Lay off my wife...
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| Mon, 05-19-2008 - 10:37am |
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080519/ap_on_el_pr/obama_wife
AP
Obama tells Tenn.'s GOP: 'Lay off my wife'
2 hours, 37 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Democrat Barack Obama has a message for Tennessee's Republican Party: "Lay off my wife."
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Obama, his party's presidential front-runner, and his wife, Michelle, were asked in an interview aired Monday on ABC's "Good Morning America" about an online video last week by the state's GOP taking her to task for a comment some considered unpatriotic.
"The GOP, should I be the nominee, can say whatever they want to say about me, my track record," Obama said. "If they think that they're going to try to make Michelle an issue in this campaign, they should be careful because that I find unacceptable, the notion that you start attacking my wife or my family."
He called the strategy "low class."
The video, posted on YouTube, centered on remarks Michelle Obama made while campaigning in Wisconsin last February, when she said: "For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country."
The four-minute video replayed the remark six times, interspersing it with commentary by Tennesseans on why they are proud of America. In a news release that included a link to the video, Tennessee's GOP said "the Tennessee Republican Party has always been proud of America." It urged radio stations to play "patriotic music" during Michelle Obama's visit to Nashville last Thursday.
Michelle Obama later clarified the remark, saying she meant she was proud of how Americans were engaging in the political process and that she had always been proud of her country.
"Whoever is in charge of the Tennessee GOP needs to think long and hard about the kind of campaign they want to run, and I think that's true for everybody, Democrat or Republican," Obama said in the ABC interview, adding: "These folks should lay off my wife."
Obama said his wife "loves this country. For them to try to distort or to play snippets of her remarks in ways that are unflattering to her is, I think, just low class. I think that most of the American people would think that as well."
Tennessee's Republican Party was roundly criticized in March, including by likely presidential nominee John McCain, for a news release that used Barack Obama's middle name — Hussein — and showed a photo of him wearing what it said was "Muslim attire."
The release ultimately was removed from the party's Web site at the urging of the state's two Republican senators and Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan, who said he "rejects these kinds of campaign tactics."





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Should presidential candidates spouses be off limits? What about things that they've said WHILE ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL?
What about Bill Clinton, should we lay off him? How about Cindy McCain and her refusal to make public her individually filed tax returns?
If she is out there campaiging for him and saying for the first time in her life she is proud of her country.. she's fair game.
"If she is out there campaiging for him and saying for the first time in her life she is proud of her country.. she's fair game."
But if what she said was taken out of context and made to sound worse than what she actually did say, then it's a low class tactic.
It's no secret that Americans are not nearly as involved in the political process as they should be. For a country that like to scream about our freedom and democracy, not a lot of people show up when it's time to vote. So for her to say that she is proud that people are now becoming active and involved in politics, that makes perfect sense.
Besides, we aren't electing her to run the country. I liked Bill Clinton but can't stand Hillary, but when I voted I voted based on HIM, not his wife. The first lady does not get to make decisions. And any soundbite can be skewed to sound bad if you want it to.
The fact that most of the public is pretty ignorant about things like economics, law and the vast amount of governmental rules and regulations was recently discussed.
"Obama in muslim garb doesn't offend me. Obama and the nonsense about flag pins doesn't offend me. Michelle Obama's comments were offensive--but hey, I'm a veteran."
I agree about Obama, I take no issue with those things. As the granddaughter of 2 WWII vets, I was also offended too. There are countless times I've been VERY proud of our country. Every single Veteran's Day. Every single Memorial Day. In the days following 9/11. Of course there are things in our history that I'm not proud of, or even ashamed of. But to say I've never in my adult life been proud of my country (and saying she is just now, for the FIRST time in her life proud of her country *is* saying she never before was proud of it) regardless of context, is unthinkable. For me anyway.
I think Bill Clinton, rightfully, gets all kinds of scrutiny for things he says on the campaign trail. Why should Michelle get treated differently because she's a wife instead of a husband?
As for Cindy McCain, I think if they were filing jointly, or if they did NOT have the pre-nup that they do, her finances would matter. That said, I have to agree...one with nothing to hide, hides nothing. I'm trying to remember, did Theresa Heinz-Kerry produce her financial records?
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