First President to skip ball honor medal of honor recipients....

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First President to skip ball honoring medal of honor recipients....

Subject: FW: First President to skip ball honor medal of honor recipients....

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Subject: Fw: First President to Skip Ball Honoring Medal of Honor Recipients in Over 50 Years

Obama Snubs Nation's Heroes, Becomes the First President to Skip Ball Honoring Medal of Honor Recipients in Over 50 Years

Submitted by Julie on January 21, 2 009 - 10:13pm. 2008 News Politics U.S. Government U.S. Politics World Politics

Barack Obama may have stumbled over his words briefly during his inauguration, but he made an even bigger blunder later Tuesday evening. The newly sworn-in President opted not to appear at what should have been one of the most important Balls on his agenda that evening - "The Salute to Heroes Inaugural Ball."

The Salute to Heroes Inaugural Ball was begun in 1953 for President Dwight Eisenhower's inauguration. The event recognized recipients of the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military award. There were 48 Medal of Honor recipients in attendance, who were undoubtedly disappointed by the newCommander-in-Chief's failure to show. Over the past 56 years and 14 inaugurations, no President has skipped this event - until now.

The Salute to Heroes Inaugural Ball is sponsored by the American Legion, and co-sponsored by 13 other veteran's service organizations, including those such as the Paralyzed Veterans of America and the Military Order of the Purple Heart.

Instead of attending this ball honoring our nation's heroes, Obama was busy making stops at 10 other official balls. Obama and his wife's first stop was at the Neighborhood Ball. From there they went to the Home State Ball for Illinois and Hawaii, the Commander-in-Chief Ball, the Youth Inaugural Ball, and the Home State Ball for Delaware and Pennsylvania. They finished off the night with brief appearances at the Mid-Atlantic, Western, Midwest, Eastern, and Southern regional Balls.

Celebrities were a plenty at the balls, with Stevie Wonder, Shakira, Mary. J. Blige, Faith Hill, Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Adam Levine, will.i.am, Sting, Mariah Carey, and Leonardo DiCaprio in attendance at the Neighborhood Ball. In addition, the other nine balls also featured a star-studded lineup including Kanye West and Kid Rock at the Youth Ball, Marc Anthony at the Western Ball, and Cheryl Crow at the Western Ball.

It was the party without all of the celebrities that Obama skipped. The very people who he sought to have support him during his candidacy and campaign , who have fought to protect this country, were snubbed in favor of publicity and the opportunity to rub shoulders - yet again - with the out-of-touch Hollywood elite!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SHAME ON YOU PRESIDENT OBAMA. THESE BRAVE MEN CAME TO RESPECT YOU, YET YOUR BLATANT FAILURE TO RECOGNIZE THEM SENDS THEM AND ALL WHO HAVE FOUGHT TO DEFEND THIS NATION, THE WRONG MESSAGE. MAKE NO EXCUSES MR. PRESIDENT - WE NOW KNOW WHERE VETERANS STAND UNDER YOUR WATCH!
This message needs to be sent around the world 100 times and personally to President Obama on a regular basis. Will you assist in getting that done? Don't add or detract anything to or from this, and also be RESPECTFUL, no matter how you feel about it!

Additional link: http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/8627

 

[Sarge]

My opinion of him is only strengthened by this BS.

 

[myguitar]

When was this? Jan?
Just posting it now?

He's done worse things since... Move on buddy!

 

[BD]

No kidding!!! I was wondering why he ask the Pentagon to slash their budget by 10% while he passed a trillion dollars spending bill without the approval of the American people while offer no help to the people of Louisiana - after he promised to do so during his campaign?

 

[Ko-nsx]

i'll wait for somebody else to post the full story. Im sure ya'll don't want me too!!:biggrin:

 

[Dhalsim]

WTF?? Were you in a coma the last 3 months? This story is old......move on....there is plenty of other stuff to bitch about....

 

[colslaw87]

Blah blah blah, who gives a shit , not to the OP but the article. Is any one ever happy with the president of the U.S.? People will give any reason to belittle and nit-pick him...and why I don't know. Give it a rest...he's human.

I heard people were shocked when Obama first entered the White House and the Oval Office. He walked in...took off his coat...and hung it on the chair. And that's a big deal? "oh that's unprofessional" Last time I checked...he lives there!

rant

 

[Da Hapa]

Blah blah blah, who gives a shit , not to the OP but the article. Is any one ever happy with the president of the U.S.? People will give any reason to belittle and nit-pick him...and why I don't know. Give it a rest...he's human.

He's the commander in chief.

His decision to remove his coat in the oval office hardly compares to not paying respect to the men and women of the armed forces, esp. those whose actions warranted a CMH.

I agree that there are bigger issues to get your knickers in a twist over and this is an old story but it is indicative of a pattern of behavior.

Shame on you Mr. President. Shame on you.

