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Above my Pay Grade?
Townhall.com ^ | August 17, 2008 | Kevin McCullough

Posted on 08/18/2008 4:42:08 AM PDT by Kaslin

Americans have never expected our public servants to be perfect. In fact on many levels it can sometimes be comforting to know they are not. Foibles, mistakes, faux pas all remind us that while they are called upon to lead us through times of tremendous challenge, that at the end of the day they are one of us. They are not from some line of tyrannical despot royalty allowed absolute power.

Realizing this however also causes us to understand that while they may make mistakes certain qualities are particularly more helpful, attractive, and necessary when vetting the nation's leadership. Honesty, ethical integrity, and transparent commitment to the ideals of our nation are the non-negotiables that we seek, need, and demand. Barack Obama fails the test on all three levels. Saturday night he demonstrated none of the above - and in the presence of the most recognizable mega-pastor in America.

As an aside - my own past issues with Rick Warren being what they are - it was my opinion that Warren hosted perhaps the most helpful presidential forum to date in the 2008 White House race. This shocked me - but to my pleasant surprise - was greatly beneficial for the nation to see. For while Warren and Obama may have been tied at the hip for a few years now, even in the friendly confines of Saddleback Church, Obama was unable to speak truth, and now the world saw it exposed.

His most outright lie was his claim that abortion rates had gone up over the last eight years. Within minutes bloggers at TownHall.com, pro-life groups like Americans United for Life, and even the analyst panel on Fox News Channel had the stats in front of the American public. Abortion rates have actually decreased over the last eight years, and have done so in significant fashion. In fact in January of 2008 it was reported by the Guttmacher Institute and repeated in U.S. News and World Reports that abortions had reached a three decade low.

For Obama to so blatantly say otherwise demonstrated paramount ignorance; ignorance to such degree that he should not be elected dog catcher, much less the most powerful chair of the free world. And if not ignorant then he was more than willing to manipulate the issue by forthright lying to the largest audience of evangelicals in America, and a pastor on national television.

But his willingness to do so is easily parsed in the world of liberal far-left politics today. There is no real consequence to telling untruths in the world of the academic elite that Obama stems from. Every time he opens his mouth it is an opportunity for him to appear as though he is weighing multiple sides of an issue and with his smooth articulation drip words that his sycophantic, brainwashed, supporters believe are divinely inspired script.

But they aren't because he's just a man, just like any other man, with temptations, sin, and deficiencies of judgement. Only Obama's deficiencies in judgement seem unparalleled in recent history.

When asked most forthrightly by Warren as to when a child should have its God given rights protected, Obama balked and claimed "knowing when something" that is obviously living, "begins to live" was, "above his pay grade."

Even as a father he knew it was a lie.

Go back to the day when Michelle first told him that she was pregnant with their first daughter. Was his daughter alive? If someone had desired to injure his baby girl while developing in his wife's body would he have "misunderstood" as to whether it would have been morally wrong? How deep would his anger have been if someone had robbed him of the relationship with his little girl?

And yet this flail speaks to his fundamental misunderstanding of morality and whether or not his moral judgement could be trusted as the most powerful man on earth.

Obama has added even further doubt by outright lying about why he supported the exact same "Born Alive Infant Protection Act" that was even too radical and immoral for Barbara Boxer, Hillary Clinton, and Dianne Feinstein to support. Put differently Obama is the only elected official on record to ever vote in favor of denying life-saving medical care to children who had been born but that were struggling for life.

Is that a decision too confusing so as to be "above the pay grade" as well?

It isn't for most Americans.

But don't let the facts be confused, Obama is now lying about his lie, and claiming that those who say he is lying are the ones doing so.

So is he confused about the facts, bought and sold by the abortion lobby, or just manipulating the issue for bait and switch political gain?

The answer to all three is likely "yes."

And since it is we the tax-payers who hire the person, and give our permission to run our nation, perhaps we should consider keeping Obama at the "pay grade" of his U.S. Senate seat, where his convoluted intellect can be kept in check and balance by those who are not as morally confused, ethically challenged, or blatantly dishonest.

And when his present term concludes - another vacation to Hawaii would do him well.


TOPICS: Editorial; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: abortion; abovemypaygrade; duckoftheday; infanticide; mccain; nobama; obama; proabortion; righttolie; righttolife; saddleback; warren; whendoeslifebegin
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1 posted on 08/18/2008 4:42:08 AM PDT by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin
They are not from some line of tyrannical despot royalty allowed absolute power.

Unless they're the Clintons.

2 posted on 08/18/2008 4:52:20 AM PDT by Hardastarboard (I have Zero Tolerance for Zero Tolerance policies.)
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To: Kaslin

At this moment speech writers are drafting a 2 hour Abortion Speech aka his 2 hour Race Speech. MSM will pronounce it to be required reading in classrooms across the country.

“...he, or she, will go into some long drawn out discussion of some unrelated or only vaguely related subject. Such a discussion may drag on for a number of minutes. The intent being to have the crowd become bored and forget what the original question was.” - http://www.tysknews.com/Depts/Educate/alinsky_method.htm


3 posted on 08/18/2008 4:55:43 AM PDT by igoramus08
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To: Kaslin

So BHO lies with immpunity. Is he so arrogant that he thinks whatever he mumbles is true?


4 posted on 08/18/2008 4:58:29 AM PDT by iopscusa (El Vaquero. (SC Lowcountry Cowboy))
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To: iopscusa

“So BHO lies with immpunity. Is he so arrogant that he thinks whatever he mumbles is true?”

