http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A259469
Less than a week after he became the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Barack Obama launched his "Change That Works for You" tour in Raleigh Monday, and its main message couldn't have been clearer. The risky choice to make in the '08 presidential election isn't electing him—rookie national leader though he may be; it's staying the downward course with the Bush administration and Republican presidential nominee John McCain, whose economic policies—Obama argued—are the same as President Bush's. "It is time to try something new," Obama told an invitation-only audience at the State Fairgrounds. "The seriousness of this moment tells us we can't afford not to try."
Click for larger image • Barack Obama blasted the economic policies of President Bush—and by extension, his acolyte, GOP nominee John McCain, telling a Raleigh audience: "Instead of investing $12 billion a month to rebuild Iraq, I think it's time we invested in our roads and schools and bridges and started to rebuild America."Photo by Jenny Warburg
Those expecting detailed policy statements from Obama will have to wait. This was a red-meat speech with a couple of proposals to address the nose-diving economy in the short term, plus a promise to soon deliver his ideas for long-term economic reform. But overall, the point was that Obama understands the American Dream is in deep trouble, and he will offer fundamental changes to restore it; McCain, Obama said, doesn't and won't.
In the short term, Obama called for a second round of immediate fiscal stimulus—in the form of more federal rebate checks—to pump $50 billion into the economy; he renewed his call for a $10 billion foreclosure prevention fund to help struggling mortgage-payers refinance their loans. He also advocated for an immediate extension of unemployment benefits, given that there have been five consecutive months of job loss—a total of 320,000 jobs shed since January.
His long-term program agenda, Obama said, will focus on workforce development, including beefing up science and technology training in our colleges and universities, and on investments in the renewable-energy industry to break the nation's dependence on imported oil. He's proposing an annual $4,000 college tuition subsidy in return for student community or national service after graduation. He also promised to invest in public infrastructure to create jobs and build the economy. And he said his health-care reform plans would offer every American affordable insurance while reducing premiums for the average family with insurance now by $2,500 a year.
All of his programs are "paid for," Obama said, with off-setting proposals to eliminate corporate tax loopholes and the Bush administration's tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Obama's own tax-cut plan is a $1,000 a year reduction for the 95 percent of working families who are "middle-class" or below, he said, but the rich would pay more.
He's also supporting a windfall-profits tax on oil companies. A McCain plan to cut corporate taxes as an economic stimulus measure, by contrast, would reduce Exxon Mobil's current tax bill by $1.2 billion a year, Obama charged.
"When it comes to the economy, John McCain and I have a fundamentally different vision of where to take the country," Obama said. "Because for all of his talk of independence, the centerpiece of his economic plan amounts to a full-throated endorsement of George Bush's policies"—including a permanent occupation of Iraq.
The Independent U.K. reported last week that the Bush administration is negotiating a secret deal to establish more than 50 permanent bases in Iraq. As part of the pact, the newspaper reported, Bush is insisting on immunity from Iraqi law for U.S. troops and contractors, as well as a free hand to carry out military activities without consulting the Baghdad government.
"Instead of investing $12 billion a month to rebuild Iraq," Obama declared, "I think it's time we invested in our roads and schools and bridges and started to rebuild America."
Obama brought no North Carolina-specific proposals, however. Nothing about the state's road-building, transit or school-capacity needs. In fact, the decision to come to Raleigh on the first day of the "tour" seemed a bit hurried, and couched in national political terms more than state ones, with Obama announcing that he's not conceding the "red states" to McCain and intends to compete in places like Virginia and North Carolina.
Obama's audience included former Sen. John Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth Edwards, who were introduced but didn't speak and left as Obama finished. Gov. Mike Easley, who supported Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination, took the stage to introduce Obama. "I know I'm late," Easley joked. "But I am on the train."
Click for larger image • Switcheroo: Initially a Hillary Clinton supporter, Gov. Mike Easley is now backing Obama.Photo by Jenny Warburg
The only other speaker was a Pittsboro woman, Pamella Cash-Roper, who spoke about her husband's and her tough economic situation since both developed heart problems, had bypass surgeries, were unable to work, and lost their jobs and their health insurance.
Cash-Roper said she was a lifelong Republican who believes in the American Dream and tried to live it. But when their health issues made it impossible for them to work, "the help we thought would always be there was nowhere to be seen," she said. That convinced her the country needs change, from the "George Bush economy of special interests and big business" to policies that help "hard-working people."
