Day: October 7, 2008

Differences on many issues were clear in the debate tonight.
The three issues which stood out to me involved McCain’s plan to directly assist troubled mortgage holders, tax policy and Israel.
Question 13 on Israel was striking to me. If Israel was attacked, would the candidate commit troops to support Israel? McCain was clear that we would defend Israel. I am not sure what Obama would do based on his answer; he said he would not options off the table but he would also sit down with the Iranian president.
For readers who are keen on how the candidates stand toward Israel, I am interested in your reactions. I was surprised when Obama said this:

Now, it is true, though, that I believe that we should have direct talks — not just with our friends, but also with our enemies — to deliver a tough, direct message to Iran that, if you don’t change your behavior, then there will be dire consequences. If you do change your behavior, then it is possible for you to re-join the community of nations. Now, it may not work. But one of the things we’ve learned is, is that when we take that approach, whether it’s in North Korea or in Iran, then we have a better chance at better outcomes.

In the context of the question of whether Israel could count on US support, I think this answer might raise concerns that an Obama administration would not be a ready ally in the face of aggression toward Israel.

As always, I am very interested in hearing from readers about why this does or doesn’t matter. The CNN report makes it clear that Obama wants to minimize the actual relationship. I think this mostly goes away if Obama said somthing like, I made a mistake in hitching my wagon to this guy and moved away from him when I realized what he did and what he stood for. However, as documented by this report, his campaign has fudged a bit on the extent of the connection. Roll the tape:

I think this information is relevant, not because I think Obama is a closet terrorist, but because an analysis of his record reveals something of his political philosophy now. Some of the people who advise him today are those who have advised him since those days (e.g., Penny Pritzker, who advises him on finance but also is on the board of the Chicago Public Education Fund. The CPEF is the successor to the Annenberg Challenge which was initiated by Bill Ayers and chaired by Obama). The Ayers connection does not mean Obama supports revolution but it might say something about the types of reforms and education policies he might promote as President.
UPDATE: The Obama campaign is now denying that Obama launched his political career in Ayers home. This may be parsing words (what does “begin” mean?). However, the CNN report places him there and indicates that witnesses characterized it as his “coming out party.”