Patrick Ruffini:

For all the left has done to move bodies and build infrastructure, there’s one area in which they remain woefully lacking: message. Nowhere is this more apparent in their central charge against McCain: that he’s a Bush clone from top to bottom.

[...]

The problem is that it runs counter to some deeply ingrained perceptions about McCain, the most transparently un-Bush candidate Republicans could have nominated.

Uh, Pat?

[WOLF] BLITZER: When it comes to domestic economic issues, what is the major difference between President Bush’s policies, what he wants to do, and what John McCain would do if he were president?

[REPUBLICAN HOUSE WHIP ROY] BLUNT: Well, I think what John McCain wants to do is continue these pro-growth tax policies that our friends on the other side have been talking…

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: But that’s what President Bush wants to do too.

BLUNT: And there is nothing wrong with that. There is nothing wrong with that.

BLITZER: So it would be in effect a third Bush term when it came to pro-growth tax policies?

BLUNT: It would be. I think it would be. And I think that’s a good thing.

[Emphasis Added]

Yeah, Pat, we’re the ones with the messaging problem. With geniuses like this at work, no wonder the GOP’s electoral chances are in the toilet.

This clip is from O’Reilly’s Inside Edition days–watch him scream at his crew over a dysfunctional teleprompter (from The Huffington Post):

O’Reilly is the embodiment of the modern Republican Party–an old man in a suit flying into spittle-flecked rages at the slightest provocation.

UPDATE: YouTube took the clip offline but you can see O’Reilly’s rage at Crooks and Liars.

Feingold writes a letter to the Government Accountability Office inquiring about the Pentagon’s in-house propaganda outfit.

Excerpts:

The Pentagon is free to air its views on any military operation but it should do so openly.
Potential covert production of press materials by the Defense Department would
undermine full and open public debate on one of the most important matters facing this
country, the war in Iraq. Such debate is essential to our democracy.

According to the article, the documents suggest that the Pentagon supplied retired
officers serving as analysts for several major American broadcasters with private
briefings with Sec. Rumsfeld, talking points in anticipation of appearing on TV, and
commercial airfare. Allegedly, the Pentagon discouraged the analysts from publicly
describing the nature of their relationship with the Pentagon. This clearly violates the
spirit, if not the letter, of the law.

Basically, the Pentagon supplied pro-war, pro-administration retired army officers to news outlets for the purpose of providing what was advertised to the public as unbiased analysis of the war in Iraq.  On-air, these officers’ connections to the Pentagon was undisclosed, and the American people were misled into thinking they were getting analysis based on field expertise, not political bias.

We know the Republicans sold their war to the American people with lies; we just didn’t know how far and how deep those lies went.  Now, at least, we have a little more of the whole picture.

A.J. is right:

While right-wing pundits furiously try to spin Rev. Wright’s comments as speaking for anyone other than Rev. Wright, it’s vital that progressive observers and commentators remember that their machine will do anything — anything — to confuse people and divert attention from the failures of conservative governance. On the economy, on values, on social policy, and, perhaps most of all given the current situation in Iraq, on foreign affairs.

Our policies in Iraq — not to mention places like Pakistan, Indonesia, Somalia, Iran, North Korea — make America and the world a more dangerous place. Expert upon expert and report after report say so, and they’re correct. The right wing wants to tie this common-sense argument to controversial figures so they can marginalize ideas along with individuals, and it’s a smear tactic that can be devastating if people don’t stand up and identify it for what it is. They’re not making substantive critiques, they’re using the politics of destruction and distraction.

The politics of destruction. The politics of distraction. That’s what fuels the Right-Wing Noise Machine–conservatives know that if the election hinges on the issues, they’ll lose. So they try to distract the American people, paying ‘gotcha’ and distracting us from the very real problems we have to face every day.

This is why the right is pushing Wright above the fold day after day:

Bush — not Wright or Bill Clinton — is voters’ main concern

[...]

According to the poll, 73 percent of respondents disapprove of Bush’s handling of the economy and 81 percent believe the United States is in a recession.

[...]

What is your preference for the outcome of this year’s congressional elections––a Congress controlled by Republicans or a Congress controlled by Democrats?

Republican-controlled Congress ……34

Democrat-controlled Congress ……..49

And then there’s this:

The current data show that the most commonly mentioned characteristics about McCain are that he is “too old,” that he is a “good man”/”likable,” that he would give the country more of the same/be another George W. Bush, that he had a good military background, and basic dislike of him.