After the event, Cash-Roper, 54, said her 58-year-old husband, Keith Roper, who was an electrical technician at WakeMed, needed heart surgery in 2000 and couldn't work thereafter. He lost his job and their company-paid health benefits; and though federal law guaranteed him extended health insurance for 18 months, they couldn't afford the $600 a month insurance payments on top of the $1,800 a month for his prescriptions.
Meanwhile, Cash-Roper said, they were dropped by their disability insurance carrier, a decision they continue to dispute, so far, unsuccessfully. So they sold their house, moved to a smaller one and went without health insurance for two years until he became eligible, as a Social Security disability recipient, for Medicare.
A nurse, Cash-Roper continued to work as a home-health aide until 2005 when she, too, needed bypass surgery and also turned to disability payments.
Today, she said, the two live on combined disability payments of $1,164 a month. Each takes about 15 kinds of medicine paid for by a state prescription-subsidy plan enacted during the Easley administration and paid for from tobacco-settlement funds funneled through the Health & Wellness Trust Fund.
It cuts their costs to between $2 and $4 a month for each prescription, she said. "If that had not been implemented," she said, "we'd probably both be dead."
State Rep. Dan Blue, D-Wake, who, along with Congressman G.K. Butterfield, a Democrat from the 1st District, has served as an unofficial state campaign chair for Obama, predicted that he can win North Carolina in November. Butterfield was less certain, saying it'll be "hard work" and "close, but I think we can come out on top."
Blue said Obama had 300 paid staffers in North Carolina prior to the May 6 primary here, and he expected the campaign will have at least that many again in the fall. They, and Obama's thousands of volunteers, will be concentrating on registering new voters, especially young and minority voters, and turning them out for the general election. Whether the increased turnout will be enough to defeat McCain, Blue said, will depend on Obama's message. "They have to believe that an Obama presidency will make a difference in their lives."
YES WE CAN!!!
I'm telling you, folks. NC will be BLUE this fall!
http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/06/poll_suggests_obama_is_putting.php
Barack Obama's promise to make a play for North Carolina -- a state that has consistently voted Republican since 1980 -- might just have some potential to really pay off, a new poll from Rasmussen suggests.
The numbers: McCain 45%, Obama 43%, within the ±4% margin of error. This is consistent with other recent polls that have shown McCain with only a small lead here.
Another bad sign for McCain is that 54% of respondents said it's more important to bring the troops home form Iraq than it is to win the war, versus only 40% who think victory is more important than leaving -- a very bad finding for McCain in this traditionally red state.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/12/AR2008061203658.html
Washington Post Staff Writer Friday, June 13, 2008; Page A05
CHICAGO, June 12 -- Moving to harness the grass-roots energy that helped win the Democratic nomination, Sen. Barack Obama's campaign will deploy 3,600 volunteers in 17 states this weekend, each committed to six consecutive weeks of full-time political work.
http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/06/poll_dems_satisfied_with_obama.php
A new number from the latest Hotline/Diageo poll goes a long way toward dispelling the idea that Barack Obama is leading a seriously divided party. On the contrary, the poll suggests that it's John McCain who has a problem in this regard.
The poll, conducted in the wake of Obama's clinching the nomination and including sampling dates from before Hillary Clinton's final concession, found that 68% of Democratic primary voters were satisfied with Obama as the nominee, with 30% preferring someone else.
By contrast, only 52% of Republican primary voters were satisfied with John McCain as their nominee, with 45% preferring someone else. And this is despite the fact that McCain sewed up his nomination months ago, while Democratic emotions were still raw when this poll was conducted.
In today's Huffington Post:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/06/12/mccain-lobbyist-scandal-c_n_106832.html
Simon Rosenburg looks at some very encouraging numbers as the party unites around our candidate:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-rosenberg/more-evidence-of-an-obama_b_106777.html
Outrageous:
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/inteldump/2008/06/army_shows_its_colors.html
We see the coverage in the MSM and online media every day about a superdelegate or two or three or four who have endorsed Barack Obama, and usually on the same day news about Clinton picking up one or two. Well, looking at those not in isolation but en masse gives a remarkable picture of the momentum in this campaign. That's completely lost in the MSM coverage, but it's starting to add up to "real numbers" now. With thanks (and apologies!) to Presten Harden, who circulated this to one of the NC groups to which I subscribe.
