But Democrats who support the work of the media 527s say Obama's making a mistake. Progressive Media USA has aired anti-McCain television ads and developed a website intended to be a hub for negative information about McCain. "Obama needs a baseline to the melody of his positive message," said a Democratic strategist who backs the group's aims. Read More
Oh. My. Gawd. Did you see Mr. Hope in Missouri today? Excruciating. Halting. His head in his cheat sheets. No passion. But worse, a Democratic economic message that he couldn't even begin to get excited about. One thing about Senator Obama, when he's bad he's awful and this was simply awful.
You won't every catch Clinton sounding unenthusiastic about her economic message. As a candidate, Obama cannot touch her gifts for policy specifics and the passion to take it to people.
It didn't take long before Chris Matthews turned from "ruining mate" to laughing at Barack Obama, talking about the horrible advance work. But the audacity of these Hillary hating talking thugs to even think she'd drop out after a huge win tonight defies description.
We're waiting for it. Countdown to the shellacking. West Virginia comes in at 7:30 p.m. eastern time.
WomenCount PAC plans to run the following full-page, front section "open letter" in USA Today and other newspapers in the coming days, and they need your support.
Not So Fast… Hillary’s Voice is OUR Voice, And She’s Speaking for All of Us
We are the women of this nation. We are rich and poor, young and old, married with kids, married without kids, single moms, gay, straight, and widowed. We are every color. We are of every religion. We are from all political parties.
We love our country. Now more than ever, so much of what we cherish is at risk – our homes and our health, our safety and our planet, our children and our values. We raise our voices, in one glorious, defiant chorus, to tell the world that these times demand strength, courage and vision.
And that is why we stand united in our unwavering support for Hillary Clinton.
As Senator Clinton campaigns, she speaks with our voice. She carries our hopes, dreams and aspirations with her and transforms them into policies that can make our nation great again.
We know that Hillary will not rest until every American has health insurance, every child can start school ready to learn, every young person has a chance to attend college, every worker will have a safe job at decent wages. She will not rest until our men and women in the military receive the care they deserve and America foreign policy is grounded in human rights and military strength.
We know this because we have seen her do this -- at home and around the world.
We cannot stand by as a cacophony of voices demand that she step aside to smooth the road for another.
Women risked all they held dear to make this country great. They put their lives on the line in all our quests for justice – from Abigail Adams to Sojourner Truth to Susan B. Anthony to Eleanor Roosevelt to Fannie Lou Hamer to Barbara Jordan to Dolores Huerta to Hillary herself.
We know that when women vote, Democrats win. Now it is the responsibility of our party to hear our voices and count all our votes.
We want Hillary to stay in this race until every vote is cast, every vote is counted, and we are convinced our voices are heard.
WE SUPPORT HILLARY FOR PRESIDENT
To make this full-page placement a reality, they need your support today and through the end of this week. Please see nycvoter's post in Hot Topics for more information on what you can do to help get this message out.
Update via DebDeb:
WomenCount PAC is appreciative of all those who wish to donate to the ads they are planning to run. They stress, however, that if you are not maxed out, that your donations go to Senator Clinton's campaign FIRST and the WomenCount PAC second. Please send checks:
Payable to:
WomenCount PAC
Mail to:
c/o Megan Asmus
The Sutton Law Firm, PC
150 Post Street
Suite 405
San Francisco, CA 94108
An overnight FedEx would be appreciated, but is certainly not a requirement. They will be happy to receive your donation via snail-mail. If, however, you are sending FedEx, please include the law firm's phone number on the package: 415.732.7700.
An electronic payment method is also in the works.
Exhibit A for why Democrats lose presidential elections:
Seriously, you are acting like the entire election rests on the shoulders
of what some hillbillies in West Virginia think. What is wrong with you? Your
code for "rural" voters should be insulting to everyone that lives
in West Virginia because it is code for "rednecked, KKK member."
You need to get a real job and stop beating on the best presidential candidate
since JFK. Get a life. - Robert
Code? In what language? In that lunch bucket, blue collar also means only white? Or in that "hillbillies in West Virginia" reveals your own bigotry? Note to Robert, John F. Kennedy won West Virginia. What did he get about the "redneckked, KKK member" voters that Obama doesn't get?
It's what Democrats have been missing for decades, right up until Hillary Clinton
tapped into it. The first candidate to be able to convince lunch bucket Democrats,
which come in all colors and shades (Hispanics, Asians, African Americans, Irish-Scots), that voting your economic interest will
actually begin to solve your problems on the way to ending them. But to the
elitist numbskulls in the Obama wing of the Democratic party, which includes
the knee jerk analysis on most cable networks, if you vote for Clinton you're
a racist. Convenient, but clueless.
These are the same people who would look at my husband's stained hands and
think he is a hick, missing the home style manicure beneath. The chances of him sitting in a chair to get a manicure are between slim and fughettaboutit.
But Obama's fans are now touting a new kind of electoral map for November. They have to
or Obama is a tough sell.
It's never been proven, but it's the progressive elite's
dream, helped along by conservatives like the Obama besotted Andrew Sullivan,
a man who couldn't wait to further
promote the Hillary Clinton Supporters are Racist storyline yesterday. It's
a Democratic year, so why not try to re-invent the electoral wheel too. Leave
it to Democrats to find a hard way to win in a moment where the path is open.
Again, there are some people who will never vote for a woman or an African American,
but these people do not make up the majority of HRC's supporters, though to
make Obama's argument even his team are winking and nodding at this strategy.
Hey, but at least we're going back to the tried and true. No, not Hillary Clinton's
coalition that has a proven track record all the way back to F.D.R., though
Democrats lost their way many times in between. But what never worked in the
1980s or in 2004 either. Possibly nominating a candidate that has no chance
whatsoever in getting the people who need the Democratic party the most back into the fold. Only Clinton can perform that miracle. Attracting once again your heartland and blue collar American who quit voting his or her Democratic economic interests
because they stopped relating to our Democratic candidates. It's once again alive and well
and on parade in the Obama wing of the Democratic party, with the cultural divide split open again for the Republicans to mine.
The West Virginia results are going to make a lot of elite Democrats nervous.
The Brokered One is going to take a shellacking. It's going to be embarrassing.
Kentucky won't be much better.
Beyond the primary realities, the emails have begun. Hillary Clinton supporters are not amused. Women in
general aren't either. Marie Coco captures it today:
As the Democratic nomination contest slouches toward a close, it’s
time to take stock of what I will not miss.
I will not miss seeing advertisements for T-shirts that bear the slogan “Bros
before Hos.” The shirts depict Barack Obama (the Bro) and Hillary Clinton
(the Ho), and they are widely sold on the Internet.
I will not miss walking past airport concessions selling the Hillary Nutcracker,
a device in which a pantsuit-clad Clinton doll opens her legs to reveal stainless
steel thighs that, well, bust nuts. I won’t miss television and newspaper
stories that make light of the novelty item.
I won’t miss episodes like the one in which the liberal radio personality
Randi Rhodes called Clinton a “big f---in’ whore” and said
the same about former vice presidential nominee Geraldine Ferraro. Rhodes
was appearing at an event sponsored by a San Francisco radio station, before
an audience of appreciative Obama supporters—one of whom had promoted
the evening on the presumptive Democratic nominee’s official campaign
Web site.
I won’t miss Citizens United Not Timid (no acronym, please), an anti-Clinton
group founded by Republican guru Roger Stone. ... ..
Obama gave voice to this when he arrogantly uttered that he could get Hillary's supporters, but he wasn't sure she could get his. That statement has now hardened into a reality that's going to cause him and the Democrats trouble going forward. See Lambert. Never mind that a lot was said about the African American vote, which is very important, but not any more important than the women's vote, the Hispanic vote, or the elderly. West Virginia will bring in the lunch bucket Democrat vote today.
Recently it was also floated that Obama may pick some other female for the
veep spot. That would be the final nail for some. Taking "Hillary's place" in history is how it seems, which will
not go down well with the girls and quite a few boys. But Bill Richardson? Deal breaker, baby.
However, that's actually a minor point. The Democratic party has to heal the fracture first.
Most of all, I will not miss the silence.
