Story Source
Bloggers are raising questions about Illinois Sen. Barack Obama's qualifications to be U.S. president, because of the secrecy over his birth certificate and the requirement presidents be "natural-born" U.S. citizens.
Jim Geraghty, reporting on the Campaign Spot, a National Review blog, cited the "unlikely" but still circulating rumor that Obama was born not within the United States, but elsewhere, possibly Kenya.
Geraghty defined the concerns most clearly, stating: "If Obama were born outside the United States, one could argue that he would not meet the legal definition of natural-born citizen … because U.S. law at the time of his birth required his natural-born parent (his mother) to have resided in the United States for '10 years, at least [f]ive of which had to be after the age of 16.'"
He then points out Ann Dunham, Obama's mother, was 18 when Obama was born "so she wouldn't have met the requirement of five years after the age of 16."
Geraghty continues: " (Interestingly, apparently there isn't much paperwork on Obama's parents' marriage. 'Obama: From Promise to Power,' page. 27: 'Obama later confessed that he never searched for the government documents on the marriage, although Madelyn (Obama's maternal grandmother) insisted they were legally married.' Also note that Obama's father apparently was not legally divorced from his first wife back in Kenya at the time, a point of contention that ultimately led to their separation.)"
The reports released to date show Obama was born in Honolulu to Barack Hussein Obama Sr., of Nyangoma-Kogelo, Kenya, and Ann Dunham, of Wichita, Kan.
According to FindLaw.com, which is cited by Geraghty, the requirements that were in force from Dec. 24, 1952 to Nov. 13, 1986, encompassing the time of Obama's birth, state, "If only one parent was a U.S. citizen at the time of your birth, that parent must have resided in the United States for at least 10 years, at least five of which had to be after the age of 16."
Obama's father, a student sent to the United States from Africa, lived several places in the United States while attending class. He then returned to his homeland. Obama's mother later married another man and moved to Indonesia.
Geraghty said the Obama campaign could "debunk" the rumors about his birth simply by releasing a copy of his birth certificate, but the campaign has so far chosen not to do that.
"The campaign cited the birth certificate in their 'Fact Check' on William Ayers, so presumably, someone in the campaign has access to it," he said.
Hawaii doesn't make public information from birth certificates.
"If the concern of the Obama campaign is that the certificate includes his Social Security number or some other data that could be useful to identity thieves, that information could easily be blocked out and the rest released. (Although I wonder if identity thieves would find Obama a tougher than usual target, since using the name on purchases would almost inevitably bring closer scrutiny.)," Geraghty said.
The Obama campaign repeatedly has declined to respond to WND requests for comment.
The presumptive Republican nominee for president, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., already has gone through the same type of challenge, and the U.S. Senate responded with a resolution in April declaring him to be a "'natural born Citizen' under Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution of the United States."
That article declares that "no person except a natural born citizen … shall be eligible to the Office of president."
McCain was challenged because he was born to two U.S. citizens in the Panama Canal Zone.
According to a report from Michael Dobbs on The Fact Checker, the McCain campaign consulted two leading jurists, Theodore Olsen and Laurence Tribe, and they agreed.
"They argue that McCain is a natural born citizen because the United States exercised sovereignty over the Panama Canal at the time of his birth on August 29, 1936, he was born on a U.S. military base, and both of his parents were U.S. citizens," the report said.
Others say the issue isn't quite that simple, and the matter could be resolved fully only by a constitutional amendment or a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Rising Energy Prices and the Falling Dollar
Story Source
Oil prices are on the minds of many Americans as gas hits $4 a gallon, and continues to surge. How high can prices go? How can we solve these problems? What, or who, is to blame?
Part of the answer lies in understanding bubbles and monetary inflation, but especially the Federal Reserve System. The Federal Reserve is charged with controlling inflation through interest rate manipulation, however, many fail to realize that creating money, and therefore inflation, is really its only tool. When the Federal Reserve inflates the dollar as drastically as it has in the past few decades, the first users of the newly created money go in search of investments for their dollars. They must invest this money quickly and aggressively before it loses value. This causes certain sectors to expand beyond what would naturally occur in the free market. Eventually the sector overheats and the bubble bursts. Overinvestment in dotcoms eventually led to a collapse of the NASDAQ. Next we had the housing bubble, and now we are seeing the price of oil being bid up in the creation of another new bubble. Investors are now looking to commodities like oil, for stability and growth as they pull capital out of real estate. This increased demand for investment vehicles related to oil contributes to driving up the price of the actual product.
If the Fed continues with its bubble blowing policies of the past, the new commodities bubble will continue to grow, gas prices will continue to go up, as the value of your dollars go down. We will see an overinvestment in these commodities as solutions are desperately sought for a supply shortage, which is only part of the problem. Make no mistake, though, this is not the free market at work. Government manipulations have added levels of complication and unintended consequences to the marketplace.
This is not the time for members of Congress to take political potshots at each other, or to imagine that the free market is somehow to blame. This is the time to understand and fix problems. That begins with making sure the decision makers have a firm grasp on the causes of the problems and possible effects of their decisions. This is absolutely crucial if we want to get it right this time. That is why I am in the process of calling for hearings on Capitol Hill on how the falling value of the dollar affects energy prices.
