All Americans owes Allegiance to him
Obama the New President of USA !
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wakantanka
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Obama the New President of USA !
Obama is the new president of USA
All Americans owes Allegiance to him
All Americans owes Allegiance to him
Last edited by wakantanka on Wed Nov 05, 2008 4:24 am, edited 2 times in total.
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wakantanka
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- Posts: 1964
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Barack Obama wins presidential election
Obama will address the country from a rally in Chicago, Illinois, later Tuesday night.
As news broke, supporters cried and cheered, "Yes, we can."
Obama will become the first African-American to win the presidency.
The Illinois senator is projected to pick up a big win in Virginia, a state that hasn't voted for a Democratic president since 1964.
Obama also is projected to beat Sen. John McCain in Ohio, a battleground state that was considered a must-win for the Republican candidate. Video Watch more on Obama's Ohio win »
Earlier in the evening, senior McCain aides were growing pessimistic about the Arizona senator's chances.
Going into the election, national polls showed Obama with an 8-point lead.
In addition to the presidential contest, voters were making choices in a number of key House and Senate races that could determine whether the Democrats strengthen their hold on Congress.
Former Gov. Mark Warner, a Democrat, will win a Senate seat in Virginia, CNN projects. He will replace retiring Republican Sen. John Warner.
Incumbent Sen. Elizabeth Dole, a Republican, is projected to lose her North Carolina seat to Democratic challenger Kay Hagan. Video Watch Dole concede defeat »
Dole is the wife of 1996 Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole.
CNN also projects Democrats will win two other Senate seats currently held by Republicans. In New Hampshire, former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen will win over incumbent John Sununu, and in New Mexico, Democrat Tom Udall will defeat Republican Steve Pearce.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell held onto his seat in Kentucky.
Delaware voters re-elected Obama's running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, to his seventh term. iReport.com: Share your Election Day reaction with CNN
CNN's Ed Henry said there were lots of long faces in the lobby of the McCain headquarters at the Arizona Biltmore hotel as McCain allies watched returns showing Senate Republicans losing their seats.
McCain and Obama were both expected to be watching the results come in from their home states.
McCain said Tuesday night that he was "looking forward to the election results." Video Watch what McCain says about the race »
"We had a great ride. We had a great experience. It's full of memories that we will always treasure," he said aboard his election plane.
CNN does not project a winner in any state until all polls have closed in that state.
CNN projections are based on actual results and exit poll data from key areas.
The first exit polls out Tuesday reflect what voters have said all along: The economy is by far the top issue on their minds. Video Watch more on the top issues »
Sixty-two percent of voters said the economy was the most important issue. Iraq was the most important for 10 percent, and terrorism and health care were each the top issue for 9 percent of voters.
The economy has dominated the last leg of the campaign trail as Obama and McCain have tried to convince voters that they are the best candidate to handle the financial crisis.
Voters expressed excitement and pride in their country after casting their ballots Tuesday in what has proved to be a historic election.
When the ballots are counted, the United States will have elected either its first African-American president or its oldest first-term president and first female vice president.
Poll workers reported high turnout across many parts of the country, and some voters waited hours to cast their ballots. Read about election problems
Reports of minor problems and delays in opening polls began surfacing early Tuesday, shortly after polls opened on the East Coast.
The presidential candidates both voted early in the day before heading out to the campaign trail one last time. Video Watch Obama family at polls »
Tuesday also marked the end of the longest presidential campaign season in U.S. history -- 21 months -- and both candidates took the opportunity to make their final pitch to voters.
As McCain and Obama emerged from their parties' conventions, the race was essentially a toss-up, with McCain campaigning on his experience and Obama on the promise of change. But the race was altered by the financial crisis that hit Wall Street in September. Video Watch how this election is history in the making »
Although most of the attention has been focused on the presidential race, the outcome of congressional elections across the country will determine whether the Democrats increase their clout on Capitol Hill.
Few predict that the Democrats are in danger of losing their control of either the House or the Senate, but all eyes will be on nearly a dozen close Senate races that are key to whether the Democrats get 60 seats in the Senate.