I will not miss the deafening, depressing silence of Democratic National
Committee Chairman Howard Dean or other leading Democrats, who to my knowledge
(with the exception of Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland) haven’t uttered
a word of public outrage at the unrelenting, sex-based hate that has been
hurled at a former first lady and two-term senator from New York. Among those
holding their tongues are hundreds of Democrats for whom Clinton has campaigned
and raised millions of dollars. Don Imus endured more public ire from the
political class when he insulted the Rutgers University women’s basketball
team.
Would the silence prevail if Obama’s likeness were put on a tap-dancing
doll that was sold at airports? Would the media figures who dole out precious
face time to these politicians be such pals if they’d compared Obama
with a character in a blaxploitation film? And how would crude references
to Obama’s sex organs play?
There are many reasons why Clinton is losing the nomination contest, some
having to do with her strategic mistakes, others with the groundswell for
“change.” But for all Clinton’s political blemishes, the
darker stain that has been exposed is the hatred of women that is accepted
as a part of our culture. ... ..
HRC supporters can't wait for the results tonight. After all, it's West Virginia,
a place any Democratic nominee should be able to compete. Embarrassing that
Obama cannot. But what did the Obamabots have to say about it? According to
Keith Olbermann, Hillary was actually doing Obama a favor by staying in, because
if he lost by a landslide to a candidate who'd dropped out, well, that would
be bad. Ya think? Of course, Norah O'Donnell parroted this insult like a trained
seal yesterday. Doing Obama a favor? Try sending a message of what's to come.
Blue collar workers and lunch bucket Democrats come in all human colors and shades. It's not about race. It's about understanding, appreciation and respect. Obama can take his jacket off and roll up his sleeves, but he's never going to be one of them. It's not because he's black or can't bowl, or doesn't know a gun barrel from Cracker Barrel cheese, though that doesn't help. It's because he doesn't understand the average hourly worker and why Clinton has gotten their respect. His word fogs prove his ignorance. But allowing the notion to be put forth and accepted that the people Clinton is bringing back into the party are racists was the case closer on Obama's cluelessness. My gas technician husband doesn't have a racist bone in his body. But because he won't vote for Obama that's the line being draped over him, as Obama's team sits there and says nothing, and the elite bloggers trumpet it as true. Sure, there will always be people who won't vote for a woman or African American, but that's not Obama's problem, believe me. It's because he comes out of the McGovern - Mondale - Dukakis - Kerry wing of the Democratic party elite. It's an intangible that makes his case impossible to sell.
Someone needs to ask why Obama is going to get trounced today, even though
everyone has pronounced Clinton's candidacy dead. He's going to get trounced
in Kentucky too.
Oh, and one other thing, if the superdelegates are so inspired by Obama's "likely"
nomination why haven't they ended this already? Obama's humiliation in West Virginia, a state John F. Kennedy took, as did Bill Clinton twice, just might bring them out. Neither Al Gore nor John Kerry could win in West Virginia either. Precursor of things to come? Nobody knows for sure, but it's not a great sign.
Truth is that The Brokered One is in trouble. Not just because he can't win West Virginia,
even after Clinton is declared a goner. Not just because he's a very weak general election candidate, while Clinton is the stronger. But because he sat around in silence
as all the sexism and racism charges were leveled against Hillary, with his campaign doing some of the race baiting themselves, doing nothing about any of it, which Hillary's supporters will not soon forget. He wasn't the only one, but he sent
the signal that it was okay. Lunch bucket Democrats will remember, even as some so called progressive proclaim they don't matter anymore. That's why he won't be getting the votes of many
HRC supporters if he's the nominee. Frankly, I can't blame them. This story
is not going away.
Don't know if you noticed, but an
Internet poll has been conducted by Obamabots and the votes are in. Obama's choice for
veep should be between.... drum roll... Bill Richardson and Kathleen Sebelius.
Seriously?
Obviously, Obama blogs and his other supporters don't care about Clinton's supporters, because if anyone
thinks Richardson is anything but a deal breaker they've been in one too many
group hug sessions with The One. As for Sebelius, I'd have to see another run
at a speech or two, because her response after Dubya's State of the Union was
one of the most frightening performances I've seen from an experienced pol.