Interestingly, enough, “Good military background” has actually dropped from 11 percent to 8 percent. His age and the George Bush connection are quickly overshadowing his military service.

The politics of distraction give us headlines like this one:

While Malkin & Co. Continue Endless Circle Jerk On Wright, Deadliest Month Of 2008 In Iraq Gets Worse

The stakes in this election are the highest they’ve been in decades. The economy’s in ruin. Our foreign policy is in shambles. Our military is stretched to the breaking point. Gas prices are at record highs. America is in the midst of a health care crisis. Our deficit is the highest it’s ever been. Our enemies are stronger and our defenses are weaker. We as Americans face some of the biggest issues and the toughest battles of our times; we can’t afford to be distracted.

As I’ve said time and time again, Republicans can’t govern. They controlled all three branches of our government for years–we saw the effects of Republican control, and they were disastrous. They can’t win on the issues, so the GOP fires up the Right-Wing Noise Machine to distract us from the issues and focus us on trivial, pointless nonsense.

This time we can’t afford to fall for it. This time we can’t afford to fall for the politics of distraction. This time we have to stand up and tell them that this will not be tolerated. This time we must stand up and change our country for the better, and we will not let these right-wing charlatans stand in our way.

Enough is enough. Once and for all, enough is enough.

UPDATE: Bob Cesca nails it:

Have You Left No Sense Of Decency?

If the corporate media had been as diligent about watchdogging President Bush as they have been about watchdogging Reverend Wright, it’s very likely we wouldn’t have invaded Iraq.

If the corporate media had spent as much time exposing the obvious flaws and grotesque inequalities of Reaganomics throughout the last 30 years as they’ve spent on Wright, we wouldn’t necessarily be staring into the maw of another depression.

If the corporate media were as diligent about debunking the lies surrounding Iran’s so-called nuclear program as they’ve been about Wright, there wouldn’t be such a sense of inevitability in terms of attacking — or entirely obliterating — Iran.

[...]

So I have to ask the appropriate network executives the familiar yet appropriate question: Have you no sense of decency at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?

Progress Media USA–the independent progressive organization headed by Media Matters for America’s David Brock and Democratic strategist Paul Begala–is out with their first ad, called ‘Out Of Touch’:

More from Talking Points Memo:

The ad, called “Out of Touch,” will be running on cable beginning tomorrow and can be seen in D.C. on CNN and MSNBC — which is to say, it’s a small buy aimed at an insider audience of potential future donors, political operatives, and the like.

With the Democratic primary dragging on, progressives are going to have to tell the truth about McCain on their own.  Personally, I’m glad groups like Progress Media USA are out there to set the record straight.

We already know John McCain isn’t a maverick–he’s a pure Washington insider, steeped in 25 years of D.C. culture.

In fact, not only does McCain have inappropriate relationships with lobbyists, but his entire Presidential campaign is run by special interest lobbyists.

Need proof?Take a look at just how far special interests have infiltrated the McCain campaign (a handy visual analysis is here):

How can thus guy claim to be some maverick standing up for the little guy while paying millionaire special interest lobbyists to run his campaign? How does McCain get away with being so two-faced? Well, because the media lets him get away with it:

The media is particularly fond of the myth that John McCain is the senatorial thorn in the side of Washington lobbyists. This myth is pervasive and it suggests that McCain is the “maverick, moderate reformer” that he claims to be. Despite all of his posturing, McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign is rife with lobbyist connections.

Not only does the McCain campaign have more current and former lobbyist bundlers than any other candidate, but McCain has more current and former lobbyists working on his campaign staff than any other candidate in the 2008 presidential election.

The conservative press loves John McCain. Too bad their skewed representation of one of America’s most corrupt Senators leaves the American people in the dark.

Want to fight back? Demand accountability and honesty here.

The pastor at the Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, Reverend Jeremiah Wright, made some controversial comments in several of his sermons. This is the church that Barack Obama was baptized into, the one he regularly attends with his family.

When some of those controversial statements got publicized, the resulting scandal dominated the national media for well over a week. Political pundits parsed Wright’s statements, going out and finding more, obsessing over their effect (real or imaginary) on the Obama campaign.

But how did this story become so dominant? These weren’t statements Obama himself made or endorsed–in fact, he specifically denounced Wright’s controversial remarks. And Wright’s symbolic role in the Obama campaign was quickly terminated when these statements came to light. So why did Obama get tarred with these statements? Why was the media so willing to engage in guilt by association?

