Trying to tie Jesse to Barack
Jesse Jackson may have denied saying that Zionists control American foreign policy , but that didn't stop the McCain campaign from using the remarks to attack what they called Barack Obama' "poor" record on Israel.
In a conference call with reporters on Wednesday afternoon, McCain Florida Jewish outreach campaign co-chairs Rep. Adam Hasner and Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff, and top McCain foreign policy adviser Randy Scheunemann argued that Jackson fit a "pattern" of "advisers" and "associates" of Obama who they said are not strong friends of Israel – from Samantha Power to Robert Malley to Gen. Merrill McPeak
"Sen. Obama does not have a record that can give Jewish voters comfort," said Hasner.
"You have to judge him by the company he keeps," said Bogdanoff.
But Jackson isn't an adviser to Obama, and the two hardly seem to have a warm relationship – considering Jackson threatened to cut Obama's private parts off earlier this year. Asked why they kept referring to "advisors" or "associates" in regard to Jackson when they don't appear to be particularly close, Bogdanoff said that Obama has "had a close relationship" with Jackson, claiming that the civil rights leader had helped Obama in his rise through the Chicago political world.
Ryan Lizza's lengthy articleon Obama's rise in Chicago politics from this summer mentions Jackson twice – once to note that Jackson's daughter is a close friend of Michelle Obama's, and the other recounting that Jackson was the featured speaker at an anti-war rally Obama also spoke at before the Iraq war began.
Scheunemann then responded that the campaign had, in a press release earlier that day, merely called Jackson a "supporter" of Obama.
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What do you mean “Trying” to tie Jesse to Barack? They are very tied. Barack’s wife Michelle went to elementary school with Jesse’s kids. She helped babysit the younger ones.
When Michelle married Barack, her best friend Santita Jackson became godmother of their baby. When Barack decided to run for President, he made Santita’s brother, Jesse Jr., the co-chairman of his campaign.
Barack worked with Jesse on his big voter registration drive in 1992. Jesse helped Barack run for the state senate.
Jesse is well known for letting the truth slip out - as in 1984 with his Hymietown remarks and the open microphone “nuts’ comments this year.
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Bill Levinson
10/18/08 05:35 AM
Jackson’s comments in isolation would not really be an indictment of Obama, especially given Jackson’s “surgical” offer.
When one puts those comments together with Jeremiah Wright’s denunciation of Zionism as racism, and his call for divestment from Israel, plus the anti-Israel and even anti-Semitic hate speech that was welcome at My.BarackObama.com, though, we have a disturbing picture. Add to this Obama’s solicitation and acceptance of MoveOn.org’s endorsement, and we have an extremely disturbing picture.
Add the YouTube video of a Palestinian phone bank for Obama, and you do have to wonder. With that much smoke, maybe there is indeed a fire.