Voting Present

While speaking at the Republican National Convention former New York Mayor, Rudy Giuliani made this statement about Barack Obama. He said, “over 130 times he (Barack Obama) voted present. It was just too hard. He couldn’t decide.” I thought this was one of the best moments of the convention, but I think we have seen this played out again with the financial bailout plan and Obama’s inability to really take a stand. Several of the major newspapers over the past week have referred to Obama’s unwillingness to get personally involved in the negotiating process shows that he is simply voting present once again. I believe this is the truth. One of the political observers this week, when commenting on the behavior of Obama in Washington, especially at the meeting with the President and other leaders at the White House, made the comment that Obama simply seems like a freshman senator. He looks uncomfortable because he is. He has not forged the types of relationships that you need in order to work with the power brokers on Capital Hill. He began running for President, one year into his US Senate term. He seems out of place and awkward and inappropriate because he is. According to those who were there, he went into the White House and lectured everyone which only served to put everyone at odds.

The history of the man is that he begins looking for a new job almost as soon as he gets his present job. He has not actually learned how to legislate. All he actually knows how to do is to run for office. He was handed his state senate seat by the corrupt Chicago political machine. He was handed legislation that he did not write, by this same political machine, to present to the Illinois State Senate as if it were his own in order to achieve greater stature. He has put his support (when he actually showed up to work) behind certain bills and now takes credit for said bills as if he actually authored them. The man has almost never actually done the job he was elected to do. So, with this history in mind, what does he do once he becomes President of the United States? There is no higher position to run for. Does he then run for world dictator? It seems that he might if we listen closely to his rhetoric (sarcasm intended )

Sean Hannity likes to ask this question and I believe it is at the core of what we need to think about when deciding who we will vote for. He asks this question regularly, “name 3 things that Barack Obama has done which qualifies him to be President of the United States?” This is a question that I have not heard any of his supporters really answer. The party line on the question is that he has been a community organizer, a state senator, a law professor and a US Senator. But that does not answer the question. What did he accomplish in these positions? As a community organizer, he lobbied the state legislature for money for some depressed neighborhoods in the south side of Chicago. That’s right, he was a lobbyist. What was the outcome of his work? Everyone involved in a neutral discussion about these neighborhoods says that the condition of these neighborhoods are worse off after the Obama years than they were before. As a law professor, I suppose he taught his class. As a state senator he worked as a puppet of the corrupt Chicago political machine, voted present probably more than he actually took a stand, gave a speech against the Iraq war (something his legislative body had no authority over) and thus began his run for US Senate. As a US Senator, he actually came to work (we don’t really know how often he showed up) for one year of a six year term and then began to run for President. By the way, during that one year of serving as a senator he is quoted as saying that he was not prepared for such a run (a statement I agree with by the way).

Why do I bring all this up? How can we elect a man who has never accomplished anything in his past positions to be the President of the United States? It’s unbelievable to me that he is even close in the polls. The man has actually done NOTHING. He’s seems like a nice guy, a smart guy and delivers a good speach. But this does not qualify a person to be the most powerful man in the free world.

If that’s not enough, what did he do during this current crisis? John McCain went to Washington to try to iron out a solution. The democrats could not get past the partisan bad feelings and refused to really compromise and came out with a bill that would not pass, but McCain went and insisted that conservatives be heard and they were heard, to almost no avail. Realize, the Republicans are not in a seat of power right now. They are at the mercy of the democrats who are too arrogant to compromise with anyone. Even 90+ of their own party did not vote for the final bill. But McCain at least got the other side heard. What did Obama do? He said he wanted to monitor the situation and see what the congress passed before he took a stand. He voted present. He did nothing.

Same ole same ole for Barack Obama, or should I say, “more of the same”? He is behaving consistent to his past. He is doing nothing and making speeches and, might I add, simply saying what someone else has told him to say.

How in the world can a man who is so indecisive, who is simply a “Monday morning quarterback”, who snipes at those who actually go to work and try to do something be elected President of the United States? We can see how he operates as a legislator. He shows up and votes present or doesn’t show up at all. In fact in the past 3 years of his term as a US Senator he has more non-votes than actual votes. How can a man like that get elected to the highest office in the land?

NO. I want a man who will actually attempt to do something; a man who has a record of doing the right thing whether it’s the popular thing or not; a man who will buck his own party if need be. That’s the kind of man I want. I want a man who has actually come to work for the past 26 years and done his job and taken it seriously, not simply looking at his present position as a stepping stone to the next; a man who has proven himself to truly be a non-partisan; a man who is respected by both parties in Washington. I want John McCain.

We will be in serious trouble in January if Barack Obama is sworn in as President. Stop listening to the rhetoric. Stop listening to the talking points. Stop believing his campaign ads. Don’t simply listen to what is being said. Every man has a record. What is Obama’s record? His record, his behavior, his modus operandi is consistently to do nothing. He would rather talk about something than actually do something. I want a President who will do something and then explain to us why. That’s John McCain.

Until later,

Don