Glow Fading?

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  • Posted By: Nickberry @ 07/12/2008 10:57:17 AM

    Interestingly.... I have read several comments here and elsewhere on the Web that blame the media for Obama not being further ahead in the polls.... Like it is some kind of conspiracy to elect John McCain. I will therefore recommend that Obama supporters only tune into MSNBC's Keith Olbermann for all their news so that they do not hear any criticism about Obama and plenty about McCain's faux pas incidents. They also only report polls favorable to Obama. In other words, you can remain in your bubble of Obama optimism, and not be distracted by reality.

    Reality is that this a Presidential Election season and both candidates are targets.

    By the way, the Obama pundits said that the McCain idea to lift the ban on off-shore oil drilling would bury him. Looks to not be true, because polling shows great favorability towards the drilling nationally and among many, many states (with the exception of California and Washington).


    • Posted By: notroubleatall1963 @ 07/12/2008 11:03:33 AM

      Drilling will not take place right away - first, they have to explore for oil. The oil companies already lease millions of acres and haven't bothered exploring for oil on their existing leases for the past eight years, under Bush Jr.

      So once they find oil, in a few years' time, they can then begin drilling - it won't hit the markets for at least 7 or 8 years from now.

      It's just because Americans are kept in the dark about the oil business that they are mislead, once again, by the Conservattive party. Good luck, twits. We will get the leader we deserve. Probably, the chickens will outnumber the foxes once again, and we will have a moron in the White House. Depressing.

      • Posted By: Jill from Florida @ 07/12/2008 11:09:59 AM

        You are obviously a benefactor of the Kennedy dumbed down education.

        WHERE ARE WE GOING TO GET OUR OIL IF WE DON'T START LOOKING?
        Or, did I type that too fast for you?

        • Posted By: Micky Marsh @ 07/12/2008 12:31:12 PM

          Open your eyes, they've been looking but no telling, perhaps we should check out their back yard

  • Posted By: olderwiser @ 07/12/2008 12:17:44 PM

    After what Mc Cain called his wife in public, I don't think that he can pretend to be a religious man. He'd do better to just claim to go to church on Christmas and Easter and let it go at that. We don't need religion in government, anyway. Any hypocrite can dress up and go to a church to look holy, but it's just a waste of a good Sunday Morning. It shouldn't really matter. He is an executive. Does the books and numbers for the country. Things like that. And, besides, look how politically unreliable ministers are. A president can go to stand beside one of them on one day, and then the minister might be caught soliciting a prostitute on the streets the next. Then, the politician who thought he was getting the religious vote suddenly is standing right beside the minister in the minds of the public soliciting a prostitute on the corner. Reverend Wright is another good example of that. Just look what Obama's association did for him after Wright damned America. Just stay home on Sunday, candidates, and get down to telling us how you intend to run this country. Send the church a twenty every Sunday and stay away from the minister's effort to gain from your prestige in office. And for God's sake, get us the hell out of Iraq forthwith. No bones about it.

    • Posted By: HolyRoller @ 07/12/2008 12:29:02 PM

      You are very clear about, getting out of Iraq. I have a very simple question. If we bring all the troops out, and civil war breaks out, killing hundreds of thousands, and the Iran invades, killing millions and destabilizing the entire region...What do you suggest the U.S. does. I'm curious. Your handle is olderwiser. I think it's misleading at best. WE ARE THERE. It will not change anytime soon. We need to clean up the mess. McCain will do that. Hussein will get us in a much larger conflict.

      Hussein Obama loves America. Like O.J. loved Nicole.

      NOBAMA!!!

