Obama Distances Himself From Clinton, on Her Turf Senator Barack Obama implored thousands of admirers who gathered last night in New York City to set aside their distrust in politics and believe in the long-term possibility of his presidential candidacy even though, he conceded, “there are easier choices to make in this election.”
In a giant rally in the backyard of Senator Hillary Rodham, Mr. Obama, of Illinois, drew distinctions between himself and his leading rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination, insisting that only a fresh candidate could truly change Washington. Twice, he singled out Mrs. Clinton.
“Even your senator from New York wasn’t clear about the Yankees,” he said, laughing at his own joke. “I know who I’m rooting for!”
Mr. Obama was referring to a moment in the debate Wednesday when Mrs. Clinton, who grew up in Illinois, said she would alternate sides between the New York Yankees and the Chicago Cubs should they ever face each other in a World Series. He broadened his criticism, suggesting voters should be dubious of any candidate who declined to acknowledge the prospect of raising taxes to fix Social Security.
Mr. Obama, bathed in bright flood lights as he stood on a stage before a crowd stretching across Washington Square Park, struck a sharper tone than he has through much of his campaign, particularly when he stands alongside his Democratic rivals. The arguments he made, before an audience of supporters, were not articulated during a debate one night earlier.
“There were folks on the stage that said Social Security is just fine, we don’t have to do anything about it,” Mr. Obama said last night. “There are those who will tell you that getting out of Iraq will be painless, we’ll do it in a snap, not acknowledging that there are no good options in Iraq. There are folks who will shift positions and policies on all kinds of things depending on which way the wind is blowing. That’s not the kind of politics that will deliver on the change we are looking for.”
The racially diverse crowd included Obama devotees who said they came specifically to increase attendance; Greenwich Village residents who had heard the commotion and followed it with dogs and yoga mats in tow; and nostalgists who beamed at the sight of thousands of mostly young people filling the park for a liberal, antiwar cause.
Though Mr. Obama and the other candidates have spent most of their time in the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire, the rally last night underscored efforts to look ahead to Feb. 5, when New York and 20 other states hold primaries. Mr. Obama has made at least 17 trips to New York City this year.
While Mrs. Clinton is expected to carry the state, Democrats split their delegates proportionally, so Mr. Obama believes he could win enough delegates to make a difference in a tight race.
“The challenge that we have today is restoring a sense that politics is not just a business, but that politics is a mission,” Mr. Obama said, “that power doesn’t have to always trump principle, that we can expect from our leaders that they are going to tell the truth and be honest about the problems that we face and they’re not going to equivocate and hedge and hem and haw.”
Initially, the crowds extended to the far borders of the park, massed behind metal detectors that were brought out for the first time in the 2008 campaign. Unable to hear the introductions, people started to leave. But after chants of “Let us in!” security gave up and the crowd filed in.
Mr. Obama’s aides said more than 20,000 people registered for the event through the campaign’s Web site. While it was impossible to determine even a reliable attendance estimate, view from the vantage point of an elevated lift seemed to reveal the gathering as one of the largest campaign events of the year.
Sophie Ragir, 18, a Columbia freshman, said, “It’s a social thing. Everyone on my floor was, like, are you going to the Obama thing?”
Leyla Biltsted, 60, who is retired and lives in Manhattan, said, “I’ve never heard such a wonderful visionary speech as he did at the Democratic convention. That brought me hope.” She added: “Now, I’m waiting to see what’s behind the vision, how he’s going to implement it, who he’s going to surround himself with. We don’t vote for a little while yet; I’m on a fishing trip.”
Friday, September 28, 2007
Obama Rally in NYC Attracts More than 20K People
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Hillary Flip-Flops on Torture
Her strategy is to diminish the differences between the two candidates, and blurring the distinction between the two. Even though there are great differences between Obama and Hillary. Then she can present herself as the candidate with the most "experience," even though her experience and her judgment are suspect. Obama has more years of elected experience than Ms. Clinton. And I don't see how eight years as First Lady constitutes experience.
One of the questions that was asked last night was whether torture is ever justified, and Tim Russert gave a "ticking time bomb" type of scenario.
Obama was the first to answer and replied that torture had no place in American policy. Hillary (of course) agreed with him.
After Hillary's response, Russert revealed that she was, in fact, contradicting her own husband. She sort of laughed it off and said she would speak with him later about the matter.
But, as this piece from the New York Daily News shows, Hillary was not only contradicting Bill. She's also contradicting herself and flip-flopping on the issue.
(This isn't the first time she's done this in the debates. In the debate on foreign policy where she called Obama "naive" about wanting to find Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan, turns out that she'd been on the record as having made previous statements that agreed with him. )
HANOVER, N.H. - Sen. Hillary Clinton scored with a Democratic audience last night by contradicting her husband's belief that a terrorist could be tortured to foil an imminent plot - but what observers didn't know is she was contradicting herself, too.
"It cannot be American policy, period," Clinton (D-N.Y.) told debate moderator Tim Russert, who asked if there should be a presidential exemption to allow the torture of a terror chieftain if authorities knew a bomb was about to go off, but didn't know where it was.
When Russert revealed ex-President Bill Clinton advocated such a policy on a recent NBC "Meet the Press" appearance, Hillary Clinton won huge applause from the Dartmouth College audience with a deadpan comeback:
"Well, I'll talk to him later."
She may have to give herself that talk, too.
Last October, Clinton told the Daily News: "If we're going to bepreparing for the kind of improbable but possible eventuality, then it has to be done within the rule of law."
She said then the "ticking time bomb" scenario represents a narrow exception to her opposition to torture as morally wrong, ineffective and dangerous to American soldiers.
"In the event we were ever confronted with having to interrogate a detainee with knowledge of an imminent threat to millions of Americans, then the decision to depart from standard international practices must be made by the President, and the President must be held accountable," she said.
Clinton's campaign did not immediately respond to numerous requests for comment on the eye-popping contradiction.
Read more here
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Democratic Presidential Debates Tonight
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
CNN Political Blog: The Hillary Factor
September 25, 2007
Watch John King's report about Hillary Clinton's electability and popularity.
WASHINGTON (CNN) – Will Hillary Clinton's unpopularity with Republicans motivate the Republican base if she is the Democratic party's presidential nominee? John King takes a look at this question and at some words of praise for Clinton from President Bush.
Obama Calls for More Accountability from Private Military Contractors
Many Americans were shocked to learn that the Blackwater private security firm is responsible for protecting many federal employees in Iraq. Many tasks that were formerly done by our Army is now done by these private contractors. (I believe the term that used to be used is "mercenaries" or "soldiers of fortune.")
