Exclusive: Friday, July 11

by PRESIDENTIAL WATCH July 11, 2008

Campaign Finance Links: National Disclosure and Research Resources - Important Information HERE!

Video Of The Day: "Learn Spanish And Stop Embarrassing Me In Front Of Europe" - SEE OBAMA VIDEO HERE.

Is There Legitimate Doubt About Obama's Eligibility to be President?

Andrew McCarthy, NRO.com

I had not caught up until today with this apparent controversy over whether the Hawaii birth certificate proffered by Obama's campaign is a forgery and whether there are legitimate questions about whether he was born in the United States - if he wasn't, he almost certainly would not be qualified under the Constitution and relevant immigration statutes to be president. Our Jim Geraghty seemed to pooh-pooh the birth certificate controversy about a week ago, but according to the above cited report (at a site called DougRoss@Journal) and a new one from Israeli Insider, there are new developments, and the Obama campaign appears to be stonewalling. Shouldn't it be a fairly easy matter to prove he was born in Hawaii if he really was? Why wouldn't Obama just end this quickly? Read article.

For more info on BHO's "birth certificate" controversy, CLICK HERE.

Obama Refines Plans for Germany Trip

Spiegel.de

Barack Obama's planned European tour might make a major whistlestop in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. The candidate's schedule isn't set, but a Berlin appearance before the end of July looks likely.

Plans for a visit by Barack Obama, the presumed Democratic candidate for President of the United States, have moved forward -- slowly -- in Berlin, where he may give a speech before the Brandenburg Gate this summer.

Germany's ambassador to Washington, Klaus Scharioth, has reportedly worked for weeks to convince Obama's campaign that the candidate's only large European appearance should take place in Berlin. Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier talked to Obama by phone last April and learned that he might visit Germany. In the meantime, according to SPIEGEL sources, Steinmeier's staff has set plans in motion for an Obama appearance in the capital by the end of July. Read article.

Barack Obama's Berlin visit sparks German diplomatic row

Times Online.com

Berlin, a city torn apart by war, is the perfect setting for an American president preaching peace. Ronald Reagan famously stood metres away from the Brandenburg Gate and called on the Soviet Union to tear down the Wall dividing Europe. And President Kennedy used a Cold War visit to the once and future German capital to declare: "ich bin ein Berliner!"

Now Barack Obama, the presidential candidate, wants to grandstand there too. But a simmering row between the German Government and the local Berlin authorities could rob the Democratic politician of a photogenic moment at the Brandenburg Gate and derail his flagship tour of Europe this month.

Negotiations are underway between the Obama advance team and the office of the Berlin Mayor, Klaus Wowereit, to hold the speech in front of the Brandenburg Gate, close to the line that traces the route of the Berlin Wall. The newly built US embassy nestles alongside. So too does a museum honouring John F. Kennedy. If, as expected, Mr Obama is going to deliver a phrase in German (the insider tip is: "I can listen!" - "ich kann zuhoeren!") and fling out his arms in the direction of Russia and Central Europe, then this surely is the place.

But, say advisers to Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, it would be tantamount to giving the German stamp of approval to Mr Obama, an undue interference in the election campaign.

"The Brandenburg Gate is the best known and most historically significant site in Germany," said a Chancellery official, explaining why until now only elected presidents have been allowed to perform there.

So the Government would dearly like Mr Obama to find another platform. Read article.

Kerry: McCain's Judgment Is Dangerous

CBS News.com

Sen. John Kerry believes that the presumptive Republican nominee for president is adhering to the Bush Administration orthodoxy in ways that call into question his carefully-nurtured image as a political maverick.

"John McCain has changed in profound and fundamental ways that I find personally really surprising, and frankly upsetting," the Democratic Senator from Massachusetts said on CBS' Face The Nation.

"This is a different John McCain. This is not the Senator John McCain; this is want-to-be president John McCain.

Kerry criticized McCain's continued support of the occupation, given the effect of a continuing presence of U.S. troops on the situation in Iraq and the region at large. He pointed to remarks by leaders in the Middle East who told him during a recent visit, "You, America, have served up to Iran Iraq on a platter."

"They are outraged by the ineptitude of what has been done by those who decided it was smart to go into Iraq," said Kerry, who feels the Republican Party is now in turmoil over the "reality" of McCain's position, which is that "he has a plan for staying in Iraq and Barack Obama has a plan for getting out of Iraq."

However, McCain supporter Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said that McCain was right about the war. Read article.

McCain Should Play 'Pin Obama on the Donkey'

Jonah Goldberg, Townhall.com

Hoping that the third time really is the charm, the McCain campaign has had yet another staff shakeup. As befits a press corps and Republican professional class always eager to gain favor and access to the newest man in charge, the accolades for the latest campaign manager, Steve Schmidt, are nothing short of superlative.

