Organizing for America | Barath's Blog: The Why Obama archive

The Why Obama archive

By Barath - Dec 25th, 2007 at 10:17 pm EST

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This diary is a collection of valuable links that help us make the case for Sen. Obama's nomination. If you have a link or a comment you'd like added to the archive, let me know.

This diary probably has a bias due to what things I happened to save, but I am happy to add articles that you think make a strong case for Sen. Obama. I'm trying hard to not overlap with info that's already on this site, such Sen. Obama's biography and second, I'm leaving out the things everyone is already familiar with such as his more famous quotes and aspects of his stump speeches. I'm also only including videos if they're extended interviews with Sen. Obama.

Arguments to win over (former) supporters of Biden, Dodd, Richardson, or Kucinich: I've prepared a 1 page sheet that provides information for Biden, Richardson, Dodd, and Kucinich supporters, who may need to choose a second choice candidate during the caucus. (Mac users, be sure to open the PDF in Acrobat Reader rather than the ordinary Mac viewer app.) Let me know via email if you have questions, comments or suggestions. Feel free to pass the PDF along to other Obama supporters who might find it useful.

I want to preface everything with a quote (by another blogger) that I think is the real difference between Sen. Obama and the rest of the field:

I don't just want someone who will not be like the Republicans. I want someone who will make it so a George Bush administration and a Tom Delay Congress can never, ever happen again. That doesn't just mean partisan victory, it means changing the hard-and-fast rules and shoring up our defenses against abuse of power.

Age and experience

NY Times Graphical summary of Sen. Obama's accomplishments in Illinois. A great quick summary (that's probably great for printing) of what types of bills Sen. Obama worked on in Illinois.

Six part diary of Sen. Obama's accomplishments before the US Senate - This is the link to the 6th part in a series, which has links to the previous parts. Detailed info and anecdotes on his past as a Constitutional Law Prof, Civil Rights Lawyer, Running Project Vote! in Chicago, Community Organizer, and has info on Michelle Obama. This series easily debunks any "lack of substance" arguments.

Sen. Obama has written and/or co-written more than 37 pieces of substantive legislation in the last 2 years. This includes so many instances when he was ahead of the curve. (We know he was about the war, but he is in many others.) He pushed for accountability for military contractors like Blackwater and KBR before the many scandals came out. He has worked on many, many bills on ethics reform and government transparency. He has worked on improving health benefits and preventing the spread of global pandemics. He worked on ensuring lead-free toys (in 2005, not just in response to the recent uproar). And many more. Sen. Obama's US senate webpage has details of his legislation and positions (from a senate perspective).

An argument solely on age and a comparison of current candidates' ages with past American leaders - this is to combat the "Obama is too young, he should wait 16 years" argument. (It's always fun to point out that, for example, the foundation of our democracy - the Constitution - was written by James Madison at age 36, and the Declaration of Independence was written by Jefferson at age 33.) Among our greatest presidents, Obama will enter office with more national experience than Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Wilson, Jackson, and Eisenhower, as discussed here.

A diary about the opening of USAspending.gov, a site that tracks $1,000,000,000,000 of government spending and was created a few weeks ago by Sen. Obama's legislation. No other candidate in either party has this sort of track record of reforming the system itself. Visit USAspending.gov yourself (on the site, click on the blue "Contracts" tab to get started) - it's amazing to see where our tax dollars are being spent.

Policy Plans

Alter's argument on why Obama's approach to health care reform is the right one, and the most likely to achieve real results.

A great explanation of Sen. Obama's environment/energy plans by a member of his policy team. This puts the complex issues of energy and environmental policy in an easy-to-understand question-and-answer format. Sen. Obama has the strongest pro-environment record of any candidate as evaluated by the non-partisan environmental group the League of Conservation Voters. (Obama scored a 96%; Kucinich was 2nd with 92%)

Sen. Obama has the best plans to fight for women's rights and has already worked in the senate to help address issues such as domestic abuse that disproportionately affect women.

An overview of Sen. Obama's government transparency and technology plan. Sen. Obama is the only candidate who has such a deep vision for how our government should operate, and how we can use technology to expose its inner workings. Even better, much of this plan can be implemented without dealing with congress at all, so it's likely that it can be implemented right away.

Classic speeches

Sen. Obama Against Going to War with Iraq, October 2, 2002 - an impassioned and eloquent speech with tremendous foresight, given at a time when George W. Bush had a 70% public approval rating. And in the strain of Lincoln, the speech is concise and powerful. Sen. Obama didn't just get it right as a result of a knee-jerk anti-war reflex or just by flipping a coin - he got it right because of a detailed understanding of the region, and of the effects of American actions around the world. This judgment is starkly apparent in his speech.

Sen. Obama at U. Mass Commencement, June 02, 2006 - an example of how Sen. Obama will inspire a whole generation of young Americans to not only reach for their personal dreams, but the common dreams of an entire nation.

Sen. Obama's announcement of his candidacy, February 10, 2007 - it feels like an eternity ago, but it was just earlier this year that Sen. Obama spelled out in bold terms why he is seeking the office of president, and why he asks us to join him in transforming America.

Comparisons with other candidates

The Obama-Clinton issue - an article that observes why Obama has stronger leadership capacity than Clinton. (Although the article is wrong about Obama's senate accomplishments - he has done a lot in a short amount of time.)

Obama and Clinton's achievements since college - a non-opinion article that objectively looks at the records of both candidates and what they have done in their time in public service.

A comparison of foreign policy judgment between Clinton and Obama - a great overview of Sen. Obama's foreign policy plans and differentiation with Sen. Clinton.

Reaching across the aisle - Bipartisanship

Sen. Obama has a long track record of working across the aisle and of delivering his views to crowds with very different views. Without pandering or compromising his positions, he still manages to identify common ground and connect with difficult audiences.

Obama resolved the seemingly impossible issue of death penalty reform in Illinois. At the time, the Illinois death penalty system was in crisis due to numerous false convictions. Obama kept groups that couldn't agree on anything at the table and resolved the issue.

The Lugar (R - Indiana) and Obama bill to combat proliferation of nuclear weapons. The legislation helps other nations with nuclear and conventional weapons to protect and decrease their stockpiles; it also strengthens the ability of America's allies to detect and interdict illegal shipments of weapons and materials.

The Coburn (R - Oklahoma) - Obama Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act. This act created the site www.USAspending.gov which allows the public to see and track federal spending. See above (under "experience") for a diary explaining the implications of this bill.

Obama and Brownback (R - Kansas) write an editorial in the Washington Post on Darfur. Specifically, they challenge the administration to change their policy in specific ways and advocate several important steps that can be taken immediately to help deal with the crisis.

Obama's speech on HIV/AIDS and the Church to 2,072 evangelical Christian pastors and leaders at the Saddleback Megachurch. Sen. Obama and Sen. Brownback were invited to speak. Sen. Brownback was speaking to his base; Sen. Obama was not - there was considerable anger that Sen. Obama was going to speak at all due his substantial differences on social issues. Nevertheless, Sen. Obama did not tone down his speech for the audience, challenged them on their ways (including on church-supported abstinence-only HIV prevention in Africa), and despite that received a standing ovation.

Obama's speech at the Detroit Economic Club on raising fuel efficiency. The Detroit Economic Club is a business forum run by the leaders of Michigan's industry, primarily automakers. Sen. Obama delivered the important, but unpopular message that improving fuel efficiency is not only an environmental imperative, it is an economic one as well.

Obama's speech at the NASDAQ stock exchange on economic fairness and helping the middle class. Obama called on a Wall Street audience to help in his economic agenda that is fair for all Americans. He called for a return to the principles that CEOs and working Americans are in it together, that greed should not dominate our economic philosophy, and specifically, that the market needs more accountability and transparency. He called for fairness in tax policy and closing corporate tax loopholes, for the need to invest in education, and for the need to ensure a social safety net.

Zingers and Commentary

Analogies to the argument that opponents make saying that Sen. Obama should wait.

"Yeah he's got a 100-mile-an-hour fast ball and he's thrown eight no-hitters, but I think he should stay in the minors for another 10 years."

"Yeah, he's got the speed and the heart to win the triple crown, but I think he should stay in the barn for another 10 years."

"Yeah, he's an articulate, inspiring speaker with a great personal story and a brilliant mind, but I think he should stay in the Senate for another 10 years."

About what we need right now.

The problem with the others isn't one of competence. It's one of vision. And after eight years of Bush radicalism, there's a feeling that "politics as usual, just done competently" isn't enough.

About the impact of Sen. Obama's lobbying reform legislation on Washington holiday parties.

There's a lot of grumbling among Washington insiders and congresspeople this year about the recent ethics reform legislation. The holiday parties can no longer be the extravagant affairs they were in previous years because there are now strict limitations on lobbyists funneling money to elected officials.

On experience - Bill Clinton's response in 1992 to a charge by George H. W. Bush in a debate.

"The same old experience is irrelevant. You can have the right kind of experience or the wrong kind of experience. And mine is rooted in the real lives of real people, and it will bring real results if we have the courage to change."

Endorsements (and why they matter)

Larry Lessig endorses Obama on government openness policy and technology policy.

Obama by the Numbers

Number of Americans who have donated to the campaign: over 511,000

Number of states with Obama for America offices: 25

Number of people at the Oprah/Obama rally in South Carolina: 30,000

Number of people at the Obama speech in New York City: 24,000

Number of years of elected experience: 11

(Let me know if you have other interesting statistics.)

Obama Interviews

Interview with the Nashua Telegraph Editorial Board. The paper has endorsed Sen. Obama.

Interview with Google. (Video begins with a short speech on Sen. Obama's technology and open government plans.) Some highlights include at 43min - an answer to "what can we learn from Bill Clinton, and also from the failure of John Kerry?"

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