Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Thank you President Obama You Did us all Proud
President Obama you made your point last evening. You stood your ground, you took time to explain to the American people the difference between you and Romney and what is at stake without the hype and drama as some people were pushing you to do.
America has to stop dreaming in Hollywood and know that voting for your next President is not a movie. It is real life.
On the other hand Mr Romney was his usual bullying self. His behaviour was anything by gentlemanly. He bullied the interviewer for more time, he pointed his fingers at Obama actually calling him a liar when he said he announced it was a terrorist attack in the Rose Garden. For a moment I thought he would have pushed President Obama. I think that kind of a behaviour is unbecoming for a person who wants to be President. It is clear that Mr. Romney will be quick to take American into another war if the chance presents itself. For a former priest he does not seek peace.
President Obama's final response was powerful. Romney was very weak. He might have fared better if he told the American people how he would raise all the money he intends to raise, how he would create millions of jobs, bring down the debt, lower taxes for everyone - where in tarnation would he get the money to do that? I can also get up and say I would do this that the the other but when wait till I get into office you would see? That is the most ridiculous proposition I have ever heard of a contender. This man has thinks he is acting in a Hollywood movie or something.
I can sum up Mr. Romney in one sentence having paid attention to what he has been saying. He does not have a plan for the poor and middleclass America but he does have a solid plan for the rich people in American to become even richer.
On the other hand President Obama's plan is to continue on his plan to solidly put America back on the map, to be a Present of all America and to ensure the country no longer rides on the backs of the middleclass. Vote America, Vote Obama. A Vote for Romney means you want to return to the days that Mr. Bush left behind when everyone was running helter skelter as the economy bled as it has never bled before. Mr. Obama has a solid plan but Mr. Romney has no plan and as the saying goes
when you fail the plan you plan to fail
America has to stop dreaming in Hollywood and know that voting for your next President is not a movie. It is real life.
On the other hand Mr Romney was his usual bullying self. His behaviour was anything by gentlemanly. He bullied the interviewer for more time, he pointed his fingers at Obama actually calling him a liar when he said he announced it was a terrorist attack in the Rose Garden. For a moment I thought he would have pushed President Obama. I think that kind of a behaviour is unbecoming for a person who wants to be President. It is clear that Mr. Romney will be quick to take American into another war if the chance presents itself. For a former priest he does not seek peace.
President Obama's final response was powerful. Romney was very weak. He might have fared better if he told the American people how he would raise all the money he intends to raise, how he would create millions of jobs, bring down the debt, lower taxes for everyone - where in tarnation would he get the money to do that? I can also get up and say I would do this that the the other but when wait till I get into office you would see? That is the most ridiculous proposition I have ever heard of a contender. This man has thinks he is acting in a Hollywood movie or something.
I can sum up Mr. Romney in one sentence having paid attention to what he has been saying. He does not have a plan for the poor and middleclass America but he does have a solid plan for the rich people in American to become even richer.
On the other hand President Obama's plan is to continue on his plan to solidly put America back on the map, to be a Present of all America and to ensure the country no longer rides on the backs of the middleclass. Vote America, Vote Obama. A Vote for Romney means you want to return to the days that Mr. Bush left behind when everyone was running helter skelter as the economy bled as it has never bled before. Mr. Obama has a solid plan but Mr. Romney has no plan and as the saying goes
when you fail the plan you plan to fail
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Friday, September 9, 2011
Exceptional Speech from President Obama
This speech separates men from boys, intellectual from lunatics. Let's get America working with the President's plan.
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal/2011_09/obama_presents_american_jobs_a032080.php
excerpt....
This was an exceptional speech from President Obama. For all the talk about him being too professorial, or too cool, or too reluctant to show a willingness to fight, this was Obama circa 2008 — passion meets vision meets policy. This was, at its core, a address about a policy crisis, but Obama made an emotional appeal.
What’s more, the president’s vision, the “American Jobs Act,” happens to have some really good ideas that, as it turns out, would actually offer a significant boost to the economy.
Perhaps most importantly from a purely ideological perspective, Obama pushed back aggressively against the idea that government is and should be powerless when it comes to creating jobs and growing the economy. A significant chunk of the speech was a defense of the power of government itself to make a positive difference, and it was most welcome given the prevailing political winds.
I also like the fact that there’s going to be a bill that will be on the table. For a variety of reasons, some of them perfectly legitimate, this White House generally prefers to point to a North Star, only to tell Congress, “Go figure out a way to get there.” Not this time. Obama will present, in writing, a specific legislative proposal, which will reportedly total about $450 billion — bigger than rumors suggested, and much closer to what the economy needs.(Steve Benen)
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal/2011_09/obama_presents_american_jobs_a032080.php
excerpt....
This was an exceptional speech from President Obama. For all the talk about him being too professorial, or too cool, or too reluctant to show a willingness to fight, this was Obama circa 2008 — passion meets vision meets policy. This was, at its core, a address about a policy crisis, but Obama made an emotional appeal.
What’s more, the president’s vision, the “American Jobs Act,” happens to have some really good ideas that, as it turns out, would actually offer a significant boost to the economy.
Perhaps most importantly from a purely ideological perspective, Obama pushed back aggressively against the idea that government is and should be powerless when it comes to creating jobs and growing the economy. A significant chunk of the speech was a defense of the power of government itself to make a positive difference, and it was most welcome given the prevailing political winds.
I also like the fact that there’s going to be a bill that will be on the table. For a variety of reasons, some of them perfectly legitimate, this White House generally prefers to point to a North Star, only to tell Congress, “Go figure out a way to get there.” Not this time. Obama will present, in writing, a specific legislative proposal, which will reportedly total about $450 billion — bigger than rumors suggested, and much closer to what the economy needs.(Steve Benen)
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Obama Caves on Tax Cuts for Wealthy, Capitulating to 'Bush-McCain Philosophy' | | AlterNet
Obama Caves on Tax Cuts for Wealthy, Capitulating to 'Bush-McCain Philosophy' AlterNet
I believe that Mr. Obama did not recapitulate. He is listening to the American people. They created the government they want and they wanted President Obama to work with the Republicans and that’s what he is doing and that’s the wish of the people. It is totally against what the President would have wanted did he have the majority in the house but why should he hold up a bill dilly-dallying when poor people are starving and need the respite of a tax break.
A government can only do so much. A wise government knows when to compromise. There are always hard choices to be made. Mr. Obama, as far as I read him, is not in government to boost his self-image or to accumulate accolades or money; he is there for the people. He strikes me as a person for whom doing the right thing, the honest think is at the core of his politics. For a man like him, giving in to the Republican’s need to fatten the pockets of their rich friends, relatives and business partners, is worth the price of ensuring that the average American does not suffer.
At the end of the day, the American people would have themselves to blame if the economy takes even longer to bounce back because they have deliberately tied the hands of the man who has the vision and the ability to pull America out of the abyss that the former Republican government has left it in. How quickly we forget. The short memory span of the aging population and even shorter one of the twitter generation is dubious political leaders’ dream. They know that whatever they have done will quickly be forgotten as fresh lies are piled on.
Those who will criticize Obama for his decision to go along with the Republicans are as short-sighted as the general population and are ego-driven. Their kind of leaderships is one-upmanship and let’s sees who will win. It’s all about what men are about, arm wrestling for personal power, forgetting what is at stake. This is where Obama shines. He is not all about himself. He does not need tax breaks. He had a good life outside of the White House. He is the voice in the wilderness crying out for the American people, the ordinary folks, folks like his mother who had to worry about her medical bills, insurance and all that while fighting for her life. Do you see where this man’s motivation is coming from? I rest my case.
