[A-List] Clinton Camp: Obama Is Mean (and Heâs a Copycat, Too)

["Charles Brown" <charlesb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

March 27, 2008,  4:47 pm 
Clinton Camp: Obama Is Mean (and Heâs a Copycat, Too)
By Julie Bosman

Both sides battling for the Democratic presidential nomination have been throwing mud for several weeks now. But on Thursday, the Clinton campaign used its daily conference call to remind reporters that it has been a two-way battle, and that the Obama campaign has not been tactically pure.
In a tense conference call Thursday afternoon, Clinton campaign aides complained bitterly that the Obama campaign was trying to play it both ways - promising a clean campaign, but then engaging in personal attacks anyway. 
âThat is hardly in keeping with the politics of hope that have fueled Senator Obamaâs ascent throughout this campaign,â said Phil Singer, a spokesman for Mrs. Clinton.

After accusing the Obama campaign of engaging in âcharacter assassination,â Mr. Singer listed a few specific complaints:
Samantha Power, a foreign policy adviser to Mr. Obama, called Mrs. Clinton a âmonster.â (She has since resigned.) 
Merrill A. McPeak, a retired Air Force general who is supporting Mr. Obama, compared Bill Clinton to Joseph McCarthy, after Mr. Clinton seemed to question Mr. Obamaâs patriotism.
Mr. Obama himself suggested that Mr. Clinton was encouraging political attacks to go too far. âThereâs a line that can be crossed where you stop focusing on the American peopleâs business and it just becomes about sport,â Mr. Obama said, speaking to reporters on his campaign plane this week.
(For the record, Mr. Obama made those comments while largely agreeing with Mr. Clintonâs observation that politics is a contact sport.)
But there was another reason for the Clinton conference call: Clinton aides complained that Mr. Obama was copying his policy positions from Mrs. Clinton.
Neera Tanden, Mrs. Clintonâs policy director, said that one week ago, Mrs. Clinton proposed a $30 billion stimulus plan to help fight foreclosures. Thursday morning, Ms. Tanden said, Mr. Obama came out with âvirtually the same proposal.â 
âIf Senator Obama has to copy policy ideas when heâs a candidate on the campaign trail, how is he going to solve peopleâs problems if heâs president?â she said. âWhen it comes to fixing the economy, we need leadership, not followership.â
Asked about the comments, Bill Burton, a spokesman for Mr. Obama, wrote in an email message, âThe American people are tired of the sniping from the Clinton campaign -- both real and imagined.â 
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1.March 27th,
2008
4:49 pm Posting on behalf of many posters:

I told you so. 

- Posted by A. Bluteau 
2.March 27th,
2008
4:53 pm Pot calling the kettle black, much? 

- Posted by Sam 
3.March 27th,
2008
4:53 pm BACKGROUND ON SEN. OBAMAâS DAY IN NEW YORK:

On Monday, the Obama campaign responded to Hillary unveiling a comprehensive plan to deal with the housing crisis by attacking her for taking contributions connected to subprime lenders. Campaign manager David Plouffe said: âIf weâre really going to crack down on the practices that caused the credit and housing crises, weâre going to need a leader who doesnât owe those industries any favors.â

As it turns out, those were just wordsâ Today, Senator Obama gives an economy speech followed by a fundraiser at - you guessed it - one of the top 10 issuers of subprime loans in America, Credit Suisse. In fact, Senator Obama has taken more money from the top 10 issuers of subprime loans than BOTH Senator Clinton and Senator McCain [cq.com].

- Obama has taken $1,180,103 from the top issuers of subprime loans. [cq.com]
- Obama received $266,907 from Lehman. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $5395 from GMAC. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $150,850 from Credit Suisse First Boston. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $11,250 from Countrywide. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $9052 from Washington Mutual. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $161,850 from Citigroup. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $4600 from CBASS. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $170,050 from Morgan Stanley. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $1150 from Centex. [Cq.com]
- Obama received $351,900 from Goldman Sachs. [Cq.com] 

- Posted by joe 
4.March 27th,
2008
4:54 pm We do need leadership not followshiip and a person who can deal properly with situations instead of complain when he got a grade that he felt was wrong or complain he didnât get on the basketball team because of racism forget the fact that he missed two baskets in a row. Obama has always thought he was the best and if others donât think so it is racism or someone elseâs fault. 

