Obama supporters! - A positive place to talk about his campaign

[wvrevy]

A couple quotes I'm liking today:

"I saw the ads" — the negative man-on-street commercials that the Clinton campaign put up in Pennsylvania in the wake of Obama's bitter/cling comments a week ago — "and I was appalled, frankly. I thought it represented the nadir of mean-spirited, negative politics. And also of the politics of distraction, of gotcha politics. It's the worst of all worlds. We have three terrible traditions that we've developed in American campaigns. One is outright meanness and negativity. The second is taking out of context something your opponent said, maybe inartfully, and blowing it up into something your opponent doesn't possibly believe and doesn't possibly represent. And third is a kind of tradition of distraction, of getting off the big subject with sideshows that have nothing to do with what matters. And these three aspects of the old politics I've seen growing in Hillary's campaign. And I've come to the point, after seeing those ads, where I can't in good conscience not say out loud what I believe about who should be president. Those ads are nothing but Republicanism. They're lending legitimacy to a Republican message that's wrong to begin with, and they harken back to the past twenty years of demagoguery on guns and religion. It's old politics at its worst — and old Republican politics, not even old Democratic politics. It's just so deeply cynical." ------- Former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich on his decision to endorse Barack Obama

"What he's going to do in this campaign is focus on what's important to the American people, on the jobs and the education. That's what the American people care about. They want to move into the future. They don't want to be diverted by side issues, and they're not going to let the Republican attack machine divert them." -----George Stephanopoulos in 1992 while campaigning for Bill Clinton

"John McCain is older than FM Radio, the Golden Gate Bridge, plutonium, McDonalds, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Iceland...among many other things." ------- The website "Younger than McCain"

 

[rascalmom]

This is good.

SAM NUNN & DAVID BOREN ENDORSE BARACK OBAMA!

I lurk on the political threads - as I am still undecided. If there were such a thing as a liberal Republican, that would be me - so there really isn't a candidate whose positions I agree upon.....but this endorsement gets my attention. I mostly differ from the Republicans on social issues - but McCain's stance on Iraq is a complete turn-off to me.

I'm registered Republican, but David Boren is very well-respected in my state. I have two good friends who have worked for him over the years that he was in the Senate. He is a Democrat that I respect and admire. Clinton carried the primary here, but this will put Obama in a new light around these parts.

 

[Honu]

I lurk on the political threads - as I am still undecided. If there were such a thing as a liberal Republican, that would be me - so there really isn't a candidate whose positions I agree upon.....but this endorsement gets my attention. I mostly differ from the Republicans on social issues - but McCain's stance on Iraq is a complete turn-off to me.

I'm registered Republican, but David Boren is very well-respected in my state. I have two good friends who have worked for him over the years that he was in the Senate. He is a Democrat that I respect and admire. Clinton carried the primary here, but this will put Obama in a new light around these parts.

That's great to hear. Thanks for the insight into your community.

 

[chris1gill]

I lurk on the political threads - as I am still undecided. If there were such a thing as a liberal Republican, that would be me - so there really isn't a candidate whose positions I agree upon.....but this endorsement gets my attention. I mostly differ from the Republicans on social issues - but McCain's stance on Iraq is a complete turn-off to me.

I'm registered Republican, but David Boren is very well-respected in my state. I have two good friends who have worked for him over the years that he was in the Senate. He is a Democrat that I respect and admire. Clinton carried the primary here, but this will put Obama in a new light around these parts.

My husband is an Independent that has always gone Republican, he's voting Obama based on Iraq and based on economic issues..... I'm an Independent that has almost always leaned Democratic I'm obviously voting for Obama should he get the nom.

 

[bimshire]

This is good.

SAM NUNN & DAVID BOREN ENDORSE BARACK OBAMA!

This is excellent for Obama. These two are highly respected and come from the more conservative side of Democrats.

 

[jme829]

I assume you're talking to me "robinb" and not "robinrs" . To answer your question ... YES. I would still vote FOR Hillary and not just AGAINST McCain. I can cheerfully say the same thing for Obama.

I personally think that "going negative" is in the eye of the beholder. I think that some (yes, that dreaded word "some") Obama supporters will nit-pick every single little thing that Hillary says or does and just for the chance to scream "NEGATIVE!" at the top of their lungs. It just wears on me and when I might be able to work up a little bit of outrage over a true "negative" comment but I have heard "wolf" cried too many times to really pay attention to any of it.

