Da Elections Impacts 27

WNDI 2008

1 Elections Impacts

Elections Impacts Obama Good Elections Impacts........................................................................................................................................................1

Elections Impacts...........................................................................................................................1 Obama Good- Asian Relations....................................................................................................................................3

Obama Good- Asian Relations......................................................................................................3 Obama Good-Free Trade.............................................................................................................................................4

Obama Good-Free Trade..............................................................................................................4 Obama Good- Soft Power...........................................................................................................................................5

Obama Good- Soft Power.............................................................................................................5 Obama Good- Soft Power Cont..................................................................................................................................6

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont....................................................................................................6 Obama Good- Soft Power Cont..................................................................................................................................7

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont....................................................................................................7 Obama Good- Soft Power Cont..................................................................................................................................8

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont....................................................................................................8 Obama Good- Soft Power Cont..................................................................................................................................9

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont....................................................................................................9 Obama Good- Economy............................................................................................................................................10

Obama Good- Economy..............................................................................................................10 Obama Good- Economy Cont...................................................................................................................................11

Obama Good- Economy Cont.....................................................................................................11 Obama Good-Economy.............................................................................................................................................12

Obama Good-Economy...............................................................................................................12 Obama Bad- Pakistan................................................................................................................................................13

Obama Bad- Pakistan..................................................................................................................13 Obama Bad- Economy..............................................................................................................................................14

Obama Bad- Economy.................................................................................................................14 Obama Bad- Military Readiness...............................................................................................................................15

Obama Bad- Military Readiness................................................................................................15 Obama Bad- Space....................................................................................................................................................16

Obama Bad- Space.......................................................................................................................16 Obama Bad- China....................................................................................................................................................17

Obama Bad- China......................................................................................................................17 McCain Good- Economy..........................................................................................................................................18

WNDI 2008

2 Elections Impacts

McCain Good- Economy.............................................................................................................18 McCain Good- India/Pakistan...................................................................................................................................19

McCain Good- India/Pakistan....................................................................................................19 McCain Good- Heg...................................................................................................................................................20

McCain Good- Heg......................................................................................................................20 McCain Good- Military Readiness...........................................................................................................................21

McCain Good- Military Readiness.............................................................................................21 McCain Good- Free Trade........................................................................................................................................22

McCain Good- Free Trade..........................................................................................................22 McCain Good- Russia...............................................................................................................................................23

McCain Good- Russia..................................................................................................................23 McCain Good- Terrorism..........................................................................................................................................24

McCain Good- Terrorism............................................................................................................24 McCain Good- Space................................................................................................................................................25

McCain Good- Space...................................................................................................................25 McCain Bad- Economy.............................................................................................................................................26

McCain Bad- Economy................................................................................................................26 McCain Bad- China..................................................................................................................................................27

McCain Bad- China.....................................................................................................................27 McCain Bad- Russia.................................................................................................................................................28

McCain Bad- Russia....................................................................................................................28

WNDI 2008

3 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Asian Relations Obama improves Asian Relations Peter Harcher, “International Editor for the Sydney Herald”, Feb 4th 2008, Lexis-Nexis Academic. IF ELECTED president, Barrack Obama would seek to rid the American mind-set of militarism, a top adviser said, in one of the most striking foreign policy pronouncements of the campaign. And an Obama administration would enact sweeping change in US relations with the world, including elevating the importance of South-East Asia in US diplomacy and nurturing relations with Australia, Dr Susan Rice said in interview with the Herald. Dr Rice, a top foreign affairs adviser and spokeswoman for the Obama presidential campaign, said the US had put too much weight on military solutions to its problems, and had been guilty of a "single-minded" focus on the Middle East. An Obama presidency would correct these tendencies, she said. And while John Howard's extraordinary attack on Senator Obama last year was "water under the bridge", she said that "it's very nice that we will have the opportunity to deal with the new leader of Australia". One of the two finalists competing for the Democratic Party's nomination for the presidency, said in a debate last Thursday with the other finalist, Senator Hillary Clinton: "I don't want to just end the war [in Iraq], but I want to end the mind-set that got us into war in the first place." He did not elaborate, but, asked later what mind-set he was speaking of, Dr Rice said: "It's the mind-set that assumes that solutions to our problems are in the first instance military ones." And, in a clear criticism of Senator Clinton, she added: "And it's the political mind-set that assumes that Democrats will look as much as possible like Republicans on national security no matter how flawed their policies may be. His competition with Senator Clinton enters the terminal phase this week on so-called Tsunami Tuesday, Wednesday in Australia, when 22 states hold presidential primaries. Although Senator Clinton has built tremendous momentum in recent weeks, Senator Clinton goes into the contest with an average advantage of about 10 percentage points in national opinion polls. Dr Rice, formerly US assistant secretary of state for African affairs and a scholar at the Brookings Institution, continued: "It's the mind-set that doesn't try to understand the complexities and intricacies of the societies we are trying to affect, the mind-set that didn't take expert advice. "It's the mind-set that goes along trying to out-muscle the Republicans and the mind-set that uses only one instrument in our toolbox - the instrument which is the most costly and most sacred that we have." Dr Rice said an Obama White House would give much greater weight to South-East Asia in general, and Indonesia in particular. Obama understands that in the 21st century our security is very deeply related to Asia, so the single-minded focus on the Middle East has been counterproductive. We have to deal with a rising China in a sophisticated manner, and Obama is someone who understands South-East Asia. You will see change there. You will see an understanding that Indonesia is one of the most important countries in the world.

WNDI 2008

4 Elections Impacts

Obama Good-Free Trade Obama key to eliminating Protectionist policies in Latin America. Jeff Zelany, Staff Writer for The New York Times, May 24th 2008, “Obama Calls For Engaging Cuba”, Lexis Nexis Academic. Senator Barrack Obama said on Friday called for greater engagement with Cuba and Latin America, saying the long-standing policies of isolation have failed to advance the interests of the United States or help people who have suffered under oppressive governments. In a speech before an influential Cuban-American group here, Mr. Obama said he would meet with the Cuban leader, Raul Castro ''at a time and place of my choosing.'' He derided Senator John McCain and other Republican critics as embracing what he called hardline approaches that have failed. John McCain's been going around the country talking about how much I want to meet with Raul Castro as if I'm looking for a social gathering or I'm going to invite him over and have some tea,'' Mr. Obama said. ''That's not what I said, and John McCain knows it. After eight years of the disastrous policies of George Bush, it is time to pursue direct diplomacy, with friend and foe alike, without preconditions.'' Mr. Obama appeared before the Cuban American National Foundation days after Mr. McCain outlined a sharply different approach in a speech in Miami. He said Mr. Obama was naive to think he could hold direct diplomatic talks with Mr. Castro and other foreign leaders who are considered enemies. The backand-forth highlighted the divergent foreign policy approaches of the two candidates and underscored the significant role that Cuba policy could play in the general election. Mr. Obama's decision to address a constituency that has traditionally leaned Republican -- but among some younger voters is changing -signaled his intent to compete aggressively in Florida, a state that could be a critical battleground. ''I know what the easy thing is to do for American politicians. Every four years, they come down to Miami, they talk tough, they go back to Washington and nothing changes in Cuba,'' Mr. Obama said. ''That's what John McCain did the other day. He joined the parade of politicians who make the same empty promises year after year, decade after decade.'' When he addressed Cuban-Americans here on Tuesday, Mr. McCain accused Mr. Obama of shifting his position on normalizing trade relations with Cuba. On Friday, his campaign passed out printed materials here saying Mr. Obama had a ''record of weak leadership'' on Cuba. ''Senator Obama's reckless judgment, and his pandering on trade, will set back relations between the United States and Latin America for decades,'' said Tucker Bounds, a spokesman for Mr. McCain. In a 30-minute speech, interrupted several times by applause, Mr. Obama said that if elected president he would immediately lift the bans on family travel to Cuba and the limits on how much money people can send to their relatives in the communist nation. ''Don't be confused about this. I will maintain the embargo,'' Mr. Obama said. ''It provides us with the leverage to present the regime with a clear choice: If you take significant steps toward democracy, beginning with the freeing of all political prisoners, we will take steps to begin normalizing relations.'' In presenting his plan for Latin America, Mr. Obama said he would increase economic aid, work with other nations to reduce drug trafficking, seek cooperation on alternative energy and expand the Peace Corps in the region. The Cuban American National Foundation is the most prominent of the anti-Castro Cuban exile groups in Miami. Mr. Obama's appearance was viewed by his supporters here as a sign of change in Cuban-American political leanings. Jorge Mas Santos, son of the group's founder, introduced Mr. Obama and endorsed his plan to lift restrictions on visiting relatives in Cuba and sending money. He said it was time for a new approach to dealing with Cuba. ''The other centerpiece of U.S.-Cuba policy has been that there should be no negotiations and conversations with Raul Castro'' Mr. Santos said. ''Although this may sound tough, on its own it's ineffective and plays into the hands of Raul Castro.

