http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/07/18/george-soros-calls-obama-greatest-disappointment-says-doesnt-particularly-want-to-be-democrat.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+foxnews%2Fpolitics+%28Internal+-+Politics+-+Text%29
George Soros calls Obama 'greatest disappointment,' says he doesn't 'particularly want to be a Democrat'
New York billionaire George Soros said former President Barack Obama was his “greatest disappointment,” during a wide-ranging interview with the New York Times published on Tuesday, while also appearing to distance himself from partisan politics.
The wealthy liberal donor, who was an early supporter of Obama’s 2008 presidential run, told The Times that Obama was “actually my greatest disappointment,” before he was reportedly prompted by an aide to clarify that he was dissatisfied on a “professional level,” rather than with his presidency.
At another part of the interview, he told the paper that Obama "closed the door" on him after he secured the presidency.
“He made one phone call thanking me for my support, which was meant to last for five minutes, and I engaged him, and he had to spend another three minutes with me, so I dragged it out to eight minutes,” he said.
Soros told the paper the he had hoped to have been consulted on economic and financial issues, and that Obama was known “take his supporters for granted and to woo his opponents.”
Soros, who also poured millions of dollars into Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential run, wouldn’t say if he would back Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. in the upcoming presidential election, but said when it comes to politics, “I don’t particularly want to be a Democrat.”
While speaking with the Times, Soros praised Arizona Senator John McCain and said the main priority of his political activism was to promote bipartisanship – noting that Republicans on the far-right led him to become one of the top funders for the Democratic Party.
But as Democrats set their eyes on November and the midterm election push to regain control of the House of Representatives, the long-term goal of ensuring a Democrat resides in the Oval Office in 2020 remains the party’s glaring concern – as well as where Soros will lend his financial support.
Soros expressed displeasure with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., for over her use of the #MeToo movement that led to the removal of Al Franken from Congress.
“She was using #MeToo to promote herself,” he told the paper.
Although Gillibrand, nor her aides have confirmed or denied that she is going to make a presidential run, there are reports of extensive fundraising as well as her outreach to young people and communities of color that play well with one of the most serious anti-Trump voting records in the Senate.
Soros has contributed upwards of $15 million to support Democrats in the midterm elections, and told the paper for every Trump support "there is more than one Trump enemy who will be more intent, more determined.
When asked about where he views his political ideology, Soros told the Times “I’m opposed to the extreme left,” he said. “It should stop trying to keep up with the extremists on the right.”
Annony Mouse's Link
I believe there is such thing as being "socially" conservative and liberal and then "fiscally" conservative and liberal and that the two are mutually exclusive. People who are socially AND fiscally conservative might think otherwise, but there's not a lot of people who feel exactly the same about every single thing there is to have an opinion on in this world; so who really is liberal and conservative and who are the extremists on both sides?
I've seen a person who was pretty socially liberal get called a liberal by people who were socially conservative but pretty much a hair's breath from being socialists while the person being called a liberal was very fiscally conservative. I've met a lot of people who would vote Democrat if it weren't for their religious faith. I also know a guy who is pretty damn fiscally conservative, but votes Democrat because he's an atheist and doesn't like conservative Christian's politics.
Even Bill O'Reilly pointed out that the gay rights movement had the compelling case for liberty on their side of the argument.
Anytime you want to ban anything or force people to live by any rule (even if it's a good rule/law), you're inherently flying in the face of liberty (we all accept certain limits to our liberty so that society can function, ie: traffic lights). We also accept that an individual's liberty can be impinged so that it doesn't impinge on the liberty of others ( ie: laws against assault and battery).
So if conservativism = maintaining liberty, then, IMO, you have a hard sell restricting the rights of gays, women, pot smokers, or any other group of people and claiming liberty as their right to practice whatever they want to practice.
Personally, I think the line should be drawn on it directly disaffecting the person wanting to make the rule, not just being based on a person's personal belief system. If that isn't the case, then a majority of atheists could ban Christianity or force you to have an abortion.
Back to Soros, I read his take as that he wants to dispel the notion that he's far-left and is saying that his funding history reflects trying to balance things out, not the fact that he's a leftist. That's clearly BS because if he were truly a Centrist, not only would he not want things evened out, he wouldn't see it that way. He's clearly a leftist supporting leftists and leftist causes. Birds of a feather flock together. I'd like to hear his take on issues that he feels makes him a Centrist.
IdyllwildArcher's Link
1/3 of people wanting to ban gay marriage is not "extremely in the minority."
IdyllwildArcher's Link
IdyllwildArcher's Link
One point of distinction. I believe Straight Arrow’s point was that people who support abortion, gay marriage, etc are in the minority amongst “conservative” circles, not necessarily that they are an extreme minority in this country.
40% of Republicans and people who describe themselves as conservative, support gay marriage.
65% of republicans and 71% of self-described conservatives oppose abortion.
Conservatives used to be rational before the religious right captured them. From there they went completely bonkers.
Evangelicals flocked to the Republican party with the understanding that, for example, abortion could once again be made illegal (keep in mind Goldwater was pro-abortion), prayer would be "allowed in the schools," etc.
There's no question this is still playing out: Paul Ryan was all into Ayn Rand until he wasn't when the fact she was an atheist got too close for comfort).
Similarly, Trump had to say to a rally in the Bible Belt that he liked his own book second to the Bible.
Economically, Reagan, W. Bush and next the combination of Paul Ryan / Mitch McConnell / Trump will leave the next generations huge HUGE deficits.
So much for fiscal conservative.
And liberals?
End slavery
Women's right to vote
End segregation
End child labor
Public grammar school and high school
40 hour work week
Social Security
Medicare
Medicaid for the poor
Protect the environment
Protect against predatory lenders
Protect against predatory for profit colleges
LGBT equal rights
And how many of these things, did conservatives fihht against, even destroyed in some cases.
And btw, no liberal friends of mine are against hard work and responsibility and accountability. In fact we encourage it vociferously.
We do believe that average people will rise to the level of their environment and we should try to give everyone the best environment possible.
We do believe that government can do good things and see the proof in countries like Denmark who have good government schools and health care and who does not have the poverty and prisons we have in the US
We do believe in common sense.
And if you don't want to help people less fortunate because it is morally the right thing to do, then help because it is in your own long term financial interest.
It is better to get people educated and working and paying taxes than paying for welfare and prison.
Are these things so radical?
wow, great stuff there amongst all that other stuff
1864 - Republican president, House and Senate
"Woman's right to vote"
1919 - Democrat President, Republican House and Senate
"End Segregation"
1954 - Republican President, House and Senate
Yeah.....those pesky dems sure forged a path....
Soros casually leaves out that he was working closely with the Obama admin underlings to undercut America....does bussing a bunch of paid protestors to set fire to Ferguson ring any bells?
I don't trust Soros as far as I can throw him......luckily he is one slice of cheesecake from a fast exit.
When he says that, I will believe but not trust him.
One of my kids recently visited there as part of a school trip. Should be mandatory to do a project on it in High School to wake up this generation who throws around the Nazi camp comparison every time the US govt. or POTUS does something they don't like. Some older folks need a reminder as well when they do that.
One of my kids recently visited there as part of a school trip. Should be mandatory to do a project on it in High School to wake up this generation who throws around the Nazi camp comparison every time the US govt. or POTUS does something they don't like. Some older folks need a reminder as well when they do that.