Running Mate

Fairytale, Slum, Jesse

Bill Clinton said fairytale. Hillary said slum. Bill Clinton said Jesse.

Obama-Sebelius

That might be a great ticket too. Senator-Governor.

Kathleen Sebelius - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia chair-emeritus of the Democratic Governors Association. ..... moved to Kansas in 1974 at the age of 26 ...... In 1994 she left the House to run for state insurance commissioner and stunned political forecasters by winning — the first time a Democrat had won in more than 100 years. She is credited with bringing the agency out from under the influence of the insurance industry ....... . She refused to take campaign contributions from insurers and blocked the proposed merger of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, the state's largest health insurer, with an Indiana-based company. The decision by Sebelius marked the first time the corporation had been rebuffed in its acquisition attempts....... as of January 2006 was one of the most popular governors in the country ..... 22 months of continuous job growth, although the majority of the job growth was the creation of local government jobs. Taxes were never increased during her term in office, nor did essential service suffer cuts. ....... did not support an April 2005 amendment to the Kansas Constitution that made same-sex marriage in the state unconstitutional. ....... On 2006 May 26 Sebelius formally announced her candidacy for re-election. Four days later, Mark Parkinson, former Kansas state GOP Party Chair, switched his party affiliation to Democratic; the following day Sebelius announced that Parkinson would be her running mate for Lieutenant Governor. ...... landslide re-election with 57.8 percent of the vote to Barnett's 40.5 percent. ....... During the 2004 election Sebelius was named as a potential running mate for John Kerry. In the aftermath of Kerry's defeat in the 2004 presidential election, some pundits named Sebelius as a potential candidate for the Democratic nomination for President in 2008. ........ she was chosen by the Democratic Party's congressional leaders to give their party's official response to Republican President George W. Bush's State of the Union Address ......... Sebelius is now chair of the Democratic Governors Association, a popular launchpad for those with national political ambitions. ..... In November 2005 Time named Sebelius as one of the five best governors in America, praising her for eliminating a $1.1 billion debt she inherited, ferreting out waste in state government, and strongly supporting public education — all without raising taxes. Also praised was her bipartisan approach to governing, a useful trait in a state where Republicans have usually controlled the Observe also the presence of Legislature.Republicans such as Keith Sebelius in her family. ...... In February 2006, the White House Project named Sebelius one of its "8 in '08", a group of eight female politicians who could possibly run and/or be elected president in 2008.

Obama-Napolitano

That is another possibility.

Janet Napolitano - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

McCain-Romney

That would be a good ticket. I think it would be great to see a Mormon on a national ticket. Romney has been manufactured to run for the vice presidency and lose.

Message To Elizabeth Caputo

I want you to quit your current job and come join my corporate team early in 2009. You can become COO. First year or two might feel like a paycut, but the equity will bountifully make up for it over the years. The pay goes up too.

In The News

Why Edwards Never Caught On TIME What no one, not Clinton or Edwards, was prepared for was the insurgency candidacy of Senator Barack Obama. ..... a $6 million home on 100 acres outside Chapel Hill ..... personal worth is as much as $30 million ...... his campaign was stunned when he garnered just 4% of the vote in the Nevada caucuses ...... should help Obama consolidate the sizeable anti-Hillary contingency
Giuliani Completes His Collapse
McCain Disproves the Doubters The contest between John McCain and Mitt Romney has long resembled a horror movie, a blood-and-guts battle between a man risen from the dead and a candidate seemingly created in a lab. ...... what he might be thinking in the darker recesses of his mind "Why won't you die?!" .... "People understand the difference between a very good salesman and a commander in chief." ..... His embrace of comprehensive immigration reform ..... "There's still a huge number of states to go," says unaligned GOP pollster Whit Ayers. "And Romney has a lot more money." ..... Romney outspent McCain in Florida on the order of eight to one. ...... that skeptical bit character in horror films — the one who refuses to believe that the monster is real.
How the Kennedy Nod Helps Obama for a moment there, it was a bit overwhelming for Barack Obama. ...... The Obama campaign is planning a full schedule for Kennedy, particularly in places, such as the Latino community, where Obama remains an unknown quantity and the Kennedy name still carries enormous emotion. Kennedy also carries significant clout with organized labor, which could be looking for a new candidate to rally behind ........ Kennedy declared Obama to be nothing less than his brother's rightful heir ..... proceeded to demolish every attack line that she and her husband have thrown Obama's way. ..... his move was in large part the product of his unhappiness with Bill Clinton's hard-knuckled style of campaigning for his wife. Two weeks ago, the two of them had an angry confrontation by phone. ....... he got word through former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, one of his prominent supporters, that Senator Kennedy was trying to reach him ..... Before Kennedy's sister Jean Smith left the event, she handed the Illinois Senator a slip of paper and asked for one small favor. Obama obliged—and gave her an autograph.
Heading for a Delegate Donnybrook? 75 media markets and nearly 1,700 delegates up for grabs on February 5 ..... both Obama and Clinton will continue to rack up convention delegates through the spring ..... Clinton and Obama could split the delegate haul in roughly equal fashion ...... February 5 won't determine much of anything at all. Except that the race will go on. And every delegate up for grabs after that becomes even more valuable to all sides. ..... Jesse Jackson and Michael Dukakis fought a bruising five-month battle for the nomination ..... the fight will go on to all the other states. ...... neither side captures a clear majority before April or even May. ..... Clinton is running ahead of Obama in the super-delegate sweepstakes, although they can technically change their allegiance even after they have pledged it
John Edwards to Quit Presidential Race Washington Post
Edwards to Drop Out of Democratic Race New York Times
A New Burst of Killings in Kenya TIME a new wave of ethnic violence has broken out across the country. ..... "We all have multiple identities but I hope you see yourselves as Kenyans first," Annan said. ...... forcible circumcision of Luos, who traditionally do not practice that rite ..... Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe, long accused of being the object of favors from successive Kenyan governments, against Luos, Luhyas and Kalenjin, which had hoped an Odinga victory in the December 27 election would right decades of perceived injustices. ....... the police are not doing their work, they are also political, they are favoring one side ....... Kenya's economy, whose chief engines are horticulture, tourism and tea. All three industries have been crippled.
Clinton gains Florida fillip after bruising by Obama AFP Florida may have been a phantom stop on the White House road, but Hillary Clinton trumpeted her Sunshine State victory as she vied to regain the limelight from her high-wattage rival Barack Obama. ....... "Obama and Clinton tie for delegates in Florida -- 0 for Obama, 0 for Clinton." ...... "Now that Senator Clinton has lost badly in South Carolina, she's trying to assign meaning to a contest that awards zero delegates and where no campaigning has occurred." ...... Los Angeles on Thursday, for their last televised debate ..... staunch support from the Hispanic community -- which backed her by a two-to-one margin in Florida.
In Background, a Battle for Superdelegates Washington Post But he considers Kennedy "a mentor" who helped to get him elected to Congress in 1982. ..... superdelegates, who account for about a quarter of the total number of delegates ..... Sebelius, Kennedy (Mass.), Sen. Claire McCaskill (Mo.) and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano are among those who recently signed on as Obama supporters. ..... Of the nearly 300 superdelegates who have committed to a candidate, out of a total of 796, Clinton leads Obama roughly by a 2-to-1 ratio ..... superdelegates can change their allegiance at any time ...... The threat of a wholesale shift hangs over both candidates. Kennedy's endorsement came in part after the veteran Democrat grew frustrated with Clinton campaign tactics that some construed as racially charged. ..... "The only reason Hillary Clinton is ahead right now is because more politicians, particularly politicians in very blue states, have endorsed her," said McCaskill ...... Richardson said: "If I do endorse, it's going to be a gut feeling. It's not going to be about statistics, about past ties. I've been on the campaign trail with both of them. I feel that I know them. I feel I know the issues. I feel I know what makes them both tick." ...... "Some people fell in love very easily. Other people have to be courted like you're asking them out on a date. Seriously, it's a dating game. It's exciting."
Obama denies snubbing Hillary Clinton Los Angeles Times
Obama strikes gold in Kansas National Post dropping in on the town where his white mother grew up to "talk about the roots of my life that directly connect to the broader story of the country." ....... had never before visited El Dorado ...... places where oil is still pumped ..... Clinton, is concentrating on the Democratic strongholds of California, New York, New Jersey and her one-time home state of Arkansas ..... Obama hopes to run Ms. Clinton close in the big states, while scoring in smaller, traditionally Republican "red states" such as Kansas, Utah, Idaho and Alaska. ..... the place where his grandparents met as high-school sweethearts ..... exotic childhood in Hawaii and Indonesia.
Clinton Savors 'Great Victory' FOXNews
Spike in turnout could benefit both Clinton and Obama Boston Globe a 90 percent increase in Iowa, 30 percent in New Hampshire, and 83 percent in South Carolina ...... Obama beat her among white 18- to 29-year-olds, 52 percent to 27 percent .... Latinos in that state chose Clinton over Obama 64 percent to 26 percent. ..... She beat Obama handily among women in New Hampshire and Nevada, the two states she won, but Obama beat her among women in Iowa and South Carolina, the two states he won. ...... Obama is unlikely to beat Clinton among Latinos, but he can work to close the gap
California is Clinton country... MSNBC more votes will be cast by mail in California than were cast in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina combined ...... 47% of all votes will be cast by mail. ..... state voters are fiercely independent, and wouldn’t be swayed in significant numbers by Obama’s significant win in South Carolina

