Who will you be voting for in the presidential election?
 

I'm surprised this thread wasn't created with the subforum. Who has your vote?

I'm currently voting for Obama, but I'm keeping my mind open. I don't -expect- it to change, but the possibility is always there.

Senator Obama has my vote, but to be honest it's more like Senator McCain doesn't have my vote.

If only I could pick Obama with the guarantee that he'd pick Ron Paul as the Secretary of the Treasury.

@Will - Yeah that really helps push into Obama's corner.

Wow. I had no idea TFP was so firmly liberal. Honestly, I find myself leaning more democratic on many issues not relating to money, but I thought myself an independent that would vote either way in an election.

Begrudgingly, Obama. McCain could have had me if he hadn't decided to make friends with the religio-insane people like Pat Robertson.

The thing that gets me about Obama is his plan to use the war money for education. There is no war money.

Well... I'm not for Obama.

Will, how do we get along so well while maintaining such polar political views? Beer and turning wrenches (among other things) must be the true binding social element of the universe.

They're the binding elements of our gender, that's for sure. Also, the boat can't hurt.

ya... das boot

Nader has my vote. I'm sorry, but our political system needs serious change, and corporate controlled democrats and republicans won't do it.

A couple of the Democrat Congressional candidates around here are using that same line about using the money saved on the war to pay for all their pet projects. You're absolutely right though, there is no war money, it is all deficit spending. Me personally, I'm leaning towards Bob Barr but am still undecided.

Obama-Biden, without a doubt.

It's time to kick the trash to the curb and start clean and fresh. Let's see where educated idealism can take us. It's got to be better than this.

Politically, my views are very close to Barr's, but he really doesn't have the name or backing to be elected. On the other hand, if Nader was let into the debate (which is controlled by democrats and republicans), he would have a very good chance of winning.

Obama-Biden here. I'm sure that's not much of a shocker to anyone.

I'm voting for Obama. Us oregoonies are certainly liberal :)

There's a chance he could 'win' the debate...there is not a chance that he could win the election. Sad but true.

Yeah, they also said Jesse Ventura would never become governor of Minnesota. Nader has done alot that the people agree with. If it wasn't for the media blackout of his campaign, he would probably be leading in most polls right now.

i think, at least nationally, party identification trumps actual accomplishment/past waaaay too much for nader or any third party cadidate to have a shot. maybe take 1 state if they're lucky, but that's probably a long shot too.

It's Nader's third election since 2000. He had no chance of winning in 2000, and did badly. He did even less well in 2004. What makes you think that this is suddenly his year?

Cynthia Ann McKinney.

This two-party elitism is sending this country right into the crapper...

I'm voting for Obama, just can't throw my vote away this time.

But God I think you're onto to something. I keep hearing "The Who" in my head... "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss..."

My problem, right now, is the Palin-McCain ticket scares the living crap out of me.

Hell yeah, TFP is hard left. I am one of maybe 4 or 5 conservatives here (but I'm actually moderate, it's the extreme left here that make me seem so conservative).

I am undecided, independent, swing voter. But I am leaning towards Obama (just look at my avatar, bonus points to those who get it). I am only undecided because I want the Dems to work harder at earning my vote and to give McCain an outside chance of earning it back.

She's in the lead with me right now. Nader is in second and Obama is close behind in third. McCain is in forth, but could move up if he comes back to the center. And yes, she is a little wild, but I vote for what the person will do instead of their past. Then again, writing in Ron Paul wouldn't be out of the realm of possibilities either.

(I like how Cynthia said she would step in and debate Obama if McCain couldn't make it. That would be great.)

I'll be fine if either Obama or McCain win, and really, there will just be gridlock and politics as usual if either are picked. I would rather have liberal supreme court justices or ones that wouldn't impose their religious morals on the people.

I not from the US, but if I were, I vote would be for Obama/Biden.

Something about a message board with a subforum where it is acceptable (and encouraged!) for the owner to post pics of his third leg seems to attract a more liberal segment of society. Go figure.

I'm voting democrat really for one reason in this election and that is while it's a bit scary to have a house,senate and presidency all controlled by one party (we've seen where that gets us) the Dems record on Fiscal Responsibility is just heads and shoulders above the Republicans.

However, I will agree that I am and have been sick of all this two party elitism shit.

Yes, the reigning leadership of House Financial Services Committee chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass., and Senate Banking chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn. have both demonstrated stellar qualities... of incompetency. Along with the personal troubles of House Ways & Means Committee chairman, Charles Rangel, D-NY, I'd say the democrats have proven to be just as irresponsible as the president on these matters. I'm not feeling so warm and fuzzy with Obama's "hands-off" approach either. All one party governance is a BAD IDEA.

