ÿþ<html> <head> <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1"> <title>OnlineColumnist®.com: Putin Punishes Georgia</title> <meta name="generator" content="Adobe GoLive 4"> <style type="text/css"> .style2 { font-size: large; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial; } .style3 { height: 69px; } .MsoNormal {} .style4 { font-size: x-large; font-weight: bold; } </style> </head> <body bgcolor="white" vlink="black"> <center> <table cool width="624" height="2719" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" gridx="16" showgridx gridy="16" showgridy> <tr height="79"> <td width="133" height="118" rowspan="2" valign="top" align="left" xpos="0"><a href="aboutdiscobolos.html"><img height="110" width="62" src="images/discobolos.logo.transp.gif" border="0"></a></td> <td width="7" height="118" rowspan="2"></td> <td width="482" height="79" colspan="2" valign="top" align="left" xpos="140"><img height="75" width="450" src="images/banner.GIF"></td> <td width="1" height="118" rowspan="2"></td> <td width="1" height="79"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="79"></td> </tr> <tr height="39"> <td width="182" height="39"></td> <td width="300" height="39" valign="top" align="left" xpos="322"><a href="aboutdiscobolos.html"><img height="14" width="267" src="images/divisionofNEW.GIF" border="0"></a></td> <td width="1" height="39"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="39"></td> </tr> <tr> <td width="624" colspan="6" valign="top" align="left" xpos="0" class="style3"> <table border="0" width="100%" bgcolor="black" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td> <table border="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#99ffcc" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4"> <tr> <td align="center"> <div align="left"> <a href="index.html"><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> HOME</strong></font></a><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> &#8226; <a href="articlesindex.html">ARTICLES</a> &#8226; <a href="books.html">BOOKS</a> &#8226; <a href="teflon.html"> THE </a><a href="teflon.html">TEFLON</a><a href="teflon.html"> REPORT</a> &#8226; <a href="mailto:letters@onlinecolumnist.com"> REACTIONS</a> &#8226; <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html">ABOUT DISCOBOLOS</a></strong></font></div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> <tr height="2"> <td width="133" height="2">&nbsp;</td> <td width="489" height="2576" colspan="3" rowspan="2" align="left" xpos="133" content valign="top" csheight="2573"> <p class="style2">McCain Fights Back</p> <p><b><font face="Arial,Geneva,Helvetica">by John M. Curtis</font></b><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><b><a href="books.html"><br> </a></b></font><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><b> (310) 204-8700</b></font></p> <p><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><i>Copyright October 16, 2008<br>All Rights Reserved. </i></font>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<span class="style4">T</span>aking off the gloves, GOP nominee Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) pounded Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama (D-Il.) in their final debate Oct. 15 at Hofstra University in Hemstead, N.Y.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain flailed around hoping to land the elusive knockout punch, giving his opponent a beating but failing to put the resilient Obama on the mat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Obama played defense most of the debate, scoring some shots of his own but didn t match McCain s intensity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Whether McCain scored enough points to change his uphill climb to the White House seems doubtful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>He bought his campaign a little more time, with less than three weeks to Nov. 4.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> We need to know the full extent of that (Ayers) relationship, continuing the same line of attack backfired on the campaign trail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Obama explained what looks like, to many voters, a cheap shot, linking him to the former  60s radical. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>McCain pulled out all the stops, clobbering Barack on a variety of subjects, bringing up  Joe the plummer, an Ohio resident with whom Barack spoke at a town-hall meeting about his tax policies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain accused Barack of trying to  spread the wealth with his tax policy, criticizing the Illinois senator for his attempt to provide tax relief to the middle class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain used poor  Joe the plumber to illustrate how Barack s tax policy would increase taxes on individuals earning above $250,00 a year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Both candidates battled about their health care proposals, demonstrating that McCain either doesn t understand Barack s plan or deliberately distorts the facts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain accused Barack of imposing a single-payer government health plan, when Obama described getting health insurance for the uninsured.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain confused Barack s plan with Hillary s or just doesn t get the difference.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>McCain s aggression at the debate cuts both ways:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Demonstrating his willingness to slug it out or continuing to turn off voters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Sen. Obama. I m not President Bush, said McCain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> If you wanted to run against President Bush, you should have run four years ago, making the strongest appeal to undecided voters that there s a difference.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> If I have occasionally mistaken your polices for George Bush s policies, it s because on the core economic issues that matter to the American people on tax policy, energy policy, on spending priorities you have a vigorous supporter of President Bush, Barack fired back, sticking to his talking points equating McCain with Bush.