WNDI 2008

5 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Soft Power Obama Key to American Soft Power Daniel Flitton, Research Associate at the Lowy Institute for International Policy, “White House Battle”, Jul 26th 2008, Lexus Nexus Academic. Global sentiment is firmly behind Barack Obama for US president. IN KENYA, he is a superstar. The French rate him almost three to one ahead of his rival. Australians, Britons and Japanese think he is at least twice as good. Even people in the Middle East put him narrowly in front. But how will the world react if Barack Obama loses the November election? This US presidential race has rapt global audiences like few before it. The prospect of a black man, son of an immigrant, defying prejudice and the political establishment to capture the most powerful job in the land makes for the kind of amazing story to inspire new confidence in America. No doubt such renewal is badly needed. The superpower's image has been battered during the George Bush years. The shambolic election in 2000 injected poison into the boastful democracy. A proud military tradition was diminished by a disastrous invasion of Iraq, squandering the great outpouring of global sympathy after the September 11 attacks. America's legal heritage was debased by prison horrors in Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, while Washington's dismal response to hurricane Katrina only served to compound opinion polls showing global respect for America at near record lows. Obama promises to turn views around. "I want to use all elements of American power to keep us safe, and prosperous, and free. Instead of alienating ourselves from the world, I want America once again - to lead." People believe. Obamamania, as dubbed by pundits, has spread across the globe.A 23-country survey by the Pew Global Attitudes Project last month found more confidence in Obama to do the right thing in world affairs than in his Republican opponent, John McCain. Obama has been burnishing this favour this week on a whirlwind tour with stops in Afghanistan and the Middle East, and across Europe. And yet the international rapture is all for nought if Obama fails to win the White House. What will the rest of the world think of the US if their favoured candidate is rejected by Americans? Will the country's international standing slide even further down the scale? "His defeat would certainly engender a great deal of disappointment," says Harvard University professor Joseph Nye. A widely respected foreign affairs expert and one-time Democratic administration official, Nye believes "soft power" is one of America's greatest assets. The appeal of a country's values, society, and culture - whether a democratic tradition, a legacy of immigration, television, movies, fashion or food - contrasts with so-called "hard power", mostly linked with bombs, aircraft carriers and marines. "The election of Barack Obama would do a great deal to increase American soft or attractive power," says Nye. "His background and career embody many of the more positive and optimistic aspects of the US as a land of openness and opportunity."

WNDI 2008

6 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont. Obama win would dramatically increase US soft power. Maureen Dowd, Staff Writer for the New York Times, “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”, December 2, 2007, Lexus Nexus Academic. Customarily in presidential races, Americans seek a patriarchal figure, a strong parent to protect the house from invaders and financial turbulence. But with Barrack Obama this dynamic seems reversed. He seems more like a child prodigy. Those enraptured with his gifts urge him on, like anxious parents, trying to pull that sustained, dazzling performance out of him that they believe he's capable of; they are willing to put up with the prodigy's occasional listlessness and crabbiness, his flights of self-regard and self-righteousness. Despite his uneven efforts and distaste for the claws of competition, they can see he is a golden child, one who moves, speaks, smiles and thinks with amazing grace. His advisers and fund-raisers have pressed him to go fortissimo. Many voters with great expectations are hovering, hoping for a crescendo. Except for panicked Clintonistas, everyone seems eager to see if the young pol can live up to his potential. Responding to his more combative style, the press has relaunched him, giving him a second chance to shine, on this week's cover of Time, in the pages of The New Yorker, in the up arrow of Newsweek, which now declares him ''poised to be the comeback kid,'' and at The Times, where young female assistants lined the halls on Wednesday to watch him glide into a second meeting with editorial board writers and editors. In The Atlantic, Andrew Sullivan lays out what he sees as Obama's ''indispensable'' capacity to move the country past baby-boom feuds and the world past sectarian and racial divides. ''It's November 2008,'' he imagines. ''A young Pakistani Muslim is watching television and sees that this man – Barrack Husain Obama-- is the new face of America. In one simple image, America's soft power has been ratcheted up not a notch, but a logarithm.''

WNDI 2008

7 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont. The next US president must be willing to adopt a competitive policy of soft power in SouthEast Asia that allows the US to compete hegomonically with China. Dave Peebles, Staff Writer for the Canberra Times, “US needs to get smarter Stability in East Asia is more likely to come from an inclusive approach that recognises shifting power relations”, Apr 16 2008, Lexus Nexus Academic Whether the next United States President is Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton or John McCain, one of his or her key foreign policy challenges will be deciding on the approach of the US towards East Asia in the coming decades. Notwithstanding the serious challenges the US currently confronts in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is only in East Asia that there is potential for a great power conflict if strategic policy is mishandled. East Asia's current regional system has successfully promoted peace and prosperity for three decades. One of the key features of this system, though, is US pre-eminence. This will change in the coming decades with the rise of new great powers most obviously China, but also Japan and India and perhaps Indonesia and Russia as well. Yet US strategic policy towards East Asia often seems narrowly focused on the possibility of military conflict with China, and the need to maintain technological superiority. On one level, this is understandable. China's defence budget is expanding by 12 per cent a year, and it is investing heavily in capabilities like a blue-water navy to blunt the US edge. The US 2006 Quadrennial Defence Review stated that China, among the "major and emerging powers [has] the greatest potential to compete militarily with the United States." But viewing China solely as a military competitor is a problem for US allies like Australia, who want to maintain good relations with both the US and China. It also focuses on only one aspect of the strategic challenge facing the US in East Asia. Joseph Nye and Robert Keohane first distinguished between "hard" and "soft" power. Hard power refers to military capabilities, and the ability to use threats or rewards to get others to do what they otherwise would not. Soft power "is the ability to get desired outcomes because others want what you want. It is the ability to achieve goals through attraction rather than coercion." With the exception of Japan, China has arguably been winning the soft power contest in East Asia in recent years. China has worked to settle many territorial disputes. It has pursued a more substantial role in regional organisations. Its leaders have made many visits throughout the region, typically concluding an economic or financial deal during each visit. China makes the case, too, that it stood by its neighbours during the Asian financial crisis, with the clear implication that the US and the International Monetary Fund did not. China's soft power strategy is reaping dividends. In Thailand, a recent poll showed that more than 70 per cent of the population believes that China is now Thailand's most important external influence. US commentator Robert Kagan has written that, "A superpower can lose a war ... without ceasing to be a superpower so long as potential challengers inspire more fear than sympathy among their neighbours." However, in East Asia the US potential challenger has worked hard to inspire sympathy and develop mutual interests. The importance of this transition cannot be underestimated. In 1995, China was viewed as a threat to regional stability when it occupied Mischief Reef in the South China Sea, which is also claimed by Vietnam and the Philippines. A decade later, Donald Rumsfeld warned China's neighbours about its growing defence budget, and was largely ignored. At his first meeting with President Bush, Kevin Rudd presented him with the book, The Charm Offensive: How China's Soft Power is Transforming the World. The author argues that China has successfully pursued a doctrine of "win-win" relations, and contrasts this with the US approach, which is overly demanding and disrespectful of national sovereignty. Rudd was making a vital point. If the US loses the soft power contest in East Asia, and a majority of countries in the region come to prefer Chinese hegemony over US hegemony, US superiority in hard power will count for less and less. Nye, who served in a Democrat Administration, has revisited the concepts of hard and soft power with Richard Armitage, who served in a Republican Administration. Together, they have developed the concept of "smart power", an integration of hard and soft power into a single strategic policy. It would be naive to suggest that hard power does not have a role to play. But the concept of smart power better recognises the sophisticated balance that the US needs in developing its long-term strategy for East Asia. As Nye and Armitage suggest, the position of the US as the lone superpower is unlikely to last forever. The US must find ways of leveraging its current power into arrangements that continue to promote stability. Embracing a smart power strategy would also have domestic benefits for the next US President, allowing him or her to move beyond the partisan divisions that have marked much of George Bush's time in office.

WNDI 2008

8 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont. Obama is the candidate associated with smart power (Read only with the Peebles ’08 card) Andrew Sullivan, Staff Writer for The Sun Times, “The New Face of America”, December 16, 2007, Lexus Nexus Academic Search. At its best, the Obama candidacy is about ending a war -not so much the war in Iraq, which will continue into the next decade -but the civil war within America that has prevailed since Vietnam and has crippled the country at the very time the world needs it most. It is a war about war -and culture and religion and race.And in that war, Obama -and Obama alone -offers the possibility of a truce. The divide Obama promises to overcome is still between those who fought in Vietnam and those who didn't, and between those who fought and dissented and those who fought but never dissented at all. The schism never went away. In fact it intensified during the Bill Clinton sex scandals in the 1990s, was deepened by the rise of the religious right, was ratcheted up by the bitterly divisive hung election of 2000, and worsened by the Iraq war. It is the great, paralysing red-blue divide that still rips America apart. Americans know this battle hurts only themselves, but they cannot get past it. Obama might allow them to. What does he offer? First and foremost: his face. It could be an effective potential rebranding of the United States. Such a rebranding is not trivial it's central to an effective war strategy. The war on Islamist terror, after all, is two-pronged: a function of both hard power and soft power. We have seen the potential of hard power in removing the Taliban and Saddam Hussein. We have also seen its inherent weaknesses in Iraq, and its profound limitations in winning a long war against radical Islam. The next president has to create a sophisticated and supple blend of soft and hard power to isolate the enemy, to fight where necessary, but also to create an ideological template that works to the West's advantage over the long haul. There is simply no other candidate with the potential of Obama to do this. Consider this hypothetical scenario. It's November 2008. A young Pakistani Muslim is watching television and sees that this man -Barack Hussein Obama -is the new face of America. In one simple image America's soft power has been ratcheted up exponentially. A brownskinned man whose father was an African, who grew up in Indonesia and Hawaii, who attended a majority-Muslim school as a boy, is now the alleged enemy. If you wanted the crudest but most effective weapon against the demonisation of America that fuels Islamist ideology, Obama's face gets close. It proves them wrong about America in ways no words can.