I believe that Mr. Obama did not recapitulate. He is listening to the American people. They created the government they want and they wanted President Obama to work with the Republicans and that’s what he is doing and that’s the wish of the people. It is totally against what the President would have wanted did he have the majority in the house but why should he hold up a bill dilly-dallying when poor people are starving and need the respite of a tax break.
A government can only do so much. A wise government knows when to compromise. There are always hard choices to be made. Mr. Obama, as far as I read him, is not in government to boost his self-image or to accumulate accolades or money; he is there for the people. He strikes me as a person for whom doing the right thing, the honest think is at the core of his politics. For a man like him, giving in to the Republican’s need to fatten the pockets of their rich friends, relatives and business partners, is worth the price of ensuring that the average American does not suffer.
At the end of the day, the American people would have themselves to blame if the economy takes even longer to bounce back because they have deliberately tied the hands of the man who has the vision and the ability to pull America out of the abyss that the former Republican government has left it in. How quickly we forget. The short memory span of the aging population and even shorter one of the twitter generation is dubious political leaders’ dream. They know that whatever they have done will quickly be forgotten as fresh lies are piled on.
Those who will criticize Obama for his decision to go along with the Republicans are as short-sighted as the general population and are ego-driven. Their kind of leaderships is one-upmanship and let’s sees who will win. It’s all about what men are about, arm wrestling for personal power, forgetting what is at stake. This is where Obama shines. He is not all about himself. He does not need tax breaks. He had a good life outside of the White House. He is the voice in the wilderness crying out for the American people, the ordinary folks, folks like his mother who had to worry about her medical bills, insurance and all that while fighting for her life. Do you see where this man’s motivation is coming from? I rest my case.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Why It Matters That Obama Marked "Black" On His Census Form | | AlterNet
President Obama created a bit of a stir in early April when he completed his Census form. In response to the question about racial identity the president indicated he was "Black, African American or Negro." Despite having been born of a white mother and raised in part by white grandparents, Obama chose to identify himself solely as black even though the Census allows people to check multiple answers for racial identity
Why It Matters That Obama Marked "Black" On His Census Form AlterNet
Why It Matters That Obama Marked "Black" On His Census Form AlterNet
Monday, November 16, 2009
Obama Pushes Rights With Chinese Students - NYTimes.com
Obama Pushes Rights With Chinese Students - NYTimes.com
November 17, 2009
Obama Pushes Rights With Chinese Students
By HELENE COOPER and DAVID BARBOZA
SHANGHAI — He didn’t explicitly call on China’s leaders to lift the veil of state control that restricts Internet access and online social networking here. But President Obama did tiptoe — ever so lightly — into that controversial topic on Monday when he told students in Shanghai that a free and unfettered Internet is a source of strength, not weakness.
For Mr. Obama, who has been taking pains to strike a conciliatory note during his first visit to China, it was a rare challenge to Chinese authorities, but expressed in Mr. Obama’s now familiar nuance. Responding to a question that came via the Internet during a town hall meeting with Shanghai students — “Should we be able to use Twitter freely?” — Mr. Obama first l started to answer in the slightly off-the-point manner which he often uses when he is gathering his thoughts.
“Well, first of all, let me say that I have never used Twitter,” he said. “My thumbs are too clumsy to type in things on the phone.”
But then he appeared to gather confidence. “I should be honest, as president of the United States, there are times where I wish information didn’t flow so freely because then I wouldn’t have to listen to people criticizing me all the time,” he said. But, he added, “because in the United States, information is free, and I have a lot of critics in the United States who can say all kinds of things about me, I actually think that that makes our democracy stronger and it makes me a better leader because it forces me to hear opinions that I don’t want to hear.”
On a trip where he has gone out of his way to present a kinder and gentler image of America — bowing before Emperor Akihito in Japan (which raised the ire of right-wing bloggers back home), meeting with one of the military rulers of Myanmar, reassuring China that America doesn’t seek to contain the rising economic giant — the Twitter question, and Mr. Obama’s answer, stood out as a stark snapshot of a young American president’s efforts to reach China’s youth while not offending its authorities.
“I will no forget this morning,” one Chinese Twitterer said. “I heard, on my shaky Internet connection, a question about our own freedom which only a foreign leader can discuss.”
Interestingly, China’s government itself demonstrated some restraint, and allowed the Twitter question and Mr. Obama’s answer to stay up on websites hours after the town hall meeting.
That restraint, however, apparently only went so far. The students —some 500 —in the audience seemed handpicked by the government and many were members of the Communist Youth League, which is closely affiliated with President Hu Jintao.
That could explain some of the questions, like this one, offered by a young man who said the question came in from the Internet from a Taiwan businessman worried that some people in America were selling arms and weapons to Taiwan. “I worry that this may make our cross-straits relations suffer,” the questioner said. “So I would like to know if, Mr. President, are you supportive of improved cross-straits relations?”
Mr. Obama grabbed the out that the questioner gave him and ran with it. Making no mention of the part about arms sales to Taiwan, he instead offered up the standard American talking point on Taiwan. “My administration fully supports a one-China policy, as reflected in the three joint communiqués that date back several decades, in terms of our relations with Taiwan as well as our relations with the People’s Republic of China,” he said.
Unlike previous town hall gatherings in China with other American presidents, Mr. Obama’s question-and-answer session was not broadcast live on China’s official state network. Instead, according to the official Chinese news agency Xinhua, live broadcasts inside China were carried on the agency’s Web site and on local Shanghai stations.
The White House streamed the event live on its Web site, , which is not blocked or censored in China, and a simultaneous Chinese translation was offered. The feed also was available through the White House page on Facebook.
Unlike American town hall events, where speakers blast campaign songs while the audience chatters loudly, you could almost hear a pin drop as the students waited for Mr. Obama in an auditorium at the Museum of Science and Technology.
Qian Yu, a student from East China Normal University, said she was impressed with Mr. Obama but not happy about the limited number of questions he took. “I wish it had been a longer time,” she said after. “I had lots of questions I’d have liked to ask.”
Mr. Obama left Shanghai immediately after the town hall meeting, and flew to Beijing where he has a packed schedule: several meetings with China’s leaders, two dinners with Mr. Hu, including an elaborate state dinner Tuesday night, and tours of the Great Wall and the Forbidden City.
November 17, 2009
Obama Pushes Rights With Chinese Students
By HELENE COOPER and DAVID BARBOZA
SHANGHAI — He didn’t explicitly call on China’s leaders to lift the veil of state control that restricts Internet access and online social networking here. But President Obama did tiptoe — ever so lightly — into that controversial topic on Monday when he told students in Shanghai that a free and unfettered Internet is a source of strength, not weakness.
For Mr. Obama, who has been taking pains to strike a conciliatory note during his first visit to China, it was a rare challenge to Chinese authorities, but expressed in Mr. Obama’s now familiar nuance. Responding to a question that came via the Internet during a town hall meeting with Shanghai students — “Should we be able to use Twitter freely?” — Mr. Obama first l started to answer in the slightly off-the-point manner which he often uses when he is gathering his thoughts.
“Well, first of all, let me say that I have never used Twitter,” he said. “My thumbs are too clumsy to type in things on the phone.”
But then he appeared to gather confidence. “I should be honest, as president of the United States, there are times where I wish information didn’t flow so freely because then I wouldn’t have to listen to people criticizing me all the time,” he said. But, he added, “because in the United States, information is free, and I have a lot of critics in the United States who can say all kinds of things about me, I actually think that that makes our democracy stronger and it makes me a better leader because it forces me to hear opinions that I don’t want to hear.”