Governments need to get out of the way and let the people get back to work so that we can get our economy back on stable footing. Our destructive regulatory environment, confiscatory tax policies, and managed, rather than free trade have chased many businesses overseas. The bottom line is average Americans are being seriously hurt by these flawed policies, and they are not getting good information about the true dynamics at work. The important thing now is to get the diagnosis absolutely correct so we can administer the appropriate treatment and move on to a healthier economic future. To do this it is absolutely necessary to address the subjects of central banking and fiat money.
Oil prices are on the minds of many Americans as gas hits $4 a gallon, and continues to surge. How high can prices go? How can we solve these problems? What, or who, is to blame?
Part of the answer lies in understanding bubbles and monetary inflation, but especially the Federal Reserve System. The Federal Reserve is charged with controlling inflation through interest rate manipulation, however, many fail to realize that creating money, and therefore inflation, is really its only tool. When the Federal Reserve inflates the dollar as drastically as it has in the past few decades, the first users of the newly created money go in search of investments for their dollars. They must invest this money quickly and aggressively before it loses value. This causes certain sectors to expand beyond what would naturally occur in the free market. Eventually the sector overheats and the bubble bursts. Overinvestment in dotcoms eventually led to a collapse of the NASDAQ. Next we had the housing bubble, and now we are seeing the price of oil being bid up in the creation of another new bubble. Investors are now looking to commodities like oil, for stability and growth as they pull capital out of real estate. This increased demand for investment vehicles related to oil contributes to driving up the price of the actual product.
If the Fed continues with its bubble blowing policies of the past, the new commodities bubble will continue to grow, gas prices will continue to go up, as the value of your dollars go down. We will see an overinvestment in these commodities as solutions are desperately sought for a supply shortage, which is only part of the problem. Make no mistake, though, this is not the free market at work. Government manipulations have added levels of complication and unintended consequences to the marketplace.
This is not the time for members of Congress to take political potshots at each other, or to imagine that the free market is somehow to blame. This is the time to understand and fix problems. That begins with making sure the decision makers have a firm grasp on the causes of the problems and possible effects of their decisions. This is absolutely crucial if we want to get it right this time. That is why I am in the process of calling for hearings on Capitol Hill on how the falling value of the dollar affects energy prices.
Governments need to get out of the way and let the people get back to work so that we can get our economy back on stable footing. Our destructive regulatory environment, confiscatory tax policies, and managed, rather than free trade have chased many businesses overseas. The bottom line is average Americans are being seriously hurt by these flawed policies, and they are not getting good information about the true dynamics at work. The important thing now is to get the diagnosis absolutely correct so we can administer the appropriate treatment and move on to a healthier economic future. To do this it is absolutely necessary to address the subjects of central banking and fiat money.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Decalogues everywhere, with thanks to the ACLU!
Story Source
Thousands of stone Ten Commandments monuments on highly visible properties in communities across the nation, millions of smaller plaques in Christian and Jewish homes, and a massive bronze showing the biblical image of Moses holding the stones on which God wrote… The target of the ACLU? Nope. Thanks to the ACLU!
Joe Worthing, the executive director for Project Moses, says his organization, only a few years old, is well on its way to reaching many of its goals of placing Ten Commandments monuments all over the nation, and it's because of a complaint from the ACLU.
The ministry was launched by John Menghini, an Overland Park, Kan., businessman, who was disturbed by a news story about the ACLU demanding and getting the removal of a Ten Commandments monument from a Kansas City courthouse.
The Kansas City story also noted the fate of the monument to which the ACLU objected: It was moved about 100 feet across the street to St. Anthony's Catholic Church, so that it would be on private property and no longer subject to the whims of lawyers and judges, and a light clicked on for Menghini.
"The beauty of this move is that now, far more visitors to the courthouse actually view the Ten Commandments because it is more visible than it ever was on the courthouse grounds," he said. "I thought, if every church and synagogue in America would proudly display God's law, as this one church did, maybe our culture could turn a corner and come back to its Judeo-Christian roots."
The result was Project Moses, which works to install 900-pound stone monuments to God's Laws on church and other private properties in prominent civic locations across the country. Hundreds already are installed, as well as thousands of smaller stone plaques that are offered to families for their homes.
"The ACLU is not the problem [with removing the Ten Commandments from America]," Worthing told WND. "We need to send them a thank you. They awakened a sleeping giant.
"The problem has been the apathy of good citizens sitting on their hands and saying, 'That's happening in California or Boston, not in Omaha,'" he said.
One Nebraska city's situation is a perfect example of what the organization wants to do: A citizen brought a complaint against the city government for a Ten Commandments monument hidden in a remote corner of a public park.
A Ten Commandments display at First Baptist Church in Downey, Calif.
It was removed, but one of the Project Moses monuments was placed instead on a street front property. It happens to be only a few blocks from where the complainant lives, and he now has to drive within 15 feet of God's Laws whenever he passes that location, Worthing said.
