Obama Accuses President Bush, McCain Of Political Trickery

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During a Friday news conference, Barack Obama denied he would try to appease terrorists.

During a Friday news conference, Barack Obama denied he would try to appease terrorists.

By Brian Allen

Story Created: May 16, 2008 at 11:39 PM CDT

Story Updated: May 16, 2008 at 11:39 PM CDT

Barack Obama campaigned in Watertown on Friday and came out swinging against President Bush and Republican presidential hopeful John McCain.

On thursday, both suggested Obama would appease terrorists if he were elected president:

In Watertown, Obama called the idea a Republican scare tactic.

"After 8 years I did not think I could be surprised by anything George Bush says." The President's appeasement assertion was the first thing Obama addressed during the Watertown visit. President Bush made the comments Thursday before Israel's parliament. "Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and the radicals."

The comment is a shot at Obama's willingness to negotiate with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Republican presidential hopeful John McCain soon followed up. "He wants to sit down across the table from individual who says israel is a stinking corpse."

"They're trying to fool you and trying to scare you and they're not telling the truth." Obama told the crowd there's a difference between coming to an agreement with your enemies and giving in to them. "I believe we need to use all elements of American power to pressure Iran including tough, principled diplomacy. That's what John F. Kennedy did. That's what Ronald Reagan did with the Soviets."

During a post-rally news conference, Obama took the idea one step further. "Syria, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela. I would meet with them."

Obama says any nation wanting to normalize relations with the United States would have to cut all ties to terrorism and recognize Israel as a soverign country.

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Saturday, May 17 at 1:10 PM Andrew wrote ...

1) Bush was talking about Carter. With Obama it's all about me, me, me. 2)Obama doesn't need to negotiate with terrorists and radicals in the future, he already does. He kicked off his Senate campaign on the front steps of his friend William Ayres' house. He already earned the endorsement of Hamas, and his campaign was in talks with Hamas leaders.

Saturday, May 17 at 11:16 AM Dilip wrote ...

Bush and McCain criticising Obama's preference for diplomacy over belligerency does not surprise. Bush failed America and the world by using lies to go to war and create a human catastrophe in Iraq. McCain's world view was shaped by another era, where too misguided American belligerency created a human catastrophe in Vietnam.

Saturday, May 17 at 11:14 AM David N wrote ...

Bush's incompetence is by now the stuff of legend. And as for McCain, how is crashing your plane into a lake anything but incompetence? After which he didn't really have much choice about being a prisoner of war, did he? What so brave about it?

Saturday, May 17 at 1:39 AM MsSwin wrote ...

“Currently, 147 country music stations have instituted the [Bush] ban, a number which has been growing by the hour. Clear Channel, a major syndicator to all radio formats across America, is considering the ban, which would increase the numbers significantly and be a major blow to the White House. Several Clear Channel stations have independently instituted their own ban.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-j-elisberg/country-radio-stations-sh_b_102147.html

Saturday, May 17 at 1:09 AM PacificGatePost wrote ...

THIS WAS NEITHER ABOUT OBAMA NOR APPEASEMENT Why is the media focusing on the wrong story here? Obviously Obama picked up on the potential for headlines, but isn’t that a secondary story? This about the misuse of the term "NEGOTIATE" http://pacificgatepost.blogspot.com/2008/05/bushs-misrepresentation-of-negotiate.html

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