Events, So Many Events, Many More At MyBO

MyBO

Time: Tuesday, January 29 at 5:00 PM
Duration: 4 hours
Host: Evan Shapiro
Contact Phone: 646-712-4666
Location:
14th Street and 8th Avenue (New York, NY)

MyBO

Time: Tuesday, January 30 at 6:00 PM Jan 30,
Duration: 3 hours
Host: Jonta Williams
Location:
Burger King 179th St. & Hillside Ave. (Jamaica, NY)
179th St. & Hillside Ave.
Jamaica, NY 11432
F train to the 179th St. stop.

MyBO

Time: Wednesday, January 30 at 6:15 PM
Duration: 2 hours
Host: Maywa Montenegro
Contact Phone: 423-794-0797
Location:
Barnes&Noble Union Square (New York, NY)
33 East 17th Street
New York, NY 10003

MyBO

Time: Wednesday, January 30 at 12:00 PM
Duration:
Host: Micah Bergdale
Contact Phone: 212-796-0657
Location:
Grand Concourse/South Bronx (Bronx, NY)
1100 Grand Concourse #1L
Bronx, NY 10456
4/D train to 167th

MyBO

What: Generation Obama Debate Cocktail Hour
Where:The Grand, 41 east 58th street, nyc
When: Thursday, January 31, 2008
Party starts at 6pm
Debate at 8pm

MyBO

Time: Thursday, January 31 at 6:00 PM
Duration: 3 hours
Host: Generation Obama
Location:
The Grand (New York, NY)
41 East 58th Street
New York, NY 10018

MyBO

Time: Thursday, January 31 at 5:00 PM
Duration: 3 hours
Host: Arthur Leopold
Contact Phone: 917-359-3920
Location:
59th Street and Lex (New York, NY)
59th Street and Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Directions: 4/5/6 or N//R/W/F Trains to 59th st.

MyBO

Time: Thursday, January 31 at 7:00 PM
Duration: 4 hours
Host: Joseph Baker
Location:
Our Apartment (Brooklyn, NY)
106 Clifton Place #3D
Brooklyn, NY 11238
Directions: We're around the corner from the Classon G stop or short walk from the Clinton-Washington C stop.

MyBO

Time: Thursday, January 31 at 10:00 PM
Duration: 1 hour
Host: Katy Eustis
Location:
Pianos (New York, NY)
158 Ludlow st
New York, NY 10002
F or V to 2nd Ave/Houston St. Exit at Allen St end of the station and walk two blocks east on Houston to Ludlow,
then one block south to Stanton.

MyBO

Time: Friday, February 1 at 6:30 PM
Duration: 3 hours
Host: Adi Flesher
Contact Phone: 212-920-7851
Location:
McSorley's Old Ale House (New York, NY)
15 E. 7th st
New York, NY 10009

MyBO

Time: Friday, February 1 at 7:00 PM
Duration: 2 hours
Host: John Maher
Contact Phone: 516-767-7537
Location:
Macedonia AME Church (Flushing, NY)
37-22 Union Street
Flushing, NY 11354
Downtown flushing, just 2 blocks from Q12,13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20A/B, 25, 34, 44, 48, 65,66, N20, N21; IRT#7, LIRR.