  • Posted By: SAGG @ 07/12/2008 12:28:56 PM

    Posted By: Boulder Sue @ 07/12/2008 12:17:58 PM
    Comment: Mayor Ed Koch had a saying that went something like this: " If you agree with me 9 out of 12 times, vote for me. I f you agree with me 12 out of 12 times, you need a psychiatrist" Ditto Obama. Think of the far reaching consequences of electing McCain: Supreme Court and other court appointmentments, his dedication to " winning" the war in Iraq (at what further cost in blood, money and international relations, the economy and his drill anywhere anytime philisophy, not to mention his opposition to VA benefits. Think of his pal Phil Gramm and their agreement that the recession and the rough time you are and I are have financially is all in our heads. I guess with that last tank of gas I just breathed in too many fumes and I only imagined it was more that twice what I would have paid 8 years ago, 'til I get the MasterCard bill...Yes, I am upset about the the Fisa vote by Obama,, too. I guess that's one of three of twelve I disagree with him on. So I will write a letter, more than one letter, urging possible criminal investigations re; FISA, and Valerie Plame, etc. once he becomes President, if you all who demand a 12 for 12 rating don't prevent me from doing so. Write to the guy and let's see if we can get some sort of commitment on that. We'll NEVER get it from McCain, and you know it! Please don't cut off your noses to spite your faces! If any of you watched the recent "John Adams" series on HBO you know that some of our Founders discovered the hard way that one of the disadvantages of Democracy is that it works slowly, but it is still better than royal or other types of fiat.. Gramm called us a nation of whiners. Can we please prove him wrong and do something about what we don't like, and have a little patience? Would you care for a president Obama or (horrors!) McCain handing down rule by fiat like George III or George W.? Remember that someone we all admired (I think) talked about politics being the art of the possible.

    Amen, sister!! Right on!!

  • Posted By: Splainin2Do @ 07/12/2008 11:58:48 AM

    As a religious voter, I was swinging toward McCain because Obama was a Muslim. Then I learned he was a Christian. So I swung to Obama. Then I heard of few soundbites in the media from his minister. So I leaned to McCain because of Obama's "Pastor Problem." Will the media please tell me if McCain has a Pastor Problem? I know he is an Episcopalian. They haven't covered it. I guess he doesn't have a problem. Or does he not have a Pastor?

    • Posted By: LoriInMo @ 07/12/2008 12:27:30 PM

      To answer your question, No, McCain has no pastor problem. He attends services in Arizona when he is home. He is a good and decent man who loves God, family and country and you won't go wrong with a vote for him. He has 2 sons fighting in Iraq right now but isn't the type to make a big point of talking about it . He and his wife also have a daughter who had a disability that they adopted from overseas. He is a Christian man who actually lives his faith rather than just talking about it to garner votes. God Bless :)

    • Posted By: notroubleatall1963 @ 07/12/2008 12:04:11 PM

      McCain's "god" is his country and his military record. If you want a war-mongering president, vote for McCain.

      If you want to stop wasting time, money and Iraqi lives (not to mention our own soldiers' lives and limbs) then vote for Obama. He's the TRUE Christian, not the arseholes who want to spend trillions to kill hundreds of thousands of people and displace millions of innocent people from their rightful homes (in Iraq). What kind of religion would ever support a country who does all that to another country - all for oil and rights of access to precious oil. To feed our gluttonous appetite for oil.

      You want to vote for the Christian, not the Devil in Disguise (GOP).

  • Posted By: notroubleatall1963 @ 07/12/2008 10:53:10 AM

    The only reason McCain't is catching up is because the owners of all the media outlets are scared that Obama might truly win the White House. They are giving McCain't a ton of press coverage in recent weeks - if you look around at all the major media outlets online and in the broadcast press, McCain is grabbing a lot of the headlines. This too shall pass.

    Please don't tell me that we Americans are SO STUPID that we will indeed settle for sheer MEDIOCRITY, LACK OF BRAINS, and STATUS QUO --- and elect another MORON for our leader? Please God, let it not be true.

    Obama is the clear winner overseas - in terms of improving and bossting our image. Don't throw that away in Bush-Jr-cowboy-style and let the rednecks in this country dictate who our leader is going to be -- another MORE OF THE SAME, McSAME.

    Ugh, it's too depressing. I will have to migrate to France and renounce my citizenship. I could no longer be proud to be an US Citizen if McCain and the Conservatives prevail once again. throw up! puke.

    • Posted By: IndependentforMcCain @ 07/12/2008 12:13:58 PM

      Go for it, except France is being run by a conservative. In fact, so is England, Germany, Italy and France... your choices are getting slimmer

  • Posted By: Micky Marsh @ 07/12/2008 12:09:10 PM

    Newsweek painted a dark photo of Barack Obama, but look closely there seem to be a light at the end of the tunnel.

