Candidate Enorsement, Annex 3

From the panhandle of Florida (!) here is the Pensacola News-Journal. By the way, they say Palin is appalling and that Obama is the man for the times:

Since August, the two have taken different paths. Obama has shown himself to be a leader, with policies and vision that should resonate with Northwest Florida voters specifically, and all Americans in general. McCain has floundered, unable to stick to any clear direction.

The Editorial Board feels the choice is clear: Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois is our recommendation for president of the United States.

We have watched Obama run an impressive campaign, responsive to the unfolding economic crisis, while McCain's offers little more than that he is not George Bush.

Obama has attracted some of the country's brightest minds, including investor Warren Buffett, Google CEO Eric Schmidt, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, and Paul Volcker, who was reappointed as chairman of the Federal Reserve by Ronald Reagan. McCain populated his campaign with Washington lobbyists.

McCain then raised questions about his judgment in his selection of an unqualified running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who, while energizing the "base,'' has been a flop with most voters outside of what she recklessly calls the "pro-American'' parts of our country.

And so we ask: Where is the McCain who warned that President Bush's tax cuts, without spending cuts, risked creating the deficits that followed? He now embraces them. Where is the McCain who once spoke with authority and reason on immigration reform?

"We do not torture,'' John McCain famously, and courageously, said. But he now supports a presidential veto of an anti-torture law.

Meanwhile, it is Barack Obama who has become the leader. His tax cut, according to a non-partisan tax group, will reach 81 percent of Americans. Those earning between roughly $37,000 and $66,000 — a pay grade familiar to many in our area — will see an estimated $1,118 in tax savings.

Both support strong climate change initiatives, but while both support expanded offshore drilling, Obama is much more aggressive about promoting the renewable energy needed to reduce our dependency on oil — a dependency we can't sate through drilling.

Obama is even more aggressive than McCain about the need to pursue Osama bin Laden across the Pakistani border.

But our recommendation is more than just a vetting of policy and issues. We believe Obama is better prepared to take on the future. In a world that is increasingly "flat," it is Obama who understands it better: from the economy, to conflict, to technology, to holding American values dear so that our country can, once again, be the moral beacon for the world.

John McCain spent much of the 20th century serving our nation well. We owe him our gratitude.

But Barack Obama is best suited to meet the challenges of the 21st.