You'd think a guy who has demonstrated such flexibility on everything from campaign finance to NAFTA to the Second Amendment to the surge could find a way to wangle some townhall meetings with John McCain into his schedule. But gosh darn it, that would just be too tough for Barack Obama, explains George Stephanopoulos. The "This Week" host made his excuses for the Dem candidate on today's Good Morning America.
BILL WEIR: The Obama campaign just agreed to three debates after the McCain campaign called for ten or so townhall meetings. Given his oratory skills, why won't Obama answer that townhall challenge?
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I think a lot of it had to do with the primary calendar. The primaries ran so late that by the time they were all wrapped up, the Obama campaign felt that if they got into these week-by-week town They wouldn't have been able to go on the European trip; they wouldn't have been able to do their bus trips through the Midwest. He wouldn't be able to take his vacation in August, which he's really looking forward to, from the 8th to the 15th.
View video here.
It was only when Steph ran out of excuses that he got around to some truth-telling.
STEPHANOPOULOS: And they also didn't want to play on John McCain's turf, to be frank.
"To be frank"? So it was a strain for Stephanopoulos to tell the truth rather than regurgitate lame lines from the Obama campaign?
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Comments Policy
Nothing Scares Them More!
August 3, 2008 - 08:23 ET by ChasvsNothing scares a Democrat more than the TRUTH about their policies and actions they wouldn't stay with them for a second longer.
Dems can't wiggle their way out of their LIES when the TRUTH is known!
Hey Obama, We don't need your Stinkin Change!
I finally solved who george
August 3, 2008 - 08:25 ET by pepsiman127I finally solved who george stephanopoulis really is...correct me if im wrong but doesn't he look exactly like Fats the dummy from that old anthony hopkins movie?
He backs off of everything when the need arises.
August 3, 2008 - 08:26 ET by ZachJonesIsHomeIt seems that Senator Obama is described as having one of
the most extreme positions that one can find when it comes to the issue of
abortion….Normally, I can understand a lawyer’s dancing on the head of a pin
for the sake of not wanting to undermine a future legal argument or
position. However, regarding Senator
Obama, some other details give me pause and raise questions about whether his
stated motivation(s) can be trusted.
Obama Would Evidently
Throw The Baby Out With The Bathwater found at:
http://zachjonesisho...
zachjonesishome.wordpress.com
Poor George
August 3, 2008 - 08:31 ET by ReaverGeorgie boy is still smarting from all the criticism his media buddies gave him for asking Obama about Ayers at the last debate. Judging by his recent comments he now feels he needs to make up for it by being one of Obama's biggest boosters.
Here's a good reason why
August 3, 2008 - 12:00 ET by motherbeltedited at 1257
Here's one
good reason
why Obama might not want to answer any more questions in a townhall setting, without a script. (Notice that he pretends the audience member keeps interrupting him).
And here's
another (h/t msunderestimated)
If this were your history of live performances, would you be anxious to do more?
Vacation Plans
August 3, 2008 - 09:09 ET by Texndoc""He wouldn't be able to take his vacation in August, which he's really looking forward to, from the 8th to the 15th. ""
Where are Perky Katie, Brian W., and Charles G. all going this year? Certainly the Messiah has given them enough advance notice!
Yeah, he needs that
August 3, 2008 - 11:04 ET by motherbeltYeah, he needs that vacation! Three gym workouts a day really wear a guy out!
George is evading the
August 3, 2008 - 09:23 ET by maggieqpublicGeorge is evading the obvious. It doesn’t look so good when Obama informs the townhall questioners that their questions are illegitimate because they focus on distractions and not the real issues.
No Surprise
August 3, 2008 - 10:28 ET by Rush FanMr. Stephanopoulos has had plenty of practice shilling, obfuscating and making excuses for people. Take one example, his ex-boss Bill Clinton. Remember the Paula Jones lawsuit against Clinton, where she filed a sexual harassment suit against him. Clinton paid her $850,000 to settle the suit and as Wikipedia states: “In April 1999, Judge Wright found President Clinton in civil contempt of court for misleading testimony in the Jones case. She ordered Clinton to pay Jones $91,000 for expenses incurred as the result of Clinton's dishonest and misleading answers.”
When he was interviewed on PBS Frontline back in 2000 Stephanopoulos was asked about the “Paula Jones thing” while he was in the White House working for Clinton: “Basically we just pointed to the messenger and said as little as possible. And it basically worked. There wasn't a lot of evidence behind it. The charges were flimsy at first, and she was being promoted by these Clinton haters. Let the picture speak for itself.”….
“I ended up having a lunch with the editor of the Washington Post, where I essentially laid out all the reasons why I felt it would be inappropriate to give so much credence to the charges when they were so flimsy. And I basically was arguing that simply by publishing her charges, the Post was saying, "We believe they're credible."
I rest my case.
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"There is no longer a media in this country. There is simply an established propaganda arm for the Democrat Party and any and all who relate to it in any way, elected and unelected." ~ Rush Limbaugh
Done with George
August 3, 2008 - 10:15 ET by TexndocAfter watching Fox News Sunday, thought I would tune over to ABC to watch the panel discussion (haven't watched that show in years). George S. might as well be running the O. campaign. "Why doesn't Obama do this....Why doesn't Obama do that?...." Now they're saying all McCain has is to refer to Obama as "uppity". (Notice everytime the term "uppity" has been used so far in this campaign, it's from a liberal mouth.) Off to change the channel.
