Home > Politics > Political Punch
Political Punch
Power, pop, and probings from ABC News Senior White House Correspondent Jake Tapper

« Previous | Main | Next »

Obama: McCain Can't Decide if He's Goldwater or Kucinich

September 18, 2008 6:02 PM

ESPANOLA, NM -- In a dusty town square in the town of Espanola in the north central region of the battleground state of New Mexico, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., Thursday afternoon continued to assail opponent Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as someone who would do or say anything to get elected.

"All of a sudden, he's has become a populist," Obama said. "Now he's unleashed an angry tirade against all the insiders and lobbyists who happened to have supported him for the last twenty-six years – the same folks who are running his campaign right now."

Obama's criticisms were entirely focused on McCain's positions on the economy, with the Democrat portraying his GOP rival as a flip-flopping poseur.

"John McCain can't decide whether he's Barry Goldwater or Dennis Kucinich," Obama said, referring to the libertarian free-market conservative Republican and the left-wing Democrat who opposes free trade. "He's not clear about what he thinks or what he believes."

"Well, I have a message for Senator McCain," Obama continued. "You can't just run away from your long-held views or your life-long record. You can’t erase twenty-six years of support for the very policies and people who helped bring in this disaster with one week of rants. You can't just erase all that with one week worth of rants. What we need is honest talk and real solutions."

Obama made mention of McCain’s pledge today to fire Securities and Exchange Commissioner Chris Cox, which a president does not have the legal ability to do in a literal sense, though certainly political pressures can be brought to bear to force a commissioner to resign.

"He's calling for the firing of the Securities and Exchange Commission(er)," Obama said, "Well, I think that's all fine and good, but here's what I say: In the next 47 days, you can fire the whole Trickle-Down, On-Your-Own, Look-the-Other-Way crowd in Washington who has led us down this disastrous path. Don't just get rid of one guy, get rid of this administration, get rid of this philosophy, get rid of the do nothing approach and put somebody in there who is going to fight for you."

Obama noted that McCain earlier this week said that "the fundamentals of the economy are strong."

"This comment – this comment was out so out of touch that even George Bush’s White House couldn’t agree with it when they were asked about it," Obama said. "They had to distance theirself (sic) from John McCain."

Obama was referring to the fact that on Wednesday White House press secretary Dana Perino refused to answer reporters' questions as to whether the fundamentals of the economy are strong, saying only that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has asserted "that as he looks at our country and compares it with other countries, that we are in a position of strength to be able to deal with this crisis, and it's going to take us a while to work through it."

"I recognize that this issue of strength has come into the 2008 election," Perino explained. "I'm not going to try to get involved in it."

Obama today accused McCain of not only flip-flopping on the government bailout of insurance giant AIG, but lying about Obama’s response by claiming the Democrat opposes it.

"On Tuesday, (McCain) said the government should stand aside and allow one of the nation's largest insurers AIG, to collapse," Obama said. "I mean he said this in three different interviews despite the possibility that it would put millions of Americans at risk. But by Wednesday, he changed his mind. And today he accused me of not supporting what the Treasury and the Federal Reserve Bank did with AIG despite no evidence whatsoever that that’s what I had said."

In truth, Obama has not taken a position on the bailout of AIG, one of the most significant developments in the financial sector in modern history.

Obama blamed much of the current crisis on former Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, a former co-chair of the McCain campaign who resigned after controversial comments that the U.S. was in a "mental recession"
and had become "sort of a nation of whiners."

Calling Gramm "one of the leading architects of the de-regulation in Washington that led directly to this mess on Wall Street" Obama pointed out that Gramm "also happens to be the architect of John McCain’s economic plan. There was talk that John McCain wanted to put in charge of the Treasury Department if John McCain was elected."

The Democrat said that when he was "warning about the danger ahead on Wall Street months ago because of the lack of oversight, Sen. McCain was telling the Wall Street Journal — and I quote —‘ I'm always for less regulation.' This is what he said just a few months ago. Except now, with the magnitude of the crisis apparent even to the Bush White House, John McCain wants to reverse himself, he wants to reverse course. Now, all of a sudden, he has become a populist."