 

[queenlives]

from http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/16/obama.veterans/

"Flanked by Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, the president said his budget calls for a $25 billion increase in funding for the VA over the next five years -- a commitment that will be tested by the needs of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"With this budget, we don't just fully fund our Veterans Affairs health care program, we expand it to serve an additional 500,000 veterans by 2013," he said."

seems to me that shinseki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Shinseki) might be a good judge of issues that matter wrt veteran / VA-related issues. i'll hold off my blame/shame finger-pointing until he starts complaining publicly and says obama hates vets.

 

[FeetFxr]

The guy's got a lot of balls to juggle. Hopefully he's not doing it in the oval office like Monica did. :biggrin:


<img src=http://www.vincentchow.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/obama-balls.jpg>

 

[Dhalsim]

from http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/16/obama.veterans/

"Flanked by Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, the president said his budget calls for a $25 billion increase in funding for the VA over the next five years -- a commitment that will be tested by the needs of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"With this budget, we don't just fully fund our Veterans Affairs health care program, we expand it to serve an additional 500,000 veterans by 2013," he said."

seems to me that shinseki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Shinseki) might be a good judge of issues that matter wrt veteran / VA-related issues. i'll hold off my blame/shame finger-pointing until he starts complaining publicly and says obama hates vets.

Very nice Queenlives. Some people only want to see the bad and look for anything to criticize..........

 

[DrVolkl]

He's the commander in chief.

His decision to remove his coat in the oval office hardly compares to not paying respect to the men and women of the armed forces, esp. those whose actions warranted a CMH.

Shame on you Mr. President. Shame on you.

Shame on what? Do you know what the "Commander in Chief Ball" is for? Obviously not.

Come on guys...this is stupid. He went to 10 Balls that night...how can he hit every one? Obviously someone is going to be pissed, and 10-1 says it wasn't even his decision.

"President Obama became the first president to host the “Neighborhood Inaugural Ball” in fulfillment of his promise to make the celebration open and accessible to Americans.

Although President Obama was a no show, a World Net Daily January 24, 2009 article reported that the American Legion's media relations manager, Craig Roberts, said that Vice President Biden did make an appearance and was warmly received. Roberts went on to say, "The new President's absence was understandable considering the unprecedented logistical challenges presented by the vastly increased number of visitors to this inauguration and the necessary attendant security measures. The American Legion, as an organization, does not feel offended or 'snubbed.'"

Personally, I'm more concerned about the economy and the direction this country is headed.

 

[BD]

Still defending our newly elected kindergarten president?

 

[DrVolkl]

Still defending our newly elected kindergarten president?

If the American Legion doesn't feel "snubbed" why the hell should you? How many years did you spend in our military?

I'm more excited that the Dow is past 8000. Maybe I'll be able to get one of your exhausts if my stocks make a rebound. You should be more interested in that! :smile:

 

[Ko-nsx]

Still defending our newly elected kindergarten president?

:biggrin: he went to more balls than any president in history. He's a first grader now. get it right.:smile:

 

[exNSXer]

:biggrin: he went to more balls than any president in history. He's a first grader now. get it right.:smile:

Wow...first grader and a Harvard Law degree, we sure know how to pick em! Interesting how objective some of the people on this thread are.....you know who you are. cough....vance...cough.

 

[BD]

If the American Legion doesn't feel "snubbed" why the hell should you? How many years did you spend in our military?

I'm more excited that the Dow is past 8000. Maybe I'll be able to get one of your exhausts if my stocks make a rebound. You should be more interested in that! :smile:

The fact that they didn't feel "snubbed" shows how much class they have.

As for the Dow, let's hope it recover most of its lost by summer time. I can use some more business at my shop.

No hurry on the muffler, it is officially a regular production unit so no more urgency.

 

[NSXrebel]

If the American Legion doesn't feel "snubbed" why the hell should you? How many years did you spend in our military?

I'm more excited that the Dow is past 8000. Maybe I'll be able to get one of your exhausts if my stocks make a rebound. You should be more interested in that! :smile:

How many years did you serve in our military? I'm guessing most of you that think this is/was not important, have never served. I know there are bigger issues than this, but to chose to mingle with celebrities, instead of honoring our Veterans, especially Congressional Medal of Honor recipients, now that's just disrespectful.

 

[xknowonex]

I dont subscribe to exclusively to either iberalism nor conservatism as each side has their own fair share of bs. There is obviously a conservative slant here on Prime - or atleast the conservatives on here are more vocal - and I share many of their frustrations with things like trading carbon credits and CARB being nazis with the environment.

However, there are many on here that just nitpicks to the extreme.

Politics aside, Shinseki seems like a stand up guy with a solid background I hope he's able to do everything within his power to help out our vets.

 

[BD]

I dont subscribe to exclusively to either iberalism nor conservatism as each side has their own fair share of bs. There is obviously a conservative slant here on Prime - or atleast the conservatives on here are more vocal - and I share many of their frustrations with things like trading carbon credits and CARB being nazis with the environment.

However, there are many on here that just nitpicks to the extreme.

Politics aside, Shinseki seems like a stand up guy with a solid background I hope he's able to do everything within his power to help out our vets.