Obama is once again standing steadfast in his call for honesty as to how our tax money is being spent. From the Des Moines Register:
In February, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., introduced legislation that would require more accountability and transparency regarding these contractors. Now he has filed it as an amendment to legislation on the Senate floor.
It should pass.
Tax dollars pay for contracts with private companies. And to Iraqis, the companies' workers represent the United States. Yet they're not accountable to American taxpayers - or even to Congress in some cases.
In a recent letter to U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Obama stated that "little is known about what functions these security contractors are performing, how much their services are costing, what military safety equipment they are provided, and what rules of engagement they are following."
Obama's legislation would require reporting on everything from the number of contracted workers killed to the disciplinary action taken against them.
"The bill would improve coordination between security contractors and U.S. armed forces by requiring the issuance of rules of engagement, clarify the legal status of contractors and require investigation of criminal misconduct engaged in by contractors," he wrote in the letter to Gates.
That makes sense.
According to the Government Accountability Office, 181 private-security companies with 48,000 employees were working in Iraq in March 2006. That's what happens when the size and structure of the U.S. military don't lend themselves to a protracted invasion of a foreign country.
But like military personnel, those contract workers are ultimately paid with public dollars. And to the eyes of the world, America is responsible for their actions. They must be accountable to the American public.
And in an article from The Hill:
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) has proposed clarifying that private contractors accused of misconduct can be tried under U.S. law and urging the Pentagon to pursue such civilian prosecution. Following a Sept. 16 shooting that infuriated the Iraqi government and got the contracting firm Blackwater USA briefly barred from the country, Senate aides are working on adding parts of Obama’s plan to the defense authorization bill.
Obama told Bush in a Monday letter that he should pin down information immediately on offenses committed by contractors.
“It is our government’s obligation to ensure that security contractors in Iraq are subject to adequate and transparent oversight and that their actions do not have a negative impact on our military’s efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Obama wrote.
His proposal also would require the Justice Department inspector general to report to Congress on the number of complaints it has received against private contractors, and the number of investigations opened and criminal cases pursued in response. Baghdad officials are investigating Blackwater’s actions in the Sept. 16 violence and other recent incidents that caused Iraqi civilian casualties, and the State Department launched its own probe late last week.
Obama told Bush he was “disturbed” by the Blackwater episode, which “raises larger questions about the role of private security contractors.”
Obama's Statement on the UAW Strike
Obama Statement on UAW Strike
Chicago, IL | September 24, 2007 Chicago, IL -- U.S. Senator Barack Obama today released the following statement on the United Auto Workers strike.
"I stand with the 73,000 United Automobile Workers who are striking General Motors. The demands the union is fighting for--job security, the health benefits they were promised--are things that all workers should expect and that UAW members deserve. General Motors owes it to the UAW to come back to the bargaining table so that union members can go back to work."
Obama's Statement on Ahmadinejad
Chicago, IL -- U.S. Barack Obama today released the following statement on Ahmadinejad's appearance at Columbia University in New York today.
"I would not have extended an invitation to give President Ahmadinejad another platform for his hateful rhetoric. Adolph Hitler was the worst mass murderer in the history of the world, and Ahmadinejad's denial of his crimes is offensive to Jews, to Americans, and to all people of goodwill. But this is America, and we should never be afraid to confront the ranting lies of dictators like Ahmadinejad with the power of truth and the strength of our own values. What Ahmadinejad will learn while he's here is that America is united in rejection of his hateful views, and in opposition to the Iranian government's support of terrorism and pursuit of nuclear weapons."
Second Life Debate Watching Party
Yes, we have campaign offices both in this world and in the virtual world as well. Check out the Obama campaign site in Second Life.
The avatar organizer of the Obama campaign there is Julles Bouchard. Tell her you're an Obama supporter and she'll hook you up.
On Wednesday, join everyone at the Capitol Hill sim to watch the Democratic debates. There will be plenty of seats. All parties are invited to join in, but it is an Obama-friendly crowd. Exact times will be announced on Second Life. Be sure to give yourself some extra time to get used to the system before the event.
Also, be sure to join the group "Second Lifers for Obama" on Barackobama.com
Barack in NYC on Thursday
Invite your friends! Click here to sign up.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Race and the GOP
The GOP has a long history of appeasing a far-right racist vote. From Paul Krugman in the New York Times:
But the reality is that things haven’t changed nearly as much as people think. Racial tension, especially in the South, has never gone away, and has never stopped being important. And race remains one of the defining factors in modern American politics.
Consider voting in last year’s Congressional elections. Republicans, as President Bush conceded, received a “thumping,” with almost every major demographic group turning against them. The one big exception was Southern whites, 62 percent of whom voted Republican in House races.
And yes, Southern white exceptionalism is about race, much more than it is about moral values, religion, support for the military or other explanations sometimes offered. There’s a large statistical literature on the subject, whose conclusion is summed up by the political scientist Thomas F. Schaller in his book “Whistling Past Dixie”: “Despite the best efforts of Republican spinmeisters to depict American conservatism as a nonracial phenomenon, the partisan impact of racial attitudes in the South is stronger today than in the past.”
Republican politicians, who understand quite well that the G.O.P.’s national success since the 1970s owes everything to the partisan switch of Southern whites, have tacitly acknowledged this reality. Since the days of Gerald Ford, just about every Republican presidential campaign has included some symbolic gesture of approval for good old-fashioned racism.
Thus Ronald Reagan, who began his political career by campaigning against California’s Fair Housing Act, started his 1980 campaign with a speech supporting states’ rights delivered just outside Philadelphia, Miss., where three civil rights workers were murdered. In 2000, Mr. Bush made a pilgrimage to Bob Jones University, famed at the time for its ban on interracial dating.
And all four leading Republican candidates for the 2008 nomination have turned down an invitation to a debate on minority issues scheduled to air on PBS this week.
Read more here
Obama Foreign Policy Advisor Serves in Iraq
Mark Lippert, one of Obama's chief foreign policy advisors, is also in the Navy Reserves. He recently has been called for active duty in Iraq. From Wall Street Journal:
After a long day training to be deployed to Iraq, Navy reservist Mark Lippert unlaces his desert boots and pulls out a BlackBerry email device from his dusty backpack.
Checking his messages, he spots an email from the presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama: "I miss you, brother."
Mr. Lippert, a lieutenant junior grade sporting a buzz-cut and desert camouflage, is training here before being shipped out to Iraq, where he will serve as an intelligence officer for the Navy SEALs. In his civilian life, he is the chief foreign-policy adviser for Sen. Obama -- the Democrat whose most well-known foreign-policy stance is his opposition to the Iraq War Lt. Lippert is about to join.
Major NYC Union Endorsement for Obama
NEW YORK - One of the largest municipal jail unions in the country said Monday that it will endorse Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for president.