I just caught that too!
August 3, 2008 - 10:23 ET by motherbeltI just caught that too! LOL
After two full minutes of Brazile trying to defend Obama for injecting race into the campaign, I had to switch to the Food Network because my duct tape wasn't handy!!
And what she said is the newest Obama talking point : any criticism of Obama that he is arrogant, or elitist, or not one of the guys, is code for "uppity."
Who didn't see this coming?
Brazile
August 3, 2008 - 10:24 ET by jakotaI watched also - not a normal routine for me either. I found it interesting that Donna Brazile seemed to be baiting Jake Tapper into a racist trap by referring to Spears and Hilton as blondes, as if that would refer to color. Jake cut her off at the knees by referring to them as ditzes. The look on Brazile's face was priceless. She failed to bait Tapper into the race question and was very disappointed.
Yeah, Brazile and Jack
August 3, 2008 - 10:52 ET by krendlerYeah, Brazile and Jack Cafferty have already gone on record as saying the Celeb ad was racist because it had shots of blond white women. As everyone "knows", that's subtle racism using coded images / stereotypes, etc.
Brazile is a career race-baiter. She's the same idiot that decided Bill Clinton's "kid" remark about Obama was "racist". She basically doesn't like white people criticizing black people and if they do she automatically yells "racism", even if it's Bill Clinton.
Obama and his surrogates are desperate-beyond-belief to hang the "racist" sign around McCain's neck, going so far as Obama saying "we KNOW they're going to do IT. Be ready." In the meantime, every word about race in this campaign has emanated from camp Obama - just as it was during the Dem primary.
That's why, after
August 3, 2008 - 11:12 ET by motherbeltThat's why, with Republicans being so very careful not to refer to Obama's race, but instead referred to him as "elitist" or implied that he was a snob, and then called him "arrogant" for his presumptive European "tour" they had to claim that those were off-limits too, being "code" for "uppity."
They know they can't defend those accusations on a factual basis, so their default position is to yell Racism!
Time for a new McCain YouTube video: "Any time! Anywhere!!!"
August 3, 2008 - 10:39 ET by krendlerWasn't it Obama that responded with so much bravado to Bush's "appeasement" taunt, saying loudly - in front of a screaming crowd - that he was "ready any time, anywhere to" to discuss the "failed foreign" policy of Bush and "McSame". Funny how, when push comes to shove, Obama declines to actually sit down and do this, backing off the pledge to have town halls, just like he flipped on campaign finance.
This coming from the guy so critical of McCain for not wanting to discuss the issues. Hey, Barry: McCain is and has been waiting for you.
This would be a great YouTube video: 1) Video of Barry bragging to meet any time, anywhere to discuss foreign policy 2) his accusation that McCain doesn't want to talk about issues and 3) his pledge to do town hall meetings.... juxtaposed with the recent statement from his campaign declining to debate.
Also gotta love the AP article yesterday that said it made sense for Obama to want to minimize the number of debates since he's the "front runner". Newsflash, AP: Obama isn't a "front runner" by any stretch of the imagination. He never has been (by more than single digits) and at this point they're in a dead heat.
Obama's an empty suit. He performed poorly during the Dem debates and he knows a face-to-face discussion of the issues against McCain "isn't his turf".
He'd be happy to stick with race-baiting and soaring speeches from here on out. That's what got him the Dem nomination.
krendler......It shows that...
August 3, 2008 - 11:35 ET by BEGRUNTObamatron is scared to death about having debates. He cant speak off the cuff, as we know with "ah, um, um, ah, you know, um, um, ah, the state of....um, ah, ah, ah". As I have said repeatedly, without a script, this guy is a stuttering, bumbling fool. Your right McCain should hammer "anytime anywhere" right down his throat!!
"If a man does his best, what else is there"?
General George S. Patton Jr.
Never will anyone seriously
August 3, 2008 - 11:27 ET by richflanjNever will anyone seriously associate the word "courage" with Obama.
it makes perfect sense
August 3, 2008 - 11:45 ET by candanceWhy should Obama engage undecided voters in the heartland when he can woo Europeans with no chance to vote for him?
That's like a teenager saying "I couldn't work my shift at my job because I promised my friend I'd go to his party."
They all know the Town Hall
August 3, 2008 - 17:38 ET by bigtimerThey all know the Town Hall will do Obama in....
...if he hasn't buried himself already with his arrogance and the msm spinning for him all the way...
Earth to Obama and crew...
Real people don't like it.
"America isn't the problem...America is the solution." ~ Rush Limbaugh
McCain should hold the Town
August 4, 2008 - 01:56 ET by Dan The Man 2McCain should hold the Town Halls anyway with a seat for Obama. One each week and at the start of the TH say Obama couldn't be here becaue and give the reason Obama gives. Then start teh questions and have clips, plenty of them, of Obama explaining his questions if possible. This would be really good to smoke out Obama or raise the public's consciousness of being snubbed.
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark.