Obama's lack of understanding exposed again

Scary ignorance.

McCain's claim to have commanded the largest squadron in the Navy is embarassing. First, big deal. I commanded a squadron of about 50 airplanes that was not even the largest squadron on the base. Second, I doubt the accuracy of the claim. I suspect that he is finessing this by excluding squadrons of certain types. He should hope that claim dies a natural death before someone researches it too carefully.

Ed: Outstanding Post
Inmy working career I have been Chairman, CEO, COO, In House Consultant, Director , Manager, and an Air Force Officer.
The Obama shortcomings you have outlined are the most terrifying of those that should make him ineligible for POTUS in any thinking americans mind.
The man simply does not have a clue. Never having been in a position of command, never having exhibited any noteworthy leadership, a very apparent lack of on the spot improvision, no real experience outside of the confines of the "Chicago envelope".
And further, a total lack of internationalor diplomatic experience, I could go on and on.
One of your most telling comments regards stepping into a command position of a very large organization. There are techniques for doing this. I seriously doubt if Obama has been exposed.

PC is Thought Control
LEE

Obama is a empty suit. I have said it before and I say it again, he is nothing, vapor, a snake oil salesman. He sells nothing but the promise to take my money to garner the support of the minions. For what? Change simply for the sake of change? I am so utterly amazed at the vapid masses who croon at this puppet. Would someone please explain how with all the issues facing us we actually are going to move hard left? Do these people actually think higher taxes will help anything?
The man is dangerous and a menace to our nation.
However, I am nit sure McCain us much better. It is pathetic.

A similar argument can be made about McCain. How much time has either man spent in the private sector? Has either one ever earned a check that wasn't taxpayer-funded? Both regard government as their own personal plaything and funds in the public treasury are their own private kitty to be spent as they see fit.

Good reporting on Obama.

Really too bad that the vast majority of voters will never read the great info being presented on the American Thinker. Compared to those who actually think about things, IE what a gross lack of experience Obama has, onky a very small percentage of the American Public has the ability to truley comprehend how bad Obama really is. I think of him as a fast taling used car salesman trying to sell a "lemon". I think many are truley going to be in for a shock. As painful as it will be, maybe it on the long run will be a good thing. Too bad the damage that will be caused while the American people figure it out.

Regarding McCain, and I am not fan, but from my standpoint his military expernience certainly outweighs anything the other clown running for President has. I was a company commander in Vietnam, having about 80 people report to me through the chain of command. We were a Heavy Equipment Engineering Company. The experience gained through that phase of my life has helped me ever sence. Maybe not the greatest leader of men by a long shot, but I did get the basics, which McCain did also, so those who are critical of him, though you have valid points, in the big picture he certainly has a lot more leadership experience that Obama.

Enough said, they are both loosers in my book, but one certainly is a bigger looser than the other. Most used car salemen remain used car salesmen. Let's hope it remains that way !!!!!!!!!!

Notice that at NO POINT did Obama say he would give any orders to the Joint Chiefs, nor did he say he would expect them to give any orders. Once again, Obama's critics are willfully choosing to misinterpret and distort his words to say something he never said. There may be valid criticisms of Obama, but if this is the best you can do, you are not going to convince me to vote for a cranky old man with a bad temper instead.

Maybe Obama should instead be appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Senate dining room. Show us that you can turn that around, then apply for the real prize.

I'd vote for Steve Jobs before Obama. Jobs is just as liberal (so you'd know what you were getting) and has managerial experience.

How sad is that?

GOP said: "...Notice that at NO POINT did Obama say he would give any orders to the Joint Chiefs..."

Obama said: "I will call my Joint Chiefs of Staff in and give them a new assignment
and that is to end the war."

Seems clear to me. Obama will "order" the Joint Chiefs to end the war. I waiting for the slippery fellow to issue another clarification on whatever his ever evolving and changing policy on Iraq will be.

