94.

I’ve grown utterly disappointed in Obama.  I will not go out to vote this year unless he turns back to the pre-democratic-nomination Barack that I thought provided us with so much hope.

I know what you’re thinking: “BUT STILL!  HE’S BETTER THAN MCCAIN!”  And of course, you would be right.  Nonetheless, when a campaign is based upon integrity, one’s words and actions mean a lot.

The campaign finances change was forgiveable in my eyes.  Not only was it a foreseeable result of the McCain Feingold Act, but -considering the amount he stood to earn by not accepting the public funding- it was a valid tactical maneuver in furthering his power over the republican party.

But that wasn’t all:

Obama began distancing himself from Muslims.  Personally, I love Muslims.  I think that they are wonderful human beings and contributors to American society.  I was so proud to attend a school which had a number of Muslims in its law school because they will honestly be at the forefront of this century’s civil rights issues.  So, because I include them within my definition of America, you can imagine my chagrin at reading these quotes from the above article:

While the senator has visited churches and synagogues, he has yet to appear at a single mosque. Muslim and Arab-American organizations have tried repeatedly to arrange meetings with Mr. Obama, but officials with those groups say their invitations — unlike those of their Jewish and Christian counterparts — have been ignored. Last week, two Muslim women wearing head scarves were barred by campaign volunteers from appearing behind Mr. Obama at a rally in Detroit. …

Before the Virginia primary in February, some of the nation’s leading Muslim organizations nearly canceled an event at a mosque in Sterling because they could not arrange for representatives from any of the major presidential campaigns to attend. At the last minute, they succeeded in wooing surrogates from the Clinton and Obama campaigns by telling each that the other was planning to attend, Mr. Bray said. (No one from the McCain campaign showed up.)

Love all of America, not just the America that will supply you with the greatest amount of votes.

You may now be thinking to yourself: “But that was noble!  He’s helping the Deomcratic Party!”  True. But then again, it serves his own interests in securing both the House and Senate as Democratic majorities if he attains office, as well.

Plus, as one friend told me: “But he’s so handsome!  Look at him!” – as he jiggled the cover of the Rolling Stone Magazine:

However, both of us have noticed his returning to wearing the American Flag pin on his suit-jacket.  We appluaded his character for not doing so before, in the same way that Michelle Obama’s proud of America quote were undeniably correct:

Our America of the last 8 years has been a horrible nation, unforgiveable in the eyes of the world over-all, and unsettling in its lack of politcal character, integrity, and morality.

Still, things arent’ settling easy with me, here, and I still wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt.  However, Obama’s supporting FISA, meaning that anyone in America making or receiving an international call has the potential to be wire-tapped without any requirement for governmental checks and balances.

Of course, this is only AFTER you promised us that you would filibuster this bill on the floor so that the bill would not pass!

Nevermind that Obama supports the option of utilizing the death penalty.  It’s NOT about child rapists, but more the death penalty in general.  Here, if someone doesn’t die, he believes it is consstitutional for that Defendant (justifiably convicted or not) to be sentenced to death.

I simply cannot agree.

And as a byproduct of what I consider to be his middle-of the roading, I have grown disappointed. Unless something significant occurs within his camp, I will refuse to vote during this election.

Should he make more such middle-of-the-road panderings, I might have to even vote for the McBush.

Words and actions mean more than flowery rhetoric.  It means maintaining the integrity of your beliefs even, potentially, at the expense of losing.

If I’m not part of your America, then you’re not the part I’m voting for.