Jay Allen's Blog

There is probably more we don't know about that "poll" than we do know. 

I stopped believing in polls about half century ago. 

The Cynic.

That said, one must admire Obama for the drive, dedication, organization and oratory skills that got him the election.

I beleive we will recover from this Recession. People need hope and he is delivering that. We need to do our part. We need to encourage everyone to start beleiving. Most important, everyone needs to get out and have fun, buy stuff. It is mostly fear that is stopping everyone in buying and spending and that is having a huge ripple effect in people losing their jobs and businesess getting closed.

With Obama coming on board, we hear encouraging news in the press and hopefullness and that should do the jump start

I particularly like the Hell Freezes headline! Nice post, gives us "hope" for the future!

He's a great "product" for this time in our history...Americans like a "product" that will promise to solve all their problems

Jay - right now Obama is all promise and no substance. By that I mean he does not have a tangible record of accomplishments that would lead anyone to believe he can do the things required to quickly end the recession, etc. I agree, he has great charisma, and, when using a prepared speech, is a great orator. However, now he needs to turn that charisma and public speaking ability into true public service and make those decisions, regardless of party agenda and his personal goals, into actions that will enable the U.S. Whether he has the courage to do that and the ability to manage a congress that is extreme in it's leadership is still up in the air.

He patterns himself after Roosevelt, and, Roosevelt's policies didn't really end the depression. His spending programs put a temporary band-aid on it, and, when the spending stopped and his taxation became more oppression the U.S. went back deeply and immediately only to be pulled out by the preparations for war.

Regardless of Kennedy's charisma, he did not accomplish a lot in his short time as president, which is not to say that he wouldn't have. Johnson did get through some of Kennedy's ambitions, such as the civil rights act and voting rights act (in spite of the democratic party resistance in both houses).

I truly hope that Obama can succeed and help turn around the economy and heal some of the divisiveness which abounds today. We will see if he deserves. And remember, Bush was most admired for seven years.

Jay, I absolutely feel the sense of improvement/hope that OBama brings...I dont know why anyone would want that job, but he is definitely our man!!

I"m surprised that Obama is the most admired Man in America since I"m unaware of anything he's done to earn that title. 

I think the answer to your question: "Will admiration for Obama help to lead this country back to prosperity and international admiration?", is that if he can "put his money where his mouth is",  he might have a shot at it.

Jay, I hope ypour Christmas was blessed and I admire your resolve, But if that poll is to be believed, and I would prefer a more reliable source, we are in trouble. If we as a country are really to a point where the person we most admire is a" politician" who rose from one of the most corrupt political machines in the country it's no wonder we are becoming morally corrupt as a nation. And this is truly not comparing Obama against any other politician, I don't think we have ever had a politician who would deserve this honor

Jay,

If Obama is half the president as he is talker then I believe he will go down in history as a great president. I personally hope that he acquires that recognition because it will mean that our economy turned around while he was in office.

Jay, having hope once again, is a huge step in healing this country's hurts.  It doesnt surprise me about Obama, for we are all looking for hope.  As for not having held a real job like Reagan, people forget that Obama is a lawyer, worked tirelessly as a community organizer, was a state senator and then a federal senator.  Reagan on the other hand was a very bad actor who happened to be a governor.  And the all promise no substance statement, he is not yet president, there is nothing more he can do at this point but talk and make plans.

Jay, thanks for this. Though I wasn't one of the people polled, I'd have added another point to his admiration percentage. I truly believe he will do all he can to implement the economy-saving programs he talks so eloquently about. But the naysayers and cynics on this blog should listen to Obama when he speaks, when he answers questions from the pundits. He doesn't just spout out a well-written speech, the man understands the fundamental issues to a depth and breadth I have not seen/heard from a politician in my adult life. Yes, he is charismatic; yes, he is wildly intelligent, but it's his wide world view of cause and effect, of choice and consequence, of issues facing the vast majority of Americans, that differentiates him from all the rest.