"...at NO POINT did ..." Right, he doesn't know how to give orders except at a restaurant. Obama is the absolute definition of the "empty suit". An "empty suit" in business results in poor performance and sometimes a failed business. An "empty suit" in the Presidency is a crisis of epoch proportions. McCain is not my choice but his experience is virtually limitless as compared to Obama's. He has had exposure to a broad spectrum of situations that make him at least a legitimate and viable candidate for the job. Even his general life experiences better prepare him for the job - and he doesn't have a list of friends and supporters who would have easily instantly disqualified any Republican.

Back when there was a Department of War, and no 'Joint Chiefs' - we won wars. Today, we have sophisticated management - and lose wars. Sorry, boys, but I find winning more impressive than losing with sophistication.

At 09/11, Rudy Guiliani, the mayor of New York, took charge under horrific conditions and did a widely recognized and commendable job to bring order out of chaos. As the situation developed, Mayor Guiliani drew on the resources of NYC and NY state, volunteers from other states, and from the resources of the federal government. This is not the first mess Guiliani cleaned up in NYC, having already brought discipline to the NYC Police Department and to the streets of NYC, for which he was widely acclaimed.

The year before Katrina, four major hurricanes hit Florida, and in each case Gov. Jeb Bush took charge and cleaned up the mess, with a minimum of fuss.

When Hurricane Katrina hit Mississippi and Louisiana, Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi took charge and cleaned up the mess in his state.

When Katrina was aimed at Louisiana and Mississippi, President Bush called LA Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin of New Orleans forty-eight hours in advance, suggesting that emergency plans be activated. Neither Gov. Blanco nor Mayor Nagin did anything.

Remember the pictures of all the New Orleans school buses up to their spark plugs in water? The New Orleans emergency plan required that those school buses be used to evacuate refugees, but the buses did not move because Mayor Nagin did not activate his own emergency plan.

After several days of chaos, Governor Blanco discovered that, as Governor, she was in command of the Louisiana National Guard. The Guard was not activated to deal with the emergency because the Governor did not realize she had the authority and responsibility to activate her own Guard units.

USN support ships came in close behind Katrina and began flying recon missions the evening after Katrina hit in the morning. The second day at dawn, rescue and relief missions were flown and continued to be flown for weeks. Five days after Katrina the MSM was insisting that the Navy and President Bush were doing nothing to help the people of New Orleans.

The only reference I can find to a mess and Senator Obama is Grove Parc Apartments in Chicago. Obama created that mess along with his friend Rezko (now on the way to jail), and they both profited from their mess, while the apartment residents live in filth and vermin, with broken plumbing and leaking roofs.

Mayor Guiliani, Governor Bush, and Governor Barbour are Republicans. Governor Blanco and Mayor Nagin are Democrats.

Corruption and inefficiency are characteristic of Socialist states. That is why the Soviet Union collapsed, and that is why Western Europe has an unemployment rate mearly twice as great as the United States.

NObama.

Notice that at NO POINT did Obama say he would give any orders to the Joint Chiefs, nor did he say he would expect them to give any orders.

It all depends on what the meaning of assignment is... I think Obama would be giving them some homework -- like their brass is dirty.

McCain might not be my first, second, third or even forth choice for El Presidente...but he stands head and shoulders above the first unabashed anti-American socialist and rank amateur to pursue the office of President of the United States (Jimmy Carter notwisthstanding)

@GOP
Your ability to obfuscate and divert is almost Clintonesque. Almost. Your distraction about the distinction between assignment/order almost got people diverted from the real issue that the Joint Chiefs is a cross-service advisory group not an operational tactical group and whether given in the form of an assignment or an order, they're still not the "go-to" guys with respect to Iraq ops. But nice try. I'm sure with your ability to slice hairs that thin, you can sell ice cubes to Inuits.

@ Kaz
Surprisingly, Jimmy Carter, while many things, was not a rank amateur. He'd run a large farming operation and he was the Governor of Georgia prior to being president. He was just phenomenally bad at managing. But you got the rest of it right - anti-American and socialist.

Obama is frighteningly unprepared for the office of president. I thought Bush 43 was unprepared and a poor choice. I continue to think that McCain sucks so hard he could take the chrome off a trailer hitch. But Obama is so green that it isn't funny. He had a whopping 143 days in the US Senate prior to announcing his run for the presidency. 143 days of national experience in a non-leadership role. Sheesh.

