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Topic: McCains 76 Flip-Flops
Lynann's photo
Fri 09/12/08 11:44 PM
Here's something interesting. I invite all of you to check this out. viewing This at the link below allows you to access pertinent info.

I have no issues with someone's position evolving and changing based on new information. So I dislike the term flip-flop. Some of these shifts are scary.


For links to the information please see the full article at http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/flipflops


Here’s the list.

National Security Policy

1. McCain thought Bush’s warrantless-wiretap program circumvented the law; now he believes the opposite.

2. McCain insisted that everyone, even “terrible killers,” “the worst kind of scum of humanity,” and detainees at Guantanamo Bay, “deserve to have some adjudication of their cases,” even if that means “releasing some of them.” McCain now believes the opposite.

3. He opposed indefinite detention of terrorist suspects. When the Supreme Court reached the same conclusion, he called it “one of the worst decisions in the history of this country.”

4. In February 2008, McCain reversed course on prohibiting waterboarding.

5. McCain was for closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay before he was against it.

6. When Barack Obama talked about going after terrorists in Pakistani mountains with predators, McCain criticized him for it. He’s since come to the opposite conclusion.

Foreign Policy

7. McCain was for kicking Russia out of the G8 before he was against it. Now, he’s for it again.

8. McCain supported moving “towards normalization of relations” with Cuba. Now he believes the opposite.

9. McCain believed the U.S. should engage in diplomacy with Hamas. Now he believes the opposite.

10. McCain believed the U.S. should engage in diplomacy with Syria. Now he believes the opposite.

11. McCain is both for and against a “rogue state rollback” as a focus of his foreign policy vision.

12. McCain used to champion the Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty’s behalf before a Senate committee. Now he opposes it.

13. McCain was against divestment from South Africa before he was for it.

Military Policy

14. McCain recently claimed that he was the “greatest critic” of Rumsfeld’s failed Iraq policy. In December 2003, McCain praised the same strategy as “a mission accomplished.” In March 2004, he said, “I’m confident we’re on the right course.” In December 2005, he said, “Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course.”

15. McCain has changed his mind about a long-term U.S. military presence in Iraq on multiple occasions, concluding, on multiple occasions, that a Korea-like presence is both a good and a bad idea.

16. McCain was against additional U.S. forces in Afghanistan before he was for it.

17. McCain said before the war in Iraq, “We will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” Four years later, McCain said he knew all along that the war in Iraq war was “probably going to be long and hard and tough.”

18. McCain has repeatedly said it’s a dangerous mistake to tell the “enemy” when U.S. troops would be out of Iraq. In May, McCain announced that most American troops would be home from Iraq by 2013.

19. McCain was against expanding the GI Bill before he was for it.

20. McCain staunchly opposed Obama’s Iraq withdrawal timetable, and even blasted Mitt Romney for having referenced the word during the GOP primaries. In July, after Iraqi officials endorsed Obama’s policy, McCain said a 16-month calendar sounds like “a pretty good timetable.”

Domestic Policy

21. McCain defended “privatizing” Social Security. Now he says he’s against privatization (though he actually still supports it.)

22. On Social Security, McCain said he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Soon after, asked about a possible increase in the payroll tax, McCain said there’s “nothing that’s off the table.”

23. McCain wanted to change the Republican Party platform to protect abortion rights in cases of rape and incest. Now he doesn’t.

24. McCain supported storing spent nuclear fuel at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. Now he believes the opposite.

25. He argued the NRA should not have a role in the Republican Party’s policy making. Now he believes the opposite.

26. In 1998, he championed raising cigarette taxes to fund programs to cut underage smoking, insisting that it would prevent illnesses and provide resources for public health programs. Now, McCain opposes a $0.61-per-pack tax increase, won’t commit to supporting a regulation bill he’s co-sponsoring, and has hired Philip Morris’ former lobbyist as his senior campaign adviser.