Why is this even news? There are real issues going on, there are real controversies in this campaign going on, but the media is complacent to try to tar Obama by tying him to the pastor he freely and readily denounced.
While this Wright controversy was burning, Hillary Clinton severely hurt her national security credentials by lying about a trip to Bosnia, making her visit seem far more dangerous than it really was and inflating the trip to make her seem more experienced.

Recently, John McCain ruined his image as an opponent of special interests by fostering inappropriate relationships with lobbyists; most of his top campaign advisers are lobbyists, some whom even lobby their clients while on-board the Straight Talk Express.

McCain also severely hurt his foreign policy credentials by repeatedly making a massive gaffe on Al-Qaeda and Iran; he demonstrated that he doesn’t understand the difference between Shiites and Sunnis, and that he doesn’t understand that Iran is Shiite while Al-Qaeda is Sunni.

Google “Obama Wright” and you’ll get over 1.2 million hits.

Google “‘Hillary Clinton’ Bosnia” and you’ll get 210,000 hits.

Google “John McCain Iseman” and you’ll get 217,000 hits.

Google “McCain Iran Gaffe” and you’ll get 416,000 hits.

This is just an example of our twisted media culture, where mistakes and bad judgment on the part of actual candidates are stuck on the back burner and ignored, while the media obsesses over a muckraking scandal, pushed heavily by biased conservative interests, drummed up entirely to throw dirt on a popular politician.

We need to get ready for more bias like this. We need to be ready to push back against smear stories like this, and we need to be ready to call for fairness and balance in the media. If you haven’t already, bookmark both Media Matters and FAIR; read their websites regularly and keep up with the misinformation being pushed in the media.

UPDATE: I agree with Chuck Todd:

This was not a one-time slip and so, you know, this just shows you how much bank — how much of the foreign policy experience stuff [McCain's] got in the bank, because had Clinton or Obama done something like this, this would have been played on a loop, over and over, and would have absolutely hurt them politically.

It’s a busy time in the campaign.

The polls remain mostly unchanged from last time–Pollster shows Obama winning North Carolina and Indiana, while Clinton is leading in Pennsylvania.

Meanwhile, it’s been a good few days for Barack Obama.

Today he secured the endorsement of former Presidential candidate Bill Richardson–Richardson is America’s only Hispanic governor, and he boasts an impressive resume which includes Governor of New Mexico, Congressman, UN Ambassador, Clinton administration cabinet member, and many others.   Richardson had this to say about Obama:

You are a once-in-a-lifetime leader…above all, you will be a president who brings this nation together.

[...]

“There is no doubt in my mind that Barack Obama has the judgment and courage we need in a commander in chief when our nation’s security is on the line. he showed this judgment by opposing the Iraq war from the start, and he has shown it during this campaign by standing up for a new era in American leadership internationally.”

This is a big blow to Sen. Clinton, whose husband appointed Richardson to a position in his cabinet.  And in the wake of Richardson’s endorsement, there’s word that Obama is planning a string of high-profile endorsements before the PA primary:

Campaign sources indicate Obama hopes to roll out a series of such endorsements and announcements during the long run-up to the Pennsylvania primary April 22 to create a sense of momentum. There’s still former Sen. John Edwards out there and, of course, former senator, former vice president and former presidential candidate Al Gore, who’s not always had the closest relationship with his ex-boss’s wife.

While Obama has been trying to get past the Wright controversy, Clinton is becoming ensnared in it.  She criticized Obama for associating with Rev. Wright, but will she have to eat her words soon?

The Obama campaign provided a photograph to the New York Times of Bill Clinton greeting the Rev. Jeremiah Wright in an attempt “to divert some attention to the Clintons after a week in which Mr. Obama’s relationship with Mr. Wright has left him facing one of the biggest challenges of his campaign.”

The encounter occurred “during one of the most difficult periods in the presidency of Bill Clinton” when he “addressed a group of clerics at an annual prayer breakfast in September 1998 just as the Starr report outlining his dalliance with Monica Lewinsky was about to be published.”

Meanwhile, the release of Clinton’s records as First Lady are receiving a ton of media scrutiny:

While Clinton’s advertisements have boasted that she is best prepared for a 3 a.m. crisis phone call, the schedules contain no evidence that Clinton was at the table during major national security decisions. They do not list her as attending National Security Council meetings or joining briefings in the Situation Room. She did not have a national security clearance. And the documents make clear that at moments of major crisis, Clinton was often busy with her own agenda.

