Gore-dorsement

I keep finding a lot of established Dems giving some of their best speeches endorsing Obama (see: Bill Richardson)



And here is the rest of it. Keep Reading (if there's more)...

Si, Se Puede!

Bill Richardson, '08 presidential candidate, Bill Clinton's Ambassador to the UN and later Secretary of Energy, and current Governor of New Mexico endorsed Obama today in a speech far more rousing than any I saw from him during the campaign (hey Bill - I like the beard too!) He was clearly inspired by Obama's speech earlier this week.


In a statement released earlier today, he said:

My affection and admiration for Hillary Clinton and President Bill Clinton will never waver. It is time, however, for Democrats to stop fighting amongst ourselves and to prepare for the tough fight we will face against John McCain in the fall...Barack Obama will be a historic and a great President, who can bring us the change we so desperately need by bringing us together as a nation here at home and with our allies abroad.

Also - significantly from the '08 Democratic candidate with some of the most extensive foreign policy - he takes on Hillary's "commander-in-chief" threshold argument:

"There is no doubt in my mind that Barack Obama has the judgment and courage we need in a commander in chief when our nation's security is on the line," Richardson said. "He showed this judgment by opposing the Iraq war from the start, and he has shown it during this campaign by standing up for a new era in American leadership internationally."

Full transcript of his speech here, and reporting on his endorsements here and here Keep Reading (if there's more)...

"I'm Here Because of Ashley"

If you missed Obama's speech, or only saw soundbites on TV, watch it here:



And/or read it here. I have to admit I got a little misty at the end.
And here is the rest of it. Keep Reading (if there's more)...

Punch/Counter-Punch

In a speech today on Iraq, Hillary Clinton said the following:
"Senator Obama holds up his original opposition to the war on the campaign trail, but he didn't start working aggressively to end the war until he started running for president. So when he had a chance to act on his speech, he chose silence instead." And implied that Obama would be dependent on advisors, and won't match "words with actions."

Obama's campaign produced a video response:



Whether the vote was a vote for war or not I recapped in this post, along with headlines from that day.

I myself would add: Hillary herself not only was originally for the war, but only came out strongly for withdrawal in the midst of democratic primary, when it was necessary to do so.
Keep Reading (if there's more)...

As somebody "who has little pieces of America all in me"

Obama on identity politics, Rev. Wright, Robert Kennedy and what his campaign is about:

For more including Andrew Sullivan's great commentary click below!

Full transcript of speech here. Andrew Sullivan writes:

You also have a choice: to believe that this is a sincere message given by a sincere person; or a phony message delivered by a fraud. The only way to really know which is to look at his record. It seems to me that Obama has been motivated by the same themes from the very start, and still offers the same hope of unity that has been the core of his campaign for president from the beginning.

Those who ask questions and seek answers about the influence of Wright are doing their democratic duty. It is equally Obama's duty to answer them as candidly and respectfully and precisely as possible. But those who do not want to hear an answer that gives hope and reconciles our divisions are betraying themselves and this country's potential. Reveling in cynicism and partnisanship is the act of those who truly do not love America.

Keep Reading (if there's more)...

You're the Inspiration

Robert Reich, a member of Bill Clinton's Cabinet and long time friend of the former President, posts on his blog about Obama, Clinton, JFK & RFK:

...[Obama's] appeal is for more civic engagement, not necessarily more government. He has the voice and wields the techniques of a community organizer (which he was on the streets of Chicago), asking people to join together, calling the nation to form a more perfect union. Not since the sixties has America been so starkly summoned to its ideals. Not since then has America-- including, especially, the nation's youth --been so inspired....
...Neither John F. Kennedy nor his brother Robert were idealists. They were realists who understood the importance of idealism in the service of realism. They grasped the central political fact that little can be achieved in Washington unless or until the public is energized and mobilized to push for it; the status quo is simply too powerful. The ideals they enunciated helped mobilized the nation politically. That mobilization contributed to the subsequent passage of civil rights and voting rights laws, Medicare, and environmental protection. For purposes of practical electoral strategy as well as high-minded moral aspiration, they never tired of reminding the nation of its founding principles -- most fundamentally, that all men are created equal.

Oh, and yes, the title of this post is a Chicago reference.

Keep Reading (if there's more)...