- Posted by PG 
5.March 27th,
2008
4:54 pm Hillaryâs desperate, petty and dishonest. Her behavior and her campaignâs performance speak volumes. 

- Posted by arvan from chicago 
6.March 27th,
2008
4:55 pm Obamaâs campaign unfortunately has to resort to negative tactics every now and then to counter the negative remarks from the Clinton campaign. Senator Clinton needs to concede or the Democratic party will be over. Tell her to concede! Google the phrase âtime to concedeâ 

- Posted by Jay Punyasena 
7.March 27th,
2008
4:56 pm As a woman, I initially supporting her, but as time goes by, I find that she is so fake, and she is not truthful, which does not surprise me at all. I am convinced now that it runs in the Clintonsâ family. Moreover, she is so arrogant, who needs a President who tells lies, and is arrogant on top of that? I wish she could use her intelligence in doing something good instead. How can one tell lies without being a little bit ashamed? WOW, you have to be a Clinton!!! I am short of words!!!! 

- Posted by Isabella 
8.March 27th,
2008
4:57 pm I for one am just tired of this bickering by the Clintonâs. It appears that every time there is a conference call by the Clinton camp, it is to smear the Obama camp. Have they run out of ideas? Is this the only thing they have to offer us? I think it is time for the Clinton camp to call it a night and bow down with whatever dignity they have left if they do have anymore. 

- Posted by Daniel, VA 
9.March 27th,
2008
4:57 pm No, the American people are tired of Bill Burton and David Axelrod thinking that weâre so stupid that weâre going to believe what theyâre saying. 

- Posted by Lisa 
10.March 27th,
2008
4:57 pm Obama started going negative way before Hillary did and he basically xeroxed Hillaryâs plans. But ofcourse, the NYT like other media outlets wonât cover it. Who cares about tax returns? Nobody. Well, except Obamaâs supporters/the media. 

- Posted by Kevin 
11.March 27th,
2008
4:58 pm Kettle meets pot. 

- Posted by Lioness 
12.March 27th,
2008
4:58 pm âLeadership, not followership.â 

This is the type of sound-byte that the Clinton team tries to create, hoping that it will catch on with people who like simplistic answers to complex problems. 

Nevermind that itâs (a) not a word and (b) not based in fact. Obama has shown to be a leader on a host of issues, and wrote a letter to the Fed Chairman a year ago on the subprime mortgage issue with recommendations. 

Much like the âchange you can Xeroxâ line, the majority of Americans should boo this type of sloganeering. 

- Posted by Patrick 
13.March 27th,
2008
4:58 pm âas far as i knowâ the hillary, wolfsom, singer, and bill mudslingers are the worst and could teach the nixons and roves of the world plenty.

of course when your own candidate is a habitual liar, what else can you do? 

- Posted by john b 
14.March 27th,
2008
4:58 pm Neera Tandan, if you really think that Obama is copy Hillaryâs economic plan, you are misspeaking. Because the NY Times would have picked it very quickly and advise the Obama campaign of such. 

The problem with the Hillary camp, is that they have NO SOLUTIONS. 

- Posted by sozzi 
15.March 27th,
2008
4:59 pm Billary and the NYtimes are in a dream state of confusion. Somebody way them up and tell Hill that she lost. 

- Posted by bob from NJ 
16.March 27th,
2008
4:59 pm I hope Nancy Pelosi takes Obama up on his offer to go to Church with him so then she can READ the eulogy where Obamaâs PASTOR calls Italians âGARLIC NOSESâ. 