"Listen, they [the ACLU] may have won a few skirmishes, but God's going to win the war," Worthing said.
He said his organization in just a few years has installed nearly 400 of the monuments, far more than have been removed from public locations because of litigation and intimidation over the past 30 years.
"Project Moses' stated mission is the restoration of respect for the Ten Commandments so all may live out Christ's call for true social justice in the home, communities and political policies," the organization says. It cites the instructions from the Torah, Deut. 6:4-9. "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. … Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates…"
Worthing says the primary goal is to place the stone monuments, 5 feet, 4 inches tall, "on every private religious property, Catholic, Protestant and Jewish, in America."
These monuments are intended to be on "'Main Street,' right in front for the whole community to see."
The cost of the monuments, including those made from marble imported from the Sinai Peninsula, run about $4,500 to $5,000 including delivery and the organization has various methods of raising funds for churches that want to participate.
Proposed bronze of Moses and the Ten Commandments planned for Washington, D.C.
The goal is to install a total of 5,000 monuments over the next five years and distribute 1.5 million eight-inch square stone plaques in homes and offices at the same time. More than 15,000 already have been handed out, officials said.
The last part of the goal is a bronze of Moses holding the Decalogue over his head. It is expected to be about 24 feet tall and be placed on private property in Washington, although no details about the land can be released until its purchase is completed, officials said.
Because the numbering traditions among Catholics, Protestants and Jews vary, the monuments are available in the St. Augustine, King James or Jewish number traditions.
The project's goal "is not to argue whose tradition is better but to get all who view these monuments to dive into Scripture and move beyond the simple 10 sentences we learned as children."
The project supports the efforts of many Christian individuals and organizations to maintain historic Ten Commandments monuments in public locations.
But, Worthing said, "If the first place someone sees the Commandments is at the courthouse, that's probably why he is there!
"Political battles need to be fought but conversion and changing how people live needs to be the goal. America is where it is at today, morally, not because of groups like the ACLU but because of the APATHY of the faithful.
"Sir Edmund Burke said it best when he said, 'The only thing necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing.' Project Moses gives the average believer the opportunity they have not had in the courtrooms over the past 30 years, a tangible way to show support for God's laws," he said.
He said a teaching curriculum also is available to churches, since the goal is more than to plop a piece of rock on a sidewalk. Also available are plans for "Ten Commandments weekends" where churches raise their own funds for the monuments.
"More than 90 percent of the churches who hold a weekend raise more money than they need to buy the monument," he said.
Christians schools, too, should consider the impact, he said.
"Instead of having a cardboard cutout, how about a 900-pound stone monument in an entryway," he said. "It's something like 3,500 times a child will have to walk by that over the course of their grade school years. They just may be able to remember them then."
Only five states have not yet had such a monument installed, and plans are under way at this time for the first installation in Vermont. The other states remaining are North and South Carolina, Alaska and Hawaii.
WND has reported extensively of battles over the existence of Ten Commandments monuments in America, as well as on the existing historical references to the Ten Commandments in Washington, as well as politically correct effects to minimize, change or alter those references.
Thousands of stone Ten Commandments monuments on highly visible properties in communities across the nation, millions of smaller plaques in Christian and Jewish homes, and a massive bronze showing the biblical image of Moses holding the stones on which God wrote… The target of the ACLU? Nope. Thanks to the ACLU!
Joe Worthing, the executive director for Project Moses, says his organization, only a few years old, is well on its way to reaching many of its goals of placing Ten Commandments monuments all over the nation, and it's because of a complaint from the ACLU.
The ministry was launched by John Menghini, an Overland Park, Kan., businessman, who was disturbed by a news story about the ACLU demanding and getting the removal of a Ten Commandments monument from a Kansas City courthouse.
The Kansas City story also noted the fate of the monument to which the ACLU objected: It was moved about 100 feet across the street to St. Anthony's Catholic Church, so that it would be on private property and no longer subject to the whims of lawyers and judges, and a light clicked on for Menghini.
"The beauty of this move is that now, far more visitors to the courthouse actually view the Ten Commandments because it is more visible than it ever was on the courthouse grounds," he said. "I thought, if every church and synagogue in America would proudly display God's law, as this one church did, maybe our culture could turn a corner and come back to its Judeo-Christian roots."
The result was Project Moses, which works to install 900-pound stone monuments to God's Laws on church and other private properties in prominent civic locations across the country. Hundreds already are installed, as well as thousands of smaller stone plaques that are offered to families for their homes.
"The ACLU is not the problem [with removing the Ten Commandments from America]," Worthing told WND. "We need to send them a thank you. They awakened a sleeping giant.
"The problem has been the apathy of good citizens sitting on their hands and saying, 'That's happening in California or Boston, not in Omaha,'" he said.
One Nebraska city's situation is a perfect example of what the organization wants to do: A citizen brought a complaint against the city government for a Ten Commandments monument hidden in a remote corner of a public park.
A Ten Commandments display at First Baptist Church in Downey, Calif.
It was removed, but one of the Project Moses monuments was placed instead on a street front property. It happens to be only a few blocks from where the complainant lives, and he now has to drive within 15 feet of God's Laws whenever he passes that location, Worthing said.