Horrendous.
But Senator Obama's fans evidently believe he can win the White House without you
all. Never mind that he's not gotten the nomination yet. Yes, he's ahead, but
he's also about to take a shellacking in West Virginia, a state where he didn't
even bother to campaign. The Brokered One sure is picky about states, isn't
he? Won't honor Michiganders. Won't honor Floridians. Won't campaign in West Virginia,
though Obama
did show up with a flag pin on. Priceless.
That's Russert in the lead tank, followed closely by Kerry and Kennedy, with Olbermann bringing up the rear. And that's you blocking the entrance to West Virginia.
Sure, it looks like a Clinton landslide tomorrow. But just think of what might happen if this landslide actually turns into a crushing blowout and we have a 40-point spread on our hands. Several polls are saying that such a thing is quite possible.
Now imagine a victory speech from Hillary that brings down the house and forces the media to realize that this thing ain't over.
This is within grasp, and calling West Virginia tonight is the way to help make it happen. So here's the plan: Everyone who possibly can, please give the voters of West Virginia a call for just one full hour tonight, between 7-8pm Eastern. It's one hour because I know the responsibilities that many of us have, though continuing to call until about 9pm would be even better.
Click here to get started: HillaryClinton.com. It's super-easy to do, and all the tools you need are right there. We need to let them know that despite what the media would have them believe, their voice tomorrow could turn the tide and help choose the next president. I'd like for those who have already called to share their encouraging stories in the thread.
Don't just visualize victory and hope for the best...help make it happen.
While Barack Obama is busy ordering champagne for his premature victory party on May 20th, Hillary Clinton is pounding the West Virginia trail to get-out-the-vote in Tuesday's primary.
By all accounts Clinton will enjoy a double-digit win in West Virginia, followed by another in Kentucky one week later. And even though Obama, his surrogates, and pundit parrots are furiously pre-spinning his losses in these two states by suggesting that they don't really matter -- West Virginia and Kentucky could end up being game-changers for Clinton. Here's why:
Rural America can determine who becomes the next President. And West Virginia and Kentucky show off Clinton's commanding rural advantage.
But they aren't the only ones. Check out the county-by-county results from four very close contests (Clinton is red; Obama, green):
Missouri (Obama won by 1.3%):
New Mexico (Clinton won by 1%):
Texas (Clinton won by 3.5%):
Indiana (Clinton won by 2%)
As you can see, Clinton's base covers a broader geographic region, nearly a sweep of counties. Although population counts may be relatively equal between the red and green areas -- these maps illustrate how well she consistently performs in rural America.
Hillary has hit her stride in small towns and rural communities across the country, connecting with working class voters with a populist appeal reminiscent of Bobby Kennedy. For those who have followed Hillary Clinton's life and career, we know it's genuine. You can see the joy on her face when she's working the rope line in town squares, even at the end of a 16-hour day. Of course Obama's "bitter" moment aided her, but cinching this demographic segment is a crucial achievement that Clinton has earned for the Democrats. And, you might say...one benefit of this extended primary season that some party members are anxious to end.
A Democratic pollster for the Wall Street Journal and NBC News said it well:
Rural and small-town voters are the best indicators of whether a candidate is connecting with the values of Middle America. "They are America. Too often Democrats end up with candidates who can speak only to metro America. If you can speak to [rural and small-town America], then you relate to the rest of America."
Pay attention, folks. These are General Election swing voters needed to reach 270 electoral votes.
Swing voters.
And no one understands that better than the superdelegates, many of whom rely on these same voters for their own re-elections.
So Barack Obama might think twice about dismissing West Virginia and Kentucky, even if he calculates that their votes and delegates are inconsequential to the nomination. The hard-working people of Appalachia and bluegrass country represent a nationwide constituency capable of delivering the White House in November. And for Clinton, they will put her within striking distance of a popular vote lead.
"I was born in Taylor County TX. Took that photo yesterday...in case anyone was wondering!" - Scan
Taylor Marsh LIVE! 3:00 p.m. eastern - 12:00 pacific Missed the show? Podcast is up.
