John McCain's Festivus Moment

Birds of a feather, "kill him" reflects the hate, aggression, and insincerity of McCain/Palin.

McCain's "Joe the plumber" is fitting. Wasn't Liddy, the Watergate burglar/murder plotter, also a plumber?

Obama/Biden 08!

I did not hear McCain repudiate the stump speeches of his running mate!

Obama/Biden 08!

Ryan C.,

But in the first incident, one man in this crowd of thousands yelled "kill him," and he wasn't apparently yelling it about Obama. He was talking about Ayers.

The Weekly Standard went back to the story in which this was first reported - “In Fla., Palin Goes for the Rough Stuff as Audience Boos Obama” (Washington Post). Here's the account:

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"And, according to the New York Times, he was a domestic terrorist and part of a group that, quote, 'launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and our U.S. Capitol,' " she continued. ("Boooo!" the crowd repeated.)

"Kill him!" proposed one man in the audience.
****

Dana Milbank, the Washington Post reporter who wrote the story, agrees that the man was talking about Ayers: “Milbank said that his impression was that the man meant Ayers, not Obama,” (“Milbank: Secret Service hasn’t called UPDATE,” Politico).

But the AP distorted what Milbank wrote: “The Secret Service confirmed Friday that it had investigated an episode reported in The Washington Post in which someone in Palin's crowd in Clearwater, Fla., shouted ‘kill him,’ on Monday, meaning Obama. There was ‘no indication that there was anything directed at Obama,’ Secret Service spokesman Eric Zahren told AP. ‘We looked into it because we always operate in an atmosphere of an abundance of caution,’” (“McCain booed after trying to calm anti-Obama crowd,” AP).

what ever all the political pundits say about john maccain that he is going to loose to barrack hussain obama it will all wannish in the election day,john maccain will emerge as the real hero on nov4 then all the media will have to accept the fact,one thing everybodyshould understand that barrack is running against a real american hero,not against himself,
cheers,
swajan

The USA has a $10 trillion national debt. $500 billion of that is owed to China. Another $170 billion is owed to Arab nations. Another $60 billion to Russia. In all, the USA pays $400 billion in interest payments each year on the national debt. That is four times the entire budget of California. So for all the people bringing up the issues of Ayers and socialism and terrorism and patriotism, I have this question. Why are you so quick to raise concerns about Obama when it is the Republicans who have mortgaged the future of this country to China, Russia and Arab nations? Think about it. We OWE $60 billion to Russia. Something is wrong with that. Very wrong.

Ms. Burgess,

Hi, fellow academic. Sorry that my post about Ayers seemed to raise your ire. My central point, which you ignore, is that it is not the relationship with Ayers that disturbs me (I never claimed that they were best buds or anything, but I think it is disingenuous to suggest that they hardly knew one another, as some have done) but the pattern of going to great lengths to cover up the nature of Obama's connections with a number of Chicago characters, including Ayers.

I'll try to sail past your "holier than thou" charge, because that is not the attitude that I take, however you may have taken my remarks. As to your suggestion that as an academic, I should realize that we must often work with people whose values we do not share, I do not see that as germane to the case of Obama and Ayers. Of course I agree that in our professional lives we often work with people we would not want to have as a part of our private lives. As you suggest, in academia, I must deal with colleagues whose views I find unsavory all the time. And as you suggest, I deal with them by putting aside my distaste for their personal views and being a professional. Ah, the faculty meetings at which I have had to bite the inside of my cheeks until I thought they might bleed, in order to prevent myself from blurting out an unpopular opinion.

This is not the situation in which Obama found himself, at least not entirely, to my way of thinking. Yes, Obama did not control the makeup of the boards on which he sat. So he had to get along with Ayers in his capacity as a board member. Still, I have heard no suggestion that they disagreed on the merits of various educational projects they awarded grants to. There have been no suggestions that grant approval meetings were arenas where Obama challenged Ayers on his radical educational views or clashed with him on funding projects that championed such views.