MyBO

Time: Friday, February 1 at 2:00 PM
Duration: 2 hours
Host: Tara Kirton
Location:
Brooklyn College (Brooklyn, NY)
Q Local to the Avenue H station, at Avenue H & East 16th Street.
Walk 4 blocks east (you’ll see the famous LaGuardia bell tower; walk towards that) to the Ocean Avenue entrance.

I'd like the walk to Begin in front of Brooklyn College in Flatbush,
End at the Brooklyn Public Library (Flatbush & Eastern Parkway).
Sat. Feb 2, 2008, Walk Begins (2pm) at the Brooklyn Public Library and Ends the Atlantic Mall (Flatbush & Atlantic Ave.)

MyBO

Time: Saturday, February 2 at 12:00 PM
Duration: 2 hours
Host: NY Women for Obama
Location:
Merchants' Gate at Columbus Circle (New York, NY)
59th & Broadway
New York, NY 10019

MyBO

Time: Saturday, February 2 at 12:00 PM
Duration: 1 hour
Host: Gregory H. Smith
We'll start from the B'klyn side of the bridge--walk to the Manhattan side.

MyBO

Sun. Feb 3,2008, Walk Begins (2pm) at the Atlantic Mall (Flatbush & Atlantic Ave.)and
Ends on Court st. and Montague (downtown Bklyn).

MyBO

Time: Saturday, February 2 at 10:00 AM
Duration:
Host: Alima Berkoun
Contact Phone: 917 349 0717
Location:
in front of Victoria theater (New York, NY)
237 west 125 street
New York, NY 10027
next to the Apollo theater ABCD TRAIN TO 125 STREET

MyBO

Time: Sunday, February 3 at 11:00 AM
Duration: 2 hours
Host: Elizabeth Lynch
Contact Phone: 718-490-3836
Location:
Meet Outside Starbucks on Main St. (Flushing, NY)
41-02 Main Street
(Corner of 41 Ave and Main Street)
Flushing, NY 11354
From Manhattan: Remember, there is no 7 Train Service on Weekends;
Instead, take a FREE LIRR from Penn Station to Flushing (this is the "Port Washington" Line).

MyBO

See Schedule online: http://www.mta.info/

Time: Tuesday, February 5 at 7:00 PM
Duration: 4 hours
Host: katherine bernhardt
Location:
cafe enduro (Brooklyn, NY)
51 lincoln road
Brooklyn, NY 11226
Directions: take the Q train to Prospect Park station, exit Lincoln road. cafe is just to the left.

MyBO

Thursday, February 7
6:00 pm
Planned Parenthood and DL21C's Women's Issues Committee present
A Night Out with Women in Politics
6:00-9:00pm
The Zipper Factory, 336 W. 37th St. between 8th & 9th

MyBO





In The News

Analysis: Bush overshadowed by presidential race CNN Before the speech, White House officials set low expectations -- and Bush met them. ...... (Did you notice how all the TV networks justifiably spent so much time on those delicious cutaway shots in the chamber of Sen. Barack Obama huddling with new best-friend-forever Sen. Edward Kennedy, while Sen. Hillary Clinton sat nearby, no doubt fuming?) ........ The White House spent the past few years talking up a strong economy, but got very little credit because of struggles in Iraq. Now things are getting better in Iraq, but Bush is getting very little credit for that because .... the economy is getting worse.
Nepal king attends Bollywood wedding NDTV.com
Obama's `Defining Moment' Rhetoric Evokes JFK, King (Update3) Bloomberg the most memorable orator since Ronald Reagan .... focuses on his sense of mission and touches only glancingly on policy. ..... so someday we can tell our children that this was the time when we healed our nation ...... have earned him comparisons to John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King ....... ``I was almost moved to tears by the power and the breadth of Obama's message,'' said Ted Sorensen, 79, the former speechwriter for Kennedy and an Obama supporter. ``His speaking style and what he stood for reminded me of JFK, of national interests uncluttered by the interests of race, religion or even political party.'' ....... is ``ready to be president on day one.'' ..... with a message and language that are inclusive, memorable turns of phrase, rolling cadences, repetition and a rich voice. ...... Since Franklin D. Roosevelt, only Kennedy and Reagan habitually strove for that loftier tone. Former President Bill Clinton, for example, largely kept to a conversational tone, and left behind few memorable speeches. ....... On a spectrum from plain speaking to grand oratory, Obama probably exemplifies a ``middle-style'' most similar to Reagan's, mixing colloquial language with lofty, values-laden themes ...... ``that I am not going to promise you things, I am going to demand things of you.'' ..... he leads a movement, not a party; that he is a vehicle, his supporters the driving force. ..... he also routinely pairs a white historical figure with a black one: Abraham Lincoln and Willie Mays, Kennedy and King.
Obama Snubs Hillary ABC News Obama's Clinton snub was the news
Obama Raises More Than $4 million Online Over the Weekend Wired News John Kerry raised $5.7 million in a day after he won the Democrats' nomination ..... Plouffe predicted in his memo that it wouldn't be, and that the campaign is staffing up in post February 5 states. ..... a million dollars a day for the first eight days of the year
Clinton's Fund-raising Takes Off Online Post New Hampshire
In Harlem, Backing Up Bill Clinton New York Times “He’s pushing the race card as much as he can. He wants his wife to win ....... Harlem (or at least that portion of it represented by the traffic passing in and out of his building) presented itself on Monday as a postracial neighborhood, one that saw the elections more in terms of the economy and war in Iraq and less in terms of black and white. ...... If Obama gets the nomination, folks will ask, ‘So who are you?’ So far, he’s a nice white middle-class guy
Kennedys for Clinton Los Angeles Times The loftiest poetry will not solve these issues. We need a president willing to engage in a fistfight to safeguard and restore our national virtues. ...... her formidable work ethic, courage in the face of adversity and her dignity and clear head in crisis. ....... Her measured rhetoric, political savvy and pragmatism shield the heart of our nation's most determined and most democratic warrior. ..... Hillary is a problem-solver, listening to people and then achieving solutions by changing attitudes. ..... a detailed understanding of the history and cultural backdrops of the nations we engage. ...... a catastrophic foreign policy that has cost us our international leadership and aggravated the threat of terror; a misbegotten war that is squandering precious American lives and treasure
Malaysia flirts with Google over world's biggest data center Register
Mobile Advertisement to unleash "huge revolution", says Google CEO TelecomTiger revenues of under $1 billion for mobile advertisements by 2012. ..... Google's 2009 mobile ad revenue alone will reach $21.31 billion. ...... the worldwide mobile advertising market will grow from $895 million in 2007 to $14.6 billion in 2011

Don't Abandon California

Hillary abandoned South Carolina and paid for it heavily. Barack should not abandon California. That is too big a prize to let go.