With 60 votes, Democrats could end any Republican filibusters or other legislative moves to block legislation.
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11 ... index.html
Obama will address the country from a rally in Chicago, Illinois, later Tuesday night.
As news broke, supporters cried and cheered, "Yes, we can."
Obama will become the first African-American to win the presidency.
The Illinois senator is projected to pick up a big win in Virginia, a state that hasn't voted for a Democratic president since 1964.
Obama also is projected to beat Sen. John McCain in Ohio, a battleground state that was considered a must-win for the Republican candidate. Video Watch more on Obama's Ohio win »
Earlier in the evening, senior McCain aides were growing pessimistic about the Arizona senator's chances.
Going into the election, national polls showed Obama with an 8-point lead.
In addition to the presidential contest, voters were making choices in a number of key House and Senate races that could determine whether the Democrats strengthen their hold on Congress.
Former Gov. Mark Warner, a Democrat, will win a Senate seat in Virginia, CNN projects. He will replace retiring Republican Sen. John Warner.
Incumbent Sen. Elizabeth Dole, a Republican, is projected to lose her North Carolina seat to Democratic challenger Kay Hagan. Video Watch Dole concede defeat »
Dole is the wife of 1996 Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole.
CNN also projects Democrats will win two other Senate seats currently held by Republicans. In New Hampshire, former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen will win over incumbent John Sununu, and in New Mexico, Democrat Tom Udall will defeat Republican Steve Pearce.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell held onto his seat in Kentucky.
Delaware voters re-elected Obama's running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, to his seventh term. iReport.com: Share your Election Day reaction with CNN
CNN's Ed Henry said there were lots of long faces in the lobby of the McCain headquarters at the Arizona Biltmore hotel as McCain allies watched returns showing Senate Republicans losing their seats.
McCain and Obama were both expected to be watching the results come in from their home states.
McCain said Tuesday night that he was "looking forward to the election results." Video Watch what McCain says about the race »
"We had a great ride. We had a great experience. It's full of memories that we will always treasure," he said aboard his election plane.
CNN does not project a winner in any state until all polls have closed in that state.
CNN projections are based on actual results and exit poll data from key areas.
The first exit polls out Tuesday reflect what voters have said all along: The economy is by far the top issue on their minds. Video Watch more on the top issues »
Sixty-two percent of voters said the economy was the most important issue. Iraq was the most important for 10 percent, and terrorism and health care were each the top issue for 9 percent of voters.
The economy has dominated the last leg of the campaign trail as Obama and McCain have tried to convince voters that they are the best candidate to handle the financial crisis.
Voters expressed excitement and pride in their country after casting their ballots Tuesday in what has proved to be a historic election.
When the ballots are counted, the United States will have elected either its first African-American president or its oldest first-term president and first female vice president.
Poll workers reported high turnout across many parts of the country, and some voters waited hours to cast their ballots. Read about election problems
Reports of minor problems and delays in opening polls began surfacing early Tuesday, shortly after polls opened on the East Coast.
The presidential candidates both voted early in the day before heading out to the campaign trail one last time. Video Watch Obama family at polls »
Tuesday also marked the end of the longest presidential campaign season in U.S. history -- 21 months -- and both candidates took the opportunity to make their final pitch to voters.
As McCain and Obama emerged from their parties' conventions, the race was essentially a toss-up, with McCain campaigning on his experience and Obama on the promise of change. But the race was altered by the financial crisis that hit Wall Street in September. Video Watch how this election is history in the making »
Although most of the attention has been focused on the presidential race, the outcome of congressional elections across the country will determine whether the Democrats increase their clout on Capitol Hill.
Few predict that the Democrats are in danger of losing their control of either the House or the Senate, but all eyes will be on nearly a dozen close Senate races that are key to whether the Democrats get 60 seats in the Senate.
With 60 votes, Democrats could end any Republican filibusters or other legislative moves to block legislation.
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11 ... index.html
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wakantanka
- Colonel [O-6]
- Posts: 1964
- Joined: Sun Jul 03, 2005 4:00 am
WASHINGTON – Barack Obama was elected the nation's first black president Tuesday night in a historic triumph that overcame racial barriers as old as America itself.
