King Leonidas - "Children, gather round! No retreat, no surrender; that is Spartan law. And by Spartan law we will stand and fight... and die. A new age has begun. An age of freedom, and all will know, that 300 Spartans gave their last breath to defend it!"

Republicans, Conservatives, Libertarians and Democrats who would embrace the United States as the greatest land in the world. Vote for McCain / Palin on November 4th. Let the 3 MILLION ignored voters who brought us the margin of victory just 4 years ago RISE AGAIN!

We will give to them ....nothing!

DEBATE II OVERVIEW:

QUESTION 1:  "The world has changed a great deal and not for the better." --Brokaw
Alan Schaffer: What's the fastest most positive solution to bail these people out?"

OBAMA : Restates the obvious --worry-- talking point about "final verdict"  We have to take decisive action.  Step one make sure rescue package works. Cracking down on CEOs (people love this stuff). Middle class need a tax cut, help for homeowners, help state and local govts set up road and bridge projects. What? Obama's answer demonstrates his disconnect from the real problems.

QUESTION 2:  "Secretary of Treasury?"

DEBATE OVERVIEW: (I wasn’t so hot about the last debates layout so here is the new and improved coverage.)

QUESTION 1:  Bailout bill.  Worse of DC or best?

BIDEN : Brings up Obama’s ideas on how we can overcome the economic issues of today. Both Obama and McCain had similar ideas here. The point was good on Biden’s part but it was nothing special or dynamic.

QUESTION 2:  Vice President’s  Job?

PALIN : Said that John McCain's comment about the economy being strong was about and to the American workforce.  She could have hit on the fact that this was part of a speech where McCain just got done blasting Wall Street. Draws on her own record of reform.  Obama has voted along his party lines.  Obama has shown no proof of his ability to put politics aside.  Says she respects Biden’s years in the Senate, but Americans want something new.

BIDEN: Attacked on McCain’s “fundamentals of the economy are strong” comment. This was about all he had on this and the American public knows McCain didn’t actually say that the way it is being portrayed.

Attack missed it’s mark.

QUESTION 3: Who's to blame for subprime crisis?

PALIN :  Predatory Lenders. Palin looks extremely confident.  Mentions Joe six pack/hockey moms.  Says we need to say “Never Again”. This was almost a 911 style moment and it hit home. She also mentions personal responsibility. The public will love this two-pronged answer!

Response:  Darn right we need tax relief.  Obama and Biden voted for the largest tax increases in US history. Barack 94 times voted for higher taxes (factually correct however many of these were re-votes on the same bill).  That's not what we need to bolster our economy.  Our government has to be more efficient.  Obama supported higher taxes on individuals making $42,000.00 per year (factually accurate even though Biden tried to deny it).

Palin ignores the next question - I'm still on the tax thing.  Says she is talking to the American public and may not give the answers Gwen (the moderator) or Biden want to hear:  Every year as mayor I cut taxes.  As governor we suspended state fuel tax.  As for John McCain --he pushed for tougher regulation. Look at campaign finance reform and tobacco. (this was sounding good, but Gwen cut Palin off due to time constraints).

BIDEN : Obama warned (really, where is the YouTube on that?).  McCain "surprised." Overwhelming deregulation. Obama was talking about regulation.  John calling for deregulation.  Joe does not go into the fact that it was “over regulation” that lead to some of the problem. Banks were forced to give loans to people who could not afford them. The packaging of those loans was also deceptive however many would never have been given out under deregulation on this front. The point here is that we do need some regulation but we need it in the right areas.

 OBAMA/BIDEN –vs- McCAIN /PALIN

Breakdown of the latest attacks from each camp.

9/22 – MCCAIN – is now being accused by the Obama camp of “stealing (my) signs” in reference to change in Washington. Both campaigns today focusing on deep spending cuts again making it even harder for Obama to fulfill any of his campaign promises, which seems to dwindle each day. Obama himself seems to be back peddling on his own agenda to try and fit into today’s economic situation. McCain on the other hand already had cuts in mind but does seem to be struggling to find the right person or persons to blame. Both candidates are questioning the Federal Bailout plan which could total a cost of over $700 million to tax-payers and still wind up failing. With the collapse of several banks and mortgage lenders pending many in Washington feel the bailout is necessary. Others question how much more of a pounding tax-payers will be able to take.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS/ IRAQ/AFGANISTAN/ISRAEL/RUSSIA :

