Daily Planet Staff Report

Pundit and self-styled bipartisan political consultant Dick Morris — during an April 22 talk in Asheville — picked Barack Obama to top Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination for the presidency before a too-close-to-call primary to choose who faces presumptive GOP candidate John McCain.

However, Morris said both Obama and Clinton would severely damage the U.S. economy if their proposed policies, which he labeled ultra-liberal, are implemented.

The in-fighting between Obama and Clinton is proving damaging to both of them, while McCain “is going around the world, meeting people and looking presidential,” Morris said. He termed McCain “well-positioned.”

Morris, a former advisor to President Bill Clinton’s administration, has emerged as a harsh critic of the Clintons and has written several books that criticize them.

As an advisor, Morris encouraged the president to follow so-called third-way policies of triangulation, merging traditional Republican and Democratic ideas to achieve maximum political gain and popularity.

About 200 people attended Morris’ 45-minute analysis of the 2008 elections during a John Locke Foundation Headliner Luncheon at the Crowne Plaza Resort. He also fielded questions for 15 minutes.
Afterward, he signed copies of his books, including his latest, “Outrage: How Illegal Immigration, the United Nations, Congressional Ripoffs, Student Loan Overcharges, Tobacoo Companies, Trade Protection and Drug Companies Are Ripping Us Off.”

Morris was introduced by the JLF’s Chad Adams, who noted that he is the author of five New York Times bestsellers.

Adams added that Morris is a political analyst on television’s Fox News Channel and writes weekly columns for the New York Post and The Hill magazine and Canada’s National Post.

Regarding an impending campaign stop in Asheville by a certain Democratic presidential hopeful, Morris triggered laughter from the crowd when he quipped, “I’m part of Hillary Clinton’s advance team!”

He added, “Let’s get the small stuff out of the way — the primary today doesn’t matter. She’s going to win in Pennsylvania because all the really good people moved to North Carolina.”

Morris said Pennsylvia would favor Clinton because it is has one of the most elderly populations of any state and it only allows Democrats to vote in its primaries.

“She’ll win by five to 11 points, I predict,” he stated. “Big deal! It’s proportional representation,” so the winner would not win many delegates. (In the final Pennsylvania primary results, Clinton won by just under 10 points.)

 “Hillary will pick up maybe 16 extra delegates and close the gap to 161 to 142 — big deal!”

Later, he asserted, “When it’s all done, (Barack) Obama will have a lead of about 150 delegates. Then, it’s up to the superdelegates. They know that if they take away votes from the guy who won it, based on the delegates (count),” there would be an uproar within the Democratic Party. “They’re not going to do that. The superdelegates are not going to” change the outcome of the regular vote.

In Morris’ forecast, on June 15 the superdelegates will have to make up their minds and on June 16, “they will ask Clinton to drop out of the race.”

Regarding Clinton, he added, “Actually, her entire career, you could say was paying off her lawyers’ debt for her consultants’ debt.”

Further, he said, “Let me say I’m for Obama versus (John) McCain” for the presidential clash.

“It’s an extraordinary thing for Obama to be the Democratic candidate.”

First, he said, his nomination “would send a message to every black boy and girl that a black can be president” of the U.S.

Second, Morris asserted that dark-skinned people around the world would feel pride in Obama’s success, thereby spreading goodwill toward the U.S.

“I’d rather have Obama as president than the (U.S.) Navy in Iran.”

With a grin, he added, “Can you imagine what it would say to have a man whose father was a Muslim and whose middle name is Hussein as president of the United States?”

On the other hand, Morris said there also would be a downside to have Obama at the helm, including raising the income tax and the capital gains tax.

Regarding the capital gains tax, one questioner noted that the last time they were raised, tax revenue fell 50 percent, but Obama “said he would support it — out of fairness ... Fairness means he’ll soak people, even if it hurts the economy.”

The likely increases will become effective, beginning next Jan. 1, “so November and December will be horrific for real estate and stocks.” Regarding an anticipated devastating attack on America, Morris said, “It won’t be cause by Saddam Hussein, but by Barack Hussein Obama” via the economic cataclysm his various policies will cause.

Morris reviewed other taxes and the elimination of loopholes in which “you’re talking about a 60 percent (tax) bracket and the choking of the entrepreneurial spirit” of the U.S. under Obama.

With one of the lowest tax rates in the world today, Morris contended, the U.S. has among the highest growth rates of any economy.