The 47-year-old Democratic senator from Illinois sealed his victory by defeating Republican Sen. John McCain in a string of wins in hardfought battleground states — Ohio, Florida, Virginia and Iowa.
A huge crowd thronged Grant Park in Chicago to cheer his improbable triumph and await his first public speech as president-elect.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Barack Obama seized command of the race for the White House Tuesday night, defeating John McCain in Ohio and Iowa and building a near insurmountable Electoral College advantage in his historic bid to become the first black president. Fellow Democrats padded their majorities in both houses of Congress.
Obama's Ohio victory denied McCain particularly precious territory. No Republican has ever won the presidency without it.
The 47-year-old Illinois senator watched returns at a downtown Chicago hotel, then went home to a family dinner after a marathon campaign across 49 states and 21 months.
A jubilant crowd of thousands gathered in Grant Park across town on an unseasonably mild night. Cheers went up each time Obama was announced the winner in another state. The roar was particularly loud when Pennsylvania fell — the Democratic-leaning state where McCain had tried hardest to break through.
A survey of voters leaving polling places showed the economy was by far the top Election Day issue. Six in 10 voters said so, and none of the other top issues — energy, Iraq, terrorism and health care — was picked by more than one in 10.
"May God bless whoever wins tonight," President Bush told dinner guests at the White House, where his tenure runs out on Jan. 20.
He'll depart with the economy almost certainly in recession and millions of Americans counting their investment losses after a stock market swoon. The next commander in chief will inherit two wars, as well, one in Iraq, the other in Afghanistan.
On Election Day, Obama swept through traditionally Democratic states in the East and Midwest.
McCain countered in normally secure Republican territory.
That left a string of battleground states. All had voted for President Bush in his narrow victory in 2004, but Obama invested heavily in hopes of succeeding Bush as the nation's 44th president.
In addition to Ohio and Iowa, he led narrowly in Florida and by even less in Virginia and North Carolina. McCain owned a small advantage in Missouri and the two were virtually tied in Indiana.
Interviews with voters suggested that almost six in 10 women were backing Obama nationwide, and men leaned his way by a narrow margin. Just over half of whites supported McCain, giving him a slim advantage in a group that Bush carried overwhelmingly in 2004.
The results of The Associated Press survey were based on a preliminary partial sample of nearly 10,000 voters in Election Day polls and in telephone interviews over the past week for early voters.
Obama had 202 of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House. McCain had 114.
The Democrat's states included Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland and New Jersey, as well as the District of Columbia.
McCain had Texas, Utah, Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Wyoming, Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana, West Virginia and North Dakota.
The nationwide popular vote was remarkably close. Totals from 41 percent of all U.S. precincts showed Obama with 50.5 percent and McCain with 48.3.
Democrats celebrated Senate successes in Virginia, where former Gov. Mark Warner won an open seat, and in New Mexico, where Rep. Tom Udall did likewise. In New Hampshire, former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen defeated Republican Sen. John Sununu in a rematch of their 2002 race, and Sen. Elizabeth Dole fell to Democrat Kay Hagan in North Carolina.
That wasn't the end of the Democratic targets, though. Republicans all but conceded in advance they would lose a seat in Colorado, and perhaps elsewhere.
Democrats also looked for gains in the House. They found their first in Florida, defeating Rep. Tom Feeney, and another in Connecticut, where 22-year veteran Chris Shays was swept away by the Democratic tide.
The resurgent Democrats also elected a governor in one of the nation's traditional bellwether states when Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon won his race.
The White House was the main prize of the night on which 35 Senate seats and all 435 House seats were at stake. In both houses, Democrats hoped to pad their existing majorities, and Republicans braced for losses.
A dozen states elected governors, and ballots across the country were dotted with issues ranging from taxes to gay rights.
An estimated 187 million voters were registered, and in an indication of interest in the battle for the White House, 40 million or so had already voted as Election Day dawned.
At 47, with only four years in the Senate, he sought election as one of the youngest presidents, and one of the least experienced in national political affairs.
