Obama praises radio host who calls John McCain a 'warmonger'

For the second time in several days a liberal radio talk-show host has ignited a firestorm of political criticism by calling another candidate names. This time it was Ed Schultz, who calls himself "progressive," speaking before Illinois Sen. Barack Obama at a Democratic state party event in North Dakota on Friday night and calling Republican Sen. John McCain a "warmonger."

The McCain camp immediately called on Obama personally to denounce Schultz and the reference, as McCain did after a similar incident in Ohio in late February.

Saturday in Arizona, McCain, a decorated former POW who has spoken often of the horrors of war, said, "I would hope that, in keeping with his commitment, that Senator Obama would condemn such language, since it was part of his campaign."

A few weeks ago when a Cincinnati radio talk-show host, Bill Cunningham, aroused a large Republican rally by continually referring to the Democratic presidential candidate as Barack Hussein Obama,....

McCain, who also was not present but spoke later, immediately took responsibility for the incident, denounced the speaker and said such things would never happen again.

Friday night in North Dakota when it was time for Obama to speak, he praised Schultz as a "voice of progressive radio" and at two different speaking events Saturday Obama declined to repudiate Schultz's comment.

Obama also continued to repeat his factually disputed charge that McCain "wants to continue this war in Iraq, maybe for 100 years." McCain has said his reference was to maintaining troops in Iraq as in South Korea, not in combat.

The Obama campaign sent out a spokesman who said, "John McCain is not a warmonger and should not be described as such. He's a supporter of a war that Senator Obama believes should have never been authorized and never been waged."

On Thursday, Air America, the liberal talk radio network, indefinitely suspended its popular afternoon hostess, Randi Rhodes, for repeatedly calling both Sen. Hillary Clinton and ex-Rep. Geraldine Ferraro ______  _________, a description of what actively working prostitutes do in those hotel rooms.

Meantime, Schultz remained unapologetic. "He voted for this war," Schultz told the Associated Press on Saturday. "He's a perpetrator of the war. He's an advocate of the war. In my personal definition, that's a warmonger."

--Andrew Malcolm

Comments

[Dr. Dave]

At least it's becoming more clear to America every day how aligned Obama is with the extreme far far liberal left.

[Shane C.]

LOL

Why SHOULD Obama denounce it? Grandpa McCain is a warmonger by it's very definition.

[cyberbian]

No doubt about it: Here is the definition of warmonger to save others the effort.

warmonger n : a person who advocates war or warlike policies [syn: militarist]

[leelee]

HE IS A WAR MONGER!!!

[Carl]

So, what it is about the word progressive that necessitates the scare quotes, exactly?

(Oooh, do you really get scared by progressives? That's what he calls himself as in "quotation.")

[M. J. Bee]

Excuse me - but isn't Obama's name... Barack Hussein Obama? Excuse me - What is the cultural heritage of the name Obama? Is Barack ashamed of that too? Maybe we should all just call him "Barry". What nonsense. If he doesn't like his name - he should change it.

If McCain is afraid to call the guy by his real name, he's a weak sister. C'mon... McCain condemns a supporter who refers to Obama by his full name and then punks out when Obama refuses to "spank" his progressive (socialist) pal for calling him a "warmonger".

McCain needs to get some ______!

[Ruthie Rader]

What's being said on all sides doesn't concern me. That's the American Way. What concerns me is the thought of waking up one morning to the sound of silence. I don't agree with Randi Rhodes but I do defend her right to say what she did. Ditto for Ed Schultz. And I hate censorship. That's why I like writing in my blog--because nobody controls what I post there. Always remember and never forget: Whether one is Liberal, Moderate or Conservative isn't the issue here. The real concern is whether or not all of us can freely speak our mind on or off the air.
Communication is the beginning of understanding. Silence is a noose around Freedom's neck.

[ronald Robinson]

Are kidding me? After Fox news accused Obama of being like Hitler and nobody on that station has been reprimanded, yet Rhodes was suspended and the media is trying to equate Cunningham's implicitly racist tirade with Shultze? Give me a break. The media is so scared of the right wing that they'll do anything to shake of the "liberal bias" epithet the right keeps hurling at them.

[Richard Bentley]

It should be pointed out, whether you agree with the term "warmonger" or not, that John McCain was a co-chairman of "The Committee for the Liberation of Iraq" (I believe that is the correct title), founded in 2002, ONE YEAR before the invasion of Iraq. That is documented information released by the group themselves.