Since the April 22, 2008 Pennsylvania primaryBarack Obama1. David Wu OR Representative 24 Apr 20082. Charlene Fernandez AZ DNC State Vice Chair 26 Apr 20083. Audra Ostergard NE DNC State Vice Chair 23 Apr 20084. Brad Henry OK Governor 23 Apr 20085. Jeff Bingaman NM Senator 28 Apr 20086. Richard Machacek IA DNC 29 Apr 20087. Ben Chandler KY Representative 29 Apr 20088. Lois Capps CA Representative 30 Apr 20089. Bruce Braley IA Representative 30 Apr 200810. Baron Hill IN Representative 30 Apr 200811. Joe Andrew IN Former DNC Chairman 01 May 200812. John Patrick Vice President of the Texas AFL/CIO 01 May 200813. Paul G. Kirk, Jr. MA Former DNC Chairman 02 May 200814. Brian Colon NM DNC State Chair 03 May 200815. Parris Glendeni ng MD Former Governor 03 May 200816. Jaime Paulino GU DNC Territory Vice Chair Obama 03 May 200817. Inez Tenenbaum SC Former State Superintendent of Education May 200818. Michael Cryor MD DNC State Chair 05 May 200819. Lauren Glover MD DNC State Vice Chair 05 May 200820. Kalyn Free OK DNC 05 May 2008Since the May 06, 2008 Indiana and North Carolina primary21. Inola Henry CA DNC 07 May 200822. Jerry Meek NC DNC State Chair 07 May 200823. Jennifer McClellan VA DNC State Vice Chair 07 May 200824. Brad Miller NC Representative 08 May 200825. Rick Larsen WA Representative 08 May 200826. John Gage MD DNC 09 May 200827. Donald Payne NJ Representative Switched from Clinton 09 May 200828. Peter DeFazio OR Representative 09 May 200829. Vernon Watkins CA DNC 09 May 200830. Edward Espinoza CA DNC 09 May 200831. Mazie Hirono HI Representative 09 May 200832. Wilbur Lee Jeffcoat SC DNC State V ice Chair 09 May 200833. Laurie Weahkee NM 09 May 200834. Kristi Cumming UT 09 May 200835. Russ Carnahan MO Representative 10 May 200736. William Lacy Clay, Jr. MO Representative 10 May 200737. David Regan OH Labor Leader Obama 10 May 200838. Kevin Rodriguez VI DNC Previously supported Clinton 10 May 200839. Carole Burke VI DNC Previously supported Clinton 10 May 200840. Crystal Strait CA DNC Young Dems of America 11 May 200841. Tom Allen ME Representative 12 May 200843. Keith Roark ID DNC State Chair 12 May 200844. Daniel Akaka HI Senator 12 May 200845. Dr. Marie Dolly Strazar HI DNC 12 May 200846. Joe Donnelly IN Representative 13 May 200847. C. Ray Nagin LA mayor of New Orleans 13 May 200848. Roy Romer CO former Colorado governor 13 May 200849. Jack Johnson MD Prince George's County Executive (Previously supported Clinton) 13 May 200850. Pete Visclosky IN Representative 14 May 200851. Christine Schon Marques Democrats Abroad DNC 14 May 200852. Awais Khaleel WI DNC 14 May 200853. Lauren Wolfe MI president of the College Democrats of America 14 May 200854. Lena Taylor WI DNC State Vice Chair 14 May 200855. Mike Morgan OK Oklahoma Senate President Pro Tempore 14 May 200856. John Edwards NC former Senator 14 May 2008.57. Jim McDermott WA Representative 15 May 200858. Henry Waxman CA Representative 15 May 200859. Howard Berman CA Representative 15 May 200860. Pete Stark CA Representative 16 May 200861. Mark Parkinson KS Lt. Governor 17 May 200862. Gregory Pecoraro MD DNC 17 May 200863. Federico Pea CO Former Denver mayor and Clinton admin. 17 May 200864. William Quay Hays CA DNC 18 May 200865. Lou Paulson CA DNC 18 May 200866. Dwight Pelz WA DNC State Chair 18 May 200867. Robert Byrd WV Senator Former Senate Majority Leader- DPL 19 May 200868. Larry Gates KS DNC State Chair 19 May 200869. Blake Johnson A K DNC State Vice Chair 19 May 200870. Cindy Spanyers AK DNC 19 May 200871. Madeleine Bordallo Guam DNC 20 May 200872. Eric Coleman MI DNC 20 May 200873. Scott Brennan IA DNC Iowa Chairman 20 May 2008Since the May 20, 2008 Kentucky and Oregon primary74. Joe Courtney CT Representative 21 May 2008_____________Since the April 22, 2008 Pennsylvania primaryHillary Clinton1. John Tanner TN Representative 23 Apr 20082. Kathy Sullivan NH 26 Apr 20083. Mike Easley NC Governor 28 Apr 20084. Ike Skelton MO Representative 29 Apr 20085. William George PA DNC 30 Apr 20086. Luisette Cabanas PR DNC 30 Apr 20087. John Olsen Connecticut AFL-CIO 01 May 20088. Carmen E. Arroyo NY 01 May 20089. Andrew Cuomo NY 01 May 200810. Thomas DiNapoli NY 01 May 200811. C. Virginia Fields NY 01 May 200812. John Olsen CT DNC 01 May 200813. Jaime Gonzalez Jr. TX DNC 02 May 200814. Kennedy Townsend MD Former Lt. Governor 03 May 200815. Theresa Morelli Democrats Abroad DNC 05 May 2008Since the May 06, 2008 Indiana and North Carolina primary16. Heath Shuler NC Representative 07 May 200817. Brad Ellsworth IN Representative 07 May 200818. Chris Carney PA Representative 09 May 200819. Ciro Rodriguez TX Representative 09 May 200820. Arthur Powell MA 10 May 200821. Vicki Harwell TN Add-on State Federation for Democratic Women President 13 May 200822. Keith Umemoto CA DNC 16 May 200823. Carolyn Doggett CA DNC 18 May 200824 Dario Frommer CA DNC 18 May 200825. Dora Rubio CA 18 May 200826. Martha Coakley MA State Attorney General 20 May 2008Since the May 20, 2008 Kentucky a nd Oregon primary27. William Craig Bashein OH 21 May 2008