-- Jake Tapper and Sunlen Miller

September 18, 2008 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (239)

User Comments

Feed You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

Mariann,obviously you are an angry white female who is extremely misinformed. You have no idea what the black population thinks of Obama but we do know what we think of you and your bitter talk. Your reasons for voting for McCain and Palin are yours and yours alone--thank God! But to try and defame Obama by stating the falseness of him being a muslim or the foul play on his name and all your other crazy accusations is reflective of your hardened heart--something that you will have to deal with way pass this election. Stick to the facts not to the outrageous accusations. The only person you are hurting is yourself. I can only say thank God you are not running for President.

Posted by: Debra | Sep 22, 2008 12:21:20 PM

riley: Obama will use anyone he can to win the presidency. He so desperate to make history like MLK he would doublecross anyone to get it. He did it to the woman running against him for the senate and she never campaigned again. He is the worst and most underhanded candidate that ever ran for the presidenty. Nancy and Obama went behind the scenes to pressure the superdelegates to vote for Obama so Hillary wouldn't become the nominee.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 5:09:31 PM

linda n carolina. If McCain is punch drunk you must be drinking the same booze. And I am sure all this generation of college students are drugging and boozing every night. Are you one of them? The educated like the news media said. Don't make me laugh. Do you know how many have to drop out because they are too dumb to master the course. That's what drugs and booze do to you. Obama is an example. Just listen to him.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 5:02:03 PM

McCain is right. Obama thinks of solutions for himself not the country. He is all for himself and he never was for this country. Obama read so many books on MLK it went to his head. Now, he wants to make the same history by using the American people for his own benefit. And the news just stated that Obama had deals with Johnson whom he wanted to be his VP at one time. Can you imagine two crooks in the white house?

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:50:54 PM

James Danley: I hate to differ with the people in Ohio but Obama is not black or white will never be either because he is the offspring of a black/white marriage. Find it on the internet. I have known that for years. However, the blacks resent using that name. They refer to him as black and so do many white people. That's too bad because he isn't.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:41:25 PM

foreclosure: I hope McCain is a republican because I am a democrat voting for him. Why would I vote for Osama(Obama)Hussein? He has the name of a terrorist. What was his father and mother thinking? Well, his mother never married a white man so you can't expect him to have a white man's name. He is half Kenyan and that country is in a turmoil all the time. If Obama was raised there he would want to run that country just like he wants to run this one. But that's too bad. It isn't going to happen.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:35:48 PM

Al: And Obama copied the word change from the speech of Robert Kennedy. Obama only knows the change in his pocket or how to change his clothes. There are no changes he knows how to make without extensive help. Of course maybe Ayers the professor who bombed here three times and give him some advice. And there is Wright always preaching about America and white people.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:19:00 PM

Jess: Look at me I am a democrat voting for McCain and Palin. I certainly am not going to vote for a candidate that doesn't have the brains to run this country. But he has Biden to do that job behind the scenes. If Obama is elected he will enjoy the white house along with Ayers, Farrakhan, Wright, Father P and Rezko when he's out of jail.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:15:05 PM

foreclosure: And don't you wish you just had 10% of McCain and Cindy's money? And they have it like the Clinton's do. And its all for them, nothing for you.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:10:45 PM

foreclosure: What needs are you talking about. If your talking about the economy what's wrong with the economy? People are stopping at gas stations all day long, shooping for food with baskets filled to the top. Foreclosures are the fault of the buyer's and banks. Banks should not have given loans to people buying a condo or house with no money down or only 5% down. The down payment should be 30 to 35%. Banks are the cause of their own wrong decisions and the same with the buyer's. They wanted to live like a rich person with a beer pocket. Well, now they have to rent.

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:07:13 PM

Curtis: I don't believe any poliician lies with pigs. Your picking up too much of Obama's bad language. And for a college graduate he isn't that smart. He is getting a lot of help from former president Clinton's advisor's and believe me he needs it. You can take bets on it Biden will be running the country behind the scenes if Obama is elected. Besides that, this country could go into a 1929 depression. Obama talks about change, the words he took from the book of RFK speeches. He also used his speeches and added a few words of his own. Obama cannot do anything on his own without help. For a college graduate what happened?

Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | Sep 21, 2008 3:00:23 PM

Curtis, I respect your opinion but I beg to differ with you, picking Palin was a brilliant move, it showed just how much of a maverick McCain is, showed how serious he is about changing D.C. and really made the Dems scramble. Palin will help win some women votes, has the backing of the NRA, is pro life, is for drilling in Alaska and is a bit of a maverick herself. The "Mainstream" D.C. politician has had their time and it is obvious they cannot or willnot change so I have changed my vote to the Maverick McCain.

Posted by: Al | Sep 20, 2008 11:43:45 PM

Lets see alot of you wanted change back in 2006 so you voted the dems back in control of both houses, how has that worked out? Oh I forgot you blame Bush for all the problems currently facing the country even though the president DOESN'T MAKE LAW, Congress and the Senate do and who is controlling both of them. I do agree with the DEMS on one area, we do need change, keep the GOP in the white house and vote the GOP BACK INTO power in both houses.

Posted by: Al | Sep 20, 2008 11:39:40 PM

One must feel rather badly for Sen.McCain
Being such a maverick in a conformist party,lacking support from the true believers, it must be pure torture for him to attempt to run on any record he had made. After all,you cannot lay with pigs your entire career and expect to come out clean. I know he is writhing, in pain, twisting from side to side, right and left.... Trying this and that to ease his pain of impending loss. I know how extreme pain can make reality seem to be anything that might mitigate it... This psychic distress may even make ill formed decisions seem plausible
... that explains Sarah P. being selected. Daily I cannot help but feel badly for him that his campaign has hit bottom so hard. The level of lies and distortions is incredible. Standing on the stages and podiums, with the stance and posture of an albino T-Rex, I wonder if John is becoming extinct too?
Twisting and turning from lie to fabrication,over and over , I see the agony, and hope on Nov. 4 we can cause his pain to cease...

Posted by: Curtis | Sep 20, 2008 10:50:02 PM

What the ostrich and the Republicans have in common.Let me guess
Both hide their head on the sand and pretend everything is fine
An ostrich bury its head in the sand and pretend everything is fine
Republicans do the same and follow McCain
America and the world is suffering with the blunders of Bush Administration
The economy have crumple and the prosperity of many people are under risk not only in America but also worldwide.
John McCain and Sarah Palin promise of change: Is a change to Nowhere
This election is not only about some bridge in Alaska it is about all the bridges and roads in all the o United States because they are all crying out for repairs and maintenance. This is because for the last 8 years the Bush and the Republicans have spent enormous amounts of dollars to build up Iraq and they have forgotten about the needs of their own country.

Posted by: foreclosure | Sep 20, 2008 5:08:34 AM

Was hilarious to watch the face of Cindy McCain, when Sen., McCain on his speech talks about the big salaries of the CEO’s, and how greedy they are!

Posted by: foreclosure | Sep 20, 2008 5:02:34 AM

John McCain and Sarah Palin want to be elected like Republicans but they are trying to avoid to discuss issues critical for the American families. And portraying themselves like reformers because they are embarrassed of the last 8 years of the Republicans –Bush Administration.
Is the Republican Party in the need of urgent reform because is out of touch with the everyday life of the American people

Posted by: foreclosure | Sep 20, 2008 4:59:38 AM

I don’t have any problem in characterizing McCain .
He is a Republican! According to his own campaign, Republicans are corrupt and incompetent.
Obviously he has inside information!

Posted by: foreclosure | Sep 20, 2008 4:45:36 AM

re:Posted by: Ryan C | Sep 19, 2008 11:13:27 AM

"McCain warned and introduced legislation in 2006"

McCain cosponsored a bill in 2005 that was reintroduced in 2006.

Obama authored a bill that was intro in 2006 and re intro'd in 2007.

Neither bill went anywhere
----------------------------
Why wasn't Obama able to work with other Dems to get his bill passed?

Posted by: Dave in lv | Sep 19, 2008 5:48:01 PM

re:Posted by: Ryan C | Sep 19, 2008 11:13:27 AM

"McCain warned and introduced legislation in 2006"

McCain cosponsored a bill in 2005 that was reintroduced in 2006.

Obama authored a bill that was intro in 2006 and re intro'd in 2007.

Neither bill went anywhere
------------------------------
Weren't both of these and other reform bills blocked by Chris Dodd (Dem), Barney Frank (Dem) and other Dems?

Posted by: Dave in lv | Sep 19, 2008 5:45:26 PM

Next Comments »

Post a comment





 

POLITICAL VIDEOS