Barack Obama

[RBS]

The dude rocks, doesn't he?

[BFrank]

A short pre-speech assessment of Barack:



(July 27, 2004 -- 09:07 PM EDT // link // print)
I'm sitting here a few minutes after nine, waiting for the big event of the evening, Barack Obama's keynote address. It's hard to overestimate how much expectation looms around this guy. The Democratic party yearns for this man's political future like Dick Cheney lusts after the oil and gas fields of the Caspian Sea.

Obama probably would have won the Illinois Senate seat in November by a solid margin regardless. Now it's not clear that it'll even be a contest after his opponent's candidacy collapsed amid his would-be party constituents close-mindedness about his desire to see his movie star wife have sex with other men in Paris sex clubs. So he was sort of a martyr to Babbitry, you might say.

In any case, he'll be the only black man in the Senate; and he'll have a relatively safe seat, as senate seats go. He'll be an instant star of his party. And all the folks who have antennae for political magic are all atwitter over him. I've been watching him give interviews and work the crowd and the tell-tale grace and poise isn't hard to see.

-- Josh Marshall

[Chaz Longue]

Ask not what your Party can do for you...

Originally Posted by RBS

The dude rocks, doesn't he?

*yawn*

I'll give the nod to Edwards, but this Obama guy does absolutely nothing for me.

Much ado about nothing.

[Dr Dave]

I'm actually not surprised, Scott. You're far too into being an iconoclast to accept anybody's message of "inclusiveness."

Being one of the Great Unwashed, I found him quite energizing. I'd like to see him be President one day.

[jesus marion joseph]

Unfortunately, I missed his speech, as mrs. jmj refused to watch convention coverage. From the sounds of it, he'll be around for a while, so I'll be able to see him speak some other time.

[patricia]

Originally Posted by Dr Dave

I'm actually not surprised, Scott. You're far too into being an iconoclast to accept anybody's message of "inclusiveness."

Being one of the Great Unwashed, I found him quite energizing. I'd like to see him be President one day.

Barack Obama is being talked of, already, as a possible President of the United States, someday. I would not at all be surprised if that turns out to be the case, if what he said in his speech is what he truly believes. Worse things could happen.

[sonic1]

You cannot argue with his effect on people. For a young guy who is relatively unknown he sure had the dem. convention in an uproar. His reception rivaled Clinton's! That is pretty damn impressive. Even republicans have a hard time taking a shot at the guy, yet anyway.

Scott, I know where you are coming from, but we are talking politicians here, not poets! Don't you find it impressive that a young nobody can derive more excitement from the convention than almost any other speaker so far? If Kerry can generate that much excitement I will be surprised.

Jared

[Chris D]

This is exactly the message we need to hear.

"If there's a child on the South Side of Chicago who can't read, that matters to me, even if it's not my child," Obama said. "If there's a senior citizen somewhere who can't pay for her prescription and has to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my grandmother. If there's an Arab-American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties.

"It's that fundamental belief -- I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper -- that makes this country work. It's what allows us to pursue our individual dreams, yet still come together as a single American family. 'E pluribus unum.' Out of many, one."

Later: "The pundits like to slice and dice our country into red states and blue states; red states for Republicans, blue states for Democrats," he said. "But I've got news for them, too. We worship an awesome God in the blue states, and we don't like federal agents poking around our libraries in the red states. We coach Little League in the blue states and have gay friends in the red states. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and patriots who supported it. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the Stars and Stripes, all of us defending the United States of America."

[Dr Dave]

Originally Posted by jesus marion joseph

Unfortunately, I missed his speech, as mrs. jmj refused to watch convention coverage. From the sounds of it, he'll be around for a while, so I'll be able to see him speak some other time.

Mrs. jmj has a rather peculiar mindset about politics.

[Gentle Giant]

I was duly impressed with Mr. Obama (I also like his name, although it's a little too close to Osama). But talk of him running for president is a wee premature, given that he's just a state senator running for the US Senate for the first time. His back-story is compelling but really, what do we know about him? What turns people on is his easy manner, his refreshing looks, and (and I hate to use this term, but let's face facts here, people) he's "an articulate black." Package John Lewis' credentials in Obama's presentation and you definitely have your first black president.

Without question, he's a face to watch, but first he has to win in Illinois. And then we need to do something about the fact that he'd be THE ONLY BLACK MAN IN THE SENATE.

Change gonna come.

[Ron Thorne]

My immediate thought was "damn, he's awfully poised, articulate and confident, with a compelling background." My second thought was "I could be listening to the first African/American president".

Of course it's too early to be projecting this kind of stature for someone I've only followed a couple of weeks, but those thoughts definitely danced through my head.

What a remarkable young man.

[bluenoter]

Originally Posted by Gentle Giant

His back-story is compelling but really, what do we know about him?

Biography (description of accomplishments)

See also On the Issues, In the News, Endorsements, and the rest of his website, Obama for Illinois.

[steve(thelil)]

So he went to Columbia undergrad and Harvard Law, where he was Editor and Chief of the Law review. So he speaks better 'an most "folks."