WNDI 2008

9 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Soft Power Cont. Electing Barrack Obama is key to US Smart Power The Canberra Times, Austraila, “US needs to use smart power, not hard power”, April 18 2008, Final Edition, Lexus Nexus Academic Search. In the op-ed "US needs to get smarter" (April 16, p15), Dave Peebles mentions that Kevin Rudd presented President George W. Bush with the book “China's Soft Power is Transforming the World.” Bush is effectively a lame-duck President with

little time, let alone ability, to make foreign policy changes to deal with the rise in China's soft (ie influence) power. I therefore hope that Rudd had three extra copies with him for those US presidential aspirants who hope to succeed Bush and therefore may actually be able to do something. Of the three, the presumptive Republican nominee, John McCain, may be in most need of the book. His policy on Iraq shows that he still thinks predominantly in terms of hard (ie military) power. Luckily, both of the Democratic contenders, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, realise that the US cannot base its influence on military power alone. A US that can be positively engaged in East Asia with smart power, taking advantage of its military presence as well as its considerable economic and cultural influence, will be in the best interests of powers in the region. Mike Hettinger, former chairman, Democrats Abroad Australia Mbeki's role Your editorial (April 16) is correct in stating that the President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, must shoulder much responsibility for the continuing crisis in Zimbabwe. His failure to condemn Robert Mugabe's gangster tactics has undoubtedly given Mugabe the momentum which he had lost following the recent elections. Perhaps Mbeki, who is no longer the ANC leader, nor likely to retain the country's presidency for much longer, is not in a position to speak bluntly to Mugabe. If so, then it is the duty of the African Union to come to the rescue of the people of Zimbabwe and condemn Mugabe's brutal tactics unreservedly. Sam Nona, Burradoo, NSW Zimbabwe no joke The present Australian ambassador to Zimbabwe and his partner are long- standing neighbours and good friends of mine. The ambassador is a person with great skills in tact and diplomacy the kind of person I want to have representing me in other countries. Robert Mugabe is a problem for all liberal democrats a band ever dwindling in number, given the loss of hard- won freedoms we have suffered in the name of fighting terrorism. Mark Latham lost Labor an election; Tony Abbott and Alexander Downer contributed to the recent loss of the Howard government. It is clear that many Australians rejected the ideas, attitudes and behaviour of all four politicians. Jack Lonergan suggests we should now inflict them on the poor people of Zimbabwe as if sending a triad of second-rate politicians will somehow assist with managing Mugabe. Can we leave the professional diplomats to get on with the job we ask them to do? The further we keep our politicians from this process the better served both Australia and Zimbabwe will be.Maureen McInroy, Hue, Vietnam Female bishops The comment that the new female Anglican bishop will not be accepted in Sydney ("Anglicans name first female bishop", April 12, p3) reminds me of a story doing the rounds in South Africa at the height of apartheid. A black man was thrown out of a white church. He got down on his knees and prayed, "Lord, they won't let me into your Church." The answer came back, "They won't let me in either."

WNDI 2008

10 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Economy 1. If elected, Obama’s economic plan will kill fiscal discipline because of earmarks. The Washington Times, “Obama, McCain Economics”, July 11, 2008 h Lexus Nexus Academic Search. Barrack Obama and John McCain touted their economic plans. If we take them at their word, Mr. Obama's plan could stifle initiative and perpetuate the current economic downturn. Mr. McCain's would unleash American dynamism, if he overcomes the lack of credibility his party has in restraining spending and limiting government. Mr. Obama's "An Agenda for Middle-Class Success," differs from the "trickle-down" Republican economic philosophy that he believes only helps the wealthy. His initiative ostensibly has a "bottom-up" approach. In reality, Mr. Obama’s descending approach empowers the state to make decisions for free-thinking Americans. This is proof that he fails to understand that wealth is not created by more big government. Despite his call for change, Mr. Obama's agenda consists of more government programs and lots of fuzzy math. Mr. Obama wants to "jumpstart economic growth and create jobs" by enacting a $50 billion stimulus This week,

package. He also wants to eliminate income taxes on retirement income. In other words, he favors more spending and a tax code that grants an entire class of people an exemption. This is socialistic - the redistribution of wealth according to the whims of legislators. Mr. Obama promises that all families making less than $250,000 per annum will not pay higher taxes. He even pledges to give middle-class families a $1,000 tax cut. Yet, he has also stated that he will increase the capital gains tax from its current level of 15 percent to at least 20 percent (he has not settled on an exact figure, it may be higher). This will indeed mean a tax increase for all Americans who sell an investment. Mr. Obama does not adequately explain

how he will be able to prevent other tax increases, given the many new government programs he proposes. He will spend money on infrastructure repair, college tuitions, matching funds to encourage savings and universal health-care. He states that he will pay for these programs by cutting earmarks and with funds saved when the Iraq war ends. Yet he has no track record of resisting earmarks: He has already voted for billions of dollars in earmarks. It is also unclear when or how the Iraq war will end - and whether or not those funds that might be saved and may be needed for other military operations (such as in Afghanistan or in Iran, for example). Hence, we know that he will spend taxpayer money, but not exactly how he will pay for these expenses. Mr. Obama's economic agenda belies his liberal view of the state as all-seeing and allknowing. Rather than empowering Americans, he will end up burdening citizens with higher taxes, increasing regulation and creating more unaccountable bureaucracies to administer his numerous meddlesome initiatives.

Mr. McCain, on the other hand, is attempting to revive the people's faith in a more conservative economic philosophy. The Arizona senator does not want to impose any more burdens on small businesses, such as health mandates. He also promises to keep all of George Bush's 2001 cut taxes. He is proposing a gas-tax holiday, cutting the estate tax and reducing corporate tax rates. He has stated he will also double the child deduction. He wants to expand free trade agreements to generate jobs; he has repeatedly promoted free trade with Colombia. He also promises to veto bills

with wasteful spending and to balance the budget by the end of his first term. In other words, he wants to restore fiscal responsibility and allow Americans to generate their own wealth: "All you've ever asked of government is that it stand on your side, not in your way." Mr. McCain's economic plan consists of merging both the supply-side economics that were used with success by Ronald Reagan and the deficit-hawk philosophy that has been a staple of conservative thought. Yet, in reality, he may not be able to sustain both cutting revenue by cutting taxes and also balancing the budget. He has an even greater problem: Republicans have lost their credibility as custodians of low spending and limited government.

WNDI 2008

11 Elections Impacts

Obama Good- Economy Cont. Obama supports regulation of the economy’s alternative energy by use of the cap-andtrade system Dipka Bhambhani, GNC Management Staff Regulator, “Obama claims Democratic nomination as McCain faults him on energy policy”, June 9th 2008, Lexus Nexus Academic Search. Senator Barrack Obama clinched the Democratic presidential nomination last week, ending a grueling, 17-month battle with Senator Hillary Clinton. But even before Obama appeared at a rally in St. Paul, Minnesota, to lay claim to his

party's nomination, Senator John McCain, the Republicans' presumptive presidential standard-bearer, attacked him on energy policy and a range of other issues. In a speech in New Orleans on Tuesday, McCain blasted Obama for voting for the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which McCain said helped put the country in an energy crisis by giving tax breaks to the oil industry. "I opposed [EPAct 2005] because I know we won't achieve energy independence by repeating the mistakes of the last half century," the Arizona senator said. "That's not the change we can believe in," he added, referring to Obama's campaign catch phrase, "Change we can believe in." McCain also sought to distance himself from President Bush, saying he backs mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions that are blamed for global warming. McCain also said that he would not cater to special interests, as he said Obama would. McCain invited Obama to participate in a series of town-hall-style debates that would be staged across the country, saying they could even fly to the events together. The McCain Campaign told Platts Thursday that Obama had accepted the invitation, and that the dates and locations will be worked out. Both Obama and McCain have said that the US must combat global warming by instituting mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, oil refineries and other industries. According to his campaign Web site, Obama supports implementation of a market-based cap-and-trade system to reduce carbon emissions by 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Notably, Obama has called for all emission-reduction allowances to be auctioned off to the highest

bidder, as opposed to being allocated to electric utilities and other industries for free. That differs from McCain, who maintains that some allowances should be allocated to industry for free in order to soften the impact on the economy. McCain said his system would invoke entrepreneurship and creative thinking. If a utility can "invent, improve, or acquire a way to reduce their emissions, they can sell their extra permits for cash," he said in a statement. "The profit motive will coordinate the efforts of venture capitalists, corporate planners, entrepreneurs, and environmentalists on the common motive of reducing emissions," McCain said. McCain and Obamaalso differ on the subject of nuclear energy. Obama supports nuclear power, but he has said he does not support building the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada. Obama's home state of Illinois has 11 nuclear power facilities, and he has expressed concern about waste from those and other plants being shipped to Yucca through Chicago, a major transportation hub and the third-largest city in the US.