You got it all wrong. During the election, you see liberals attack all over the place. Bush haters every where.

Now Obama is screwing things up, disrespect every thing this nation is stood for, conscious moderate minded liberal who bought Obama as a "centrist" is staying out of the current discussions either because they're know a mistake was made or they're embarrassed about what his/her party is doing - While the conservatives speaks at the same volume.

Today, Obama basically made a point basically telling the world that we need to follow this "world law" and European Law should supersede the American Constitution. When people hear stuff like that and can't figure out what was he talking about should really do some study of our history.

Quit frankly, my negative feeling about Obama is deepened every more.

 

[xknowonex]

You got it all wrong. During the election, you see liberals attack all over the place. Bush haters every where.

Now Obama is screwing things up, disrespect every thing this nation is stood for, conscious moderate minded liberal who bought Obama as a "centrist" is staying out of the current discussions either because they're know a mistake was made or they're embarrassed about what his/her party is doing - While the conservatives speaks at the same volume.

Today, Obama basically made a point basically telling the world that we need to follow this "world law" and European Law should supersede the American Constitution. When people hear stuff like that and can't figure out what was he talking about should really do some study of our history.

Quit frankly, my negative feeling about Obama is deepened every more.

Vance, correct, liberals were as bad as with GW since his first inauguration.

To be honest, I opted out of the last election because I have alot of reservations about liberals in spite of having some liberal views on a few things myself.

I do have a couple of concerns and fears about where his administration is going. First, is the stimulus package. I don't want to turn start a classroom debate about Keynesian economics vs Friedman as I do believe that a stimulus is needed. What I am fearing that Obama got wrong was that he allowed everyone to slap on some pork onto the deal and omitted stuff that was parts that were promised such as cutting capital gains taxes.

My other issues with him is gun control and allowing environmentalists to make policies without analyzing the costs and benefits of them, especially during a recession, thus slowing down our recovery.

On the other side of the coin, I don't think he is as liberal as some say he is. Not that its a bad thing, but alot of liberals are disappointed at the money he is putting into the military and how he is increasing the troops in Afghanistan.

 

[DrVolkl]

How many years did you serve in our military? I'm guessing most of you that think this is/was not important, have never served. I know there are bigger issues than this, but to chose to mingle with celebrities, instead of honoring our Veterans, especially Congressional Medal of Honor recipients, now that's just disrespectful.

Again...do you know what the Commander in Chief Ball is for?

How dense are some of you? I bet none of you even knew there WAS a Medal of Honor ball or gave 2 shits about it until now.

Do you honestly think he made a conscious effort to skip the ball, or do you perhaps think there are other things going on here? Obviously one of his advisors decided there wasn't enough time or the logistics weren't right.

It's a damn party people... he missed a damn party. It doesn't mean he hates Medal of Honor recipients.

I would LOVE to hear how many of you that are "shamed" by this are active/participate/donate in/to your local American Legion ...or donate time/money/supplies to our soldiers. We have so many patriots in here....or at least those who like to talk the talk.

 

[NSXrebel]

Again...do you know what the Commander in Chief Ball is for?

How dense are some of you? I bet none of you even knew there WAS a Medal of Honor ball or gave 2 shits about it until now.

Do you honestly think he made a conscious effort to skip the ball, or do you perhaps think there are other things going on here? Obviously one of his advisors decided there wasn't enough time or the logistics weren't right.

It's a damn party people... he missed a damn party. It doesn't mean he hates Medal of Honor recipients.

Yes I know what the Commander in Chief ball is for. That's still no excuse for not being able to attend the ball for Medal of Honor recipients. Purple Heart recipients were at the CinC Ball, but last time I checked, the Medal of Honor was the highest decoration awarded and took precedence over any other award. He could have skipped one of the many other celebrity filled balls and honored Medal of Honor recipients.

 

[DrVolkl]

Yes I know what the Commander in Chief ball is for. That's still no excuse for not being able to attend the ball for Medal of Honor recipients. Purple Heart recipients were at the CinC Ball, but last time I checked, the Medal of Honor was the highest decoration awarded and took precedence over any other award. He could have skipped one of the many other celebrity filled balls and honored Medal of Honor recipients.

I guess my point is that I doubt it was a conscious effort to blow anyone off. I doubt he even had much say in his itinerary that night.

It's definitely not something to get up in arms over.... If it was Bush who missed the Ball I'd be saying the same thing. Obviously there are political overtones and mud slinging... people trying to make something more than it is.

Shall we list the other Balls that he didn't make it to that night? Do any of you even know what they are?

http://dc.about.com/od/specialevents/a/inauguralballs.htm

 

[TURBO2GO]

I was listening to a radio program the other day, on a conservative station mind you, and they had a guy on that was in charge of some veterans affairs. He went on and on about how it was a war to ever get any help from the government in the past few years... and that after the election, he was shocked because someone from the Obama administration called and asked how they could be of help to HIM. I wish I knew what the guy's position was but I assure you he was very high up. He was certainly happier with the new administration.