Michelle Malkin » Obama in 2001: How to bring about “redistributive change;” Update: Biden decries “mean,” “ugly” questions

Obama in 2001: How to bring about “redistributive change;” Update: Biden decries “mean,” “ugly” questions

By Michelle Malkin • October 26, 2008 11:44 PM

Scroll down for updates…Biden whines…

The blogosphere is buzzing about this video posted on YouTube Sunday night. It’s Barack Obama musing about how best to redistribute wealth in America in a Chicago Public Radio interview in 2001.

Not whether, but how: Through the courts or through legislation?

A caller asks The One to explain how he would do “reparative economic work.” Obama gives the legislative route two thumbs up as his preferred method of “breaking free of the constraints” placed by the founding fathers in the Constitution and then burbles about cobbling together the “actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change.”

Joe The Plumber, you barely scratched the surface:

STACLU has transcribed the choice parts of the interview.

If you look at the victories and failures of the civil rights movement and its litigation strategy in the court. I think where it succeeded was to invest formal rights in previously dispossessed people, so that now I would have the right to vote. I would now be able to sit at the lunch counter and order as long as I could pay for it I’d be o.k. But, the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society. To that extent, as radical as I think people try to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn’t that radical. It didn’t break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the founding fathers in the Constitution, at least as its been interpreted and Warren Court interpreted in the same way, that generally the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties. Says what the states can’t do to you. Says what the Federal government can’t do to you, but doesn’t say what the Federal government or State government must do on your behalf, and that hasn’t shifted and one of the, I think, tragedies of the civil rights movement was, um, because the civil rights movement became so court focused I think there was a tendancy to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change. In some ways we still suffer from that.

The bottom line from Jeff Goldstein:

In Obama’s America, we’ll finally be able to break free of the “constraints that were placed by the founding fathers in the Constitution” — and in so doing, achieve “social justice” through “redistributive change.”

Well, then. Fine .

But this is not the America I knew…

Yeah, and don’t you dare ask Obama or Biden about this.

You’ll get blacklisted and bombarded and labeled “combative.”

And who knows what’ll happen to your government records.

***

Update 12:03pm Eastern 10/27. Joe Biden is licking his wounds over his grilling this weekend by WFTV’s Barbara West.

Sarah Palin’s likeness is swinging from a noose, but it’s we socialism-abhorring conservatives who are “mean” and “ugly.”

JOE BIDEN: “I know this has been a pretty mean campaign. I was on a television station the other day and doing a satellite feed to a major network in Florida. And the anchor quotes Karl Marx and says in a sense, isn’t Barack Obama Karl Marx? You know, I mean, folks, this stuff you’re hearing — this stuff you’re hearing in this campaign, some of it is pretty ugly and some of the innuendo is pretty ugly.”

Posted in: Barack Obama, Joe The Plumber

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#517111

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:18 pm, Durangodarlin said:

ANd furthermore…

Seems to me that instead of the country and the US Constitution have a fundamental flaw, that someone running for President has a fundamentally flawed way of thinking of America and what she stands for!
#517120

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:28 pm, Lockstein13 said:

#433 Retired Fireman – WELL SAID!

Socialism breeds sloth and resentment.
See contemporary Germany (as one of many examples).
_________________________

Spread the *F*R*E*E*D*O*M*
It’s good for everybody!
#517124

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:31 pm, granite said:

On October 27th, 2008 at 5:48 pm, RetFireman said:

Well put.

What good will it do the doctor who went and suffered and sacrificed through 8+ years of college, if he needs to stop at some point else he becomes penalized?

From personal experience, I will tell you that it was 8+ years of after college.

Again, excellent post!
#517126

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:34 pm, granite said:

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:08 pm, RetFireman said:

This Class Envy you and the rest of the Liberals have is really quite sad, and demonstrates how petty and jealous you truly are.

Bingo!
#517129

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:35 pm, committed said:

Obama and everyone of his supporters, in a show of example, should have to calculate 40% of their current annual income and give the portion that has not already been sent to the IRS and send it on. Right now! Don’t wait until you win the election. If there are enough of you out there to win an election for Obama, it will probably be enough to jump start all the programs he wants after he is elected. No waiting, guys. Seize the moment. Show us your checks! You sent Obama a quarter of a billion dollars in campaign donations, so this shouldn’t be so difficult.

Simply, put your money where your mouth is.
#517132

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:38 pm, T-Bone said:

If I hire a clerical worker and pay them $10 an hour, should I call up Obama and ask him how much HE thinks I should pay them? Should I just add a couple of bucks per hour?

What if I decide to spread the wealth by paying them a couple more bucks than the going rate and then Obama charges me again in taxes to give them more money? How do I properly measure that?

Ask a liberal?
#517145

On October 27th, 2008 at 6:55 pm, ArizonaNeanderthal said:

Strippers take credit cards?

Careful lad, my son is a stripper.

[Commercial artist]
#517177

On October 27th, 2008 at 7:22 pm, CrazyFool said:

JOE BIDEN: “… I mean, folks, this stuff you’re hearing — this stuff you’re hearing in this campaign, some of it is pretty ugly and some of the innuendo is pretty ugly.”