On a trip where he has gone out of his way to present a kinder and gentler image of America — bowing before Emperor Akihito in Japan (which raised the ire of right-wing bloggers back home), meeting with one of the military rulers of Myanmar, reassuring China that America doesn’t seek to contain the rising economic giant — the Twitter question, and Mr. Obama’s answer, stood out as a stark snapshot of a young American president’s efforts to reach China’s youth while not offending its authorities.
“I will no forget this morning,” one Chinese Twitterer said. “I heard, on my shaky Internet connection, a question about our own freedom which only a foreign leader can discuss.”
Interestingly, China’s government itself demonstrated some restraint, and allowed the Twitter question and Mr. Obama’s answer to stay up on websites hours after the town hall meeting.
That restraint, however, apparently only went so far. The students —some 500 —in the audience seemed handpicked by the government and many were members of the Communist Youth League, which is closely affiliated with President Hu Jintao.
That could explain some of the questions, like this one, offered by a young man who said the question came in from the Internet from a Taiwan businessman worried that some people in America were selling arms and weapons to Taiwan. “I worry that this may make our cross-straits relations suffer,” the questioner said. “So I would like to know if, Mr. President, are you supportive of improved cross-straits relations?”
Mr. Obama grabbed the out that the questioner gave him and ran with it. Making no mention of the part about arms sales to Taiwan, he instead offered up the standard American talking point on Taiwan. “My administration fully supports a one-China policy, as reflected in the three joint communiqués that date back several decades, in terms of our relations with Taiwan as well as our relations with the People’s Republic of China,” he said.
Unlike previous town hall gatherings in China with other American presidents, Mr. Obama’s question-and-answer session was not broadcast live on China’s official state network. Instead, according to the official Chinese news agency Xinhua, live broadcasts inside China were carried on the agency’s Web site and on local Shanghai stations.
The White House streamed the event live on its Web site, , which is not blocked or censored in China, and a simultaneous Chinese translation was offered. The feed also was available through the White House page on Facebook.
Unlike American town hall events, where speakers blast campaign songs while the audience chatters loudly, you could almost hear a pin drop as the students waited for Mr. Obama in an auditorium at the Museum of Science and Technology.
Qian Yu, a student from East China Normal University, said she was impressed with Mr. Obama but not happy about the limited number of questions he took. “I wish it had been a longer time,” she said after. “I had lots of questions I’d have liked to ask.”
Mr. Obama left Shanghai immediately after the town hall meeting, and flew to Beijing where he has a packed schedule: several meetings with China’s leaders, two dinners with Mr. Hu, including an elaborate state dinner Tuesday night, and tours of the Great Wall and the Forbidden City.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
'm lovin' this man!
CHICAGO - President-elect Barrack Obama and his wife took their daughters to work at a food bank on the day before Thanksgiving, saying they wanted to show the girls the meaning of the holiday, especially when so many people are struggling.
Ten-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha joined their parents to shake hands and give holiday wishes to hundreds of people who had been lined up for hours at the food bank on Chicago 's south side.
Sasha wore a pink stocking hat over her pigtails and Malia had on a purple striped hat as the family handed out wrapped chickens to the needy in the chilly outdoor courtyard. Those seeking food on Wednesday at St. Columbanus also received boxes with potatoes, oranges, fresh bread, peanut butter, canned goods, oatmeal, spaghetti and coffee.
The president-elect, dressed casually in a leather jacket, black scarf and khaki pants, was in a jovial mood, calling out "happy thanksgiving" and telling everyone "you can call me Barack."
He told reporters that he wants the girls "to learn the importance of how fortunate they are, and to make sure they're giving back."
The soon-to-be first lady said the Obamas wanted to give their children "an understanding of what giving and Thanksgiving is all about."
The Obama family's activities in the courtyard quickly drew the attention of schoolchildren whose windows overlooked the courtyard. They put up a sign against the glass that read: "We love our prez" and screamed when the president-elect waved to them.
Obama then turned to his wife and suggested they go visit the kids. Secret Service agents, looking surprised, disappeared inside the building to accommodate his request.
Minutes later, hundreds of children were brought down to the school auditorium, and Obama loped onstage as they screamed and cheered.
"I just wanted to come by and wish everybody a happy Thanksgiving," he said.
He then asked the children what they would be eating for Thanksgiving dinner.
So lets recap.
He took his kids to work in the cold.? Instead of getting someone to line up and dish the gifts? Instead of telling them 'You are kids of a VIP.
Therefore there are things that you can't do.
To show the kids that people are suffering? Yes, that people are suffering?
They have to live understanding the importance of giving back to the community.
Let us learn from this great family. and for those who have children, this is a wonderful example of raising our kids.
Peace out!
CHICAGO - President-elect Barrack Obama and his wife took their daughters to work at a food bank on the day before Thanksgiving, saying they wanted to show the girls the meaning of the holiday, especially when so many people are struggling.
Ten-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha joined their parents to shake hands and give holiday wishes to hundreds of people who had been lined up for hours at the food bank on Chicago 's south side.
Sasha wore a pink stocking hat over her pigtails and Malia had on a purple striped hat as the family handed out wrapped chickens to the needy in the chilly outdoor courtyard. Those seeking food on Wednesday at St. Columbanus also received boxes with potatoes, oranges, fresh bread, peanut butter, canned goods, oatmeal, spaghetti and coffee.
The president-elect, dressed casually in a leather jacket, black scarf and khaki pants, was in a jovial mood, calling out "happy thanksgiving" and telling everyone "you can call me Barack."
He told reporters that he wants the girls "to learn the importance of how fortunate they are, and to make sure they're giving back."
The soon-to-be first lady said the Obamas wanted to give their children "an understanding of what giving and Thanksgiving is all about."
The Obama family's activities in the courtyard quickly drew the attention of schoolchildren whose windows overlooked the courtyard. They put up a sign against the glass that read: "We love our prez" and screamed when the president-elect waved to them.
Obama then turned to his wife and suggested they go visit the kids. Secret Service agents, looking surprised, disappeared inside the building to accommodate his request.
Minutes later, hundreds of children were brought down to the school auditorium, and Obama loped onstage as they screamed and cheered.
"I just wanted to come by and wish everybody a happy Thanksgiving," he said.
He then asked the children what they would be eating for Thanksgiving dinner.
So lets recap.
He took his kids to work in the cold.? Instead of getting someone to line up and dish the gifts? Instead of telling them 'You are kids of a VIP.
Therefore there are things that you can't do.
To show the kids that people are suffering? Yes, that people are suffering?
They have to live understanding the importance of giving back to the community.
Let us learn from this great family. and for those who have children, this is a wonderful example of raising our kids.
Peace out!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Post-Race - Is Obama the End of Black Politics? - NYTimes.com
Forty-seven years after he last looked out from behind the bars of a South Carolina jail cell, locked away for leading a march against segregation in Columbia, James Clyburn occupies a coveted suite of offices on the second and third floors of the United States Capitol, alongside the speaker and the House majority leader. Above his couch hangs a black-and-white photograph of the Rev. Martin Luther King ... read the article below:
Post-Race - Is Obama the End of Black Politics? - NYTimes.com
Post-Race - Is Obama the End of Black Politics? - NYTimes.com
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Barack Obama's Father's Day Speech
Remarks of Senator Barack Obama
(As prepared for delivery)
Apostolic Church of God
Sunday, June 15th, 2009
Chicago, IL
Good morning. It’s good to be home on this Father’s Day with my girls, and it’s an honor to spend some time with all of you today in the house of our Lord.
