ABOUT FIRST READ

First Read is an analysis of the day's political news, from the NBC News political unit. First Read is updated throughout the day, so check back often.

Chuck Todd, NBC Political Director

Mark Murray, NBC Deputy Political Director

Domenico Montanaro, NBC News Political Reporter



Clinton Ohio surrogates blast Obama

Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008 4:23 PM by Mark Murray

From NBC/NJ's Mike Memoli
Hillary Clinton’s campaign in Ohio is reacting strongly to a mailer from the Obama campaign that hits her on NAFTA. One of her key labor supporters said the piece almost amounts to “mail fraud,” and claimed that other unions now siding with Obama -- as the SEIU is today -- are doing so only out of “sheer opportunism.”

“The Obama campaign until very, very recently had no union support because they didn’t believe that their constituency ... should include blue-collar workers,” Rick Sloan, a representative of the Machinists and Aerospace Workers union, said on a conference call today. “Unions that are joining them are doing it out of sheer opportunism... What they don’t understand is that this race is not over. It has just begun.”

The Obama mailer, which shows a closed sign hanging on a gate outside a factor, claims that Clinton once felt NAFTA would be a “boon” to the economy. It sites a 2006 Newsday questionnaire for Clinton’s 2006 Senate race that stated as such. Newsday’s blog yesterday corrected the record, saying that was its characterization of “how we best understood her position.”

Ohio Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher said it was disappointing that Obama chose to introduce himself to state voters in such a way. Sloan said the mailer “really reached over the bounds,” and was just short of “mail fraud.” “[Clinton is] on record having said that NAFTA has not lived up to its billing and needs to be fixed,” Fisher said.

Sloan fought back by accusing Obama of “shadowboxing” when it comes to fighting for workers. “What we’ve seen from him in Illinois at least is that he walks away from the fight,” Sloan said. “His brochure talks about he will fix our trade deals ... and we can believe him. Well, I think if you can believe Roger Clemens, you can believe on Barack Obama.”

Sloan claimed that Obama “has not lifted a finger to help people in his own state,” specifically citing the closure of a Maytag plant in Galesburg in 2004, when Obama was a candidate for Senate. Sloan said one of Obama’s contributors, Lester Crown, whose family had a 58% interest in Maytag, and made $150 million when the firm was bought out. “[Obama] could have picked up the phone,” Sloan said, but he didn’t because he “was in the tank to this Chicago billionaire.” “You don’t fight for workers by walking away.”

MAIN PAGE

Email this EMAIL THIS

Comments

watch out Obama get ready fo feel the heat. I am happy somebody is calling him out as the fraud that he really is.

SAY NO TO HUSSEIN OBAMA
Uh, what about all her abortion mailers? Which were actually false? This seems ok, her positions can be confusing, since she is always on both sides of them....
This campaign is locked in a disgusting spiral, hopefully Obama will squash it on March 4, and then let's get down to brass tacks.
So are we to believe that Hillary DID NOT support NAFTA when her husband help pass it???  Is it me or does anyone else have a very hard time believing that??
The Clintons and their surragates will drag the Democratic Party through the mud. With McCain winning in the fall.
Lewis -- believe what you want. But believe this: Obama is not going to seek the repeal of NAFTA.  That's a pipe dream.
Both Obama and Clinton are corporate lackeys.  John Edwards was the only democratic candidate who would have stood up to the multinational corporations that fund both Clinton's and Obama's campaigns.  Bill Clinton sold america away piece by piece by NAFTA to China and India.  How much money has Bill Clinton made during the Bush administration from firms and donors from China and India? How much of the funds that Hillary Clinton loaned her campaign came from money Bill had received from speaking engagements or deals he made with China, India, Dubai, or other foreign interest? Why does the press not look into these skeletons?  The press is as much to blame as they are run by their multi-national corporate masters (i.e Murdock). John Edwards was the only hope for the democrats and they once again committed political suicide.  McCain/Powell 2008
Clinton:..if you aren't with us you are against us. Supporting Obama is surely not legitimate whether you are a state or a voter.
Wow, considering the fact that her husband passed NAFTA and she is riding on his record and coattails, the harshness of Hillary's union response is ridiculous.

All Obama has do is develop an ad which says that her husband passed NAFTA and she supported it.
From another poster:

Let's take a closer look at who's really qualified and or who's really working for the good of all of us in the Senate. Obama or Clinton.

