[Wondergirl]

How long did Obama serve in the US Senate before beginning his campaign for President?

I had posted his resume on the previous page. Here's the U.S. Senate entry:

United States Senate 2004-present

* Member, Senate Foreign Relations Committee
* Chairman, Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs
* Member, Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
* Member, Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
* Member, Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs
* Shares responsibility for the bipartisan Coburn-Obama Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006, requiring full online disclosure of all entities receiving federal funds, and the bipartisan Lugar-Obama Cooperative Proliferation Detection, Interdiction Assistance, and Conventional Threat Reduction Act of 2006, deepening non-proliferation work with WMD and including surface-to-air missiles, land mines, and other weapons that may be used by terrorists.

[Emland]

Thanks Wondergirl, I was aware of his resume, but that doesn't quite answer my question.

[Wondergirl]

How long did Obama serve in the US Senate before beginning his campaign for President?

Thanks Wondergirl, I was aware of his resume, but that doesn't quite answer my question.

"2004-Present" doesn't answer your question? What is your question?

[Emland]

How long had he served before he started campaigning for President. I have heard rumors that he basically showed up, put his stuff away and started working the party big wigs for the presidential nod. There is so much snark out there it is tough to know what is what.

[excon]

Hello Em:

It's true. He HAS been campaigning for four years... Ok, McCain's been campaigning for 16 years. Yer not thinking being a senator is a full time position, are you?? Let me disabuse you of that notion.

I don't think the fact that either of them wants to be president should be held against them.

excon

[Emland]

Anyone know how many times McCain has abstained from voting or missed voting on Senate bills?

[Wondergirl]

How long had he served before he started campaigning for President. I have heard rumors that he basically showed up, put his stuff away and started working the party big wigs for the presidential nod. There is so much snark out there it is tough to know what is what.

Psssssst. Tell excon Obama has NOT been campaigning for four years.

Sen. Durbin Backs Barack Obama for President
Tuesday, May 30, 2006 11:24 a.m. EDT

Barack Obama is getting a push toward a presidential run from fellow Democratic senator from Illinois, Durbin.

Speaking on "Fox News Sunday," Durbin said he's told Obama he should look "long and hard" at the possibility of running. The 44-year-old Obama has already said he won't run for president in 2008.

But Durbin says Obama brings something special to politics. He says Obama connects better with people than anyone he's ever seen. And Durbin adds that he thinks Obama has the potential to unite people from both Democratic and Republican regions of the country.

And, yes, Durbin also says he would endorse an Obama candidacy should he decide to run.

**********

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. Feb. 10, 2007 -- Illinois Sen. Barack Obama formally opened his campaign for president here Saturday, invoking memories of Abraham Lincoln and challenging a new generation to help him transform the nation.

Standing on the grounds of the Old State Capitol, where Lincoln delivered his famous "House Divided" speech against slavery in 1858, the Democratic first-term senator began a bid for the White House that barely seemed possible just a few months ago but could make him the first black president. "I recognize there is a certain presumptuousness -- a certain audacity -- to this announcement," he said. "I know I haven't spent a lot of time learning the ways of Washington. But I've been there long enough to know that the ways of Washington must change."

[Credendovidis]

Her life is like a soap opera ...//...Women want health care, good jobs, help for the middle class, an end to endless war and endless national debt.....EVERYTHING THAT OBAMA AND JOE ARE GOING TO DELIVER FOR THEM.

I hope for everyone that you will be right on that !

:)

[Wondergirl]

Anyone know how many times McCain has abstained from voting or missed voting on Senate bills?

Call or visit your public library. There is something called the Congressional Quarterly, in print or online (it is by subscription, I think). Here's information about it with sample pages:

CQ | Congressional News, Bill Tracking, Transcripts, Government Documents and more

The stats you want are in that.

[Emland]

Thanks, Wondergirl.

Obama made his speech in the same place as the renown Republican, Abe Lincoln? That's amusing.

[Wondergirl]

Thanks, Wondergirl.

Obama made his speech in the same place as the renown Republican, Abe Lincoln? That's amusing.

You're welcome. The Old State Capitol is in Springfield, Illinois, the seat of state government. Lincoln is known to have brought people and even political parties together. If you get a chance, read this book (the following information is from the author's web site) --

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln

Acclaimed historian Doris Kearns Goodwin illuminates Lincoln's political genius in this highly original work, as the one-term congressman and prairie lawyer rises from obscurity to prevail over three gifted rivals of national reputation to become president.

This brilliant multiple biography and New York Times bestseller is centered on Lincoln's mastery of men and how it shaped the most significant presidency in the nation's history.

