Comments on: A Different Kind of Insurgent

By: aarre

aarre — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

This story is typical of the press and media coverage which made Obama the presumptive
nominee of the democratic party. Favoritism is disguised as analysis, analysis which is now concentrating on "explaining" why Hillary lost the candidacy, explanations which studiously ignore the media bias in favor of Obama. Not that the media loves Obama, but that they wanted the weaker candidate to win in order to pave the way for another Repubican president. If the best
Obama can do is a tie in the polls with McCain after the billions in free publicity given him to date, what will he manage when the now largely favorable media turn against him?

By: differentdrum

differentdrum — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

…And rightly or wrongly, not one of those votes counts, remember? Hillary (and all the other candidates) signed a pledge not to "campaign or participate" in the Michigan or Florida Democratic primaries. Yet for some reason hers was the only name on the ballot in MI, and she alone *did* campaign in FL. Gosh, not much of a team player! Oh well, that’s how the Clintons roll!

In any case, she signed the Democratic National Committee’s pledge – ruh roh.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/02/us/politics/02dems.html?ei=5090&en=e280c05ad36488d3&ex=1346385600&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=print

By: auntmo

auntmo — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

Oh, my. Look at these numbers:

Clitnon 856,914

McCain 693,425

Romney 598,152

Obama 568,930

It appears that Obama couldn’t even beat Mitt Romney, let alone McCain or Clinton. And that was AFTER Uncle Teddy endorsed him.

27% of the African American vote deserted him and voted for Hillary.

Ruh roh.

By: differentdrum

differentdrum — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

It’s amazing! The Clintonian’s comments are always obvious – like Scientologists assigned to defend Tom Cruise on TMZ, they’re remarkably easy to spot. And God bless ‘em. I’m no Hillary hater. She’s better than any Republican running, and I’ll surely pull that lever if necessary in November (though like my vote for Kerry in ‘04 it won’t do much good).

"Rezco" they screech, – completely ignoring the dozens of legit scandals (Can you say Hugh Rodham pardon, just as a starting point) that the Clintons have hanging over them to this day.

"Short on resume!" they howl… uh, what exactly has Hillary done so much better than Obama? Not what her husband has done – Hillary. Being the wife of the President doesn’t count, folks. Otherwise, we’d all be as comfortable with Laura Bush’s credentials as with Hillary’s.

"Well, the ‘Bobby Kennedy branch’ (?!) is behind Hillary" they quickly opine, as defense against Teddy, Caroline and Patrick’s extraordinary showing the other day. Please. I’ll trade you 6 Kathleen’s to one Caroline, any day. (Granted, Patrick’s another story, though.)

The bottom line is, you guys just don’t get it. Accept that and move on. I like Hillary and Bill. I’ve defended them against Republican and Dem alike, and I’ll keep doing so (even as they insist on making it as difficult as possible these days). But Obama. is. different. You are unable to see that, and honestly, I kinda’ feel bad for you. You’re damaged – understandably so, given the last 15 years, but damaged none-the-less. It’s time to move on. And Barak seems the perfect guy to help the US do that, while staying true to Democratic/progressive ideals.

By: auntmo

auntmo — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

With all due respect, the pictures with the article are misleading.

The BOBBY KENNEDY branch of the Kennedy family is supporting Hillary Clinton.

It’s only Uncle Teddy and Caroline that support Obama.

And frankly, by tagging himself as Teddy Kennedy’s protege, given that Uncle Teddy is considered the MOST liberal of all Senators, even by moderates, Obama has now tagged himself not as a centrist, but as a left-wing liberal.

Association with Uncle Teddy won’t bring back the Reagan Democrats or the Independents or the Moderates. They’ll all move to McCain if that’s their only other choice.

He literally NARROWED his possibility field in this choice, reducing his chances of winning the general election.

I truly believe Obama will regret this endorsement when all is said and done.

By: fxdci

fxdci — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

I am a bit confused. In the article you state that BO has much of the party leadership against him, however just this week several of the party big wigs have come out supporting him. Who are the ones that are against him? I’m not being confrontational, I was just wondering.

I also got here by way of TPM.

By: yossarian54

yossarian54 — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

As someone who is too young to remember campaigns prior to Reagan, it’s great to have B.O.’s apparent insurgency placed in historical context. Thanks. Bruce Chamberlain: are you from Illinois? Do you love The Who? I have a weird feeling I may know you….from a library.

Mark H: yossarian54@yahoo.com

By: serena1313

serena1313 — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

Has cynicism really blinded people from not seeing what is really taking place? Obama is uniting people, inspiring young and old, moderate republicans and democrats, liberals and conservatives, black and white, asian and native american, latinos and all cultures to vote for him.

Others complain that he is going to talk to conservatives and republicans to get them on board. I wonder how many of those people have read about his record? His record of working with some of the most conservative republicans that successfully passed legislation without compromising his principles puts that argument to rest.

Others think Obama is not "experienced" enough. Obviously they are not taking into account Obama has had more years as an elected official that Hillary. His "experience" is much more conducive to changing "politics" as usual because he is not entrenched in Washington politics.

Some say he is too young: Bill Clinton was two years younger than Obama when he took office.

This election is not about race; it is not about "experience;" it is however about making wise decisions based on sound judgment & common sense. We’ve had an excruciating 7 years of trickery and deceit with "experienced" politicians and look where it got us. Do we want more?

Which candidate is more likely to bring change: a candidate entrenched in the Washington political establishment or the one whose experience is outside Washington?

Last but not least: With a deep understanding of the human psyche and a grasp of world events and how the two are inseparable indicates Obama is uniquely qualified to become the next president.

Let’s not allow cynicism to blind us to a unique opportunity for real change.

By: billclements

billclements — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

Excellent commentary! I found your historical perspective cogent and persuasive. Not to mention edifying. It’s very helpful to put someone like Obama into context. In many ways, he seems to be a much needed break from the past. It is my hope that he will be our next President.

By: bobdob

bobdob — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

Comments like the one by Michael Powe depress me beyond belief. I don’t know if he’s a McCain supporter or a Hillary supporter, but either way, he seems to believe that the president of the United States is some sort of an administrator–like the CEO of a corporation or something of the sort. This is exactly what we DON’T want the president to be. The president has aides for that sort of essential, but distracting nonsense. The job of a president is to set and articulate the course for the country during his or her term in office and then guard that course. The president is the big thinker. The decision maker. Being president is about leadership–not administrative duties.

Winson Churchill famously said, "The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter." We can no longer afford to be simply average voters. We need to be far more curious, far more critical, far more skeptical, far more active and much better informed if we expect to dig ourselves out of the mess our current administrator has put us in. Let’s stop listening to the mass-mailed, idiotic lies we receive in our Inboxes every day. Instead, let’s pay attention and get to know the candidates–all of the candidates–before we put someone in office who knows their way around Washington, but who can’t think outside of the box we’ve allowed ourselves to be trapped in.