I'll take it over a heaping helping of McCain-Palin anyday.

Which makes it even more appalling that the Dems Record is still head's and shoulders above the Republicans in this area. You can look at the current crop of Dems and use their small sample of records but when you look at it as a whole there is simply no comparison. Even in the days of Carter, the economic records are leaps and bounds above the republican party.

One party governance is a bad idea, however if I had to choice one party to have complete control I would still choose the Dems in this election.

Since it doesn't really matter which one wins as the country is run by mega-corporations, lobbyists and the filthy rich, I am leaning towards McCain-Palin if for no other reason than I find it amusing how apoplectic the liberals are over Palin.

Ah yes, rooting for the leader of the free world based on schadenfreude...what a time we live in.

Tongue-in-cheek does loose something in forums.

Obama has been talking about change. Change. Change. Change. Beating us over the head with it. Then what does he do? Picks the prototypical Washington insider for a running mate. Thats not change. Its Bush/Cheney for the Democrats. Obama has little experience on the world stage, much like Bush when he first got into office. Biden will be calling the shots behind the scenes much like Cheney has been doing for the past 8 years.

I was heavily leaning towards Obama till he picked Biden as a running mate. Now I'm not saying McCain is some fresh faced kid new to town. He is as much of an insider as Biden but at least he was looking outside the beltway in trying to find some new blood. Plus he has stated he plans on putting some democrats on his cabinet if elected. That, to me at least, represents an attempt to affect change.

I'm not naive enough to believe the change is going to be drastic, I'd be suprised if it makes it past perceptible, but at least its something of a start.

The only way the people are going to get back control of the government is by getting rid of the majority of the people running it now otherwise the only thing that will change is the capital letters in parenthesis after the names of the people indicted in the latest government scandal.

Thats my opinion anyway...

My wife is voting for Obama/Biden. Not from the US myself, but Obama would have my vote if I could vote.

"If atheism is a religion, then not collecting stamps is a hobby. "

I love the quote!

Haha, touche!

But then again, one of our most conservative members on this forum was a swinger. Go figure...

I will be voting for Barack Obama because I think he is the right man for the right job at the right time. In my view, the Republicans have had nothing to offer this country for the last 55 years, since Eisenhower.

Remember when candidates would have a big R of D next to their name in all their ads?

I can't remember the last time I saw an ad with one of those letters. I get locals network feeds from about 10 US cities. I see ads for everything for the Senate to Governor, unless I Google them I have no idea what party they're with. "Hi my name is Sam Sameshitdifferentname, I believe in blah, blah ,blah.... Please vote for me."

Either they passed a law making it illegal to let people know what party you're with or the people running now days don't want to even be associated with their own party.

My feeling is the more people that actually vote for those they like instead of voting for elitist party heads, the less there would be the thought that votes are being "thrown away". The only truly thrown away vote is the one not made.
I refuse to fall for the propaganda that these elections spew. Independent-minded candidates are completely blacked out of the process, even though they need a certain amount of petitioned backers to get on the ballot. Why, once they are on it, are they completely excluded?
If there are others running, they should be given the chance to be heard and included in debates, etc.
Everyone talks about change, but does the same old thing....like that adage, what's the definition of futile? Doing the same thing over and over, expecting a different result each time....

Actually that would be Einstein's definition of insanity.

I stand corrected(sit slouched over), but it's still nuts to expect true change when fed the same shit day after day after day.....

I totally agree with you. Hence why I'm voting Dem. I would vote for a lesser party but I don't think they've really got a chance :\

So you only side with winners instead of conscience?
I'm not the dullest pencil in the backpack, but I really don't get this thought process....
Six months from now, whoever is in, there will be whining and the only defense is "well, I didn't think [insert name here] would be any better..."?
Exercising the right to vote doesn't mean you go with who you "think" has a chance, it means having a say, even a tiny one, about who you think "should" be there. They lost? Yea, but look how many rejected the crap thrown to us.
The big ones can spout "change" all they want but we as a nation won't really see any unless we as a nation make it happen.

Voting for the MILF and the Maverick.

While I'm a social liberal, I take a conservative stance on foreign and economic policy. I don't see abortion rights going anywhere in four years time with McCain, but I can see military action and my federal income tax rates going to hell with Obama in there.

It's terrible about the idea that a vote for any 3rd party is considered a vote "thrown away", but it's a sad fact nonetheless. It's the media. It's the hard-wired partisanship of the majority of the voting populace. These 3rd party members aren't allowed in the debates... they have virtually no campaign presence on any media (save for the internet, of course)... And this has lead to stagnation in both of the majority parties - and by extension, stagnation in the US.