Women in California are giving Hillary her lead. I think many of them will change their minds after South Carolina and the Kennedy endorsements sink in. But my primary weapon against Hillary would be Hillary herself. Spread rumors that you are looking to make Edwards your Attorney General. As in, you are not thinking of him as running mate. The women of California can have Hillary on the ticket. If they want some symbolism, they can sure have it. I mean, I like Hillary.

A Vote For Barack Is Not A Vote Against Hillary

I can so totally see why for the women of California Hillary is attractive. If you are a working woman, intelligent, well educated, you face gender as an issue on a daily basis. So if you are driven by self-interest, you will let gender be your deciding factor.

But if you think about the country and the fresh leadership it sorely needs, or that race is a bigger hurdle than gender in America, or if you think about the world and especially Africa and what a President Obama could mean to that continent, you are going to have to go for Barack, even if you might be a California woman.

15 Point Lead

Hillary's 15 point lead in California is from before the political earthquake in South Carolina, from before the high voltage endorsements by the JFK daughter Caroline and the JFK youngest brother Ted Kennedy.

The Kennedy Endorsements

This is how it worked. Caroline's children had a friend who worked for the Obama campaign, and he lighted the fire. The children got Caroline's ear. And when Caroline endorsed, Ted Kennedy was compelled to.

Never underestimate the power of an Obama campaign worker.

Obama-Edwards

If it boils down to that, it might as well be an Obama-Edwards change ticket, if all the Edwards delegates throw their lot behind Obama to give him the nomination he will otherwise not have. Edwards has also not taken lobbyist money. He has exhibited strong labor support. He will help greatly in the South especially when there might be no Southerner on the Republican ticket.

McCain-Romney

Is that what we are looking at?

In The News

McCain, Clinton have big leads in California Los Angeles Times the battles remain hugely volatile ...... Clinton held onto a 49% to 32% lead ...... Democratic women continued to power her effort, siding with Clinton by nearly a 2-1 margin. ..... The poll was conducted largely before Obama's victory Saturday in South Carolina and today's high-profile endorsements of him by U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts and his niece, Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg...... 3 in 10 likely voters said they could change their minds .... increasing her margin of support among Democratic women from 15% to 26%.
Why the Kennedys Went for Obama TIME For a moment, Obama looked overwhelmed when he saw all of the Kennedys waiting for him. Then he gathered Caroline in a big hug. "Thank you so much," he whispered. "I'm so excited." ..... Caroline and I are very close, and she started this process ...... She took her children to listen to all of the candidates ...... we had a long lunch in the middle of the summer. They were talking about it at that time; they were talking about Barack Obama. ....... This is about who you're for, not who you're against. ..... It was actually my kids talking about it last Christmas vacation. A friend of theirs, who is here today, is working for Senator Obama. ........ I don't think there's anybody who understands the possibilities of government more than Ted Kennedy. ..... his voice has all the power of 30, 40 years ago. He is at the heart and soul of the Democratic Party — the belief in civil rights, the belief in opportunity for all people, in upward mobility, in caring for the least of these, a vision that extends beyond our shores. And he speaks to a vision in which we are a beacon for those who are still trapped in poverty or oppression.
Obama's Win Reshapes the Race
Obama on his way to win nomination Daily Times
Ted Kennedy's roof-raising endorsement of Barack Obama. Slate and bet the whole darn Kennedy Compound that this man is The One ...... he performed a double vivisection on the Clintons ..... Obama fights for what he believes in, "without demonizing those who hold a different view." And unlike some he could name, what Obama is selling is "not just about himself, but about all of us," Kennedy thundered. ........ the choice as he described it was between fear and hope, the past and the future, meanness and possibility. ...... urged voters not to listen to former President Clinton's naysaying, likening it to Harry Truman's suggestion that JFK was too green to be president back in the day ...... Diann Heine, a longtime aide to Hubert Humphrey, left American University's Bender Arena building crying. "I never thought I'd feel this way again," she said. "It's a miracle."
Clinton, McCain Lead in NY Poll The Associated Press Hillary Rodham Clinton, 56 percent Barack Obama, 28 percent ...... On the Democratic side, 70 percent said they had made up their minds compared to 25 percent who could still change their minds. Forty-five percent of Clinton supporters were certain to vote for her compared to 20 percent for Obama.
Dirt Is Found on the Clinton Campaign Trail in Iowa FOXNews

Caroline Kennedy: A President Like My Father

January 27, 2008
Op-Ed Contributor
A President Like My Father
By CAROLINE KENNEDY

OVER the years, I’ve been deeply moved by the people who’ve told me they wished they could feel inspired and hopeful about America the way people did when my father was president. This sense is even more profound today. That is why I am supporting a presidential candidate in the Democratic primaries, Barack Obama.

My reasons are patriotic, political and personal, and the three are intertwined. All my life, people have told me that my father changed their lives, that they got involved in public service or politics because he asked them to. And the generation he inspired has passed that spirit on to its children. I meet young people who were born long after John F. Kennedy was president, yet who ask me how to live out his ideals.

Sometimes it takes a while to recognize that someone has a special ability to get us to believe in ourselves, to tie that belief to our highest ideals and imagine that together we can do great things. In those rare moments, when such a person comes along, we need to put aside our plans and reach for what we know is possible.

We have that kind of opportunity with Senator Obama. It isn’t that the other candidates are not experienced or knowledgeable. But this year, that may not be enough. We need a change in the leadership of this country — just as we did in 1960.