- Posted by Don 
17.March 27th,
2008
4:59 pm OMG! I actually laughed out loud when I read this. the name calling, mud slinging, double talking Clinton camp is calling the Obama camp MEAN!?! COME ON! Just give it upâ 

- Posted by Shawn 
18.March 27th,
2008
5:00 pm Yesterday, âOn the Recordâ with Great Van Sustern, Hillary throws subtle hints that indicate sabatoge:

VAN SUSTEREN: You mean, you canât win?
CLINTON: I donât think a Democrat can win.
VAN SUSTEREN: You mean, in November.
CLINTON: In Novemberâ 

- Posted by Hubble 
19.March 27th,
2008
5:00 pm Itâs very obvious that Obama is shameless, mean and heâs a copist. The problem is that no matter what he does, medias never blame him, medias always let him go. But whatever Hillary does, even a small flaw, medias will always make it a BIG story.

Sometimes Iâm wondering if Obama offered medias big money. 

- Posted by Judy 
20.March 27th,
2008
5:02 pm Why do you even bother to publish this? Why do you publish every little mean petty thing in these calls and press releases? Is this a journalistâs job? What is the remote information value of this whinning? 

- Posted by Patricia A., Brooklyn 
21.March 27th,
2008
5:02 pm HRC camp:

Did consider that if you didnât continuously launch attacks, the opponent wouldnât need to defend?

Why not ceasing the attacks, including those from your surrogates and see what happens. My bet is that you will experience a marked if not complete reduction in counter-replies from the Obama campaign.

As I write this I find myself laughing. Your camp is incapable of doing anything but attacking (and to your whinning - copying plans and ideas from multiple political opponents).

Itâs somewhat synonymous to our invading and occupying Irag. If you initiate negativity, there will naturally be undesirable consequences.

Complain awayâ 

- Posted by Eric 
22.March 27th,
2008
5:02 pm Whatâs Hillary trying to say here? âYes Iâm a manipulative, mean-spirited, all-or-nothing candidateâ But so is he.â

Drop out already, Hill. Itâs just embarrassing. 

- Posted by William 
23.March 27th,
2008
5:02 pm Hillaryâs entire campaign organization stinks, as it would from the head. She is a liar. They repeat her lies, or does she repeat theirs? Either way, the latest polls say the country hates her guts as much as I have learned to over the past two months.

Behave badly and suffer the consequences. Shame on you, Hillary Clinton!!!!! 

- Posted by jeffp 
24.March 27th,
2008
5:03 pm and the obama campaign AGAIN SPREADS FALSEHOODS.

OBAMA is totally untrustworthy and 100% career politician although he sells himself as anything but. and the media eats it up.

HILLARY is READY TO LEAD. she has the knowledge and the brain power. she doesnât have to steal obamaâs ideas - they were hers to begin with.

WAKE-UP america. you are losing your opportunity to have the president who can actually make change happen. 

- Posted by anthony for hillary 
25.March 27th,
2008
5:03 pm Is this for real?

Maybe Obama needs a timeout during recess? Is that what HRC thinks?

Truly, they should check out his website and plans, where are very clear and very transparent.

It is obvious that they are both democrats and have similar plans and ideas. Get over it! 

- Posted by NoamSeatown 
26.March 27th,
2008
5:03 pm Anyone else tired of this passive/aggressive âattackâ strategy employed by the Clinton campaign? Sorry, the âfighterâ mentality is a turnoff. Enough alreadyâ 

- Posted by Audris 
27.March 27th,
2008
5:04 pm The clintonistas are tedious and tiresome. They have a rant for each hour of the day. Being behind and unwelcomed by the public at large, the clintonistas attack others to avoid explaining why they are so disliked. And wait til those income tax are finally made public - everyone with any brains will resent the monies the clintons have collected -
even from foreign interests. That will be the final nail in their coffin - public anger about their big bucks. 

- Posted by leo l. castillo 
28.March 27th,
2008
5:04 pm Both sides throwing mud?