  • Posted By: olderwiser @ 07/12/2008 12:06:49 PM

    The crowds in the primaries cheered to the rafters when he said that we were getting out of Iraq promptly. Senators have the privilege to go to Iraq just any time they want to and check things out. He didn't go there before he started campaigning to check things out. We didn't care whether he did or not, we just cheered to the rafters to get the hell out, figuring that any fool knew that we don't belong there, and never did. Then, after being nominated, he made it seem that now he would go there to talk to those "on the ground" and see if it would be wise to get out of there promptly. That's when the cheers fell from the rafters to the floor in a heap of awe and disappointment and we realized that he is just another ordinary hot air politician who speaks for the convenience of the day. We began to wonder if this is the same thing that will happen to the other things that we cheered for in the primaries, like our medical treatment system, and who knows what else. It was almost as if Winston Churchill had said one day that "we will fight them on land, sea and in the air to the last man", and then the next day sent a telegram of surrender to Adolph Hitler. I was aghast, and now I've had my say about it. I won't send any more $25 donations to his campaign until I am able to see if all the rest of the air goes out of him, in which case I won't buy a popped balloon. I can get about five gallons of gas with that $25.

  • Posted By: partner56263009 @ 07/12/2008 11:50:36 AM

    "Obama's overall decline from the last NEWSWEEK Poll, published June 20, is hard to explain"

    It's actually not that hard to explain, but it may be hard for the media establishment to understand. It's because he abandoned his principled position on FISA. Contrary to popular narrative, recoiling in horror at the passage of the recent FISA bill is not a liberal instinct - it's an American one. That Obama supported such wretchedly flawed legislation is bad in itself, but the fact that he did so after vowing to *filibuster* any such legislation is particularly painful.

    I am an independent. I have sympathies with positions that fall on both sides of the false left-right divide. Until this past week I had the audacity to hope that Obama was not "Just Another F'ing Politician". Now I don't. I know he'll be a better president than Bush (that's a low bar to set), but I now doubt he has the courage or principle it will take to pull America out of the swamp it's drowning in.

  • Posted By: jnail @ 07/12/2008 11:25:43 AM

    This poll is nonsense once again. Barack was never up by 15 anymore than he is now statistically tied/+3. All the major polls are +5 to +8 and the number of states in play like MT, ND, AK even McCain's home state AZ tell us that McCain is in huge trouble.
    Anyone who really wants to track this election needs to go to www.fivethirtyeight.com for the most extensive and cirt

  • Posted By: Micky Marsh @ 07/12/2008 11:23:44 AM

    statistically McCain and Obama are in a dead heat according to NewsWeek, having Obama ahead by 3 points. Back to One - on - One hoop; McCain seem to be shooting those 3 pointers well. Perhaps Obama should seek a little defensive help from former Secretary of State, Colin Powell.

  • Posted By: Splainin2Do @ 07/12/2008 11:21:20 AM

    This piece is just nonsense. This is the press covering themselves conducting a poll. Look how they use the big headline "Glow fading?" They bury the fact that their polls have been at odds with most other polls, and dismiss criticism by citing the one poll that came relatively close to theirs earlier. Instead of asking "Glow fading?" they could have asked "Poll flawed?" But that would have required a degree of self doubt our press corps never has when looking at itself.

  • Posted By: mmeland @ 07/12/2008 11:06:48 AM

    One of the problems of polling is that reporters often go out of their way trying to explain a swing rather than question the poll itself. Somehow the notion of independent, biased-free reporting doesn't extend to questioning the work done by the reporter's employer. So instead the reporter must do anything to rationalize a tidal swing when in fact the only obvious explanation is error in the polling itself. While the story addresses these issues, questions about the poll are buried and don't get much analysis compared with the attempts to rationalize the swings based on assumptions of accuracy. Clearly, the last Newsweek poll was an outlier compared with almost every other poll (see Real Clear Politics) and has now corrected itself to the norm compared with the polls by Gallup, Rasmussen, etc. That's the real story, and frankly I wish that Newsweek had shown the courage to tell it.