Good to be back.
I hate to bring this us, but what's
below is very unfortunate. It's not the only email I've received like it. It's also unacceptable. I understand loyalty to Clinton,
but mob comment rule is wrong. It certainly isn't what Clinton stands for. I
saw her last week take on Code Pink with grace, shrugging her shoulders at the
intrusive rhetoric in an event that was to celebrate generations of women. That
some of you jump on commenters in a manner that makes them bolt is wrong. Not
everyone is a "troll," especially when they're just being honest,
as they see things. I know I'm talking to a minority of people, but free speech,
ever heard of it?
Dear Taylor, I am a regular reader of your blog. First, let me say how much
I appreciate your work. Your commentaries have always been fair and honest.
You may not have noticed me as I had posted infrequently. But I had enjoyed
those times months ago when I did share my views on the presidential race.
It's been a tough campaign to follow, too many ups and downs. I remain an
undying supporter of Hillary. I still hope she will surprise the pundits and
win the nomination. But I also must be realistic about the incredibly uphill
climb she is facing. Perhaps I'm just preparing myself psychologically should
the worse happen. Anyway, I'm sad to say that I posted this morning for the
first time in a while, and found that (for the first time) I was accused of
being a troll and unwelcome because I was being honest about Hillary's uphill
climb and her future possibilites. I was trying to engage in an honest discussion
with fellow Hillary supporters, that includes talking about your hopes and
fears, and the hard reality. It's fine if no one wants to discuss hard reality,
I understand. But calling me a troll when I'm 110% a Hillary supporter is
an insult. I ONLY read your blog for news about the primary, and I most certainly
do not post on other blogs, yet I was accused of posting negative comments
on other sites. That's totally news to me. It is not your problem. You shouldn't
have to worry about it. But I do want you to know that I greatly respect your
view. I know you have said that you will be against McCain and not neccessarily
promote BO if he's the nominee. I understand and appreciate your comments.
But even if you were to actively promote BO, I will respect your choice, just
as I will respect Hillary's choice. I myself will be for McCain all the way
if Hillary is not the nominee. I will continue to read your blog as long as
Hillary is still in the race. But I will not post comments anymore, it's too
unsettling to be thought of as a troll. Thanks for all your hard work. Take
care and good luck. - E.
Secondly, personal information about commenters being posted in the comments
is cheap, whether you agree with the position being stated by the person commenting
or not, this is not fair.
Again, I know I'm talking to a minority of you who do these things, but I'd
appreciate if others of you would stand up for diversity of opinion. Comments
aren't a cheer leading venture.
The truth is that, as I said last week, Clinton's got a tough road ahead. Much of that has to do with the media gang up, as well as the ignorance of the DNC on the way they've handled MI and FL. Would she be the best nominee? You bet and we'll keep making that case. However, if some are worried about what might eventually play out they have every right to say so.
Although Barack Obama is the likely Democratic nominee, West Virginia Democratic voters are marching to a different drummer, as Hillary Clinton leads Obama by 36 points among likely Democratic voters, according to a poll released today by Suffolk University. Sixty percent of voters polled preferred Clinton to Obama (24 percent).
"This is a tough state for a Democrat for president,” said Del
Ali, president of the firm Research 2000, which conducted the surveys. “If
Obama’s sitting down with (his chief strategist) David Axelrod going
over the electoral map in the fall, Kentucky isn’t part of the equation.
I think with Hillary it could have been.”
Following in the path of traditional journalistic hacks across America today that
began with Tim Russert's trumpet, followed by George Stephanopoulos,
Keith Olbermann and so many more, TIME magazine has decided to proclaim Barack
Obama as the nominee of the Democratic party, complete with misplaced punctuation and all. They do so on their front cover.
They do so the day before the West Virginia primary. They do so before Barack
Obama has enough delegates. In other words, they do so before it is actually
over. They do so out of arrogance, because doing their job, which is to report,
is simply too boring for them at this point. After all, can't Clinton just get
off the stage? Doesn't she realize what's going on? The traditional media has
proclaimed it's over, so it's over.