27. McCain is both for and against earmarks for Arizona.

28. McCain’s first mortgage plan was premised on the notion that homeowners facing foreclosure shouldn’t be “rewarded” for acting “irresponsibly.” His second mortgage plan took largely the opposite position.

29. McCain went from saying gay marriage should be allowed, to saying gay marriage shouldn’t be allowed.

30. McCain opposed a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr., before he supported it.

31. McCain was anti-ethanol. Now he’s pro-ethanol.

32. McCain was both for and against state promotion of the Confederate flag.

33. In 2005, McCain endorsed intelligent design creationism, a year later he said the opposite, and a few months after that, he was both for and against creationism at the same time.

34. And on gay adoption, McCain initially said he’d rather let orphans go without families, then his campaign reversed course, and soon after, McCain reversed back.

35. In the Senate, McCain opposed a variety of measures on equal pay for women, and endorsed the Supreme Court’s Ledbetter decision. In July, however, McCain said, “I’m committed to making sure that there’s equal pay for equal work. That … is my record and you can count on it.”

36. McCain was against fully funding the No Child Left Behind Act before he was for it.

37. McCain was for affirmative action before he was against it.

38. McCain said the Colorado River compact will “obviously” need to be “renegotiated.” Six days later, McCain said, “Let me be clear that I do not advocate renegotiation of the compact.”

Economic Policy

39. McCain was against Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy before he was for them.

40. John McCain initially argued that economics is not an area of expertise for him, saying, “I’m going to be honest: I know a lot less about economics than I do about military and foreign policy issues; I still need to be educated,” and “The issue of economics is not something I’ve understood as well as I should.” He now falsely denies ever having made these remarks and insists that he has a “very strong” understanding of economics.

41. McCain vowed, if elected, to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term. Soon after, he decided he would no longer even try to reach that goal. And soon after that, McCain abandoned his second position and went back to his first.

42. McCain said in 2005 that he opposed the tax cuts because they were “too tilted to the wealthy.” By 2007, he denied ever having said this, and falsely argued that he opposed the cuts because of increased government spending.

43. McCain thought the estate tax was perfectly fair. Now he believes the opposite.

44. McCain pledged in February 2008 that he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Specifically, McCain was asked if he is a “‘read my lips’ candidate, no new taxes, no matter what?” referring to George H.W. Bush’s 1988 pledge. “No new taxes,” McCain responded. Two weeks later, McCain said, “I’m not making a ‘read my lips’ statement, in that I will not raise taxes.”

45. McCain has changed his entire economic worldview on multiple occasions.

46. McCain believes Americans are both better and worse off economically than they were before Bush took office.

47. McCain was against massive government bailouts of “big banks” that “act irresponsibly.” He then announced his support for a massive government bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Energy Policy

48. McCain supported the moratorium on coastal drilling ; now he’s against it.

49. McCain recently announced his strong opposition to a windfall-tax on oil company profits. Three weeks earlier, he was perfectly comfortable with the idea.

50. McCain endorsed a cap-and-trade policy with a mandatory emissions cap. In mid-June, McCain announced he wants the caps to voluntary.

51. McCain explained his belief that a temporary suspension of the federal gas tax would provide an immediate economic stimulus. Shortly thereafter, he argued the exact opposite.

52. McCain supported the Lieberman/Warner legislation to combat global warming. Now he doesn’t.

53. McCain was for national auto emissions standards before he was against them.

Immigration Policy

54. McCain was a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants’ kids who graduate from high school. In 2007, he announced his opposition to the bill. In 2008, McCain switched back.

55. On immigration policy in general, McCain announced in February 2008 that he would vote against his own bill.

56. In April, McCain promised voters that he would secure the borders “before proceeding to other reform measures.” Two months later, he abandoned his public pledge, pretended that he’d never made the promise in the first place, and vowed that a comprehensive immigration reform policy has always been, and would always be, his “top priority.”