Most of us would prefer to base our voting decision on policy differences. However, the candidates’ goals are similar. They have all laid out detailed plans on everything from strengthening our middle class to investing in early childhood education. So qualities of leadership, character and judgment play a larger role than usual.

Senator Obama has demonstrated these qualities throughout his more than two decades of public service, not just in the United States Senate but in Illinois, where he helped turn around struggling communities, taught constitutional law and was an elected state official for eight years. And Senator Obama is showing the same qualities today. He has built a movement that is changing the face of politics in this country, and he has demonstrated a special gift for inspiring young people — known for a willingness to volunteer, but an aversion to politics — to become engaged in the political process.

I have spent the past five years working in the New York City public schools and have three teenage children of my own. There is a generation coming of age that is hopeful, hard-working, innovative and imaginative. But too many of them are also hopeless, defeated and disengaged. As parents, we have a responsibility to help our children to believe in themselves and in their power to shape their future. Senator Obama is inspiring my children, my parents’ grandchildren, with that sense of possibility.

Senator Obama is running a dignified and honest campaign. He has spoken eloquently about the role of faith in his life, and opened a window into his character in two compelling books. And when it comes to judgment, Barack Obama made the right call on the most important issue of our time by opposing the war in Iraq from the beginning.

I want a president who understands that his responsibility is to articulate a vision and encourage others to achieve it; who holds himself, and those around him, to the highest ethical standards; who appeals to the hopes of those who still believe in the American Dream, and those around the world who still believe in the American ideal; and who can lift our spirits, and make us believe again that our country needs every one of us to get involved.

I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans.

Caroline Kennedy is the author of “A Patriot’s Handbook: Songs, Poems, Stories and Speeches Celebrating the Land We Love.”

Barack Obama Is No Jesse Jackson

Bill Clinton's latest "trick" has been to try and explain away Barack Obama. So Barack Obama won South Carolina, so what? Jesse Jackson also won South Carolina in 1984 and 1988.

And I had been suspecting the Clintons are trying to take us back to the 1990s, a little bit of time warp, a little bit of time travel. Wrong. They are trying to take us back to the 1980s. Or why mention Jesse?

If Bill Clinton had given a solid convention speech in 1988, I would have compared him to Barack Obama who gave a solid convention speech in 2004, but Bill did not deliver. He was an object of ridicule in the aftermath. The speech was so lousy it was widely predicted he would never run for national office.

Jesse Jackson is a great guy, a historic figure. He was prominent in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. And I am personally thankful for the two runs for president he made in the 1980s. If it were not for those two runs, Barack might not have been able to run today. I have that same sense of thankfulness for Dean 2004. Dean 2004 did the early, hard work. Obama 2008 built on it.

So no doubt Jesse is a great guy. But Jesse never ran for president. He just ran to make a statement. And he ran hard.

Barack is not running to make a statement. He is running to be president. He is not running to become the first black president. He is just running for president.

Jesse is black. Barack is biracial. That is an important distinction.

Barack became Senator. Jesse always thought he was too big to be merely a Senator. MLK never became Senator. He was above Senator. And so Jesse was not going to be Senator either.

Jesse fought the hard battles that Barack did not have to fight, but battles Barack benefited from.

Bill Clinton said fairytale. Hillary said slum. She went ahead and belittled MLK. And the Clintons are now paying the price. Black America is coming of age and a second place is no longer acceptable.

It is entirely possible Bill Clinton just does not get it. He does not get the gist of the Barack candidacy. He does not get the new kind of politics. He only knows slash and burn. Decades after world war two there were Japanese soldiers on remote Pacific islands still fighting the war: noone ever told them it was over.

Barack just took over from Bill Clinton the top spotlight in the Democratic Party. And that taking over will be official on February 5 when Barack will be anointed the nominee, the day when it becomes official.

Barack Obama Kennedy

After the endorsements by JFK daughter and brother, my guy might as well add an additional last name.

Take South Carolina Bill Clinton Out To California

Tell the women in California, Hillary is not the woman they think she is. She let her husband take over.

Give 10 States To Bill Clinton

Hillary should focus on the other 12. Give 10 to Bill. Oh, how I would love that.

Florida

Florida does not count. Why is Hillary going against party rules and campaigning in Florida?

A McCain-Romney Ticket

Looks like that is what we will have for fall. I like the idea of a Mormon on a national ticket. We will defeat him, but he will have broken a glass barrier in the process for the non-Christians.

Rudy Is Available

I think Rudy should be made Secretary of Homeland Security by President Obama.






