Authoritarian Palin Politics

The Times published a damning article on Sarah Palin yesterday, and it quickly shot up to the top emailed story. It is a little lengthy, but it did a good job of not repeating the usual information that plagues articles critical of the governor. The overall sense that I walked away with from teh article was that Palin has more similarities to the current administration than I previously realized. My number one concern is that she has surrounded her administration with secrecy, even to the point of using private email addresses for state business (which removes information on governance from the public view). There are also repeated stories of administrators being released under suspicious circumstances. I am concerned that she is one who silences those with whom she disagrees and presents a totally different face to the public. Evidence of this is her insistance on using social issues to gain votes (even when running for mayor of a 9000 person town!) rather than discussing relevant issues to her constituents. I think she is a politician of the sickest order. Our country has suffered under bad foreign policy and diplomacy over the last eight years because of a leader unwilling to foster critical debate. This has been one of the central promises of the Obama campaign- open debate! He is made fun of for having a huge foreign policy team, but at least he is interested in including a number of people in his decision making process. Sarah Palin has sought to increase government action at the cost of representation of people. This is fundamentally opposed to the system of government put in place by our forefathers. Look for yourself!

I am distressed at her rise to fame, and concerned that the American people are not carefully enough combing her record. I encourage everyone to do some research from all sorts of sources! Contrast journalistic accounts of her with her public personae! It is truly alarming!

Just another reason to lose respect for JMcC

Below is another example of why I think McCain is running a dishonest and disappointing campaign. The article discusses the distortions by the McCain staff of statements made by Obama about Iran. The article takes the quotations that are misused and places them back into context to show how the ad is misleading. And get this: The full statement was even released by the McCain staff, so they knew the context!!!! This was a blatant attempt to mislead people about Obama's stance on Iran. This leads me to ask a series of questions, including: Why doesn't McCain attack his actual stance, rather than create a new one to attack? If he can't manage the message coming out of his campaign, is he prepared to oversee our arms of diplomacy? If he can't even tell the truth about another American to the American people, what will he say in our name to others?

Please see article on McCain's latest ad.

Here is Obama's actual stance on Iran, not taken out of context. His comments on other issues are available on his website. Let's critique candidates' actual policy plans, rather than lie about them.

From the Obama Campaign Webpage (emphasis in italics is my own):

"Iran

• The Problem: Iran has sought nuclear weapons, supports militias inside Iraq and terror across the region, and its leaders threaten Israel and deny the Holocaust. But Obama believes that we have not exhausted our non-military options in confronting this threat; in many ways, we have yet to try them. That's why Obama stood up to the Bush administration's warnings of war, just like he stood up to the war in Iraq.
• Opposed Bush-Cheney Saber Rattling: Obama opposed the Kyl-Lieberman amendment, which says we should use our military presence in Iraq to counter the threat from Iran. Obama believes that it was reckless for Congress to give George Bush any justification to extend the Iraq War or to attack Iran. Obama also introduced a resolution in the Senate declaring that no act of Congress – including Kyl-Lieberman – gives the Bush administration authorization to attack Iran.
• Diplomacy: Obama is the only major candidate who supports tough, direct presidential diplomacy with Iran without preconditions. Now is the time to pressure Iran directly to change their troubling behavior. Obama would offer the Iranian regime a choice. If Iran abandons its nuclear program and support for terrorism, we will offer incentives like membership in the World Trade Organization, economic investments, and a move toward normal diplomatic relations. If Iran continues its troubling behavior, we will step up our economic pressure and political isolation. Seeking this kind of comprehensive settlement with Iran is our best way to make progress."

God speed friends.

PS. Hillary, you looked great last night! I like you in orange... :)