I’ll be the first to admit Sen. Barack Obama gives a great speech. His golden voice, perfectly choreographed pauses and cute catchphrases mesmerize crowds. But once you look past his claims, there isn’t much substance.

Barack Obama claims to be the candidate that can shake up Washington. He has long been portrayed as the man who deviates from conventional politics in favor of a more “honest” approach. At the beginning of his campaign, Obama touted his refusal to accept money from political action committees. These committees represent special interests, and give money to candidates in hopes of influencing them when they are elected to office. A noble gesture indeed, Mr. Obama, but in 2005 and 2006 you didn’t seem to have any problem with them. In fact, you raised over $123,000 from others PACs for your own political action committee, the “Hopefund.” Some of the largest contributors to Hopefund were AT&T, Lockheed Martin, Comcast and Walt Disney. What’s more, as the presidential race began in 2007 Obama began handing out the majority of Hopefund’s money to politicians in the early voting states. For example, New Hampshire State Sen. Jacalyn Cilley received $1,000 from Obama’s PAC on July 25, 2007. Oddly enough, she endorsed Obama for president six days later, saying she was a firm believer in him and his policies. And at the beginning of 2007, Obama gave $9,000 to Rep. Paul Hodes, the first Congressman to come out in support of his campaign. But as soon as the Illinois senator set his sights on the White House he changed his tune, claiming he’s a staunch opponent of these interest-oriented groups in Washington. Sounds to me like he’s just like the rest of the politicians in Washington, so how he can claim to be the cure for Washington’s corruption? And God forbid CNN or any other liberal news station run a scathing article on Barack Obama. They’d sooner shut down before than say anything negative about their man.

What’s more, Obama has demonstrated time and again he simply isn’t ready to handle the most powerful country in the world. Specifically, his continuously poor responses to foreign policy questions during debates only show his lack of experience. During his victory speech in North Carolina this past Tuesday, Obama discussed his commitment to negotiation as his primary tool when dealing with conflicts between the U.S. and other nations. In particular, he stated his desire to follow in the footsteps of FDR and Truman for their negotiating techniques. Last I checked, FDR and Truman didn’t do much negotiating with Hitler and Tojo – unless by negotiating you mean dropping two nuclear bombs. Blunders like these are inexcusable for someone hoping to assume the most powerful position in the world. Under an Obama presidency, I foresee a Kennedy-like situation full of bullying by other, more experienced world leaders, resulting in ineffective negotiations. If you think the solution to problems with Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is to sit down and talk – while he vocally opposes all forms of internal protest, thinks Israel should be “wiped off of the map” and openly disputes the existence of the Holocaust – you’re in for a rude awakening, my friend. Negotiating with people like Ahmadinejad will get you nowhere. I’m by no means advocating using military force against the nation, but thinking you can change this man’s mind over a cup of tea is foolish.

Barack Obama is not the man he says he is. His claims of fighting against corporate interests in Washington are nothing more than promises to get him into the White House. Obama knows what the American people want to hear and uses it to his advantage. The man is the spitting image of every other politician in Washington. Even worse, he lacks the skills a leader needs to actually solve the world’s problems. I blame the liberal media as well for propping up Obama as the candidate who can finally bring the right solutions to our troubled nation. An Obama presidency means business as usual in Washington D.C. – except with less foreign policy experience and a lack of skill. I just hope Americans aren’t blinded this November by his beautiful voice.

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