"Barack Obama is the one candidate who will put an end to the divisiveness in this country so that we can finally achieve greater economic prosperity for the working class and health care coverage for all Americans," said Norman Seabrook, the president of the city's Correction Officers' Benevolent Association. The group has about 9,000 active members.
Obama said in the same statement that he looked forward to working with the union as he continued to build his campaign for president."It's an honor to have the endorsement of these men and women who put themselves at risk everyday to serve on the front lines of our nation's criminal justice system," he said.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Healthcare Campaign Ad
Message to Bill O'Reilly: Get With the 21st Century!
Here is Zennie's very cool video about Bill O'Reilly thoughts on visiting Sylvia's Soul Food Restaurant. My favorite part is when he says, "I couldn't get over how it was just like every other restaurant... even though it's run by blacks!" What I love best about this clip is O'Reilly's "gee whiz" attitude even while he's stepping on and detonating racial land mines.
And, yes, it does relate to Barack Obama. Check it out:
White House Resorts to Stereotyping: Calls Obama "Lazy"
As for Obama, a senior White House official said the freshman senator from Illinois was “capable” of the intellectual rigor needed to win the presidency but instead relies too heavily on his easy charm.
“It's sort of like, 'that's all I need to get by,' which bespeaks sort of a condescending attitude towards the voters,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “And a laziness, an intellectual laziness.”
This is referring to the candidate who has 1. worked his ass off against all odds to raise more money than any other Democratic candidate in history; and 2. has been more specific about his policy and how he would govern than all the other candidates.
But the Republican strategy is to call him "lazy." Racist coding, anyone? Black man = lazy? Can we say STEREOTYPE?
Bush also says that he thinks that Hillary will win... but who cares what he thinks!
I expect we can see more buzzwords like "lazy" being tossed around. Why stop there? How about: "He'll take all the whiiite wimmen?" (read about the GOP racist ad against black candidate Harold Ford, or how about George Allen's "Macaca" moment (watch it here)?) Or, "He's criminally minded." Some elements of the GOP are not above using racist innuendo to pander to their far-right base.
We'll have to keep our eyes and ears open. It should get very interesting.
I guess they don't call it the "White" House for nothing.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
JFK Advisor Sorenson Stumps for Obama
EXETER — Like President John F. Kennedy in the 1960s, presidential candidate Barack Obama uses good judgment, according to Ted Sorensen, counsel and speechwriter to Kennedy during his presidency.
The characteristic is what makes the Illinois senator the best candidate for president, Sorensen said during a visit with about 50 residents and community members at RiverWoods on Thursday.
"Looking back at all these years and my 11 years with John F. Kennedy ... I realized that the single most important quality in a president is not their position on any particular issue, it's not their promises for this and that, which are too easily made and forgotten," Sorensen said. "What matters most is the quality of the person and the quality of their judgment."
Read more here
Obama Proposes Tax Relief for the Middle Class and Seniors
More than anything, we need a politics of common sense. And that is what Obama offers. From the Washington Post:
Obama Proposes $80 Billion in Tax Cuts
Sen. Barack Obama delivered a second economic speech in as many days on Tuesday, announcing $80 billion in proposed tax cuts for working people, homeowners and seniors with the declaration that "the wealth of our nation is rooted in the work of our people."
Obama (D-Ill.) has made confronting special interests and corporate lobbyists a core theme of his campaign, and he elaborated it in his tax cut proposal. Arguing that rich business interests -- rather than market forces -- have conspired to lobby for tax breaks, Obama said it is time to shift the tax burden away from the middle class.
"In our new economy, there is no shortage of new wealth," he told the Tax Policy Center. "But wages are not keeping pace...This isn't the invisible hand of a market at work. It's the successful work of special interests. For decades, we've seen successful strategies to ride anti-tax sentiment in this country towards tax cuts that favor wealth, not work. And for decades, we've seen the gaps in wealth in this country grow wider, while the costs to working people are greater."
Read more here
Black Farmers' Vote Could Win South for Obama
Presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) has taken a leading role on a major civil rights issue affecting black farmers that could give him a boost in Democratic primaries in South Carolina and other states in the South.
The issue is the landmark Pigford settlement between historically disenfranchised black farmers and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Signed in 1999, the settlement was intended to make up for decades of discrimination in which black farmers were denied USDA loans and credit while white farmers were granted help.
The Pigford settlement, an obscure issue to most voters, doesn’t even merit an entry on Wikipedia. It is critical, however, among some key Democratic constituencies in the South.“I have yet to do a town hall meeting and not have someone ask me about the settlement,” said Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala.), who helped bring the matter to Obama’s attention. “It’s a supremely large issue in the black rural community in the South.”...
...National Black Farmers Association President John Boyd said Obama’s position as a leader on the Pigford issue could “absolutely, unequivocally” help him politically.
“I think this will help Obama with black voters split between Hillary Clinton and Obama,” said Boyd, who said he was happy to see Obama speak out publicly on Pigford because there have been too few champions of black farmers in the Senate.
Read more here:
Friday, September 21, 2007
Clinton Panics Red-State Democrats
The era of the red-state Democrat will have suffered a very short reign if Hillary Clinton wins her party's nomination next year, at least according to the fears of some members of her party.
While 2006 saw impressive Democratic wins on traditionally Republican turf, most notably Jim Webb in Virginia, John Tester in Montana, Nancy Boyda in Kansas, and Heath Shuler in North Carolina, some red-state Democrats warn that the "Hillary drag" may eviscerate their ranks in 2008.
Some are quiet about it, like the 39 Democratic state and local officials who told the Associated Press they would talk about their fears of Hillary Clinton dragging them down only if they could remain anonymous, fearing reprisals from the Clintons.
But some are louder, like Dave "Mudcat" Sanders, a consultant for John Edwards' campaign, and one of the most colorful and lively Democratic strategists in America. He puts it simply: "Edwards has coattails; Hillary has anti-coattails."
"For Hillary to go out into rural America, and tell us she's going to help us, and tell us all the wonderful things she's going to do for us, it takes gall," Sanders says. He goes on to say: "If the Clintons had gone to the mat for universal health care the way they did for NAFTA and for crazy one-sided trade treaties, and had listened about the giant sucking sound that Ross Perot told them about, we would still have our health care and our jobs. It takes gall for her to say she's going to help us. She's got a record of killing us....