At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus closes by saying, “Whoever hears these words of mine, and does them, shall be likened to a wise man who built his house upon a rock: the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock.” [Matthew 7: 24-25]
Here at Apostolic, you are blessed to worship in a house that has been founded on the rock of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. But it is also built on another rock, another foundation – and that rock is Bishop Arthur Brazier. In forty-eight years, he has built this congregation from just a few hundred to more than 20,000 strong – a congregation that, because of his leadership, has braved the fierce winds and heavy rains of violence and poverty; joblessness and hopelessness. Because of his work and his ministry, there are more graduates and fewer gang members in the neighborhoods surrounding this church. There are more homes and fewer homeless. There is more community and less chaos because Bishop Brazier continued the march for justice that he began by Dr. King’s side all those years ago. He is the reason this house has stood tall for half a century. And on this Father’s Day, it must make him proud to know that the man now charged with keeping its foundation strong is his son and your new pastor, Reverend Byron Brazier.
Of all the rocks upon which we build our lives, we are reminded today that family is the most important. And we are called to recognize and honor how critical every father is to that foundation. They are teachers and coaches. They are mentors and role models. They are examples of success and the men who constantly push us toward it.
But if we are honest with ourselves, we’ll admit that what too many fathers also are is missing – missing from too many lives and too many homes. They have abandoned their responsibilities, acting like boys instead of men. And the foundations of our families are weaker because of it.
You and I know how true this is in the African-American community. We know that more than half of all black children live in single-parent households, a number that has doubled – doubled – since we were children. We know the statistics – that children who grow up without a father are five times more likely to live in poverty and commit crime; nine times more likely to drop out of schools and twenty times more likely to end up in prison. They are more likely to have behavioral problems, or run away from home, or become teenage parents themselves. And the foundations of our community are weaker because of it.
How many times in the last year has this city lost a child at the hands of another child? How many times have our hearts stopped in the middle of the night with the sound of a gunshot or a siren? How many teenagers have we seen hanging around on street corners when they should be sitting in a classroom? How many are sitting in prison when they should be working, or at least looking for a job? How many in this generation are we willing to lose to poverty or violence or addiction? How many?
Yes, we need more cops on the street. Yes, we need fewer guns in the hands of people who shouldn’t have them. Yes, we need more money for our schools, and more outstanding teachers in the classroom, and more afterschool programs for our children. Yes, we need more jobs and more job training and more opportunity in our communities.
But we also need families to raise our children. We need fathers to realize that responsibility does not end at conception. We need them to realize that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child – it’s the courage to raise one.
We need to help all the mothers out there who are raising these kids by themselves; the mothers who drop them off at school, go to work, pick up them up in the afternoon, work another shift, get dinner, make lunches, pay the bills, fix the house, and all the other things it takes both parents to do. So many of these women are doing a heroic job, but they need support. They need another parent. Their children need another parent. That’s what keeps their foundation strong. It’s what keeps the foundation of our country strong.
I know what it means to have an absent father, although my circumstances weren’t as tough as they are for many young people today. Even though my father left us when I was two years old, and I only knew him from the letters he wrote and the stories that my family told, I was luckier than most. I grew up in Hawaii, and had two wonderful grandparents from Kansas who poured everything they had into helping my mother raise my sister and me – who worked with her to teach us about love and respect and the obligations we have to one another. I screwed up more often than I should’ve, but I got plenty of second chances. And even though we didn’t have a lot of money, scholarships gave me the opportunity to go to some of the best schools in the country. A lot of kids don’t get these chances today. There is no margin for error in their lives. So my own story is different in that way.
Still, I know the toll that being a single parent took on my mother – how she struggled at times to the pay bills; to give us the things that other kids had; to play all the roles that both parents are supposed to play. And I know the toll it took on me. So I resolved many years ago that it was my obligation to break the cycle – that if I could be anything in life, I would be a good father to my girls; that if I could give them anything, I would give them that rock – that foundation – on which to build their lives. And that would be the greatest gift I could offer.
I say this knowing that I have been an imperfect father – knowing that I have made mistakes and will continue to make more; wishing that I could be home for my girls and my wife more than I am right now. I say this knowing all of these things because even as we are imperfect, even as we face difficult circumstances, there are still certain lessons we must strive to live and learn as fathers – whether we are black or white; rich or poor; from the South Side or the wealthiest suburb.
The first is setting an example of excellence for our children – because if we want to set high expectations for them, we’ve got to set high expectations for ourselves. It’s great if you have a job; it’s even better if you have a college degree. It’s a wonderful thing if you are married and living in a home with your children, but don’t just sit in the house and watch “SportsCenter” all weekend long. That’s why so many children are growing up in front of the television. As fathers and parents, we’ve got to spend more time with them, and help them with their homework, and replace the video game or the remote control with a book once in awhile. That’s how we build that foundation.
We know that education is everything to our children’s future. We know that they will no longer just compete for good jobs with children from Indiana, but children from India and China and all over the world. We know the work and the studying and the level of education that requires.
You know, sometimes I’ll go to an eighth-grade graduation and there’s all that pomp and circumstance and gowns and flowers. And I think to myself, it’s just eighth grade. To really compete, they need to graduate high school, and then they need to graduate college, and they probably need a graduate degree too. An eighth-grade education doesn’t cut it today. Let’s give them a handshake and tell them to get their butts back in the library!
It’s up to us – as fathers and parents – to instill this ethic of excellence in our children. It’s up to us to say to our daughters, don’t ever let images on TV tell you what you are worth, because I expect you to dream without limit and reach for those goals. It’s up to us to tell our sons, those songs on the radio may glorify violence, but in my house we live glory to achievement, self respect, and hard work. It’s up to us to set these high expectations. And that means meeting those expectations ourselves. That means setting examples of excellence in our own lives.
The second thing we need to do as fathers is pass along the value of empathy to our children. Not sympathy, but empathy – the ability to stand in somebody else’s shoes; to look at the world through their eyes. Sometimes it’s so easy to get caught up in “us,” that we forget about our obligations to one another. There’s a culture in our society that says remembering these obligations is somehow soft – that we can’t show weakness, and so therefore we can’t show kindness.
But our young boys and girls see that. They see when you are ignoring or mistreating your wife. They see when you are inconsiderate at home; or when you are distant; or when you are thinking only of yourself. And so it’s no surprise when we see that behavior in our schools or on our streets. That’s why we pass on the values of empathy and kindness to our children by living them. We need to show our kids that you’re not strong by putting other people down – you’re strong by lifting them up. That’s our responsibility as fathers.
And by the way – it’s a responsibility that also extends to Washington. Because if fathers are doing their part; if they’re taking our responsibilities seriously to be there for their children, and set high expectations for them, and instill in them a sense of excellence and empathy, then our government should meet them halfway.
We should be making it easier for fathers who make responsible choices and harder for those who avoid them. We should get rid of the financial penalties we impose on married couples right now, and start making sure that every dime of child support goes directly to helping children instead of some bureaucrat. We should reward fathers who pay that child support with job training and job opportunities and a larger Earned Income Tax Credit that can help them pay the bills. We should expand programs where registered nurses visit expectant and new mothers and help them learn how to care for themselves before the baby is born and what to do after – programs that have helped increase father involvement, women’s employment, and children’s readiness for school. We should help these new families care for their children by expanding maternity and paternity leave, and we should guarantee every worker more paid sick leave so they can stay home to take care of their child without losing their income.
We should take all of these steps to build a strong foundation for our children. But we should also know that even if we do; even if we meet our obligations as fathers and parents; even if Washington does its part too, we will still face difficult challenges in our lives. There will still be days of struggle and heartache. The rains will still come and the winds will still blow.