Senator Clinton, who has served only one full term - 6yrs. - and another year campaigning, has managed to author and pass into law - 20 - twenty pieces of legislation in her first six years.
These bills can be found on the website of the Library of Congress www.thomas.loc.gov, but to save you trouble, I'll post them here for you.
1. Establish the Kate Mullany National Historic Site.
2. Support the goals and ideals of Better Hearing and Speech Month.
3. Recognize the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
4. Name courthouse after Thurgood Marshall.
5. Name courthouse after James L. Watson.
6. Name post office after Jonn A. O'Shea.
7. Designate Aug. 7, 2003, as National Purple Heart Recognition Day.
8. Support the goals and ideals of National Purple Heart Recognition Day.
9. Honor the life and legacy of Alexander Hamilton on the bicentennial of his death.
10. Congratulate the Syracuse Univ. Orange Men's Lacrosse Team on winning the championship.
11. Congratulate the Le Moyne College Dolphins Men's Lacrosse Team on winning the championship.
12. Establish the 225th Anniversary of the American Revolution Commemorative Program.
13. Name post office after Sergeant Riayan A. Tejeda.
14. Honor Shirley Chisholm for her service to the nation and express condolences on her death.
15. Honor John J. Downing, Brian Fahey, and Harry Ford, firefighters who lost their lives on duty. Only five of Clinton's bills are, more substantive.
16. Extend period of unemployment assistance to victims of 9/11.
17. Pay for city projects in response to 9/11 18. Assist land mine victims in other countries.
19. Assist family caregivers in accessing affordable respite care.
20. Designate part of the National Forest System in Puerto Rico as protected in the wilderness preservation system.
There you have it, the fact's straight from the Senate Record.
Now, I would post those of Obama's, but the list is too substantive, so I'll mainly categorize.

During the first - 8 - eight years of his elected service he sponsored over 820 bills. He introduced

233 regarding health care reform,

125 on poverty and public assistance,

112 crime fighting bills,

97 economic bills,

60 human rights and anti-discrimination bills,

21 ethics reform bills,

15 gun control,

6 veterans affairs and many others.
His first year in the U.S. Senate, he authored 152 bills and co-sponsored another 427. These included **the Coburn-Obama Government Transparency Act of 2006 - became law, **The Lugar-Obama Nuclear Non-proliferation and Conventional Weapons Threat Reduction Act, - became law, **The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act, passed the Senate, **The 2007 Government Ethics Bill, - became law, **The Protection Against Excessive Executive Compensation Bill, In committee, and many more.
In all, since entering the U.S. Senate, Senator Obama has written 890 bills and co-sponsored another 1096.
An impressive record, for someone who supposedly has no record according to some who would prefer that this comparison not be made public.
He's not just a talker.
He's a doer.
Hillary was all for NAFTA when Bill was in office. She was floppin with the wind on the notion that it needs to be changed. She said it had issues as a Presidential Candidate running during a recession...DUH!
Obama08 = Jimmy Carter 2.0
Who is playing DIRTY POLITICS NOW.  Oh, not the Golden Boy Obama.  Obama is nothing but a LIAR.  He will say and do ANYTHING TO get the nomination.  This one Will Hurt your chance in Ohio.  Not that you had a chance in Ohio anyways.  Sen. Obama is not qualified to be President, he's unelectable in the general election. Hillary wins big in the big states that are must wins for the Dems in November. It's that simple. AS Ohio goes, so goes the nation. No Presidential candidate can win without Ohio, and Ohio LOVES HIllary! Even more importantly, Hillary polls well against MCcain in Ohio, while obama  loses in Ohio. VOTE SMART! VOTE HILLARY!

I wish the Clinton and Obama supporters would quit sniping at each other and trashing the two candidates.  They are both honorable people in my estimation.  I will support either enthusiastically against the republican in November.  The prize is the Presidency and we need to be united in order to win.
Clinton and McCain share a trait that keeps me from suporting either one. Both were too callus or too stupid to see that there spouses had serious problems right in front of their faces, Clinton with sex and McCain with drugs. I think this inability to see the truth disqualifies them from the oval office
This again shows the polarizing nature of Obama. He is a fraud, so full of himself.

Obama as a nominee will secure four more republican years in the White House.

HILLARY 08!!!
Hillary is the most experencied, Obama has never explained how hes gonna do any of the things he promosied, Think about it.
This again shows the polarizing nature of Obama. He is a fraud, so full of himself.

Obama as a nominee will secure four more republican years in the White House.

HILLARY 08!!!
This again shows the polarizing nature of Obama. He is a fraud, so full of himself.

Obama as a nominee will secure four more republican years in the White House.

HILLARY 08!!!
So are we to believe that Hillary DID NOT support NAFTA when her husband help pass it???  Is it me or does anyone else have a very hard time believing that??
Lewis, Cincinnati, Ohio (Sent Friday, February 15, 2008 4:34 PM)


Yes, I have a hard time believing that.
H.Clinton knows that she voted for NAFTA, I am an Impoter and I know she backed B.Clinton on this.

She will try and spin this anyway she can.
Talk about not playing dirty, now look at the LIAR.

As Obama has stated all along she is playing the same old game as she knows nothing else. Sling that MUD HRC as that is all you Clintons are good for.

SAME OLD STATUS QUO, JUST LIKE A BUSH IN DRAG.



GO OBAMA '08

Patty from S.D CA, What is it about his middle name that threatens you?? You act as if America was founded by non immigrants and white colllar workers?
Equality FOR ALL!!! EVEN IF YOUR MIDDLE NAME IS HUSSEIN!! Patty your a fraud of "LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL"  
See, this is what is wrong with the Clintons.  They demonstrate a serial willingness to do or say anything to win an election, then cry foul if anything remotely similar is used against them.  You need not be a Republican or an Obama supporter to see the disgusting hypocrisy here.  

