IF YOU DON'T WANT TO READ POLITICS. IGNORE THIS POST.
Since I've been watching for about a year and a half, I feel like I should throw in my 2 cents. I'm not saying I'm right, I'm just saying it's how I see it right now. I'll start by saying that now that my favorites are out of the race, I am in Hillary's camp. I started as an "anyone but Hillary" person, but I have completely changed my mind.
I have watched all but one or two of the dem debates. I can tell you that everyone's positions have changed quite a bit since the beginning, but that's not a bad thing. At least it means they are listening and learning. I'd rather that than someone who chooses an unwise policy and refuses to change course no matter what.
I have also done a lot of research on Obama's record. Like all politicians he distorts it. What bugs me about that is he's running as Mr. I'm against the war when he has repeatedly voted to fund it, the last time was December 18(or 19), 2007. Also he said a couple years after the 2002 speech that if he was in the Senate at the time he's not sure how he would have voted but now he tries to slam Hillary about it. In one of the debates he attacked Edwards because he wasn't going to leave troops in Iraq in case the terrorists set up camp. Edwards said he'd leave some in Kuwait, but not Iraq. So Mr. I'm against the war, doesn't even plan to bring all the troops home.
He didn't even show up for the vote on the Iranian Army being declared a terrorist organization, but then campaigned saying he didn't vote for that. He missed something like 167 roll call votes last year and a number of them were important votes. I realize he was campaiging, but he's running on that experience, and he wasn't there. He also voted "Present" 130 times in the Illinois legislature. I have a very close friend who was a state rep and then a state senator. He said it's a total cop out to vote present and isn't a common thing at all, like Obama says it is.
And I will confess that looking at these two candidates my inner feminist has surfaced. It's time for a woman president. I didn't get good vibes from Obama when I met him, it didn't get any better the second time I saw him and well....it's like he has this sense of entitlement to the office and we were just peons or something. I didn't get that from any other candidate.
I don't think Hillary is perfect, I think there will be problems with the Bill Clinton backlash and I don't think it will be easy. But watching her reaction after her loss in Iowa has convinced me that she can and will be a really good leader.
So there you go. If you don't share that opinion that's fine and I completely understand. Just figured I'd throw out my thoughts.
And just to be fair and balanced. I think the only Republican who has a chance to win is McCain, but his position on the war and some of the comments he's made lately make me wonder about that.
I think the biggest things that turned me off to Obama was the huge number of push polls I got from his campaign. Calls where they trash the other candidates, many times with false information, then refused to tell you who they are calling for. It wasn't hard to figure out, they never said one bad thing about Obama. Then Obama would go on TV and act like he wasn't being negative. Puhleese.
I appreciate the post, DR Cilla. You can't get too much info during an important election year as one tries to decide. I'm an independent so I am excluded from the primaries here in AZ (I just love how democratic our election process is, she says with much sarcasm -- let's see, winner takes all the delegates, and what is this caucus crap? --
to the two-party system and to the delegate voting system -- it should be by popular vote).
I made a vow that I would not vote for any Republican -- Bush and Cheney scared me so, along with the Evangelicals, hence it will be a long, long time before I get past the trauma that party has caused me (and our country) . Shame on the Demos, too, but the lesser of two evils I suppose...
I've been on the fence for a long time (and certainly haven't reached the point where I am sure enough to put a sign in the yard or post a bumper sticker) but if I had to vote tomorrow -- and was allowed to vote in the primary -- it would be for Hillary (so your info, DR Cilla, makes me feel a little better about that decision). I'm leaning toward seeing what a woman can do, even if she's a Clinton...