[Paul William Tenny]

McCain supported the Iraq war then, supports it now, wants us there in an indefinite state of conflict, jokes and advocates starting a third concurrent war with Iran, and he doesn't like being called a warmonger? What are we supposed to call him then, peace-challenged?

There's no comparing calling McCain a warmonger and the character smears coming out of right-wing radio, nor can you really throw in what Randi said because that was just plain stupidity. One is a literal and valid description of McCain's foreign policy goals, the other is petty and ignorant fear mongering.

But then again, this is typically how it goes with the media. Liberals get held to a different standard such to the point that they basically can't do anything other than keep their mouths shut. I mean forgive the rant here, but look at the double standard. McCain cheated on his crippled wife, divorced her, then got divorced again, has been accused of cheating on this third wife with a lobbyist, and somehow that's just not something we talk about in the media. Spitzer cheated on his wife and oh god, look at how the world came crashing down.

This vapid obsession with trying to equate liberal "extremists" with right-wing "extremists" is disgusting. It's inventing equivalents that simply don't exist on this level just to convince readers that "reporting" like this is balanced because, oh look, we pointed out one bad player on this side, and then we pointed out one on the other side as if that somehow lessens these things down to regular partisan sparring.

There is no comparing what Cunningham did with what Ed Schultz said, and you ought to be ashamed for bringing these things up as if this was anything other than a knee-jerk reaction by the McCain campaign over a sensitive issue that has obviously triggered a Freud'ian response. "How dare you call our candidate a warmonger when he supports our two current wars and wants to start a third all at the same time!"

I also find it reprehensible that you link to Mailkin's site here, of all people. Since when is it ok to link to racist hate sites?

[J.Woods]

So let me get this straight, right wingers throughout the 00s and to this day call people with opposing views "anti-american" and "un-patriotic". But if you call a man that advocates war and sings "bomb, bomb Iran a "warmonger" then he deserves an apology? We have become a nation of idiots. And what is up with the LAT and that headline? "Obama praises radio host that calls McCain a warmonger"? Responsible journalism indeed.

[Jaben]

This isn't like trying to make someone look like a Muslim by childishly invoking a middle name. (The whole incident reeked of political posturing anyway -- say it, but than take the high ground immediately by denouncing -- how convenient!.)

Warmonger is fitting for the polices of Bush and by extension, McCain. McCain has already embraced these polices by singing "Bomb Iran" and saying we need to keep a presence in Iraq for 100 years, if necessary.

[tony]

Right on, Ed! McCain is a Warmonger. He has continued to defend the Iraq war, much as he defended the Vietnam war.
Both wars a horrific waste of life.

[Steve Wimer]

McCain is not only a warmonger, he's a burned-out warmonger, in my opinion. He has no business running for office at his age. He should retire. He is obviously got a huge ego to go along with an addled brain. No wonder conservatives are slow to support him. Why throw good money after bad?

[Obama Connection to Terrorists]

THE MEDIA LIKE AP-CNN AND MSNBC ARE SELLING OUT AMERICANS
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tom-blumer/2008/04/05/ap-covers-obama-avoiding-churchs-pastors-essence
Associated Press: Playing defense for Obama: Karen Hawkins and Christopher Wills of the Associated Press quilty of Wright-wash! In their articles Hawkins and Wills avoid any mention of the main tenets of "Black Liberation Theology that form the foundation and belief system of the Trinity United Church of Christ. AP pair purposely avoided any mention of inflammatory items in weekly bulletin articles published by the Church.

Nowhere in the story's 1,200-plus words was there any mention of the Church's belief system, which was outlined by McClatchy's Margaret Tavel on March 20: Obama’s church pushes controversial doctrines. Jesus is black. Merging Marxism with Christian Gospel may show the way to a better tomorrow. The white church in America is the Antichrist because it supported slavery and segregation. Those are some of the doctrines that animate the theology at the core of Obama’s church.

Wright said basis for Trinity’s philosophies is the work of James Cone, founded the modern black liberation theology movement out of the civil rights struggles of the 1960s. Particularly influential was Cone’s seminal 1969 book, “Black Theology & Black Power. Cone wrote that the U.S. was a white racist nation and the white church was the Antichrist for having supported slavery and segregation.

