Here's my notes on Obama's talk.
Dinner interrupted at abortion -
Challenges:
- swine flu: taking precautions, schools closed, $1.5 Billion for flu stuff
- passed budget resolution, no going back to building on the sand, new foundation for growth, new education investments, renewable energy, health care, change foreign policy direction.
- not content, millions lost jobs, more losses to come, all kinds of threats, health care reform, energy legislation, new Wall Street rules, protect credit card users, cut government waste.
- rebuild a better nation, thank American people.
Q&A
- close Mexican border? Not a time to panic, intelligent response based on science and health officials, no border closing recommendation, ramped up screening efforts. Treat this the same way as other flu outbreaks,
- Chrysler? Fiat merger. GM? Lot of good product, can emerge as a viable company.
- torture? Did Bush sanction torture? Obama put an end to waterboarding, torture corrodes the character of the country, it will make us safer to end waterboarding, ends a recruiting tool for terrorists, Obama - does not speak to Bush, Bush, a mistake.
- did you read the documents by Cheney, torture saved lives, could you use the techniques if threat was apparent? The public justifications - we got information - could we have gotten the information without the techniques and are we safer, decision is based on consult with national security team, "the best way is to not take shortcuts that undermine who we are."
- Pakistan? at war with the Taliban? confident that Pakistan's nuclear arsenal will get secured.
- Iraq? more work on the political side so we need a slow withdrawal. Ultimate transfer after the national elections. Serious work on how they divvy up oil revenues. Kurds? are they incorporating.
- Specter switch? Is this a big deal? 60 votes will run roughshod over the rule.
Obama thinks highly of Specter. Having Specter in the Democratic caucus will allow him to work on health care and such. Overall its a positive. Obama believes it will not be a rubber stamp Congress.
Abortion? Freedom of choice act? Obama' view on abortion - its a moral and ethical issue, its an issue that people have to wrestle with, women don't take it casually, Obama would like to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies, reduce teen pregnancies,
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1 comment:
I thought he did a good job, he was articulate, he spoke concisely and pointedly, he was clearly very self conscious and well prepared in that he avoided directly saying Bush was a torturer, that had to take some control.
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