The Pattern Develops As Tension Builds

Two Obama and Clinton stories caught my attention today. The first was a video clip with audio from the Obama campaign plane where he is bashing McCain for being in support of renewing the Bush tax cuts after he voted against them in the first place. This, like the portion of McCain's comment about how long we may be in Iraq, is only part of the story. Mr. Above-It-All is setting quite a pattern of this lately.

We know, if the whole remark is replayed, McCain was speaking of a small peacekeeping force presence in Iraq, as is used in South Korea, Germany, Japan and Bosnia. Obama didn't use the whole statement, though, because it doesn't fit his McCain as warmonger riff. Again, the pattern.

John and Cindy McCain have two sons. Both are in the U.S. military. One is on his second tour in theatre, the other is preparing to go. The McCains make it a practice not to talk about their sons. John McCain knows of what he speaks about war and walks the walk.

Senator Obama's now former foreign policy advisor, Samantha Powers, is on record as stating that of course Obama can't be held accountable for his immediate withdrawal of troops in Iraq if he is elected President. He'd have to go by what the commanders in the field recommend. Well now. Sounds like the third Bush term kind of stuff Obama throws McCain's way, as though it is the ultimate insult.

So, today Obama accused McCain of supporting the tax cut renewals because it is an election year. Fact is, McCain didn't support the tax cuts originally since no spending decreases were a part of the package. He admits the tax cuts worked and the economy has been remarkably strong up until a cyclical slowdown recently. McCain is on record as voting for tax cut renewals from President Bush more than once already. Mr. Above-It-All is not after all. The pattern.

Today the Senate was voting on a earmark moratorium. Obama and Clinton voted for it, as they each know one of them will face McCain, who has never asked for or received an earmark. Talk about election year pandering. Maybe Obama is feeling a bit hypocritical?

In today's Chicago Sun Times, writer Lynn Sweet, a longtime follower of Obama, pens an article that Obama released his records on earmarks he put through the process as Senator from Illinois. This, after refusing since last June to do so. Clinton still hasn't.

The interesting earmark that popped out at Ms. Sweet is one for The University of Chicago Hospital. You may remember Michelle Obama was the recipient of a more than double salary increase from 2004 to 2005. Obama put in for a $1 million dollar earmark for a new pavilion for the Hospital in 2006. Nice. Obama claims to be not all about business as usual in politics.

Last night, after a day of answering as to what in the world she was thinking of as she made the remark that Obama is succeeding because of the color of his skin, Geraldine Ferrarro left as fundraising chair of Clinton's campaign. The snippet was taken out of context, again the pattern of the Obama campaign who are above it all, yet it was an unnecessary position in which to put herself. She is an old pro in politics and she should have anticipated it.

So, if no one is allowed to mention that Obama is running as a black man for President of the United States, do we also ignore the troubling audio and visual clips from services at his church in Chicago, Trinity United Church of Christ? After reading a blurb on Politico this morning, by Mike Allen, I switched the channel to Good Morning America to see an interview with Professor Shaun Casey, Obama's religious advisor for the campaign. As he was questioned by Chris Cuomo, Casey whined that the pastor's sermons are being scrutinized while the sermons given by pastors at the churches attended by Clinton, McCain and President Bush are not. What? Obama calls Rev. Jeremiah Wright his "spiritual guide" and used a phrase of his as the title of his best selling book, Audacity of Hope, which dramatically increased the Obama family's fortunes by acknowledgement from Michelle Obama.

Casey claims it is the "same dynamic" as criticizing JFK as a Catholic running for President. Obama says he "doesn't think my church is particularly controversial." The first clip run was one of Wright using the N word, saying Barack has been called that while Hillary hasn't in her life. OK. He slurred the names of black Republicans as less than black - Colin Powell, "Condamensia" for Condi Rice, etc. Maybe he didn't see the irony in the fact that Obama was called 'not black' as he began his run for President.

There were clips of Wright saying, after 9/11, the whacko line that "America's chickens are coming home to roost", straight out of Michael Moore's diatribes. And, before he retired last month, he honored Louis Farrakhan with an award from the church.

This is a church that certainly no longer qualifies for tax exempt status.

The church is controversial, as a place of worship, because of the black supremacy position it takes. That doesn't bring the country together any more than a church preaching white supremacy, does it?

This is a church Obama has been a member of for 20 years, by his own recollection. He was married by Wright in the church, and Wright baptised both of his young daughters. This is not the church in which he was raised. He was raised, according to his biography, as Christian by his Kansas/Hawaii family, in Muslim traditions in Indonesia by his father's family, and he has some Buddhist teachings in his religious background. The point is, this is a church he specifically joined of his own accord. To now act as though no one should find anything objectionable from some of the stated principles of the church is naive.

I don't approve of politics in church. We all know politicians campaign in churches every election cycle. The IRS has been negligent in shutting off tax exempt status of those who are so blatant as to employ some of these rants from the pulpit.

And, finally, today the clip of Hillary apologizing not once but three different times to the gathering of black journalists. She apologized for Bill's sleazy attempt throwing at the race card in South Carolina, then for Geraldine's remarks, then for the government's response to Hurricane Katrina.

She remains the Queen of Pander. All hail the Queen.