In the July 22 bulletin, in the "Pastor's Page" section, the Rev. Wright gave two pages of space to a colunmn by “Hamas TERRORIST Mousa Abu Marzook. The column originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times, which came under heavy criticism for running it. Among Marzook's many whoppers: A number of political parties today control blocs in the Israeli Knesset, while advocating for the expulsion of Arab citizens from Israel and the rest of Palestine, envisioning a single Jewish state from the Jordan to the sea. CAMERA.org wrote at the time that "that no Israeli parties in government advocate the 'expulsion' of Arabs; one calls for voluntary transfer."

A June 10 bulletin article, also in the "Pastor's Page" section, was written by terrorist sympathizer Ali Baghdadi. Among other things, Baghdadi wrote I must tell you that Israel was the closest ally to the White Supremacists of South Africa. In fact, South Africa allowed Israel to test its nuclear weapons in the ocean off South Africa. The Israelis were given a blank check: they could test whenever they desired and did not even have to ask permission. Both worked on an ethnic bomb that kills Blacks and Arabs. The KKK, on its worst day, never accused the ethnic groups it hated of attempting to concoct a "white bomb. Rev. Wright not only allowed these hate-filled diatribes to appear in TUCC's bulletins but supports as does Obama.

**The Conservative Times: Exclusive: Obama Connection to Terrorists Revealed
March 22, 2008 by Jim Kouri, CPP vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police.

http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/31408.html

Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden would be praying for an Obama victory because it would help the militants win in Iraq. Article by Citizen Wells 3/08,
Obama has a dual citizenship with Kenya. Obama is an anti-Israel, pro-pan-Arabian Islamic-socialist who has ties to Marxist Libyan President Muamar al Gadaffi, and a Syrian tycoon, Antoin Rezko, Saudi Arabian Scheiks and Rezko's "close friend" Nadhami Auchi, the one who gave Obama fundraiser money (and helped to buy his mansion): Iraqi billionaire, global arms dealer, Nadhmi Auchi, was Baathist best friends with Saddam Hussein, and the main financial backer (from funds stolen from Oil for Food Program0 for Saddam's - Iraqi -Saudi oil pipeline, and who stood trial with Saddam Hussein in 1959 for conspiring to assassinate Iraqi President Qasim.

Also marxist Nicaragian President Daniel Ortega is on the front line supporting Obama for the revolution of changes and then there is hard core anti-Israel, pro-Palestine PLO Enforcer Rashid Khalid, (Obama was on Kalidi's Woods Fund. Obama was a memb er of the Woods Fund with communist domestic terrorist Bill Ayers of the Weather Underground who bombed the Pentagon, the U.S. Capitol among other things and their organization raised money for anti-Israel programs, and also AAAN, for Arabs and then there is especially Kenya - where in August 2007, Obama went to Kenya to support his E. Germany communist educated cousin Raila Odinga for Kenyan Presidential election, who claims coincidentally to also be a Christian who signed NAMLEF and other pacts wutg radical muslims who set churches filled with Christians on fire, and macheted them in the streets, causing a political and religious mini-civil war over the MUO.

all of Obama's mentors, buddies, political affiliations, organizational memberships and all of his hard core militant muslim family members, like his brother Abongo (Roy" Odinga who hates America, and their communist grandfather who ran with Russia and hated America, not to mention his socialist connection to his profound childhood mentor, Frank Marshall Davis, a member of the Communist Party, CPUSA, and Obama's endorsement by the Black Panthers. Obama titled his book "Audacity of Hope," after Pastor Wright's sermon about the need to destroy capitalism and the middle-class at the hands of the rich white people and the west.

[Chris]

I think people here need to stop drinking Obama's Kool-Aid. If you actually listen to what he says, he does want to pull some troops out, but he never said anything about setting a definite timeline for complete withdrawal. Not to mention that HE VOTED YES to CONTINUE FUNDING THE WAR! In fact, why don't you ask his adviser who thinks that we should keep 60-80 thousand troops well into 2010? Regardless of who gets elected, we're going to be in Iraq, so I'm goint to vote for a president who actually knows how the military works.

[Matt Weiss]

I'm an Obama supporter and I hope he takes the high road and condemns Schultz for using the name "Warmonger" against McCain, although it's too late for him to take the decisive stand McCain did when Cunningham made a big deal of Obama's middle name. Neither comment was fair or helpful, and we, as Obama supporters, can't claim to be supporting our candidate so that he can change the tone of Washington politics and bring people together, and then defend name-calling. It's hypocrisy and it's also politically stupid, but mostly it's wrong.