And some of it (like this) is pretty true.
#517183

On October 27th, 2008 at 7:28 pm, RetFireman said:

JOE BIDEN: “… I mean, folks, this stuff you’re hearing — this stuff you’re hearing in this campaign, some of it is pretty ugly and some of the innuendo is pretty ugly.”

You mean like, “Barack Obama is about to be the next PotUS”?

You mean ugly like that?
#517212

On October 27th, 2008 at 7:56 pm, fulldroolcup said:

Keep asking all the Obamaoids you meet:

“Given your candidate’s expressed and open disdain for the Constitution as a fundamentally flawed document, how could he possibly take the Presidential oath to “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution of the United States?

Why would an “I so solemnly swear” not be an act of perjury, an act which would in and of itself be grounds for impeachment?
#517222

On October 27th, 2008 at 8:14 pm, fulldroolcup said:

“Negative liberties!? Where does he get that?”

He’s using that term to mean that the Bill of Rights tells the government what it cannot and must not do. Barack would prefer a positive expression of what government would guarantee people in the form of rights.

You know, like health care, a job, a “living wage”, and all the other liberal “gimmes”.

Trouble is, this idea runs entirely foul of what the Framers intended, and Barack knows it, so he wants to develop a legal theory to support an entirely anti-Constitutional view that paralleles the major tenets of modern European socialism.

IOW the guy’s a near commie.

Worse, once you accept the idea that government GIVES you rights, the extent of your freedom becomes contigent on who wins the next election . You no longer have “god given” right, only those the state deigns to allow you.

Very scary, and entirely antithetical to American principles.
#517230

On October 27th, 2008 at 8:28 pm, gr8fl said:

Reparations will be part of redistribution, if Obortion has his way.
#517236

On October 27th, 2008 at 8:30 pm, RogerCfromSD said:

Some crazy dude wrote: “YOU WILL NEVER BE IN THE TOP 1% OF WEALTH. EVER. NOT EVEN CLOSE. IT’S A PIPE DREAM. YOUR WEALTH NOW IS WHAT IS WILL MOSTLY REMAIN.”

I started out in the lowest economic 1%. Over twenty-five years, I have been able to rise up to the upper middle-class. I fully intend to be making what the top 10% make.

How?

I am a 3D animator. I have decided to create a direct-to-DVD children’s series that focuses on Conservative AMERICAN Values.

Admittedly, it is a niche market; but, it is one that wants conservative alternatives to the liberals pap that is offered everywhere.

I’ll target home schoolers, private schoolers, Conservatives, and Christian organizations.

The scripting will present characters as self-reliant, responsible, generous, patriotic, and faithful.

THAT is how I will keep moving forward toward my monetary goals, and THAT in some small measure may help to counteract the socialist-liberal indoctrination that is sure to continue.

So, Obama can stuff his dreams of world domination and wealth theft. In time, I plan to buy and sell twerps like him.
#517252

On October 27th, 2008 at 8:43 pm, elgringoviejo said:

Question:
What government agency is ultimately responsible for verifying that Mr. Obama meets all regulatory requirements for potential presidency?
Specifically, that he is indeed a natural born citizen with an official birth certificate.
#517256

On October 27th, 2008 at 8:50 pm, T-Bone said:

On October 27th, 2008 at 8:30 pm, RogerCfromSD said:
Some crazy dude wrote: “YOU WILL NEVER BE IN THE TOP 1% OF WEALTH. EVER. NOT EVEN CLOSE. IT’S A PIPE DREAM. YOUR WEALTH NOW IS WHAT IS WILL MOSTLY REMAIN.”

I started out in the lowest economic 1%. Over twenty-five years, I have been able to rise up to the upper middle-class. I fully intend to be making what the top 10% make.

But you couldn’t do it if others didn’t pay taxes to build roads and schools and the internet….. oh and buy your product!
#517257

On October 27th, 2008 at 8:50 pm, nanapw08 said:

And this from the Obama talking heads.

“The Obama campaign immediately pushed
back, arguing that the Right is deliberately misinterpreting a narrow legal argument Obama was making about decades-old court cases.

“This is a fake news controversy drummed up by the all too common alliance of Fox News, the Drudge Report and John McCain,” said Obama spokesman Bill Burton.

“In this seven year old interview, Senator Obama did not say that the courts should get into the business of redistributing wealth at all.”

And Obama gets another pass from the Media on this statement. But then again if you ask hard question you get black listed by the Obama camp.
#517261

On October 27th, 2008 at 9:05 pm, happy2behere said:

I was thinking about my conversation here earlier today with Watershed and something bothered me. Watershed – do you really believe what you said about how people are toadies of the upper class and they can never get out of the middle bracket bracket they are in? I want to offer you some hope and say that it can be done. My husband and I have suffered several significant setbacks in our business lives and suceeded in spite of them. I felt bad today when I reread your post because your view is so cynical and sad. You have bought the “system is against us” line and its not always true.

