19 posts tagged “barack obama”

I  canvas my neighborhoods on weekends too,  and I know he doesn't expect us to do anything he would not do himself but i must say I am not really happy about the many times Barack Obama goes canvasing neighborhoods and knocking on doors.

 For one he goes without security( well of course they are there somewhere but still...) and to me that could be a bit dangerous. But on the other hand it is also a lot inspiring indeed to know that the presidential candidate comes down to the neighboorhood and knocks on doors. Obama you are really something special indeed.

This past sunday he was  canvasing in Toledo, Ohio

The following phos belong to David Katz/Obama for America see more here

Obama knocking on doors10

Obama knocking on doors3

Obama knocking on doors 2

Obama knocking on doors5

Obama knocking on doors4

 The Future of America

Thefuture of American

Madeleine Albright

Tonight was a breakthrough for Senator Obama, who showed himself truly ready to be president. He responded knowledgeably, thoughtfully and confidently to the toughest questions on the economy, Iraq, and terror. Meanwhile, Senator McCain spent so much time attacking his opponent, he neglected to show how a McCain-Palin administration would differ from Bush-Cheney. As a result, Obama answered the threshold question about his candidacy; McCain did not.

LA Times:

Obama declined to be belittled. Although McCain refused to address him directly—despite encouragement from moderator Jim Lehrer—Obama looked at and spoke to McCain. Obama often credited McCain on issues—a grace that was not reciprocated—but he did not accept the role of junior candidate.

from talking points memo:

I think people really are missing the point about McCain's failure to look at Obama. McCain was afraid of Obama. It was really clear--look at how much McCain blinked in the first half hour. I study monkey behavior--low ranking monkeys don't look at high ranking monkeys. In a physical, instinctive sense, Obama owned McCain tonight and I think the instant polling reflects that.

Tom Shales:

John McCain wore the more presidential tie—that much can be said for him—but Barack Obama displayed the more presidential temperament, or the kind of demeanor people presumably would want in a president, when the two candidates met at the University of Mississippi last night for their first debate of the campaign.

Both men seemed well equipped in terms of facts and figures—especially, as one would expect, dollar figures—and neither made an outrageous blunder, although McCain did misidentify the new president of Pakistan. More critically, he came across as condescending and even rude to his opponent, a bit of bad behavior especially evident because Obama may have overdone the fair-minded bit in many of his remarks and answers.

Imperiously enough, McCain—who had threatened not to show up for the debate because of America’s financial crisis—seemed determined to avoid even looking at Obama as the debate went on, although they did shake hands at the beginning and end. Many of McCain’s answers were preceded with belittling references to Obama as if he were talking to a college freshman way out of his depth: “I’m afraid Senator Obama doesn’t understand the difference between a tactic and a strategy,” was one typical remark

John Cole.

That is just a sample of what is going to come. Look for the appearance of the following words in days to come: cranky, grumpy, crotchety, angry, mean, rude, sneering, snarling, contemptuous, off-putting, snide, boorish, and worst of all, not Presidential. SNL will probably drive the point home in a skit that will become the dominant narrative tonight, and McCain will become boxed in regarding his behavior in the second debate, much as Gore was unable to be as aggressive as he wanted in the second debate (I remember the running joke was that Gore had been medicated for the second debate). And if McCain does not tone down the contempt, it will simply feed the narrative. Or, if we are really lucky, as someone suggested in another thread, McCain will overcompensate and spend the entire time comically and creepily attempting to make eye contact with Obama (think Al Gore walking across the stage to stand next to Bush, and Bush looking at him as if to think “WTF are you doing?”).

This should be terrifying for the McCain campaign for two reasons. First, the base will not understand it. To them, a sneering, contemptuous jerk is a feature, not a bug. When they try to tone down McCain, it will turn off the diehards. Look at the reaction of the base to Palin’s RNC speech- they LOVED that she was, for all intents and purposes, nothing but an asshole the entire speech. They loved the “zingers” that were written for her. The rest of the country recoiled in horror, and Obama raised ten million the next 48 hours.