Anyways, back on topic... while I'm not "pro" Obama by any means, if there's one thing I'm absolutely certain about in this election, it's that McCain can't be trusted. At all. At least for me. He's a liar (or at the very least, very forgetful) with his nearly constant flip-flopping, and all of his distorted ads; a creationist, and thus an idiot of true form; a Bush supporter (add another mark to "idiot"); a proponent of meaningless wars and hard-headed politics; the disgusting "Keating 5" mess; and he's doing a great job of showing how incompetent he is with the whole Palin fiasco. I have less than no confidence in this man, and so I'll vote for Obama to keep him out of our White House.

Bear Cub -- on abortion rights, you realize that the next president will probably be appointing two, perhaps more, Supreme Court Justices, right?

Yep, at least one and McCains stance on fiscal issues mirror those of Bush Jr. Not sure that's worked out so well. Spending, borrowing and cutting taxes have left us with a mess. McCain big proposal so far seems to be end ear marks and balance the budget. That won't even put a dent in the budget deficit. On foreign policy McCain's position seems more then a little dangerous. We can't use the military for every problem. And the mere fact he picked Palin as his number two tells me he really doesn't care about anything but winning. She doesn't have a clue on foreign policy. Her only benefits to the ticket is to rally the religious right's base.

Well it doesn't 'have' to be better than this. Educated idealism is what lead to Stalin and Hitler. Hayek's The Road to Serfdom nicely illustrates how the "educated idealism" of the Germans led to the socialist policies that wrecked most of the world and took away most people genuine freedoms.

(Oh, and please note I'm not comparing Obama to Hitler or Stalin, just saying that change for the sake of change hasn't always worked out very well.)

Easy for you to say. Tell that to someone without insurance, who has lost a home, who had a child die in a senseless war fought under false pretences.

Who was in charge in Nazi Germany? Workers? I didn't think so. Was Stalin in charge in the Soviet Union, or workers? Where was the socialism?

As one of the theoretical forebearers of Reaganism, we have Hayek to thank for the huge fucking mess we're in now. Take a look at this little Hayek-inspired gem from the Cato crowd:




The Meaning of Hayek


Putting aside the issue of market fundamentalism, the Road to Serfdom was to become Cold War propaganda eagerly spread by Readers Digest, GM, & the University of Chicago. It therefore contributing greatly to Unfreedom by providing the grounding legitimation for Cold War repression. What freedoms you now enjoy are products of resistance to that regime. I don't recall whether Hayek ever answered to this. I suspect that he would have said that McCarthyism was a temporary expedient, a state of exception, a necessary evil -- which was more or less the way he dealt with right wing dictatorships like Pinochet's. That's also how today's laissez-faire capitalists explain away your civil rights.

Thanks, Freddy, you were really full of shit.

Wow the TFP is incredibly liberal, Here in Central Oregon we are a little more conservative then the Valleyites. Firmly Mccain/Palin

Surprised you didn't use the term "flatlanders."

And yes, TFP leans left.

I'm changing my vote to the Dear Leader!



Change We Need.

Obama/Biden but I also wish Ron Paul could be Secretary of Treasury.

I have made the correct conversion. I now only serve "the one".



Glad Hosannas! The Messiah is speaking to the youth.
Rejoice comrades, for the dawn of a new world order is upon us!

Otto....you're turning against the ticket whose VP candidate has been protected from witchcraft and blessed in the name of Jesus to serve HIM in her political career?

"....bring finances her way even for the campaign in the name of Jesus... Use her to turn this nation the other way around and to keep her safe from every form of witchcraft."

Oh man.....a curse on you by Rev Muthee! When he is not blessing righteous christian politicians, he is persecuting non-believers as witches.
-----Added 11/10/2008 at 12 : 21 : 21-----
added:

Evidently, it didnt protect her from the bi-partisan Alaska legislative committee investigating violations of ethics and abuse of power:

I spent most of yesterday and last night out and about. Partly because I had friends coming back for the winter and a neighbors birthday. So I missed most if not all of the news. I get up this morning and reading through stuff it sounds like McCains camp. reached complete meltdown mode yesterday. I mean between the Palin Troopergate report and McCain having to back track about Obama being an evil Muslim terrorist and getting booed by his own crowd. Reading through the news this morning I'm starting to wonder if McCain or the markets had a worse week.

Have faith comrade, "The One" has a plan for us all. The Governor need only accept the truth and she will be set free.

Republican, of course.

This poll is great, nice too see what others across the country have decided. Nov. 11th is so close, guys!

Umm, you realize the election is on Nov. 4th, right?