Judicial Policy and the Rule of Law

57. McCain said he would “not impose a litmus test on any nominee.” He used to promise the opposite.

58. McCain’s position was that the telecoms should be forced to explain their role in the administration’s warrantless surveillance program as a condition for retroactive immunity. He used to believe the opposite.

59. McCain went from saying he would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade to saying the exact opposite.

60. In June, McCain rejected the idea of a trial for Osama bin Laden, and thought Obama’s reference to Nuremberg was a misread of history. A month later, McCain argued the exact opposite position.

61. In June, McCain described the Supreme Court’s decision in Boumediene v. Bush was “one of the worst decisions in the history of this country.” In August, he reversed course.

Campaign, Ethics, and Lobbying Reform

62. McCain supported his own lobbying-reform legislation from 1997. Now he doesn’t.

63. In 2006, McCain sponsored legislation to require grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. In 2007, after receiving “feedback” on the proposal, McCain told far-right activist groups that he opposes his own measure.

64. McCain supported a campaign-finance bill, which bore his name, on strengthening the public-financing system. In June 2007, he abandoned his own legislation.

65. In May 2008, McCain approved a ban on lobbyists working for his campaign. In July 2008, his campaign reversed course and said lobbyists could work for his campaign.

Politics and Associations

66. McCain wanted political support from radical televangelist John Hagee. Now he doesn’t. (He also believes his endorsement from Hagee was both a good and bad idea.)

67. McCain wanted political support from radical televangelist Rod Parsley. Now he doesn’t.

68. McCain says he considered and did not consider joining John Kerry’s Democratic ticket in 2004.

69. McCain is both for and against attacking Barack Obama over his former pastor at his former church.

70. McCain criticized TV preacher Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance” in 2002, but then decided to cozy up to the man who said Americans “deserved” the 9/11 attacks.

71. In 2000, McCain accused Texas businessmen Sam and Charles Wyly of being corrupt, spending “dirty money” to help finance Bush’s presidential campaign. McCain not only filed a complaint against the Wylys for allegedly violating campaign finance law, he also lashed out at them publicly. In April, McCain reached out to the Wylys for support.

72. McCain was against presidential candidates campaigning at Bob Jones University before he was for it.

73. McCain decided in 2000 that he didn’t want anything to do with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, believing he “would taint the image of the ‘Straight Talk Express.’” Kissinger is now the Honorary Co-Chair for his presidential campaign in New York.

74. McCain believed powerful right-wing activist/lobbyist Grover Norquist was “corrupt, a shill for dictators, and (with just a dose of sarcasm) Jack Abramoff’s gay lover.” McCain now considers Norquist a key political ally.

75. McCain was for presidential candidates giving speeches in foreign countries before he was against it.

76. McCain has been both for and against considering a pro-choice running mate for the Republican presidential ticket.

If and when you learn of a reversal that has not yet made the list, I hope you’ll let me know.

kerbear73's photo
Sat 09/13/08 12:58 AM
Top Obama Flip-Flops


1. Special interests In January, the Obama campaign described union contributions to the campaigns of Clinton and John Edwards as "special interest" money. Obama changed his tune as he began gathering his own union endorsements. He now refers respectfully to unions as the representatives of "working people" and says he is "thrilled" by their support.



2. Public financing Obama replied "yes" in September 2007 when asked if he would agree to public financing of the presidential election if his GOP opponent did the same. Obama has now attached several conditions to such an agreement, including regulating spending by outside groups. His spokesman says the candidate never committed himself on the matter.


3. The Cuba embargo In January 2004, Obama said it was time "to end the embargo with Cuba" because it had "utterly failed in the effort to overthrow Castro." Speaking to a Cuban American audience in Miami in August 2007, he said he would not "take off the embargo" as president because it is "an important inducement for change."


4. Illegal immigration In a March 2004 questionnaire, Obama was asked if the government should "crack down on businesses that hire illegal immigrants." He replied "Oppose." In a Jan. 31, 2008, televised debate, he said that "we do have to crack down on those employers that are taking advantage of the situation."