"Listen, they [the ACLU] may have won a few skirmishes, but God's going to win the war," Worthing said.
He said his organization in just a few years has installed nearly 400 of the monuments, far more than have been removed from public locations because of litigation and intimidation over the past 30 years.
"Project Moses' stated mission is the restoration of respect for the Ten Commandments so all may live out Christ's call for true social justice in the home, communities and political policies," the organization says. It cites the instructions from the Torah, Deut. 6:4-9. "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. … Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates…"
Worthing says the primary goal is to place the stone monuments, 5 feet, 4 inches tall, "on every private religious property, Catholic, Protestant and Jewish, in America."
These monuments are intended to be on "'Main Street,' right in front for the whole community to see."
The cost of the monuments, including those made from marble imported from the Sinai Peninsula, run about $4,500 to $5,000 including delivery and the organization has various methods of raising funds for churches that want to participate.
Proposed bronze of Moses and the Ten Commandments planned for Washington, D.C.
The goal is to install a total of 5,000 monuments over the next five years and distribute 1.5 million eight-inch square stone plaques in homes and offices at the same time. More than 15,000 already have been handed out, officials said.
The last part of the goal is a bronze of Moses holding the Decalogue over his head. It is expected to be about 24 feet tall and be placed on private property in Washington, although no details about the land can be released until its purchase is completed, officials said.
Because the numbering traditions among Catholics, Protestants and Jews vary, the monuments are available in the St. Augustine, King James or Jewish number traditions.
The project's goal "is not to argue whose tradition is better but to get all who view these monuments to dive into Scripture and move beyond the simple 10 sentences we learned as children."
The project supports the efforts of many Christian individuals and organizations to maintain historic Ten Commandments monuments in public locations.
But, Worthing said, "If the first place someone sees the Commandments is at the courthouse, that's probably why he is there!
"Political battles need to be fought but conversion and changing how people live needs to be the goal. America is where it is at today, morally, not because of groups like the ACLU but because of the APATHY of the faithful.
"Sir Edmund Burke said it best when he said, 'The only thing necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing.' Project Moses gives the average believer the opportunity they have not had in the courtrooms over the past 30 years, a tangible way to show support for God's laws," he said.
He said a teaching curriculum also is available to churches, since the goal is more than to plop a piece of rock on a sidewalk. Also available are plans for "Ten Commandments weekends" where churches raise their own funds for the monuments.
"More than 90 percent of the churches who hold a weekend raise more money than they need to buy the monument," he said.
Christians schools, too, should consider the impact, he said.
"Instead of having a cardboard cutout, how about a 900-pound stone monument in an entryway," he said. "It's something like 3,500 times a child will have to walk by that over the course of their grade school years. They just may be able to remember them then."
Only five states have not yet had such a monument installed, and plans are under way at this time for the first installation in Vermont. The other states remaining are North and South Carolina, Alaska and Hawaii.
WND has reported extensively of battles over the existence of Ten Commandments monuments in America, as well as on the existing historical references to the Ten Commandments in Washington, as well as politically correct effects to minimize, change or alter those references.
Top analyst sees $200 oil, $5.75 gas
Story Source
The Goldman Sachs energy analyst whose predictions have fueled worldwide oil price speculation now foresees oil peaking at $200 a barrel, with gasoline rising to $5.75 a gallon before consumption cools enough to lower fuel prices.
In an rare interview published today in Barron's, Arjun N. Murti, Goldman Sachs' 39-year-old top energy analyst, said energy is in the later stages of a worldwide "super spike," with the possibility of $150 to $200 a barrel oil likely over the next six to 24 months."
Murti noted oil analysts have shifted from a 1990s attitude of, "It is easy to grow supply," to today's pessimism, "It is going to be more difficult to grow supply." The change is in part because oil-producing areas, including Mexico and the North Sea, are declining, while growth areas such as Brazil and Angola are just coming online.
In the interview with Barron's, Murti stressed he does not believe the world is running out of oil, and he does not subscribe to peak oil theories that worldwide oil production rates are necessarily declining.
In Murti's view, the problem is worldwide oil demand is growing consistently, while supply is growing more moderately.
"We do think that the places that have large quantities of recoverable oil, notably Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Venezuela and Russia, aren't on track to grow their supply aggressively," Murti said. "And, to some degree, high prices are disincentivizing some of these countries to either open up their industry or spend the money themselves. These countries don't need the incremental revenue."
Morgan Stanley agrees, predicting oil will hit $150 a barrel by the end of June or the beginning of July.
Crude oil set a one-day record Friday, surging more than $10 a barrel, to settle at $138.54 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The price of crude oil on world future's exchanges has more than doubled in the past year.
Departing today on what is billed as his "farewell visit" to Europe, President Bush today blamed Congress for refusing to allow drilling in Alaska and offshore on the continental shelf, "to give this country a chance to help us through this difficult period by finding more supplies of crude oil, which will take the pressure off the price of gasoline."
Sen. John McCain has attacked Sen. Barack Obama's push for government incentives to develop alternative renewable fuels as government subsidies calculated to enrich special interests.