Sadly, so, and there are sheeple out here who will swallow his swill, hook, line and sinker. RATs lie as easily as they breathe.


5 posted on 08/18/2008 5:03:13 AM PDT by Polyxene (For where God built a church, there the Devil would also build a chapel - Martin Luther)
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To: Kaslin

And we pray that such decisions are always “above your paygrade”.

Obama has now acknowledged that he is unqualified to be President.


6 posted on 08/18/2008 5:08:48 AM PDT by G Larry (I'm investing in "Pitchfork Futures"!!)
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To: G Larry

Obama has now acknowledged that he is unqualified to be President.

Obama has proven beyond any doubt that the people of his state made a serious mistake electing him as a Senator.


7 posted on 08/18/2008 5:28:55 AM PDT by BILL_C (Those who don't understand the lessons of history are bound to repeat them!)
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To: Kaslin

Does anyone have an exact quote of what Obama said re: the “above my pay grade” comment, or is there a video link for what he said? Thanks!


8 posted on 08/18/2008 5:41:11 AM PDT by nfldgirl (Tribe Member: 'Runs with Rush')
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To: Kaslin

If the answer to a question from Obama was “its above my paygrade then he bascially stated that he was not or would not be qualified to be President of the United States.
Nothing had better be beyond your paygrade if you desire that position. You are to be the leader of the GREATEST Nation on the earth. You are to oversee the lives of 350 MILLION Citizens. You start and End Wars. You help some Country’s and destroy others. You oversee a Budget in the Trillions of dollars and a Debt in the Trillions of dollars.
Sorry Obama. Nothing in your record indicated to me that you were qualifed to be President and your comment Saturday night showed that even you realize that you are not qualified.


9 posted on 08/18/2008 6:02:07 AM PDT by SECURE AMERICA (Got Freedom ? Thank a Veteran...... Want to keep Freedom? Don't vote Obama)
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To: Kaslin
we should consider keeping Obama at the "pay grade" of his U.S. Senate seat

I disagree.

He should go back to his older pay grade of "community organizer". There are still plenty of rats and asbestos to address in Chicago - not that he did a good job there either. But at least we won't be saddled with this complete charlatan being our President!

10 posted on 08/18/2008 6:22:13 AM PDT by Gritty (Answering a question like at what point a baby gets “human rights” is above my pay grade- Obama)
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To: Kaslin

Obama is a moral coward and likely a physical coward to boot.


11 posted on 08/18/2008 6:46:30 AM PDT by onedoug
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To: BILL_C
Actually, he wasn't even elected U.S. Senator. Yes, he won a sham election after the stupid party brought in a cardboard cutout candidate from out of state to run against him and after his media pals knocked out a qualified opponent with revelations of sealed divorce documents that election summer.

But this seems to be a pattern. He also won his election to the state legislature by ensuring that his primary opponents in a one-party district we disqualified from the ballot on picayune technicalities. He's had a lot of powerful people finance his rise to power.

12 posted on 08/18/2008 7:15:25 AM PDT by Vigilanteman (Are there any men left in Washington? Or, are there only cowards? Ahmad Shah Massoud)
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To: Kaslin

Democrat President, 1948: “The buck stops here.”

Democrat Presidential Candidate 2008: “It’s above my pay grade.”

My dad wonders why I vote Republican, instead Democrat. It is because of the change in his party over the last 60 years.


13 posted on 08/18/2008 7:18:34 AM PDT by No Truce With Kings (The opinions expressed are mine! Mine! MINE! All Mine!)
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To: Mean Maryjean
His exact quote was "Answering with specificity is above my pay grade."

You can hear and see it the 3rd at the 3:40 minute

Here

14 posted on 08/18/2008 8:15:13 AM PDT by Kaslin (Vote Democrat if you like high gas prices at the pump)
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To: Kaslin

new tagline...


15 posted on 08/18/2008 8:51:06 AM PDT by weegee (The higher taxes that Obama demands of Americans are 'Above my Pay Grade'.)
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To: No Truce With Kings

Ask him at what point in his life did he come to embrace Socialism.


16 posted on 08/18/2008 8:52:57 AM PDT by weegee (The higher taxes that Obama demands of Americans are 'Above my Pay Grade'.)
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To: Kaslin
Yet another Republican ad written by Obama.

“President of the United States, It's above Obama’s pay grade”

17 posted on 08/18/2008 8:54:01 AM PDT by HereInTheHeartland ("We have to drain the swamp" George Bush, September 2001)
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To: Kaslin
What's really bad about what he said, waffling out of giving an answer, is that most who support abortion would at least say life begins at birth.

I guess the church he went to was so busy preaching about the evil white devil, they forgot to say anything about murdering live babies. Or maybe they thought even their memebers had figured that out.

18 posted on 08/18/2008 8:58:51 AM PDT by purpleraine
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To: Kaslin
His exact quote was "Answering with specificity is above my pay grade."

That could have come right from a SS defendant in the dock at Nuremberg.

19 posted on 08/18/2008 9:01:58 AM PDT by mtntop3
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To: Kaslin

The BOY was shown as the imbecile that he is. His lies were blatant and his stupidity smelled of inexperience with Marxist values...let’s hope the undecided see it that way.


20 posted on 08/18/2008 9:07:17 AM PDT by oust the louse (NOT voting this November is a vote for Barack Hussein Obama....think about that.)
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