Expect those records to not only raise questions about her claims of having extensive experience, but to dredge up plenty of old demons from Bill Clinton’s presidency.

Finally, Clinton has been having some fundraising issues:

Clinton’s campaign ended the month with $33.1 million cash on hand. But, that’s deceptive. Clinton has been aggressively raising money for the general election, too. As AP notes, $21.7 million is off limits to the primary campaign. That means her cash on hand is really $11.4 million. In addition, the Clinton campaign reports $8.7 million in debt (including $2.5 million to Mark Penn’s firm) bringing her number down to $2.7 million if she pays the debts. Subtract the $5 million loan she made to herself and we’re talking negative cash balance of -$2.3 million.

On the other hand, Obama had $38.8 million cash on hand at the end of February. Only $7 million is off limits in the primary leaving $31.8 million. The Obama camp had debts of $625,000 and no personal loans to the campaign, meaning he had over $31 million available.

[Emphasis Added]

Thankfully, John McBush’s fundraising has been pretty pathetic, too–$11 million in February, $4.3 million of debt, leaving the Republican nominee with just $5.7 million in the bank.  February was when McBush blew his competitors out of the water and became the presumptive Republican nominee; all of those pocketbooks and wallets that were supposed to open to him right after he became the nominee have remained closed.  Considering the huge advantage the Democratic candidates have had in terms of fundraising, McBush is in major trouble.

Of course, that could be why McBush is moving toward public financing:

Sen. John McCain “has taken a step towards accepting public financing in the general election — a move that would provide an $84 million infusion for his presidential campaign, but also limit its spending and potentially put him at a steep disadvantage to a better-funded Democratic opponent,” according to The Politico.

This month, “he filed papers with the Federal Election Commission creating a separate campaign account that would enable him to make the public money go further.”

McBush knows he can’t come close to raising the money that either Clinton or Obama will in the general election.  And he knows he is already tied into the public financing system–his attempts to weasel out of it prompted a rebuke from the FEC chairman and an FEC complaint filed by the DNC.  So his strategy is going to be to opt into public financing while browbeating the Democratic candidate for not doing the same.

McCain-Feingold was a groundbreaking piece of campaign finance reform law.  Unfortunately, it didn’t go nearly far enough in revamping the public financing system, particularly  in providing more funding for candidates who opt into the system.

In addition, campaign donations are a form of free speech–people express themselves through the candidates they choose to donate to.  Setting such unreasonable limits prevents people from exercising their rights and keeps citizens from developing a stake in the political system.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m in favor of publicly financing all campaigns, but the current system just doesn’t work and candidates shouldn’t be held to it.

It’s going to be a long slog to PA, so steel yourselves for more finger-pointing and dirt-throwing.  Still, the primary is preparing both our candidates to go up against the Right-Wing Noise Machine; the more primary wrangling they endure, the better prepared they will be for all the GOP will throw at them come the fall.

9:16 PM EST: Opens with a baseball analogy: says he didn’t want to hit a grand slam in the bottom of the ninth to win a game or the World Series; instead, he wants his last play at bat to hit an easy shot to the second baseman and get tagged out; he wants to go out running as hard as he could.

9:17 PM EST: Called the McCain campaign, offered congratulations and wants to unite his party and his nation for future generations. McCain has run an honorable campaign because he is an honorable man; the two campaigns that have been most civil have been the Republican campaigns.

9:18 PM EST: We must unite on the principles that have brought many to this race and politics in general. He thanks his wife, who has been through so much and was a fantastic first lady of Arkansas.

9:20 PM EST: Thanking his family, staff and supporters for rolling up their sleeves and working hard; jokes that he has the smallest staff of anyone running for President. Nobody has gotten as far with such limited resources, but his staff worked as if they were each four people.

9:21 PM EST: He says he’s also mindful that the real story of the campaign is in the faces of the people there in the audience and of the people who never made it into the news, but who were the backbone of the campaign. He gives a quote about fighting the good fight and finishing the race; he would have liked to finish first, but he stayed in and kept the faith. Would rather lose than lose the principles he believes in [a dig at McCain?]