And that is why the final lesson we must learn as fathers is also the greatest gift we can pass on to our children – and that is the gift of hope.
I’m not talking about an idle hope that’s little more than blind optimism or willful ignorance of the problems we face. I’m talking about hope as that spirit inside us that insists, despite all evidence to the contrary, that something better is waiting for us if we’re willing to work for it and fight for it. If we are willing to believe.
I was answering questions at a town hall meeting in Wisconsin the other day and a young man raised his hand, and I figured he’d ask about college tuition or energy or maybe the war in Iraq. But instead he looked at me very seriously and he asked, “What does life mean to you?”
Now, I have to admit that I wasn’t quite prepared for that one. I think I stammered for a little bit, but then I stopped and gave it some thought, and I said this:
When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me – how do I make my way in the world, and how do I become successful and how do I get the things that I want.
But now, my life revolves around my two little girls. And what I think about is what kind of world I’m leaving them. Are they living in a county where there’s a huge gap between a few who are wealthy and a whole bunch of people who are struggling every day? Are they living in a county that is still divided by race? A country where, because they’re girls, they don’t have as much opportunity as boys do? Are they living in a country where we are hated around the world because we don’t cooperate effectively with other nations? Are they living a world that is in grave danger because of what we’ve done to its climate?
And what I’ve realized is that life doesn’t count for much unless you’re willing to do your small part to leave our children – all of our children – a better world. Even if it’s difficult. Even if the work seems great. Even if we don’t get very far in our lifetime.
That is our ultimate responsibility as fathers and parents. We try. We hope. We do what we can to build our house upon the sturdiest rock. And when the winds come, and the rains fall, and they beat upon that house, we keep faith that our Father will be there to guide us, and watch over us, and protect us, and lead His children through the darkest of storms into light of a better day. That is my prayer for all of us on this Father’s Day, and that is my hope for this country in the years ahead. May God Bless you and your children. Thank you.
(As prepared for delivery)
Apostolic Church of God
Sunday, June 15th, 2009
Chicago, IL
Good morning. It’s good to be home on this Father’s Day with my girls, and it’s an honor to spend some time with all of you today in the house of our Lord.
At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus closes by saying, “Whoever hears these words of mine, and does them, shall be likened to a wise man who built his house upon a rock: the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock.” [Matthew 7: 24-25]
Here at Apostolic, you are blessed to worship in a house that has been founded on the rock of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. But it is also built on another rock, another foundation – and that rock is Bishop Arthur Brazier. In forty-eight years, he has built this congregation from just a few hundred to more than 20,000 strong – a congregation that, because of his leadership, has braved the fierce winds and heavy rains of violence and poverty; joblessness and hopelessness. Because of his work and his ministry, there are more graduates and fewer gang members in the neighborhoods surrounding this church. There are more homes and fewer homeless. There is more community and less chaos because Bishop Brazier continued the march for justice that he began by Dr. King’s side all those years ago. He is the reason this house has stood tall for half a century. And on this Father’s Day, it must make him proud to know that the man now charged with keeping its foundation strong is his son and your new pastor, Reverend Byron Brazier.
Of all the rocks upon which we build our lives, we are reminded today that family is the most important. And we are called to recognize and honor how critical every father is to that foundation. They are teachers and coaches. They are mentors and role models. They are examples of success and the men who constantly push us toward it.
But if we are honest with ourselves, we’ll admit that what too many fathers also are is missing – missing from too many lives and too many homes. They have abandoned their responsibilities, acting like boys instead of men. And the foundations of our families are weaker because of it.
You and I know how true this is in the African-American community. We know that more than half of all black children live in single-parent households, a number that has doubled – doubled – since we were children. We know the statistics – that children who grow up without a father are five times more likely to live in poverty and commit crime; nine times more likely to drop out of schools and twenty times more likely to end up in prison. They are more likely to have behavioral problems, or run away from home, or become teenage parents themselves. And the foundations of our community are weaker because of it.
How many times in the last year has this city lost a child at the hands of another child? How many times have our hearts stopped in the middle of the night with the sound of a gunshot or a siren? How many teenagers have we seen hanging around on street corners when they should be sitting in a classroom? How many are sitting in prison when they should be working, or at least looking for a job? How many in this generation are we willing to lose to poverty or violence or addiction? How many?
Yes, we need more cops on the street. Yes, we need fewer guns in the hands of people who shouldn’t have them. Yes, we need more money for our schools, and more outstanding teachers in the classroom, and more afterschool programs for our children. Yes, we need more jobs and more job training and more opportunity in our communities.
But we also need families to raise our children. We need fathers to realize that responsibility does not end at conception. We need them to realize that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child – it’s the courage to raise one.
We need to help all the mothers out there who are raising these kids by themselves; the mothers who drop them off at school, go to work, pick up them up in the afternoon, work another shift, get dinner, make lunches, pay the bills, fix the house, and all the other things it takes both parents to do. So many of these women are doing a heroic job, but they need support. They need another parent. Their children need another parent. That’s what keeps their foundation strong. It’s what keeps the foundation of our country strong.
I know what it means to have an absent father, although my circumstances weren’t as tough as they are for many young people today. Even though my father left us when I was two years old, and I only knew him from the letters he wrote and the stories that my family told, I was luckier than most. I grew up in Hawaii, and had two wonderful grandparents from Kansas who poured everything they had into helping my mother raise my sister and me – who worked with her to teach us about love and respect and the obligations we have to one another. I screwed up more often than I should’ve, but I got plenty of second chances. And even though we didn’t have a lot of money, scholarships gave me the opportunity to go to some of the best schools in the country. A lot of kids don’t get these chances today. There is no margin for error in their lives. So my own story is different in that way.
Still, I know the toll that being a single parent took on my mother – how she struggled at times to the pay bills; to give us the things that other kids had; to play all the roles that both parents are supposed to play. And I know the toll it took on me. So I resolved many years ago that it was my obligation to break the cycle – that if I could be anything in life, I would be a good father to my girls; that if I could give them anything, I would give them that rock – that foundation – on which to build their lives. And that would be the greatest gift I could offer.
I say this knowing that I have been an imperfect father – knowing that I have made mistakes and will continue to make more; wishing that I could be home for my girls and my wife more than I am right now. I say this knowing all of these things because even as we are imperfect, even as we face difficult circumstances, there are still certain lessons we must strive to live and learn as fathers – whether we are black or white; rich or poor; from the South Side or the wealthiest suburb.
The first is setting an example of excellence for our children – because if we want to set high expectations for them, we’ve got to set high expectations for ourselves. It’s great if you have a job; it’s even better if you have a college degree. It’s a wonderful thing if you are married and living in a home with your children, but don’t just sit in the house and watch “SportsCenter” all weekend long. That’s why so many children are growing up in front of the television. As fathers and parents, we’ve got to spend more time with them, and help them with their homework, and replace the video game or the remote control with a book once in awhile. That’s how we build that foundation.
We know that education is everything to our children’s future. We know that they will no longer just compete for good jobs with children from Indiana, but children from India and China and all over the world. We know the work and the studying and the level of education that requires.
You know, sometimes I’ll go to an eighth-grade graduation and there’s all that pomp and circumstance and gowns and flowers. And I think to myself, it’s just eighth grade. To really compete, they need to graduate high school, and then they need to graduate college, and they probably need a graduate degree too. An eighth-grade education doesn’t cut it today. Let’s give them a handshake and tell them to get their butts back in the library!
