Obama: Some heat from the left
Posted: Wednesday, July 02, 2008 9:29 AM by Domenico Montanaro
Obama’s “decision to support legislation granting legal immunity to telecommunications companies that cooperated with the Bush administration’s program of wiretapping without warrants has led to an intense backlash among some of his most ardent supporters,” the New York Times says.
VIDEO: A Race for the White House panel debates: Is Barack Obama taking center ground on issues such as the FISA bill, the economy, Iraq and Iran?
The
New York Post: “[D]iscontent is being echoed across the very same liberal blogosphere that launched Obama from obscurity more than a year ago. So much so that thousands of dissatisfied supporters have created a group on his Web site to protest his latest position on terrorist surveillance legislation, known as FISA. Obama's waffling on the issue is so incendiary among his supporters that some 7,000 have joined, according to one of the group's organizers, making it the fourth-largest group on Obama's Web site.”
Per the New York Times, Obama said yesterday “that if elected president he would expand the delivery of social services through churches and other religious organizations, vowing to achieve a goal he said President Bush had fallen short on during his two terms.”
The Washington Post: “Under Obama's proposal, groups could use federal funds only to assist people in need, not people from a certain background or religion. Nor could federal funds be used to proselytize or spread religious beliefs. ‘This is about providing equal treatment, but not special treatment,’ an Obama aide said.”
“[Bush faith-based director John] DiIulio endorsed Obama's proposal as a ‘principled, prudent and problem-solving vision’ for the future of faith-based social service. The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, said he is ‘disappointed that any presidential candidate would want to continue a failed policy of the Bush administration.’”
As the Boston Globe notes, “Political analysts said Obama's proposal appeared to be part of an attempt to shift to the center and recruit moderate, evangelical Christians and mainstream Catholics, two voting blocs that consistently supported Bush and have embraced Republican candidates.”
The Chicago Tribune reminds us that this isn’t the first time Obama has talked about this subject. "Early in his Senate career, Obama gave a high-profile speech arguing on behalf of a greater role for religious faith in political debate and he cultivated relationships with evangelical leaders. But, amid false rumors he is a Muslim and controversy over incendiary sermons delivered by his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama struggled to win over white religious voters in his primary campaign."
“The faith pitch sparked more chatter that he is charging to the political center for his showdown with GOPer John McCain,” the New York Daily News says. “It came a day after Obama went to another swing state, Missouri, to shore up his patriotic bona fides. Obama insisted he was just being consistent. ‘What happens is, I get tagged as being on the left, and when I simply describe what have been my positions consistently, then suddenly people act surprised,’ he said. ‘But there haven't been substantial shifts.’”
The Washington Post writes that Obama secured a discount loan for his home in Chicago. “He locked in an interest rate of 5.625 percent on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, below the average for such loans at the time in Chicago. The loan was unusually large, known in banker lingo as a ‘super super jumbo.’ Obama paid no origination fee or discount points, as some consumers do to reduce their interest rates. Compared with the average terms offered at the time in Chicago, Obama's rate could have saved him more than $300 per month. Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt said the rate was adjusted to account for a competing offer from another lender and other factors. ‘The Obamas have since had as much as $3 million invested through Northern Trust,’ he said in a statement.”