I have also noticed that when Obama says something negative about Hillary there seems to be no outrage on this thread. I totally understand that it's hard to find fault in your own candidate it just seems a little hypocritical to attack Clinton at every turn for something and give your own candidate a free pass.

But that "free pass" for your own candidate is the very nature of politics. As is negative campaigning. Let's face it ... they are both politicians and they will do what politicians do to win. As their supporters, we will look the other way or make excuses for them when it comes to things that we don't like.

OOOPs yep, I meant you...sorry...to many Robins on the boards!! lol

I do get what you are saying. I'll admit, I don't see it as much in Obama. When I personally have seem him negative, it has been him responding to Clinton's negative tactics against him. I honestly don't remember him "throwing the first punch" if you will. Does't mean he hasn't been negative, I just don't see it as much as I do in Clinton, maybe I am biased, I don't know, but thats just what I have noticed.

And I understand it is the nature of the political beast. I know that they both have an agenda to get elected. Some negativity is to be expected. I guess just this constant rehashing of every little trivial, insignificant thing from her is getting really old really quick... for example, when I am paying more than double to fill my gas tank than I was 7 years ago, a candidate not wearing a flag pin or trying to prove who is more patriotic isn't a real concern for me.

THanks to all of you for your insight, I really was being curious. Because of your posts and logic, I may reconsider voting if she gets the nom, although it honestly will be more as against McCain, instead of for her.

AlthOOOoughhhhhh, Obama's going to be the nominee, so I guess its a moot point.

 

[NewJersey]

This is excellent for Obama. These two are highly respected and come from the more conservative side of Democrats.

Agreed - great endorsements.

How about this poll from Newsweek?

THE NUMBERS
Barack Obama, 54 percent
Hillary Rodham Clinton, 35 percent

National polls are moot but this was taken after the debate and I think shows the perceived movement towards Obama as the nominee.

 

[chris1gill]

So those real people who are active within the Democratic party are to blame for Hillary not doing better early on... Got it... Nice to pretty much discount 3.2 million people or so, but it's okay.

Clinton Slams Democratic Activists At Private Fundraiser on Audio
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/celeste-fremon/clinton-slams-democratic_b_97484.html

This from the candidate that claims she doesn't whine....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XX08McRPHI

 

[chris1gill]

The most inspiring thing happened this evening...

Taken with pictures from: http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/04/philly_ignites_for_obama.php

PHILADELPHIA -- It wasn't so much that Barack Obama had real fight in him tonight, or that more people attended his rally in front of Independence Hall than any other event since he announced his candidacy. It was the spontaneous demonstration of support that happened when it ended.

5,000 people (at least) had nowhere to go but up Market Street. Obama's charge of the night: "Declare independence!" was with them. They started with the familiar "O-Bam-A." By 7th and Market, they had graduated to "Yes we can!" By 10th and Market, with hundreds streaming in between cars on the road, they were just cheering. At first, a few Philly cops, killjoys, tried to rough the crowd to the sidewalks. It didn't work. The cops retreated to the sidewalks. By the time I ducked into my hotel, a full mile away from Independence Park, the Obama crowd was still marching.

The headlines Obama intended to generate were as follows: first, the secondary point, so reporters can write that Obama looked forward to the general election: John McCain is man who deserves respect. "But the change this country needs will not come rom a third George W. Bush term. And what is exactly what his campaign is offering. John McCain is offering four more years of a war with no exit strategy, a war with no end in sight, a war that is sending our troops on their thid, fourth and fifth tours of duty." Four good measure, Obama repeated the disputable claim that McCain saw "great progress" from seven and a half years of George W. Bush's" economic program.

The main headline was -- is -- a series of non-wimpy, crisply delivered, very direct digs at Hillary Clinton. Obama started this riff, but aware that the crowd was still thinking about McCain, paused, then said,"Listen up you guys."

Quiet.

Hillary Clinton "is a tenacious campaigner and is a committed public servant," he began. (Boos. I mean, Obama could have said the same thing about Brownie.) But her message, he said, is "that we can't really change the say anything, do anything special interest game of so we might as well choose a candidate who knows how to play the game." He mocked her "kitchen sink strategy." Then he said, "I'm not running to be the president who plays the same old game. I'm running to end the game."