Second, they have spent the last few months angrily lashing out at the media, and these were the folks who used to love McCain. The campaign no longer allows McCain to talk to the media, and the Straight Talk Express is the “No Talk” Express these days. So for the bobbleheads that will be pushing the new narrative of the mean old McCain, the contrast is real. It wasn’t just the snarling you and I saw on tv. It was the contrast from the nice, friendly, have some BBQ here are your donuts McCain to the new one. They used to know him as their friend, now he is a jerk- the change to them is more dramatic than it is to us, and as such, the mean McCain narrative will be easier for them to adopt and pass along.

This thing is going to spread and will be really bad for Johnny Drama, and I am loving it.

by Kula2316

Steve Clemons of The Washington Note, posted the following on Wednesday afternoon.

Senator Jeff Bingaman's support group in New Mexico used to be called (and may still be) "A Lot of Folks for Jeff Bingaman." I always liked how unpretentious the name of his PAC was.

Well. . .I have stumbled across "A Lot of Saudis and Israelis for Barack Obama." They aren't a single group -- but it's clear Obama is popular across the Middle East.

I haven't received an email video of Israelis for McCain, though I know there are some -- and I haven't received graphics that are pro-McCain and anti-Obama from Saudi Arabia. If I do, I'll consider posting them.

But I have to share the video  -- which is powerful and gripping -- of many in Israel who support Barack Obama. Beware, it triggers tears in some

But I have to share the video above -- which is powerful and gripping -- of many in Israel who support Barack Obama. Beware, it triggers tears in some.

.

McCain can't multitask? WTF?

He can't take 90 minutes to debate to the American people exactly what he plans to do as president?

McCain's proposal to pos tpone Friday's debate is already an epic fail.

Barney Frank nails it: "It's the longest Hail Mary pass in the history of either football or Marys."

Pass incomplete.

Obama's going to Mississippi to debate an empty chair if need be: "Presidents are going to have to deal with more than one thing at a time. It's not necessary for us to think that we can do only one thing, and suspend everything else."

SUSA snap polls McCain's political stunt

by kos

Wed Sep 24, 2008

SurveyUSA. 9/24. Adults. MoE 3.2% (No trend lines)

Time out

by DemFromCT

Thu Sep 18, 2008

Today's Daily Kos Research 2000 tracking poll has Obama up by 6, 49-43 over McCain (MoE +/- 3). The trend matches yesterday's Gallup, with moved in Obama's favor yesterday (Obama 47-45 McCain) for the first time since the failed GOP convention. Yesterday's Diageo/Hotline is stable (Obama 45-42) as is yesterday's Rasmussen with McCain 48-47, the outlier of the trackers. look for that to change today, as there's nothing going McCain's way. Our (Moe +/- 5.1) single day sample from yesterday has Obama up by 8.

TO: Interested Parties
FR: David Plouffe, Campaign Manager
RE: Heading into the Final Stretch
DA: September 12, 2008
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Summary

With both conventions and the vice-presidential selections behind us, the campaign is now heading into the final stretch. The race has settled into a tight race nationally with Obama well-positioned in the key battleground states, a historic enthusiasm gap, and a debate being waged on Obama’s home turf – change.

In recent weeks, John McCain has shown that he is willing to go into the gutter to win this election. His campaign has become nothing but a series of smears, lies, and cynical attempts to distract from the issues that matter to the American people. But as Barack Obama said earlier this week “enough is enough.” This election is too important and the challenges too big to spend the next 54 days talking about trivial non-issues.

Today is the first day of the rest of the campaign, and today we are releasing two new ads that go directly at the fundamental issue in this race: John McCain is out of touch with the American people and unable to address the challenges facing the country in the 21st century and bring about real change, and that Barack Obama is the candidate who will bring about change that works for the middle class.

We will respond with speed and ferocity to John McCain’s attacks and we will take the fight to him, but we will do it on the big issues that matter to the American people. We will not allow John McCain and his band of Karl Rove disciples to make this big election about small things.

