Barack Obama’s First Big Lie; in Speeches, Sen. Obama Had Pledged that Lobbyists Will not Hold Sway if he Won; Now He’s Tapped 12 Lobbyists:

Barack Obama’s First Big Lie; in Speeches, Sen. Obama Had Pledged that Lobbyists Will not Hold Sway if he Won; Now He’s Tapped 12 Lobbyists into His Administration:
By Marc Chamot

Barack Obama: “This change will not be easy. It will require reforming our politics by taking power away from the lobbyists who kill good ideas and good plans with secret meetings and campaign checks, I don’t take money from lobbyists. I don’t take money from PACs. They have not funded my campaign. They will not run my White House, but I am ready to reform our politics because I’ve done it before. I’ve spent my career taking on lobbyists and their money, and I’ve won.”

Say it isn’t so Mr. President? Just one week into his administration, President Barack Obama just came out with his first BIG LIE of his presidency. Everything was going well up to this point. Until recently, when President Barack Obama placed 12 former lobbyists into key positions in his administration, when he adamantly said during his campaign that he would never do. Was this only a lie to get him elected, and could there be more back- stabbings coming from this man of words?

Barack Obama knows full well that special interests groups and lobbyists are the disease that’s killing American politics, especially in Washington. Barack Obama also knew that when he campaigned around on the premise of cleaning up government from its usual corruptive self, with these words, Barack Obama totally destroyed John McCain’s and the Republicans for any chance in winning the U.S. presidency.

But unfortunately, we’re being duped once again by another slick serenading politician that keeps breaking their promises with the American people for votes.

The following are more excerpts in Barack Obama’s own words for reforming lobbyists and special interest groups on Monday, September 22nd, 2008 in Green Bay, Wisconsin during his 2008 presidential campaign:

Barack Obama: “We’re here because for too long, the doors of Washington have been thrown open to an army of lobbyists and special interests who’ve turned our government into a game only they can afford to play – who have shredded consumer protections, fought against common-sense regulations and rules of the road, and distorted our economy so that it works for them instead of you.”

Barack Obama: “If we want a government that puts the needs of middle-class families before the whims of lobbyists and politicians; if we want to grow this economy and prevent a crisis like this from ever happening again, then the ways of Washington must change. We must reform our lobbyist-driven politics. We must reform the waste and abuse in our government. We must reform the rules of the road that let Wall Street run wild and stuck Main Street with the bill. We must change Washington now.”

The shame of it all is that it’s coming from the very same man that criticized John McCain about his lobbyists and what they would do if John McCain got into the White House.

Barack Obama: “When it comes to taking on the special interests, my opponent sounds like Fighting Bob Lafollette. But he acts like a guy who’s spent three decades of his life in Washington. He’s put seven of the biggest corporate lobbyists in charge of his campaign – lobbyists for the insurance industry and the oil industry; for foreign governments and Freddie and Fannie Mac, who paid his campaign manager nearly $2 million to defend them against stricter regulations. I guess they got their money’s worth.”

Barack Obama: “That’s exactly what we will get from John McCain. After twenty-six years of being part of this Washington culture, all that he has changed is his slogan for the fall campaign. And the people in charge of that campaign prove that if we elect John McCain, it’s not a team of mavericks we’ll be sending to the White House – it’s a team of lobbyists. And rest assured those lobbyists who are working day and night to elect my opponent isn’t doing it to put them out of business.”

So, Barack Obama promised us real change from the norm of what Washington politics have always been about. We listened to him, we believed in him also. He practically had the whole nation mesmerized over his change mantra. He had us cheering for him, supporting him, and loving him at the same time. It sure looks like Barack Obama did a complete 180 on the issue of lobbyist in his White House.

Barack Obama: “To restore this prosperity, we must change Washington. We must reform our regulations, our politics, and our government, but we will not be able to make these changes with the same policies, the same lobbyists, or the same Washington culture that allows politicians and special interests to set their own agenda.”

So far, there’s still no action from the Democrats and Barack Obama, on the chaotic state of our economy. Our jobless counts are still mounting and the Democrats are dragging their feet on badly needed NAFTA reforms that are killing American jobs. And they are stonewalling on the completion of that border wall along Mexico; both are issues that Barack Obama vehemently supported during his presidential campaign.

That economic stimulus package that Barack Obama and the Democrats are so keen on is going to fail. It’s like throwing out more flames to put out a grass fire. It doesn’t address the needs for the millions of out-of-work Americans. That trickle down effect that they are wanting doesn’t work anymore. It’s a broken system. Whether it was by corporate, political and/or banking greed, we don’t really know.

This stimulus package should have gone directly to the American citizens, they would have had the money in hand to spend, and this could have helped revive the economy. Those billions of dollars going to government agencies and for maintaining corporate structures is money being thrown away.

