I won’t vote for Obama because
1.of his socialist tax policy,
2. his ardently pro-abortion agenda (including federalizing abortion laws),
3. his promise to put judges on the bench that “stand up” for social causes,
4. his desire to dramatically cut the military in a time of war,
5. his poor judgment in opposing the Iraq surge,
6. his willingness to entertain hostile dictators without preconditions,
7. his complete misunderstanding of the nature of Islamic terrorism,
8. and his general class-warfare populist boilerplate I just can’t stand.

1. I am untroubled by raising taxes a bit on on the highest earners. And I have never been very pro-capital gains tax reductions. One thing that does bother me though is anything that is giving money “back” above and beyond taxes that were paid. that’s not a tax return. It’s a subsidy.

2. Obama’s position on abortion doesn’t trouble me. I view abortion as regrettable but tolerable, and preferable to alternative, mandatory carrying of all pregnancies to term.

3. I’m a bit of mixed minds there. I’d hate to see RvW overturned, but Kelo was both a disappointing decision and a disturbing bellwether. In general, I do prefer judges to use the existing law for the basis of their decisions instead of making stuff up. With exceptions.

4 and 5. Obama’s poor judgement in opposing the surge must be counterbalanced against his good judgement in thinking we should have avoided getting involved in the first place. I don’t mind cutting the military budget sooner or later, and I don’t expect Obama will do it while we’re substantially entangled. In general, I am tired of spending our tax money protecting other nations.

6. I think the preconditions argument is comical hair-splitting. Not talking to people doesn’t solve anything. McCain himself has said that of course we continually have talks between lower level emmisaries, that this has always gone on. So I find this distinction moronic from the get-go. A PR issue. Who cares?

7.I have seen no evidence of this. If it’s true, all he has to do is read The Sling and the Stone to get up to speed. He’s a smart guy. He’ll catch on. I’m unconvinced McCain has stellar judgement on terrorism. If he supported the surge specifically due to his understanding of of 4th gen warfare, that’s good on him. Do you know?IMO, tactical changes had as much to do with shifting the tide as adding troops did.

8. I’ve never been at all convinced by the notion that the democrats practice class warfare but the GOP does not. I don’t mind noticing that that some folks make 35k/year and others make 135k a year, and so on. Or noticing that due to this, various policies affect different folks differently. Essentially, we must acknowledge that the current state of our government already includes substantial forms of redistribution: tax policy; medicare; social security; welfare and disability payments, and so on. Therefore ANY policy change in ANY direction that changes the way things are currently distributed could be called class warfare. So this is another conservative rallying cry like “preconditions:” that I find comical. It has no meaning to me.

And Socialism? We’ve had a progressive tax system for the longest time. Quit with that meme. He’s not talking about dramatic jumps, he’s talking about returning the balance that was there before Bush’s tax cuts, which did little to help the economy. Of Course you could never be convinced of that either.

Do you want someone to represent your beliefs, values and ideas, or someone who represents transient positive emotions that you happen to be feeling on the day you pull the lever?

What about McCain? What if we use our heads there when we decide not to vote for McCain? He has done nothing to make me think he is especially wise OR has especially good policies, except for earmark reform.

Everything about him transmits that he is lost when it comes to economics, a subject he has admitted he has lacked much interest in or acumen for. He shows little passion or conviction while mouthing predictable old GOP platitudes. How is he supposed to convince us when it feels like he’s not really truly convinced himself, just repeating a script?

The only time McCain seems truly engaged and full of genuine conviction is when he’s talking about foreign policy or earmarks. The rest of the time he feels like he’s running auto-rhetoric 1.0.

If we were to put aside these for a moment and evaluate the candidates based on where they have been and what they have disclosed as their beliefs and policies, I believe that our discussions would begin to reveal both our own ignorance (need for knowledge/understanding) and what our futures could potentially hold if either of these candidates “take power”. I believe that we need change but am very, very concerned (based on what I’ve researched on both sides) that the change experienced in the hands of a super-majority (Executive, Administrative, Judiciary) would result in a country less free & less democratic.

We are in for very hard times, harder than any of us can imagine, and neither of these candidates can even approach adequately addressing all the issues. Obama simply has the ability to communicate in a way that make us “feel” he can do the job, but not the documented substance which speaks for and to the majority of Americans. McCain, may have much of the substance needed, but (competitively speaking) seems to lack the same ability to communicate in a way which will adequately move us to make the tough choices ahead.

The key question is whether Obama is morphing his public profile to get elected but carries confirmed personal objectives, which when later disclosed, will surprise & betray the majority voters he has gained through his performances.

I wish there were a better candidate than either of these two. Sad situation.

I won’t vote for Obama because of his socialist tax policy, his ardently pro-abortion agenda (including federalizing abortion laws), his promise to put judges on the bench that “stand up” for social causes, his desire to dramatically cut the military in a time of war, his poor judgment in opposing the Iraq surge, his willingness to entertain hostile dictators without preconditions, his complete misunderstanding of the nature of Islamic terrorism, and his general class-warfare populist boilerplate I just can’t stand.