I just hope that our elected officials, the deeply flawed machine that is congress, doesn't corrupt him or confound his efforts at economic and moral recovery. And while prayer for this good man are appropriate, I think the majority of our prayers should be for the representatives who will either hold fast to broken ideologies and stagnating partisan modus operandi, or be renewed with a united charge to serve their constituents --the people, all the people-- of this great county, and not the PACs and lobbyists.

My votes regarding obama:

Charisma - Yes

Character - Present

Intelligence - Present

Ability to read a teleprompter - Yes

Ability to speak without a teleprompter - Um, uh, uh, well, um, uh, uhh... Present.

Jay - not since 1952 has a president elect topped that list. I think the real story is who was the first person to top that list that year ;

Dwight D. Eisnerhower - R who  according to his biography' In his early Army career, he excelled in staff assignments, serving under Generals John J. Pershing, Douglas MacArthur, and Walter Krueger. After Pearl Harbor, General George C. Marshall called him to Washington for a war plans assignment. He commanded the Allied Forces landing in North Africa in November 1942; on D-Day, 1944, he was Supreme Commander of the troops invading France.  After the war, he became President of Columbia University, then took leave to assume supreme command over the new NATO forces being assembled in 1951. Republican emissaries to his headquarters near Paris persuaded him to run for President in 1952.

Barrack Obama - D Wrote a thesis entitled Soviet Nuclear Disarmament, written at the height of The Cold War in 1983 which oddly no one can find a copy of. He wrote two memoirs after that.  Roomed in college with a Pakistani Coke dealer but doesn't mention his trips to Pakistan in either of his memoirs. As an impressionable teen-ager Obama was mentored by  communist sympathizer Frank Marshall Davis who is quoted in the Honolulu Record, October 20, 1949, p. 6. as saying  “I feel strong sympathy for the Communist minority who are being oppressed for their political beliefs.” and began his political career with the help of Domestic Terrorist Bill Ayers who during the campaign Barry claimed Ayers was just a guy who lived in his neighborhood, yet since the election Bill himself confesses that Barry and Michelle are "Family friends".

Now I see why it has been 56 years since a president elect topped USA Today's Most Admired Man in America . Because of Gen. Eisenhower's impressive record of service, it took more than 1/2 a century for someone to compete with such a record of accomplishments!

Gee, Ricardo, They are like carbon copies of each other

Jay, above comments too funny.  Nothing positive to say, of course!  Its hard to admit their guy just wasn't up to the task and probably would have made a mediocre president.  But its always good to keep up the spirits and hope that someday the GOP will be a credible party.

Terry - feel free to identify some accomplishments of the President Elect apart from his persona.

Ricardo, He doesn't have any but it's all Bush' fault

The only thing I really don't admire about Obama is the job he just got hired for.  Could you imagine standing in front of the stinkpile that is this country with the duty to clean it up?  Oh yeah....and if he doesn't clean it up by the time the first right-winger can spit out the words "I told you so" he will be considered an immediate failure by half the country.  After all, we must hold the man accountable to the promises the GOP and the media made up, not the ones the man actually stated himself!

Other than that, what is not to admire about the guy?  He's a well-spoken, highly educated, good looking, successful, healthy man with a beautiful loving family.  Whether anyone agrees with his politics or not, at least give the man that.

Hugh

you can at least agree He is organised and choosing the right prople .

Mike - you just described me and the current president  when you wrote "He's a well-spoken, highly educated, good looking, successful, healthy man with a beautiful loving family. Whether anyone agrees with his politics or not, at least give the man that"

OK Maybe pres Bush doesn't put the words together as well as I do so good but neither does Barry off prompter.

Your quote sounds a lot to me like a quote from  Veep-Elect Biden about his future running mate; "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy," Biden said. "I mean, that's a storybook, man." This is the same man who also said "You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent"

So mike - your comments are on par with the Veep_elect - congratulations! One more thing, if you think this country is a stink pile - feel free to surrender your US passport at the border when you illegally emigrate to Mexico or Canada because it is that kind of anti-American sentiment why this clown was eleted to begin with.