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain wants the same across-the-board tax cuts fir rich, middle class and the working poor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Although promising to cut 95% of families taxes, McCain still painted Obama as a big tax-and-spend liberal.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>McCain returned over-and-over again to  Joe the plumber, insisting Barack s tax policies would hurt ordinary workers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Barack tried to point out that McCain s policies would continue the stubborn recession that helps no one, especially  Joe the plumber. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>What Barack didn t point out is how the Iraq War has robbed the treasury of needed capital to refurbish crumbling cities and fund the urban renewal programs needed to stimulate industry in urban America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> What you want to do to Joe the plumber and millions more like him is have their taxes increased an noot be able to realize the American dream of owning their own business, said McCain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> The whole premise behind Obama s plans are class warfare, let s spread the wealth around. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Nothing could be more Orwellian or opposite:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Barack s plan tries to get corporations and millionaires to pay their fair share.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Class warfare begins with the elite or aristocracy in any society suppressing the working class, preventing them from upward mobility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain said in the debate he believes in  free markets, the same  free markets that ran wild on Wall Street, causing the biggest financial collapse since the Great Depression.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Free markets don t provide retirement or health care benefits for employees, unless forced to do so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>If Bush s current tax and spending policies favored the middle class, then  Joe the plumber would be a lot closer to realizing his dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> No dreams of entrepreneurs or hard-working employees can be realized when corporate elites plunder legitimate business, devastate retirement accounts and prevent taxpayers from getting ahead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Obama tried to point out the parallel between McCain and Bush to let voters know, in no uncertain terms, that the same approach will yield the same results.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Voters were treated to a spirited debate in which McCain threw more punches that skidded off his opponent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Obama could have got down to McCain s level but chose to let the 72-year-old self-described  maverick reveal to a national audience his combative personality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>With two wars raging and the economy sputtering, there s no room for a hothead to get the country into more trouble.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain talked about balancing the budget.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> But with his plans to continue the Iraq War, escalate U.S. involvement in Afghanistan and plan for a possible war with Iran, the budget could only be balanced by slashing needed domestic spending.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain told a national audience at the prior debate Oct. 7 in Nashville, Tenn., he won t touch the defense budget.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>When he talks about taking out his  hatchet, he s talking about hacking up important programs that people count on in tough times.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;<bAbout the Author</u><b>John M. Curtis</b> writes politically neutral commentary analyxing spin in national and global news.&nbsp; He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of <i><a href="books.html">Dodging The Bullet</a> </i>and <i><a href="books.html"> Operation Charisma</a></i>.</p> </td> <td width="1" height="2576" rowspan="2"></td> <td width="1" height="2"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="2"></td> </tr> <tr height="2574"> <td width="133" height="2574" valign="top" align="left" xpos="0"><img height="172" width="111" src="images/johninframe3.jpg"></td> <td width="1" height="2574"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="2574"></td> </tr> <tr height="1" cntrlrow> <td width="133" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="133" height="1"></td> <td width="7" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="7" height="1"></td> <td width="182" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="182" height="1"></td> <td width="300" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="300" height="1"></td> <td width="1" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="1"></td> <td width="1" height="1"></td> </tr> </table> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2" width="597"> <tr> <td><font size="1" face="Arial,Geneva,Helvetica"> <hr noshade size="1"> </font><a href="index.html"><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> Home</strong></font></a><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> || <a href="articlesindex.html">Articles</a> || <a href="books.html">Books</a> || <a href="teflon.html">The Teflon Report</a> || <a href="mailto:letters@onlinecolumnist.com"> Reactions</a> || <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html">About Discobolos</a></strong></font> <div align="left"> <p><font size="1" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular">This site designed, developed and hosted by the experts at</font><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"> <a href="http://www.cmeonline.net" target="_blank"><img height="30" width="138" src="images/cmelogoANIM.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"></a></font></p> </div> <p><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular">©1999-2005 <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html"> Discobolos Consulting Services, Inc.</a><br> (310) 204-8300<br> All Rights Reserved. </font></td> </tr> </table> </center> </body> </html>