Hillary, you want to take the campaign into the gutter by making false and misleading statements about your opponents, playing identity politics and using gender and race to your advantage?  Well, then, you're going to end up covered in slime.  Hope you like the smell.  
Right, Lewis.  Hillary didn't support Nafta---sort of like Bill didn't support the Iraq war----that was the 'spin du jour' here in Iowa way back six or seven weeks ago.  Every state where they (the Clintons) have taken their cheap shots, the Clintons are 'outed'---a few places, due to the compressed campaign schedule and lack of time for folks to find 'facts' can result in Clintons getting by on their 'image' or spin----mightn't that explain California, New York, and New Hampshire?  When people are given a chance to think, the result is Obama.  It is a head AND heart thing---something Clinton will never offer.

Good luck in Wisconsin, Texas, Ohio.  If you want a Demo president, Mrs. C needs to be firmly shown the door.  No 'male' politician would get the passes she has received with such outlandish conduct---position changes, financial murkiness, taking cheap shots, you've read the whole list before.
STOP, THE FARCE OBAMA.HE WILL NOT EVEN DEBATE THE ISSUES IN WISCONSIN,ONE ON ONE WITH CLINTON.
Oh Hilary, Hillary, Hillary.

She's dumb. The election is Ohio isn't for another 17 days, meanwhile she's busy losing Wisconsin.

Desperate and sad.
Ohio Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher said it was disappointing that Obama chose to introduce himself to state voters in such a way. Sloan said the mailer “really reached over the bounds,” and was just short of “mail fraud.” “[Clinton is] on record having said that NAFTA has not lived up to its billing and needs to be fixed,” Fisher said.

Sloan fought back by accusing Obama of “shadowboxing” when it comes to fighting for workers. “What we’ve seen from him in Illinois at least is that he walks away from the fight,” Sloan said. “His brochure talks about he will fix our trade deals ... and we can believe him. Well, I think if you can believe Roger Clemens, you can believe on Barack Obama.”

Sloan claimed that Obama “has not lifted a finger to help people in his own state,” specifically citing the closure of a Maytag plant in Galesburg in 2004, when Obama was a candidate for Senate. Sloan said one of Obama’s contributors, Lester Crown, whose family had a 58% interest in Maytag, and made $150 million when the firm was bought out. “[Obama] could have picked up the phone,” Sloan said, but he didn’t because he “was in the tank to this Chicago billionaire.” “You don’t fight for workers by walking away.”


Read it and weep all you Obama followers.  This is nothing compared to what is to come once the Republicans starts their attacks against Mr. Obama.
The race is tight and both Clinton and Obama see that Texas and Ohio are very important.  So aside from the kicking and scratching...let's talk about the real important issues.  I have seen the Ohio flyer and have done much research about Clinton's and Obama's plans on healthcare.  

The fact of the matter, Obama's flyer is not fraudulent, it is informative and straight to the point regarding Clinton's healthcare plan.  Clinton has stated during CNN and Good Morning America interviews that her Universal Healthcare Plan, will REQUIRE everyone to participate in her healthcare plan.  "Require" being the key word.  I think the government requiring, forcing or mandating me to get health insurance just rubs me the wrong way.  I agree with both candidates regarding required health insurance for children and penalizing parents that don't abide.  We need to protect the ones that can't protect themselves.  But as a 34-year old of sound-minded individual...I do not want to be required to have health insurance even if I can afford it or not.  

Sorry but fraud is the intentional use of deceit and Obama's mailer is not deceitful.  The mailer just clearly explains the difference between Clinton’s and Obama's healthcare plan.  Unfortunately for Clinton, Obama’s flyer has finally answered the question she has danced around and refused to answer for the past several months.  Senator Clinton, how do you plan to require everyone to participate in your plan???

These links clearly show in her own words that her plan is exactly what Obama's flyer states.  Clinton just doesn't like how Obama presented it...truthfully and straight up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qGMJQvgmrs  
(one point of the interview she says her plan will require health insurance for everyone but then 1 minute later she says Obama's flyer is wrong false for stating that very same statement...she's contradicting herself)

http://abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/story?id=4235364&page=1
(starting at the bottom of page 2)

P.S.  In my opinion, the word "universal" is not such a good thing when it is forced, required or mandated by the government.



SEND A COMMENT

PLEASE READ: All comments must be approved before appearing in the thread; time and space constraints prevent all comments from appearing. We will only approve comments that are directly related to the blog, use appropriate language and are not attacking the comments of others.

Message (please, no HTML tags. Web addresses will be hyperlinked):

TRACKBACKS

Trackbacks are links to weblogs that reference this post. Like comments, trackbacks do not appear until approved by us. The trackback URL for this post is: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/trackback.aspx?PostID=669642

First Read e-mail alerts


Sign up for First Read alerts
The first place for key political news and analysis

Syndicate This Site

Add First Read to your news reader:
live.com xml
myyahoo msn
bloglines newsgator
google