What Are We Talking About When We Talk About Ayers?
During a Chicago Public Radio discussion yesterday, Public Affairs host Jeff Berkowitz made the argument that Barack Obama's assocation with Bill Ayers "reflects bad judgment" and that John McCain should have broached the issue during the debate Tuesday night. "...
During a Chicago Public Radio discussion yesterday, Public Affairs host Jeff Berkowitz made the argument that Barack Obama's assocation with Bill Ayers "reflects bad judgment" and that John McCain should have broached the issue during the debate Tuesday night. "I think it's worth a shot," Berkowitz said.
Tying Ayers to Obama's "judgment" in this way is commonplace on the right at the moment. Most prominently, Sarah Palin said on the stump this week that the relationship "goes to the heart of judgment of a person." Right-wing bloggers and conservative pundits have been arguing the same for months.
But judgment is a broad and subjective concept, one that can be construed and extrapolated in myriad directions. So as more and more commentators take to the airwaves to rail against Obama's faulty "judgment" in working with Ayers, I'd like to see hosts and anchors ask them to explain what this relationship supposedly tells us about how he would govern as president.
To put it another way, I'd like to hear some of the hypothetical "I told you so" moments that Republicans envision if Obama is elected. What do they foresee happening in an Obama administration that will lead them to say, "You should have listened to us when we were hollering about Ayers"?
If their suggestion really is that Obama is a sleeper radical, then they should be forced to articulate those views out loud. If they really think that on January 21, 2009, Obama is going to invite Ayers over to the White House so they can set off fire bombs throughout the West Wing, I want to hear them say it.
If they believe that Ayers is going to advise President Obama on matters of national policy, I want to hear them say it.
If they believe that the Ayers relationship signals that Obama will depart from his center-left legislative record and implement a radical policy agenda, I want to hear them say it.
If they're simply arguing that this association proves Obama is a poor politician, I want to hear them say it.
Maybe they believe the Ayers issue will manifest itself in other ways. If so, I'm all ears.
The underlying premise of the broad "judgment" claims boils down to this: "He's not who he says he is." And as subtext, it's powerful stuff. But when said out loud, those who support Obama can respond directly. For instance, if a Republican were to publicly argue that Obama's 15-year plan has been to hide his radical views until he reached the presidency, one could challenge this logic: If that's the case, why would he have publicly associated himself with Ayers in the first place? Wouldn't he have known that would blow his cover?
Further, when such specific scenarios are articulated, voters can assess them head-on. They can decide for themselves if these concerns are reasonable or paranoid. My guess is many would opt for the latter. And it seems the Republicans agree.
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"Recipe for greatness — To bear up under loss, to fight the bitterness of defeat and the weakness of grief, to be victor over anger, to smile when tears are close, to resist evil men and base instincts, to hate hate and to love love, to go on when it would seem good to die, to seek ever after the glory and the dream, to look up with unquenchable faith in something evermore about to be, that is what any man can do, and so be great." ~ Zane Grey
Clearly John McCain has lost his way and is now stumbling around in the darkness.
A lot of this campaign, including many mentions by Obama, have been about the judgment of the candidates. You have chosen to invent some hidden radical agenda.
The judgment question plays out in many ways in the decision making of the individual as President. A man that chooses a long, working relationship with a domestic terrorist is going to make many mistakes in their choices and judgments. Honestly, you are defending the indefensible. No one with sound judgment would make this choice. A person that can't choose his associates better then this cannot be trusted.
Rick,
The most obvious example of the Obama campaign making a judgment-related argument concerns the Iraq war. In that case, Obama has talked about the potential ramifications of McCain's bad judgment on this issue -- i.e, more reckless, unwarranted military conflicts.
In the case of the Ayers argument, no one is offering anywhere near as specific a cause-and-effect. For instance, you simply argue that Obama is going to "make many mistakes." I'm sorry, but that's just not convincing.
By the time Obama met Ayers, Ayers had become a fuddly old professor of education, just like Jerry Rubin became a stockbroker. I personally think it shows poor judgment to associate with fuddly old professors of education, who are invariably crashing bores at parties, but maybe it was good training for having to deal with journalists and politicians.