    • Posted By: notroubleatall1963 @ 07/12/2008 11:16:36 AM

      You can't take each poll as "gospel truth" obviously. The last Newsweek poll was reflective of "Obama's Bounce" after winning the presumptive nomination. And that is sort of a natural high.

      For all you who are so comforted that your old fart candidate McCain't has a prayer in winning the White House, I'm very happy for you.

      But your attitude is the downfall of our country's strength, and shows the HUGE GAP between average Americans' perceptions and the rest of the world's. Are you that SURE you're RIGHT? Is the RIGHT really the best way forward? I don't think so.

      I think the election has been boring up until now - maybe with the two candidates in more of a dead-heat status, the campaign will become more exciting and more people will be watching the pundits on TV, buying newspapers, magazines, and commenting on the blogs like this one.

      The bottom line - sell more news.

      • Posted By: Jill from Florida @ 07/12/2008 11:20:48 AM

        No, the only polls that count are the voting polls (booths) in November.

  • Posted By: sebr01stl @ 07/12/2008 1:11:55 AM

    McCain is benefitting from the GOP stepping in and focusing his undisciplined a$$ and all that private donor money that they've raised to out advertise Obama in swing states. Plus the media has a love affair with him, passing on practicalle every gaff, turning every criticism into a critique on his war record like "Swift Boating," like he's untouchable or something, while they follow Obama around like a lapdog and then spin everything against him. Obama didn't "flip" on FISA/wiretapping. He conceded a compromise bill, one that was more of a compromise than the first edition of that bill that he voted no on/opposed. The perfect can't be the enemy of the good. You can't vote against everything until it reads exactly like you want it, or nothing will get done. He also didn't lurch to the political center/middle with the faith-based initiatives. We're forgetting that he got his political start working as a community organizer WITH LOCAL CHURCHES. Faith-based initiatives would be right up his alley, actually. And he didn't flip on guns/2nd Amendment, torture/habeus corpus/Guantanamo Bay, the death penalty, or the War in Iraq. he has always supported the right to bear arms in principle, just with the states ALSO being able to restrict that right for public safety, and the right to execute the most heinous of offenders in principle, just that states should decide when, how, who, and not abuse the practice by executing minorities more (base only on racial profiling) or not being consistent with how that sentence is given.

    • Posted By: sebr01stl @ 07/12/2008 1:35:11 AM

      He wants to get the troops out of Iraq as soon and as safely as possible (not indefinite, non-combat, but still military presence, like Mccaint). His goal is one to two troops , within 16 mos; but, if he can't get them out in that time, it will have to be a little bit longer, but not much longer and not indefinitely so. He will listen to the commanders on the gorund, but he will also LEAD (the commanders aren't the Commander in Chief), with the public's interests in ending a war with no clear, obtainable objectives, and high costliness of life and financially to our economy, to focus our mission in Afghanistan, on finding bin Laden. He will talk DIPLOMATICALLY, rather than running headlong into invading other nations, disregardng the UN and our allies, with hotdog, cowboy tactics, like the shrub. This isn't rocket science. he was just never as "left" as the neocons tried to make him out to be. His economics more favor the middle class, giving tax rebates to those earning below $200k (without raising their taxes, which will eventually have to be if we want to chip into the national deficit), rather than the cuts for the wealthy that Mccain wants to continue from the shrub, for those earning in the upper 1-5%; his energy policy is less pandering, more honest, and environmentally friendly. McCaint's call to drill more, rather than REFINE more and force oil companies to use the leases that they already have that aren't being used, is more of the same pandering as with the gas tax holiday, especially since he was opposed to it before, when he was an environmental 'maverick' moderate, and not the Bush-hugger that he has become now.