It’s up to us – as fathers and parents – to instill this ethic of excellence in our children. It’s up to us to say to our daughters, don’t ever let images on TV tell you what you are worth, because I expect you to dream without limit and reach for those goals. It’s up to us to tell our sons, those songs on the radio may glorify violence, but in my house we live glory to achievement, self respect, and hard work. It’s up to us to set these high expectations. And that means meeting those expectations ourselves. That means setting examples of excellence in our own lives.
The second thing we need to do as fathers is pass along the value of empathy to our children. Not sympathy, but empathy – the ability to stand in somebody else’s shoes; to look at the world through their eyes. Sometimes it’s so easy to get caught up in “us,” that we forget about our obligations to one another. There’s a culture in our society that says remembering these obligations is somehow soft – that we can’t show weakness, and so therefore we can’t show kindness.
But our young boys and girls see that. They see when you are ignoring or mistreating your wife. They see when you are inconsiderate at home; or when you are distant; or when you are thinking only of yourself. And so it’s no surprise when we see that behavior in our schools or on our streets. That’s why we pass on the values of empathy and kindness to our children by living them. We need to show our kids that you’re not strong by putting other people down – you’re strong by lifting them up. That’s our responsibility as fathers.
And by the way – it’s a responsibility that also extends to Washington. Because if fathers are doing their part; if they’re taking our responsibilities seriously to be there for their children, and set high expectations for them, and instill in them a sense of excellence and empathy, then our government should meet them halfway.
We should be making it easier for fathers who make responsible choices and harder for those who avoid them. We should get rid of the financial penalties we impose on married couples right now, and start making sure that every dime of child support goes directly to helping children instead of some bureaucrat. We should reward fathers who pay that child support with job training and job opportunities and a larger Earned Income Tax Credit that can help them pay the bills. We should expand programs where registered nurses visit expectant and new mothers and help them learn how to care for themselves before the baby is born and what to do after – programs that have helped increase father involvement, women’s employment, and children’s readiness for school. We should help these new families care for their children by expanding maternity and paternity leave, and we should guarantee every worker more paid sick leave so they can stay home to take care of their child without losing their income.
We should take all of these steps to build a strong foundation for our children. But we should also know that even if we do; even if we meet our obligations as fathers and parents; even if Washington does its part too, we will still face difficult challenges in our lives. There will still be days of struggle and heartache. The rains will still come and the winds will still blow.
And that is why the final lesson we must learn as fathers is also the greatest gift we can pass on to our children – and that is the gift of hope.
I’m not talking about an idle hope that’s little more than blind optimism or willful ignorance of the problems we face. I’m talking about hope as that spirit inside us that insists, despite all evidence to the contrary, that something better is waiting for us if we’re willing to work for it and fight for it. If we are willing to believe.
I was answering questions at a town hall meeting in Wisconsin the other day and a young man raised his hand, and I figured he’d ask about college tuition or energy or maybe the war in Iraq. But instead he looked at me very seriously and he asked, “What does life mean to you?”
Now, I have to admit that I wasn’t quite prepared for that one. I think I stammered for a little bit, but then I stopped and gave it some thought, and I said this:
When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me – how do I make my way in the world, and how do I become successful and how do I get the things that I want.
But now, my life revolves around my two little girls. And what I think about is what kind of world I’m leaving them. Are they living in a county where there’s a huge gap between a few who are wealthy and a whole bunch of people who are struggling every day? Are they living in a county that is still divided by race? A country where, because they’re girls, they don’t have as much opportunity as boys do? Are they living in a country where we are hated around the world because we don’t cooperate effectively with other nations? Are they living a world that is in grave danger because of what we’ve done to its climate?
And what I’ve realized is that life doesn’t count for much unless you’re willing to do your small part to leave our children – all of our children – a better world. Even if it’s difficult. Even if the work seems great. Even if we don’t get very far in our lifetime.
That is our ultimate responsibility as fathers and parents. We try. We hope. We do what we can to build our house upon the sturdiest rock. And when the winds come, and the rains fall, and they beat upon that house, we keep faith that our Father will be there to guide us, and watch over us, and protect us, and lead His children through the darkest of storms into light of a better day. That is my prayer for all of us on this Father’s Day, and that is my hope for this country in the years ahead. May God Bless you and your children. Thank you.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Could he be the one?
It's Obama Time: What Does His Stunning Iowa Win Mean?
By Eric L. Hinton
© DiversityInc 2007
When Barack Obama pulled off a stunning victory in Thursday's Iowa caucus, one of the whitest states in the nation, some hailed his victory as proof that a black man could be president.
Are we there yet?
In the past several months, Obama has successfully hurdled questions of "Is he black enough?" and "Is He a Muslim?" on his way to capturing 38 percent of support among Iowa caucus-goers. John Edwards gained 30 percent of the vote while Hillary Clinton, the prohibitive frontrunner in the months leading up to the caucus, finished a disappointing third with 29 percent.
Approximately 25 percent of the Democratic caucus-goers interviewed in entrance polls were younger than 30. Obama received 57 percent of their votes, compared with 14 percent for Edwards and 11 percent for Clinton, reports The Associated Press (AP). Obama also won the highest percentage of independents, first-time caucus-goers, self-identified liberals, and women, according to the AP.
On the Republican side, Mike Huckabee, who's been campaigning on a largely anti-undocumented-immigrant platform, won with 34 percent of the vote, followed by 25 percent for Mitt Romney.
So was Obama's victory in Iowa just a blip on the radar screen or the first step in a massive transformation in American politics? That's what the political pundits are trying to analyze this "day after" as campaign managers go into spin mode and the campaign trail moves on to New Hampshire, which holds its primary on Tuesday.
Obama's historic victory "proved that a black man running for president can have success among voters in a predominantly white state," writes BlackAmericaWeb.com.
"To his credit Barack Obama has carefully cultivated an image as a 'change' candidate who takes the higher ground, one that talks about race -- but not racism," writes New American Media columnist Roberto Lovato. "Iowa confirms that, in doing so, he can make even the whitest electorate feel like it's voting to overcome the catastrophic legacy of racial discrimination."
Obama's campaign seemed to kick into overdrive once he was joined on the campaign trail by Oprah Winfrey. It's hard to determine what impact 'The Oprah effect' actually had. But as the Des Monies Register reported in December after Obama received Winfrey's endorsement, he attracted more than 18,000 to a Des Monies event and more than 15,000 in Cedar Rapids. Newsweek says many pundits discounted Winfrey's endorsement despite her the largely female audience, which Obama was trying to capture, "but when MSNBC reported that Obama had won the women's vote in Iowa by several points, the crowd went wild," Newsweek reports.
How important was Obama's Iowa win? It may be difficult to believe with 49 states still unheard from that the first--particularly Iowa which is 95 percent white--could be a deciding factor. But Jonathan Alter, senior editor and columnist at Newsweek, says the Iowa win has made Obama the prohibitive favorite to be the Democratic presidential nominee.
"It's hard to believe a few thousand votes in Iowa can have so shaken the political landscape, but the front-loading of the primary process--originally meant to settle on Hillary Clinton early so she could concentrate on defeating the GOP in November--has backfired badly for the Democratic Party establishment," writes Alter. "The only one who can stop Obama from making history is Obama."
The Clinton camp has a different perspective, obviously. Clinton's campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle offered congratulations to Obama while saying the battle was far from over. "This race begins tonight and ends when Democrats throughout America have their say," Doyle writes on the Clinton campaign web site. "Our campaign was built for a marathon and we have the resources to run a national race in the weeks ahead."
Timing is everything. It's possible Obama may be the last candidate to ride the Iowa wave to a party nomination, should he go that far. Some political analysts are suggesting that Iowa, largely rural, white, conservative and sparsely populated, exerts far too large an influence over the political process.
