I’ve been reluctant to harp too much on this subject because I don’t want to get into the middle of a partisan battle but when Mario Cuomo doesn’t think that Sen. Barack Obama is being specific enough about what he plans to do on issues I feel empowered to second the motion:
“I’m unhappy with the current presidential race, so much so that I haven’t endorsed Obama or Hillary (Clinton), though I’m well-known to be a Democrat,” Cuomo said. “I am not endorsing because I don’t think they’ve been specific enough. We have these big, big issues, and the political theory is: ‘I don’t want to get into the specifics, because if I do I’m going to get into trouble.’ ”
Here are some of the specific questions I’d like answered:
- You’ve said you plan to leave a vestigial force in Iraq to conduct continued training of the Iraqi military, to undertake combat missions against Al Qaeda in Iraq, to protect American personnel and assets in Iraq, and for force protection. How large a force? Larger than 80,000? Larger than 50,000? Larger than 10,000?
- According to many polls the issue most on Americans’ minds is the high price of gasoline. Do you agree? If so, what is your plan to bring the price down in the near term.
- CAFTA (free trade agreement with Colombia) gets Colombia to open its markets to American good and services without changing what we’re doing much if at all. Why is that a bad idea?
- Do you favor the continuance of agricultural subsidies?
- Do you support the bail-out plan for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? Why is a bail-out plan that preserves shareholders equity in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac a good idea?
I’m sure I could think up a lot more but that’s a start.
This is purely an uneducated guess. But criticism of Obama has now distilled largely around the “lack of specifics” criticism. Since I think Obama and his people are very smart, I think they’ll deal with this head on.
I suspect that we’ll see a roll-out of new position papers and supporting speeches right around the convention. I’d think the week before. That way any annoyance by the base will be swallowed up by the high of the convention. The media will cover the issues speeches, check that off the cosmic to-do list and seg to the convention and the soaring rhetoric.
…criticism of Obama has now distilled largely around the “lack of specifics†criticism.
Mine started there. Do I get bonus points?
I would certainly welcome that. Despite my misgivings about his foreign policy I lean towards him and commonsense domestic policies would raise my comfort level. I have my doubts about some of what he’s suggested so far like the donut-hole extension of FICA. I’m in favor of a substantial rise in FICA max but I don’t think that gimmicks help the case much.
BO has no clue as to run an administration much less foreign policy. (which is every President’s Achilles heel) He has stated that he will transfer over $870 billion to the UN for humanitarian purposes. He wants to nationalize the Health Care Industry as well as the Oil Industry. Defense will be gutted and Americans will not be safer.
His purpose and actions with a Democratic Congress will be to weaken the United States economy by regulation and excessive taxation to the extent that rising powers of China, India, the EU and Russia will attract the investment capital and much needed infrastructure and technology will be non existent in the United States.
He will make Carter look great.