Somehow I missed this one last week, but Fox News and the Heritage Foundation are both making some hay of it: As a senator, in 2006, Barack Obama voted against raising the debt limit. The White House press secretary, Jay Carney, now says the president thinks that vote was a "mistake." Here's how Heritage puts it:
President Obama himself voted against raising the debt ceiling in 2006 saying: "The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure…Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better." First, the White House said he did so because he knew his vote wouldn't count. Courageous. Now, Obama conveniently says that vote was simply a mistake.
Whether he believed it or not, or was merely taking political cheap shots, Obama's rhetoric was closer to reality in 2006.