5. Decriminalization of marijuana While running for the U.S. Senate in January 2004, Obama told Illinois college students that he supported eliminating criminal penalties for marijuana use. In the Oct. 30, 2007, presidential debate, he joined other Democratic candidates in opposing the decriminalization of marijuana.


Top Clinton Flip-Flops


1. NAFTA In a January 2004 news conference, Clinton said she thought that "on balance [NAFTA] has been good for New York and good for America." She now says she has "long been a critic of the shortcomings of NAFTA" and advocates a "time out" from similar trade agreements.

2. No Child Left Behind Clinton voted in favor of the 2002 education bill that focused on raising student achievement levels, hailing the measure as "a major step forward." She now attacks the law at campaign rallies and meetings with teachers, describing it as a "test, test, test" approach.


3. Ending the war in Iraq In June 2006, Clinton restated her long-standing opposition to establishing timetables for withdrawing U.S. forces in Iraq. In a Jan. 15, 2008, Democratic debate in Las Vegas, she proposed to "start withdrawing" troops within 60 days of her inauguration, to bring out "one or two brigades a month" and to have "nearly all of the troops out" by the end of 2009.


4 . Driver's licenses for illegal immigrants In a campaign statement on Oct. 31, 2007, Clinton expressed support for a plan by New York Gov. Eliot L. Spitzer (D) to offer limited driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, after going back and forth on the matter in a televised debate. In a Nov. 15, 2007, televised debate from Nevada, she replied with a simple "no" when asked if she approved the driver's license idea in the absence of comprehensive immigration changes.


5. Florida and Michigan delegates In September 2007, the Clinton campaign formally pledged not to participate in primary or caucus elections staged before Feb. 5, 2008, in defiance of Democratic National Committee rules. She now says delegates from Florida and Michigan should be seated at the Democratic National Convention, despite their flouting of rules that all the major Democratic candidates endorsed.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/24/AR2008022402094.html

kerbear73's photo
Sat 09/13/08 01:10 AM
Here is a nice little Link, But there is too much to post in this one

http://www.nelsonguirado.com/index.php/asymmetric/2008/07/09/comprehensive-obama-flip-flop-list


kerbear73's photo
Sat 09/13/08 01:21 AM
OMG, here are tons more Flip Flops from Obama

http://massdiscussion.blogspot.com/2008/06/collection-of-obama-flip-flops.html

Sorry about pasting them on here, there are just way too much on these sites....

Quikstepper's photo
Sat 09/13/08 04:25 AM
McCain was interveiwed on THE VIEW & he did really well in articulating his points. He's not so black & white in his views & has alot of good suggestions as to how to solve some of the issues facing this nation.

I think a closer examination is neccessary.

t22learner's photo
Sat 09/13/08 05:10 AM
Edited by t22learner on Sat 09/13/08 05:10 AM

I think a closer examination is neccessary.

In the face of facts, your positions wilt.

Chazster's photo
Sat 09/13/08 05:12 AM
again, the liberals are apparently scared and can only resort to bashing.

t22learner's photo
Sat 09/13/08 05:21 AM

again, the liberals are apparently scared and can only resort to bashing.

This "liberals are scared" is a recent theme of Republican flaks. After eight years of "Dubya" and financial institutions crashing all around us, yeah, I'm terrified of four more years of it.

kerbear73's photo
Sat 09/13/08 01:06 PM


again, the liberals are apparently scared and can only resort to bashing.

This "liberals are scared" is a recent theme of Republican flaks. After eight years of "Dubya" and financial institutions crashing all around us, yeah, I'm terrified of four more years of it.


You think everything is going to improve under Nobama, he didn't know to say about Georgia being attacked....

Dragoness's photo
Sat 09/13/08 01:18 PM
You are right. Liberals, intelligent people, average citizens, etc... are scared that we will all have to live through another 4 years of the country being flushed down the toilet like baby shrub has attempted to do.