Wordly Wise

Chicago Tribune assesses the claim that Obama is just about words -

In fact, read side-by-side with the other candidates' current stump speeches, the Obama script makes at least as many references to policy proposals as do theirs. Kindly put, though, those ideas aren't the crowd-pleasing part of his presentation. 

Though if you got trapped watching his speech after winning in Wisconsin, you already knew this - the hard way! 

Keep Reading (if there's more)...

Not Just Talk

Increasingly I've been hearing from people who feel Obama is good at giving an inspirational speech, but only talks in generalities. This is not true - his policies are thorough and considered. For instance, check out this great recent speech on his economic policy. I've already partially discussed this in an earlier post: Sure Sounds Nice But Where's the Beef? where Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz discusses an Obama speech that was filled with policy proposals:

How, then, has Obama been saddled with an image of being long on inspiration and short on details? The answer is that journalists are not accustomed to covering a candidate who moves crowds the way Obama does, who uses speech cadences and rhythm like Martin Luther King Jr. without making his talk explicitly about race. Sen. Clinton already owned the policy-wonk slot, so by default, Obama was cast as the poetic one.

Though I think there are certain reasons this concern is resurgent at the moment. First off, it happens to be the new Clinton (and now, McCain) campaign talking point - Obama's all talk, we're solutions. Secondly, I think the problem is that the most immediately appealing thing about Obama are his speeches, which are often shown decontextualized in clip form, or in the form of an "inspirational" music video like the "Yes We Can" clip. Initially I found myself thinking reacting the same way: I like what he says, but "change" is a rather vague message. Although I appreciate his ability to stir emotions, I distrust someone who ONLY plays on our emotions. But looking into his policies, looking at who advises him, comparing his approach to Clinton's I know that there is real intellectual acumen and a fresh pragmatic approach behind his message: its not all talk. Keep Reading (if there's more)...

Sure Sounds Nice But Where's the Beef?

Ok, another issue people have with Obama is they think he makes good speeches, but they ask where are his actual policies - what will he actually do? Howard Kurtz's article from today's Washington Post discusses this (I will quote):

One media narrative that seems to be taking root is of Obama as the candidate of lofty rhetoric and Clinton as the maven of pedestrian policy talk. At a rally at Furman University here Tuesday, Obama brought the audience to several peaks, raising his voice over the applause while describing how his days as a community organizer "taught me that ordinary people can do extraordinary things" and how "the dream that so many generations fought for feels like it is slipping away."

But the address was saturated with proposals. Obama called for tax rebates; a one-time boost in Social Security checks; extending unemployment insurance; mortgage aid for those facing foreclosure; raising the minimum wage; protecting pensions; and college tuition credits. And that was before he got to his support for solar and wind power and biodiesel fuel. (There was no discussion of how he would pay for all this, other than to say his health-care plan would be partly financed by ending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans.)

How, then, has Obama been saddled with an image of being long on inspiration and short on details? The answer is that journalists are not accustomed to covering a candidate who moves crowds the way Obama does, who uses speech cadences and rhythm like Martin Luther King Jr. without making his talk explicitly about race. Sen. Clinton already owned the policy-wonk slot, so by default, Obama was cast as the poetic one.

Substantively, Obama's positions and policy proposals are not really very different then Clinton's. Of course for either candidate the policies they propose and what eventually would get passed through congress during their prospective presidencies will likely bare little resemblance to one another.

(brought to my attention by friend of the blog/Obama-spiration Justin Neely of Think Obama) Keep Reading (if there's more)...

Obama's South Carolina Victory Speech

Obama doesn't always come off his best in the debates  and if you're just watching the evening news or catching a bit on CNN or the Daily Show, you don't really get a sense of how great or inspiring a speaker he is. This was a great speech he made after winning a "rout" (as the AP called in) in South Carolina. Give it the time to check it out or read it (other of his speech highlights, some of which I like even more, linked below):

Transcript of Speech (CNN)

Other Speeches:
Ebenezer Church (the day before MLK day) - MY FAV:

Iowa Victory Speech

'04 Democratic Convention Keynote - "The Audacity of Hope" Part 1
'04 Democratic Convention Keynote - "The Audacity of Hope" Part 2

Keep Reading (if there's more)...