...But the poll also found that rural voters remain more conservative than the nation as a whole, and it is accurate to say that Hillary Clinton is about as popular as illegal immigrants among these voters. When asked to rate their warm or cool feelings towards figures on a "thermometer" from 0 to 100, the "warm" (positive) rating for all three top Democrats was in the low thirties, but the "cool" (negative) rating for Obama was 34, for Edwards was 36, and for Hillary Clinton was 52. The only comparable cool ratings were given to George W. Bush (44) and illegal immigrants (55)
Read more here
Obama's Plan to Cut Taxes for Seniors
Fixed-income seniors can expect a tax cut
By Sen. Barack Obama | Friday, September 21, 2007In this country, we have always believed that a lifetime of hard work and honest living should be rewarded with a secure and dignified retirement. But today, too many seniors are being denied that security because they cannot afford the rising costs of everything from their gas to their medicine. The last thing they need is a tax code that works against them as well. That is why earlier this week, I proposed tax relief for seniors.
My plan will eliminate income taxes for about 7 million seniors making less than $50,000 a year. Twenty-two million more won’t even have to file a return, which also means they won’t have to hire an expensive accountant.
This tax cut is needed especially because since 1993 seniors have been bearing an unfair tax burden. That year, a national tax hike raised the amount that millions of seniors had to pay on their Social Security benefits, which meant that their actual benefits were reduced. My tax cut will give these seniors a break without threatening Social Security.
But the truth is, if we’re serious about making retirement security a reality, mitigating the effects of this tax hike is not enough. We have to ensure that Social Security is a safety net that today’s seniors and future generations of Americans can count on.
As the cornerstone of America’s social compact, Social Security has lifted millions of seniors and their families out of poverty. Without Social Security, nearly fifty percent of seniors would live below the poverty line. Here in Iowa, nearly 20 percent of the population – and more than 95 percent of seniors – receive Social Security. The full measure of Social Security’s value for its recipients – as well as for those who look after and love them – is incalculable.
But we all know the system is not perfect. Some have argued that the problems are severe and that Social Security is fundamentally broken. This is an exaggeration. The underlying system is sound and the actual problem, a projected cash shortfall over the next 75 years, is relatively small and can be readily solved.
A return to fiscal responsibility, so we are not borrowing billions from the Social Security trust fund, would help strengthen the program for the long term. If any additional steps are necessary, we should carefully weigh our options. And as president, there are some basic principles I would honor:
First, I will fight against efforts to privatize Social Security, as I and others did when President Bush proposed private accounts a few years ago. Privatization is wrong. It tears at the fabric of Social Security — the idea of mutual responsibility — by subjecting a secure retirement to the whims of the market.
Second, I do not want to cut benefits or raise the retirement age. I believe there are a number of ways we can make Social Security solvent that do not involve placing these added burdens on our seniors. One possible option, for example, is to raise the cap on the amount of income subject to the Social Security tax. If we kept the payroll tax rate exactly the same but applied it to all earnings and not just the first $97,500, we could virtually eliminate the entire Social Security shortfall.
But the fact is, we will not be able to solve this problem and protect Social Security for good until we stop treating it like a political wedge issue and instead unite Republicans and Democrats behind a sensible solution. In 1983, there were problems with Social Security, and President Ronald Reagan and House Speaker Tip O’Neil worked together to forge an effective bipartisan compromise. That sense of civility and shared purpose is notably absent in Washington today.
We need a President who can challenge conventional thinking in Washington, fight for the people’s interests, and bring Americans together to meet the challenges of our time. That is exactly the sort of leadership I intend to offer.
Obama vs. Clinton: Two Very Different Campaign Strategies
Hillary's campaign is using the "Hillary is inevitable" ploy to try to get the American people to believe that Obama is not a viable option. This is despite the fact that Obama has raised more money than any other Democratic candidate from a record number number of voters.
So, when the national polling numbers are brought out saying that Hillary is ahead, we're supposed to think that Hillary is the heir apparent to the presidential throne, so we should just fold our cards and walk in lockstep with her message.
But Hillary's campaign has some major weaknesses. Hillary is running on being a name-brand, but this will also work against her.
Most people have already made up their minds about Hillary, for better or worse.
People simply do not know about Obama yet. But the more they learn about him, the better they like him. The same cannot be said for Hillary.
And in terms of their campaign, Obama is doing the math and figuring out how he can win the most delegates. This will not be the smooth slam-dunk that Hillary's campaign wants us to believe it will be. From The Washington Post:
Barack Obama sent out an e-mail to supporters on Tuesday announcing plans for a big rally in New York's Washington Square Park on Sept. 27. The invitation was evidence of a campaign planning for a potentially extended battle against Hillary Clinton.
The idea of a protracted contest runs contrary to widespread assumptions about how the 2008 Democratic race may play out. But some analysts, who have studied the new calendar, the rules for allocating convention delegates and the financial resources of the leading candidates, believe that a lengthy contest extending into the megaprimary day of Feb. 5 and beyond may be just as likely....
...Some Obama advisers believe Iowa may not produce a decisive winner, given the competitive three-way race underway there. The same muddled result could occur in New Hampshire. In this scenario, the first four contests fail to decide the nomination.The Feb. 5 primaries and caucuses then become a battle both for victories and for delegates, with delegates allocated proportionally.
Sloan ran some rough projections today to illustrate what might happen on Feb. 5. Assume a three-way race with the top candidate winning 45 percent of the total vote, the second-place finisher winning 33 percent and the third capturing 22 percent. The pledged delegate count would be roughly 884 for the top candidate, 648 for the second candidate and 432 for the third. In a two-person race, with a 54-46 percent split in the overall vote, the delegate count for that day would be 1,060 for the top candidate and 903 for the other.
This is where the Obama invitation for a blowout rally in New York comes into focus. Clinton should win the New York primary on Feb. 5. But in the majority of the state's congressional districts, by winning about 31 percent of the vote, Obama could walk away with two of the five delegates awarded in each. Rather than conceding the state to Clinton and largely staying out, Obama plans to begin building an organization designed to maximize his delegate count there. Clinton, of course, will do the same in Illinois, which also votes on Feb. 5.
Here money becomes especially significant. Only candidates with campaign treasuries of $80 million to $100 million may be able to afford to compete widely in so many states -- a disadvantage for Edwards in particular.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Obama Calls for Simplifying and Lowering Taxes
Sen. Barack Obama delivered a second economic speech in as many days on Tuesday, announcing $80 billion in proposed tax cuts for working people, homeowners and seniors with the declaration that "the wealth of our nation is rooted in the work of our people."
Obama (D-Ill.) has made confronting special interests and corporate lobbyists a core theme of his campaign, and he elaborated it in his tax cut proposal. Arguing that rich business interests -- rather than market forces -- have conspired to lobby for tax breaks, Obama said it is time to shift the tax burden away from the middle class.
He has also called for a simplifying taxes for seniors. Go Obama! You have to be a certified public accountant to figure out how to fill your tax forms correctly.