It goes like this:
1. Clinton campaign attacks Obama on some stupid thing like Rev. Wright or patriotism.
2. Obama surrogate responds.
3. Clinton calls Obama negative for responding.

The Clintons can only win if they destroy Obamaâs character, and thatâs what theyâre trying to do. But, according to the latest Pew Research Poll, itâs backfiring!

She needs to accept that she wonât be our next president, and seek ways to move forward in her life. 

- Posted by CTony 
29.March 27th,
2008
5:04 pm I visited Hillaryâs website yesterday to try to get her side of some of the negative stories weâre all hearing. I was surprised to see that a prominent section of HillaryClinton.com was a âtimelineâ that attempted to depict Obama as the source of every negative report or comment about her. Rather than answering the criticisms directly, the web site tries to dismiss them as coming from an implicitly biased source. I find it hard to believe that CBS, NBC, CNN, the NY Times, the LA Times, and the Boston Globe are incapable of doing their own research and reaching their own conclusions. Count me among the 53% of the American public who donât consider Hillary Clinton trustworthy. 

- Posted by El Viejo 
30.March 27th,
2008
5:05 pm I am tired of the Obama camp acting like theyâre angels because theyâre not. Both camp are slinging mud and both need to stop and focus more on the issues. What ever happened to âpolitics of hopeâ? 

- Posted by Desiree 
31.March 27th,
2008
5:05 pm I am glad that Obama is keeping his ideals throughout this campaign. He remains focused on unifying the electorate, building a collaborative environment which will actually serve the public and improve the lives of Americans. 

It is quite disingenuous of the Clinton camp to try to continue their futile mudslinging, and blame it on Obama. He has been required to respond to their low-life sniping, while keeping focused on the real purpose of the campaign. 

I believe the Clinton scorched-earth politics will not succeed. It will however, harm the entire Democratic Party and enable a continuation of failing Republican policies. 

Sen Clinton clearly does not have the best interests of the American public or the Democratic Party in mind. It is purely self-interest, and we are having none of it. 

She is a sad, desparate woman. 

- Posted by dan 
32.March 27th,
2008
5:05 pm When you donât have anything bad to sayâ make something up! Or, think of one of the worst things about yourself and accuse him of it!

This is a ridiculously terrible campaign tactic for the Clinton team. 

- Posted by Kathleen 
33.March 27th,
2008
5:05 pm Other than in the title, I donât see âmeanâ in the actual Clinton campaign statements quoted here-some journalistic over-stepping, perhaps? 

As to copying her economic policies, others have made this observation before. This from Kevin Hassett, McCainâs advisor: âThe fact is that Obamaâs plan today is the most shameless piece of potential plagiarism that I have ever seen. He basically took Clintonâs words and Clintonâs policies and called them his own. If I were a professor Iâd give him an F and try to get him kicked out of school for something this terribleâIf I were on the Clinton team, Iâd be prepping memosâ.Because I remember Mrs. Clinton saying shared prosperity and I remember the bill that she introduced in August for infrastructure. The fact is these are things Obama has taken as his own without crediting the source of the ideas which was Mrs. Clinton.â Unfortunately for the intellectual integrity of this country, MSM and Obama supporters have decided that plagiarism simply isnât a problem anymore. 

- Posted by KM 
34.March 27th,
2008
5:06 pm Thatâs so funny. Iâve noticed that the Saturday Night live skit is basically right on when it comes to Obama playing follow the leader  

- Posted by Katie 
35.March 27th,
2008
5:07 pm Re PG #4:

âWe do need leadership not followshiip [sic] and a person who can deal properly with situations instead of complainââ

I agree with you wholeheartedly! Clinton hasnât shown much leadership so far and has done nothing but complain, complain, complain. 