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-gizbert/the-ho-hum-obama-revoluti_b_102459.html
Richard Gizbert absolutely NAILS it in his observation of the revolution that's happening in American politics and the media's "ho-hum" response to it. Anyone who has been to an Obama event, or seen the dozens of emails that immediately flurry around asking for tickets when the event "sells out" in less than an hour, or who's been in line for an event in the rain with people who don't seem to care, or felt the energy in the room, anyone who is paying attention can feel that this year, "Change" is not just a motto, it's happening. And it's awesome, in the real meaning of that word-- it inspires awe.
Marc Ambinder, in a piece appearing on the Atlantic dot com, suggests maybe not. This is something I suspect is accurate. People keep pointing to the parse-and-plunder politics of the past as a reference for this year's election. Maybe I'll be deeply disappointed if that turns out to be an accurate assessment. But my sense is that Obama's talk of change is not empty rhetoric, and certainly not just about the way things are done in Washington, but also about WHO is getting involved and paying attention and engaging and buying into the fact that We, the People, own and manage this great nation. An interesting read to be sure
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/05/does_obama_need_working_class.php
Very intersting post-primary analysis of the numbers in Oregon, confirming what we've known all along-- that Obama's "white working class problem" is a media-manufactured non-issue.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/05/20/does-oregon-put-obamas-wh_n_102792.html
An interesting read:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/05/20/chuck-hagel-takes-on-mcca_n_102775.html
This is a great resource:
http://www.aflcio.org/issues/politics/mccain.cfm
Interesting read first posted on the Rapid Response list. Encouraging to know that the party higer-ups are working together in such a concerted way to bring unity in advance of November.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24687292
By Matthew Mosk and Chris Cillizza
updated 12:25 a.m. CT, Sun., May. 18, 2008
Top fundraisers for Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have begun private talks aimed at merging the two candidates' teams, not waiting for the Democratic nominating process to end before they start preparations for a hard-fought fall campaign.
Despite Obama's apparently insurmountable lead in delegates needed to claim the nomination, aides to both candidates are resigned to the idea that the Democratic contest will continue at least through June 3, when Montana and South Dakota will cast the final votes of the primary season.
But in small gatherings around Washington and in planning sessions for party unity events in New York and Boston in coming weeks, fundraisers and surrogates from both camps are discussing how they can put aside the vitriol of the past 18 months and move forward to ensure that the eventual nominee has the resources to defeat Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in November.
Mark Aronchick, a Philadelphia lawyer who has raised more than $1 million for Clinton's bid, said that while her supporters have not given up on their candidate, they recognize the need to start preparing for the general election.
"Only if we do this right, and see this through in the right way, will there be a chance for a full, rapid and largely complete unification of the party," Aronchick said.
Aronchick was one of about 35 Clinton and Obama insiders who attended a dinner last week in Washington aimed at what he characterized as helping the two sides "grope towards unity."
The gathering, held at the Ritz-Carlton residence of Jim Johnson and Maxine Isaacs, was a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee at which former Treasury secretary Robert Rubin was honored. But the guests were well aware of the symbolism as they sipped cocktails and admired the views of the Potomac River and the Washington Monument. The event honoring a prominent Clinton supporter was held at the home of an Obama backer and co-hosted by another, former senator Thomas A. Daschle (S.D.).