The argument that Schmidt is the right man for the job centers on the fact that he's a no-nonsense type who enjoys taking the fight to the enemy. That's good news given how much nonsense has come out of the McCain campaign so far.

For example, when retired Gen. Wesley Clark seemingly belittled McCain's military service as poor preparation for the Oval Office, the McCain campaign blundered by attacking the messenger, Clark, and not Clark's candidate, Senator Obama. Whether or not commanding a Navy squadron or rallying brutalized American POWs in the Hanoi Hilton is qualification for the presidency, surely this was a missed opportunity to ask whether voting "present" in the Illinois Legislature nearly 130 times is a superior qualification.

In the Illinois Legislature, Obama was a pliable creature of the corrupt Democratic machine. Why, McCain might ask, should we expect that he will be otherwise at the national level?

Obama may be moving rapidly to the center, embracing faith-based initiatives and backpedaling on Iraq and NAFTA, but he is not "triangulating." He has not picked any serious fights with his base, no doubt in part because he doesn't think he has to.

This is a potential opening for McCain to exploit. Read article.

Democratic grass roots fret as Barack Obama pirouettes on policies

TimesOnline.co.uk

Grassroots activists whose energy and donations have helped to propel Barack Obama towards the White House are suddenly choking on the bitter pill of disillusion.

In less than a month since clinching the Democratic nomination, he has performed a series of policy pirouettes to assuage concerns about his candidacy among a wider and more conservative electorate.

It is change, but not the type for which many of those who enthusiastically supported Mr Obama during the primaries had hoped.

The biggest group on Mr Obama's own web portal was one pleading with him yesterday to vote against domestic wire-tapping of terror suspects, which gives phone companies immunity from prosecution for past misdeeds.

By 11am 18,733 activists had joined the group, a fivefold increase in a week since he pledged support for the Bill.

By then, though, he was fighting another fire over remarks he made in North Dakota suggesting that he would "refine" his policy of a withdrawal of all combat troops from Iraq within 16 months of taking office.

He later hastily convened a second press conference to insist that he was not "searching for manoeuvring room" because he had always said he would listen to commanders on the ground. Read article.

The Democrats' Foreign Policy Game: What you Vote for Isn't Always What you Get

Stuart Gottlieb, CS Monitor.com

The Democratic Party and its presumed presidential nominee, Sen. Barack Obama, have made "restoring America's image" and "renewing American leadership" cornerstones of their foreign-policy promises for 2008.Nearly every Democratic foreign-policy speech, press release, or Web link says as much.

This is a powerful message that certainly resonates with American voters and our friends around the world. However, if we look just below the surface of the rhetoric and analyze specific policies proposed by Democrats in Congress and on the campaign trail, we find plans that would only further damage America's international standing.

On two critical issues in particular - trade and the war in Iraq - Democrats have been trying to have their cake and eat it too: They claim they will restore America's image and leadership and simultaneously promise unilateralist and irresponsible policies certain to have the opposite effect. Read article.

Obama Addresses His Faith - Senator Describes Spiritual Journey

Jonathan Weisman, Washington Post.com

Sen. Barack Obama ended a week's focus on values by giving a conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church a highly personal account of his spiritual journey and a promise that he will make "faith-based" social service "a moral center of my administration."

The address, to one of the oldest and largest African American denominations, brought the senator from Illinois back to friendlier ground after a week's tour through Appalachian Ohio, conservative Missouri, the conservative stronghold of Colorado Springs, North Dakota and hardscrabble Montana. But in its religious tones, the address had a far wider intended audience.

"In my own life, " he said, "it's been a journey that began decades ago on the South Side of Chicago, when, working as a community organizer, helping to build struggling neighborhoods, I let Jesus Christ into my life. I learned that my sins could be redeemed and that if I placed my trust in Christ, that he could set me on the path to eternal life when I submitted myself to his will and I dedicated myself to discovering his truth and carrying out his works." Read article. [Editor's NOTE: Rev. Jeremiah Wright, his pastor and "mentor" - infamous for his "God Damn America" sermons for 20 years - wasn't mentioned once in this public profession of "faith."]

Obama and the Woods Fund of Chicago

Richard Henry Lee, American Thinker.com

Barack Obama served on the board of directors of Woods Fund of Chicago from 1993 to 2001. During that time, the tax exempt foundation made some interesting grants, including one to Obama's church, Trinity United Church of Christ, headed by Rev. Jeremiah Wright at the time.