Rafeeq; How do you feel about his choice in Steven Chu for DOE Secretary? (I'll give you a hint)

Mr. Cobos,

When one reads the comment thread here I believe the importance of your question

"feel free to identify some accomplishments of the President Elect apart from his persona"

is a sad sad commentary on the mindset of Americans in such a dire time in our History as we face Economic disaster, nuclear threat, wars, possibly more wars, irreversible moral decline and corruption on all fronts of society and traumatic job losses to soon reach beyond the realm this nation as witnessed in our lifetime.

The men and women on this site, most PROFESSIONAL leaders and SELF-proclaimed Christians who continue to add ONLY NEGATIVITY to the possible future and outcome of America based on their OWN political OPINIONS is a travesty to this Great Nation and God HIMSELF.

Negativity begets Negativity. May you and all your co-conspirators on this site receive your own due recompense for the Distrust, Dislike, Disrespect and Cynicism you continually bleat in to the airwaves about the President Elect of the United States of America.

Your excuse,  "the same was done to G.W. Bush" is PURE B.S. you all LOVE belittling "the other guy" for the sake of belittling"

My PRAYER for the NEW YEAR is that this country come together as ONE NATION UNDER GOD.  But it is getting obvious that certain members of the Silent Majority find it MORE important for Obama to fail because their HOPE is for an "I told you so moment"

Yeah, that makes for some really great American spirit.

Mr. Cobos, I'd rather read of your own personal "great" accomplishments for resurrecting this great nation therefore enlightening myself and others as to WHY we should value your RUTHLESS opinion our our next president.

Linda _The America you described is the same country I have lived in my entire life - what country have you lived in during the  past 40 years?

Remember your modern history not taught in schooll- it wasn't until a man named Ronald Regan-R   a former Democrat who busted up the Berkley riots while Gov of the fine state of California became the 4oth president of the United States and subsequent two term president put an end to the cold-war - you know a war that had everything but a formal congressional declaration by supporting the Afghans in the war against the Soviets to the tune of 1Billion dollars way back when a billions dollars was a lot of money. We used to elect men who had capacity, now we elect men who have personality.

As for my pedigree, I don't have one because I work for a living. I always have and have never received a single public dollar for my family and five kids. Our government takes about 50% of my income in a variety of taxes. Some they call Social Security, others they call Medicare and some they don't even tell me about like the Gas Tax at the pump so call me a person with a vested interest in the success of this country, you know a share-holder. I have supported my family in this industry for 11 years on 100% commission the entire way...and oh yeah, I am still here and it looks like '09 will be stellar, praise God. I love this country with all it's faults and am convinced that the only thing that can be improved upon is the character of my fellow American. You are free to take from my so called rantings what you like because it still is a free country...today.

Linda if you feel my first amendment right is less valuable than that of yours or the  Pres-elect because you voted for him and I did not then say so , that is your right but until his congress passes a law amending the Constitution that protects my right to free speech I will continue to speak out against him and his lack of moral character and judgment all the while clinging to my bible and guns.

Thank you for that bizarre prayer, as a Christian woman I am sure you were sincere, I hope.

This is also MY Country. I am not sure what Moral Character are you talking about. Is is Morally wrong to say that he wants to be the prisedent of united states of America, not the blue or red states. Is it morally wrong to call a  War, wrong

Do you think it is morally right to take the country to war on the basis of a lie.

Dr. Chu is nobel prize winner. I will have more respects for some one who win noble prize

Rafeeq

I think he was right keeping gates, Emanuel is going to be much more of a problem than he is worth. Richardson is under investigation, having the Clintons all over the world second guessing him wasn't very bright, and Al Gore won a Nobel Prize to put Him and Chu together with a dollor and it won't get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks.

Rafeeq - if you are such a patriot then your words would reflect it. If you need me to elaborate on moral character you probably wouldn't get it anyway.

What lie are you referring to? Can anyone on this post even recall the of Iran-Contra hearings or am I getting that old?

If Dr. Chu's accolades are more important to you that his vision for America, good for you. Based on your logic then your opinion like mine is without merit because you sir like me are not a Nobel Laureate so we should expect to hear no more of your "stinking pile" comments on that basis alone.

Imagine for just a moment if the so called unbiased media had sent as many reporters to Chicago as they did to uncover the library book scandal up in Wasilla. What are the chances Obama would be president elect right now.