"The major parties would be far better off if the presidential nominees were chosen much later in the process," says Steven S. Smith, a political expert at Washington University who predicts Iowa's special role in party politics may end after this year. "It's a lousy way to elect a president. Is it reasonable to allow states like Iowa and New Hampshire to have such a disproportionate impact on the presidential race?"
The New York Times concurred. On its editorial page, the Times urged that "this year's Iowa-New Hampshire rush to judgment will be the last."
"We don't question the enthusiasm of the commitment of the people of Iowa and New Hampshire. But Iowa, where a huge turnout amounts to less than 10 percent of the population, is about 92 percent white, more rural and older than the rest of the nation," says the Times.
How interesting, then, that Iowa's sawn song with its predominantly white populace may be propelling Barack Obama to the Democratic nomination.
Obama Wins Big Time
What Obama's Iowa Win Means for Everyone
By Arianna Huffington, HuffingtonPost.com
Posted on January 4, 2008, Printed on January 4, 2008
http://www.alternet.org/story/72596/
Even if your candidate didn't win tonight, you have reason to celebrate. We all do.
Barack Obama's stirring victory in Iowa -- down home, folksy, farm-fed, Midwestern, and 92 percent white Iowa -- says a lot about America, and also about the current mindset of the American voter.
Because tonight voters decided that they didn't want to look back. They wanted to look into the future -- as if a country exhausted by the last seven years wanted to recapture its youth.
Bush's re-election in 2004 was a monument to the power of fear and fear-mongering. Be Very Afraid was Bush/Cheney's Plans A through Z. The only card in the Rove-dealt deck. And it worked. America, its vision distorted by the mushroom clouds conjured by Bush and Cheney, made a collective sprint to the bomb shelters in our minds, our lizard brains responding to fear rather than hope.
And the Clintons -- their Hillary-as-incumbent-strategy sputtering -- followed the Bush blueprint in Iowa and played the fear card again and again and again.
Be afraid of Obama, they warned us. Be afraid of something new, something different. He might meet with our enemies. His middle name is Hussein. He went to a madrassa school. A vote for him would be like rolling the dice, the former president said on Charlie Rose.
And the people of Iowa heard him, and chose to roll the dice.
Obama's win might not have legs. Hope could give way to fear once again. But, for tonight at least, it holds a mirror up to the face of America, and we can look at ourselves with pride. This is the kind of country America was meant to be, even if you are for Clinton or Edwards -- or even Huckabee or Giuliani.
It's the kind of country we've always imagined ourselves being -- even if in the last seven years we fell horribly short: a young country, an optimistic country, a forward-looking country, a country not afraid to take risks or to dream big.
Bill Clinton has privately told friends that if Hillary didn't win, it would be because of the two weeks that followed her shaky performance in the Philadelphia debate.
But it wasn't those two weeks. Indeed, if we were to pinpoint one decisive moment, it would be Bill Clinton on Charlie Rose, arrogant and entitled, dismissive and fear-mongering. And then Bill Clinton giving us a refresher course in '90s-style truth-twisting and obfuscation -- making stuff about always having been against the war, and about Hillary having always been for every good decision during his presidency and against every bad one, from Ireland to Sarajevo to Rwanda.
So voters in Iowa remembered the past and decided that they didn't want to go back. They wanted to move ahead. Even if that meant rolling the dice.
Again, this moment may not last. But, for tonight, I am going to savor it -- and cross my fingers that it may stand as the day that fear as a winning political tactic died. Killed by an "unlikely" candidate -- as Obama called himself again and again -- who seized the moment, and reminded America of its youth and the optimism it longs to recapture.
Find more Arianna at the Huffington Post.
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Oprah Winfrey Hits Campaign Trail for Obama
December 9, 2007
By JEFF ZELENY
DES MOINES, Dec. 8 — When she begins a typical show, seldom does Oprah Winfrey question the power of her brand or wonder aloud about the influence that accompanies her golden seal of approval.
But when Ms. Winfrey strode onto a stage here Saturday, imploring Iowa voters to support the presidential candidacy of Senator Barack Obama, she acknowledged not knowing whether her endorsement would matter. And as she waded into American politics like never before, she declared: “I feel like I’m out of my pew.”
Still, with three weeks before the presidential nominating contest begins here, Ms. Winfrey’s arrival on the campaign trail and her irrefutable appeal was threatening enough for Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York to invite a famous guest of her own, Chelsea Clinton, who has waited in the wings for a moment like this.
It was, perhaps, the best way Mrs. Clinton could be assured attention on a political day devoted to Ms. Winfrey, who drew more than 15,000 people here and a second audience of about 7,000 in Cedar Rapids. In a state awash in presidential politics, with a competitive fight on both sides of the ticket, it was the largest spectacle of the campaign cycle.
“Oh my goodness,” Ms. Winfrey said. “At last, I’m here.”
The intersection of politics and celebrity began the moment that Mr. Obama’s wife, Michelle Obama, declared, “It is my honor to introduce to you the first lady of television, Oprah Winfrey.” A wave of camera flashes illuminated a downtown convention center here as Ms. Winfrey entered to a thunderous roar.
Ms. Winfrey, of course, is hardly a stranger to speaking before large crowds. But as she explained her rationale for supporting Mr. Obama, of Illinois, she stood behind a lectern, reading from prepared remarks. She paused for a moment, saying: “Backstage, somebody said are you nervous? I said, damn right I’m nervous.”
But for 17 minutes, Ms. Winfrey delivered an emotional testimonial for Mr. Obama, arguing the nation was at a critical moment in its history that required a new direction, a new face, a new way. She did not mention Mrs. Clinton or any of their rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination, but dismissed suggestions that voters should chose a candidate with the most Washington experience.
“If we continue to do the same things over and over again, I believe we get the same results,” Ms. Winfrey said. Later, she added: “When you listen to Barack Obama, when you really hear him, you witness a very rare thing, You witness a politician who has an ear for eloquence and a tongue dipped in the unvarnished truth.”
In his quest to win the party’s nomination, and become the first black president, Mr. Obama is working to expand his reach beyond the traditional set of Democratic primary voters. The campaign is hoping to use Ms. Winfrey’s visit to Iowa on Saturday, followed by New Hampshire and South Carolina on Sunday, to expose his candidacy to a new audience of prospective supporters.
“I am not here to tell you what to think. I am here to ask you to think — seriously,” Ms. Winfrey said. “I’m not here for partisan beliefs. Over the years, I’ve voted for as many Republicans as I have Democrats. So this isn’t about partisanship for me.”
She ticked through a list of Mr. Obama’s accomplishments, from his days as a community organizer to a state senator to a United States senator. When she hailed his opposition to the war, “long before it was the popular thing to do,” the crowd responded with a roar of approval.
The Obama campaign captured the names and addresses of thousands of those who attended the rallies. Those who agreed to volunteer for at least four hours over the past two weeks received premium tickets.
“I think Oprah is John the Baptist, leading the way for Obama to win,” said Dale Cobb, 40, of Des Moines, who has never participated in the caucuses before. Yet, she added: “I’m still kind of in between Hillary and Obama.”
Cate Doty contributed reporting.
Monday, December 3, 2007
Friday, September 28, 2007
As Barack Obama Fires Up N.Y., Michelle Obama Talks Iowa Strategy
As Barack Obama Fires Up N.Y., Michelle Obama Talks Iowa Strategy
When Senator Barack Obama ran through the arch and strode onto stage tonight in Washington Square Park, he paused and sized up the crowd standing before him, many of whom were waving blue signs into the air emblazoned with his last name.