...So, here's my question. What happens to "It's Over" if Clinton
pulls a 40-point victory in West Virginia on Tuesday, then follows it up a
week later with a 30-point victory in Kentucky? If these states turn out in
the same margins that states since March 4th have averaged, that would imply
a net of about 290,000 votes for Clinton. That puts her within striking distance
of a reasonable popular vote victory. "Over" will be over as we
turn our attention to Puerto Rico. ...
... .. My point is that those in the media who are declaring this race to
be over are necessarily predicting that she can't do all of this. That's a
conclusion I can't go along with. It's quite unlikely, but it is still possible
- and it is more possible than the "Obama might have a meltdown"
scenario.
Minimally, I will predict that West Virginia will be either her best or her
second best finish, behind only Arkansas. Kentucky should come in right behind
the two. This alone should be enough to induce some caution. I think it is
too hasty to declare her finished just days before two of her three best states.
...
Three weeks. That's it. Millions of people still to vote.
Superdelegates could have ended it last week after Obama's big win in North
Carolina. They didn't. I guess Clinton taking Indiana, which Obama said was the "tie breaker" right up until he didn't win it, spoiled it for them.
As for Obama, he still has some explaining to do.
Number of convincing explanations the Obama campaign has given for
why he won’t be competitive with Clinton in West Virginia: 0
There's a great story TIME could have told, but didn't.
It's dramatic. One of the most
dramatic in American political history, featuring two candidates the likes of which has never before been witnessed on the United States political landscape: a woman and an African American, of equal, if different, gifts. Obama, with a lead but not quite enough, is about to lose
the major swing state of West Virginia by double digits, a state that John F. Kennedy won, as did William Jefferson Clinton, twice (Gore and Kerry did not), followed
by another state Obama will likely lose by a similar hefty margin. Beaten in both states by
a woman who is running a fearless campaign of spirit and relentless heart, while
the entire traditional media establishment ignores the incredible suspense and excitement, and instead works to push her out of the race,
even as close as it is, though no one has enough delegates to win the nomination yet.
Few appreciate what Hillary Clinton is about to do tomorrow, least of all TIME
magazine. People like Russert, Stephanopoulos, Olbermann and many others are too busy trying to push her out because
they're deathly afraid she'll come roaring back to bite their careers. So if
TIME is the place you're getting your news, you're missing something big, very very big.
Although Obama didn’t attend the Louisville fundraiser, his campaign issued a statement Friday saying he will campaign in Kentucky early next week. It will be his first visit since August, a state he has already predicted he will lose.
I was on a plane coming back from D.C. when this blew up. Finally, Rahm Emanuel snapped back at Kennedy's classless remark. It's about time somebody did.
“I have a lot of respect for Ted Kennedy, but I don’t
know how the hell he comes off saying that,” said Mr. Emanuel,
who has ties to Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama and has not endorsed in the race.
“The gratuitous attack on her is uncalled for and wrong. He is a better
senator than that comment reveals.”
Obama and his team better be careful. If he gets the nomination he can't win
the presidency alone.
The McCain camp is already grabbing on to Obama's sexist talking points, which
belies the "another kind of politics" line that Obama and his team
posture is the foundation of Obama's candidacy. Of course it isn't. McCain is
wasting no time in calling
them out. From the McCain campaign this morning:
”Fatal Attraction” comparisons are kind of TABOO but that isn’t
stopping the Obama campaign. Check out the story here. ABC’s Jake Tapper’s
analysis is right on here: “I'd posit at the very least that it's not
keeping with Obama's lofty campaign rhetoric to compare Clinton's tenacity
to psychosis.” The Obama campaign already had to repudiate one surrogate
yesterday. Will they denounce this one as well?
McCain is starting to come at Obama. They're going to ridicule Obama until
all the smoke is gone and the mirrors are cracked. Buckle up, Senator Obama,
because you ain't seen nothin' yet.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'll work hard for Clinton if she's
the nominee. If Obama wins I'll work hard against John McCain.
However, Obama better
reign in his aides. We're in treacherous times right now, especially since Clinton is going to hand him his hat in West Virginia and Kentucky. If Obama's supporters continue to insult Clinton they'll have a real problem
on their hands if they don't already.