As was rightly stated, the JCS are advisors. Although they are the six most senior military officers in America, they do not command any military units. The Chain of command runs from the President to the SECDEF, and from him to the commanders of geographic and functional commands (e.g. CENTCOM, NORTHCOM, EUCOM, TRANSCOM).
The service chiefs also have another role: to recruit, house and equip their respective services.

to lago: bravo for a great comment!!

'the apartment residents live in filth and vermin, with broken plumbing'
No, they don't. No one lives in those apartments anymore. These buildings will be bulldozed soon.

Even if Obama hadn't said this, I would still be of the opinion - until the day I die - that although McCain is imperfect, he's a better candidate than Obama.
This post is related to the US military. As a former commander of the largest Navy squadron, McCain is better qualified than ANYONE ELSE WHO RAN FOR THE WH THIS YEAR for the supreme office of the land.

"I will call my Joint Chiefs of Staff in and give them a new assignment and that is to end the war." Huh? What is their assignment now then? To prolong the war? Oh, wait, their job is to win it (and doing a great job at that). So what exactly does he mean by a "new assignment"?

It is interesting that Obama always speaks in terms of I or ME----MY Joint Chiefs of Staff. Obama already sounds
like a dictator. Can we just imagine him as President?

Obama just isn't experienced enough to be President. Of anything. Lots of other reasons why he shouldn't be Pres. re: policies, core beliefs-- but the fact is that the man hasn't ever run anything, and we're going to hand 3 Trillion dollars in annual budget to him and say, "Go spend it"!?! I'm baffled.
McCain is horribly flawed, and any other year I'd be saying 'no way' to the "StraightTalk Express" b.s., and all the subversion he gave GW Bush over the last 8 years---but--the Democrat this year is a Marxist, for goodness' sake. We have to go McCain. At least he understands command structure and has withstood real trials and tribulations. He's tested. And he isn't a Marxist. Some choice, huh?
oh well ------

@GOP
I don't know if it's because I'm retired military or if it's because I'm not sufficiently nuanced, but when I hear the word 'assignment' in a military context, I take it as an order. If it is not an order, it would be framed as a request or a suggestion.
When I ran a crew, a shift, or a shop, I would give my subordinates assignments. If they opted to do something other than that assignment, I would have been well within my rights to charge them under Article 91 of the UCMJ; willfully disobeying the lawful order of a noncommissioned officer.

To BobG: McCain underwent treatment for his injuries, including months of grueling physical therapy,[56] and attended the National War College in Fort McNair in Washington, D.C. during 1973-1974.[16][55] Having been rehabilitated, by late 1974, McCain had his flight status reinstated,[55] and in 1976 he became commanding officer of a training squadron stationed in Florida. He turned around an undistinguished unit and won the squadron its first Meritorious Unit Commendation.

I have been CEO and chairman of the board of rather successful company since 1968. Before that Vice president of manufacturing for seven years. My experience has shown that two ingredients (besides a lot of luck) are essential to Success as a CEO; theoretical knowledge and practical experience. They are the building blocks for sound judgment. Before assuming office, GWB was governor of a state with an economy equal to the fifteenth largest country in the world. Ronald Reagan was governor of an economy equal to between the 7th - 10th largest economy of the world.

The largest economy Obama ever had a say in is the Woods foundation as as one of many directors, it is questionable how much influence he had in budgetary matters. If that doesn't scare the pants off you, then nothing ever will.

Note Obama said "MY Joint Chiefs of Staff", not "the Joint Chiefs of Staff"... it's all about Obama.

This ability of Barry's to snake-fascinate any media figure or soft-headed observer is truly impressive. We could call it Clintonian if it were throttled back five notches. It is the emptiness of Barry though, that makes me optimistic even if this walking hologram gets elected. We can already see in his "refinement" of his Iraq position, he might have been born yesterday but even HE isn't stupid enough to believe the crap he was saying in the primaries. Think on THAT, Kossacks.

And what are the odds that "GOP" is what his handle implies? See, these leftwing losers think everyone is as easily gulled as they are. Pathetic.