Is that a political agenda, or the man and his party? There are many people such as Kranky Kritter and ASC who probably would agree with my positions on the issues I’ve just listed, but they vote for Obama because of his “poise” and “inspirational qualities.” We are voting for the President of the United States, not a High School glee-club president.

McCain certainly isn’t perfect, Palin just sucks (because she doesn’t know anything), but I’m not going to vote because of how charming the candidates are if I disagree with the content of what they stand for.

There is no way you would vote for him. But I doubt it’s as much about his political agenda, as much as it is for the man and his party. Look, Palin is worse than OBama could ever be, and it is because of her that I would never vote McCain. If he had picked a rational pick, instead of a pick that shored the party, and was intended to steal hillary voters based on vagina identity, I would have considered him. Actually, I decided I’d vote McCain over Clinton when the primaries were running, based on Clinton’s method of campaigning, then it turns out he stole her play book, and he put a bad taste in my mouth as well.

Being president isn’t just about political ideology and legislative agendas. It’s about intangibles. Temperament. Leadership. Wisdom. Judgment. Sincerity. Potential for greatness.

This is why Barack Obama will win the election this year. People have decided to vote with their heart and not their brain.

If the man had the right political ideas and legislative agenda, it means he is wise, sincere, has good judgement and would be great. At least it should mean that. This year, it doesn’t. Greatness, wisdom and judgement are now defined as how good one makes you feel about yourself when he speaks, or how well he manages his campaign.

Is it better to have a charming president than a politically astute one? Perhaps Barack Obama will be better at charming world leaders and our senate into adopting political ideas, better than McCain would have. But what if it is a political agenda you disagree with? You still vote for him?

I also admire Obama for his inspirational qualities and poise, and I also worry about what economic policies he will implement. I stand with you in supporting him today.

And I also stand with you right by the door:

I’ll give him a chance to show balance and bipartisanship and disappoint those who are most liberal and want to add expensive new entitlements under the presumption that we can get all the money needed for these programs from rich people and evil corporations. If he expects to keep my support by rubber stamping the approaches coming from the fevered minds of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, then I’ll do my best to help those eager to make him a one-termer.

I still have some hope that Obama has the prescience to see how much support a President can get from the sensible middle by acting as a brake on the worst impulses on congress. He’ll do better both for himself and for the people if he embraces that role in a serious (as opposed to token) way. If and when he does this, the right will certainly dismiss it as tokenism regardless of the nature of it.

So moderates and independents need to be ready to take our own measure in such instances.

:-)

His party screwed him over back then and I so wish he’d screwed them right back and had chosen a running mate that didn’t appeal to the party’s worst characteristics – anti-intellectualism and conservative Christian supremacy. But by choosing Sarah Palin, McCain revealed that he was willing to put the demands of his party over his own instincts and philosophies.

I must disagree with you here. By chosing her, he did screw the people who screwed him in 2000 right back, and in the most poetic way: by giving them what they wanted.

I voted for Obama as well in my non swing state of TN, but voted for some Republicans downticket as well (Not Lamar…idiot).

Voting for Obama accomplishes two things in my mind:

1) Wash the Augean stables clean after the corruption/ineptitude of Bush
2) Let Obama do what he does best, act as a symbol.

Obama is such a blank slate that many people unconsciously project whatever they want onto him…just listen to the multitude of presidential comparisons before he’s even taken office (he’s Lincoln! No, FDR! Wait, JFK! But JFK got assassinated…Lincoln! Oh shoot! I mean, FDR!)

I hope that Obama keeps that quality as he takes office. That symbolism gives the U.S. a huge advantage in renewing the faith it has lost and abused in the past 8 years. Underneath, he’s probably a typical Chicago pol, but hey, FDR tried to stack the Supreme Court. But to prejudge Obama before he’s even given the chance is a mistake. He deserves 4 years. After that, we’ll see what his record is.

to me, #1 is an incredible asset. If a good coach that can get 10% more from your team, it can be transformational. Imagine what it can do for a nation, not just a team.

I’ve heard so many people say “Watching obama speak makes me want to do something more with myself”. Thats the mark of a good leader.

I’m worried about some of his economic beliefs, but he has chosen a good group of economic advisers and I think he has enough judgment to listen to what they have to say and make thoughtful decisions.

I did the same but with a twist. I voted for Democrats across the board concerning our local elections (Portland, Oregon) but voted for Ralph Nader as my pick for president.

While I have come to the conclusion that both parties are equally and hopelessly corrupt, I hold out the remote hope that the Democrats are just a little less so. I could not very well vote for either Obama or McCain as I believe they represent money and not people. And when I say people I mean ALL people, not just Americans, not just rich people, not just people that live in countries that kiss America’s ass.

I want justice. Obama is no more just than McCain as far as I can tell. I know for a fact that Nader will do what is right. Even though I know he has no chance of winning. But that’s not the point. Voting for who is “best” for the job is. America has veered far off course. We are doing things that are, well, un-American. I don’t believe Obama’s “Change” or McCain’s “Peace with honor” are going to restore the American pledge. Liberty and Justice for all.