In The News

Races Entering Complex Phase Over Delegates New York Times a potentially protracted scramble for delegates Congressional district by Congressional district ...... 52 percent of Democratic delegates will be chosen. ...... complex delegate-allocation rules .... Arizona, Kansas, Missouri and New Mexico. ....... The possibility of a long-term slog is real for Democrats, given that Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama appear evenly matched in resources and political talent. ...... If the polls were wrong in New Hampshire, where Obama seemed to be ahead only to lose narrowly to Clinton on the night, they were more wrong in South Carolina. ....... Bill Clinton tried to do just that on Saturday night, instantly reminding reporters that the last major African American candidate, Jesse Jackson, had also won South Carolina in 1984 and 1988. ....... In Iowa he demonstrated he could win white votes; in South Carolina he showed he could win African American ones ....... If Obama can rely on similarly solid African American support in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee ....... delegate-rich California where she is thought to have an advantage, especially among Hispanic voters. ....... the intensity of voters' feelings ..... "voters kind of recoiled" from the Clintons' apparent racialising of the contest ........ feminists who wonder why a powerful woman such as Clinton cannot fight her own battles.
Kennedy Chooses Obama, Spurning Plea by Clintons Mr. Kennedy had become increasingly disenchanted with the tone of the Clinton campaign .... He and former President Bill Clinton had a heated telephone exchange earlier this month over what Mr. Kennedy considered misleading statements by Mr. Clinton about Mr. Obama, as well as his injection of race into the campaign. ....... Mr. Kennedy, a major figure in party politics for more than 40 years, intends to campaign aggressively for Mr. Obama, beginning with an appearance and rally with him in Washington on Monday. He will be introduced by Ms. Kennedy. ........ bolstering Mr. Obama’s credibility and helping him firm up support from unions and Hispanics, as well as the party base. ..... assertions that Mr. Clinton’s campaigning on behalf of his wife in South Carolina has in some ways hurt her candidacy. ...... he was intrigued by Mr. Obama’s seeming ability to inspire political interest in a new generation ...... when he learned that his niece’s endorsement would appear as an Op-Ed piece in The New York Times on Sunday, he decided to bolster that with his own public embrace of the campaign ...... two years ago, Ms. Townsend’s mother, Ethel Kennedy, referred to Mr. Obama in an interview as “our next president” and likened him to her late husband. ....... He’s not selling you. It’s just him.
Now Obama has momentum as race heads for long haul Guardian Unlimited
Obama vows to write 'new chapter' in US history Edmonton Sun
Clinton Adjusts Obama Tactics in Run to Super Tuesday (Update1) Bloomberg early indications that her husband, former President Bill Clinton, will be less visible ...... Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, who described Bill Clinton as the U.S.'s ``first black president'' a decade ago, announced her support for Obama. ..... Clinton made two campaign stops in the state yesterday. ...... ``Whoever prints the placards for them must be a busy person,'' said Robert Gibbs, an Obama campaign adviser. ``To get the printing contract for their signs might amount to a full economic stimulus plan.'' ...... Hillary Clinton said it was ``human nature'' to get carried away and also spoke of ``sleep deprivation.'' ....... Caroline Kennedy informed Obama two weeks ago
Obama and Clinton go nationwide with less face time, more air time Chicago Tribune will make the past town hall gatherings and one-on-one meetings seem like quaint and distant memories. ...... big-stage, tarmac-to-tarmac phase of the fight, which some expect may drag on into March or even April. ...... Obama told reporters aboard his new campaign plane -- a Boeing 737 -- that this phase would present greater challenges for him. ...... "It's not a black or white issue. It's not a young or old issue. It is a past issue versus a future issue." ..... media coverage and advertising ..... Obama is focusing on six states that hold caucuses Feb. 5 -- Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota and North Dakota ...... Even before his South Carolina victory, Obama beamed himself via satellite into Missouri, New York, New Mexico, Arizona, California and Connecticut through local TV interviews Saturday.
Ironically, Toni Morrison is for Obama Yahoo! News
Toni Morrison Endorses Obama New York Times
Jackson: Not Upset by Clinton Remarks New York Times
Clinton’s Camp Seeks Gentler Role for Ex-President New York Times Mr. Clinton had injected himself clumsily into the race ...... Mr. Clinton had upset some of the central themes of Mrs. Clinton’s campaign, including her appeal to women ..... her husband’s recent prominence may have dampened her appeal as a strong female leader ..... Obama won 54 percent of the vote from women in South Carolina, including 22 percent of white women and 78 percent of black women .... “Voters don’t like the idea of a co-presidency ..... looks like she either needs him to fight the big battles for her, or she can’t keep the big dog on the porch ..... Mr. Clinton’s visibility has dented her argument that she has the best experience for the job.
Will Clinton bounce back? Independent Online joking about the warm weather and positioning herself so photographers had a palm tree for a backdrop. ...... "I will try to persuade my delegates to seat the delegates from Michigan and Florida," said Clinton. "Democrats have to win Michigan and have to try to win Florida and I intend to do that. The people of Florida deserve to be represented in the process of picking a candidate for president of the United States." ...... Romney, a former venture capitalist, cast himself as a business-savvy economic turnaround artist amid recession anxiety, while McCain, a former Vietnam prisoner of war, portrayed himself as a courageous wartime commander in chief in a dangerous world.
Clinton to Campaign in Florida The Associated Press The minister, Samuel Kyles, was with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. when he was assassinated nearly 40 years ago.

Polls Don't Mean S__t: February 5 Can Be Had

Polls put Barack and Hillary at 38 to 30 in South Carolina with Hillary gaining a few points on the final day. But the final tally was more like 55 to 27.

Polls put Hillary as leading all February 5 states except Illinois and Georgia. Polls don't mean s__t.

Let's Finish This Thing On February 5

I am not one for waiting. Don't take me to March. Finish this thing on February 5. Let's go win this thing. We have a world to change.

Landslide In South Carolina Means Victory On Fabulous 5
How To Win On February 5
February 5: Big Prizes

Obama 2008 is the largest grassroots movement this world ever saw. This is bigger than Gandhi's Salt March. This is bigger than MLK's march on DC. This is bigger than the million man march. This is bigger than Dean 2004.

Let's whip up our volunteer base like we have not in all of 2007 and so far in 2008. Let's whip up for money, let's whip up for time. Whip it up to knock on doors, whip it up to make phone calls, to hand out flyers.

If it is worth pounding the pavements for Barack all February, and all March, and all April, and all summer if need be, it is worth pounding the pavements for Barack for just one intense week and be done with it. If you are willing to do it for three months, and I know you are, why will you not be willing to do it for just one week and be done with it?

Be done with it.

This is the final countdown.



Pound. Pick up that phone. Make that phone call. Go knock on that door.



Give me the best cheetah sprint you can give. This week. This is the week.



The moment we have been waiting for is here. Seize it.

As for me, I am going to do the subway thing myself. I am going to connect one person at a time. In person. I bought a weekly pass yesterday for 24 bucks. I am going to do the photocopy thing soon. First I am going to print out the flyer at the local library. I know, I don't got no printer. I am a totally online person. Printers were before the internet. Then I am going to the local corner store where I buy an occasional Pepsi before going underground and off to the city. And I am going to make copies, five cents a piece. And I am going to talk to people. Every waking hour until February 5 belongs to Barack.

I am going to dress warm. I was at cold at the two outdoors events over the weekend. I am going to put on my woolen socks I bought in Kathmandu in 1996. And a woolen cap. And gloves.

And I am going to work the city.

Barack, you are a cheetah from the African savannah. Go, get 'em, tiger.