According to Stephen Power writing in today's Wall Street Journal, McCain favors scrapping federal ethanol credits, moving instead to develop more nuclear power plants.
"I have to give you straight talk about government subsidies," McCain told a business leader roundtable last month in Washington state. "When government jumps in and distorts the market, then there's unintended consequences as well as intended."
Obama has promised to invest $150 billion in alternative fuels over the next decade, with a requirement that the U.S. get at least 25 percent of its electricity from renewable sources, including wind, sun and geothermal energy by 2025, even though those resources today account for less than 1 percent of U.S. electricity.
The Goldman Sachs energy analyst whose predictions have fueled worldwide oil price speculation now foresees oil peaking at $200 a barrel, with gasoline rising to $5.75 a gallon before consumption cools enough to lower fuel prices.
In an rare interview published today in Barron's, Arjun N. Murti, Goldman Sachs' 39-year-old top energy analyst, said energy is in the later stages of a worldwide "super spike," with the possibility of $150 to $200 a barrel oil likely over the next six to 24 months."
Murti noted oil analysts have shifted from a 1990s attitude of, "It is easy to grow supply," to today's pessimism, "It is going to be more difficult to grow supply." The change is in part because oil-producing areas, including Mexico and the North Sea, are declining, while growth areas such as Brazil and Angola are just coming online.
In the interview with Barron's, Murti stressed he does not believe the world is running out of oil, and he does not subscribe to peak oil theories that worldwide oil production rates are necessarily declining.
In Murti's view, the problem is worldwide oil demand is growing consistently, while supply is growing more moderately.
"We do think that the places that have large quantities of recoverable oil, notably Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Venezuela and Russia, aren't on track to grow their supply aggressively," Murti said. "And, to some degree, high prices are disincentivizing some of these countries to either open up their industry or spend the money themselves. These countries don't need the incremental revenue."
Morgan Stanley agrees, predicting oil will hit $150 a barrel by the end of June or the beginning of July.
Crude oil set a one-day record Friday, surging more than $10 a barrel, to settle at $138.54 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The price of crude oil on world future's exchanges has more than doubled in the past year.
Departing today on what is billed as his "farewell visit" to Europe, President Bush today blamed Congress for refusing to allow drilling in Alaska and offshore on the continental shelf, "to give this country a chance to help us through this difficult period by finding more supplies of crude oil, which will take the pressure off the price of gasoline."
Sen. John McCain has attacked Sen. Barack Obama's push for government incentives to develop alternative renewable fuels as government subsidies calculated to enrich special interests.
According to Stephen Power writing in today's Wall Street Journal, McCain favors scrapping federal ethanol credits, moving instead to develop more nuclear power plants.
"I have to give you straight talk about government subsidies," McCain told a business leader roundtable last month in Washington state. "When government jumps in and distorts the market, then there's unintended consequences as well as intended."
Obama has promised to invest $150 billion in alternative fuels over the next decade, with a requirement that the U.S. get at least 25 percent of its electricity from renewable sources, including wind, sun and geothermal energy by 2025, even though those resources today account for less than 1 percent of U.S. electricity.
Clinton Endorses Obama, Suspends Historic Bid for the White House
Story Source
Standing before a throng of supporters with American flags as her backdrop, Hillary Clinton did something Saturday that 17 months ago seemed unthinkable — she conceded defeat.
The former first lady, who as recently as Tuesday declared herself the strongest candidate, gave former rival Barack Obama an unqualified endorsement and pivoted from her role as determined foe to absolute ally. She suspended her historic bid for the White House, settling the dust following a grueling 17-month campaign.
Clinton repeatedly called on her supporters to unite behind the Illinois senator, casting the general election as a critical opportunity to shift course after seven years with a Republican president. She acknowledged the hard-fought and sometimes-bitter Democratic primary battle, but assured her voters that Obama has proved himself to the country.
“I’ve had a front-row seat to his candidacy, and I have seen his strength and determination, his grace and his grit,” she said.
“We all know this has been a tough fight, but the Democratic Party is a family … we may have started on separate journeys but today our paths have merged, and we’re all heading toward the same destination.”
Clinton kicked off her concession by directly thanking supporters who poured their “hearts” and “hopes” into her campaign.
“Well this isn’t exactly the party I’d planned, but I sure like the company,” Clinton said at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., her husband Bill and daughter Chelsea by her side.
Within minutes she announced that she was bowing out of the race.
“The way to continue our fight now … is to take our energy, our passion, our strength and do all that we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States,” she said to cheering supporters. “Today as I suspend my campaign, I congratulate him on the victory he has won, and the extraordinary race he has run. I endorse him and throw my full support behind him.”
Obama later issued a statement saying he is “thrilled and honored” to have Clinton’s support.
“But more than that, I honor her today for the valiant and historic campaign she has run,” he said. “She shattered barriers on behalf of my daughters and women everywhere, who now know that there are no limits to their dreams … Our party and our country are stronger because of the work she has done throughout her life, and I’m a better candidate for having had the privilege of competing with her in this campaign.