Dragoness's photo
Sat 09/13/08 01:20 PM
Only 76? I am sure there are more than that. He has not stood steadfast on one thing he says. It may be his PTSD or Old Timers though too so I guess we should not be too hard on him:wink: laugh

kerbear73's photo
Sat 09/13/08 01:24 PM

You are right. Liberals, intelligent people, average citizens, etc... are scared that we will all have to live through another 4 years of the country being flushed down the toilet like baby shrub has attempted to do.


Intelligent? you would not think that in most of these posts

SVImager's photo
Sat 09/13/08 01:25 PM
Everybody is the WINNER!!!!

No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!
No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!No more BUSH!!!

Obama is a very good candidate.
I would've like to see America's first Black President.
But, I am voting for McCain.


Did I mention, I don't like Bush??!!??

catwoman96's photo
Sat 09/13/08 02:24 PM

Only 76? I am sure there are more than that. He has not stood steadfast on one thing he says. It may be his PTSD or Old Timers though too so I guess we should not be too hard on him:wink: laugh


ya..ptsd...lets not vote for him because he was a POW how many years ago????

ptsd...lets do mental status exams on all the people of the mid east..see if they are inflicted. hey also lets not forget the survivors of 911 and the military.

these ptsd sufferers...are freaking worse that a diabetic or a person with cancer. lock em up

Chazster's photo
Sat 09/13/08 02:41 PM


again, the liberals are apparently scared and can only resort to bashing.

This "liberals are scared" is a recent theme of Republican flaks. After eight years of "Dubya" and financial institutions crashing all around us, yeah, I'm terrified of four more years of it.


And financial institutions failing is not the governments fault. They didn't make the banks give out loans. That is their own damn problem.

Sorry, I don't want to be taxed to death.

kerbear73's photo
Sat 09/13/08 05:37 PM
It s kind of Funny that no one Commented on Obamadrama's Flip Flops

t22learner's photo
Sat 09/13/08 06:05 PM

It s kind of Funny that no one Commented on Obamadrama's Flip Flops

I'm sure he's got some. Name a politician that never changed a position.

catwoman96's photo
Sat 09/13/08 06:11 PM


It s kind of Funny that no one Commented on Obamadrama's Flip Flops

I'm sure he's got some. Name a politician that never changed a position.


good point!

wonder who and how much each of these candidates will change AFTER they get in office.

wouldee's photo
Sat 09/13/08 06:17 PM
here's an old one...:wink:



IS OBAMA ON DRUGS?
Written by Dr. Jack Wheeler
Thursday, 22 May 2008

Obama's Gaffes Start To Pile Up. Sounds like a headline from this week's newspapers, right? Nope, it's from the Chicago Sun-Times over a year ago, March 28, 2007. One of the most glaring gaffes mentioned is his claim that "because of what happened in Selma, Alabama, because some folks are willing to march across a bridge, [his parents] got together and Barack Obama Jr. was born."

The famous "Bloody Sunday" march over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama took place on March 7, 1965. Obama's parents "got together" around November, 1960 as he was born August 4, 1961.

Bear in mind that he made that claim in Selma to an audience commemorating the Selma march, the date of which was clear to everyone.

So Obambi has been gaffe-ridden for some time. Another beauty occurred on May 8, 2007: In a campaign speech, he said 10,000 people had died in a tornado that hit Greensburg, Kansas a few days earlier. The death toll was 12.

In the past few weeks, however, the O-gaffes have been proliferating.

On April 28 in Wilmington, North Carolina, he thought the month was "March" and that it was "nine months to November."

On May 13 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, he claimed the war in Iraq was responsible for a shortage of interpreters in Afghanistan: "We only have a certain number of them and if they are all in Iraq, then it is harder for us to use them in Afghanistan." Iraqis speak Arabic or Kurdish. Afghans don't, speaking Pushtu, Dari, and various tribal languages.

On May 16 in a press conference, he claimed, "When Kennedy met Khrushchev, we were on the brink of nuclear war." The two met in Vienna in June, 1961. The Cuba Missile Crisis, which Obambi claimed was resolved by the meeting, was in October 1962.

