

He has received more money from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac than any other senator in history, with the exception of the chairman of the committee overseeing them. Did he ever talk to the executives at Fannie and Freddie about these reckless loans? Did he ever discuss with them the stronger oversight I proposed? If Senator Obama is such a champion of financial regulation, why didn''t he support these regulations that could have prevented this crisis in the first place? He won''t tell you, but you deserve an answer."

[chuck_tx]

"Our current economic crisis is a good case in point. What was his actual record in the years before the great economic crisis of our lifetimes?

This crisis started in our housing market in the form of subprime loans that were pushed on people who could not afford them. Bad mortgages were being backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and it was only a matter of time before a contagion of unsustainable debt began to spread. This corruption was encouraged by Democrats in Congress, and abetted by Senator Obama.

Senator Obama has accused me of opposing regulation to avert this crisis. I guess he believes if a lie is big enough and repeated often enough it will be believed. But the truth is I was the one who called at the time for tighter restrictions on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that could have helped prevent this crisis from happening in the first place."

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/News/Speeches/9d9b3a12-e2ea-4b9e-99d0-bb9e5c77b6f8.htm

[chuck_tx]

"McCain wants to talk about is a tangential relationship with a a professor on a charity board and a former fundraiser.

McCain erratic and desperate

Posted by Truthhonor at 08:18 PM : Oct 06, 2008"

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/News/Speeches/9d9b3a12-e2ea-4b9e-99d0-bb9e5c77b6f8.htm

"My opponent''s touchiness every time he is questioned about his record should make us only more concerned. For a guy who''s already authored two memoirs, he''s not exactly an open book. It''s as if somehow the usual rules don''t apply, and where other candidates have to explain themselves and their records, Senator Obama seems to think he is above all that. Whatever the question, whatever the issue, there''s always a back story with Senator Obama. All people want to know is: What has this man ever actually accomplished in government? What does he plan for America? In short: Who is the real Barack Obama? But ask such questions and all you get in response is another barrage of angry insults."

[chuck_tx]

"McCain wants to talk about is a tangential relationship with a a professor on a charity board and a former fundraiser.

McCain erratic and desperate

Posted by Truthhonor at 08:18 PM : Oct 06, 2008"


Really??:

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/News/Speeches/9d9b3a12-e2ea-4b9e-99d0-bb9e5c77b6f8.htm

"My opponent has invited serious questioning by announcing a few weeks ago that he would quote -- "take off the gloves." Since then, whenever I have questioned his policies or his record, he has called me a liar.

Rather than answer his critics, Senator Obama will try to distract you from noticing that he never answers the serious and legitimate questions he has been asked. But let me reply in the plainest terms I know. I don''t need lessons about telling the truth to American people. And were I ever to need any improvement in that regard, I probably wouldn''t seek advice from a Chicago politician."

[rmonroe401]

"Blunt tried to make the case that President Bush and Senator McCain had been advocating for the kinds of regulation that might have prevented the near-meltdown of the financial industry, but that "Democrats were saying these government agencies have plenty of regulations." "

And I am sure Shieffer did not challenge him on this obviously false statement. Keep up the good work Bob! We wouldn''t want your buddy and his republicans friends looking like liars now, would we! What a joke Shieffer has become, I hate even seeing his face. I will never watch anything he is a part of again.

[tommyd6041]

Poor Sarah, doesn''t even know she''s been used.
I hope they take the gloves off with her. She is fair game if ever their was one.
So long GOP, see ya in four years(wink)

[worldslight]

gov stupid palin wants to relate to the everyday american by saying she''s a hockey mom. last time i checked governor, puttin your child thru a hockey prgm was so expensive. i dont'' think a regular american can afford the hockey prgms anymore. so u r out of touch. hockey moms are rich and the average income in their homes is about $200,000

[worldslight]

sara palin, be careful coz u shouldnt start a fire u can''t put out...

[worldslight]

shouldnt the repubs be working on giving us the plan on their issues?

[newbie43]

As the AIP''s founder, Joe Vogler, told an interviewer in 1991: ''The fires of hell are frozen glaciers compared to my hatred for the American government. ... And I won''t be buried under their *** flag.''

The Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. could learn from this man.

While it is in dispute whether Palin attended its 1994 convention, she did visit the 2000 one and addressed AIP conventions in 2006 and 2008. Her husband, Todd, was a registered AIP member from 1995 to 2002, and the AIP leadership certainly considers her one of their own.

[newbie43]

MCCAIN: ''Uh, I, I just have to rely on the good judgment of the voters not to buy into these negative attack ads. Sooner or later, people are going to figure out if all you run is negative attack ads you don''t have much of a vision for the future or you''re not ready to articulate it.'' (The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, 2/21/2000)

[newbie43]

Four of the Keating 5 were DEMOCRAPS!
Posted by GetRealTex

Yes, shows McCain can truly ''reach across the aisle'' -for graft.

[chuck_tx]

"Chuck_Tx We''''ll see who''''s whining when the short armed man starts bouncing! You THE RE PUBIC HAIR Party are the ones talking about racism-I guess that''''s all you know since your mammy raised you that way.

Posted by jackiecee at 03:17 PM : Oct 06, 2008"



http://www.redstate.com
/diaries/redstate/2008/oct/06/breaking-t
he-gloves-are-well-and-truly-off-o/

"Whatever the question, whatever the issue, there%u2019s always a back story with Senator Obama. All people want to know is: What has this man ever actually accomplished in government? What does he plan for America? In short: Who is the real Barack Obama? But ask such questions and all you get in response is another barrage of angry insults."

[chuck_tx]

http://www.redstate.com/diaries/redstate/2008/oct/06/breaking-the-gloves-are-well-and-truly-off-o/

"Looks like we''re going to have one whale of a debate tomorrow, assuming of course that we can get past the junior Senator from Illinois whining for twenty minutes about how mean we''re being to him. And racist! Mustn''t forget the racism; God knows that his supporters never do."