DOW below 9000. Let's talk about McCain and his economic policies all these years that have led us to the Great Depression II. Talk about poor judgement and honesty.
The truth is that BOTH tickets have dirt on their hands through their dirty associations.
Obama?
Obama served on an educational board w Ayers. Obama allowed Ayers to host a ''meet n greet'' for him during his early political career. Obama allowed scumbag Rezko to help his career, too. Obama sat in a pew for several years listening to a pastor that most Americans would say is a nutjob (''damn america,'' anger at whites, etc).
So clearly Obama has some associates with dirty hands.
McCain?
McCain served on a committee with KKK member Byrd. McCain allowed scumbag Keating to help McCain's political career, plus Keating took McCain's family on multiple vacations on his jet. In return, Keating asked McCain to use his political clout to ask the gvt regulators to go easy on Keating's fraudulent activities. As a result, Americans lost billions in retirement income, since McCain helped Keating's dirty activities continue undetected for a couple years. McCain also served on Singlaub's committee which was linked to nazi collaborators and Iran-Contra death squads
So clearly McCain has some associates with dirty hands.
Palin?
Palin is married to a member of the AIP, an organization founded on the principals of hatred of America and a movement to get Alaska to secede from the USA to form its own separate country. The AIPs founder is recorded saying that he doesnot even want to be buried in Alaska or under the American flag. He said that after Alaska is a free independent country, then his remains can be re-located to Alaska. Not only is Palin married to an AIP member, but she also has attended and spoken at AIP meetings. Also, Palin sat in a pew for several years listening to a pastor that most Americans would say is a nutjob (''speaking in tongues, laying on of hands, etc). And Palin has been palling around with Senator Stevens for years, profiting from Stevens' huge earmark spending and other assistance, and Stevens is now in big legal trouble for some dirty actions.
So clearly Palin has some associates with dirty hands.
To repeat...
BOTH the Obama/Biden and the McCain/Palin tickets have dirty associations that they have BOTH tried to downplay.
Can we PLEASE now get on to REAL issues? Here are 4 examples of REAL issues our presidentail candidates should be discussing...
The DOW is below 9000 today. My parents are retired in Wisconsin, flat broke over their escalating health care costs, and just lost a huge chunk of their retirement savings over the last month since the stock market is plummeting
My sister in Michigan is out of work and her local area has 12% unemployment. There are NO jobs. She can't move to an area of the country with more jobs, because there is no way to sell her house because she is WAY upside down on her mortgage and because houses simply are NOT selling in Michigan, anyway. My sister did NOT take out a subprime mortgage - her problem is purely related to a dive in real estate values and scarcity of jobs where she lives.
Or maybe we can talk about the fact that my health care insurance (Blue Cross Blue Shield) costs me $630 per month in premiums, yet it excludes SO many conditions that I have already paid $ 5,000 so far this year in costs that my insurance refused to pay... That's over 11,000 I've paid out of pocket so far this year (5,000 plus 630 per month). That doesn't just mean no Christmas presents this year.. it means maybe no HOUSE to live in this Christmas.
Or maybe we can talk about the fact that my cousin Mitch is only 18 yrs old. His dad died a couple years ago and Mitch wants to go to college. Mitch's mom makes only 38,000 per year and yet the govt told Mitch that his mom makes too much money for Mitch to get any govt help to help pay for a portion of college. Yet, oddly, the gvt has all the money in the world to give AIG money so their executives can go on a 400 K retreat.
Yet, McCain wants to trumpet up and down about Obama's questionable associations, forcing Obama to answer the allegations and focus all attention on NON-ISSUES.
I used to respect and admire John McCain so much. Last year when I found out McCain was running for Pres again, he was my favorite against all the other Republicans who were running. But I have no clue what has happened to McCain the last 4 months. I am sad to say I am done with McCain. I don't even know who he is anymore.
When I and my family are scared to lose our homes and we can't afford medical bills and can't find jobs and can't afford Christmas, do you REALLY think we are interested to listen to McCain harping about Ayers and Wright?
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