But the connections between the two men, such as they are, are not confined to the board room. Obama voluntarily associated with Ayers-- Ayers and his wife held a coffee at their home to help set Obama's political career in motion. Obama apologists get caught up in nitpicking whether or not this was the actual launch of Obama's campaign that year, citing other meetings in other places as the starting point. That hardly matters. Early in his political career, Obama chose to have his cause promoted by Ayers. Obama has told conflicting stories about whether at that point he knew about Ayers' past with the Weather Underground. It seems highly unlikely that he did not have an awareness of the man's past. He seems to have settled on the explanation that he "thought Ayers was rehabilitated" at that point, implying that he agrees that was not true and that at some point in time he figured out that was not the case. There is not clear indication of how his opinion of Ayers changed with this revelation or how he reacted to this bit of news.

Obama also voluntarily provided the Chicago Tribune with a hearty endorsement of Ayers' controversial book, A Kind and Just Parent (the title is facetious). This was not something he had to do in a professional capacity. (I am not claiming, as some have done, that Obama "blurbed" the book. That would be quite damaging, after all. One does not blurb a book if one does not agree with its message; at least, I would never blurb a book if I were uncomfortable with any of its content.) Obama was enthusiastic in his praise of the book, so he was obviously endorsing its content. That's not good, in my opinion. These were not examples of a man who had to, for professional reasons, get along with a radical who made him uncomfortable. They lived in the same neighborhood, as Obama has famously remarked, and they were obviously comfortable in the same social circles.

You say that I would find some unsavory characters in academia, and I wholeheartedly agree. We are a big diverse group, although not as diverse as much of society nor as diverse as we should be. I do not see that as germane to our discussion. You suggest that by my standards, I would have to vet every person with whom i have a professional relationship, an unworkable situation to be sure. I do not agree with your logic here. I am not saying that we should expect Obama to agree complete about everything all his colleagues have said or done. After all, he's a member of the US Senate, for goodness sake. Now there's a collection of unsavory (mostly) fellows. *G* I am saying that there is a pattern of him having connections, some (like Rev. Wright) closer than others (like Ayers) that he later repudiates or downplays. That's the part that bothers me. It obviously doesn't bother you, and that's fine. Different strokes and all that.

Moderate--

Let me 'chime in here' I, too, am an academic. My problem, however, is with you and your 'holier than thou' comments about 'associations.' BTW-I am petitioning to get that word stricken from the English language immediately. Let's be clear about associations. Obama is not Ayers' priest, nor his father, nor his creator, nor the one he will answer too in the 'hereafter.' It sounds as though in your career you have never had to work with someone you see as having questionable ethics, someone with whom you disagree. For if you ever do, then you need to distance yourself immediately; do not talk to this person and explain to them clearly that you think a person's 'associations' reflect on that person's judgments and ability to lead, affect change and make a difference. This is what people often have to do in their chosen profession. Do we make everyone submit to a polygraph, have a in-depth background check done and then force each person to complete a focused self evaluation so that we can ensure ourselves of having moral, ethical 'associations?' If you think that Obama has had questionable ties to people who are not good citizens, then you need to look a little closer at many of your colleagues in academia. Probably many of them can be labeled as acting 'unpatriotic' or 'unethical' at times. Maybe they said something, or attended a rally, or made a comment about a policy, political theory or even a politician. What if they confessed they 'hated' the US and its policies at some point in history? God forbid. And while you are 'digging' in the pasts of all of your ASSOCIATES', take a closer look at John McCain--he is not so squeaky clean either.

Those who, despite Obama's forthrightness in addressing the nature of his association (or lack thereof) with Ayers, continue to keep bringing it up should open their eyes and read about John McCain's associations with criminals like Gordon Liddy (of Watergate notoriety, an advocate of domestic terrorism), his cozy relationship with Cuban terrorists, and his and his wife Cindy McCain's intimate connections with organized crime, and so on... As for Sarah Pallin, David Brooks, a dyed-in-the-wool Bill Buckleyite conservative is right on the mark when he called Sarah Palin "a fatal cancer to the Republican Party".

Actually, all you Obama-bots are showing your ignorance of the facts. You just spout the ugly lies you're told by Obama/Biden and the press. You're to be pitied for being like lambs to the slaughter. Blind.