That wasn't what set the Illinois senator apart, though — neither from his rivals nor from the 43 men who had served as president since the nation's founding more than two centuries ago. A black man, he confronted a previously unbreakable barrier as he campaigned on twin themes of change and hope in uncertain times.
McCain, a prisoner of war during Vietnam, a generation older than his rival at 72, waited in Arizona to learn the outcome of the election. It was his second try for the White House, following his defeat in the battle for the GOP nomination in 2000.
A conservative, he stressed his maverick's streak. And a Republican, he did what he could to separate himself from an unpopular president.
For the most part, the two presidential candidates and their running mates, Republican Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska and Democratic Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, spent weeks campaigning in states that went for Bush four years ago. Virginia, Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Iowa, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada drew most of their time. Pennsylvania also drew attention as McCain sought to invade traditionally Democratic turf.
McCain and Obama each won contested nominations — the Democrat outdistancing former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton — and promptly set out to claim the mantle of change.
"I am not George W. Bush," McCain said in one debate.
Obama retorted that he might as well be, telling audiences in state after state that the Republican had voted with the president 90 percent of the time across eight years of the Bush administration.
The 47-year-old Democratic senator from Illinois sealed his victory by defeating Republican Sen. John McCain in a string of wins in hardfought battleground states — Ohio, Florida, Virginia and Iowa.
A huge crowd thronged Grant Park in Chicago to cheer his improbable triumph and await his first public speech as president-elect.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Barack Obama seized command of the race for the White House Tuesday night, defeating John McCain in Ohio and Iowa and building a near insurmountable Electoral College advantage in his historic bid to become the first black president. Fellow Democrats padded their majorities in both houses of Congress.
Obama's Ohio victory denied McCain particularly precious territory. No Republican has ever won the presidency without it.
The 47-year-old Illinois senator watched returns at a downtown Chicago hotel, then went home to a family dinner after a marathon campaign across 49 states and 21 months.
A jubilant crowd of thousands gathered in Grant Park across town on an unseasonably mild night. Cheers went up each time Obama was announced the winner in another state. The roar was particularly loud when Pennsylvania fell — the Democratic-leaning state where McCain had tried hardest to break through.
A survey of voters leaving polling places showed the economy was by far the top Election Day issue. Six in 10 voters said so, and none of the other top issues — energy, Iraq, terrorism and health care — was picked by more than one in 10.
"May God bless whoever wins tonight," President Bush told dinner guests at the White House, where his tenure runs out on Jan. 20.
He'll depart with the economy almost certainly in recession and millions of Americans counting their investment losses after a stock market swoon. The next commander in chief will inherit two wars, as well, one in Iraq, the other in Afghanistan.
On Election Day, Obama swept through traditionally Democratic states in the East and Midwest.
McCain countered in normally secure Republican territory.
That left a string of battleground states. All had voted for President Bush in his narrow victory in 2004, but Obama invested heavily in hopes of succeeding Bush as the nation's 44th president.
In addition to Ohio and Iowa, he led narrowly in Florida and by even less in Virginia and North Carolina. McCain owned a small advantage in Missouri and the two were virtually tied in Indiana.
Interviews with voters suggested that almost six in 10 women were backing Obama nationwide, and men leaned his way by a narrow margin. Just over half of whites supported McCain, giving him a slim advantage in a group that Bush carried overwhelmingly in 2004.
The results of The Associated Press survey were based on a preliminary partial sample of nearly 10,000 voters in Election Day polls and in telephone interviews over the past week for early voters.
Obama had 202 of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House. McCain had 114.
The Democrat's states included Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland and New Jersey, as well as the District of Columbia.
McCain had Texas, Utah, Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Wyoming, Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana, West Virginia and North Dakota.
The nationwide popular vote was remarkably close. Totals from 41 percent of all U.S. precincts showed Obama with 50.5 percent and McCain with 48.3.