- Posted by Audris 
36.March 27th,
2008
5:07 pm RE: posting by PG â Obama has always thought he was the best and if others donât think so it is racism or someone elseâs fault.â

Anytime others donât think the Clinton way is the right way its because she is a woman. Or sheâll cry. Or tell tall tales about dodging bullets. It cut both ways. Face it Hillary Clinton is a divider NOT a unifier. We need someone who will bring this country together. And just for the record Obama has not pulled the race cardâunless you call a comprehensive and intelligent speech on race âthe race cardâ. 

- Posted by Shawn 
37.March 27th,
2008
5:08 pm Mr. Burton,
What this Clinton supporter is tired of is the audacity of your candidate to wrap himself in eight American flags to try and cover up his following, or lack of decrying, Anti-American views for 20 years! Be assured, this Clinton supporter will pull the lever for McCain if he is the Democrat nominee. 

- Posted by PMC 
38.March 27th,
2008
5:08 pm This is pitiful.

Hillary, Bill and friends sling mud, run and hide behind their âClinton-nessâ (which is quickly losing whatever sheen it may have had) - and get their attack dogs to come out and blame Obama for being mean and not playing fair when his campaign is forced to respond to the low blows and distorted information- and, yes, lies - that the Clinton campaign is putting out there. Clearly, they are constantly trying to bait Obama, to get him to overreact, rather than respond thoughtfully. They can keep doing this. If they do, much like the threatening letter to the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, it will continue to show that they are immature, self-centered, obsessed with power and all costs, and really just look now more than ever like the âfront peopleâ for very powerful financial interests. Their financial backers are so worried now that they have wrested control of the Clinton Campaign and are openly threatening the Speaker of the House and American Citizens - the voters. What they are doing borders on a kind of electoral âcoup dâetatâ threat. Outrageous! 

- Posted by Gunnar 
39.March 27th,
2008
5:09 pm Iâm confused.
Bill Clinton defends calling Bill Richardson a âJudas,â but a stray comment by Samantha Power (whose name was unknown to almost the entire electorate and who immediately apologized) and a mis-reading of Tony McPeak who did NOT compare Bill Clinton to Joseph McCarthy but compared the unfair aspersions on anyoneâs patriotism to McCarthyism - these barely known Obama advisors are going too far?
I donât think either candidate has claimed purity nor practiced it, but itâs clear that if Hillary Clinton was ahead in the polls she would avoid attacks instead of being the initiator in every instance of âthe politics of personal destruction.â
If she wanted to more effectively state her case, she would admit to attacks that went too far (as Obamaâs campaign has done) and promise to scrupulously avoid such attacks in the future. The current tactic appears only a way to justify their continued Tonya Harding strategy on the kindergartenish logic of âheâs doing it, too!â
To the votersâ credit, the attacks only worked for a time and now seem to be hurting Clinton more than anyone, which (I understand) is typical of negative campaigns that go on for more than a week or two.
My question is to supporters of Senator Clinton: have you begun to consider that her campaign canât win without fracturing the Party (perhaps permanently) and that the goal of unifying the party for the difficult campaign ahead in November now must take priority?
I urge Clinton supporters to weigh in.
Thanks. 

- Posted by Peter Quince 
40.March 27th,
2008
5:09 pm Joe, youâre obviously a clinton campaign staffer. 

- Posted by R. K. S. 
41.March 27th,
2008
5:10 pm Obama expressed his concerns about an impending foreclosure crisis a year ago in a detailed letter to Ben Bernanke-see his website for the full text:
http://obama.senate.gov/press/070322-obama_urges_ber/ 

Amazingly, this comment has received no attention from the mainstream media, although several bloggers have been circulating it recently. 

Instead of headlining this story, âObama Warned Bernanke about Subprime Foreclosures: Warned him to Act a Year Ago,â the author chose to be âcuteâ and Clintony, and repeat the Clinton charges that Obama is a copycat. Less work than actually researching the candidatesâ stances and work on the issues, I guess. Meanwhile, McCain remains the pressâs buddy, and his (admitted) lack of understanding of economics goes unnoticed and unchecked. 