Obama proposed eliminating tax returns for some 22 million senior citizens, promising that no retiree making less than $50,000 would pay income tax.Read more here
New Iowa Ad
Obama Shines at Service Employees Union Speech
This is from The Atlantic:
WASHINGTON, D.C -- A charged-up Sen. Barack Obama begged politically active members of the Service Employees union to join his “movement” to reform the Democratic Party.
“The question I ask SEIU members is, not "Who is talking about your agenda?" but "Who can change politics in Washington to make that a reality,” Obama said. “Change starts by making sure a Democrat is in the White House. Change doesn’t end just because a Democrat is in the White House. It’s time to turn the page on the old way of doing business.”
In many ways, it was the longest sustained encapsulation of Obama’s complex, primary argument that a Washington, D.C. audience has heard. It was heavy on passion and sloganeering and comparatively free of the nuance that marks that Obama’s regular stump speech.
SEIU's members are temperamentally suited to Obama; he is a longtime friend of Chicago's SEIU Local 880 and worked closely with the union as an organizer and later as a state legislator.
Obama entered the ballroom to cheers, but he left to a sustained chorus of chants: “Obama!, Obama!” The SEIU president, Andy Stern, had to calm his members: ““Everybody take your seats, please. We have other candidates.”
Read more here
Obama's Statements on the Jena 6
Obama was the FIRST presidential candidate to make a statement about this case.
CHICAGO, IL – U.S. Senator Barack Obama released the following three statements on the Jena 6.
September 19, 2007 | Obama Statement on the Jena 6
"Outrage over an injustice like the Jena 6 isn't a matter of black and white. It's a matter of right and wrong. We should stand as one nation in opposition to this and any injustice. That’s why I’ve previously spoken out and demanded fairness in the Jena 6 case. That's why I've fought against injustice as a civil rights attorney and public official, and why I'll continue to fight to heal the wounds of division in our nation as president. My statements on Jena 6 were carefully thought out with input and support from one of my National Campaign Chairmen, U.S. Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr."
September 14, 2007 | Obama Statement on the Jena 6
"I am pleased that the Louisiana state appeals court recognized that the aggravated battery charge brought in this case was inappropriate. I hope that today's decision will lead the prosecutor to reconsider the excessive charges brought against all the teenagers in this case. And I hope that the judicial process will move deliberately to ensure that all of the defendants will receive a fair trial and equal justice under the law."
Obama Demands Fairness in Jena 6 Case
Chicago, IL | September 10, 2007
Chicago, IL -- Senator Barack Obama made the following statement today in response to the Jena 6 case.
"When nooses are being hung in high schools in the 21st century, it's a tragedy. It shows that we still have a lot of work to do as a nation to heal our racial tensions. This isn't just Jena's problem; it's America's problem."
"There are a number of signs that the system is not working in this case. It's a problem when criminal charges are brought against some students for fighting, but not others. It's a problem when a public defender doesn't call any witnesses. And it's a problem when a prosecutor decides to try teenagers as adults for a school fight, a charge that could leave them in jail for the majority of their lives. That is why I join my colleagues in the Congressional Black Caucus in calling on the judge to consider all the relevant factors and calling on the District Attorney to drop the excessive charges brought in this case. And I, along with other members of the CBC, will continue to monitor this case closely."
"Going forward, we have to fix our criminal justice system. Whether it's Jena 6 or Genarlow Wilson, it's long past time for us to admit that we have more work to do to ensure that our criminal justice system is fair. We must ensure that both victims and defendants can receive equal justice under the law, regardless of race, wealth, or other circumstances."
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Obama Leads in Donations from the Military
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Ron Paul have little in common politically, except their opposition to the Iraq war.
Both top a new list of presidential candidates receiving campaign contributions from people who work for the four branches of the military and National Guard, according to a study released Thursday by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics.
Obama, an Illinois senator, brought in more donations from this group than any White House contender from either party. The Democrat announced Wednesday his plan to withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of 2008.
Paul, a Texas congressman and the only GOP presidential hopeful who supports an immediate troop withdrawal, comes in second.
"Paul and Obama are talking straight to soldiers, and what they are saying is resonating," said Larnell Exum, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, who gave $500 to Obama. Exum, who works for the Army as a congressional liaison, is a Democrat but voted for George Bush in 1992.
Read more here
California Legislature's Black Caucus Endorses Barack
The California Legislature's black caucus on Thursday endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president, calling the Illinois senator "the only candidate that can unite people to get things done."
"It is imperative that we choose the candidate who is committed to addressing the disparity gaps that exist in our communities," said Assemblywoman Karen Bass, a Los Angeles Democrat who is vice chairwoman of the caucus.
"We believe that Sen. Obama is that person, and we will work together to galvanize the black community to be part of the political process by getting involved in it."
The caucus represents the eight black members of the Legislature. Besides Bass, they are Assembly members Wilmer Carter, D-Rialto, Mike Davis, D-Los Angeles, Mervyn Dymally, D-Compton, Curren Price, D-Inglewood, and Sandre Swanson, D-Alameda, as well as Sens. Mark Ridley-Thomas, D-Los Angeles, and Edward Vincent, D-Inglewood.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Black Voters Moving Away from Clinton Towards Obama
"Early on, African-Americans threw their support to Hillary Clinton, primarily based on the Clinton legacy. However, as African-American voters have gotten to know Barack Obama, support for him has increased significantly. The real tipping point in the Democratic primary election may be undecided African-American female voters -- there are many more African-American female undecideds than males, and Clinton and Obama are dead even among African-American women. It may literally come down to whoever gets the African-American female vote.
I believe Hillary is running on two things: 1) name-brand recognition; and 2) Bill nostalgia.
The problem that Hillary is facing though, is that a lot of people have already made their minds up about her, and I don't think her numbers can move too far from where they are right now. Also, there's the reality that Hill is not Bill--and using her husband as an attraction to draw people in will only go so far.
There are a lot of people out there (especially those across the digital divide who don't get their information from the internet), who simply don't know WHO Barack Obama is. They have all sorts of misconceptions, like "Is he a Muslim?" or aren't aware of his background as Constitutional scholar, civil rights attorney, and community organizer.
But Obama has nowhere to go but up. Once people get to know him, his numbers will only rise.
Obama Calls for More Transparency on Wall Street
Barack Obama calls for more open, transparent Wall St.
Barack Obama called yesterday for greater openness and transparency on Wall Street in advance of his unveiling today of a tax relief plan for the middle class.
During a speech at Nasdaq in Times Square, Obama denounced a "what's good for me is good enough" mentality that has crept into certain corners of Washington and the business world.
"We will not tolerate 'what's good for me is good enough' any longer - because the only thing that's good enough is what's best for America," he said.