Hugh,

During Clinton times we have a better economy. Clinton was responsible for  the surplus in the budget and we have lost it during the last 8 years and so if the Clintons are back, it will be a plus . you can drink coffee at starbucks and i will be happy that some one qualified is running the affairs and now you think is media is also at fault

Ricardo

i am talking about the biggest lie which is responsible for the deaths of our American soldiers.

Rafeeq - please do grace us with your wisdom and truth -- don't be shy, I can handle the truth the question is can you?

And as for the biggest lie ever told to the American people: There was a budget surplus in the Clinton years - show me the proof

Terry - Reagen was an officer in the Army, a board member of SAG responsible for some sweeping reforms and a president of SAG also. During his time as SAG president he spoke out both against communism and the against the senate McCarthy investigations. He was a democrat activist before the party became too intrusive and them became a republican activisit. He also served as governor of California for 8 years. A bit more experience in leadership than Obama had.

Et al -I am amazed at how when someone questions Obama's accomplishments they are RUTHLESS! He has done nothing but bet elected several times, what, other than that, has he accomplished? What programs has he developed and gotten through any legislature? But I guess that is a ruthless question, asking what his bonafides are.

Ricardo,

Our president lied and took us to war and resulted in death of thousands of our soldiers and thousands wounded and grief to their spouses and family. and economy is suffering.

Whatever you reasoning will be - that we are better off now and that we removed Saddam Hussain who killed his own people, will not change the fact that our president lied and that we sufferred and still suffering

Ricardo - If you think that George W. Bush fits the description I wrote, then I guess I  just have higher standards than you when it comes to "highly educated."  Just as a man isn't rich because he walks into a bank, a man is not "highly educated" just because he walked the halls at Yale.  The education provided actually has to stick after his studies are completed.

Ricardo, you tell me what is more American, to bend over and take how the current administration has done all of its citizens and the world harm over the last 8 years, or to stand up, get to work and try to make it a better place.  I think the words, "a more perfect union," come to mind.  You may have the mindset to run away from your problems, but I, on the other hand, assess the situation and do what needs to be done to get it right.

Oh, and Ricardo, I think you just need to try again to make that stretch of a comparison to my comments and those of Joe Biden.  Just a word of advice, if you want to qualify your position with more substance, don't pull things out of thin air and give everyone the impression you are just another right-wing ignoramus.

Rafeeq -During the Iran-Iraq War which lasted from September 1980 to August 1988 Iraq developed the ability to produce, store, and use chemical weapons. These chemical weapons included H-series blister and G-series nerve agents. Iraq built these agents into various offensive munitions including rockets, artillery shells, aerial bombs, and warheads on the Al Hussein Scud missile variant. During the Iran-Iraq war, Iraqi fighter-attack aircraft dropped mustard-filled and tabun-filled 250 kilogram bombs and mustard-filled 500 kilogram bombs on Iranian targets. Other reports indicate that Iraq may have also installed spray tanks on an unknown number of helicopters or dropped 55-gallon drums filled with unknown agents (probably mustard) from low altitudes.

While you mourn the deaths of the 4,000 soldiers and the estimates sometimes as high as 100,000 civilian Iraqi's who have been killed by allied forces in Iraq since the LATEST incursion in March 2003 please remember to say a prayer to whomever you pray for the souls of the 300,000 Iraqi Kurds killed by "Chemical Ali" using Mustard and Sarin gases after the Iran-Iraq 8 year war ended for no other reason than their desire for autonomy.

What about the TEN United Nations Resolutions concerning Iraq and its behavior int he international community?