"This year we can’t afford the same old politics. This year we can declare our independence from this kind of politics."

The metaphor was labored, but, I mean -- how could you not use it? (To those of us who're watching John Adams on HBO, we can envision George Washington giving his second inaugural addresson on the second floor balcony of Independence Hall -- all of this visible to Obama and to the press, it was -- sorry VandeHarris, a little eerie.)

An Obama aide sized the crowd at about 40,000. It was probably was a little bit less, but a senior campaign official said it was the biggest the campaign had ever seen.

As usual, about 3,000 guests directly in front of Obama were sent through magnetometers and enclosed by metal barriers. Another 25,000 crowded Independence Park; some even listened from a good three thousand feet away, well behind Independence Hall.

I counted at least a hundred Philadelphia police officers. There were state troops. TSA personnel magging the crowd. A helicopter hovered over the square. The fire department set up a command post with extra medical supplies. It was some way to start Obama's final Pennsylvania push.

 

[pr surfer]

I just got home... exhausted. Tomorrow I've been asked to participate in a televised roundtable discussion on Univision PR.. argh

 

[chris1gill]

I just got home... exhausted. Tomorrow I've been asked to participate in a televised roundtable discussion on Univision PR.. argh

That's exciting!!! Good luck, let us know how it goes!

 

[zulaya]

Reading that story about the crowd around Independence Hall is just one more reason why I think Obama is going to be successful.

This candidate has some sort of gift to inspire all these people. As a nation, I hope we do not miss this opportunity to elect this man to lead our nation.

Can you imagine a respected POTUS? I don't mean to say this to fan flames. I mean, to have someone worthy of the respect of not only American citizens, but people around the world.

I look at all the support Obama has garnered, thinking especially about Sam Nunn and David Boren, and see such huge possibilities. I admit to not knowing much about these gentlemen except what I read yesterday, though Sam Nunn's name was more familiar to me. We've all seen the talk about how Obama is too liberal. And here he has two middle of the road, maybe slightly conservative, Democratic names on his side.

He is surrounding himself with the people who can help him effect a change that we truly need in this country.

I know, I'm preaching to the choir.

I'm not sure if I should be glad I'm not working Tuesday night. I'll probably be glued to this thread and the internet to see how PA is going. I'm hopeful for a surprising finish.

 

[LuvDuke]

So those real people who are active within the Democratic party are to blame for Hillary not doing better early on... Got it... Nice to pretty much discount 3.2 million people or so, but it's okay.

Clinton Slams Democratic Activists At Private Fundraiser on Audio
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/celeste-fremon/clinton-slams-democratic_b_97484.html

This from the candidate that claims she doesn't whine....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XX08McRPHI

Hillary's campaign was going great guns until the first vote was cast.

Damned voters got in the way of her plans.

 

[NewJersey]

Hillary's campaign was going great guns until the first vote was cast.

Damned voters got in the way of her plans.

All I can say is "THANK YOU IOWA!"

 

[Honu]

More from last night at Independence Hall

​

 

[Honu]

I just got home... exhausted. Tomorrow I've been asked to participate in a televised roundtable discussion on Univision PR.. argh

Awesome. Generation Obama! You'll do GREAT!

 

[NewJersey]

​

Love them! Thanks for sharing those.

35,000 in Philly. We have to win Philly and its suburbs by a large margin to keep it close!

 

[LuvDuke]

I would say this is close:

Pennsylvania Democratic Presidential Primary

Pennsylvania: Clinton 47% Obama 44%

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/pub.../pennsylvania_democratic_presidential_primary

 

[zurgswife]

Last night was absolutley awsome. The diversity of the crowd is what stood out to me the most. I had guess it was around 20,000 people then I saw the pictures when I got home and realized it was way more....

 

[PixieDust32]

I just got home... exhausted. Tomorrow I've been asked to participate in a televised roundtable discussion on Univision PR.. argh

I don't like Univision. They are Hillary's supporters 100%, I know Jorge Ramos is, but he wrote a fair articule about Barack.
Here is an articule from his website.


SUPER-OBAMA

Por Jorge Ramos Avalos


Febrero 25, 2008
Austin, Texas. No se puede medir pero se siente. Las dos mil personas en el auditorio de la Universidad de Texas le aplaudieron mucho más a Barack Obama que a Hillary Clinton. Al ver las reacciones que provoca, es inevitable sospechar que nos encontramos ante uno de esos fenómenos políticos que ocurren muy rara vez en la historia de un país.