“No one knows better than Senator Clinton how desperately America and the American people need change, and I know she will continue to be in the forefront of that battle this fall and for years to come. “
Clinton was under pressure to send a strong signal to the 18 million voters who supported her in the marathon 50-state primary that it’s time to unite behind the presumptive nominee.
Obama secured the 2,118 delegates needed to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday after primaries in South Dakota and Montana. He planned to spend the weekend at home in Chicago.
Clinton on Tuesday gave little indication she was ready to bow out of the race. She congratulated Obama for running an “extraordinary” race but did not acknowledge at the time his delegate majority.
But on Saturday she paused to urge the audience to appreciate the historic nature of the race itself, which pitted the first serious female candidate for president against the most viable black candidate.
“Together, Senator Obama and I achieved milestones,” she said.
She said that even though her campaign was not successful, she paved the way for a woman to some day win the White House.
“Though we weren’t able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you it’s got about 18 million cracks in it,” she said. “The path will be a little easier next time.”
Clinton began the race as the undisputed front-runner in January 2007. But she saw her march to the nomination derailed a year later after being swamped by Obama in Iowa’s lead-off caucuses.
The last major candidate of the 2008 primary campaign to fall, Clinton persevered by staying defiant when her back was against the wall.
In the critical contests she had to win to stay in the race, she won. She had a strong showing in the March 4 primaries, and then pulled off a victory in Pennsylvania April 22. The victories were used to raise doubts about Obama’s chances against presumptive GOP nominee John McCain, even as his delegate lead over Clinton stayed imposing.
Left on the table is whether Clinton will be considered as Obama’s vice presidential pick.
The two had a face-to-face meeting Thursday evening at the Washington home of a Senate colleague, California Democrat Dianne Feinstein, where they discussed the campaign to come. They spoke alone for about an hour. Both were laughing when they finished.
Clinton was expected to campaign for Obama and to help with fundraising while seeking his assistance in retiring her $30 million campaign debt.
The New York senator has told colleagues she would be interested in joining Obama as his running mate.
Following the speech Saturday, she made her way through the crowd of supporters, shaking hands and signing autographs, telling one supporter, “Don’t worry, I’ll be back.”
Also unanswered is how passionately Clinton’s supporters will file in behind Obama. Clinton was met with ear-splitting cheers when she began her address, but the crowd response became progressively more tepid as she spoke about driving Obama to victory in November.
Polls show the general election race against McCain is still tight. The latest national Gallup tracking poll shows Obama leading McCain by just 1 point.
Clinton spent much of Friday working on her concession speech with campaign manager Maggie Williams, media adviser Mandy Grunwald and strategist Mark Penn.
By suspending her campaign, Clinton would retain nominal control of her delegates and could continue to raise money to pay off campaign debts.
A party at her Washington home on Friday was intended as a way to thank and bid farewell to campaign staff.
Standing before a throng of supporters with American flags as her backdrop, Hillary Clinton did something Saturday that 17 months ago seemed unthinkable — she conceded defeat.
The former first lady, who as recently as Tuesday declared herself the strongest candidate, gave former rival Barack Obama an unqualified endorsement and pivoted from her role as determined foe to absolute ally. She suspended her historic bid for the White House, settling the dust following a grueling 17-month campaign.
Clinton repeatedly called on her supporters to unite behind the Illinois senator, casting the general election as a critical opportunity to shift course after seven years with a Republican president. She acknowledged the hard-fought and sometimes-bitter Democratic primary battle, but assured her voters that Obama has proved himself to the country.
“I’ve had a front-row seat to his candidacy, and I have seen his strength and determination, his grace and his grit,” she said.
“We all know this has been a tough fight, but the Democratic Party is a family … we may have started on separate journeys but today our paths have merged, and we’re all heading toward the same destination.”
Clinton kicked off her concession by directly thanking supporters who poured their “hearts” and “hopes” into her campaign.
“Well this isn’t exactly the party I’d planned, but I sure like the company,” Clinton said at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., her husband Bill and daughter Chelsea by her side.
Within minutes she announced that she was bowing out of the race.
“The way to continue our fight now … is to take our energy, our passion, our strength and do all that we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States,” she said to cheering supporters. “Today as I suspend my campaign, I congratulate him on the victory he has won, and the extraordinary race he has run. I endorse him and throw my full support behind him.”
Obama later issued a statement saying he is “thrilled and honored” to have Clinton’s support.
“But more than that, I honor her today for the valiant and historic campaign she has run,” he said. “She shattered barriers on behalf of my daughters and women everywhere, who now know that there are no limits to their dreams … Our party and our country are stronger because of the work she has done throughout her life, and I’m a better candidate for having had the privilege of competing with her in this campaign.
“No one knows better than Senator Clinton how desperately America and the American people need change, and I know she will continue to be in the forefront of that battle this fall and for years to come. “
Clinton was under pressure to send a strong signal to the 18 million voters who supported her in the marathon 50-state primary that it’s time to unite behind the presumptive nominee.
Obama secured the 2,118 delegates needed to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday after primaries in South Dakota and Montana. He planned to spend the weekend at home in Chicago.