Democrats celebrated Senate successes in Virginia, where former Gov. Mark Warner won an open seat, and in New Mexico, where Rep. Tom Udall did likewise. In New Hampshire, former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen defeated Republican Sen. John Sununu in a rematch of their 2002 race, and Sen. Elizabeth Dole fell to Democrat Kay Hagan in North Carolina.
That wasn't the end of the Democratic targets, though. Republicans all but conceded in advance they would lose a seat in Colorado, and perhaps elsewhere.
Democrats also looked for gains in the House. They found their first in Florida, defeating Rep. Tom Feeney, and another in Connecticut, where 22-year veteran Chris Shays was swept away by the Democratic tide.
The resurgent Democrats also elected a governor in one of the nation's traditional bellwether states when Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon won his race.
The White House was the main prize of the night on which 35 Senate seats and all 435 House seats were at stake. In both houses, Democrats hoped to pad their existing majorities, and Republicans braced for losses.
A dozen states elected governors, and ballots across the country were dotted with issues ranging from taxes to gay rights.
An estimated 187 million voters were registered, and in an indication of interest in the battle for the White House, 40 million or so had already voted as Election Day dawned.
At 47, with only four years in the Senate, he sought election as one of the youngest presidents, and one of the least experienced in national political affairs.
That wasn't what set the Illinois senator apart, though — neither from his rivals nor from the 43 men who had served as president since the nation's founding more than two centuries ago. A black man, he confronted a previously unbreakable barrier as he campaigned on twin themes of change and hope in uncertain times.
McCain, a prisoner of war during Vietnam, a generation older than his rival at 72, waited in Arizona to learn the outcome of the election. It was his second try for the White House, following his defeat in the battle for the GOP nomination in 2000.
A conservative, he stressed his maverick's streak. And a Republican, he did what he could to separate himself from an unpopular president.
For the most part, the two presidential candidates and their running mates, Republican Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska and Democratic Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, spent weeks campaigning in states that went for Bush four years ago. Virginia, Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Iowa, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada drew most of their time. Pennsylvania also drew attention as McCain sought to invade traditionally Democratic turf.
McCain and Obama each won contested nominations — the Democrat outdistancing former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton — and promptly set out to claim the mantle of change.
"I am not George W. Bush," McCain said in one debate.
Obama retorted that he might as well be, telling audiences in state after state that the Republican had voted with the president 90 percent of the time across eight years of the Bush administration.
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Hadenamadjid
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Middle East challenges for the new U.S. president :
Major foreign policy challenges await U.S. president-elect Barack Obama in the Middle East. Here are some of the intertwined issues that Democrat Barack Obama will inherit from President George W. Bush.
IRAQ
Five years after the U.S.-led invasion, Iraq remains very volatile despite improved security. Higher U.S. troop levels in 2007-08 were one factor in reducing the violence. Others include a U.S.-supported shift by former Sunni insurgents who have turned on their old al Qaeda allies; a ceasefire by the Shi'ite Mehdi Army of anti-U.S. cleric Moqtada al-Sadr; and ethnic and sectarian cleansing that has redrawn Baghdad's communal map.
A recent forced exodus of 1,500 Christian families in north Iraq has underlined the fragility of the security gains.
At stake now is a vital security pact negotiated with the Shi'ite-led government allowing U.S. troops to stay three more years. Iraq wants changes to the deal, which would replace a U.N. Security Council mandate that expires at the end of 2008.
Obama says it should be possible to cut the U.S. troop presence and favours a timetable to remove all combat troops by mid-2010. But he might find it hard to keep his pledge to withdraw troops by mid-2010 if Iraq slides back into bloody chaos.
That remains possible if, for example, dominant Shi'ite factions do not share power and resources fairly with Sunni Arabs and others; if autonomy-minded Kurds overreach, especially in Kirkuk; or if local conflicts run out of control.
IRAN
Iran's nuclear ambitions, energy resources and regional influence, greatly expanded by U.S. wars that toppled its foes in Afghanistan and Iraq, bear on vital U.S. national interests.
Past attempts to isolate and undermine the Islamic Republic have failed. Its hardline leaders are firmly in power. U.N. and U.S. sanctions have not deterred its pursuit of nuclear power -- which Iran says it wants only for electricity, not bombs.