On May 18 in an interview to the Lexington (Ky) Herald-Leader, he said: "I'm not very well known" in Kentucky compared to Hillary because of her husband and "her coming from a nearby state of Arkansas." Illinois - the state he's a senator of - borders Kentucky; Arkansas does not (Tennessee's in between).

The champion O-gaffe was committed on May 9 in Beaverton, Oregon. You have to see it to believe he actually said that during his campaign, "I have now been to 57 states with one left to go," then says that one is "Alaska and Hawaii."





No matter how exhausted from campaigning you are, you don't make a mistake like that under any normal circumstances. Saying there are 57 states - actually 58, or is it 59? - is such an egregiously stupid error that it is evidence of brain malfunction.

A neuroscientist with years of research into drug abuse and brain chemistry tells To The Point that the behavior exhibited by Obama is consistent with the use of either amphetamines or cocaine.

"His campaign's almost impossibly high level of activity, mental and physical, unrelenting day after day for month upon month is incredibly hard to maintain," he says. "The temptation to maintain it psycho-pharmacologically is great, especially for someone with a history of drug use. The drugs of choice would be amphetamines or cocaine, which can cause amazing mistakes, errors of incredible stupidity."

In his book, Dreams From My Father, Obambi admitted his drug use when young: "Pot (marijuana) had helped, and booze; maybe a little blow (cocaine) when you could afford it. Not smack (heroin), though."

Teen-age drug use isn't, of course, evidence for its use in one's 40s. But when someone who may be elected President of the United States starts behaving suspiciously, then it's justified to ask that those suspicions be allayed.

Thus, To The Point calls for Barack Hussein Obama to be drug tested.

No urine test, which can be faked and is only good within a few days of drug use. The gold standard of drug testing is done with the testee's hair - for it is good up to 90 days.

Hair drug testing uses a 100-milligram sample of hair cut at the scalp for an ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) test, then confirms the result with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. There should also be a DNA match by a separate lab between the hair sample and a cheek swab, with independent observers confirming the chain-of-custody for all samples.

If Obambi has been using any amphetamines, methamphetamine, or cocaine within the last 90 days, the test will show it.

It's worth noting here the correlation between narcissism and stimulant drug abuse. Obambi exhibits an almost pathological narcissism, an ego wildly out of proportion to anything he has actually accomplished in his life. Someone with this personality defect is drawn to irrationally risky behavior because of a conviction of invulnerability, or superhuman superiority.

Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer had such a syndrome. He chose to express it with hookers, but it's more common to see it expressed with drugs, cocaine in particular.

No accusations are being made here. To The Point is not accusing Barack Hussein Obama of illegal drug use. It is saying that he is behaving of late in such a way to cause suspicion that he might. That suspicion must be put to rest.

Barack Hussein Obama's hair must be tested for drugs. If he refuses, it will add to the suspicion - as will every inexplicably stupid blunder he makes from now on.


wouldee's photo
Sat 09/13/08 06:20 PM
Having lashed himself to the ridiculous, unprecedented promise of unconditional presidential negotiations -- and then having compounded the problem by elevating it to a principle -- Obama keeps trying to explain. On Sunday, he declared in Pendleton, Ore., that by Soviet standards Iran and others "don't pose a serious threat to us." (On the contrary. Islamic Iran is dangerously apocalyptic. Soviet Russia was not.) The next day in Billings, Mont.: "I've made it clear for years that the threat from Iran is grave."

That's the very next day, mind you. Such rhetorical flailing has done more than create an intellectual mess. It has given rise to a new political phenomenon: the metastatic gaffe. The one begets another, begets another, begets ...
:wink:

this is the same day he visited Oregon, the fifty seventh state, in osama nobama's estimation....

hear that gaff from the islamicist himself...

http://baarswestside.blogspot.com/2008/05/obama-gaffs.html

click the video.bigsmile

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