"The people there had all picked sides," one attendee said. "There was a sense that there is an obligation to lead by example."
While there was little outright talk of how the primary campaign would end, guests confirmed that DNC Chairman Howard Dean set the tone with a speech in which he emphasized that despite the protracted nomination fight, he is already instituting a plan to combat McCain.
The message was clear, according to one attendee, who said, "You don't go anywhere anymore where there isn't a sense that this is over and this is about how people behave over the next month."
Even with the work in top levels of the party to broker a detente between Obama and Clinton donors, both sides acknowledge there is much still to be done.
Top fundraisers have invested not only their time and money but also their emotions in the primary battle. Major financial backers say the tensions have been particularly acute in recent weeks as frustrations have mounted in both camps.
Aronchick said that in his own discussions, he emphasized the need for the senator from Illinois to stop describing Clinton and her backers as representing the politics of the past.
"They need to understand how corrosive that has been among her supporters," Aronchick said. "For this to work, they need to correct any impression that he thinks we represent the old ways of doing things or Washington Beltway ways of doing things."
One top fundraiser for Obama, a veteran of several presidential campaigns who spoke about the private discussions on the condition of anonymity, said there are sensitivities among many of Obama's supporters, as well. The fundraiser said there is a high level of resentment that Clinton has continued to campaign, even though her chances of securing the nomination are remote. Many are unhappy about the idea of having to make room for members of Clinton's finance team, who had "picked the wrong candidate."
"There are people who are thinking, 'Hey, my guy won. Now I have to share the trophy?' " the Obama fundraiser said. "That's something we have to overcome."
Kirk Dornbush, a member of the Obama national finance team in Georgia, said that while there is no formal effort by the Obama campaign to recruit Clinton counterparts, "many of us have friendships with Clinton donors that predate the 2008 campaign and will last long after this race is over. Given this reality, it should not be surprising that we have received phone calls in the last few weeks" from individuals interested in crossing over.
Another major Obama fundraiser, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said that while no organized recruitment campaign was underway, "we have picked off some local people and are reaching out to the Clinton people we know individually."
That outreach has been complicated by leading voices in the Clinton campaign having made clear that any defection at this point would be regarded as a betrayal of the former first couple. "Some [Clinton] people have said, 'If you publicly defect, that's the end of our relationship,' " said the Obama fundraiser. "Like, if we live to be 170, we're never going to speak to each other again."
Clinton supporters interviewed for this article all said they think that the senator from New York remains a viable candidate. But several also said they see the wisdom of beginning the conversation about fundraising for the general election.
"We're all thinking about November," said Robert Zimmerman, a New York public relations expert who is a top Clinton fundraiser. "We are starting a dialogue together. I've made it clear [Obama backers] will be welcome to come on board. They've said the same to me."
Zimmerman, who is also a Democratic National Committeeman, said Dean has been a central figure in starting to bring the two camps together. Dean is organizing a May 31 fundraiser in Manhattan honoring Al Gore. The event is being chaired by Orin Kramer, one of Obama's top fundraisers, and by Maureen White, a longtime party fundraiser who has been assisting Clinton.
Last week, the Democratic National Committee announced that both campaigns had signed a "joint fundraising agreement" creating a fund in which donations to each candidate could be pooled with contributions to the party and then used during the general election.
Clinton's New England finance chairman, Steve Grossman, is also co-chairing an event with two top New England fundraisers for Obama, Alan Solomont and Barry White. The June 12 event in Boston is in honor of Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kerry's brother, Cameron Kerry, and will raise money for the National Jewish Democratic Council, but the invitation list includes top bundlers for both Clinton and Obama.
In addition to the fledgling attempts to merge the fundraising operations of Obama and Clinton, there is growing talk that the best -- and perhaps only -- way to truly mend the rift is for Obama to pick a top Clinton surrogate as his vice presidential nominee.
"There's gale-force pressure for Obama to choose a Clinton loyalist as a running mate to heal the party but avoid putting her and her formidable baggage on the ticket," said one Obama ally in Washington. "You hear the names [Ohio Gov. Ted] Strickland, [Indiana Sen. Evan] Bayh, and [retired general] Wes Clark almost constantly, and it's no secret that Jim Johnson and Tom Daschle are purveyors of that wisdom."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/05/17/you-dont-quit-until-you-f_n_102279.html
I wish she could have taken the high road throughout the primary. I cna't help but think it would've been better for Obama, for the party, and even for herself.