Ok, so now that I have outed myself as a member of the top 1% club, which I didn’t want to do except for possibly helping Watershed to see a different picture, I want to say that most of the business talent is my husband’s.

For us, its all God’s property anyway. As much as the stuff is nice, its only temporary. I know a family, their company is a household name and they live to give it all away. They are my heroes. I may never have the horsepower that they have, but God willing, I hope I can do what they do in my own little corner of the world.

So please Watershed, dont buy that kind of political cynicism, its not always true and probably not healthy either.
#517262

On October 27th, 2008 at 9:06 pm, Flyoverman said:

“In this seven year old interview, Senator Obama did not say that the courts should get into the business of redistributing wealth at all.”

I want to point out it is illegal to possess what Bill Burton is smoking here.

This explanation is reminiscent of Monty Python’s dead parrot sketch.

Laughable!
#517264

On October 27th, 2008 at 9:11 pm, Flyoverman said:

Watershed – do you really believe what you said about how people are toadies of the upper class and they can never get out of the middle bracket bracket they are in?

During the Bush Administration 11 million people disappeared from the Middle Class. Do you know where they went? They moved UP and OUT of the Middle Class.

Obama mentions the 11 million, but omits telling you their lives got better. I myself am SO MUCH better off than I was in 2001. Watershed is not self-taught. He’s indoctrinated.

I poionted out facts to him that he just went into denial over, never disputed, and just kept going. Incredible to observe.
#517266

On October 27th, 2008 at 9:13 pm, ITookTheRedPill said:

Michelle,
Please, please, please do a post about the following blog at Fox News, and the comments from the “Unhinged” left advocating “re-education camps” and “Hate Crimes” for us when (they think) Obama wins:

Father Jonathan: Obama’s No Robin Hood
#517268

On October 27th, 2008 at 9:16 pm, BlameAmericaLast said:

JOE BIDEN: “… I mean, folks, this stuff you’re hearing — this stuff you’re hearing in this campaign, some of it is pretty ugly and some of the innuendo is pretty ugly.”

Really? Has he been listening or reading what his party and what the leftist media has been doing to Gov. Palin in the past two months?

You want to talk about mean and ugly?

Yeah, how about that noose display this morning…

Did I hear either Obama or Biden condemn this?

I’m WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTIIIIIIIIING
#517274

On October 27th, 2008 at 9:26 pm, Free ThinkerNY said:

Obama Compared America to Nazi Germany

The audio recording of Barack Obama espousing his socialist philosophy of “redistribution of wealth” is all over the Internet and Fox News today (although most other media outlets are ignoring it), but there’s another disturbing section on that tape that has so far escaped notice.

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/31718_Obama_Compared_America_to_Nazi_Germany
#517277

On October 27th, 2008 at 9:34 pm, Lee Hazel said:

and this clown (BHO) is a teacher of US Constitutional Law. You gotta be kidding.

You know, I thought we might have gotten our fill of attornys with the Clintons
I guess not (sigh)

PC is Thought Control
LEE
#517288

On October 27th, 2008 at 10:08 pm, Republicanvet said:

The arrogance of naive and ignorant liberals…

The out-of-control Warren Court was not out-of-control enough.

…the Founding Fathers weren’t too smart as compared to this moron.

…and the Constitution should just be flat out ignored if it stands in the way of socialism.

Yet we are racist if we disagree and want to actually vote for someone else.
#517357

On October 27th, 2008 at 11:04 pm, RetFireman said:

“So this is how Freedom dies…with thunderous applause.”

Princess Amidala
Star Wars Ep. III
#517361

On October 27th, 2008 at 11:05 pm, RetFireman said:

And yes…isn’t it nice to know that Capt. Big Ears is light years ahead in intelligence when put up against The Founding Fathers of this nation.

If only he had been alive back then to tell them they were doing it all wrong.
#517380

On October 27th, 2008 at 11:29 pm, RetFireman said:

Got this from a commentor over at Boston.com. Thought it was really apropo:

From Abraham Lincoln…

“Property is the fruit of labor…property is desirable… a positive good in the world. That some should be rich shows that others may become rich, and hence is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another; but let him labor diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built.”

From Thomas Jefferson…

“To take from one because it is thought that his own industry and that of his father’s has acquired too much, in order to spare to others, who, or whose fathers have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association – the guarantee to every one of a free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it.”

“The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.”

“I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.”

“Dependence begets subservience and venality, suffocates the germ of virtue, and prepares fit tools for the designs of ambition.”

“A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor and bread it has earned – this is the sum of good government.”

“I own that I am not a friend to a very energetic government. It is always oppressive.”
#517416

On October 28th, 2008 at 12:17 am, RetFireman said:

The great thing is I just got an e-mail telling me that the English Soccer League has just awarded me £470000 so I can finally leave the Middle Class and help the rest of you poor sods with my new found wealth, courtesy of the Obama Tax Plan.

In fact, I will personally donate every last dime of that money to his campaign in order to help my fellow man and redistribute my new found wealth.

Ahhhh…I feel better already.