A Tired Obama Brings It Back to Hillary's 'Washington Tactics'
LEXINGTON, S.C. -- Barack Obama, on his third of four campaign stops today in South Carolina, is looking laid-back but a bit beat here at the Lexington Municipal Complex. (It's 6:30 p.m.; 24 hours ago, he was preparing for the Myrtle Beach debates, and this morning he began clear across the state from there, working his way back south-east today. His final stop will be in (allegedly!) an hour with…Usher.
(Yes, Usher Raymond. And Kerry Washington, who is, umm, of acting fame.)
He went on nearly 90 minutes late; the crowd did not seem to mind waiting. But when he did get there, he had a difficult time finding his way into a groove; it sounds to me that there are some little added sections to his talk that stress the economy. (Polls say! Voters more worried about economy than war!)
Over the last year, his speeches have gone from long-winded paragraphs with no room for laughter or applause to shorter, more organized talks that satisfy audiences and allow them to become emotionally involved.
But tonight he had to tell the audience when to clap. While the section of the speech that praised the sacrifice of soldiers is a no-brainer for any candidate as an applause line, he didn't deliver it that way, and so when two or three people cautiously applauded, he got it, and said, "That's worth applauding" and waited. And at first, he was giving up a lot more "umms" -- sometimes more than two per sentence.
But he warmed up fast. The middle of the speech is familiar territory:
For example, his line about how countries should talk to their enemies as well as their friends. The audience got jazzed as he hit his stride; they clapped for everything, including the closing of Guantanamo.
"Just the same old Washington tactics," he said of the debate scuffle with Hillary Clinton last night. And then he repeated this story:
"I, uh, I was amused in a previous debate where Senator Cllinton voted for a bankruptcy bill.... and Senator Clinton had said 'Well I voted for it but I hoped it wouldn't pass... That is typical of how Washington operates and that is why you are so cynical about our government," he said.
So, he said, he had experience with real people. "I don't mean that kind of experience," he said, and singled out people who do "poll-testing [of] every position." He was done shortly thereafter--at eight minutes to seven, and took questions, asking in particular for questions from undecided voters.
Guess what came up? "The Clintons have been using my remark about Ronald Reagan to beat me over the head," he somehow got to say. Also all those "scurrilous emails" about him being a Muslim.
www.johnedwards.com, Edwards received the highest form of support any of these candidates could have HOPED for!!
you can find this letter in origonal form, scanned and posted at Edwards site.
January 20, 2008
The Honorable John R. Edwards
410 Market Street
Suite 400
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
Dear Senator Edwards:
It was good meeting with you yesterday and discussing my father's legacy. On the day when the nation will honor my father, I wanted to follow up with a personal note.
There has been, and will continue to be, a lot of back and forth in the political arena over my father's legacy. It is a commentary on the breadth and depth of his impact that so many people want to claim his legacy. I am concerned that we do not blur the lines and obscure the truth about what he stood for: speaking up for justice for those who have no voice.
I appreciate that on the major issues of health care, the environment, and the economy, you have framed the issues for what they are - a struggle for justice. And, you have almost single-handedly made poverty an issue in this election.
You know as well as anyone that the 37 million people living in poverty have no voice in our system. They don't have lobbyists in Washington and they don't get to go to lunch with members of Congress.
Speaking up for them is not politically convenient. But, it is the right thing to do.
I am disturbed by how little attention the topic of economic justice has received during this campaign. I want to challenge all candidates to follow your lead, and speak up loudly and forcefully on the issue of economic justice in America.
From our conversation yesterday, I know this is personal for you. I know you know what it means to come from nothing. I know you know what it means to get the opportunities you need to build a better life. And, I know you know that injustice is alive and well in America, because millions of people will never get the same opportunities you had.
I believe that now, more than ever, we need a leader who wakes up every morning with the knowledge of that injustice in the forefront of their minds, and who knows that when we commit ourselves to a cause as a nation, we can make major strides in our own lifetimes. My father was not driven by an illusory vision of a perfect society. He was driven by the certain knowledge that when people of good faith and strong principles commit to making things better, we can change hearts, we can change minds, and we can change lives.
So, I urge you: keep going. Ignore the pundits, who think this is a horserace, not a fight for justice. My dad was a fighter. As a friend and a believer in my father's words that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, I say to you: keep going. Keep fighting. My father would be proud.
Sincerely,
Martin L. King, III
Barack should insist more on healthcare and respond to the attacks on his plans.
I cannot understand why Hillary uses her 'experience' in healthcare, saying she will learn from the mistakes.
Imagine a patient, needing surgery, going to the surgeon and asking: 'are you capable of doing this?" and the surgeon saying: "Of course, I'm the best you will find, because the other time I did it, the patient died, and I learned so much of that experience"
LOL! Very true...
http://www.observer.com/2008/february-5-obama
Obama 08' !
Obama is screwed.
http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/01/pundits_deal_from_the_race_dec.html
Here are the cliff notes for any Obama speech:
- (Vague promises of change)....yadda. yadda. yadda.
- They said it couldn't be done.
- YOU!!!!! *points at wife*
- We must all work together.
- War bad. Economy bad. I will fix them.
Thanks to me, you never need to hear him speak again. I summed it all up.