[Emland]

Found some good stuff. McCain has missed/abstained 64% of the time this Congressional period versus 45% by Obama.

McCain votes with the party 88.3% of the time and Obama votes with his party 96%.

Found it here: Members of Congress: Senate | Congress votes database | washingtonpost.com

[startover22]

Found some good stuff. McCain has missed/abstained 64% of the time this Congressional period versus 45% by Obama.

McCain votes with the party 88.3% of the time and Obama votes with his party 96%.

Found it here: Members of Congress: Senate | Congress votes database | washingtonpost.com

Emland, I am just learning here, so can you tell me what this means please?

[Emland]

Means McCain hasn't shown up for work for 64% of the votes or didn't want to make a decision. Ditto for Obama.

I found the party line voting percentage interesting since Obama said during the DNC that McCain votes with Bush 94% of the time.

[startover22]

Thanks!;)

[BABRAM]

What the Obama campaign mentioned, for example during the Democrat convention, is that McCain voted with Dubya ninety percent of the time which is an average of several years. That ninety-four percent figure was either for the past year or up until Sept of this year. I've posted those stats in another thread. According to the stats above in Emlands post, McCain votes with his party eighty-eight percent, which means he actually votes more with Dubya, than the average. In other words, McCain is closer to Dubya (W), than X,Y, and Z.

[ETWolverine]

Now, please comment on Palin's resume.

I already did.

Education-
University of Idaho - BS in Communication/Journalism, minor in Poly Sci, class of 1987.

Career & Businesses-
In 1988, she worked as a sports reporter for KTUU-TV in Anchorage, Alaska. She also helped in her husband’s family commercial fishing business.
In 2004, she was a part owner of a car wash business. That makes her both a private sector employee and a small business owner.

Public Office -
Two 3-year terms as member of the Wassila, Ak city council (1992 & 1995).

She won the office of Mayor of Wassila from 3-time encumbent in 1996 on a platform of reducing wasteful spending. She served two terms as mayor.

In 2003, she was appointed to chair the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, where she also served as ethics supervisor. In 2004 she resigned over what she described as the "lack of ethics" of fellow Republican members. She filed complaints that caused the resignations of two Republican members of the Commission and the payment of a fine by one of them.

In 2006, she ran against Gov. Murrowski and won the primary. Then, despite spending less than her Democratic opponent, she won the election on a "clean government" platform. At the age of 42, she was both the youngest and the first female governor in AK history. As governor, she cut state spending by roughly $237 million through the use of her line-item veto powers. She sold an unnecessary private jet bought by the prior administration on e-bay for $2.1 million, and she turned down federal money for the "bridge to nowhere".

(Compare that to Obama who never met a government perk he didn't accept.)

In short, Palin has both small-business and executive leadership experience that Obama does not. She has budget-cutting experience than Obama does not. She has ethics experience that Obama does not. She has reform experience that Obama does not. And she has a history of bucking her own party that Obama does not.

Elliot

[tomder55]

Guys . To be real ,please subtract the votes like the unanamous votes congratulating the Giants for winning the SuperBowl. This bs about percentage of votes he has voted with President Bush is the most deceiving stat I've ever seen.

Here is the bottom line: on many occasions McCain has crossed party lines and voted with the Democrats(much to my chagrin) . I'd like to see one instance when Obama has not voted in lock step with his party.

[Emland]

I've been back on that votes database I provided before and have found that the Republican senators average in the high 80s percentage wise in voting with the GOP.

Their Democratic counterparts vote in the mid to high 90 percent with Mrs. Clinton having the highest score I have found so far at 97.2%.

So, does that mean that the Senate Republicans are more independent of their party or that they don't have faith in the legislation being presented?

Keep in mind many of the Senate votes are unanimous for naming bridges and congratulating the winner of the National Little Leauge, etc so it is important to look at the key legislation.

Some of the Senators have a break down of their key votes. I backed out the unanimous and abstained votes and got a 78% party line vote for McCain and 91% for Obama.

I know a lot of people have been following the conventions closely, but I haven't wasted a minute on it. I think it is more important to find out what people have done while in public service rather than what they say.

I'm not happy that McCain has missed so many votes and I don't agree with many of the votes Obama has made. So I am still stuck with a decision to make.

[tomder55]

Which votes were they ? Again that is important . This year a certain leeway has to be given to those who were campaigning . The question really is ;which important votes were they absent for ? Also check out how often Obama has convened his important Foreign Relations sub-commitee on European Affairs since he was named chairman .As you know European issues have been in the forefront of the news lately .Also since NATO is involved in Afghanistan ;that also falls under his oversight.