      • Posted By: tee866 @ 07/12/2008 11:18:57 AM

        The oil companies can't drill on the leases they already have if the gov. doesn't let them and as it sits now the Dem congress are telling them no left and right so tell me again how they should drill what they already have. And yes we need more refinery's to refine the oil but again there hasn't been a new one built since the 80's, so let them build them.We have a pipeline in Alaska already in place and not even going at 100% why because they don't want to hurt the envorment but hey thats ok we're only paying 4.00+ for gas

      • Posted By: jsmith1961 @ 07/12/2008 2:02:53 AM

        How can he lead the military as commander in chief when he has ZERO experience in military issues. It is best to listen to the experts (the commanders on the ground) when making military decisions. When it comes to diplomacy, it only works when the other side can be trusted. You do nothing with telling the next door thug that if he stops committing crimes you will give him a million dollars. He will take the million dollars and the next day go back to committing the same crimes. And finally about the oil companies claim that "they need to refine more, they need be forced to drill in the areas they already have leased", all the people saying these things have NO CLUE of how the oil business works. Only about a quarter of leased lands are producing any oil whatsoever, oil companies take years to map the land to actually determine if there is any oil or gas before making the highly costly decision to start drilling in an area. Also "use it or lose it" has been for a very long time the law of the land. Leases are for either 5 or 10 years and if they don't find oil in that time they lose the leased areas.Get informed: http://www.zibb.com/article/3441197/Democrats'+Disingenuous+Claims+on+%22Use+It+or+Lose+It%22+Energy+Bill+Proven+False?expired=2959433

        • Posted By: sebr01stl @ 07/12/2008 2:48:32 AM

          jsmith1961, what happens when all the oil to be found in the U.S. is drilled and refined, used? What about the oil that we EXPORT? Don't talk to me about getting informed. Oil in the U.S. is not a renewable energy source; you're only postponing the inevitable, or continuing dependence on foreign oil. Could the USSR be trusted during the Cold War? They could become a democracy from talks, though communist, but we can't stop terrorism from the Middle East from coming to our shores unless we strike preemptively at any and every country in that region, with unlimited man power (that we don't have) and money that we have to BORROW from China? Are you kidding me? You'd buy any war that any Repub would try to sell. There are already five companies waiting with contracts for the Iraqi oil. Is that a coincidence when Bush had already mentioned his vendetta that saddam hussein had "lied to his daddy," there were no WMDs, and with all that he and his oil rich family and Cheney stood to gain? Their president has asked us to set a timetable or leave. Will Bush or McCain comply? Will Patraeus imcorporate that into his strategy? And let's talk about Mccain's plans to "bomb Iran" BEFORE the missile tested crisis, or that they should die from us sending over cigarettes. That's not warmongering though, right? And I can think of plenty of presidents who didn't serve. One recent one, who brought the economy from near recession to eceonomic boom, comes to mind: Bill Clinton. Nice try. Diplomacy works, if it's backed up with economic threats and truly TRIED. Why don't you stop drinking the GOP koolaid.

      • Posted By: sebr01stl @ 07/12/2008 2:26:02 AM

        Obama's policies are also more women and children "friendly" than McCan't's as well. He is pro-choice, pro universal healthcare, pro education, particularly early childhood. Unlike poster taztak, I believe that his voting record, if one has truly looked it up (and Illinois Senate legislation) DO represent what he "believes" and "wants," and that those are germaine and relevant to the American public, and quite realistic. Also, I'd prefer a candidate of conviction and integrity he runs on what he believes to be true and wants for the American people rather than pandering. McCainthas flipped and flopped so much, perenially so, that he even he doesn't know where he stands or stood any more. Other than Obama not being in the U.S. Senate that long (compared to McCan't's Senate "bubble" and POW status, hardly qualification for leadership simply because he was/is a war hero), and being black - which shouldn't be an issue, but he'll never overcome the ignorance of non-hispanic whites who PERSIST in believing that it was Obama (and not Keith Ellison who IS the only muslim in the U.S. Senate), who was sworn in on a Koran, raised muslim, school in an Indonesian madrassa, etc., despite information to the contrary because they want to believe the fear-provoking lies about the "other" to justify their antipathy towards a black candidate - other than these hindrances, this shouldn't be that difficult of a choice between Obama and McCain. sharenews, I'm sorry; but, that kind of rhetoric only fractures, refuses to support the nominee, and helps ensure the election of the opponent, your goal, I'm sure. It does not "bring us together," or honor the wishes of the candidate whom you support, who has endorsed the nominee.

  • Posted By: char12 @ 07/12/2008 10:59:13 AM

    People are finally seeing who Obama is. A thug and a fake. Like the World War II vet said, "He will never be President as he doesn't even have the spine of a piss ant." He also told me the media will go down in History as the worst ever - sheltering this man and not exposing him.