Bush kept military options "on the table" but in the past year has focused mostly on international diplomacy to tighten sanctions. The global financial crisis appears to have reduced chances for a U.S. or Israeli pre-emptive attack any time soon, given the turmoil and oil supply disruptions this could entail.
Obama has offered to meet Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- who himself faces an election in June. Obama promises to use force if Iran attacks Israel or another ally, but says shunning Tehran and other U.S. foes has not worked.
Could a U.S.-Iranian dialogue -- tentatively begun under Bush, but limited to Iraq -- erode 29 years of mutual hostility and build on shared interests to achieve a new modus vivendi ?
The nuclear issue and Iranian-Israeli enmity constitute huge obstacles, but a U.S. opening to Iran, if reciprocated, could foster cooperation in stabilising Iraq and Afghanistan, easing sectarian conflict in the region, combating al Qaeda and developing Iranian oil and gas assets, some analysts say.
ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN ISSUE
Almost a year after U.S. President George W. Bush relaunched Israeli-Palestinian peace talks at Annapolis, the initiative has lived up to gloomy predictions many people made at the time.
Sporadic talks between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have failed to bridge rifts over borders, refugees and the status of Jerusalem.
Israel's continued settlement expansion in the West Bank, along with a thickening network of settler roads, checkpoints and barriers, has battered prospects for a two-state solution.
And Palestinian divisions have put any deal out of sight for now. Hamas Islamists seized the Gaza Strip in June 2007, leaving Abbas's Fatah faction in charge of the West Bank -- a split worsened by punitive U.S.-led efforts to isolate Hamas.
Israel also has leadership uncertainties, facing an election next year after Kadima leader Tzipi Livni failed to form a coalition to replace that led by Olmert, who quit in September.
Obama says he will get stuck into Middle East peacemaking, rather than emulate Bush's hands-off approach, but has not proposed any policy shift to rescue the two-state solution from oblivion.
Olmert, now a lame-duck premier, offered a possible cue when he told an interviewer last month that Israel should withdraw from nearly all territory captured in the 1967 Middle East war in return for peace with the Palestinians and Syria.
SYRIA
A U.S. raid inside Syria against an alleged smuggler of insurgents into Iraq last month showed the Bush administration remains hostile to Damascus, even though U.S. efforts to isolate it internationally have been dented -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy and European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana have both visited Syria in the last two months.
Syria remains an ally of Iran and anti-Israeli groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas, but its indirect talks with Israel over the past year show interest in a peace deal that would require solid, sustained U.S. support to pull off.
In another setback to Bush's policy, Damascus has gained ground in Lebanon, where Hezbollah and its allies now have veto power in a unity government. Syria's move to forge diplomatic ties with Lebanon meets a major Western demand and is an apparent sign of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's confidence.
Syria, unmoved by U.S. sanctions, has often signalled its desire for good relations with Washington, a prize for Damascus perhaps second only to recovering the Golan Heights from Israel.
Potential obstacles to a future U.S.-Syrian rapprochement include misgivings by Saudi Arabia, a U.S. ally, which feels that Syria has done too little to merit such a reward.
And a U.N. tribunal set up after the 2005 assassination of Lebanon's ex-premier Rafik al-Hariri could seek to prosecute Syrian officials, setting the stage for a diplomatic standoff.
Obama, unlike McCain, has backed dialogue with Syria, saying this could help stabilise the region and better secure Israel.
ONES TO WATCH
Other potential Middle Eastern crises include:
* Power transition in Egypt, where President Hosni Mubarak, 80, has ruled for 27 years, with no obvious successor.
* Succession in oil giant Saudi Arabia, where King Abdullah is thought to be 85 and Crown Prince Sultan 81.
* Flare-up of Sunni-Shi'ite or other sectarian tensions in countries with religiously mixed populations such as Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
* Instability in Lebanon, a weak state where Shi'ite Hezbollah and its allies, backed by Iran and Syria, are opposed by a Sunni-led coalition that has Saudi and Western support.