So President Barack Obama has just given unwarranted ammunition for conservatives and talk radio to use against him, people like the Rush Limbaugh’s out there, those who will question his every action, leadership, and his ability to keep his word on issues.

Maybe in closing with my article, we can all stop and ponder about, or just think about what President Barack Obama really meant by this last speech of his. Was he talking about his or John McCain’s next four years? I’m just wondering….

Barack Obama: “So if you want the next four years in Washington to look just like the last eight, then I am not your candidate. But if you want real change – if you want to shine a bright light into the backrooms of Washington; if you want to replace the special interests with your interests, if you want a government that costs less and works better for everyday Americans, then I ask you to knock on some doors, and make some calls, and talk to your neighbors, and give me your vote on November 4th. And if you do, I promise you – we will change America together. Thank you.”

Courtesy Politico.com & YahooNews.com

Here are former lobbyists that Barack Obama has tapped for top jobs in the White House:

1. Eric Holder, attorney general nominee, was registered to lobby until 2004 on behalf of clients including Global Crossing, a bankrupt telecommunications firm.
2. Tom Vilsack, secretary of agriculture nominee, was registered to lobby as recently as last year on behalf of the National Education Association.
3. William Lynn, deputy defense secretary nominee, was registered to lobby as recently as last year for defense contractor Raytheon, where he was a top executive.
4. William Corr, deputy health and human services secretary nominee, was registered to lobby until last year for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, a non-profit that pushes to limit tobacco use.
5. David Hayes, deputy interior secretary nominee, was registered to lobby until 2006 for clients, including the regional utility San Diego Gas & Electric.
6. Mark Patterson, chief of staff to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, was registered to lobby as recently as last year for financial giant Goldman Sachs.
7. Ron Klain, chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden, was registered to lobby until 2005 for clients, including the Coalition for Asbestos Resolution, U.S. Airways, Airborne Express and drug-maker ImClone.
8. Mona Sutphen, deputy White House chief of staff, was registered to lobby for clients, including Angliss International in 2003.
9. Melody Barnes, domestic policy council director, lobbied in 2003 and 2004 for liberal advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the American Constitution Society and the Center for Reproductive Rights.
10. Cecilia Munoz, White House director of intergovernmental affairs, was a lobbyist as recently as last year for the National Council of La Raza, a Hispanic advocacy group.
11. Patrick Gaspard, White House political affairs director, was a lobbyist for the Service Employees International Union.
12. Michael Strautmanis, chief of staff to the president’s assistant for intergovernmental relations, lobbied for the American Association of Justice from 2001 until 2005.

Full Barack Obama speech from Green Bay, WI
Remarks of Senator Barack Obamathe Change We Need in WashingtonMonday, September 22nd, 2008Green Bay, WisconsinFull Text of Barack Obama’s Anti-Lobbyist Speech can be read here:http://speeches.demconwatchblog.com/2008/09/barack-obama-speech-from-green-bay-wi.html

Obama finds room for lobbyists
Kenneth P. Vogel, Mike Allen Kenneth P. Vogel, Mike Allen Wed Jan 28, 5:36 pm ET

President Obama promised during his campaign that lobbyists "won't find a job in my White House."

So far, though, at least a dozen former lobbyists have found top jobs in his administration, according to an analysis done by Republican sources and corroborated by Politico.

Obama aides did not challenge the list of lobbyists appointed to administration jobs, but they stressed that former lobbyists comprise a fraction of the more than 8,000 employees who will be hired by the new administration. And they pointed out that before Obama made his campaign-trail promise, he issued a more complete - and more nuanced - policy on former lobbyists.

Formalized in a recent presidential executive order, it forbids executive branch employees from working in an agency, or on a program, for which they have lobbied in the last two years.

Yet in the past few days, a number of exceptions have been granted, with the administration conceding at least two waivers and that a handful of other appointees will recuse themselves from dealing with matters on which they lobbied within the two-year window.

“It would be more honest if they admitted they made a mistake and came up with a narrower rule,” said Melanie Sloan, executive director of the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

“Obviously, they can’t live with the rule, which is why they keep waving the magic wand and making exceptions. They’re saying one thing and doing another. It’s why the public is skeptical about politicians.”

But another watchdog, Meredith McGehee of the Campaign Legal Center, praised Obama’s rules as “a good starting place” and urged patience in judging their efficacy.

“Any good set of ethics rules has the opportunity for waivers, but if the waivers become the rule, rather than the exception, then you have to look at whether the waivers are being sought too frequently or whether there’s a problem with the rule,” McGehee said. “I don’t think we’re at that point yet.”

At the White House, spokesman Tommy Vietor insisted the president has been consistent.

“During the campaign, then-Sen. Obama put forth the toughest ethics and lobbying reform policy in history,” Vietor said, “and now he’s acting on it to reduce the influence of lobbyists in Washington.”
Full Story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20090128/pl_politico/18128