Obama Says Critics Haven't Been Listening

Obama has always shunned labels, especially the "liberal" label.
The problem with the media is one media outlet follows the other like dominoes. Every single media outlet has claimed Obama moved to the center. The left media outlets are trying to make sure they keep Obama within their clutches and the right outlets are trying to make sure Obama doesn't get elected. There just isn't much room for independent thinking anymore. The truth isn't necessarily in the middle either.

NYT: “I believe in a whole lot of things that make me progressive and put me squarely in the Democratic camp,” he said. But, he noted, he does not believe that the active hand of government is a replacement, say, for parental responsibility in education.

“I believe in personal responsibility; I also believe in faith,” he said. “That’s not something new; I’ve been talking about that for years. So the notion that this is me trying to look” — he waved his hands around his head — “centrist is not true.”

Regarding his position on Iraq, he said, “Don’t be confused: I will bring the Iraq war to a close when I am president of the United States of America.”

Bob Herbert Lashes Out at Obama

Well, it seems everyone on the left has come out against Obama these days, even his staunch supporter at the NYT, Bob Herbert.

Whatever. I'm still mulling all this over.

NYT: “What’s he doing?” is the most common question heard recently from Obama supporters.

For one thing, he’s taking his base for granted, apparently believing that such stalwart supporters as blacks, progressives and pumped-up younger voters will be with him no matter what. A taste of the backlash this can produce erupted on the candidate’s own Web site.

Thousands of Obama supporters flooded the site with protests over his decision to support an electronic surveillance bill that gives retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that participated in the Bush administration’s warrantless wiretapping program. The senator had previously promised to filibuster the bill if it contained the immunity clause.