WNDI 2008

12 Elections Impacts

Obama Good-Economy Obama key to stop American economic recession Adam, Nagourney. 7/8/08. The International Herald Tribune. Candidates vulnerable on economy; Obama and McCain try to retool strategy; ELECTIONS 2008. Lexis. Both candidates plan to spend this week focusing almost entirely on the economy. But both face political problems with the issue. McCain, the Arizona Republican, has been shadowed by his statements earlier in the campaign that he is not expert in the subject of the economy and by the likelihood that voters will associate him with the economic policies of the Bush administration. He has embraced President George W. Bush's stands on central issues like tax cuts and trade policy. Obama, Democrat of Illinois, has had difficulty connecting with working-class voters, and his more ambitious responses to economic problems like expanding access to health insurance would be paid for in part by tax increases, always a risky proposition politically. The two campaigns are retooling strategies and preparing for what aides said would be months of economic speeches, town-hall-style meetings on the economy and economic proposals, both new and repackaged - testimony to how the campaigns view the electoral environment. ''We are going to spend the rest of the summer talking about jobs, energy and health care,'' said Charlie Black, a senior adviser to McCain. He said McCain would prefer that the campaign focus on national security, given his credentials in that area, ''but that's just not the way the world works.'' It appears likely that activity on both sides will involve appearances notable more for their political symbolism - and attacks against the other side - than any attempt to come up with ideas for dealing with the problems. McCain will probably continue to attack Obama for supporting tax increases, and Obama is likely to portray McCain's views as an extension of Bush's economic policies. McCain is set to announce Monday morning that 300 economists are endorsing his economic proposals, which include tax cuts, expanded trade and a pledge to veto bills with earmarks, or spending inserted by lawmakers to benefit a specific project. His aides said the endorsements, mostly by conservative economists, would help him establish his credentials in this area. McCain will spend the week talking about job creation in hard-pressed battleground states, a contrast with his decision to spend last week in Latin America, a move that even some of his allies said risked having him seem unconcerned with the problems at home. McCain's aides said he would talk this week with voters, often in intimate settings, about their economic problems, in the hope of coming off as more empathetic than Obama. He will attack Obama over his support for raising taxes and his opposition to lifting the ban on offshore oil drilling and suspending the gasoline tax for the summer, positions also highlighted in an advertisement by the Republican National Committee that started running Sunday in closely contested states. McCain will also renew his attempt to draw contrasts with Obama on trade by focusing on Obama's opposition to some trade deals that McCain said would help the economy, as he did in Colombia last week. McCain has repeatedly argued that raising taxes in a weak economy would have disastrous consequences and asserted that his plan for longterm tax cuts - the centerpiece of his economic program - would solve the short-term economic problems. But, McCain's aides said, he will not offer any significant new economic programs or ideas. Black said the campaign was counting more on the contrast with Obama on tax cuts than on Obama's problems relating to working-class voters. Obama has filled his schedule with relatively intimate appearances in which he will talk to voters about the souring economy and how it affects them. Winning the support of working-class voters is a major test for Obama heading into the fall, especially in swing states like Ohio and Pennsylvania. Since the spring, Obama has been speaking much more specifically about the economy and how his plan would address the problems mentioning, for example, his proposal for a fund to help avoid mortgage foreclosures - as he has moved away from urging more government regulation of lenders. He has called for two more rounds of economic stimulus packages, in the form of rebate checks, to help the economy and consumers deal with rising gasoline prices, and his campaign criticized McCain on Sunday for refusing to support such measures.

WNDI 2008

13 Elections Impacts

Obama Bad- Pakistan Obama Will Invade Pakistan Anne Davies, Herald Coorespondant in Washington, “Obama Says He Would Strike Inside Pakistan”, The Sydney Morning Herald, Aug 3rd 2007, Lexus Nexus Academic. Barrack Obama, the 2008 Democratic presidential hopeful, has called on the US to pull out of Iraq and focus on the real sources of terrorism: Afghanistan and Pakistan, including unilateral military action in Pakistan if necessary. Senator Obama argued that if the Pakistani Government failed to eradicate terrorist operations inside its borders, the US should withhold aid and strike al-Qaeda targets there itself. "If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President [Pervez] Musharaff won't act, we will," he said, in a foreign policy speech to the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars in Washington on Wednesday. "I understand that President Musharaff has his own challenges, but let me make this clear: there are terrorists holed up in those mountains who murdered 3000 Americans. They are plotting to strike again." Senator Obama criticised the US President, George Bush arguing that he was giving the terrorists what they wanted - an expensive and protracted war. "The President would have us believe that every bomb in Baghdad is part of al-Qaeda's war against us, not an Iraqi civil war," he said. "It is time to turn the page. When I am president, we will wage the war that has to be won with a comprehensive strategy with five elements: getting out of Iraq and on the right battlefield in Afghanistan and Pakistan; developing the capabilities and partnerships we need to take out the terrorists and the world's most deadly weapons; engaging the world to dry up support for terror and extremism; restoring our values; and securing a more resilient homeland." A spokeswoman for the Pakistani Foreign Ministry, Tasnim Aslam, refused to respond directly as Senator Obama was not the US President. She added: "These are serious matters and should not be used for pointscoring. Political candidates and commentators should show responsibility." The Bush Administration last week tried to smooth a row with Islamabad over threats to act against al-Qaeda in Pakistani territory. The US said it had full respect for Pakistan's sovereignty, although it reserved the right to act. Political analysts interpreted Senator Obama's speech as a pointed message to his presidential competitors: that he will not accept being portrayed as weak or inexperienced. His main rival for the Democrat nomination, Hilary Clinton as presented herself as an experienced, practical moderate on foreign relations. The two clashed during last week's YouTube debate, when Senator Clinton said he would be prepared to talk to leaders of rogue states. Senator Clinton was more circumspect, calling his foreign policy views "naive" and "irresponsible". This prompted Senator Obama to label her approach "Bush-Cheney lite". Senator Clinton responded to Senator Obama's latest comments by stressing that if there was actionable intelligence showing Osama bin Laden or other prominent terrorist leaders were in Pakistan, "I would ensure that they were targeted and killed or captured". She also said that she has long favoured sending more troops to Afghanistan. However, other Democratic candidates took issue with Senator Obama's tough talk. The Governor of New Mexico, Bill Richardson, said that his threat, if acted upon, could inflame the entire Muslim world. "My international experience tells me that we should address this issue with tough diplomacy first with Musharraf and then leave the military option as a last resort," he said.

WNDI 2008

14 Elections Impacts

Obama Bad- Economy Obama wins the election, his radical economic policies will send the United States into depression, causing other countries to fall as well such as Canada. Theo Caldwell, Staff Writer for The National Post, “Bad On Trade = Bad For Canadians”, March 4th 2008, Lexus Nexus Academic Search. It is difficult to overstate the severity of the hosing Canadians will experience if Barrack Obama becomes president of the United States. The foremost way in which the callow Senator from Illinois would snatch the double-double from our Timmy's is evident in his attitude toward trade. In pursuit of blue-collar primary votes in Wisconsin and Ohio, and in defiance of the fact that U.S. manufacturing jobs have been declining since 1979, Obama has effectively scapegoated the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) for job losses, promising to revisit, and perhaps withdraw from, the treaty. Slapping tariffs on Canadian exports would hurt folks on both sides of the border. (Does Obama suppose that duties on American exports will actually revitalize the U.S. manufacturing base?). The same organized labour groups that clamour against NAFTA (or any free trade deal, really) would do far better to encourage a cut in corporate tax rates, assuming their ambition is to bring back jobs. Such a move in the United States would prompt similar action in Canada, helping all of our workers. But this is not in Obama's playbook. Whether Canadians know it or not, his election would hit us squarely in the wallet. Here is a simple truth with which Canadians should acquaint themselves: Republicans are generally free traders; Democrats, not. Since two Republican presidents and one Conservative prime minister effected the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement in 1989, trade between our two countries has tripled. Bill Clinton's acceptance of NAFTA in 1993 remains a heresy to many in his party -- including his wife and her rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Obama. But trade is only one aspect of Obama's abysmal agenda. His misbegotten economic and foreign-policy prescriptions matter, too. He plans to raise taxes across the board -- doubling capital gains, increasing inheritance taxes to 55%, and hiking income taxes to such levels that Americans could see marginal rates at the 65-70% range of the bad old days. The American economy is already facing a recession; with Obama's help, a full-on depression is achievable. And as the American economy goes, so does that of Canada. There is much talk about Obama as the agent of "hope" and "change," and his energy and youth have prompted comparisons to John F. Kennedy. But JFK understood the value of letting businesspeople do business, within and across borders. Kennedy's tax cuts were larger than those of any president since --including Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush -- resulting in higher tax receipts for years, and buoying the North American economy. From a broader perspective, consider Obama's threats to invade Pakistan, negotiate without condition with Cuba and Iran, and cut off exports from China. "Hope," indeed! One hopes Obama does not mean a word he is saying. He is Jimmy Carter without the foreign-policy acumen. We have all dodged a bullet with the collapse of Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign (but expect to see her screeching back in 2012, like Glenn Close coming out of that bathtub). The big-government, high-tax protectionist notions that animate Hillary's political philosophy, however, are still part of this presidential contest, and they are embodied by Obama. This is not good news for Canadians, however compelling they may find Obama to be. For various ideological reasons, Canadians most often identify with the Democratic candidates in American presidential contests. As Barrack Obama prepares to hobble America's economy, close its borders to trade and legitimize our shared enemies, Canadians ought to reconsider their outlook.