Clinton on Tuesday gave little indication she was ready to bow out of the race. She congratulated Obama for running an “extraordinary” race but did not acknowledge at the time his delegate majority.
But on Saturday she paused to urge the audience to appreciate the historic nature of the race itself, which pitted the first serious female candidate for president against the most viable black candidate.
“Together, Senator Obama and I achieved milestones,” she said.
She said that even though her campaign was not successful, she paved the way for a woman to some day win the White House.
“Though we weren’t able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you it’s got about 18 million cracks in it,” she said. “The path will be a little easier next time.”
Clinton began the race as the undisputed front-runner in January 2007. But she saw her march to the nomination derailed a year later after being swamped by Obama in Iowa’s lead-off caucuses.
The last major candidate of the 2008 primary campaign to fall, Clinton persevered by staying defiant when her back was against the wall.
In the critical contests she had to win to stay in the race, she won. She had a strong showing in the March 4 primaries, and then pulled off a victory in Pennsylvania April 22. The victories were used to raise doubts about Obama’s chances against presumptive GOP nominee John McCain, even as his delegate lead over Clinton stayed imposing.
Left on the table is whether Clinton will be considered as Obama’s vice presidential pick.
The two had a face-to-face meeting Thursday evening at the Washington home of a Senate colleague, California Democrat Dianne Feinstein, where they discussed the campaign to come. They spoke alone for about an hour. Both were laughing when they finished.
Clinton was expected to campaign for Obama and to help with fundraising while seeking his assistance in retiring her $30 million campaign debt.
The New York senator has told colleagues she would be interested in joining Obama as his running mate.
Following the speech Saturday, she made her way through the crowd of supporters, shaking hands and signing autographs, telling one supporter, “Don’t worry, I’ll be back.”
Also unanswered is how passionately Clinton’s supporters will file in behind Obama. Clinton was met with ear-splitting cheers when she began her address, but the crowd response became progressively more tepid as she spoke about driving Obama to victory in November.
Polls show the general election race against McCain is still tight. The latest national Gallup tracking poll shows Obama leading McCain by just 1 point.
Clinton spent much of Friday working on her concession speech with campaign manager Maggie Williams, media adviser Mandy Grunwald and strategist Mark Penn.
By suspending her campaign, Clinton would retain nominal control of her delegates and could continue to raise money to pay off campaign debts.
A party at her Washington home on Friday was intended as a way to thank and bid farewell to campaign staff.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Governor: Hamas nod dooms Obama in Florida
Story Source
Citing the controversy that began with WND's interview with a Hamas leader, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist said citizens of the Sunshine State will find Sen. Barack Obama's positions on foreign policy out of the mainstream.
Crist, credited with helping Sen. John McCain win the Florida Republican primary, told a New York Times reporter he believes the Arizona senator will be successful this fall in the crucial swing state, because Obama "is for higher taxes, and I think the whole Hamas issue is a drag."
Crist was referring to the fallout from an interview by WND's Aaron Klein, author of "Schmoozing With Terrorists," and WABC radio with a top Hamas official who said he hopes the Illinois senator becomes president. Ahmed Yousef, Hamas' chief political adviser in the Gaza Strip, also compared Obama to President John F. Kennedy.
McCain seized on the "endorsement," with campaign manager Brian Rogers asserting "the reason for Hamas' praise of Senator Obama's foreign policy is his commitment to meet unconditionally with Iran."
Crist told the Times' Kevin Sack he believes Obama's stances on foreign policy and taxes won't win over the citizens of his state.
"I think Floridians are pretty mainstream," Crist said. "I'm not sure Senator Obama is. I believe some group rated him as the most liberal Senator. I don't think that will go over well in Florida."
The governor was referring to the National Journal's annual Senate vote ratings, published in January, which ranked Obama most liberal.
Analysts have considered Crist, a popular first-term governor, as a potential running mate for McCain.
In the interview with Yousef, the Hamas leader said, "We like Mr. Obama, and we hope that he will win the elections. I hope Mr. Obama and the Democrats will change the political discourse. ... I do believe [Obama] is like John Kennedy, a great man with a great principal. And he has a vision to change America to make it in a position to lead the world community, but not with humiliation and arrogance."
Yousef volunteered his statements about Obama in response to a question inquiring whether he was surprised the senator and other presidential candidates criticized Jimmy Carter's recent meetings with Hamas.
Responding to the Hamas leader's comments, McCain contended Obama wants to "sit down and negotiate with a government exporting most lethal devices used against soldiers. He wants to sit down face to face with a government that is very clear about developing nuclear weapons. ... They are sponsors of terrorist organizations. That's a huge difference in my opinion. And I'll let the American people decide whether that's a significant difference or not. I believe it is."
Citing the controversy that began with WND's interview with a Hamas leader, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist said citizens of the Sunshine State will find Sen. Barack Obama's positions on foreign policy out of the mainstream.
Crist, credited with helping Sen. John McCain win the Florida Republican primary, told a New York Times reporter he believes the Arizona senator will be successful this fall in the crucial swing state, because Obama "is for higher taxes, and I think the whole Hamas issue is a drag."