This guy scares the hell out of me. And what scares me more is that he will probably win in November. G_d help us.

POTUS and SECDEF are the National Command Authority. The role of the Chairman, JCS is to inform the General on duty at the Pentagon that the NCA has authorized a nuclear strike. But, the CJCS must be JOINTLY informed by both the POTUS and SECDEF. Doubt if Osama knows this part of the job description for the office he seeks. As previously stated, assignments from the CINC (POTUS), generally are read as implied orders, versus explicit. Any military officer knows the difference and the implications. John McCain learned this way before he attended the Natl War College. As far as McCain having never earned a paycheck, he earned more than he was ever paid by the USN and then afterwards working in private industry, albeit the beer distributorship. More than I can say about Osama.

Gandalf- you are right. What a difference things were before the time of Truman and FDR. Honestly, following WWII we have been on a downhill slide and it has nothing more to do with the fact that Socialist Democrats have taken over...with the exception of some. This is the problem: an inability to make a stance, to stick with it long enough to make a difference, either good or bad. McCain gets my vote for the simple reason that he is NOT Barack H. Obama!

Obama does not seem to understand that militaries and their generals do not end wars. The end of a War is marked by a negotiated treaty usually by political leaders, ie Presidents, Kings/Queens, dictators, etc. Militaries are used to put oneself in a superior negotiating position. Militaries can also be used to demoralize the opponent and put an end to fighting, but they do not end wars, even if a general accepts a surrender.

"I will call my Joint Chiefs of Staff in and give them a new assignment and that is to end the war."
A new assignment not an order

While the JCS does not have command authority, the CJCS is responsible for transmitting all orders from the NCA to the MACOMs.

Just remember these "memorable" quotes from our next POTUS, Hussein Obama.

"I will stand with the Muslims if the political winds shift"
Barack Hussein Obama in his book "The Audacity of Hope"

"I have visited 57 states now and still have not seen Alaska or Hawaii."
Barack Hussein Obama during several campaign stops in early 2008
PS: For those of you educated in government schools, there are only
50 US States (NOT 57) and these 50 include Alaska and Hawaii.

"I am absolutely certain that generations from now we will be able to
look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began
to provide care for the sick. This was the moment when the rise of the
oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal."
Barack Hussein Obama after clinching the Democratic Presidential nomination

"As I've said about the flag pin, I don't want to be perceived as taking sides"
Obama said. "There are a lot of people in the world to whom the American
flag is a symbol of oppression. And the anthem itself conveys a war like message.
You know, the bombs bursting in air and all. It should be swapped for something
less parochial and less bellicose. I like the song 'I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing.'
If that were our anthem, then I might salute it."
Barack Hussein Obama

(According to the United States Code, Title 36, Chapter 10, Sec. 171...... During rendition of
the national anthem when the flag is displayed, all present except those in uniform are expected
to stand at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart.)

"America is no longer a Christian nation... America is a Muslim nation..."
Speech on June 23rd, 2008 by Barack Hussein Obama

"Instead of worrying about whether immigrants can learn English, you need to make
sure your child can speak Spanish"
Barack Hussein Obama speech in Powder Springs, GA 7/08/2008

Other than Vietnam, what wars have we lost?
And technically, we were winning in Vietnam when the press forced the President to surrender.

What makes you people think McCain and Obama are the only choices? There's a stable-minded Libertarian candidate out there - Bob Barr. So what if he looks like Kevin Spacey with glasses from 1967? The problem is that the media pays absolutely no attention to independents or Libertarians. Why? Their ideas are unpopular and too unique for the uneducated masses to buy into, and thus cover.
This election I'll once again be that small 3.5% who votes for neither of the left/right candidates, and who refuses to sell their intellectual honesty along like the rest of the sheeples.

So that explains it ... black people are in love with Barack Obama. And you know what happens when you are in love? You get all those stars in your eyes. You wear those blinders that make it seem like nothing else matters in the world. You are just so darned wrapped up in the person that you aren't able to see any flaws ... you aren't able to look at the reality of the situation. And you know what the fun part really is? When you wake up one day and look over at the person lying next to you and think "How in the hell did I get here?" Only with Barack Obama it will be "where in the hell is all my money" or "the government is forcing me to do what?"