WNDI 2008

15 Elections Impacts

Obama Bad- Military Readiness Obama wants to repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, which will hurt military readiness. Elaine Donnelly, President of the Center of Military Readiness, “Gays and the military; Democrats prefer San Francisco-style”, Jan 3rd 2008, Lexus Nexus Academic Search. Democratic presidential candidates want to impose the full weight of San Francisco-style liberal ideology upon the armed forces. You would never know it, however, given the silence or equivocation of Republicans on military social issues. As noted in this space yesterday, the Center for Military Readiness has been conducting a non-partisan survey to determine where the presidential candidates stand on military issues affecting discipline and morale. Candidates who did not respond to survey questions, including all the Democrats, missed an opportunity to proclaim sound, responsible priorities for the military. Previous statements, however, indicate that any Democrat winning the White House would turn the Pentagon into a laboratory for social experimentation by civilian ideologues. These include feminists and homosexualists determined activists who demand government power to impose the homosexual agenda on all institutions of American life. Democrats condone the pure feminism of New York Sen. Hillary Clinton defined by the issue of women in land combat. In 2005, then-House Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter, California Republican, spearheaded legislation to restore Army compliance with Defense Department regulations exempting female soldiers from placement in or near direct ground combat (infantry) battalions. Mrs. Clinton and feminist colleagues countered with a resolution framing this as a feminist issue, which encouraged the Pentagon to continue violating regulations and laws requiring congressional notice and oversight. Unauthorized, incremental repeal of women's exemptions from land combat will eventually affect the Marine Corps and Special Operations Forces, forcing them to cope with predictable consequences: gender-normed training standards to create the illusion of equality, higher injury rates, pregnancies, and disciplinary issues that hurt readiness and morale. Eventually, ACLU lawyers will file another lawsuit challenging young women's exemption from Selective Service registration. With women in land combat, the ACLU will win. Parents whose daughters are denied college loans for failure to register will wonder why these issues were not debated in 2008. They should know that Mrs. Clinton, Sens. Barrack Obama of Illinois and Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, and former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina favor Selective Service registration for young women, or participation in mandatory national service. Mr. Obama is being advised by former Navy Secretary Richard Danzig, an outspoken advocate of

women serving on submarines. If an Obama administration mandates "career opportunities" for female sailors on cramped submarines, which operate with constantly recycled air that elevates risks of birth defects, submarine commanders may have to disrupt undersea missions by conducting hazardous mid-ocean evacuations of pregnant sailors. Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware strongly supports the Convention to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), an international treaty that would surrender sovereignty to international bureaucrats on all issues involving women - meaning, just about everything. Mr. Biden and other senators have demanded hearings on military sexual misconduct and "violence against women," as defined by anti-male feminists. None has recognized an underlying problem: policies pretending that servicemen and women are interchangeable, "ungendered" beings actually encourage scandals and violence against women, provided that the enemy inflicts the violence in close combat. All of the Democratic candidates want to repeal the 1993 law stating that homosexuals are not eligible to serve in the military, which is frequently mislabeled "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Congress rejected "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," then-President Clinton's proposal to accommodate discreet homosexuals, as unworkable. Mr. Clinton imposed it on the military anyway with administrative regulations inconsistent with the law. In a June 2007 debate, Mrs. Clinton admitted that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was supposed to be a "transitional policy" toward full acceptance of professed homosexuals in uniform. To avoid political consequences for colleagues in Congress, any Democratic president would likely push for quick repeal of the 1993 law, without public hearings or debate. That would force the military to follow the "civil rights" model, mandating equal housing and social status for homosexual military couples. "Sensitivity training" programs would enforce acceptance of known homosexuals in the ranks. There will be no "national security" benefits, since numbers of homosexual discharges have been small in comparison with separations for other reasons, such as pregnancy, weight standard violations, or drug offenses. Add to this scenario public resistance that would hurt recruiting, potential abuse of subordinates living in close quarters, plus higher risks of HIV infection, which increase the numbers of non-deployable personnel. The result will be unprecedented disciplinary problems that detract from morale and readiness. We cannot afford a San Francisco military. In 1992, Republicans helped Mr. Clinton to win by not debating this issue - in the same way that some Republicans are avoiding the issue today. Will a presidential leader emerge who is prepared to defend the culture of the only military we have? The one who does so first could become president of the United States.

WNDI 2008

16 Elections Impacts

Obama Bad- Space Obama opposes Mars space exploration concerned about earthly problems like global warming and the American economy LA Times. 7/23/08. Los Angeles Times. Looking at Mars; McCain is onboard for Bush's space mission; Obama may be more down to earth. Lexis. We know how John McCain and Barack Obama are polling in the red states, the blue states, Europe, the Middle East, China and around the world. But how are the presidential candidates polling on Mars? Red Planet policy turns out to be one of the areas in which McCain and Obama present bright, clear policy differences. In short, McCain supports the vision for space exploration that President Bush articulated in 2004, which committed NASA to returning human beings to the moon by 2020, with a vaguely defined ambition to send astronauts on to Mars before 2050. This vision has since coalesced into NASA's Constellation program, intended, among other things, to replace the retiring space shuttle. And the Democratic contender? Earlier this year, in a 15-page position paper detailing his ideas for education, Obama sneaked in the following line at the end: "The early education plan will be paid for by delaying the NASA Constellation program for five years." Who's right? There's something to be said for pulling the plug on Constellation. The space agency should take a fresh look at its goals and practices, possibly even giving up its role as a driver in human space exploration and becoming a paying passenger on vehicles built and operated by foreign and private-sector organizations. This would leave NASA with more funds for the robotic exploration that has brought such vast rewards on a relatively small budget (and without risk to life and limb). But where your taxes are concerned, nothing is ever simple. Bush's 2004 vision, announced shortly after the landings of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers on Mars, brought with it a surge of interest in robotic science in the inner solar system -which could be promoted, accurately or not, as the necessary prep work for human exploration. The bulk of NASA funding still goes to human exploration and thus tends to end up in Texas, Florida, Louisiana and Alabama. But Los Angeles County could be an ancillary beneficiary of Constellation, because the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is the most important player in robotic planetary exploration. Fiscal realities and NASA's commitment to keeping its $17billion budget flat already seem to be putting a limit on Constellation, but Bush's, and now McCain's, vision nicely balances realism and ambition. Yet it's Obama who is sounding like the more realistic, market-oriented candidate. His campaign said recently that Obama hopes to enhance NASA's role "in confronting the challenges we face here on Earth, including global climate change" and "to reach out and include international partners and engage the private sector to increase NASA's reach and provide real public economic benefits for the nation."

WNDI 2008

17 Elections Impacts

Obama Bad- China Obama ruins US-China relations because of American economy Jane, Schulze. 6/21/08. Weekend Australian. Trade is Obama’s weak spot. Lexis. The editor of The Economist is worried about the US Democrat's protectionist tendencies and possible tensions with China, reports media editor Jane Schulze FAST-FORWARD a year and imagine Barack Obama as US president. Obama's promise of ``change you can believe in'' has struck a chord in many parts of the US. But if he's unable to deliver that change quickly, John Micklethwait, editor of respected international magazine The Economist, believes Obama may blame China for some of the problems he faces, in the process inflaming tensions between the US and China. Like the magazine he edits, Micklethwait is an avowed supporter of free trade and for this reason he's concerned about Obama, who he fears is a strong protectionist. ``Trade is something we are extremely wary about with Obama at the moment,'' he says. Micklethwait is also a supporter of globalisation, which he argues is producing the greatest economic boom in human history. ``By the end of this decade, even allowing for the credit crunch, we'll have average GDP growth per head of population of 3 per cent a year around the world, so we are now living in the fastest decade of economic growth in human history,'' he says. Countries such as China have been beneficiaries of globalisation but their growth has spurred problems that Micklethwait expects may be used in the future by Obama to shore up his popularity at home. ``I'm worried about globalisation at the moment because even though it's a great and powerful thing it has its problems,'' Micklethwait says. ``Oil and food prices have risen because of the enormous demand unleashed by China and India, which means you get price bubbles and price imbalances emerging.'' That's also having a knock-on effect in the political world, and that's where he sees Obama unleashing a new antiChina rhetoric in the US. ``It's a good thing China is getting richer and more powerful, but if it gets even more powerful you'll soon have a return to the power politics, with China bumping up against Japan and India ... and then you'll have the nationalisms coming in.''