[Adopted as Resolution 1441 at Security Council meeting 4644, 8 November 2002] The Security Council, Recalling all its previous relevant resolutions, in particular its resolutions 661 (1990) of 6 August 1990, 678 (1990) of 29 November 1990, 686 (1991) of 2 March 1991, 687 (1991) of 3 April 1991, 688 (1991) of 5 April 1991, 707 (1991) of 15 August 1991, 715 (1991) of 11 October 1991, 986 (1995) of 14 April 1995, and 1284 (1999) of 17 December 1999, and all the relevant statements of its President, Recalling also its resolution 1382 (2001) of 29 November 2001 and its intention to implement it fully, Recognizing the threat Iraq's non-compliance with Council resolutions and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles poses to international peace and security,

"Recalling that its resolution 678 (1990) authorized Member States to use all necessary means to uphold and implement its resolution 660 (1990) of 2 August 1990 and all relevant resolutions subsequent to resolution 660 (1990) and to restore international peace and security in the area, Further recalling that its resolution 687 (1991) imposed obligations on Iraq as a necessary step for achievement of its stated objective of restoring international peace and security in the area, Deploring the fact that Iraq has not provided an accurate, full, final, and complete disclosure, as required by resolution 687 (1991), of all aspects of its programmes to develop weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles with a range greater than one hundred and fifty kilometres, and of all holdings of such weapons, their components and production facilities and locations, as well as all other nuclear programmes, including any which it claims are for purposes not related to nuclear-weapons-usable material,"

International laws have forbidden the use of chemical weapons in warfare since the end of the first World War. Saddam used these weapons more than a hald century later on both Iranian soldiers during his war with Iran and subsequently on Iraqi Kurds for failing to support the war with Iran after the war ended.

Saddam was expelled by allied forces  from Kuwait in 1991 and a Cease Fire was signed (see above) and the dictator Saddam agreed to allow UN weapons inspectors to account for and dismantle those weapons. What is important for you to recall is that there was no Peace Treaty. That war didn't end. If Saddam didn't have WMD why then would he agree to allow UN weapons inspectors into his country to account for and dismantle something that didn't exist? It would be impossible to prove a negative and that scenario for him would result in more humiliation in the Arab world de-fanging of the scorpion if you will. Do I really need to remind you that after 8 years of playing grab-ass and hide the salami with the international community he finally expelled the weapons inspectors permanently from his country? You do recall this right?

OK so for those of you having a hard time keeping up lets recap:

• Saddam had WMD i.e.; Chemical Weapons
• Saddam invaded Iran 1980 over "disputed" oil fields and used Chemical Weapons on both the battlefield and at home apparently to shore up his domestic image as being a bit too soft for a dictator.
• Saddam invaded Kuwait 1990 - more oil disputes
• Saddam is expelled and sent to his room in and told to hand over his toys
• Saddam has a pretty big room - Iraq.
• Saddam jeers from behind his threats against Israel for years and rewards SUICIDE BOMBERS families in Israel. And shoots daily at US and British Warplanes for 13 years enforcing the UN No-Fly Zone.
  
• Saddam finally gets spanked for his bad behavior in 2003
• 4,000 US Soldiers die, a Muslim nation is free in the Middle East, we haven't charged them a penny for it and they hung the ruthless bastard and his co-Hort's in a court of their own making under a Constitution of their own design.

What do you have a problem with?

The President didn't just "walk the halls" of Yale, he earned from Yale a bachelors Degree in history, something most reading this post could use a lesson or two in, he later earned a MBA from Harvard, you know Obama's Alma matter.He later defeated a very popular Democrat governor from Texas which is arguably one of the largest economies on the planet.

Why would you try to dimish the merit of those accomplishments?

Do you have a personal ax to grind with the President?

Ricardo

where are the wmd. the inspectors did not find anything and the world did not find wmd. how many human beings have been killed and wounded since we invaded Iraq. Are we getting praised by the world for invading war. War is not the answer, whether it is iran vs iraq or anyone else

MIKE SAUNDERS, YOU QUESTION RUTHLESS?????

If you REALLY need a HISTORY lesson in what has been said ABOUT Obama in these comment threads the past few months "that INDEED is RUTHLESS" I will be happy to go back over the comments by those of the Silent majority group and list them in a separate post (unlike  Cobos) who hi-jacked Jay's post with is lengthy COPY and Paste about Saddam.

My comment above has NOTHING to do with Party lines. I am a life long Republican, turned Independent in this election and voted for Obama because I am sick and tired of Party line division in this country. I voted twice for Bush and REPENT of the second vote in 2004.