9:22 PM EST: We started with little recognition and few resources; finished with slightly more recognition and few resources. Quotes from Isiah; I know the Earth from which I come. Talking about his family and his background, trouble making ends meet, his father and mother, parents who wanted their kids to have a better life. They couldn’t imagine that better life would involve running for President.

9:23 PM EST: Though the establishment didn’t feel I belong, my followers did. There were people in the campaign who gave me a voice; he’s citing stories of various people who helped and donated to his campaign.

9:25 PM EST: Says his campaign was for the unborn children, the soldiers, the workers, the conservatives who want less government and more efficient government, for the people who believe we need to implement the [completely unworkable and gimmicky] FairTax.

9:26 PM EST: We’ve stood at rallies and I looked into the faces of amazing people who love their country and families and work hard and worship God, even though it would be easier for them to keep their time and money to themselves. We’ll go home tonight and hopefully bring our team together. We’re going to help McCain and everyone running for House and Senate.

9:27 PM EST: There are many battles we have to win for our country. Sometimes we have to hit the reset button–gives an [awkward] computer analogy. We’re not going away–we’re keeping the issues alive we believe in. Many thought we wouldn’t make it to March 07, let alone March 08. Neither his wife nor him can give thanks enough, so hopefully they can thank their volunteers through their work.

9:28 PM EST: Until our country is everything we want it to be, we can’t walk away. He’s making a historical reference to the Alamo; “victory or death.” Tonight, I hope our battle wasn’t about us, but our country and it’s liberty. Now we join with McCain to continue that fight, not for who gets elected but for what we do to protect liberty and freedom. Someone in the audience calls him a great American; he calls them a great American back.

Thank you, goodnight, God bless.

A few days ago, I wrote about The Washington Times–part of the Right-Wing Noise Machine–publishing a bogus piece on the military supposedly having reservations about Barack Obama.

Well, it turns out that the only member of the military quoted by name–retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney–is basically a right-wing hack:

In 2006, it was McInerney who insisted that Russian Special Forces entered Iraq before the invasion and moved Saddam’s WMD to Syria.

In 2002, McInerney assured Americans the war in Iraq “will be a war that is shorter than” the 1991 Gulf War, which lasted 42 days.

In 2005, McInerney insisted that terrorists no longer feel the need to attack inside the United States because we have “leftists in America who have aided and abetted the enemy more than Tokyo Rose did in World War II.”

And it turns out another member of the military–retired Air Force Gen. Merrill A. McPeak, who campaigned for Bob Dole and George W. Bush–has high hopes for an Obama Presidency:

McPeak told the Times, “I think Obama is going to be an outstanding commander in chief, not just an ordinary commander in chief. He has the potential to be one of the all-time greats. I think the senior military will learn that about him starting from the first minute he occupies the Oval Office.”

[Emphasis Added]

Once again, the Right-Wing Noise Machine is discredited, so let’s put this idiotic meme to rest.

Moving on, we are just six days away from VOTR Day. The latest Rasmussen poll out of Texas puts Barack Obama just one point behind Hillary Clinton; ten days ago, Rasmussen had Clinton leading Obama by 16%.

Following this trend, Pollster shows Obama slightly ahead in Texas (47.8% to 45.7%) and a few points behind in Ohio (41.7% to 50.1%). Right now, Clinton has the advantage but Obama has the momentum–in 6 days, it’s likely that he’ll have the lead in Texas and could be nearly tied in Ohio.

In addition, MSNBC’s First Read reports that Obama is vastly outspending Clinton in both of the major VOTR Day states:

Watching local TV here in Ohio, it feels like Obama has a 4-to-1 advantage — with SEIU, UFCW and Obama just blitzing the airwaves compared with Clinton. It’s happening in all four states. In fact, per TV ad expert Evan Tracey, Obama has outspent Clinton $23 million to $14 million in the last 30 days. How is she expected to hold a big lead if she gets outspent this badly? The third party groups are like salt in the Clinton wound.

I’m not counting Clinton out, but she’s definitely suffering. Her negative ‘kitchen sink’ offensive against Obama isn’t sticking–in fact, it seems to be backfiring on Clinton, driving her support down. With Obama gaining momentum and spending more, it’s hard to see how she’ll hold on to–let alone grow–her already-slim leads in OH and TX. Clinton only has 6 days to pull this out, and she’s spinning her wheels as time runs out.

On the Republican side, McCain’s FEC shenanigans might land him in a heap of trouble. He’s quickly approaching the $54 million limit imposed by public financing laws and–unless the FEC releases him from public financing soon–McCain will exceed that limit and land his campaign in court.