* Instability in Yemen, a poor but strategically located Red Sea country whose many troubles include al Qaeda activity.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/B181054.htm
Interesting summary statement.
Major foreign policy challenges await U.S. president-elect Barack Obama in the Middle East. Here are some of the intertwined issues that Democrat Barack Obama will inherit from President George W. Bush.
IRAQ
Five years after the U.S.-led invasion, Iraq remains very volatile despite improved security. Higher U.S. troop levels in 2007-08 were one factor in reducing the violence. Others include a U.S.-supported shift by former Sunni insurgents who have turned on their old al Qaeda allies; a ceasefire by the Shi'ite Mehdi Army of anti-U.S. cleric Moqtada al-Sadr; and ethnic and sectarian cleansing that has redrawn Baghdad's communal map.
A recent forced exodus of 1,500 Christian families in north Iraq has underlined the fragility of the security gains.
At stake now is a vital security pact negotiated with the Shi'ite-led government allowing U.S. troops to stay three more years. Iraq wants changes to the deal, which would replace a U.N. Security Council mandate that expires at the end of 2008.
Obama says it should be possible to cut the U.S. troop presence and favours a timetable to remove all combat troops by mid-2010. But he might find it hard to keep his pledge to withdraw troops by mid-2010 if Iraq slides back into bloody chaos.
That remains possible if, for example, dominant Shi'ite factions do not share power and resources fairly with Sunni Arabs and others; if autonomy-minded Kurds overreach, especially in Kirkuk; or if local conflicts run out of control.
IRAN
Iran's nuclear ambitions, energy resources and regional influence, greatly expanded by U.S. wars that toppled its foes in Afghanistan and Iraq, bear on vital U.S. national interests.
Past attempts to isolate and undermine the Islamic Republic have failed. Its hardline leaders are firmly in power. U.N. and U.S. sanctions have not deterred its pursuit of nuclear power -- which Iran says it wants only for electricity, not bombs.
Bush kept military options "on the table" but in the past year has focused mostly on international diplomacy to tighten sanctions. The global financial crisis appears to have reduced chances for a U.S. or Israeli pre-emptive attack any time soon, given the turmoil and oil supply disruptions this could entail.
Obama has offered to meet Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- who himself faces an election in June. Obama promises to use force if Iran attacks Israel or another ally, but says shunning Tehran and other U.S. foes has not worked.
Could a U.S.-Iranian dialogue -- tentatively begun under Bush, but limited to Iraq -- erode 29 years of mutual hostility and build on shared interests to achieve a new modus vivendi ?
The nuclear issue and Iranian-Israeli enmity constitute huge obstacles, but a U.S. opening to Iran, if reciprocated, could foster cooperation in stabilising Iraq and Afghanistan, easing sectarian conflict in the region, combating al Qaeda and developing Iranian oil and gas assets, some analysts say.
ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN ISSUE
Almost a year after U.S. President George W. Bush relaunched Israeli-Palestinian peace talks at Annapolis, the initiative has lived up to gloomy predictions many people made at the time.
Sporadic talks between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have failed to bridge rifts over borders, refugees and the status of Jerusalem.
Israel's continued settlement expansion in the West Bank, along with a thickening network of settler roads, checkpoints and barriers, has battered prospects for a two-state solution.
And Palestinian divisions have put any deal out of sight for now. Hamas Islamists seized the Gaza Strip in June 2007, leaving Abbas's Fatah faction in charge of the West Bank -- a split worsened by punitive U.S.-led efforts to isolate Hamas.
Israel also has leadership uncertainties, facing an election next year after Kadima leader Tzipi Livni failed to form a coalition to replace that led by Olmert, who quit in September.
Obama says he will get stuck into Middle East peacemaking, rather than emulate Bush's hands-off approach, but has not proposed any policy shift to rescue the two-state solution from oblivion.
Olmert, now a lame-duck premier, offered a possible cue when he told an interviewer last month that Israel should withdraw from nearly all territory captured in the 1967 Middle East war in return for peace with the Palestinians and Syria.