Does that make him smart enough to be President?

I think W has proveded that we need a unificaterer , not an academetition.

[Dr Dave]

Originally Posted by steve(thelil)

So he went to Columbia undergrad and Harvard Law, where he was Editor and Chief of the Law review. So he speaks better 'an most "folks."


Does that make him smart enough to be President?

I think W has proveded that we need a unificaterer , not an academetition.

ROTFL!

[hornplayer]

Originally Posted by steve(thelil)

I think W has proveded that we need a unificaterer , not an academetition.

Which one of those things was/is Dubbya?

[hornplayer]

Originally Posted by RBS

The dude rocks, doesn't he?

Sure does!

[Darryl G. Thomas]

Y'all need to calm down. I'm 48 and I don't expect to see a black president in my lifetime. Time and again black politicians poll well but once the election comes around their margin of victory is always way smaller than expected, if they win at all. Look at Doug Wilder in Virginia, I believe he had a double digit lead in the polls but come election day he just squeaked by. And it took a lot of votes from Northern VA for him to pull it off.

Look at that cat in Georgia who ran for the Republican nomination for the Senate. I believe he was the most conservative of all the candidates and he didn't come close.

You'll see a white female elected president before a black man or woman.

But what's really sad is that people of Obama's apparent talents aren't running for office in any great numbers. That's what really bothers me. What type of "talent" is populating Congress?

[sonic1]

Boy that just doesn't make sense. He is very different than any "black" politician. And it is not his being black that is impressive. It is his speaking. He is clintonesque in his speaking. I daresay better. He is very good at presenting his opinions in a way that even my brother, a staunch republican, can digest.

ANd his having worked very hard already puts him eons ahead of any current politicians. A hard working, from the poor classes, son of immigrant, totally american guy. Something both liberals and conservatives can like.

Jared

[jesus marion joseph]

Originally Posted by Dr Dave

Mrs. jmj has a rather peculiar mindset about politics.

A "rather peculiar mindset"! Yer killing me today, Dave!

[jesus marion joseph]

Originally Posted by Chris D

This is exactly the message we need to hear.

"If there's a child on the South Side of Chicago who can't read, that matters to me, even if it's not my child," Obama said. "If there's a senior citizen somewhere who can't pay for her prescription and has to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my grandmother. If there's an Arab-American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties.

"It's that fundamental belief -- I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper -- that makes this country work. It's what allows us to pursue our individual dreams, yet still come together as a single American family. 'E pluribus unum.' Out of many, one."

Later: "The pundits like to slice and dice our country into red states and blue states; red states for Republicans, blue states for Democrats," he said. "But I've got news for them, too. We worship an awesome God in the blue states, and we don't like federal agents poking around our libraries in the red states. We coach Little League in the blue states and have gay friends in the red states. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and patriots who supported it. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the Stars and Stripes, all of us defending the United States of America."

Black, green, or whatever, those are some powerful statements.

[Ron Thorne]

Originally Posted by jesus marion joseph

Black, green, or whatever, those are some powerful statements.

Indeed they are, jmj. And, were well-delivered, too.

Darryl, while I understand and appreciate your reluctance to get too excited about an African-American becoming president in your lifetime, I saw and heard something refreshing and powerful last night. So, I'm not inclined to calm down just yet.

[Tanager]

I'm sorry to say, I agree with Darryl. And I'm a bit younger than he is. I don't know much about Obama (although the posts here make me want to find out more), but Chris Rock was on the money on this one. I don't know what it's like where everyone else lives, but the race card plays really well around here, sadly.

[Al in NYC]

"If there's a child on the South Side of Chicago who can't read, that matters to me, even if it's not my child, If there's a senior citizen somewhere who can't pay for her prescription and has to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my grandmother. If there's an Arab-American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties."

"It's that fundamental belief -- I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper -- that makes this country work. It's what allows us to pursue our individual dreams, yet still come together as a single American family. 'E pluribus unum.' Out of many, one."

I too loved that portion of his speech. I think it clearly deliniates, more than just about anything I've ever heard, the difference between what the "every man for himself, but me first" Republicans believe and what many of the rest of us believe. If only more Democrats, the present presidential candidate included, would say (and mean) such things.

[Gentle Giant]

Originally Posted by Darryl G. Thomas

Y'all need to calm down. I'm 48 and I don't expect to see a black president in my lifetime. Time and again black politicians poll well but once the election comes around their margin of victory is always way smaller than expected, if they win at all. Look at Doug Wilder in Virginia, I believe he had a double digit lead in the polls but come election day he just squeaked by. And it took a lot of votes from Northern VA for him to pull it off.

Look at that cat in Georgia who ran for the Republican nomination for the Senate. I believe he was the most conservative of all the candidates and he didn't come close.

You'll see a white female elected president before a black man or woman.

But what's really sad is that people of Obama's apparent talents aren't running for office in any great numbers. That's what really bothers me. What type of "talent" is populating Congress?