I am an American FOR America and until WE ALL get our POLITICAL OPINIONS OUT OF OUR OWN ASS'S and become UNITED we will continue to be the DIVIDED STATES OF AMERICA. Godliness begins with our own household and EXTENDS to the world. I see A LOT of diverse GARBAGE extended on this "professional (??) site.

Just because you Republicans believe the Democrats hated Bush DOES NOT JUSTIFY your own personal hate for Obama.

But then I speak as a Christian GOD FEARING woman and not of ANY political persuasion.  

As I stated before what a SAD SAD commentary on the state of humanity. BUT you ALLwill continue to excuse yourselves. Regardless of weather those excuses hold water before God.

Refeeq - What is your definition'weapons of mass destruction'?  How many people must a weapon kill to be called WMD? A hundred, a thousand, a hundred thousand, or a million. And what type of weapon would you call a WMD? Nuclear, chemical, or biological?  The Army has found more than 500 chemical artillery rounds in Iraq that are capable of killing thousands.  Or what about the nucclear material that was moved from Iraq to Canada last year.  You have not heard - thank your mainstream media.

Jay - Sorry your blog was about the USA Today poll.  Hey another reason its circulation is dropping like a stone. 

I guess that is why Barack Obama is most admired man. He wants to promote Peace and diplomacy

LINDA - RUTHLESS; ADVERB; having no pity....OK Linda I confess; I have no pity on the President Elect because he did this to himself with his wholesale arrogance but when did questioning a mans character and moral fiber become hatred?

Rafeeq  hi-jacked the blog with his nonsense about WMD and Clinton Budget Surplus Myth  so your anger, like most Obama supporters is misdirected.

One last thing; Jesus said 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." (NIV, Mark 12:28-31) I'm not feelin your love Linda....Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.....

Every time I read someone commenting in long sentences in bold or BOLD CAPITAL LETTERS, I see a wonderful picture of a person standing up with their chair pushed back, both hands on either side of the monitor screen, screaming at and beating their monitor off the surface of their desk. Like I said a beautiful picture. 

Thanks for the laugh.

Ricardo - No love there.

I think that Obama's message of hope and belief in the American people will do a lot to help us come together and get out of this economic and mental funk that the country has been in.

Marcy

Sorry guys but you are SO Wrong. I Have NO ANGER IN ME. I have always wrote my comments and emphasis in bold black capital letters when I am stating ANYTHING of importance to me personally. I am quite content spending my last  days, weeks or months in complete peace and faith that the mess this country is in has been a WAKE UP call to ALL of our politicians and they will work diligently FOR THE PEOPLE in the next 4 years and beyond. HOPE is what we all should be filled with.

I will continue wishing wholeheartedly that those of you so pitted against the "political"condition of this country and the President elect will find Good in what's to come instead of the "know it all" behavior you gentlemen reflect here in your continual, derogatory writings about Obama.

Brian,  Evil tends to see evil itself . Perhaps you saw a reflection of your self. If ever you are in my area please stop in and visit myself, my family, my neighbors and my church peers and they beyond a doubt will share with you that I am the most peaceful loving giving woman who is READY to meet my maker. Perhaps because my time is limited-------

I AM EXTREMELY PASSIONATE when I see all the ridicule against ANY President elect ON A PROFESSIONAL (???) WEBSITE.

Is this type of behavior what the founders of this site REALLY had in mind? THERE ARE political sites for this type of Rhetoric AGAINST THE LEADERS OF THIS COUNTRY.

And oh by the way. I wanted Romney for President. I voted for Obama because I felt he was the lessor of the two evils we had to choose from. I would have voted for ANYONE BUT McCain/Palin.

I think Obama has a unique ability to communicate with the American public.  He may or may not be successful in turning around this mess but I give him my support (even though I didn't vote for him.)  I wish him and this country only the best.

Diane

I agree with your views on this . I didn't vote for him, but will not diminsh him either. President Bush was denied a great deal of respect while in office. He took it like a statesman.

I agree with Hughs first comment.  I believe its a sad day when ANY politician is the most admired person in America...