“Besides everything else, the most serious thing Barack Obama would affect is the health-care system in the United States.

Morris contended that one-third of all U.S. health-care costs goes to illegal immigrants. “In any case, on the altar of covering all Americans, which really means covering illegal immigrants,” Obama will damage the system.

While he said 250 million Americans now get health care benefits, under the Obama plan, 300 million would be covered. “With this extra 50 million, the system will be stretched ... As you know, when demand exceeds supply, prices go up ... What will happen is rationing of health care in the United States, under government control.”

He added, “McCain’s view is perfectly reasonable,” which he summarized as: “‘Yeah, I want to cover the extra 50 million — or at least the 30 million who are here legally.”

After another pause, Morris asserted, “I think the best health care system in the world will be sacrificed on the altar of Obama.”

He then turn to the issue of illegal wiretapping, noting that that  is practiced by the government when it hopes to stop lawbreakers and lock them up before they commit a heinous act, or to prosecute them.
In general, Morris said, “The criminal justice system is designed explicitly to punish people after criminal behavior, but there’s nothing to stop them in advance.”

He asked, rhetorically, “What will happen if liberals have their way on this?”

He then referred to the Terrorist Notification Requirement of 2007 in the Patriot Act, which requires 30 days, while Obama and Clinton voted for seven days.

“Liberals talk about libraries need to be kept secret,” but “there was a (terrorist) plan to blow up downtown London. After a tip, the mastermind,” who was in the New York Public Library, was traced, captured nd sent back to London for prosecution and the plan was thwarted.

“The Republican Party is a group of people dedicated to doing certain things and they tend to agree on everything — or you’re (labeled) a Democrat.” Morris contended that becoming a Republican requires an intellectual process.

In contrast, he said Democrats tend to be a product of demographics.

“You’re born a Democrat and think yourself into a Republican,” he said.

Changing subject, Morris said he was asked on the Sean Hannity Show the previous night how he could work for Bill Clinton. The crowd laughed at his answer, “When I took the job, I didn’t realize I’d be taking on his heirs and assumptions, especially Hillary.”

To Morris, the U.S. needs to get rid of welfare, balance the budget and cut the crime rate.

He added, “The deficit is under 3 percent of GDP (gross domestic product), which is the standard no European country can meet ... Once the war goes away, the deficit goes away.”

He noted the irony that “crime is down 50 percent (in the U.S.) because the prison population is doubled.”

“The issues people are concerned about are associated with the Democratic Party ... The Republican issues have dwindled because of our success with them ... By his own success, (President George) Bush has extinguished much of his mandate.

“Only 2 percent of Americans think terrorism is a major issue — I happen to disagree with the other 99 percent!”

“The biggest issue in education is the teachers’ union,” which, he contended, maintains an iron grip on keeping unqualified teachers and fighting change in schools.

“So the conservatives have really succeeded in developing an answer on education, via charter schools, vouchers” and other innovations.

For the Republicans, “The biggest problem is capturing the Hispanic vote,” Morris said, noting that 6 percent of the electorate was the Democrat-leaning Hispanic in 1996, 8 percent in 2000, 10 percent in 2004 and 12 to 13 percent projected in 2008.

What’s more, he said, in 2020 the Hispanic vote will be 18 to 20 percent of the total.

He also said the solidly Democrat black vote, which is 12.5 percent of the total now, will be 14 percent in 2020.

“If you’re talking about one-third of the vote going to Democrats like a golf handicap, and young, single women tending to vote Democratic” because of health-care concerns, “then you need a 2-1 margin of the white vote” to win an election, Morris said. “Half of Bush’s (victory) margin was because of the Hispanic vote.”

On his final topic, Iran, Morris said, “I believe Iran is the most serious foreign policy problem we’re facing ... Our pension systems own stocks in those (oil) companies (in Iran) — and we can do something about it.”
He also noted that Iranian oil production will be cut in half by 2011. He projected that “by 2014, Iran will be an oil importer.”

“About 60 percent of Iran’s population is under (age) 30 — they don’t like the ayatolla and the theocracy.”
Morris said he was shocked when Obama and Clinton were asked during a recent CNN debate if they would aid Iran.

He then noted that Dubai was among the three Middle East countries that gave Bill Clinton money.

“Is Mrs. Clinton really willing to trade New York for Dubai?” he asked. “If Iran attack Dubai, the U.S. would attack Iran and risk New York” suffering a nuclear attack?