    • Posted By: notroubleatall1963 @ 07/12/2008 11:06:41 AM

      Don't confuse a brilliant political leader with some street punk just because they share the same skin color. Your prejudice is only marred by your fear - fear of electing someone who could really HELP America move forward, and fear of change. That means you can all elect the same-old type of candidate.

      QUESTION: If you all love McCain so much, why the HELL did you let BUSH JR swiftboat him 8 years ago??? HE should have been our President then, not now. It's too late, idiots. He's too old. And stale, and too conservative. Yeeeccccchhhhhh. OVerthrow the tyrants who own this country and get someone savvy, smart and intellectual to run the show.

      Forget about McCain't - he's suboptimal by now.

      • Posted By: Jill from Florida @ 07/12/2008 11:17:56 AM

        Who mentioned skin color - YOU!

  • Posted By: steve1128 @ 07/12/2008 11:15:29 AM

    It's not that hard to explain the swing. At the time of the 15% lead, the average of all polls showed a lead for Obama of about 5-6%. At the time of the 3% lead, the average of all polls shows a lead for Obama of about 5-6%. Big swings in voter sentiment make good headlines but polling errors make more sense.

  • Posted By: vidal123 @ 07/12/2008 11:15:16 AM

    obama's mistake is he is thinking that we support him because of his charisma rather than issues. Big mistake cute guy..

  • Posted By: suzyku @ 07/12/2008 11:05:07 AM

    OBAMA 08!!!! MCSAME/MCBUSH NO, NO, NO!

  • Posted By: suzyku @ 07/12/2008 11:04:14 AM

    According to other polls such as the CNN Poll of Polls today, Obama has an 8 point lead over McCain!

  • Posted By: pmcs @ 07/12/2008 10:50:37 AM

    The same public elected George Walker Bush TWICE.

    The same public is voting again. It can easily be McCain and the same public will WHINE every single waking minute for another 4 years.

    We do not deserve to be the democratic superpower of the world anymore. In fact, we have the judgement of the people of the worst countries in the world -- Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, ...

    Waht a pitty. Shame on us.

    • Posted By: Jill from Florida @ 07/12/2008 11:01:25 AM

      You are guilty of stereotyping. Not only did I not vote for Bush (Papa and W), I actually volunteered 1000's of hours to get out the votes for the Democratic nominees. I spent the entire month of October, 2004 going door to door for John Kerry (I preferred Edwards over Kerry - but I WAS LOYAL.)

      Until I started researching the most economically disastrous laws, I thought my liberal Democrats walked on water. Now, I see in black and white that it WAS those NEOLIBERAL Democrats who made those damning laws that caused small businesses to close their doors, to export our manufacturing plants and giving tax breaks for doing so.

      Not only do I NOT have any love for the NEOLIBERAL Democrats - I have realized I was betrayed for 35 years by their propaganda of blaming the Republicans for our woes. NEVER AGAIN!!

    • Posted By: notroubleatall1963 @ 07/12/2008 10:59:43 AM

      Yes, it's just totally depressing that we share the same country with so many MORON, CHICKEN-SH--s who can't seem to wrap their heads around positive change, forward-thinking progress, and an smart, savvy president who is respected overseas.

      Instead, they lean toward the tried-and-true, stupid old fart ho has a "war hero" credentials. It jus tgoes to show you how poor our educational system is in the US.

      We are failing our own citizens by depriving them of solid, excellent educational opportunities, and they in turn are bringing the future of the country down. We are slumping toward a decline in strength - economic, intellectual, diplomatic, and infrastructure - because the majority of poorly educated folks are voting for less-than-optimal leadership.

      This, if McCain truly does prevail, will be the true start of our rapid decline and fall from superpower status, except in our MILITARY prowess, and eve that is fast becoming weaker and worn out.

      Old, conservative powers - let them prevail and bring down the entire country with their stale old ideas and advancement of sheer mediocrity. What a terrible waste for the rest of us to have to witness.

  • Posted By: dumpthedems @ 07/12/2008 11:01:08 AM

    pmcs... sounds like you got pms
    McCain 08

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