Senator Biden will be integral to that effort, both in pushing back on the lies that we’ll continue to see from our opponents, and in keeping the debate focused on delivering for everyday Americans. After all, that’s what Joe Biden has done throughout his career: passing the Crime Bill to put more cops on our streets, passing to the landmark Violence Against Women Act, and serving as a steadfast voice every day for those more concerned about the price of gas and saving for retirement than the latest political charade in Washington.

A Change Election with Two Converts

For the entire general election campaign, the McCain campaign has insisted that years in Washington should be the yardstick by which Americans measure their next President. But in recent days, and with his selection of a running mate with no Washington experience, Senator McCain has abandoned his core argument. Now he and his strategists have belatedly come to the realization that, after eight disastrous years, the American people are demanding change.

So the candidate who just months ago was openly boasting that he has been a faithful supporter of George W. Bush’s policies, and would continue them as President, now is improbably scrambling to offer himself as the candidate who will deliver the change America needs – even as President Bush holds a fundraiser for him today in Oklahoma.

This is a debate we welcome. It is the debate America needs.

For two decades, Barack Obama has challenged political insiders and outworn thinking to bring about real, meaningful change that helps people, not special interests. From welfare reform, to tax relief for working families, to health care for children of working families who lacked coverage, Obama has been at the forefront of fights that have made a difference in the lives of everyday Americans.

In Washington, Obama has been a consistent opponent of the Bush policies that have hobbled our economy and weakened the middle class, and his proposals for the future would steer us away from that disastrous course.

He’s challenged leaders of both parties by passing landmark reforms that took dead aim at the campaign contributions and favors through which corporate lobbyists have rigged the system. He worked across the aisle to pass laws reining in no-bid contracts and opening the budget process to the American people.

And Obama has lived by those principles in this campaign, refusing the contributions of Washington lobbyists and political action committees and imposing those same rules on the Democratic National Committee. Lobbyists don’t run his campaign. And when he’s President, they won’t run his White House.

But what about John McCain?

Can we really expect change from a Senator who supported the Bush policies 90 percent of the time? Who has said the Bush policies have brought about “great progress economically” and who just three weeks ago proclaimed the economy fundamentally strong?

The fact is that while he mouths the word “change,” Senator McCain’s record and proposals scream “more of the same.” His plans for the economy, energy, health care, education and Iraq barely stray from the Bush policies that are in place today.

And can we really expect change from a candidate whose campaign is being run by some of the most powerful corporate lobbyists in Washington?

While Senator McCain loudly declares that he will tell the special interests in Washington that their day is “over,” they are working overtime to elect him.

Seven of the top officials in his campaign are lobbyists. Between them, they have lobbied for Big Oil, the drug and insurance industries, foreign governments—even Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. His campaign manager routinely lobbied for corporations who had business before the Senate Commerce Committee that McCain chaired.

Corporate Lobbyists and PACs have contributed millions of dollars to his campaign and the Republican National Committee on his behalf.

Does anyone believe they are spending their time, money and energy to put themselves out of business?

That is not change. It’s more of the same.

A debate about delivering change is a debate we’re happy to have. Because no matter how many times McCain and Governor Palin use the word “change” or try to reinvent their own records, one thing stays the same: the fact that when it comes to the economy, education, Iraq, or the special interests’ stranglehold on Washington, they both are stubborn defenders of the past eight years and they both promise more of the same.

One final note:

Senator McCain has called the news media “his base” because of the friendly treatment he has received. And he undoubtedly is counting on his “base” to overlook the gulf between his newly minted “change” message, and the realities of his record and campaign.

His lobbyist-manager said Sunday that Governor Palin would only submit to questions about her record, statements and views when they determine that the news media will treat her with due “deference”-a startling and arrogant new standard for public officials in our democracy.

But we trust that the obvious conflicts between their rhetoric and records, their promises and their plans will not go unreported in the last 53 days of this campaign

Your Abbreviated Pundit Round-up

by DemFromCT

Wed Sep 10, 2008 at 04:15:29 AM PDT