Es cierto; la mayoría de los asistentes al debate presidencial copatrocinado por CNN y Univision eran jóvenes estudiantes –la base fundamental de votantes del senador de Illinois de 46 años. Pero para sus seguidores es, simplemente, Super-Obama, el candidato que no se puede equivocar y que viene a cambiar el mundo.

El entusiasmo por este delgadísimo político, de padre de Kenya y madre de Kansas, raya casi en el culto. Si Barack habla, le aplauden. Si toma agua, le aplauden. Y si estornuda, también le aplauden. No exagero: checa los videos en youtube.com
.
Esto explica, en parte, porque ha ganado las últimas 10 elecciones primarias del partido Demócrata y porque pudiera colgarse de la nominación presidencial si gana en Texas y Ohio el próximo martes 4 de marzo. Pero sería injusto decir que se trata, únicamente, de una cuestión de carisma, retórica e inspiración.

Su experiencia en el gobierno es mínima -4 años en el senado- si se le compara con la de cualquier otro precandidato presidencial. Sin embargo, es precisamente su poco bagaje y su frescura lo que lo convierte en un personaje tan atractivo para los votantes.

Barack –y a muchos resulta cómodo llamarlo por su primer nombre- parece no tenerle miedo a nada. Es un joven como cualquier otro. Y aunque está mucho más cercano a mi edad (49) lo siento perfectamente conectado a la generación de mi hija Paola (21).

Su mensaje es tan claro y sencillo que todo el mundo se lo sabe: cambio, cambio, cambio. Promete romper con el pasado y hacer puentes hacia el futuro y el resto del mundo. Su contrincante Hillary Clinton lo acusa de hablar mucho y de ofrecer pocas soluciones concretas. Y a los periodistas nos acusan por no presionarlo mas en las entrevistas y de ser demasiado complacientes con él.

La realidad es que Barack tiene un fino oído, sabe leer bien lo que quiere el país, y últimamente ha llenado sus discursos -¿sermones?- con muchos mas detallitos. A pesar de su fama de idealista, es un político fieramente pragmático. Hillary lo ataca y él, en lugar de contester el ataque, prefiere apuntar sus críticas al virtual candidato presidencial del partido Republicano, John McCain. Es una estrategia inteligente. Aunque todavía está lejos de la nominaciín, le está sugiriendo a los votantes: a Hillary ya le gane y ahora hay que apuntar en otra dirección.

Se nota que Barack ya está pensando en cómo ganarle a McCain. A pesar de ser uno de los senadores mas liberales del país, ahora se está yendo hacia el centro -donde está la mayoría de los votantes en unas elecciones generales- y está demostrando mucho mas cautela.

Tres ejemplos:

1-Dice que se reuniría, sin condiciones previas, con el nuevo líder de la dictadura cubana y que permitirá que los norteamericanos viajen a la isla y envíen más dinero. Pero no levantaría el largo embargo económico contra Cuba.

2-Dice que buscaría la legalización de los 12 millones de indocumentados durante su primer año de gobierno. Pero voto a favor de extender el muro en la frontera entre México y Estados Unidos.

3-Dice que sacaría a las tropas norteamericanas de Irak. Pero aprovecha cada oportunidad para resaltar el sacrificio y patriotismo de los soldados que luchan allá.

Resulta difícil de creer que en un país marcado por décadas de esclavitud, seguidas por décadas de segregación y racismo -y que aún se pelea todos los días contra la discriminación- el color de piel de Barack Obama ha pasado a ser un asunto secundario. Por eso la candidatura de Obama sugiere un nuevo clima de apertura en Estados Unidos. Y soy testigo de ese cambio.
Es verdad que la imagen de Estados Unidos está muy desgastada en el mundo por la innecesaria, costosa y violentísima guerra en Irak, y por las flagrantes violaciones a los derechos humanos en las cárceles de Abu-Ghraib y Guantánamo, entre muchos otros asuntos. Pero hay que reconocer un altísimo grado de apertura y tolerancia cuando un inmigrante, como yo, se puede presentar en un debate en televisión nacional a hacerle preguntas en inglés (y en espanglish) a los candidatos a la presidencia de Estados Unidos.
Hay vientos de cambio.