McCAIN/PALIN

 - Rather Than Sitting Down Unconditionally With The Iranian President Or Supreme Leader, John McCain Will Work To Create Real-World Pressures To Peacefully But Decisively Change Iran's Behavior.John McCain has been a leader on these issues, having coauthored the 1992 Iran-Iraq Arms Non-Proliferation Act. If I am not mistaken you will see Obama take a similar stance but he wants unconditional talks with Iran’s President. The McCain camp says it will apply the full force of law to prevent business dealings with Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps.John McCain joined Sens. Lieberman and John Kyl in backing an amendment calling for the designation of the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization. Over three quarters of the Senate supported this obvious step, but not Sen. Obama. This is a serious step in the preservation of Israel and opens up a lot of options for the US. McCain also plans to put a A severe limit on imports of gasoline would create immediate pressure on Iran's leadership to change course, and to cease in the pursuit of nuclear weapons. I personally don’t think you stop madmen with sanctions or economic pressure. While McCain takes a tougher stance on Iran I think we can only hope this works.

McCain’s statement on Iraq leaves the matter very clear…“I do not want to keep our troops in Iraq a minute longer than necessary to secure our interests there. Our goal is an Iraq that can stand on its own as a democratic ally and a responsible force for peace in its neighborhood. Our goal is an Iraq that no longer needs American troops. And I believe we can achieve that goal, perhaps sooner than many imagine. But I do not believe that anyone should make promises as a candidate for President that they cannot keep if elected. To promise a withdrawal of our forces from Iraq, regardless of the calamitous consequences to the Iraqi people, our most vital interests, and the future of the Middle East, is the height of irresponsibility. It is a failure of leadership. “

According to the campaigns website McCain and Palin strongly supports the development and deployment of theater and national missile defenses. Effective missile defenses are critical to protect America from rogue regimes like North Korea that possess the capability to target America with intercontinental ballistic missiles, from outlaw states like Iran that threaten American forces and American allies with ballistic missiles, and to hedge against potential threats from possible strategic competitors like Russia and China. Overall McCain supports an increase in the size of military but supposedly smarter spending. This will mean that we can enter into bad equipment and technology contracts but we still have to have quality.

When it comes to Israel McCain’s stance is one of strong support however he has hardly commented on it during this campaign. Sarah Palin has a much more vocal approach and was thrilled to be invited to the “Stop Iran Now” rally until she was later un-invited (see comments under Obama’s stance). Neither candidate has commented much on Darfur however in their defense it has not been a hot topic lately. I do expect full disclosure on the matter during the debates.

Palin recently said that she would not favor a war with Russia and that all must be done to avoid one but I think all the candidates agree on this.

OBAMA/ BIDEN

-   “I am running for President of the United States to lead this country in a new direction… Instead of being distracted from the most pressing threats that we face, I want to overcome them.” This is a quote from Obama’s website. First I question the “cause” being referred to as a“distraction” that our soldiers are fighting and dying for. Really Obama, “distracted”, I’m sorry idiot, are you “distracted”. I’m sorry, let us just call our boys back before the task is complete and see how “distracted” you are then. Obama supports tough, direct presidential diplomacy with Iran without preconditions. He says now is the time to pressure Iran directly to change their troubling behavior. The problem with this approach is that he would have to “break” about 3 UN resolutions to accomplish this. Additionally we are talking about a country with a president that isn’t responsive to common sense or sanctions. While multi-lateral talks may help, the time for talking is and has been over for quite some time. Compared to McCain Obama’s plan is like taking a wearing a swimsuit to hockey game.

Obama and Biden say they will make progress on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict a key diplomatic priority. They will make a sustained push – working with Israelis and Palestinians – to achieve the goal of two states, a Jewish state in Israel and a Palestinian state, living side by side in peace and security. This all sounds fluffy but keep in mind Hillary Clinton pulled out of a “Stop Israel Now” rally just because Sarah Palin was invited and Obama had nothing to say about it. Does that sound like commitment to Israel (or Palestine for that matter) from the Obama campaign to you? After all, does anyone think Iran will be able to blow Israel off the face of the earth without also annihilating Palestine? Look at a map! It seems that Obama will support Israel but only if they sit still and behave while he is talking to Iran.

Obama says he will take immediate steps to end the genocide in Darfur by increasing pressure on the Sudanese and pressure the government to halt the killing and stop impeding the deployment of a robust international force. What does immediate mean? Is Obama’s force going to include American soldiers? This is a noble effort, hats off on this one, I hope this is true.