And as for M.J. Bee saying McCain needs to get some _____, it's hard to believe anybody could look at the guy's biography and conclude that he's lacking in those. Are we going to start Swift-Boating John McCain? Is that what we took out of 2004?

Look, I'm voting for a Democrat in the fall because I'm a lifelong Democrat who sides with our candidates on almost all the important issues in this election, not because I think John McCain is a monster. Even if you agree with the term Schultz used, how can you imagine it's helpful to throw around a name like that?

If you do, you're deluded about why both McCain and Obama are succeeding this year in the face of many predictions that they would be long gone by now: People are tired of scorched earth politics. They disagree fiercely but are sick to death of feeling like they're living in two hostile countries. They want the right to debate, even vigorously, without tearing apart everyone in public life.

I know we lefties are pissed off, and justifiably, but remember this: Whichever side forgets the lesson above will lose. You can mark it down.

[Jeremy]

VERY MISLEADING TITLE given that Obama praised the radio host before he knew about his comments. Why not put "Obama believes in Santa Claus" because he did when he was a child?

You journalists are a joke. This is why bloggers are making you go extinct. You are lazy and your work lacks substance...it's much easier to sit in your office and type "he said she said" pieces for an hour and call it a day. This is unfortunate since journalism should be guided by ethical standards that bloggers simply can't be accountable to. The media in this country is a joke.

[nancy]

Every other report is that he condemned the use of the word warmonger. So much for this comic book site.

(Actually, if you bothered to read closely those other less thorough sites, the other reports say his spokesman said McCain should not be called a warmonger. A) No condemnation. B) No disasociation. C) Not the candidate himself taking full responsibility, denouncing, disassociating and making it clear as McCain did immediately in Ohio, even though he too was not present. That's the difference. Thanks for reading the parts you did.)

[Bill]

Read the book, John McCain's book. He is no warmonger. No person who has been to war wants to send the children of others into conflict. He is not a war monger. He is, however, someone who firmly believes in investing in the future of this country and sometimes that means making hard choices and tough decisions rather than trying to make the masses happy and follow the polls.

[GailScott]

McCain voted for the war and advocated the war, but that does not make him a warmonger. Bush, Chaney, Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz are warmongers—not McCain. McCain doesn't deserve to be tossed in that bin.

Obama better kick these creeps like Schultz (with their "personal definitions") to the curb or Obama will lose democrats like me who are tired of the dirty politics.

[scootmandubious]

You really must be joking with this, right?

After the swift-boating that was done to John Kerry by right-wing hosts who so respected Kerry's service, Schultz should apologize for the blatantly militaristic policies of John McCain? Because he is a veteran? McCain has recently demonstrated that he doesn;t even understand the politics of the region and the media keeps giving him a free pass.

I am no fan of Mr. Schultz. I stopped listening to his show when I called his show and was dealt with rudely by his screener. Schultz did not even bother to respond when I contacted him about it, so he lost me as a listener.

But I do applaud him for actually calling Mr. McCain out for what he is.

It's a page out of the Rove playbook for him to be attacked for it.

Too bad I will never listen to him say it.

[Lady C]

Listen McCain, stop your whining for being called what represents you. What Ed said was the truth and if the truth hurts, than you should step down now. That comment by no means is even equivalent to what Cunningham said. Grow up and move on or move to the side.

Lady C

[M. J. Bee]

The War On Terror is real. For those who don't think so visit the former location of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and crash site of UAL Flight #93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Try to remember the men, women and CHILDREN who were killed or lost their loved-ones at the hands of Muslim terrorists. Try to recall the horror, anger and fear you felt that morning. If you can't... read no further.

Without the military action (War On Terror) in the Middle East, the Patriot Act and the NSA Surveillance Program no city in America would be safe and you liberals would be afraid to lounge around drinking progressive kool-aid at your local Starbucks.

Call McCain whatever you'd like. You still have that right here in America. However, if we fail to face and DEFEAT terrorism, that right and all the rest of them you so enjoy will be a thing of the past. (Ref: Holland and England)

Hubert Horatio Humphrey
Ronald Wilson Reagan
John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Barack Hussein Obama

MIddle names all... Deal with it -