So, uh, whats the large organization John McCain has run before then?

Wouldn't Obama have at least had to run his large campaign during the drawn out primaries, vs. McCain who had to fire most of his and then when he finally made his comeback the primary was short lived...

Oh my god, you people are so over-reacting. Because Obama has not military experience, you are much quicker to dismiss him as ignorant. I would call this one a blunder more than a defining moment for him. When McCain confused Sunni & Shia, for the most part, people let is slide... imagine if Obama had confused those groups... I imagine his critiques would be worse than these. I understand if you're supporting McCain... but try to be somewhat objective. Its crazy how if you are percieved as having experience, you can make 100 mistakes and they are accepted... but when you are percieved as having little experience, and you make 1 mistake... all of a sudden, that mistake defines you as totally incompetent. That's not right... you people are being a little ridiculous.

he certainly sounds good as he says nothing, reminds me of the governor in 'the best little whorehouse in texas' played be the actor charles durning. he sounds good to the young ones because they too are idealistic and naive. the problem is that if he wins we all end up paying the price for his inexperience. if he was in the business world, based on his resume, he would be lucky to get a job as a management trainee. he also has a huge ego, and that too will be a problem.

he certainly sounds good as he says nothing, reminds me of the governor in 'the best little whorehouse in texas' played be the actor charles durning. he sounds good to the young ones because they too are idealistic and naive. the problem is that if he wins we all end up paying the price for his inexperience. if he was in the business world, based on his resume, he would be lucky to get a job as a management trainee. he also has a huge ego, and that too will be a problem.

Whether Obama knows the proper roles of the JCS or not, the more alarming notion is that as the President of the United States, he would delegate something so central to his candidacy to others. Ending a war is as much a political action as it is a military one. This simple statement betrays the fact that he is more accustomed to declaring and promising than understanding what it takes to actually do it.
BTW. Right now the military IS working on ending the war; by winning it. Isn't that the only way it should be done? Either he is suggesting that the military's goal is to prolong it indefinitely or he is suggesting we quit. Either way, this guy shouldn't be leading so much as a cub scout den.

"I will call my Joint Chiefs of Staff in and give them a new assignment and that is to end the war." can easily be interpreted in two ways. One he calls them in and says "End the war", they say "sorry we don't actually run anything" or the more logical interpretation being "i call in my Joint Chiefs to discuss and advise me on the best way to get out of the war." You have to love campaign season where everything is misread and blown out of proportion.

While I find your argument against Obama intriguing and valid, your defense of McCain is weak. Unfortunately for us, neither major presidential candidate has the type of experience you are citing as vitally important.

Pulling our foot out of the Iraq bear trap is going to be far more complicated than simply handing down orders for the movement of military units.

If you've been listening to Obama at all, you'll know that he's very serious about diplomacy. You'll also know that a key part of his Iraq plan is to engage in a 'diplomatic surge' to try and bring more nations on board to resolve the Iraq situation.

It's not surprising that supporters of the current administration might forget about diplomacy and put all the responsibility on the shoulders of our armed forces.

@ARIEL
Way tp pass off Neal Boortz as your own quote. Loser.

@Ariel

Next time try crediting the sources you plagiarize.

To pmk and all the other secular sheep. I'm not a rocket scientist or anything, just a retired military gov't paycheck recipient but here goes. Our government has received the lowest approval rating ever. It is Democrat party controlled and about worthless in accomplishments. The Repubs aren't much better. Remember, these are gov't paycheck recipients also, hired by you. You also have the power to fire those you hired if they don't perform as expected. Stop complaining, enjoy the greatest country in the World, and Vote. Period.

What's a 'diplomatic surge' and how is it supposed to help?

We have a host of other countries "helping" us in Afghanistan while our troops and the Brits do the actual fighting. Mostly their contributions seem to consist of counting bullets in the safer areas, though that is due to their governments and not their troops.

Hey, what can he say? Obama is simply no good on his feet at all. I would probably be even worse but I ain't runnin'.