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Obama taps Hagel and Reed for overseas trip
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama expects to be accompanied on his battlefront tours of Iraq and Afghanistan by two fellow senators who are military veterans and often mentioned as potential running mates. Sens. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Jack Reed, D-R.I., are experts on foreign policy, Obama told reporters while flying to California late Saturday. Hagel served as an Army sergeant in Vietnam and was twice wounded in 1968, earning two Purple Hearts. Reed, a West Point graduate, was an Army Ranger and paratrooper.

"They reflect, I think, a traditional bipartisan wisdom when it comes to foreign policy. Neither of them are ideologues but try to get the facts right and make a determination about what's best for U.S. interests _ and they're good guys," Obama said.

Obama planned to visit Europe as well, and he told reporters that he hoped to resolve concerns expressed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel about using Brandenburg Gate as a backdrop for a speech in Berlin. Merkel questioned the propriety of a foreign political figure using such a historic backdrop as that former Communist demarkation point to deliver a campaign speech.

"I want to make sure that my message is heard as opposed to creating a controversy," Obama said. "So, you know, our goal is just for me to lay out how I think about the next administration's role in rebuilding a trans-Atlantic alliance, so I don't want the venue to be a distraction. What I want to do is just work with folks on the ground to find someplace that's appropriate."

In other remarks during his first conversation with his traveling press corps in five days, Obama said:

_There is "little doubt we've moved into recession," which he said underscores the need for a second economic stimulus package, swift steps to shore up the housing market and a long-term energy policy to reduce reliance on foreign oil.

_Removing U.S. forces from Iraq won't be "perfectly neat," adding that a call from Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for a withdrawal timetable supports his position more than the longer-term presence favored by rival John McCain or his fellow Republican, President Bush. Bush and the Arizona senator have chided Obama for proposing to withdraw U.S. forces within 16 months of taking office. McCain, a Vietnam War veteran, has even suggested it exhibits naivete by his rival, a freshman senator from Illinois.

"John McCain and George Bush both said that if Iraq, as a sovereign government, stated that it was time for us to start withdrawing our troops, then they would respect the wishes of that sovereign government," Obama told reporters as he flew from Chicago to California.

_He has been closely monitoring the financial health of mortgage providers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Concerns falling home values may require a government bailout prompted a Wall Street sell-off Friday before markets recovered. "There are a lot of different definitions of what a `bailout' would look like," Obama said. "There are issues related to the short-term liquidity _ can they borrow money? _ versus issues related to whether the underlying assets of the two corporations are really unsound. And I think we need to watch carefully and see how it plays out before we make a decision about which steps need to be taken."

_He hadn't spoken with the Rev. Jesse Jackson since the civil rights leader spoke into an open microphone that he wanted to castrate Obama for delivering a speech about fatherhood that Jackson thought spoke down to black men. "I had spoken to him before, a few days before what he said was released, and, we had actually discussed some of the concerns that he had raised about my fatherhood speech, and I told him that I absolutely believe that we have structural inequalities that have to be dealt with," the senator said.

Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC 2008-07-13
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=244167