“Look at this crowd!” Mr. Obama said. “It is good to be back in New York. Some of you know, I used to live in New York City. I used to hang out in Washington Square Park. I know a little something about Greenwich Village.”
He added: “I was going to say I know some of the bars around here, but I think my communications director was trying to cut that off.”
While there was no indication that Mr. Obama had been drinking tonight – he is, in fact, a light drinker, who two years ago declined a shot of vodka with a group of government officials in Russia – he did seem as though he had taken an energy boost from his appearance at a debate Wednesday evening in New Hampshire.
Throughout the course of a 41-minute speech, Mr. Obama essentially asked voters to take a leap of faith on his candidacy. “There are easier choices to make in this election,” he said.
Bathed in the glow of floodlights, Mr. Obama addressed thousands of people who stood shoulder-to-shoulder, stretching from one side of the park to the other.
“There are those in this race for the presidency who are touting their experience working the system, but the problem is that the system isn’t working for us,” Mr. Obama said. “There are those who are saying you should be looking for someone who can play the game better, but the problem is that the game has been rigged. The time is too serious the stakes are too high to play the same game over and over again.”
In February, Mr. Obama drew 20,000 people to the Town Lake in Austin, Texas. In March, 10,000 people crowded into a plaza outside City Hall in Oakland, Calif. In April, he attracted 20,000 at an outdoor rally at Yellow Jacket Park in Atlanta.
And tonight, he drew what the campaign said was 24,000 people to Washington Square Park. That number was impossible to verify – unlike the other locales, where police provided a crowd count – but the audience clearly was one of the largest of the year.
So why did Mr. Obama spent the evening in New York, rather than addressing a group of early-state voters in Des Moines or Manchester? The New York primary on Feb. 5 – one of 21 states scheduled to cast votes that day – could offer a delegate boost.
While New York’s Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is expected to carry the state, Democrats split their delegates proportionally. So if Mrs. Clinton wins New York by 65 percent, for example, she would get 65 percent of the delegates. In a drawn-out fight for the nomination, Mr. Obama believes he can pick up enough delegates in New York and other states to make a difference.
“We heart New York,” said Steve Hildebrand, a senior adviser to the Obama campaign, who oversees the strategy in the early states. “Delegates are proportioned by congressional district – not winner take all. We firmly believe we can come out of New York with a sizeable delegate piece for Barack.”
We’ll find out on Feb.
Monday, September 3, 2007
Obama's Not from Washington Brand
September 3, 2007, 1:00 pm
Obama Touts His Outsider Theme
By Jeff Zeleny
MANCHESTER, N.H. – It has become clear, by now, that Senator Barack Obama is hoping to brand himself as the not-from-Washington candidate in the Democratic presidential race. To make his point, he referred to Washington 22 times in a Labor Day speech here today.
“There are those who tout their experience working the system in Washington,” Mr. Obama said, speaking beneath a cloudless sky at a downtown park. “But the problem is that the system in Washington isn’t working for us and hasn’t for a long time.”
Mr. Obama, of course, was referring to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, who one day earlier sought to impress upon voters in New Hampshire that she is the candidate who can most effectively navigate the political channels of Washington to bring about change.
In a speech before a crowd of several hundred people at Veterans Memorial Park, Mr. Obama introduced several new lines, previewing the argument he intends to make in the closing four months of the presidential primary race.
“I might not have the experience Washington likes, but I believe I have the experience America needs right now,” Mr. Obama said. “Hope and change – hope and change — are not just the rhetoric of a campaign for me. Hope and change have been the causes of my life. Hope and change are the story of our country.”
If a set of bookends could be placed on the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign, they surely would be stamped CHANGE and EXPERIENCE, with the leading candidates hoping to reassure voters that they have the right combination of both. Today, Mr. Obama added a dash of vinegar to his line about pundits who believe he lacks experience.
“To this bunch, only the years you spend in Washington count. Only time in Washington translates into wisdom,” Mr. Obama said. “I think they are wrong about that. I think they’re wrong about that. Recent history suggests otherwise.
“There were a couple of guys named Cheney and Rumsfeld who had two of the longest resumes in Washington and they led us into the worst foreign policy fiasco in recent history,” he added, speaking over the applauding crowd. “So it’s pretty clear to me and it’s pretty clear to the American people that time served doesn’t guarantee judgment. A resume says nothing about character.”
For Mr. Obama, his aides believe, the moment is now to start hammering away at a perception that Mrs. Clinton is the perceived front-runner for the Democratic nomination. At the same time, the argument also works with most other candidates in the race, all of whom have served longer in Washington than Mr. Obama.
To present the new themes, Mr. Obama used a Tele-prompter, which was positioned against the bright sunshine. (Mrs. Clinton, dusting off a new campaign speech of her own on Sunday in Portsmouth, did not).
Before heading off to his next campaign stop – a Labor Day parade with his wife and two daughters in the town of Milford – Mr. Obama also left voters with another fresh thought: humility.
“I’m reminded every single day that I am not a perfect man. I will not be a perfect president,” he said. “But I can promise you this: I will always tell you what I think and where I stand. I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face.”
Obama Touts His Outsider Theme
By Jeff Zeleny
MANCHESTER, N.H. – It has become clear, by now, that Senator Barack Obama is hoping to brand himself as the not-from-Washington candidate in the Democratic presidential race. To make his point, he referred to Washington 22 times in a Labor Day speech here today.
“There are those who tout their experience working the system in Washington,” Mr. Obama said, speaking beneath a cloudless sky at a downtown park. “But the problem is that the system in Washington isn’t working for us and hasn’t for a long time.”
Mr. Obama, of course, was referring to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, who one day earlier sought to impress upon voters in New Hampshire that she is the candidate who can most effectively navigate the political channels of Washington to bring about change.
In a speech before a crowd of several hundred people at Veterans Memorial Park, Mr. Obama introduced several new lines, previewing the argument he intends to make in the closing four months of the presidential primary race.
“I might not have the experience Washington likes, but I believe I have the experience America needs right now,” Mr. Obama said. “Hope and change – hope and change — are not just the rhetoric of a campaign for me. Hope and change have been the causes of my life. Hope and change are the story of our country.”
If a set of bookends could be placed on the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign, they surely would be stamped CHANGE and EXPERIENCE, with the leading candidates hoping to reassure voters that they have the right combination of both. Today, Mr. Obama added a dash of vinegar to his line about pundits who believe he lacks experience.
“To this bunch, only the years you spend in Washington count. Only time in Washington translates into wisdom,” Mr. Obama said. “I think they are wrong about that. I think they’re wrong about that. Recent history suggests otherwise.
“There were a couple of guys named Cheney and Rumsfeld who had two of the longest resumes in Washington and they led us into the worst foreign policy fiasco in recent history,” he added, speaking over the applauding crowd. “So it’s pretty clear to me and it’s pretty clear to the American people that time served doesn’t guarantee judgment. A resume says nothing about character.”
For Mr. Obama, his aides believe, the moment is now to start hammering away at a perception that Mrs. Clinton is the perceived front-runner for the Democratic nomination. At the same time, the argument also works with most other candidates in the race, all of whom have served longer in Washington than Mr. Obama.
To present the new themes, Mr. Obama used a Tele-prompter, which was positioned against the bright sunshine. (Mrs. Clinton, dusting off a new campaign speech of her own on Sunday in Portsmouth, did not).
Before heading off to his next campaign stop – a Labor Day parade with his wife and two daughters in the town of Milford – Mr. Obama also left voters with another fresh thought: humility.
“I’m reminded every single day that I am not a perfect man. I will not be a perfect president,” he said. “But I can promise you this: I will always tell you what I think and where I stand. I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face.”
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
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