Unless, of course, Obama has decided he can win the general election without us. Good luck with that.
Barack Obama, as it turns out, is just another old-school politician in the finest quid-pro-quo Chicago tradition.
Although Obama has worked tirelessly to promote the image of himself as a 21st Century leader "dedicated to transparency and sensitive to even the appearance of a conflict of interest," writes the L.A. Times, he traded favors with Chicago entrepreneur Robert Blackwell Jr. during a time when Obama was struggling financially. According to the Times:
After an unsuccessful campaign for Congress in 2000, Illinois state Sen. Barack Obama faced serious financial pressure: numerous debts, limited cash and a law practice he had neglected for a year. Help arrived in early 2001 from a significant new legal client -- a longtime political supporter.
Chicago entrepreneur Robert Blackwell Jr. paid Obama an $8,000-a-month retainer to give legal advice to his growing technology firm, Electronic Knowledge Interchange. It allowed Obama to supplement his $58,000 part-time state Senate salary for over a year with regular payments from Blackwell's firm that eventually totaled $112,000.
A few months after receiving his final payment from EKI, Obama sent a request on state Senate letterhead urging Illinois officials to provide a $50,000 tourism promotion grant to another Blackwell company, Killerspin.
Obama's campaign, of course, vigorously denies even the appearance of wrongdoing....
"Any implication that Sen. Obama would risk an ethical breach in order to secure a small grant for a pingpong tournament is nuts," said David Axelrod, Obama's chief political advisor..
~snip~
Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs...said Obama did nothing wrong acting on behalf of Killerspin. He said the state senator simply wrote a letter backing a worthy project developed by a constituent.
But the day after Obama wrote his letter soliciting state funds for Blackwell's company, Obama's U.S. Senate campaign received a $1,000 donation from Blackwell.
Maybe he didn't "do anything wrong" but isn't this the sort of backroom wheeling-dealing Obama decries? It seems especially hypocritical in light of his heightened attacks against Hillary Clinton as a "compromised Washington insider." It seems that Clinton was onto something when she replied that "Mr. Obama's message of hope had given way to old-style politics and asked Democrats to take a harder look at him." Source.
While acknowledging that there were likely no technical violations in the tit-for-tat arrangement with Blackwell, the Times strongly implies that Obama does not, in fact, live up to the image he promotes...
Business relationships between lawmakers and people with government interests are not illegal or uncommon in Illinois or other states with a part-time Legislature, where lawmakers supplement their state salaries with income from the private sector.
But Obama portrays himself as a lawmaker dedicated to transparency and sensitive to even the appearance of a conflict of interest.
Recently, Obama expressed regret over a property deal with Illinois power broker Tony Rezko after Obama was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004. In an interview this spring with the Chicago Sun-Times, Obama said his regret was not just because the real estate and restaurant entrepreneur was under criminal scrutiny, but because he was "a contributor and someone doing business before the state."
~snip~
Killerspin's owner, Blackwell, was a political supporter and friend as well. Both men lived on Chicago's South Side. Blackwell, a savvy and successful entrepreneur, was one of the first donors to Obama's early campaigns, including the state senator's failed bid for a congressional seat in 2000. In the presidential race he is credited on Obama's website with committing to raise $100,000 to $200,000 for Obama's campaign.
When Blackwell sought backing for his table tennis tournament in 2002, other politicians...offered support...But Obama was the only one who provided a letter that became part of the initial application for state funds...In addition, he wrote a state Senate proclamation heralding the first tournament and an official letter that welcomed "table tennis friends" to the 2004 contest and thanked spectators for helping to "make Chicago the table tennis capital of this nation." (emphasis added)
Keep in mind, this is the politician whose campaign had the audacity to say:
"Sen. Clinton is the most secretive politician in America today. This has been a pattern throughout her career of the lack of disclosure." Source.
There is nothing "new" about Barack Obama. He may be younger than his peers, but Obama has been an obedient student of traditional Chicago politics, and he learned early on how to keep his bread buttered. Now American voters don't necessarily have a problem with conventional politicians. But I'm pretty sure that people dislike hypocritical ones.
_30JAN2008.jpg)