SYRIA
A U.S. raid inside Syria against an alleged smuggler of insurgents into Iraq last month showed the Bush administration remains hostile to Damascus, even though U.S. efforts to isolate it internationally have been dented -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy and European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana have both visited Syria in the last two months.
Syria remains an ally of Iran and anti-Israeli groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas, but its indirect talks with Israel over the past year show interest in a peace deal that would require solid, sustained U.S. support to pull off.
In another setback to Bush's policy, Damascus has gained ground in Lebanon, where Hezbollah and its allies now have veto power in a unity government. Syria's move to forge diplomatic ties with Lebanon meets a major Western demand and is an apparent sign of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's confidence.
Syria, unmoved by U.S. sanctions, has often signalled its desire for good relations with Washington, a prize for Damascus perhaps second only to recovering the Golan Heights from Israel.
Potential obstacles to a future U.S.-Syrian rapprochement include misgivings by Saudi Arabia, a U.S. ally, which feels that Syria has done too little to merit such a reward.
And a U.N. tribunal set up after the 2005 assassination of Lebanon's ex-premier Rafik al-Hariri could seek to prosecute Syrian officials, setting the stage for a diplomatic standoff.
Obama, unlike McCain, has backed dialogue with Syria, saying this could help stabilise the region and better secure Israel.
ONES TO WATCH
Other potential Middle Eastern crises include:
* Power transition in Egypt, where President Hosni Mubarak, 80, has ruled for 27 years, with no obvious successor.
* Succession in oil giant Saudi Arabia, where King Abdullah is thought to be 85 and Crown Prince Sultan 81.
* Flare-up of Sunni-Shi'ite or other sectarian tensions in countries with religiously mixed populations such as Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
* Instability in Lebanon, a weak state where Shi'ite Hezbollah and its allies, backed by Iran and Syria, are opposed by a Sunni-led coalition that has Saudi and Western support.
* Instability in Yemen, a poor but strategically located Red Sea country whose many troubles include al Qaeda activity.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/B181054.htm
Interesting summary statement.
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ikaotiki
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Re: Obama the New President of USA !
wakantanka wrote:All Americans owes Allegiance to him
rofl
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lumburg
- Captain [O-3]
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Re: Obama the New President of USA !
i was thinking the same,ikaotiki wrote:wakantanka wrote:All Americans owes Allegiance to him
rofl
So, do we get down on one knee or two? Personally, Im all for changing our national anthem.
See ya downrange Motherfuckers
Deploying AGAIN to a theatre near you
Deploying AGAIN to a theatre near you
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wakantanka
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wakantanka
- Colonel [O-6]
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Obama's victory: Newspaper covers from around the world
MX, Brisbane, Australia. November 5, 2008
Clarín, Buenos Aires, Argentina. November 5, 2008
Het Nieuwsblad, Brussels, Belgium. November 5, 2008
Calgary Herald, Calgary, Canada. November 5, 2008
La Tribune, Paris, France. November 5, 2008
Al Watan, Damascus, Syria. November 5, 2008
Yedioth Ahronoth, Tel Aviv, Israel. November 5, 2008
Diário de Notícias, Lisbon, Portugal. November 5, 2008
The Times, Johannesburg, South Africa. November 5, 2008
Bakersfield Californian, Bakersfield, Calif. November 5, 2008
MX, Brisbane, Australia. November 5, 2008
Clarín, Buenos Aires, Argentina. November 5, 2008
Het Nieuwsblad, Brussels, Belgium. November 5, 2008
Calgary Herald, Calgary, Canada. November 5, 2008
La Tribune, Paris, France. November 5, 2008
Al Watan, Damascus, Syria. November 5, 2008
Yedioth Ahronoth, Tel Aviv, Israel. November 5, 2008
Diário de Notícias, Lisbon, Portugal. November 5, 2008
The Times, Johannesburg, South Africa. November 5, 2008
Bakersfield Californian, Bakersfield, Calif. November 5, 2008
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djinn
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Pr10r_23
- Command Sergeant Major of the Army [E-9]
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wakantanka
- Colonel [O-6]
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- Joined: Sun Jul 03, 2005 4:00 am