Obama (D-Ill.) proposed an immediate investigation of the relationship and business practices of rating agencies and their clients. And citing the subprime mortgage crisis as an example, he called for more disclosure and accountability in the housing market and credit card industry.
Today, during a speech in Washington, Obama plans to discuss his proposal to modernize and simplify the tax code, with specific initiatives providing a tax break to middle-class Americans, seniors and homeowners.
Obama on NBC Nightly News
Watch it here
Monday, September 17, 2007
New Barack Oblogger Widget
Greenspan: Iraq War Largely About Oil
WASHINGTON — "The Iraq war is largely about oil," former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says in his new book -- an assertion disputed by lawmakers and the U.S. Defense secretary.Read more here
"I'm saddened that it is politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows," Greenspan, 81, writes in "The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World."
Greenspan writes that the attention given by developed nations to the political situation in the Middle East is directly tied to oil security.
"Whatever their publicized angst over Saddam Hussein's 'weapons of mass destruction,' American and British authorities were also concerned about violence in an area that harbors a resource indispensable for the functioning of the world economy," he writes.
Barack Obama had the foresight and the judgment to call this war for what it was: ill-conceived and knew then that Sadam Hussein planned no imminent threat to the United States.
However, when it was time for her to vote on the war, Hillary Clinton, didn't even bother to read the 90-page National Intelligence Estimate [NIE] report given to her, which gave a comprehensive summary of the situation in Iraq. From The New York Times:
She could have done the reading herself. Senators were able to access the N.I.E. at two secure locations in the Capitol complex. Nonetheless, only six senators personally read the report, according to a 2005 television interview with Senator Jay Rockefeller, Democrat of West Virginia and then the vice chairman of the intelligence panel. Earlier this year, on the presidential campaign trail in New Hampshire, Clinton was confronted by a woman who had traveled from New York to ask her if she had read the intelligence report. According to Eloise Harper of ABC News, Clinton responded that she had been briefed on it.Read more here
The question of whether Clinton took the time to read the N.I.E. report is critically important. Indeed, one of Clinton’s Democratic colleagues, Bob Graham, the Florida senator who was then the chairman of the intelligence committee, said he voted against the resolution on the war, in part, because he had read the complete N.I.E. report. Graham said he found that it did not persuade him that Iraq possessed W.M.D. As a result, he listened to Bush’s claims more skeptically. “I was able to apply caveat emptor,” Graham, who has since left the Senate, observed in 2005. He added regretfully, “Most of my colleagues could not.”
On Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2002, Senate Democrats, including Clinton, held a caucus over lunch on the second floor of the Capitol. There, Graham says he “forcefully” urged his colleagues to read the complete 90-page N.I.E. before casting such a monumental vote.
Hillary Clinton is presenting herself as the candidate with the "experience" to get us out of the foreign policy mess that we've gotten ourselves into. But what is experience without judgment, if in her rush to lead us into this ill-conceived war, she didn't even bother to read one of the most crucial pieces of information about Iraq given to her?
Friday, September 14, 2007
Obama at the Harkin Steak Fry in Iowa
Barack Leads in Environmental Ratings
Here are their environmental ratings:
Obama - 96
Kucinich - 92
Clinton - 90
Biden - 84
Richardson -82
Dodd - 77
Edwards - 59
Paul - 30
McCain - 26
Brownback - 14
Thompson - 12
Tancredo -11
Hunter - 9
Read more here
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Barack Says Leave Iraq Now!
From the Associated Press:
Obama Outlines His Troop Pullout Plan
By MIKE GLOVER
CLINTON, Iowa -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is calling for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. combat brigades from Iraq, with the pullout being completed by the end of next year."Let me be clear: There is no military solution in Iraq and there never was," Obama said in excerpts of the speech provided to The Associated Press.
"The best way to protect our security and to pressure Iraq's leaders to resolve their civil war is to immediately begin to remove our combat troops. Not in six months or one year _ now," the Illinois senator says.
Read more here
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Obama Wins Straw Poll in Ohio
Obama wins Dems straw poll
It won’t help make him the Democratic presidential nominee, but Illinois Sen. Barack Obama came out on top Tuesday night, winning a straw poll of Hamilton County Democratic Party activists.
Nearly 300 local Democrats crowded into the 20th Century Theater on Oakley Square to choose from among a slate of eight Democratic presidential contenders.
When the votes were tallied, Obama won with 102 votes – about 35 percent – over New York Sen. Hillary Clinton (69 votes) and former North Carolina senator John Edwards (64 votes)
Read more here
Hillraiser Hsu -- Follow the Money?
He was one of Hillary Clinton's "Hillraisers," meaning he's raised more than $100K for her presidential campaign.
Here's the list of politicians he's given money to.
But due to his shady past and criminal record -- having pleaded "no contest" to grand theft 15 years ago and then fled before he was sentenced -- Dems are now trying to distance themselves from him. And the politician most affected by Hsu's financial dealings is Hillary Clinton.
From the Los Angeles Times:
Confronted with new evidence that it had ignored warnings about fundraiser Norman Hsu, Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign abruptly announced late today that it was returning $850,000 from 260 donors associated with Hsu.
The announcement was made five minutes after the Los Angeles Times asked Clinton officials to respond to mid-June campaign e-mails the newspaper obtained that dismissed concerns about Hsu and his business practices.
"I can tell you with 100 [sic] certainty that Norman Hsu is NOT involved in a ponzi scheme," wrote Samantha Wolf, who had the title West Coast finance director for the campaign. She has since left the campaign. "He is COMPLETELY legit." She wrote the e-mail in June to a party official who was asking questions about Hsu and his reputation in the financial world.
Hsu was a well-connected fellow who even sits on the board of NYC's New School.
Consequently, he did introduce Obama to a colleague of his, Mark Gorenberg, who is now a member of Obama's National Finance Committee, and hosted a 2005 fundraiser for Obama.
The Obama campaign is now looking into all donations secured by Mr. Hsu.
From the Washington Post:
Obama's campaign, which has donated to charity $7,000 in direct donations that Hsu made to Hopefund and his Senate campaign committee, confirmed last night that Hsu hosted a small event for the PAC in March 2005 in Los Angeles.
"We don't know how much that event raised, but we have received an estimated $19,000 from people who were associated with Hsu in published reports, all prior to Obama becoming a presidential candidate," spokesman Bill Burton said.
"We are in the process of sending these people letters to check the validity of their contributions. When Obama entered the presidential race, Hsu had decided to support Senator Clinton and bundle for her campaign," Burton said.
Obama announced Thursday that he plans to introduce legislation to require congressional and presidential candidates to disclose the identities of bundlers and the amounts they raise.