WNDI 2008

18 Elections Impacts

McCain Good- Economy . McCain has refused to support wasteful earmark and promises to fight the massive amount of earmark spending in Congress. Paul Kane, Staff Writer for the Washington Post, “Candidates Earmarks Worth Millions; of Frontrunners, McCain Abstained”, Feb 14 2008, Lexus Nexus Academic Search. Working with her New York colleagues in nearly every case, Clinton supported almost four times as much spending on earmarked projects as her rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.), whose $91 million total placed him in the bottom quarter of senators who seek earmarks, the study showed. Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), the likely GOP presidential nominee, was one of five senators to reject earmarks entirely, part of his long-standing view that such measures prompt needless spending. As a campaign issue, earmarks highlight significant differences in the spending philosophies of the top three candidates. Clinton has repeatedly supported earmarks as a way to bring home money for projects, while Obama adheres to a policy of using them only to support public entities. McCain is using his blanket opposition to earmarked spending as a regular line of attack against Clinton, even running an Internet ad mocking her $1 million request for a museum devoted to the Woodstock music festival. Obamahas been criticized for using a 2006 earmark to secure money for the University of Chicago hospital where his wife worked until last year. The new report, by Taxpayers for Common Sense, is the first to show all the earmarks each lawmaker added to spending bills for an entire fiscal year. It notes the explosive growth of the practice, which amounted to more than $18 billion in fiscal 2008. Stung by criticism of earmarks, President Bush and an increasing number of lawmakers have started to campaign against their use. In his State of the Union address last month, Bush vowed to veto any spending bills for 2009 that do not cut back on earmarks, and 22 House members have sworn off seeking them. While most are Republicans, Democratic Rep. Henry A. Waxman (Calif.), a key committee chairman and close ally of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), joined yesterday. "Congressional spending through earmarks is out of control," he said. Lawmakers previously were allowed to include multimillion-dollar items in spending bills without publicly identifying themselves as sponsors. House and Senate Democrats passed measures last year that require open sponsorship of earmarks. Though they still make up a tiny fraction of the federal budget, earmarks remain a multibillion-dollar business on Capitol Hill. Congress added 12,881 earmarks, worth $18.3 billion, to spending bills that Bush signed into law, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense. That is a 23 percent drop from the record level of earmarked money for fiscal 2005. Democrats used their new majority to secure 57 percent of total earmarked money in fiscal 2008. Members of both parties even supported a $4.5 billion pot of earmarks. "An increasing number of individual members recognize that a moratorium is needed until significant reforms are made to the earmark process," Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), a longtime earmark opponent, said yesterday.

WNDI 2008

19 Elections Impacts

McCain Good- India/Pakistan McCain key to good India-Pakistan relations States News Service. 1/2/08. States News Service. NEW WEB AD, 'FOREIGN POLICY ALERT'. Lexus Yesterday, New York Post Compared Romney And McCain's Responses To Pakistan Crisis New York Post Mocked Romney's Response To Pakistan Crisis, While Calling McCain "The One Candidate Who Seems To Understand That A Sound Pakistan Policy Requires Something More Than Glib Slogans." "The Pakistani political crisis has presented Americans with a real test of which of the nation's would-be presidents are fit for the Oval Office. Most fail. Certainly, few seemed to appreciate the depth of the crisis. ... Mitt Romney said the 'terrible devastating handiwork' of Benazir Bhutto's assassination demonstrated the continuing threat that terrorism presents. You think? ... That left John McCain as the one candidate who seems to understand that a sound Pakistan policy requires something more than glib slogans." (Editorial, "Candidates and Crisis," New York Post, 1/1/08) Romney Has Recently Said That The Next President Doesn't Need Foreign Policy Experience Romney: "If We Want Somebody Who Has A Lot Of Experience In Foreign Policy, We Can Simply Go To The State Department." "Well, if we want somebody who has a lot of experience in foreign policy, we can simply go to the State Department and pluck out one of the tens of thousands of people who work there. They, of course, have been doing foreign policy all their careers. But that's not how we choose a president. A president is not a foreign policy expert." (Fox News' "Hannity and Colmes," 12/27/07) Romney: "If Foreign Policy Experience Were The Measure For Selecting A President, We'd Just Go To The State Department." CNN'S ANDERSON COOPER: "So foreign policy experience, per se, is not essential, just experience?" ROMNEY: "Well, if -- if foreign policy experience were the measure for selecting a president, we'd just go to the State Department and pick up one of the thousands and thousands of people who've spent their whole life in foreign policy, and frankly, becoming a United States senator does not make one a foreign policy expert, either." (CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," 12/27/07) Romney: "That's Not What The Nation Needs In A President." "If the answer for leading this country is someone that has a lot of foreign policy experience, we can just go down to the State Department and pick up any one of the tens of thousands of people who've spent all their life in foreign policy ... That's not what the nation needs in a president. The person that is president of the United States, we look to have leadership skills." (Dave Wedge, "Mitt Still Sees Foreign Expertise As Overrated," Boston Herald, 12/28/07) Watch Romney Say That The Next President Doesn't Need Foreign Policy Experience

WNDI 2008

20 Elections Impacts

McCain Good- Heg McCain key to Heg States News Service. 1/2/08. States News Service. NEW WEB AD, 'FOREIGN POLICY ALERT'. Lexus John McCain's "Experience In Foreign Affairs And In Military Issues Is Unmatched In The Field," While Outside Observers Say "Without [McCain], The Surge Would Not Have Happened" Salmon Press (NH): "[McCain's] Military Record Is Truly Heroic -- In Stark Contrast To Those Of His Opponents ... His Experience In Foreign Affairs And In Military Issues Is Unmatched In The Field." "[John McCain's] military record is truly heroic -- in stark contrast to those of his opponents. As a congressman and senator from Arizona he has exhibited the ability to attract both sides of the political aisle. And yet he is a conservative in the best sense of the word: principled, unwilling to cave for political gain and an unbowed enemy of wasteful spending. His experience in foreign affairs and in military issues is unmatched in the field." (Editorial, "New Hampshire's Salmon Press Endorses Sen. John McCain," Salmon Press, 12/13/07) New Hampshire Union Leader: "McCain Is By Far The Most Informed Candidate On Military And Foreign Affairs." "McCain is by far the most informed candidate on military and foreign affairs. In our interviews with nearly all of the presidential candidates, only McCain offered a comprehensive and detailed strategic vision for maintaining America's position as the world's lone superpower." (Editorial, "Commander In Chief: McCain Is The Best Choice," New Hampshire Union Leader, 12/25/07)

WNDI 2008

21 Elections Impacts

McCain Good- Military Readiness McCain key to military readiness States News Service. 1/2/08. States News Service. NEW WEB AD, 'FOREIGN POLICY ALERT'. Lexus Union Leader: "Of All The Candidates For President, It Was John McCain And Only \John McCain Who Not Only Opposed Donald Rumsfeld's Iraq Strategy From The Start But Offered A Viable Alternative For Winning ..." "Of all the candidates for President, it was John McCain and only John McCain who not only opposed Donald Rumsfeld's Iraq strategy from the start but offered a viable alternative for winning that illfated war. When the Democrats cried 'Retreat!' and other Republicans shouted 'Stay the course!' McCain listened to the commanders on the ground. He discerned the path to victory early, and only after the President finally did what McCain had urged for years did the tide begin to turn in our favor. That is the kind of judgment America needs in the oval office." (Editorial, "Commander In Chief: McCain Is The Best Choice," New Hampshire Union Leader, 12/25/07) Union Leader: "America Needs A Leader Whose Own Judgment In Matters Of War And Peace Can Be Trusted Implicitly. John McCain Is That Leader." "There is no greater issue in this election than keeping America safe from its enemies. Romney and other Republicans might have similar foreign policy agendas, but none has the proven judgment on foreign affairs that Sen. McCain has. America needs a leader whose own judgment in matters of war and peace can be trusted implicitly. John McCain is that leader." (Editorial, "Commander In Chief: McCain Is The Best Choice," New Hampshire Union Leader, 12/25/07) Portsmouth Herald: "[McCain] Is A Strong Military Man Prepared From Day One To Defend Our Nation Against Its Enemies. Of All The Republicans Running, He Is By Far The Best Qualified To Lead Our Country." "John McCain has been leading the country from his seat in the U.S. Senate for 20 years. He is a man of integrity and honor who would help the Republicans rid themselves of the stench of Jack Abramoff and other lobbyists and allow the GOP to reclaim its status as the party of fiscal restraint. He is a strong military man prepared from day one to defend our nation against its enemies. Of all the Republicans running, he is by far the best qualified to lead our country." (Editorial, "Vote Sen. McCain In GOP Primary," Portsmouth Herald, 12/16/07) The Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol: "Without [McCain], The Surge Would Not Have Happened." "He was right on one awfully big issue, which is the surge. You know, we're fighting a war in Iraq. He was the -without him, the surge would not have happened. I was a very minor advocate of it, and John McCain was the absolute key advocate of it internally, privately with the administration, and defending it publicly in the Senate and among Republicans. So McCain was right on the war. I think he's having a big comeback." (Fox News' "Fox News Sunday," 12/23/07) National Review Named McCain One Of Their "Men Of The Year" For Being "For The Surge Of Troops In Iraq Before Even The White House Was" And "Insisting On No Surrender' In A Clearer And More Passionate Way Than Most Politicians." "If I were the editor of Time magazine, instead of Vladmir Putin, I'd have three men on the famous year-ending issue. My men of the year would be Gen. David Petraeus, with Sen. John McCain and Joe Lieberman as his Beltway wingmen. McCain, a Republican from Arizona and war hero, was for the surge of troops in Iraq before even the White House was. Despite differences of opinion I have with the senator on a host of issues (ditto for Lieberman), on Iraq, he has been a leader, insisting on 'no surrender' in a clearer and more passionate way than most politicians." (Kathryn Jean Lopez, "Men of the Year," National Review, 12/27/07)

WNDI 2008

22 Elections Impacts

McCain Good- Free Trade McCain key to pass COFTA Sasha, Issenberg. Staff Writer. 7/7/08.The Boston Globe. McCain knits trade, security issues Foreign trips fit his strategy. Lexis CAMPAIGN 2008 MEXICO CITY - Democrats have derided John McCain for taking his free-trade message last week to meetings with the presidents of Colombia and Mexico instead of the factory floors of Michigan and Ohio, swing states where protectionist attitudes prevail, but the shift of venue was intentional. McCain, who has repeatedly said that economics is not his strength, has unapologetically embraced free trade. But, demonstrating an approach that advisers say fits into a broader set of contrasts with his opponent's approach to international affairs, McCain is increasingly making the case to Americans that trade should be considered foremost as a national security concern. "They're two different issues, but they're certainly linked in the eyes of our allies there," said McCain strategist Charlie Black, who noted that the trip offered an opportunity for McCain to address both at once while flanked by heads of state. "It shows him on the world stage talking confidently about international issues."