- Posted by Profco 
42.March 27th,
2008
5:11 pm #1, not on behalf of this poster (or many others). Between a copycat and a liar, Iâd rather have the former, thanks very much Mrs. Clinton. 

- Posted by Greg 
43.March 27th,
2008
5:11 pm Obama is mean. OK. Hillary throws mud with the biggest shovel in existence, she throws kitchen sinks, she dodges bullets in her mind and gets angry when others notice there are not bullets. Yup, Obama is mean alright. 

- Posted by MS 
44.March 27th,
2008
5:11 pm I listened to that call, and can report that while the spokespeople spent a significant part of the call criticizing the Obama campaign for âdailyâ attacks on Hillary Clinton, they had very few examples. Yes, one person used the term monster, and was immediately fired. Bill Clinton said something nasty, and was called on it. And there were some comments arguing that Clinton may not be trustworthy.

I fail to see how these add up to âdaily personal attacksâ. 

- Posted by TC 
45.March 27th,
2008
5:11 pm Re: post 4:53 âBACKGROUND ON SEN. OBAMAâS DAY IN NEW YORKâ

NYT, why are you permitting the Clinton camp to use the comments section as free ad space?

Sick. 

- Posted by Timothy H 
46.March 27th,
2008
5:12 pm The people running the Clinton campaign have been behaving like the playground bully in the sandbox kicking sand into everyoneâs faces, and then when someone stands up to the bully, they scream and whine âFOUL.â They started the REAL sniping. If the Clinton campaign is willing to dish it out, theyâd better be prepared to take it.

Itâs also inappropriate for Hillaryâs campaign contributors demand Nancy Pelosi to retract her comment regarding superdelegates. She hasnât said anything that other politicians, media, and other delegates havenât said. Where do they get off using such mob-like tactics.

Finally, Senator Clinton now has been nicknamed the âTonya Hardingâ of the Democratic party. A badge she seems to wear proudly. Because of her intentional âmisstatements,â she is the laughing stock of European nations, as well as the U.S. Northern Ireland laughs about her so-called involvement in the peace talks. This is a shame because so many people, including myself, really had a lot of respect for her at the onset of this campaign. Now, she is just an embarassment to women in politics.

You can be rest assured that if, by some miracle, Hillary got the presidency, she wouldnât get anything accomplished because sheâd be spending all her time wreaking vengeance on those who have publicly opposed her or refused to bend to her will. 

- Posted by Mary Ann, Chicago, IL 
47.March 27th,
2008
5:12 pm NYT this is serious and you are downplaying it by giving it a childish title.

Pro-Obama media full steam ahead! 

- Posted by Steven 
48.March 27th,
2008
5:12 pm This is going to fall on deaf ears, unfortunately. The Obama campaign has been getting away with bloody murder, while decrying negative campaigning. Iâm a Hillary supporter, but I have no problem with Obama doing things âChicago style.â I just wish his campaign wouldnât be so self-righteous and pretend that theyâre above all that and itâs only those nasty mean Clintons slinging mud.

Mark Halperin noticed too:
http://thepage.time.com/2008/03/27/the-new-negative/ 

- Posted by Whitney 
49.March 27th,
2008
5:12 pm Snore.

There was very little difference in their policy positions at the beginning of the campaign, and there is very little difference now. Nothing has changed. Itâs part of what makes this primary so frustrating. To say one copies the other is absurd, and ultimately, detrimental to all involved. Stop the bickering. 

- Posted by DC 
50.March 27th,
2008
5:12 pm Obama leads and the Clintons follow. These economic issues and prescriptions are the ones Obama has been talking about for over a year. The Clintons are bad and they need to stop. I never thought I could hate two politicians so much as I hate the Clintons right now (and for ever).

They attack and attack and when he retaliates they sayâwhat happened to the politics of hope? Well I hope you shut up, but if you donât then I will shut you up. Thats hope and it does not mean that you allow a bully to go on and run you to the ground. Itâs basically the policy that I will not start it so if you start it let it be known that I intend to finish it. I will make you choke on your hate and attacks..thatâs hope and that is Hope you can believe in. 