Michelle, Your ignorance of facts is showing. LOL

Well moderate.. Ayers is not running for president. Obama is. If you are so concerned about Ayers, you should also check into your buddy McCain's intimate connections with Gordon Liddy - you know, the guy who was convicted for Watergate Breakin, the guy who has advocated domestic terrorism, and has been embraced by John McCain as a close friend who shares his agenda and vision. You should also be concerned with Sarah Palin's intimate connections with Alaskan secessionist group - after all, she has been sleeping with an Alaskan secessionist named Todd Palin!

D, let me chime in here. Since I am in academia I do know a bit about what Dr. Ayers teaches in his classroom. (Ayers holds an EdD, considered a terminal degree in education) Have you read any of his books? As you say, young voters may not be interested in the fact that the man once helped found a vile organization called the Weather Underground, which considered itself at war with the US government and which planted bombs as part of its strategy of disruption. They may not be interested in the fact that the only reason Mr. Ayers is not in jail is because the charges were dropped because evidence was illegally obtained. They may not be interested in the fact that Mr. Ayers spent a decade "underground" on the run from law enforcement. I find the lack of interest in any event that did not take place during their lifetimes that many of my own students display disappointing, but I take heart that there are many other students who do display a livelier intellectual curiosity.

But I digress. Even though these students may not care about Mr. Ayers' past, as you say, they should care about his present. They may be more impressed that I was to learn about the door to Mr. Ayers' office (sorry, I cannot bring myself to honor him with the title of Dr, even though he holds an EdD). Academics' doors are often windows to our souls. Many of us decorate our doors with things that reflect our interests, things we think help show our students and other passersby a bit of ourselves. We might have cartoons, newspaper clippings, fliers for upcoming events we want to help publicize, art work, any number of things. I love to walk through different departments and look at people's doors. What is found on William Ayers' office door, to greet the students who come to talk to him about their early childhood education classes? Posters of Che Guevara and Mumia Abu-Jamal. Lovely. I know, its radical chic and many young people, and not so young people, might find that perfectly okay. Sigh.

Ayers' views on urban education and on juvenile justice are disturbing to me. He does not believe that juveniles should be punished for their crimes, regardless of circumstance, for example. This is not a person I want molding the minds of young teachers, or that I would be funneling grant money to, as Barack Obama did.

But to your point-- what young people should care about most is the inability of Barack Obama to settle on one version of his relationship with Ayers. Like his ever-evolving stories of his relationship with his former pastor, Rev. Wright, or his many versions of his interactions with Tony Rezko, we have to wonder why he cannot simply tell us the same story every time he is asked. I notice that his campaign has plenty of versions of his relationship with ACORN as well. If things are so innocent, why is there no consistency in these stories?

William Ayers alone might not be a major concern where Obama is concerned. But as part of an overarching pattern of associations with troubling figures and of not being open and honest about those associations raises questions in my mind and should in the mind of the young people to whom you refer.

I am disappointed McCain did not complain about all those conservative columnists that have said negative things about him, his campaign and/or his running mate.

James Danley, yes Ayers is a teacher now. Again younger voters don't care about that. It does not affect them or the issues they care about. But how do you know what Ayers teaches. Have you sat in on one of his classes.

Jane, the younger voters don't care whether Ayers and Obama served on any board. And anything else is speculation. They care about the issues TODAY.

McCain had already lost my vote, but with his jittery, erratic, uninformed, rude performance which almost stopped my heart when McCain sneered about the "health" - the value of a woman's life - at that moment, McCain lost my respect.

"Ummm Nope. It didn't happen."

It has not been verified that it happened a 2nd time.

The first time it was clearly heard on video.

Fairfax said: Erika, I dont care who they yelled "KIll HIM" about, the point is they were yelling to kill anyone. You dont hear that kind of idiocy in an Obama crowd.

Ummm Nope. It didn't happen. A Scranton PA reporter is the one who made the claim, but no one at the rally confirmed they heard it, and none of the secret service that were there, who are especially trained to listen for these kinds of remarks, didn't hear it. He made it up. It DID NOT HAPPEN!!!

I knew it would be someone for Obama trying to tank McCain.

Jillyus said: During the primaries Obama promised "hope and change" and a "different brand of politics". Obviously those weren't true, so now he's on to new promises. Promises are easy to make. Much more difficult to keep.

He also promised to use public funding. So much for his promises. He promises tax cuts. Yeah.....right!