Two weeks ago, McCain visited Ottawa to trumpet his support for the North American Free Trade Agreement. Targeting Colombia and Mexico on last week's trip, McCain selected two countries that have recently elected conservative leaders in a region that has been drifting left. In both places, McCain praised local governments for their efforts combating drug trafficking and narco-terrorism. McCain has presented the Colombian Free Trade Agreement, which remains stalled in Congress because of Democratic opposition, as a plum for the regime of President Alvaro Uribe, who has aggressively targeted the FARC, a guerrilla group whose activities have been funded by kidnappings and the cocaine trade. On Tuesday, Uribe briefed McCain on highly classified details of a mission scheduled for the next day to rescue hostages, including three Americans held by the FARC. Ratifying the trade pact would "help an ally that's standing up in a courageous way to prevent the drug trade ... and provide a strategic counterpoint to Hugo Chavez," said Black, referring to the leftist Venezuelan president. Senator Barack Obama has said he would be willing to meet Chavez, provoking outrage from McCain.

"I certainly think that the government and people of Colombia should be rewarded for their sacrifices and their efforts," McCain told reporters in Cartagena, Colombia, on Wednesday, as the hostage rescue was taking place. "America could have no better ally than President Uribe. It is irresponsible for the Congress not to come to his aid and his support." Both the Colombian pact and NAFTA remain highly controversial domestically, particularly in the industrial states where McCain has said that he intends to target working-class voters, including Democrats and union members who supported Hillary Clinton during the primaries. Obama opposes the Colombian agreement and said that he supports the decade-old NAFTA, but would threaten to abrogate it as a means of exerting leverage over Canada and Mexico to add greater labor and environmental protections. "Senator John McCain's trip to Colombia and Mexico is yet one more example of how out of touch he is with working families," John Sweeney, AFL-CIO president and an Obama supporter, said in a statement. "Working people have seen bad trade deals send

their jobs overseas and decimate their communities, yet McCain enthusiastically supports the proposed US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement and celebrates the effects of NAFTA." McCain, however, is speaking less about the economic benefits of free trade and instead trying to place it in a broader critique of Obama's foreign policy, contrasting the Democrat's willingness to negotiate with American adversaries with his disinterest in collaborating with friendly countries. "The first step is to start to repair our image with some of our allies before we can begin to repair our image with those we disagree with," said John Brabender, an unpaid media adviser to McCain's campaign. "I am disappointed at the suggestion that the United States should unilaterally reopen NAFTA," McCain told a business luncheon in Mexico City, after meeting privately with President Felipe Calderon on Thursday. "If there are issues that exist between our countries whether it be the United States, Canada, and Mexico, or other nations with whom we have engaged and ratified treaties the best way to do that is not in a unilateral fashion, but mutual respect of sovereignty of our respective nations." McCain's attempt to emphasize the security benefits of free trade could be a hard sell: even advocates for expanded trade say that these days economic arguments are resonating most strongly, particularly as the weakened dollar has strengthened domestic producers and exporters. "The United States is going through a slowdown, so the economic issues are coming up more and more," said Carolina Barco Isakson, Colombia's ambassador to the United States, who has been lobbying members of Congress to support the agreement.

No candidate in recent memory has made such broad support for free trade as central to his campaign as McCain. Those presidents who pushed for lowering the barriers to international commerce, Bill Clinton and both George Bushes, were far more ardent free traders once they reached office than they had presented themselves when seeking it. By allying himself with free-trade agreements, which are negotiated by administrations and then subject to congressional approval, McCain is assuming a White House posture, according to analysts.

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McCain Good- Russia McCain betters US-Russian relations urging nuclear arms pact BBC. 5/28/08. BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union – Political Supplied by BBC Worldwide Monitoring. Senior Russian MP praises McCain for discarding "phobia" of Russia. Lexis Moscow should pay attention to new statements made by US presidential candidate John McCain, which are "strikingly different from his usual anti-Russian rhetoric", Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Russian State Duma International Affairs Committee, has said, corporate-owned Russian news agency Interfax reported on 28 May. The Russian MP was referring to an article published in the New York Times, which said that McCain had called for a new agreement with Russia to replace the existing Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or Start. Kosachev said he would not accuse McCain of being inconsistent, as the Democrats in the USA had done. "For us it is more important to see in this [statement by McCain] a sign, a trend or outlines of the foreign policy of one of the candidates who are most likely to win the presidential post in the country, whose position has a decisive influence on the security balance in the world," Kosachev said. He also added that McCain "has shown readiness to try on the presidential regalia in reality, giving priority to real steps in a most important sphere of nuclear disarmament, instead of rudimentary phobias about Russia". Kosachev believes that for Russia "it would be sensible not to ignore the sign made by someone who is usually a rather fierce opponent of Russia on many issues, and to show that the issues he has raised - Start, tactical nuclear weapons and extending the international status of the agreement on the elimination of short and medium-range missiles - are more important than personal preferences". "In any case, Mr McCain can count on Russia's readiness to support him in this game if he becomes president. If a one-time harsh critic of Russia gets a real chance to go down in history as one of the creators of 'detente mark 2', why shouldn't he use it?" Kosachev added.

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McCain Good- Terrorism McCain key to stop terrorism Denis, Stauton. 6/25/08. The Irish Times. McCain rebukes aide over 'terrorist' remark. Lexis US:JOHN McCAIN has rebuked a top aide who said another terrorist attack on the United States would be a "big advantage" for the Republican presidential candidate as Barack Obama's campaign condemned the remarks as "a complete disgrace". Charlie Black, a senior adviser to Mr McCain, told Fortune magazine that last December's assassination of Pakistani politician Benazir Bhutto helped the Republican's campaign and that another terrorist attack "certainly would be a big advantage to him". Mr Black said later that he regretted the remark and Mr McCain said he did not know why his aide had made the comments. "It's not true. I've worked tirelessly since 9/11 to prevent another attack on the United States of America. My record is very clear," Mr McCain said. Bill Burton, a spokesman for Mr Obama, said the remarks exposed the cynicism at the heart of the Republican's anti-terrorism rhetoric and highlighted the difference between the two candidates. "The fact that John McCain's top adviser says that a terrorist attack on American soil would be a 'big advantage' for their political campaign is a complete disgrace, and is exactly the kind of politics that needs to change. Barack Obama will turn the page on these failed policies and this cynical and divisive brand of politics, so that we can unite this nation around a common purpose to finish the fight against al-Qaeda," he said. Evangelical Christian leader James Dobson yesterday accused Mr Obama of distorting the Bible and offering a "fruitcake" interpretation of the US constitution in support of his political positions. Mr Dobson, who heads the conservative pressure group Focus on the Family, took aim at the Democratic candidate during a radio address, criticising a speech on religion and politics Mr Obama made two years ago. In the speech, the Democrat asked which Biblical passages should guide public policy - books like Leviticus, which Mr Obama said suggests slavery is permissible but eating shellfish is an abomination, or Jesus's Sermon on the Mount, "a passage that is so radical that it's doubtful that our own defence department would survive its application". Accusing Mr Obama of "dragging biblical understanding through the gutter", Mr Dobson said the Democrat was falsely equating antiquated Old Testament dietary guidelines with Christ's words in the New Testament. "I think he's deliberately distorting the traditional understanding of the Bible to fit his own worldview, his own confused theology," Mr Dobson said. The evangelical leader was scathing about Mr Obama's suggestion that Christians should frame arguments about issues such as abortion in language that was accessible to everyone. "Am I required in a democracy to conform my efforts in the political arena to his bloody notion of what is right with regard to the lives of tiny babies?" he asked. "What he's trying to say here is unless everybody agrees, we have no right to fight for what we believe." Former president Bill Clinton said yesterday he would do all he could to ensure that the Illinois senator wins November's election. In his first statement of support for Mr Obama since Hillary Clinton withdrew from the race, the former president said through a spokesman that he was "committed to doing whatever he can and is asked to do to ensure Senator Obama is the next president of the United States". Mr Obama will meet some of Mrs Clinton's top donors in Washington tomorrow and the former rivals will campaign together in New Hampshire on Friday