December 18: Crash The Party

Landslide In South Carolina Means Victory On Fabulous 5

Big Victory, Big Momentum

Despite Bill Clinton telling voters in New Hampshire that Barack voted "present" instead of "yes" on some pro-choice bill in the Illinois legislature and so is not a friend of women, when the truth is it was a strategy on the part of the pro-choice forces to vote "present" instead of "yes" so as to get as many Republican votes as possible in support, despite Bill Clinton encouraging his precinct captains in Nevada to close the doors early at 11.30 because it was not "illegal" to do so, even though the doors should have been open till noon, despite Clinton 08 now wanting the delegates in Michigan to be counted against the party rules but making no noise when the rules were put in place by Howard Dean, despite Bill Clinton now saying "we will have a victory in Florida in a few days," when he full well knows Florida is like Michigan, despite all that, or perhaps because of all that, because the voters finally caught up with Bill Clinton, and so South Carolina voted the way it voted. Hillary said early in 2007 about Iowa, "You know, I just don't seem to have a feel for this place." Guess what, she had so little "feel for the place" called South Carolina that she refused to even campaign there, and she paid the price for it. This landslide is the big reason why Barack will seal the nomination on February 5.

John Edwards For Attorney General

I am thinking Barack will seal the nomination on February 5. But in case the fight goes all the way to the convention, the Edwards delegates will go to Obama. That makes John Edwards a very important man. He is not the last hurrah of the white male, he is the Attorney General in waiting. He is a fighter who will fight on behalf of the American people spearheading the Justice Department. Barack is JFK, Edwards is Bobby Kennedy.

Joe Biden Secretary Of State

His passion on the Darfur issue is really something.

Bill Richardson Secretary Of Energy

Nuclear energy is not white energy.

Hectic Weekend

There was the march and rally yesterday, the party in Harlem in the evening and the rally at City Hall today.

The march yesterday started two places, one from Union Square, another from Harlem, and both converged onto Columbus Circle. I was part of the Union Square march. We marched on both sides of the street, on the sidewalk. It was quite a show.

This was my second time meeting Sheila at an Obama event. For the most part we walked together. I captured her on my camera for about 20 seconds.

"Now you are in my movie!"

Sheila has a filthy rich father, he owns factories in southeast Asia, stuff like that. She is on his payroll for no work, lives near Washington Square Park. "So you went to the Obama rally in that park?"

No, I was recuperating from "spinal surgery" at the time: high end medical insurance.

I briefly met her again at the South Carolina returns watch party on the 118th street in Harlem. This was a good event to go to. Many of the top volunteers in the city were there, all the top staffers, Bill Perkins. Perkins is the mascot of the Obama operation in the city if there is any one person for that.

Harlem is the place to go for live music. All the musicians at this particular bar happened to be white. That is the Obama way.

I briefly saw her again at the rally today, in passing.

24 Bucks

This morning I bought a weekly subway pass. This is going to be my best money contribution to Obama. I am going to crisscross the city on his behalf. I am going to many events, and I am going to also talk to people in the trains. New York City, here I come.

Structure

While waiting in line for the City Hall rally, I met a few old timers who are like, why don't you have a volunteer badge instead? And then you meet new volunteers who totally think you jumped onto the bandwagon yesterday. I have to stay unstructured. That is how I can best contribute. The ranks have grown substantially.

Two TV Stations

Yesterday I got interviewed by two TV stations, one is New Delhi Television. Now that is big. That is possibly like getting on national TV in India, depending on how they use their footage. Another a South Asian TV station in Buffalo, NY. I made some hot air remarks on a cold day.

"We Indians are few in number, but we are going to take over New York City on Barack's behalf."

"Barack would still be a top rate candidate if he were white."

"Barack has a sister called Maya. Maya is an Indian name."

Sarah Of NDTV

After she got me in front of the camera, she circled once around me. "There is not enough light."

Sylvan's Spanish

At the Harlem party I learned Sylvan speaks fluent Spanish. She got interviewed by some Spanish TV station. She is Jewish, from Oklahoma. At high school her nickname was Sylvan Rights because she was so into civil rights issues.

The Clintons Don't Get To Claim Michigan And Florida As Victories

They should have challenged the rules before they were put into place. If not, it is put up and shut up time.

Let The Clintons Divide The Feb 5 States Between Them

Hillary figured Bill will carry South Carolina for her. That was dynasty thinking. It did not play well. Now if Hillary were to similarly cart off about 10 states to Bill, that would be a bonanza for us. I would like that. Voters are smart. They know they are looking for a candidate, not some kind of a therapy session with Bill Clinton, charming that he is.

The Final Countdown

If there ever was a time for the Obama grassroots volunteers to show it is not about Barack, it is about them, now is the time. This is the week when we prove TV ads are not what carry the day. What matters is how many doors we knock, how many phone calls we make, how many flyers we hand out. And there we beat Hilllary 08 hands down.

There are some things money can't buy: volunteer effort falls in that category.

Not A Black Victory

It was not a black victory in South Carolina. This was a biracial victory for a biracial man. I fear no white backlash on February 5. On the contrary, I think the message will really get across. A new South is being born. A new America is being born.

Polls

Polls show Clinton leading Obama in all but two of the February 5 states. But then polls did not foresee his two to one victory in South Carolina. Polls showed him leading by eight points, not 28.

These polls are not factoring in all the new voters Obama brings into the process by being Obama.

McCain-Huckabee

Is that the ticket we are looking at on the other side?

Romeo Juliet

After I watched that movie, I asked myself a question. If those two had cellphones, could they then not have killed each other? Now I have the answer. Cellphones would have made no difference. They would still have killed each other. There are no short cuts in love.







