Senator Obama is hitting a rough patch

[YOhio]

At a recent debate where candidates answered questions proposed by YouTube submitters, Senator Obama stated that he would meet with foreign leaders such as Kim Jong Il, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Hugo Chavez without setting any preconditions. In the debate he was blasted by the Senator Clinton for this naive approach to foreign policy and since then he has received criticism. He has yet to effectively rebut those criticisms.

Yesterday he was being speaking in DC and declared that he would be willing to invade Pakistan, a nuclear state, if he wasn't satisfied with Gen. Musharraf's pursuit of terrorists. He has again received criticism from all political circles regarding this statement. Again he has yet to redirect this criticism.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...101233_pf.html

Now today an interview with Senator Obama is released where he effectively stated that using nuclear weapons would be a mistake in any circumstances. He quickly recanted that statement and refused to further elaborate.

http://www.pr-inside.com/print193277.htm

Ignoring the substance of what Senator Obama said, I didn't like the way he has handled this situation for a couple of reasons. First, he has not shown that he is politically skilled enough to communicate controversial opinions. When he is blasted for being weak (meeting w/ dictators), he says he is going to invade Pakistan? After this he gets blasted for being a unilateralist, so he says he would never use nuclear weapons? Very, very poor form.

Second, he is only reinforcing the idea that he is naive on foreign policy. This may or may not be true, but his answer that he grew up overseas just isn't working.

The Clinton machine is the most effective in modern-day politics and Senator Obama has to step up his game if he hopes to get her nod for the VP slot. He seriously doesn't have a prayer against her.

[Sleeping in EQ]

Clinton-Richardson looks like a real possibility for the Dems.

[Cali Coug]

Originally Posted by Sleeping in EQ

Clinton-Richardson looks like a real possibility for the Dems.

I think Edwards would be far more attractive than Richardson (who says some really crazy things from time to time). I don't think Obama is in as much trouble as you guys do, though.

[YOhio]

Originally Posted by Sleeping in EQ

Clinton-Richardson looks like a real possibility for the Dems.

I like Bill Richardson, but I don't think he's showing particularly well. He's a mess during the debates and they say he's got a problem with innapropriate touching of females. Not anything too bad, but weird. The New Republic had an article where the journalist went to a baseball game with Richardson. At one point in the game, out of the blue, Richardson leaned over to a couple of hot girls sitting in front of him and just rubbed their heads. It shows poor judgment a)to do what he did, b) in front of a journalist, c) after a mini-scandal where his Lt. Gov. complained that he constantly touches her by pinching her neck and pokes her arms hips and thighs. The article isn't online anymore, but is referenced here:

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefi...son_and_t.html

[YOhio]

Originally Posted by Cali Coug

I think Edwards would be far more attractive than Richardson (who says some really crazy things from time to time). I don't think Obama is in as much trouble as you guys do, though.

Do you think Edwards would be willing to play second fiddle again? I'm not sure he would.

I wonder if Hillary will look outside the current field for her selection. A smart pick would be Harold Ford Jr. He delivers the minority vote, could possibly help in the South and he is a true moderate.

[Cali Coug]

Originally Posted by YOhio

Do you think Edwards would be willing to play second fiddle again? I'm not sure he would.

I wonder if Hillary will look outside the current field for her selection. A smart pick would be Harold Ford Jr. He delivers the minority vote, could possibly help in the South and he is a true moderate.

Ford hasn't been elected to anything, so he won't be seriously considered.

And I think Edwards would prefer second fiddle to the bench. Then again, I don't think Hillary is a lock for the nomination either.

[YOhio]

Originally Posted by Cali Coug

Ford hasn't been elected to anything, so he won't be seriously considered.

And I think Edwards would prefer second fiddle to the bench. Then again, I don't think Hillary is a lock for the nomination either.

Ford was a Congressman for ten years. His resume is arguably as good as Senator Obama's.

Edward's is kind of fun to watch this cycle. Last election he was playing Obama's role as the candidate of hope. This year he is the candidate for the pissed off netroots and has swung far left. It's not a comfortable position for him as he is prone to saying ridiculous things, but it's still pretty funny. Either way, he is the one candidate in both parties that drives me nuts. I don't know what it is about him, but he can do no right in my eyes.

[Sleeping in EQ]

Originally Posted by Cali Coug

I think Edwards would be far more attractive than Richardson (who says some really crazy things from time to time). I don't think Obama is in as much trouble as you guys do, though.

But won't Richardson help bring in hispanic voters and moderates? I could see his time as the Secretary of Energy being useful too.

I didn't know about his gropings and odd statements. He's running some ads here in Monsanto and has a decent following.

[Tex]

Originally Posted by YOhio

At a recent debate ...

Blast it, YOhio, you beat me to the punch. I had a similar post almost typed up, and then I went to lunch.

My partisan lenses aside, I can't see how anyone can feel comfortable with Obama's complete lack of judgment on foreign policy matters. He just keeps digging himself in deeper.

[Cali Coug]

Originally Posted by YOhio

Ford was a Congressman for ten years. His resume is arguably as good as Senator Obama's.

Edward's is kind of fun to watch this cycle. Last election he was playing Obama's role as the candidate of hope. This year he is the candidate for the pissed off netroots and has swung far left. It's not a comfortable position for him as he is prone to saying ridiculous things, but it's still pretty funny. Either way, he is the one candidate in both parties that drives me nuts. I don't know what it is about him, but he can do no right in my eyes.

Yes, but he lost his most recent election. That customarily is a negative thing prior to a race for the presidency/vice-presidency. If he was still a congressman, he would be considered, I think.