Obama and Biden also say they will secure all loose nuclear materials in the world within four years. Good luck with that. The most apparent hints that Obama will botch foreign affairs issues are that both Obama and Biden favored not extending funds to our troops. Both Obama and Biden voted against the troop surge in Iraq. Obama stated that he would bomb Pakistan ( a fractured and bleeding ally ) if necessary, etc. etc.

If Obama has said anything about Russia, it was definitely not news worthy.

more issues in the coming days..

SUPPORT ISRAEL!

In case you haven’t had a chance to watch the news all political officials have been banned from attending a pro-Israel “Stop Iran Now” rally in NY. The move came after Hillary Clinton found out Sarah Palin had been invited and decided not to attend. Then according to top officials sponsoring the rally Obama’s team pushed for all political officials to be banned from the event to keep Sarah Palin’s continued commitment to Israel from getting any press coverage. Sarah Palin has been criticized by some far left groups for keeping a Israeli flag at her desk in Alaska. Here are a few quotes from Sarah at a rally today...

"This should be an issue that unites all Americans. Iran should not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons, period," Palin said at a rally. "Unfortunately, some Democrat partisans put politics first and now no elected official can appear. This should not be a matter of partisan politics.".

"John McCain and I are committed to drawing attention to the dangers posed by Iran's nuclear program," she said, "and we will not waver in our commitment. I will continue to call for sustained action to prevent Iranian president Ahmadinejad from getting these weapons to launch a second Holocaust."

Breakdown of the latest attacks from each camp.

9/19 – MCCAIN –  Is now drawing fire from Obama himself which has been a fairly new concept in the past few weeks. In fact up until Monday Palin was far more the target from the Obama camp than McCain was. As the attacks back-fired the Dems have backed off. In a statement today Obama is calling out McCain in ads that say the GOP nominee takes an "extreme position on choice" and "will make abortion illegal." He is spreading his message through low-profile radio ads and campaign mailings, though, hoping to avoid being tagged as too liberal on a woman's right to choose to end a pregnancy. The facts don’t match up as will be discussed.

INFANTICIDE /EMBRYONIC STEM CELL REASEARCH :

McCAIN/PALIN

 - This is a category where McCain not only differs with Obama but also with his running mate. McCain does support controversial and so far un-effective embryonic stem cell research however favors ending the practice if possible. With new technologies out there now that allow the cells to be harvested without killing the embryo, I am surprised this is even still coming up. However on abortion McCain feels that it should be illegal in all cases minus the life of the mother or rape. Palin feels it should be illegal regardless. Having said that Palin has not passed a single law in Alaska tightening the reigns on the abortion industry. Her critics either say she is too extreme or question her commitment on the issue. Her supporters say she is living out the sincere belief that abortion is wrong. McCain would like to have Roe vs. Wade over turned and so would both Roe and Wade by the way. He would instead like the issue turned over to each state. McCain is often mis-understood to be por-life.

OBAMA/ BIDEN

-  Have a much more liberal view on this issue.  There is little on the net regarding Barack’s Stem Cell stance. Barack Obama’s campaign has a new advertisement up that accuses John McCain of “lying” about Obama’s opposition to the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, a bill to protect babies who survived abortion. I don’t recall McCain’s camp saying much on this. According to the Obama camp “John McCain attacks? The sleaziest ads ever, truly vile,”. “Now, votes taking out of context accusing Obama of letting infants die? It’s a despicable lie.” According to Amanda Carpenter of Townhall.com McCain has never hit Obama on BAIPA, but an independent group called BornAliveTruth.org has. BornAliveTruth.org has been organized to educate the public on the Illinois Born Alive Infant Protection Act and Obama’s record opposing it. Last month, pro-lifers unearthed evidence from the Illinois state archives that showed Obama had lied about his record on the bill. The National Right To Life released a statement pinning Obama in the ominous corner of deceit on the bill. A 2003 Health and Human Services Committee report recorded by Republican committee staff. It documents a unanimous 10-0 vote by the 2003 Illinois Senate Health and Human Services Committee, which Obama chaired at the time, to amend BAIPA to include the exact same language that was added to the federal version to protect Roe v. Wade. The committee report also shows a subsequent “final action” vote to determine if the bill should advance out of committee or be killed. The bill was defeated 6-4. Chairman Obama voted in the majority.