Crist was referring to the fallout from an interview by WND's Aaron Klein, author of "Schmoozing With Terrorists," and WABC radio with a top Hamas official who said he hopes the Illinois senator becomes president. Ahmed Yousef, Hamas' chief political adviser in the Gaza Strip, also compared Obama to President John F. Kennedy.
McCain seized on the "endorsement," with campaign manager Brian Rogers asserting "the reason for Hamas' praise of Senator Obama's foreign policy is his commitment to meet unconditionally with Iran."
Crist told the Times' Kevin Sack he believes Obama's stances on foreign policy and taxes won't win over the citizens of his state.
"I think Floridians are pretty mainstream," Crist said. "I'm not sure Senator Obama is. I believe some group rated him as the most liberal Senator. I don't think that will go over well in Florida."
The governor was referring to the National Journal's annual Senate vote ratings, published in January, which ranked Obama most liberal.
Analysts have considered Crist, a popular first-term governor, as a potential running mate for McCain.
In the interview with Yousef, the Hamas leader said, "We like Mr. Obama, and we hope that he will win the elections. I hope Mr. Obama and the Democrats will change the political discourse. ... I do believe [Obama] is like John Kennedy, a great man with a great principal. And he has a vision to change America to make it in a position to lead the world community, but not with humiliation and arrogance."
Yousef volunteered his statements about Obama in response to a question inquiring whether he was surprised the senator and other presidential candidates criticized Jimmy Carter's recent meetings with Hamas.
Responding to the Hamas leader's comments, McCain contended Obama wants to "sit down and negotiate with a government exporting most lethal devices used against soldiers. He wants to sit down face to face with a government that is very clear about developing nuclear weapons. ... They are sponsors of terrorist organizations. That's a huge difference in my opinion. And I'll let the American people decide whether that's a significant difference or not. I believe it is."
Daughter of Christian music star killed by car
Story Source
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The 5-year-old daughter of Grammy-winning Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, authorities said.
The girl, Maria Sue, was hit in the driveway of the family's home Wednesday afternoon by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother, said Laura McPherson, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
The brother, whose name and exact age weren't available, apparently did not see the girl, McPherson said. No charges are expected.
"It looks like a tragic accident," she said.
Several family members witnessed the accident, which happened in Williamson County just south of Nashville. The girl died later at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, hospital spokeswoman Laurie Holloway said.
In a statement, Velvet Kelm, a publicist for Chapman, said Maria was the Chapmans' youngest daughter.
Chapman, who is originally from Paducah, Ky., and his wife have promoted international adoption and have three daughters from China, including Maria. They also have three biological children.
The singer's Web site says the couple was persuaded by their oldest daughter to adopt a girl from China. The experience led the family to adopt two more children and create Shaohannah's Hope, a foundation and ministry to financially assist thousands of couples in adoption.
The Chapmans did missionary work at Chinese orphanages in 2006 and 2007, according to the Web site.
"After our first trip to China, my wife and I knew our lives were changing — our eyes and hearts were opening to how big God really is, and we have wanted to experience more of that," Chapman says on the Web site.
"We've really wondered whether or not we should just go to China and stay there. But I don't think so. I believe God is saying, 'I want you to go, get your heart broken, your eyes opened, and then take this story back to the church in America and around the world.'"
The 45-year-old singer also has released a book about being a father titled "Cinderella: The Love of Daddy and his Princess." He has won five Grammy awards and 54 Dove awards from the Gospel Music Association, according to Kelm.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The 5-year-old daughter of Grammy-winning Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, authorities said.
The girl, Maria Sue, was hit in the driveway of the family's home Wednesday afternoon by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother, said Laura McPherson, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
The brother, whose name and exact age weren't available, apparently did not see the girl, McPherson said. No charges are expected.
"It looks like a tragic accident," she said.
Several family members witnessed the accident, which happened in Williamson County just south of Nashville. The girl died later at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, hospital spokeswoman Laurie Holloway said.
In a statement, Velvet Kelm, a publicist for Chapman, said Maria was the Chapmans' youngest daughter.
Chapman, who is originally from Paducah, Ky., and his wife have promoted international adoption and have three daughters from China, including Maria. They also have three biological children.
The singer's Web site says the couple was persuaded by their oldest daughter to adopt a girl from China. The experience led the family to adopt two more children and create Shaohannah's Hope, a foundation and ministry to financially assist thousands of couples in adoption.
The Chapmans did missionary work at Chinese orphanages in 2006 and 2007, according to the Web site.
"After our first trip to China, my wife and I knew our lives were changing — our eyes and hearts were opening to how big God really is, and we have wanted to experience more of that," Chapman says on the Web site.
"We've really wondered whether or not we should just go to China and stay there. But I don't think so. I believe God is saying, 'I want you to go, get your heart broken, your eyes opened, and then take this story back to the church in America and around the world.'"
The 45-year-old singer also has released a book about being a father titled "Cinderella: The Love of Daddy and his Princess." He has won five Grammy awards and 54 Dove awards from the Gospel Music Association, according to Kelm.
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