From The New York Times:
Since Mr. Hsu’s fall from grace, efforts to learn more about the nature of his business and the source of his wealth have led mostly to dead ends.On campaign finance disclosure forms, he listed his employer as one of a half-dozen companies, some of them with names that seemed to change with each retelling. On some forms, the company was Components Limited or Next Components or Next Consultants. Other times it was Next Limited or Consultants Limited. And his title was different from one form to the next, sometimes appearing as president or managing director, other times as consultant, supplier or partner.
The Manhattan office addresses he listed appeared to be little more than mail drops, and his neighbors in the buildings said he rarely showed up and seemed to conduct no business there
From the Wall Street Journal:
I have been blessed by what this country has given me and have tried to give back in many ways," Mr. Hsu said in an email to a Wall Street Journal reporter earlier this week. "One way has been through political contributions to candidates and causes I believe in. I have never asked for anything in return. I've asked friends and colleagues of mine to give money out of their own pockets and sometimes they have agreed," he added
Some of the "friends and colleagues" he has brought on board have been members of the Paw family, who live in this modest Daly City house located by the San Francisco airport.
The Paw family have donated more than $200k over the past three years.
From the Los Angeles Times:
Records show that Hsu has emerged as one of the Democrats' most successful "bundlers," rounding up groups of contributors and packaging their checks together before delivering the funds to campaign officials. Individuals can give a total of $4,600 to a single candidate during an election cycle, $2,300 for the primaries and $2,300 for the general election.
One example of the kind of first-time donors Hsu has worked with is the Paw family of Daly City, Calif., which is headed by William Paw, a mail carrier, and his wife, Alice, who is listed as a homemaker.
The Paws -- seven adults, most of whom live together in a small house near San Francisco International Airport -- apparently had never donated to national candidates until 2004. Over a three-year period, they gave $213,000, including $55,000 to Clinton and $14,000 to candidates for state-level offices in New York.
The family includes a son, Winkle Paw, who Barcella said was in business with Hsu. Another son works for a Bay Area school board, while one daughter works for a hospital and another for a computer company.
One question being raised is whether or not Hsu was funneling money through his business to employees like Paw, so that they could donate those funds to the campaign.
From The New York Times:
The financial records for Components Ltd. show that Mr. Su’s wife, Lelawattie Su, wired $100,000 to the company in May 2003, and that Mr. Hsu used that money to wire $109,500 the next day to a woman in California. On another occasion, Mr. Paw wired $20,000 to Components Ltd., and Mr. Hsu immediately wired $30,000 to another company whose location could not be determined.
In roughly that same period, Components Ltd. issued three checks to Mr. Paw totaling about $16,000, and checks and wire transfers totaling more than $100,000 to eight other people, including a worker at a rehabilitation center for the handicapped, a housewife, a nurse, a real estate developer, a plastics company executive and his wife, and a clothing shop manager.
Mr. Hsu later bundled campaign contributions from all of those people, including Mr. Paw and six members of his family, along with Mr. and Mrs. Su. The Paws and Sus together contributed more than $400,000 since 2004 to Democrats across the country, usually in tandem with Mr. Hsu.
Another question about Mr. Hsu is why? Why was a man with no visible means of support moving money around to give to politicians? Was he trying to curry some sort of favor? Just a really patriotic guy?
As the saying goes... follow the money.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Spanish TV Ads
Obama airs Spanish ads in Nevada
By Kathleen Hennessey
LAS VEGAS -- Democratic Sen. Barack Obama has begun airing a Spanish-language ad on radio stations in Nevada, introducing himself as a "son of a foreign father," his presidential campaign said Tuesday.
The ad, the campaign's first media buy in the state, emphasizes Obama's religious affiliation, his call for unity and his father's immigrant background.
"As a son of a foreign father who came to this country looking for a better life, Barack Obama learned that differences do not divide, but rather enrich," the ad says. The Illinois senator's father was from Kenya.
Hispanics make up nearly a quarter of the population in Nevada and are expected to be a key voting bloc for Democrats competing in the state's Jan. 19 caucus, the second in the nation.
Read more here
Obama's Iraq Pullout Plan
Obama Outlines His Troop Pullout PlanBy MIKE GLOVER
The Associated Press
Wednesday, September 12, 2007; 4:20 AMCLINTON, Iowa -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is calling for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. combat brigades from Iraq, with the pullout being completed by the end of next year.
"Let me be clear: There is no military solution in Iraq and there never was," Obama was expected to say in a speech Wednesday at Ashford University.
"The best way to protect our security and to pressure Iraq's leaders to resolve their civil war is to immediately begin to remove our combat troops. Not in six months or one year _ now," the Illinois senator was to say.
Obama's ardent opposition to the war has been a central theme of his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, and he has used it to distinguish himself from leading rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y. She voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq; Obama was not yet a senator.
Read more here
Obama's Statement on Iraq
From BarackObama.com
Changing the definition of success to stay the course with the wrong policy is the wrong course for our troops and our national security. The time to end the surge and to start bringing our troops home is now – not six months from now. The Iraqi government is not achieving the political progress that was the stated purpose of the surge, and in key areas has gone backwards. Our military cannot sustain its current deployments without crippling our ability to respond to contingencies around the world. It’s time for a change of direction that brings our troops home, applies real pressure on the Iraqis to act, surges our diplomacy, and addresses Iraq’s urgent humanitarian crisis. I can only support a policy that begins an immediate removal of our troops from Iraq’s civil war, and initiates a sustained drawdown of our military presence.
Obama on LinkedIn
From the Washington Post:
Obama, Linking In Ahead of the Curve
Obama is getting linked in.
Literally.
Tomorrow Sen. Barack Obama will be the first candidate to launch a group on LinkedIn, the popular social networking site for working professionals. In a way, LinkedIn is the anti-MySpace. It's your online professional presense -- not a place for half-naked photos, endless riffs on Britney Spears or other musings. The site has 4 million users, more than half of them in the U.S. The users' average household income is $139,000, said Kay Luo, the company's spokeswoman said, and about 75 percent are ages 29 and over. In other words, it's highly desirable demographic.
Read more here
Clinton Talent Choosing Obama
The Talent PrimaryObama's campaign is peeling off former advisers to Bill Clinton, and Hillary's folks are none too happy.They were devotees of the cult of Clinton. Greg Craig was Bill Clinton's lawyer, defending him on TV against impeachment charges. Susan Rice was a protégée of Madeleine Albright, the 42nd president's secretary of State. Anthony Lake was Clinton's personal foreign-policy consigliere, his first-term national-security adviser. Now, however, Craig, Rice and Lake are all top advisers to Hillary Clinton's main rival, Barack Obama. In an increasingly bitter fight for the best and brightest policy advisers of Clinton's presidency, these defectors are aggressively recruiting junior- and midlevel officials from his administration.