This means that, in essence, Obama voted to successfully amend the bill in a way that Obama has said would have enabled him to support it—before he voted against it. It also puts Obama further to the left of NARAL Pro-Choice America. Obama’s direct quote on the matter - “Essentially, adding an additional doctor who has to be called into an emergency situation to come in and make these assessments designed simply to burden the original decision to induce labor and perform the abortion,” Obama said. Abortion survivor Gianna Jessen is a member of BornAliveTruth.org. She put a scorching statement up on her website reacting to Obama’s attack on her group. “Mr. Obama is clearly blinded by political ambition given his attack on me this week,” she said. “All I asked of him was to do the right thing: support medical care and protection for babies who survive abortion – as I did 31 years ago. He voted against such protection and care four times even though the U.S. Senate voted 98-0 in favor of a bill identical to the one Obama opposed. In the words of his own false and misleading ad, his position is downright vile. Mr. Obama said at the recent Saddleback Forum that the question of when babies should get human rights was above his pay grade. Such vacillation and cowardice in public policy almost left me to die and no one should have to go through what I went through.” Pro-life activist and former nurse Jill Stanek, who testified before Obama in the Illinois State Legislature after she rocked an aborted baby to his death in a soiled utility room, is also active in the group is quoted as saying “…Mr. Obama continues to mislead the American people on this issue, he voted four times against medical care and protection for babies who survive abortions in the Illinois State Senate, while the U.S. Senate was voting 98-0 to pass an identical bill…” Much of this post should be credited to reporting done by Amanda Carpenter of Townhall.com.

more issues in the coming days..

OBAMA/BIDEN –vs- McCAIN /PALIN

Breakdown of the latest attacks from each camp.

9/16 – OBAMA – Had a fundraiser with the Hollywood elite at $23,000.00 a plate. He raised around 9 million on the night. (The problem) How do you get the mega rich like Leonardo DiCaprio and Steven Speilburg to understand the plight of the American people when it comes to economics. Obama did not want the media on hand and probably wishes he’d timed the entire even a much better. After going back on his promise to accept only public campaign financing Obama is now forced to try and raise in excess of $85 million a month to keep up with McCain (who did accept public financing). The difference between the camps is that Obama has full control over any money he raises. McCain’s public financing is controlled by the RNC and is usually distributed among the parties candidates in state to state races.

ECONOMICS/TAXES :

Yesterday morning Sarah’s son Track left to fight in Iraq (pardon the rhyme) and is being rumored to have left due to a plea agreement he made because of a vandalism issue that occurred when he was in High School. The problem, according to the boys that actually were punished for the crime, Track wasn’t even there.

And to try and put more logs on the fire Sarah Palin’s husband may be asked to testify against her if the now famous Troopergate scandal ever leads to court. Sarah is accused of abuse of power when she tried to have a state trooper fired. It is true that her sister and this trooper were going through a nasty divorce.  The Palin family claims he attempt to fire him had to do with the fact that this same trooper had made threats to Palin’s family and admitted to using a Tazer gun on his 10 year old son. This story is actually old news now. By the way, the investigation into the Troopergate scandal was launched by Sarah Palin herself who said that she wanted to be held accountable. This is the first time in history any Governor has made such a move and shows Palin is confident she’s done nothing wrong. Certainly politicians like “Clinton” have side-stepped much larger landmines.

Sarah was interview by Charles Gibson on ABC News this weekend and there are a number of issues brought up about that as well including the fact that she seemingly didn’t know what Charlie was asking about when he mentioned “The Bush Doctrine”. When the question was clarified she answered it directly however Charlie himself seemed to be confused as well. According to Google there are at least 5 very credible answers to what the so called “Bush Doctrine” could be. Charlie’s explanation of what is was is only part of one of those answers.

Gibson also seemed to know he’d been caught in a lie when he asked Palin if she thought it “was God’s plan for us to go to war in Iraq”. Palin stated that she didn’t think that was a direct quote of hers. Gibson replied “it’s a direct quote”. Later the video of her talking about this revealed that not only was he lying about the quote but that he took it out of context as well. She actually was saying that she “prays, that we are doing God’s will concerning the war in Iraq”. 

When questioned if we should go to war with Russia if things got worse Palin replied “perhaps so”. Obama told Bill O’Reily last week that we needed to be humble when approaching “evil” (in other countries). To paraphrase talk show host Laura Ingram it would be Like if we just give “evil” a good talking to, it will finally start be