In addition, it’s questionable whether or not McCain can even withdraw from public financing at this point, seeing as how he used public financing to secure a loan to his campaign (receiving other benefits as well, such as ballot access). The McCain is arguing that they didn’t use public funds as collateral for that loan, but even if they didn’t, the campaign will still be screwed. The New Republic’s Noam Scheiber has this to say:

Bottom line: Either McCain used the promise of public campaign funds as collateral for his loan, in which case he’s locked himself into the public campaign finance system (and its strict spending limits) and is massively screwed until September. Or he didn’t use potential public funds as collateral, which means he didn’t have anything to offer as collateral, which means he received an improper loan. Neither one of those scenarios is very good for the Straight Talk Express.

McCain has some explaining to do. No matter what, his attempt to weasel around campaign finance reform laws dispels the myth of McCain as a clean government crusader and campaign finance reformer–when push comes to shove, McCain has shown himself to be an expert parser with pure Washington flowing through his veins.

In other news, Michael Bloomberg announces he isn’t running for President; in response, the nation yawns.

Let’s face it, Bloomberg isn’t an independent, he’s an opportunist–he became a Republican so he could win Giuliani’s endorsement and become mayor of New York, then he became an independent to set the stage for his (now aborted) Presidential campaign.

We have enough egotistical opportunists running for President (see Nader, McKinney) as it is–we don’t need another one, so I’m grateful for this announcement.

That’s all the election news there is for now. If you live in Texas or Ohio, (or Rhode Island or Vermont, who also go to the polls on Tuesday) make sure to get out there and vote. I’ll bring you more news as it develops…

Today, Barack Obama is being attacked by the right-wing noise machine. His latest dreamt-up offense? Not wearing an American flag lapel pin, which apparently makes him unpatriotic.

Of course, anyone with $2 in their pocket can wear an American flag pin, regardless of what they believe. In fact, how many politicians have worn that pin while tearing down nearly everything this great country stands for?

Patriotism isn’t defined by what we wear–it’s defined by what we do. And through his actions, Barack Obama has shown us what true patriotism is:

Patriotism is standing up for our Constitutional rights against a corrupt, power-hungry White House.

Patriotism is bringing our troops home and making sure they’re taken care of when they get here.

Patriotism is standing up for America’s working class, giving them living wage and a good standard of living.

Patriotism is making sure Americans have access to health care regardless of their income.

Patriotism is standing up to polluters to preserve this beautiful country for future generations.

Patriotism is securing our borders while helping immigrants become citizens.

Patriotism is fighting for clean, open government that’s held accountable to the people.

Patriotism is helping Americans keep their homes by standing up to predatory lenders.

Patriotism is standing up to keep weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of terrorist groups.

Patriotism isn’t wearing a $1.75 American flag lapel pin made on a Chinese assembly line.

So, Barack Obama doesn’t wear a flag lapel pin. But you know what? Neither does Mitt Romney. Or John McCain. Or Mike Huckabee. Or John Boehner. Or Mitch McConnell. Or RNC Chair Mike Duncan. And neither did Newt Gingrich. Or Tom DeLay. Or Bill Frist. Or even Ronald Reagan, for that matter.

So let’s put this half-baked smear to bed once and for all, because America deserves better than right-wing gutter politics.

Image from The Washington Post

Here’s today’s front-page, above-the-fold story on The Washington Times:

Military fears ‘unknown quantity’

Members of Washington’s military and defense establishment are expressing trepidation about Sen. Barack Obama, as the Illinois senator comes closer to winning the Democratic presidential nomination and leads in national polls to become commander in chief.

Oh, really?

Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Ron Paul have little in common politically, except their opposition to the Iraq war.

Both top a new list of presidential candidates receiving campaign contributions from people who work for the four branches of the military and National Guard, according to a study released Thursday by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics.

Obama, an Illinois senator, brought in more donations from this group than any White House contender from either party. The Democrat announced Wednesday his plan to withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of 2008.

[Emphasis Added]

The Washington Times won’t let the facts get in the way of a good smear–despite the fact that Barack Obama is getting more donations from soldiers than anyone else running for President (including John McCain), they cherry-pick a few key quotes to come up with a completely bogus story.

Get ready for more smears like this as the election wears on.  The Obama campaign better be prepared for baseless, underhanded attacks like this.