I agree with all this. For some reason, I can see a woman president before a black president, but having a black VP isn't so far off. Lotta Repubs wanted Powell to be W's running mate in 2000.

First woman, first black, first Jew...bound to happen but Darryl's spot on about one thing: qualified cats in these groups have to run and be involved in the political game if we're ever gonna get something other than a white male Christian in the Oval Office.

My seven-year-old daughter is learning the presidents, and she just assumes you have to be a white man to be president. I think that's really sad. Maybe she'll be the first Jewish woman president.

[hornplayer]

Originally Posted by Gentle Giant

I agree with all this. For some reason, I can see a woman president before a black president, but having a black VP isn't so far off. Lotta Repubs wanted Powell to be W's running mate in 2000.

First woman, first black, first Jew...bound to happen but Darryl's spot on about one thing: qualified cats in these groups have to run and be involved in the political game if we're ever gonna get something other than a white male Christian in the Oval Office.

My seven-year-old daughter is learning the presidents, and she just assumes you have to be a white man to be president. I think that's really sad. Maybe she'll be the first Jewish woman president.

I agree with all this, too. It's sad... the white WASP (male) power structure is scared sh!tless of the rest of us.....

SS, I'd like to be around to vote for her!

[Ron Thorne]

I'm not so naive as to think that miracles are gonna happen within the American electorate anytime soon, but last night I enjoyed a slice of hope I haven't felt in far too long.

No apologies whatsoever for my enthusiasm for Barack Obama and his message.

Originally Posted by Dr Dave

I'm actually not surprised, Scott. You're far too into being an iconoclast to accept anybody's message of "inclusiveness."

I see.

So I'm assuming you didn't read my previous post. Allow me to summarize:

Originally Posted by Scott

I'll give the nod to Edwards

What part of Edwards message is any different than Obama's?

Look, the guy just didn't grab me. I've heard everything that came out of his mouth hundreds of times before, AND I simply didn't find him to be as engaging as guys like Clinton and Edwards.

Originally Posted by Jared

Scott, I know where you are coming from, but we are talking politicians here, not poets! Don't you find it impressive that a young nobody can derive more excitement from the convention than almost any other speaker so far?

No.

Look, it's the same speech I heard Clinton give many, MANY times. It's the same speech Edwards has been giving ever since he first threw his hat in the ring. Too many people struggling to survive, we must change all of that. Education and medical care for all. Tear down the wall between the haves and the have nots in this society, unity, higher wages, UNITY!!! blah, blah, fucking blah.

Look here folks, I'd be willing to bet that every President since I was born has given a variation of this speech. It's used to give hope to the hopeless. Make the little guy feel as though his voice will finally be heard.

Horseshit.

It's used to get people to vote for them.

If any prior Presidents had delivered on any of those little smokescreens, somebody, somewhere would have to write a new speech. I don't give two shits what these guys say, because once they are in office, all that garbage goes out the fucking window.

Therefore, I cannot judge this guy on his, at least, 34 year old speech. Just how he delivered it.

Mediocre. Plain and simple. It will be interesting to see how many of you are stil talking about this guy a year from now.

Next President? Pshawwwwwwww.......

Whatever. But if it helps, the only other person that I came away with a majorly positive impression about from this little hootenanny is a 34 y.o. Congressman from Tennessee. And I'm not sure he even gave a speech. But I saw and heard him do a couple of interviews and was INCREDIBLY impressed with how he handled himself.

Perhaps thats a guy some of you should pay more attention to. I know I sure as hell will.

[Tanager]

Originally Posted by Scott Dolan

Whatever. But if it helps, the only other person that I came away with a majorly positive impression about from this little hootenanny is a 34 y.o. Congressman from Tennessee. And I'm not sure he even gave a speech. But I saw and heard him do a couple of interviews and was INCREDIBLY impressed with how he handled himself.

Perhaps thats a guy some of you should pay more attention to. I know I sure as hell will.

YOu talking about Harold Ford? He was two years behind me in high school in Washington, D.C. He was a good guy when I knew him.

[walto]

While I don't agree with Scott that Obama's speech was poor, I have to admit that, probably because of the mind-boggling hype for him in Boston, I was a bit let down.**

C & I have some friends connected with Harvard Law School, and we heard over and over that "the sky's the limit" for this guy. And the Boston Globe (the Metro too) absolutely laid the hype on with a ladle. He's some sort of a cross between Einstein, Gandhi, and MLK, I keep hearing. So, I was expecting at least a Cuomo-level outing. It just wasn't, IMHO, (though there were some slightly too similar portions absent the actual mention of a covered wagon). Anyhow, I made the speech good, but certainly not great. I wish the guy a lot of luck in Illinois and hope he's on the national stage again soon, but if the coronation is supposed to be based on his oratorical abilities, he should read some more Lincoln. Even seeing a few more tapes of Clinton or Jesse Jackson might be good for him. (OTOH, he may be a much better person and candidate than both of those guys. Probably is.)

**I hasten to add that I didn't see his speech, just read the text, admittedly often a pretty bad substitute. Still you can't make a silk purse....