Rising above Politics, as high as commander in Chief (Clark)

[robbedvoter]

Rising Above Politics, as High as Commander in Chief
By EDWARD WYATT
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/15/politics/campaigns/15STUM.html
ANCHESTER, N.H., Jan. 14 — Gen. Wesley K. Clark is trying to transcend politics.

"I'm running for president because America needs a higher standard of leadership," he says as he races across New Hampshire, the first primary state.

"We need a leadership that puts the national interest above special interests," he says. "One that looks beyond the next election to what's good for America. One that sets measurable goals and doesn't mind being held accountable."

The phrases are aimed at President Bush, who himself once promised "to restore honor and dignity" to the White House.

snip




"Some people think generals just fight battles," he said recently in Somersworth, N.H. "But to be honest with you, most of the battles I've fought were to make sure that our troops had the tools and equipment they need, that our families were living in decent houses, that our school kids in the military were going to good schools, that the mess halls served good food."

He does not apologize for voting for Republicans in the past. He says that as a soldier he wanted a president who was strong on defense. And much like another son of Arkansas, Bill Clinton, he treads firmly onto terrain that is sometimes claimed by Republicans as he defines his campaign in terms of values.
snip
Then, he takes the thought a step further, in a jab at Mr. Bush.

"To me, patriotism is not dressing up in a flight suit and prancing around on the deck of an aircraft carrier," General Clark says, a reference to the president's appearance on the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln in May to announce the end of major military action in Iraq.

[henslee]

1. Uh, Beevis... he said PRANCING.......

n/t

[Devils Advocate NZ]

2. Hmmm....

He wants what's best for America, not what's best for special interests, but when he was one of them (special interests, ie military/industrial complex) he voted for Republicans because they were "strong on defence"?

Uh huh...

[C_eh_N_eh_D_eh]

4. Well, at the time,

he believed the military-industrial complex *was* best for America. It's only now that he's spent a few years on the outside looking in that he's come to realize just how badly he and the rest of the country have been played.

What you have to remember is that, unlike most of the more vocal people on this board, Wesley Clark is not a lifelong liberal progressive, but a recent convert to the liberal cause. Whether that makes him unworthy to represent the Democratic Party in '04 is purely a matter of opinion.

[cprise]

5. LOL! Clark was a corporate lobbyist in 2002!

Two weeks after declaring his intention to run for president, Clark was still registered to represent a high tech contractor, Acxiom Corporation, giving him the rare distinction of seeking the White House while registered as a lobbyist. Shortly after Clark announced his candidacy, a company spokesman said the general no longer lobbied for Acxiom, but, according to the Senate Office of Public Records, Clark had not filed any termination papers.

Clark has been lobbying for the firm since January 2, 2002; Acxiom has paid more than $830,000 for Clark to advance its agenda and meet with government officials. Clark also serves on the company's board of directors.

According to federal disclosure records, Clark lobbied directly on "information transfers, airline security and homeland security issues," for Acxiom, which sought funding to do controversial informational background checks on passengers for airlines. Privacy advocates have criticized the program, called the Computer Assisted Passenger Pre-Screening System II, because of concerns that the data collected would be an overly invasive violation of individuals' rights to privacy. The public outcry has been so strong that there is a bi-partisan effort to create more oversight for the program to protect privacy interests if CAPPS II is implemented.

http://www.bop2004.org/bop2004/candidate.aspx?cid=12&act=bio


It also says he plugged Acxiom on the air when he was a commentator and didn't reveal he worked for them. He has also met directly with Dick Cheney, supposedly on their behalf.

[windansea]

6. wonder why Moore has no problem with this?

Axiom merely gathered data easily obtained in the internet age

Who sponsored CAPPS II?

[rman]

3. hm.. Reagan was kinda strong on Offense wasn't he?

Isn't that why the neocons like him so much they call them selves neo-Reaganites promoting a Reaganite policy? Their idea of national interest is US global domination by military force, what's yours Clark?