That's provoked anger in Hillary's camp—and, Obama aides charge, threats of retaliation if she wins the nomination. "The word some people are hearing is, 'You're making a big mistake. If Barack Obama wins, he'll welcome all into his administration. But if Hillary wins, that's not going to be the case'," says a midlevel Obama adviser who would speak about infighting only on the condition of anonymity. The main Hillary enforcer has been Richard Holbrooke, Bill Clinton's former U.N. ambassador (and an aspiring secretary of State), says a senior adviser to Obama, who would also discuss personnel matters only anonymously. "I have had at least two people directly tell me they had been told by Holbrooke if they went with Obama, the Hillary people would not forget and forgive," says the adviser, refusing to identify them.
Read more here
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Monday, September 10, 2007
Former Clinton Official Backs Obama
Federico Pena, a former mayor of Denver who also served as Energy Secretary in the Clinton administration, announced his endorsement today in the Democratic presidential campaign.He took a pass on Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, whose husband hired him, and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who succeeded him as energy secretary. The party’s best candidate, he believes, is Senator Barack Obama.
“I have come to conclude that Barack Obama has the depth of judgment that our country needs to usher in a new era of global leadership,” Mr. Pena told reporters this afternoon on a conference call arranged by the Obama campaign. He added, “For me, judgment and wisdom are far more important than experience. But frankly, I like the experience that Senator Obama has.”
Read more here
Barack's Family Tree
One of his ancestors accused a fellow New England colonist of witchcraft and later stole from the governor's house.
Read more hereAnother had two brothers killed by American Indians, who scalped one brother and kidnapped the other's daughter.
White House hopeful Barack Obama already has presidential timber in his family tree: He is distantly related to three U.S. presidents.
PHOTO GALLERY
• Obama Family TreeStill another ancestor was said to have been slain by pirates. Yet another lost a son in the Civil War to pro-slavery bushwackers who torched the man's home and threw burning coals on his infant daughter.
And, four centuries ago, his great- great-great-great-great-great- great-great-grandfather was a respected warrior and leader in eastern Africa.
It would take an orchard to contain all of Sen. Barack Obama's diverse ancestral branches
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Teen Rap Video for Obama
This video was sent to me. It's a young man, Digidoo, and his sister, Lady Fi, who made a rap video aimed at getting young people to vote.
I thought it was really catchy (the song stays with you...O*B*A*M*A)!
Check it out:
Here's the link
Iowa Republican Leaders Say Hillary Will Unite Them
From the August 12 Iowa Press program, former Iowa GOP chairs, Mike Mahaffey and Steve Roberts agreeing that the Republicans are in such disarray that the only thing that will unite them is Hillary Clinton.
Steve Roberts is currently on the Republican National committee.
Glover: BUT THERE'S ANOTHER FACTOR OUT THERE I THINK IN THAT THERE IS THE POTENTIAL -- I MEAN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A LOT OF BAD NEWS FOR REPUBLICANS RIGHT NOW, BUT THERE'S THE POTENTIAL FOR THAT TO CHANGE. WE'RE A LONG WAY FROM ANYBODY VOTING, AND THERE'S ANOTHER UNITER OUT THERE AND HER NAME IS HILLRY CLINTON. >>
Roberts: THAT'S CORRECT.
Glover: AND IF HILLARY CLINTON IS IN FACT THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE, I THINK YOU'RE GOING TO START TO SEE SOME OF THAT ENTHUSIASM AND ENERGY RETURN TO THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.
Roberts: ABSOLUTELY.
Watch the interview
Obama at Oprah's
Chicago Sun-Times:
Oprah Winfrey opened the high iron gates of her highly guarded estate here Saturday to raise more than $3 million for White House hopeful Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), his biggest single-day haul ever, in a fund-raising spectacle rarely seen in U.S. politics."I haven't been actively engaged before because there hasn't been anything to be actively engaged in. But I am engaged now to make Barack Obama the next president of the United States," a source said Winfrey told the crowd just before the concert, starring Stevie Wonder.
Introducing Obama, Winfrey said that "nobody can stand in the way of destiny."
"It's unbelievable," said Illinois state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias as the Great Gatsby party scene unfolded before him on Winfrey's meadow under a gorgeous sky. Real celebrities mingled with Obama's best donors and bundlers rewarded for their fund-raising efforts with a star-studded afternoon.
Associated Press:
Stevie Wonder performed for guests, who included Sidney Poitier, Forest Whitaker, Chris Rock, Cindy Crawford, Jimmy Connors, Linda Evans, Dennis Haysbert and many others. Will Smith, Jamie Foxx and Halle Berry also were expected, though it was unclear if they were in attendance. The media were barred from the fundraiser.
"I call my home the Promised Land because I get to live Dr. King's dream," Winfrey told her guests, a source inside recalled Winfrey saying. "I haven't been actively engaged before because there hasn't been anything to be actively engaged in. But I am engaged now to make Barack Obama the next president of the United States."
The Earmarks Continue
The list of lobbyists working for the most successful earmark-wrangling companies is replete with former Hill aides who served with the money-spending appropriations committees, and even a member of Congress or two. And as the number of dollars available on Capitol Hill has surged, earmark lobbying itself has become a cottage industry. In 1998, 1,447 entities hired lobbyists to work on budget and appropriations issues, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense. By 2006, that number had swelled to 4,516 lobbying clients.
It's not just the clients that have grown: From virtually nothing a decade ago, roughly a dozen firms specialize in garnering earmarks today. One such firm, PMA Group, founded in 1989 by former defense appropriations staffer Paul Magliochetti, represented at least 15 of the top 50 corporate earmark winners in 2005, including Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, and Boeing (BA ). Others well known for delivering federal money include Van Scoyoc Associates, Alcalde & Fay, and Cassidy & Associates. In this quietly lucrative world, many say they don't advertise for clients--companies find them. "The people who want results come to me," says one prominent earmark lobbyist. "The smart ones figure out who can deliver."
Hiring the right lobbyist can become one of the most profitable investments a business can make.
On average, companies generated roughly $28 in earmark revenue for every dollar they spent lobbying. And those at the very top did far better than the average: More than 20 companies pulled in $100 or more for every dollar spent. By any standard, that's a hefty ratio: The companies in the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index brought in just $17.52 in revenues for every dollar of capital expenditure in 2006. Or look at the results in direct marketing, where an extremely successful campaign might bring in $5 in revenue for every dollar spent. "If mainstream American businesses got a 28-to-1 ratio in sales, they'd be ecstatic," says Steve Zammarchi, president and CEO of Wunderman New York, a sales and marketing firm.
Obama is the only Democratic candidate who has released his earmarks to the public, part of his pledge to call for openness and transparency in gov't.