- Posted by Karen 
51.March 27th,
2008
5:14 pm Textbook pest-control technique. 

- Posted by J. Dunn 
52.March 27th,
2008
5:15 pm This is precisely the kind of post that convinced me to remove The Caucus from my bookmarks just now. All it does is encourage Clinton and Obamaâs armies to try to outscream each other. Enough already! I hope youâll return to focusing on the issues, not the name-calling and pettiness of this campaign. (Television news covers all of that in great detail already.) In the meantime, Iâll get my campaign news from the more thoughtful NYT columnists and NPR. 

- Posted by Heron 
53.March 27th,
2008
5:15 pm As I read this blog again I feel sorry for the Clinton campaign. Their statements have an elegaic edge but in a rather pathetic way. In my mindâs eye, I picture a small child who is mean running off the playground in tears complaining that another child said something mean. 

Whether they realize it or not, this is the first time Hillaryland has admitted defeat. 

- Posted by Lioness 
54.March 27th,
2008
5:15 pm I had to laugh out loud as I read this one. Is it sexist to say thatâs just like a woman?

BTW, shrub told a pip today too about the good news from Iraq. I laughed at that one as well. 

Is there a full moon tonight? 

- Posted by Carol 
55.March 27th,
2008
5:17 pm Unfortunately itâs essential to follow-up on any Clinton or Obama speech with a hefty dose of truth serum. In the latest debate, both Hillary and Obama regurgitated their familiar mantra that they would veto the falsely maligned Bush taxcuts which resuscitated the U.S. economy from the inherited Clinton recession; but, which Hillary & Obama say favor only the rich. That tired old populist ploy of âsoak the richâ. However , a brief review of IRS statistics related to post-Bush tax cut revenues reveals exactly the opposite. Specifically, the share of individual income taxes paid by the bottom 40% of American taxpayers, as a result of expanded child tax credits and earner income tax credits, was reduced from 0% to a -4%; and, took another ten million low income Americans completely off of the tax roles. That is, a very significant four(4) % decrease. On the other end of the scale, the tax burden on the top 20% of income earners, the so-called rich, increased to a full 85% of the total tax burden. For example on the lower end of the scale, a Single Individual making 30K paid $8400 in taxes under Clinton; under Bush $4500. A married couple making 60K: under Clinton $16,800, under Bush $9000. So Hillary/Obamaspeak, an economic strategy that left our Nation in a RECESSION on the Clintonâs departure from the White House, would damage the poor more then any other group. One can summarize this quite simply by noting that IF Hillary & Obamaâs Marxist philosophies of soaking the rich were valid, Communist societies throughout the world would be exorbitantly wealthy, in lieu of economic basket cases aâ la Castroâs Cuba. The same can be said of their forced plan for Socialized Medicine. A program which is failing miserably in such Nations as Canada and the United Kingdom. Canada, as just one example, is now experiencing a dramatic shortfall in physicians. Greg Neubeck 

- Posted by Greg Neubeck 
56.March 27th,
2008
5:17 pm Policies are made in line with party ideology for leadership not by individuals. Individuals who lead a party will ultimately add needed ingredients into the centre piece of constituting a policy. Clintons are lying to the public again. There is a party agenda that both must follow, what matters more is who articulated it more. Clintons are just too petty, the more you try to bring this man down, the more people see truly who you are. Stop misinforming Americans. 

- Posted by Hugo 
57.March 27th,
2008
5:18 pm Nothing like going out gracefully. It sounds like weâre back on the playground. What do they say? âYou can dish it out but you canât take it.â

Someone needs to point the Clinton camp to this article, which begins âSomebody forgot to tell Hillary Clinton the Democratic presidential race is over and Barack Obama won.â

http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSN263309 84 

- Posted by Sally