Home > Thinking Right > Archives > 2008 > June > 11
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
‘Can I afford the payments’ on Obama ride?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Is it “demonizing” Barack Obama to point out that he’s “the most liberal senator” in Congress? Mike Huckabee, auditioning for the vice presidential nomination on the Republican ticket, says “I think we will make a huge mistake if we try to demonize Barack Obama.” Is identifying him as a liberal demonizing him?
If so, the first big mistake goes to the lone Democrat in Oklahoma’s congressional delegation, Dan Boren, who is the son of former U.S. Senator David Boren. “I think this is an important time for our country,” Boren said in an interview with the Associated Press. “We’re facing a terrible economic downturn. We have high gasoline prices. We have problems in our foreign policy.”
While Obama talks about reaching across the aisle and fashioning a new Washington, “unfortunately his record does not reflect working in a bipartisan fashion.” Boren speaks the truth, of course. Obama is a factory-issue leftist who is as partisan as they come in Washington. There’s a real disconnect between the talk and the walk.
Boren represents a mostly rural district that gave two-thirds of its primary vote to Hillary Clinton. “We’re much more conservative,” he said. “I’ve got to reflect my district. No one means more to me than the people who elected me. I have to listen them… Our nominee is not my first choice.”
Huckabee, who made the comment about Republican activists demonizing Obama while campaigning for a state senator in New Hampshire, does have good political insticts, even though I far prefer a host of others to him as the vice presidential nominee.
“I’m grateful for Barack Obama and his magnificent climb and the journey he has made” as the first black positioned to win his party’s nomination.“As an American, I can obviously salute the extraordinary barriers that have been broken already in this election cycle. But…he has gone far enough this year because, ultimately, this election is not going to be about something symbolic, it [will] be about something substantive.” said Huckabee.
He compared the Obama surge to the new-car shopping experience. “When you got to the showroom, the car is really appealing; it’s got that new car smell and all the bells and whistles. But then you’ve got to decide, can I afford the payments? I think when people start looking at what Obama is saying, the very last thing they need in this tough economy is more tax burden on their families and their future.”
Question of the day: Will the new-car smell wear off before or after Democrats sign the contract and drive it out of the showroom? I’m betting that Boren is the first in a line of blue dog Democrats who know the full tab to be paid for picking the hybrid version of a shiny new McGovern-mobile. Promises 40 miles per gallon, delivers 12. And when the costs of buying off all the constituencies who assembled the Obama ride are factored in, working Americans will suffer an extreme case of sticker shock..
Services »