My, my, the stain of sour grapes appears to be all over some of the comments to this well-meaning post.  The sore losers are certainly not paying attention to what John McCain said in his gracious and eloquent concession speech,

"I've always believed that America offers opportunities to all who have the industry and will to seize it. Sen. Obama believes that, too...I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited."

Eric - Are you suggesting those of us who did not support Obama for president should now switch off our opinions and blindly follow him where ever he may lead us? McCain lost the election - and you know that because you quoted from his concession speech, let's look forward and examine the man and the issues since neither were done during the longest political campaign in American history.

Because  we conservatives won't crawl under our desks and cower you call it sour grapes but I call it exercising Freedom of Speech. After all it's not like Pres Bush hasn't been on the receiving end of that right for every day since election night 2000! To the victor goes the spoils but it is not without  consequence.

Albeit some who didn't vote for the exalted one may be sour but I haven't seen any evidence of that in this thread. To the contrary I am hearing more Bush-Bashing from Obama supporters.

According the poll only 32% of those respondents claimed to admire him most. That means more than two thirds do not feel that way about him. Therefore the headline should Read "Two Thirds of American polled do not admire Obama most". However to his credit he is far ahead of George Bush who is solidly in second place with only 5% and for the the record, President Bush  received the award for the past seven years in a row!

Because  Obama won the award with less than 1/3 approval he is in a phrase "the lepper with the most fingers, the least despised of all politicians".

Linda Mae McCameron - yes, I do question ruthless. There were no "ruthless" comments in this post, up until that point. And, as for comments on Obama, there was nothing near as ruthless as what had been said about Bush, or even McCain and especailly Palin. And while you sit in judgement of all, I am not a republican (nor a democrat although at one time I was), nor have I expressed any hatred for Obama.But, in your enlightened state I guess that any comment/criticism is ruthless and hate filled as long as it doesn't praise the annointed one.

Dang, give the dude a chance.  Even before he is sworn in, people are complaining about everything Obama has done.  He can't pick the right cabinet, he went to Hawaii, he can't even pick the right dog.  Come on, I don't care what political party you are in, Obama IS the next President, and we should at least see what he can do before we put him down.

Brian you are right... The problem is that most of the people complaining about him are the people who voted for him as far as him picking the wrong people for his cabinet and inviting the wrong people to his innaugural ceremony.. Its actually pretty comical.

Ricardo,

The quote was John McCain's words, not mine.  Like your glowing description of Eisenhower above, John McCain was a war hero and the standard bearer of his political party.  And McCain put it well in his concession speech.  He asked that Obama's foes put aside their envy, their bitterness and their petty political interests and offer our new President "our good will and earnest effort".  It takes a big person to make such a gracious statement as McCain did, especially when he's just lost an election by nearly eight million votes.

No one's asking you to "cower" or give up your right to free speech.  If you don't like the results of a meaningless USA Today poll, you're entitled to your opinion, but it's hardly an issue to get angry about.  Being jealous of Obama's popularity or calling him "exalted" sounds rather petty.

Eric - of course those were McCains words that's why I wrote = "McCain lost the election - and you know that because you quoted from his concession speech, let's look forward and examine the man and the issues since neither were done during the longest political campaign in American history."

I am not angry and I don't think any of my words can be legitimately categorized as such by any reasonable person.

Regarding my "glowing description of Eisenhower" his record speaks for itself and so does Obamas - I posted them for comparison sake and frankly it says more about you and I and our fellow Americans that these two men will have shared the same office than it does either men.

As for McCain being "the standard-bearer" of the GOP of course you are mistaken! At least  3% of registered GOP voters didn't even bother casting a presidential vote because he was the nominee but voted the rest of the ticket this year because McCain is no more the "standard bearer" of the GOP than Bill and Hillary are happy for Obama.Recall in '04 McCain was seriously considering a VeeP nod from John Kerry.

Ricardo, McCain never seriously considered being Kerry's VP.

With regards to the Eisenhower comparison - Eisenhower's military accomplishments make every subsequent president appear unqualified.  However, the presidency requires more than military expertise and certainly requires more than what Bush had to offer.

When your at the bottom, you have nowhere left to go but up. Right now people are looking up and are optimistic about what Obama wants to do.

