Nat Hentoff is another principled “liberal” whom I respect. (And yes dear reader there are such things as unprincipled conservatives.) He is particularly passionate about the Constitution, civil liberties, and free speech. (One thing that marks him as unusual is his opposition to abortion rights. What was that about the inconsistency of pro-lifers?)
It is grossly unfair for me to cite his recent column on why he will be voting for Senator Biden just so I can exploit his rather unfavorable evaluation of Senator Obama – but hey if Gwen Ifill can moderate the vice-presidential debate… perhaps a little “unfairness” is called for. (How is that for unprincipled?)
The cold fact that Barack Obama voted four separate times in the Illinois state Legislature to deny care to a baby born alive after a botched abortion makes him the most repugnant candidate I will have ever voted for. I am pro-life; but whenever I’m asked my religion, I always answer: “the Constitution” (as my writing for some 60 years has shown). I admire much about John McCain, and especially Sarah Palin, but neither is up to the enormous challenge, as world terrorism continues, of restoring the Constitution – our Excalibur sword for generations ahead.
Neither is Obama. During the early stages of his campaign, there were wispy indications he had learned something while teaching constitutional law at the University of Chicago. But over time, and on his well-worn teleprompter, his principles have proved watery. As former Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson wrote in the Aug. 18 Washington Post: “Obama is one of those rare political figures who seems to grow smaller the closer we approach him.”
Read the whole thing here. You do not have to register.
Ouch. But to be fair do read the rest of the column in which he argues strongly against a McCain (and possible Palin) presidency.
In case it is not yet clear why I plan to vote against Obama-Biden (and much less so for McCain-Palin) my main beef with Senator Obama is not his policies and positions. It is the candidate himself. There are a few (although perhaps not quite enough) issues where I resonate more with Senator Obama.