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25 Elections Impacts

McCain Good- Space McCain key to space exploration of Mars through increased funding LA Times. 7/23/08. Los Angeles Times. Looking at Mars; McCain is onboard for Bush's space mission; Obama may be more down to earth. Lexis. We know how John McCain and Barack Obama are polling in the red states, the blue states, Europe, the Middle East, China and around the world. But how are the presidential candidates polling on Mars? Red Planet policy turns out to be one of the areas in which McCain and Obama present bright, clear policy differences. In short, McCain supports the vision for space exploration that President Bush articulated in 2004, which committed NASA to returning human beings to the moon by 2020, with a vaguely defined ambition to send astronauts on to Mars before 2050. This vision has since coalesced into NASA's Constellation program, intended, among other things, to replace the retiring space shuttle. And the Democratic contender? Earlier this year, in a 15-page position paper detailing his ideas for education, Obama sneaked in the following line at the end: "The early education plan will be paid for by delaying the NASA Constellation program for five years." Who's right? There's something to be said for pulling the plug on Constellation. The space agency should take a fresh look at its goals and practices, possibly even giving up its role as a driver in human space exploration and becoming a paying passenger on vehicles built and operated by foreign and private-sector organizations. This would leave NASA with more funds for the robotic exploration that has brought such vast rewards on a relatively small budget (and without risk to life and limb). But where your taxes are concerned, nothing is ever simple. Bush's 2004 vision, announced shortly after the landings of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers on Mars, brought with it a surge of interest in robotic science in the inner solar system -- which could be promoted, accurately or not, as the necessary prep work for human exploration. The bulk of NASA funding still goes to human exploration and thus tends to end up in Texas, Florida, Louisiana and Alabama. But Los Angeles County could be an ancillary beneficiary of Constellation, because the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is the most important player in robotic planetary exploration. Fiscal realities and NASA's commitment to keeping its $17-billion budget flat already seem to be putting a limit on Constellation, but Bush's, and now McCain's, vision nicely balances realism and ambition. Yet it's Obama who is sounding like the more realistic, market-oriented candidate. His campaign said recently that Obama hopes to enhance NASA's role "in confronting the challenges we face here on Earth, including global climate change" and "to reach out and include international partners and engage the private sector to increase NASA's reach and provide real public economic benefits for the nation."

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26 Elections Impacts

McCain Bad- Economy A McCain ticket would cause the US to slide into recession. Paul Thompson, Staff Writer for The Evening Standard, “A vote for McCain will take US into recession”, July 8th 2008, Lexus Nexus Academic. Obama has warned the American people they face further economic misery if they vote McCain into the White House. With the US sliding into recession, Mr Obama firmly linked the Republican candidate to President Bush. He said the tough times ahead for Americans would continue. "If you are satisfied with the way things are going now, then you should vote for John McCain" said Mr Obama "If you think that we need a fundamental change then we have a clear choice in this election and we've got to seize it." With the economy set to be a key issue for voters in the November election, Mr Obama emphasised that he offered the only chance to change the economic direction the country was taking. "It is not inevitable that we continue these tough times," he said. The Democratic presidential candidate said the country must adjust to the globalised economy, better train and educate its children, make certain there was "a real energy policy", and invest in roads and bridges. "Help is on the way," he told supporters in Charlotte, North Carolina, in a conference call from St Louis. He had planned to give the speech in person but his flight was forced to make an emergency landing due to mechanical problems yesterday..

McCain causes American economic recession Liz, Sidoti. 1/26/08. Associated Press Worldstream. McCain faces challenge as presidential race shifts from national security to economy. Lexis John McCain's strong point is national security, not economics. The Republican presidential candidate is urging Florida voters to judge him on all that he offers and hopes it is enough to carry him to victory over rival Mitt Romney, the former venture capitalist who argues that he alone can fix U.S. financial woes. "Floridians are concerned about the threat of radical Islamic extremism and their economic security. There's no one who will work harder to protect our shores and protect your pocketbooks," McCain says in a television ad running ahead of the state's pivotal primary on Tuesday. If McCain loses Florida, his defeat likely will stem from a failure to convince voters that he is the most capable Republican to lead the country through a potential economic recession. If McCain wins, his victory probably can be attributed to his appeal in Florida regions with a strong military presence. McCain is a former Navy aviator who spent 6 1/2 years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. But the Republican race has turned sharply from national security toward the economy as a housing crisis, turmoil in financial markets and rising fuel costs prompted President George W. Bush and Congress to push a stimulus package to try to head off a recession. Responding to voters' economic fears, Romney is claiming that, unlike his rivals, he has the private sector experience needed to right the fragile economy. McCain, a four-term Arizona senator, has served in the public sector much of his life and, in the past, has acknowledged that he knows less about economics than he does about national security and foreign policy. "I understand that the economy is very important, just as health care has always been important out there," McCain said on his campaign bus Thursday. "But I also believe that Americans are still deeply concerned about the struggle against radical Islamic extremism." Nevertheless, the economy presents a challenge for him and that issue could be determinative in the Florida primary where McCain is in a tight race with Romney. Ten days ago, the two squared off in a Michigan race focused entirely on the economy. Then, Romney painted McCain as a pessimist on the economy and the former Massachusetts governor promised that he would return lost auto jobs to Michigan. McCain sought to portray his rival as unrealistic, and said jobs "have left and will not come back, but we're going to create jobs."

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27 Elections Impacts

McCain Bad- China McCain supports Dalai Lama leading to bad US-China relations David, Jackson. 7/25/08. USA Today. McCain to meet with Dalai Lama in display of support for Tibet. Lexis Republican presidential candidate John McCain planned to meet with the Dalai Lama today in a show of solidarity with the Tibetan spiritual leader and as a rebuke to China's treatment of the people he represents. "I've been a great admirer of the Dalai Lama, " McCain told reporters Thursday while campaigning in Ohio, calling the Dalai Lama "a transcendent international role model and hero." McCain's remarks come two weeks before the start of the Beijing Olympics. In recent months, China has imprisoned hundreds of Tibetans who held marches for greater autonomy and freedoms. China took Tibet by force in 1951, burning hundreds of Buddhist temples and killing many clergy. The Dalai Lama, the head of the faith in Tibet, went into exile in 1959 and has waged a campaign for decades in the West to have China loosen its grip on his region. He remains an immensely popular figure among the Tibetan people. The Dalai Lama is attending a symposium in Aspen, Colo., on his homeland's culture. His planned meeting there with McCain comes four months after the Dalai Lama sent him a letter thanking him for his "concern" over the Chinese military crackdown in Tibet. Support for Tibet and opposition to China's stifling of dissent are two points of agreement on foreign policy between McCain and Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. Both have said that if they were president, they would boycott the Aug. 8 opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics. The White House announced July 3 that President Bush would attend the opening ceremonies. Bush said on July 6 that he has often talked about religious freedom and human rights with the Chinese, and "I don't need the Olympics to express my concerns." Bush said a boycott would have been an "affront" that may have made it harder to "speak frankly with the Chinese leadership." The Dalai Lama was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in October in a ceremony attended by the president. China issued a statement lashing out at Bush for taking part in the honor. Regarding U.S. policy with China, McCain has said that he supports cooperation on "a wide variety of strategic, economic and diplomatic fronts," but that Chinese leaders need to understand that "in our modern world, how a nation treats its citizens is a legitimate subject of international concern." Michael Green, former top Asia adviser in the Bush administration, said he doubted that McCain would use the meeting with the Dalai Lama to bash China. Green, now with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the McCain meeting and Obama's comments should send a message to China that Tibet will be an important issue to the next president

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28 Elections Impacts

McCain Bad- Russia McCain’s war experience strains US-Russian relations Interfax news agency. 10/16/07. BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union – Political Supplied by BBC Worldwide Monitoring. Russian pundit accuses US Republican senator of extremism, "Russophobia". Lexis Moscow, 16 October: The director of the Political Research Institute, Sergey Markov, considers that there is little chance the foreign policy programme of US presidential candidate and Republican Senator John McCain, who is proposing to toughen relations with Russia, will be implemented. "There have already been several pointed attacks against Russia on McCain's behalf, and there is no point in taking yet another of his statements seriously; McCain's chances of success in the election are very slight and he represents just one part of the American political class. But on the other hand, it is a good warning to us that such people do exist," Markov told Interfax today when commenting on an article by McCain published in the newspaper Foreign Affairs which was circulated by way of his election campaign document. In [the article] McCain states among other things that "the West needs a new approach towards that vengeful Russia". He accused Russia of making "efforts to oppress its democratic neighbours such as Georgia, and attempting to manipulate Europe's dependence on Russian oil and gas". Furthermore, he suggested that Russia be excluded from the G8 and replaced with Brazil and India. In Markov's opinion, "McCain's statements can no longer be described as critical, but rather as Russophobic and extremist". "There can be several causes for such sentiment. McCain is linked to a group of neo-conservatives, he is linked to the Polish and Czech diasporas, whose attitude towards us is well known. Furthermore, we must not forget that McCain served in Vietnam, was in captivity for four years, for which he holds the Soviets, in other words, the Russians, responsible," Markov said.