I think people (myself included), have hope that Obama is going to be the catalyst for change in this country. It remains to be seen if he turns out to be just another politician or the wave of change we think he is.

The fact that GOP will not admit its mistakes will take them a long time to be relevant again in this country. They've been marginalized to the Good 'Ole Boys network in the South, where they'll stay for at least another cycle.

March 13 2004 - Associated Press

Republican Sen. John McCain allowed a glimmer of hope Wednesday for Democrats fantasizing about a bipartisan dream team to defeat President Bush.

McCain said he would consider the unorthodox step of running for vice president on the Democratic ticket ? in the unlikely event he received such an offer from the presidential candidate.

"John Kerry is a close friend of mine. We have been friends for years," McCain said Wednesday when pressed to squelch speculation about a Kerry-McCain ticket. "Obviously I would entertain it."

March 14, 2004 - MSNBC

Biden endorses a fusion ticket: Kerry-McCain

By Mike Stuckey MSNBC.com Politics Editor updated 2:06 a.m. ET, Wed., March. 17, 2004

One of the presidential nominating season's most unusual ideas was proposed again Tuesday, this time by one of the most powerful Democrats in Congress, when Sen. Joseph Biden advocated a "unity" ticket of Democratic Sen. John Kerry and Republican Sen. John McCain.

Biden made his comments on MSNBC TV's "Hardball" when moderator Chris Matthews asked him: "Do you think McCain is seriously — and I mean this professionally — flirting with the idea of accepting a second place on the ticket with John Kerry, and creating a fusion ticket to run against the president?" Replied Biden: "I think that this is time for unity in this country, and maybe it is time to have a guy like John McCain — a Republican — on the ticket with a guy he does like. They do get along. And they don't have fundamental disagreements on major policies."

Jay - the non partisan group American Conservative Union has given John Kerry a with a lifetime rating of 5.56 fro a scale to 100 after reviewing his 23 years of service; This rating makes him more liberal in his voting record than Obama who is rated 7.67! Therefore the fact that Biden whose rating is 13.4 and Kerry both liked him as a potential VP pick and that McCain "Obviously would Entertain it" underscores my point - he isn't the so called standard bearer of the GOP because any true conservative or Republican wouldn't consider such a bone-headed move even though his chief of staff immediately renounced the statement it was a moment of truth where the camel got his nose under the tent and the true McCain was revealed! A true Conservative wouldn't even "entertain the idea".

http://www.usatoday.com/news/politicselections/nation/president/2004-03-10-mccain-vp_x.htm
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4542473
http://www.acuratings.org/2007all.htm#MA

Regarding the 2004 election, earlier this year John McCain said - "John Kerry asked if I would consider being his running mate ... And I categorically said 'no'."

Before you make the rather odd claim that I am "mistaken" about McCain having been the 2008 GOP standard-bearer, you might want to do some research.

A political standard bearer is defined as the nominated representative or delegate of a political party.  The term "standard bearer" is commonly used to describe a political party's nominee, and it has been in usage since McKinley was president.

Are you seriously denying that McCain was nominated at the GOP national convention in Saint Paul, Minnesota this past September, on the first ballot?  That McCain pleged to uphold the GOP platform, drafted by the party's platform committee and ratified by delegates?  That the GOP National Committee spent tens of millions airing television and radio spots on McCain's behalf this year?

Maybe what you mean to say is that you perceive McCain to be some sort of traitor to the conservative cause.  I guess that list of "traitors" might include military hero Colin Powell and conservative writer Christopher Buckley (son of the famous William F. Buckley), both of whom endorsed Obama. 

Eric - McCain WAS the standard bearer until he lost the election, he is now just another senator who thinks he should be president. He IS NOT the standard bearer of the GOP and to date there isn't one.  As for Colin Powel, it is clear that he has a political ax to grind because waiting until the last 30 days of a 20 month campaign to throw your support behind a candidate isn't really an endorsement. Where was his support when Obama was having trouble putting Clinton away jun -  aug? Regardless it doesn't change anything- Obama still has the thinnest resume of any would be American President and you like 32% of America admire him more than any other man in America surley as a result.

God bless you and your family in '09.