In The News

Kennedy Plans to Back Obama Over Clinton New York Times squarely pits one American political dynasty against another. ...... “I’ve had ongoing conversations with Ted since I’ve got into this race.” .... Of all the endorsements in the Democratic Party, Mr. Kennedy’s is viewed as among the most influential. ...... One day after defeating Mrs. Clinton in South Carolina by 28 points, Mr. Obama flew to Georgia to speak at a church service before traveling on to Alabama for a rally. ...... the latest in a string of senators to get behind Mr. Obama ..... our national imagination ...... the Clinton camp’s strategy of aggressive attacks on him ..... Edwards’s delegates could eventually play a key role in the fight between Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton. ..... Florida is one of 37 states to permit early voting
Hillary primed for Super Tues. tally New York Daily News a dizzying nine-day sprint to Super Tuesday ...... now essentially a media war ..... the biggest multi-state Primary Day in U.S. history — it appears mathematically unlikely either will clinch the nomination. ..... Both campaigns expect to fight on at least through March, when Ohio and Texas vote. ...... "When people see him, they are with Barack — there’s no question about it. And, yet, the laws of physics say that he can not be in so many places at one time" ...... revving up a grass roots political operation and seizing as many free media opportunities as possible ..... "You’re going to have to depend on a huge volunteer base to knock on doors, to make phone calls, to get organized, to get precincts out to vote," he said. "Far and away, we have the largest volunteer base of any campaign." ...... Clinton sources say she could get 1,100 delegates under their best-case scenarios
Tough challenges ahead for Clinton and Obama Swissinfo Clinton left before the votes in South Carolina were even tallied to fly to Tennessee, a February 5 state ..... "It is a marathon run like a sprint. There is no stopping. There is no resting." ..... Obama seems to be able to inspire people as her father did a half century ago ..... Obama won four of every five black voters, who made up more than half of the state's electorate. He also won one-quarter of white votes, higher than many had predicted ...... Obama did very well among young voters, including young white voters. He won two-thirds of that age group overall, taking half of the 18- to 29-year-old non-black vote ..... "The more people know me, the better I do."
Ted and Caroline Kennedy endorse Obama AFP
Party rules play big strategic role Seattle Times Mathematically speaking, it is virtually impossible for any candidate, Republican or Democrat, to wrap up the nomination on Super Tuesday, when 24 states stage contests. From a standpoint of political reality, though, that day could prove decisive. ....... For Democrats, national party rules require that all delegates be allocated proportionately.
Bill Clinton's running again - and it's all about him Kansas City Star In a presidential election year that's notable for shattered rules, the high visibility of the former president's efforts on behalf of his wife, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, may the biggest rule-breaker of all. .... "Everybody needs to take a deep breath," she told CBS Friday. He "gets excited, gets really passionate about making the case for me." ...... Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., also reportedly have offered similar advice
Clinton to go to Florida on primary night Baltimore Sun
The Dems' Florida Boycott Heats Up TIME
Obama's Win Reshapes the Race we have the most votes, the most delegates, and the most diverse coalition of Americans ....... young people from all across this country who've never had a reason to participate until now ..... The excitement around Obama's candidacy pushed turnout to record levels ...... she had called Obama to "wish him well" .... his outsized, vocal presence on the trail has threatened to overshadow his wife ....... Earlier in the day, Clinton had churlishly compared Obama's victory to that of Jesse Jackson in 1984 and 1988, a remark that will likely further fuel disaffection about the Clintons amongst African-American voters. ..... Obama's victory was also a repudiation of the brand of hard-knuckled politics that both Clintons had brought to the South Carolina contest ..... in the mostly black precincts that Bill Clinton visted in Greenville, as much as 80% of the vote went to Obama.

Record Turnout Expected as South Carolina Votes New York Times
Obama: Press 'Manically Focused on Race' ABC News
Mob Violence Is Tearing Kenya Apart New York Times
Obama's Rezko problem spills over Chicago Sun-Times Obama's days as a Harvard Law student who got a call from the Chicago businessman offering him a job. Obama turned him down
High hopes for Obama as South Carolina votes AFP
Obama, Clinton and great expectations Baltimore Sun
Inquirer Endorses Obama, McCain The Associated Press
Edwards touted as Obama pick for attorney general Chicago Sun-Times Edwards could collect a substantial bag of delegates under the Democratic Party’s proportional representation. Edwards then could try to turn his delegates over to Obama in the still-unlikely event of a deadlocked Democratic National Convention.
Bill Clinton - Hillary's lightning rod Telegraph.co.uk whoever is her secretary of state will have to deal with the fact that Bill can just get on the phone to Gordon Brown and go to Britain and ask him to help out on an issue. That's a fact of life ...... have not ruled out inviting Mr Obama to become Hillary's running mate ...... accused Mr Clinton of "frantic" distortions of Mr Obama's record. ...... calling Mr Clinton a "civic embarrassment" for treating "a proud and accomplished black man who is a US senator as if he were nothing, a mere impediment to their plans." ...... "How un-feminist it is to get your husband to do your dirty work?" ..... Obama, who has been thrown from his message of change by the spat, will seek to regain the initiative with a series of high profile speeches this week designed to add "beef" on major issues to his optimistic rhetorical flourishes. ....... "People underestimate what a competitive animal Bill Clinton is. It's the blood that runs through his veins, the fire that ignites him." ..... he concentrated his megawatt personality on the voters, hitting them with a smile, a handshake and factual nuggets - at one point claiming that the solar panels in his Presidential library will be helping save the planet for 150 years.
Clinton calls for Michigan delegates to be counted MLive.com
Campaign notebook Clinton wants to restore all of Florida's delegates Houston Chronicle

Magazine Estimates Britney Spears Is Worth $120 Million to Economy ABC News
Obama seeks Hispanic inroads as California leans toward Clinton San Jose Mercury News Bidding for Hispanic support in California's upcoming primary, Barack Obama describes himself in a Spanish-language television ad as the son of an immigrant whose success is a beacon to others. ..... Clinton has an almost dynastic appeal to Hispanic voters, many of whom came of voting age during the economic good times of Bill Clinton's presidency. ..... New York senator leads Obama 3-to-1 among Hispanics ...... most Hispanics know little about Obama ..... rank-and-file voters, who do not tune into the race until the final weeks before an election. ..... the disinclination of some Hispanics to vote for a black candidate. Tensions between the two groups have been intensified by competition for jobs and political power as Hispanic immigrants have moved into black neighborhoods. ...... Obama faces an uphill climb among Hispanics in California, much to the frustration of the Hispanic activists who support him.
Obama, Clinton sprint to finish in South Carolina AFP
Clinton, Obama spouses join the electoral mudslinging AFP "On blogs, web chats and talk radio, Clinton is being attacked as never before" .... Hillary Clinton campaigned in vote-rich California and other western states
Obama's One-State Wonder U.S. News & World Report Barack Obama will win the South Carolina Democratic presidential primary. But his campaign will most likely incur a crippling blow on Super Duper Tuesday on February 5, when he loses the California primary.