Grants were also made to ACORN, a left wing voter registration group and to a partnership for constructing low income housing. The fund also used Northern Trust for financial services, which is the same company that provided Obama his 2005 mortgage.

In 2001 the board of directors included Obama, William Ayers, the former Weather Underground radical terrorist, and serving as chairman was Howard J. Stanback who headed New Kenwood LLC, a limited liability company founded by now-convicted felon Tony Rezko and Allison Davis, Obama's former boss at the law firm of Davis Miner Barnhill & Galland.

The Woods Fund in 2001 awarded a $6,000 grant to Obama's church, Trinity United Church of Christ, headed by his now ex-pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright. The grant was probably awarded since Obama did not receive his $6,000 director's pay in 2001. He had received $6,000 in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Even though the grant may have been made in lieu of Obama's pay, the Fund's own web page in 2001 states that religious organiztions are not eligible for grant consideration.

The reason for the grant to Obama's church may have been because Obama might have felt bad for not having donated much previously. The grant is especially interesting in view of Obama's sudden conversion to the faith based initiative started by President Bush. Read article.

Religious Considerations

The Prowler, Spectator.org

While it appears that Sen. John McCain has solidified support from evangelical Christian leaders, how solid that support is remains in doubt, particularly given the amount of time and energy Sen. Barack Obama and his campaign have dedicated to speaking to conservative religious leaders.

According to members of the conservative Arlington Group, which is made of leaders of some of the largest and most influential faith-based groups in the country and which withheld its endorsement for President during the Republican and Democrat primary seasons, Obama has been targeting members for some time, and some leaders have been coming away impressed.

"[Obama] speaks our language. He seems more comfortable with his faith. Jesus' name rolls off his tongue, as do some of the phrases people of faith tend to use in these meetings," says an Arlington Group staffer with knowledge of the meetings. "The same cannot be said of McCain. The only Republican who has come close to being this impressive in private meetings was Mitt Romney, but you never heard our membership say they thought Romney was an acceptable choice. You are hearing that from some of our membership when Obama's name is mentioned. It's surreal."

That's not to say that McCain hasn't made strides of late. He has intentionally not sought very public support from evangelical leaders in an attempt to build support among independents, who aren't likely to go for someone openly aligned with the hard right. Read article.

McCain's N.Y. Snub Is Wise

Alicia Colon, NY Sun.com

Why blame John McCain for basing his regional headquarters in Woodbridge, N.J., instead of the news capital of the nation, New York City? Some consider this pass a snub. I think it's the smart thing to do. Why waste time in this liberal-dominated town where voters support Democrats who do nothing but raise taxes to fund worthless programs?

When did we become so gullible? I'm using the editorial "we" out of politeness, but I'm a native New Yorker who never voted for President Carter, Governor Spitzer, or any of the Democrats gumming up the New York State Assembly. I'm not that crazy about the New York Republicans either, but I did vote twice for Mayor Giuliani. Why not set term limits for state offices?

I'm betting this city will vote overwhelmingly for Senator Obama, who advocates "change," which of course makes him the right man. Oh, please. Every time I ask one of the Obama swooners to tell me how he will actually enact all these wonderful changes, they look at me with this deer-in-the-headlights look. Then they shrug and say: "I just think it's good for the country to elect a black man."

I'm usually not a conspiracy theorist, but I have this sneaky suspicion that the leaders of the Democratic Party picked Mr. Obama to run because they knew he couldn't win. Read article.

Remind Hispanics that it's about freedom

Star Parker, Townhall.com

John McCain is trailing Barack Obama by 30 percentage points in support from Hispanic voters, according to this week's polling from Gallup. Even among Hispanics that self-identify as conservatives, McCain and Obama are even.

This is a far cry from 2004 when George W. Bush captured 45 percent of the Hispanic vote. At that time, Republicans were optimistic that Hispanics would become a majority voting bloc for the Republican Party.

The McCain campaign has two operative questions: Can ground be picked up among Hispanic voters? And if so, how?

I hope that the senator sets his sights on Hispanics. If he does it right, he can gain support from them and in so doing, also inject badly needed focus and excitement into his overall campaign. Read article.

What's Spanish For Hypocrite?

Abe Greenwald, Commentary Magazine.com

At a Georgia town hall meeting, Barack Obama found himself pontificating about American ignorance:

I don't understand when people are going around worrying about, we need to have English only. They want to pass a law, we just, we want English only . . . Now, I agree that immigrants should learn English, I agree with this. But understand this, instead of worrying about whether immigrants can learn English, they'll learn English, you need to make sure your child can speak Spanish.

So to be clear: Americans must learn Spanish! Here's the thing, though: Barack Obama, who holds several impressive first-tier degrees, does not speak Spanish. Read article.