Barack Obama zings Hillary during Des Moines Debate

[Cleverboy]

YouTube.com:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pv7K8S4kGQM&NR=1
Debate transcript:
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071213/NEWS09/71213047/1001/NEWS
MODERATOR: Senator Obama, you have Bill Clinton's former national security adviser, state department policy director, and navy secretarial among others advising you. With relatively little foreign policy experience of your own, how will you rely on so many Clinton advisers and still deliver the kind of break from the past that you're promising voters?

[laughter]

HILLARY: I want to hear that.

[laughter]

OBAMA: Well, Hillary, I’m looking forward to you advising me as well.

[laughter]

[applause]

OBAMA: I want to gather up talent from everywhere. You know, we haven't talked too much about the war, but one of the points that I’ve tried to make during the course of this year during the campaign is I want to change the mind set that got us into war. And because I think that since 9/11 we've had a president who essentially fed us a politics of fear. And distorted our foreign policy in profound ways. And I think that there are a lot of good people in the Clinton years, the carter years, George bush one who understand that our military power is just one component of our power, and I revere what our military does. And I will do whatever it takes as commander in chief to keep the American people safe. But I know part of keeping us safe is restoring our respect in the world. And I think those advisings me -- advising me agree with that. Initiating contacts with Muslim leaders around the world, doubling our efforts in terms of foreign aid, all those are designed to create long-term security by creating long-term prosperity around the world. They say this went over pretty well. In listening to him, every time he talks I feel like I have a deeper appreciation for where I'd like to see America headed. There was an article put out on Digg (http://digg.com/politics/Barack_Obama_to_name_a_Chief_Technology_Officer) a ways back that Obama intends to make CTO a cabinet level position (http://riskman.typepad.com/peerflow/2007/11/obamas-cto.html), with the intention that technology become a vital part of America's march towards better connectedness and competition in the world market.

If he's not elected, I sware to God I hope whoever is, dedicates themselves to similar goals on this front. You'll notice the YouTube clip was actually placed by Obama. The Obama website (http://www.barackobama.com/index.php) is rife with more technology sources and cross-connections than I knew existed (and not in a messy way). I'm a bit peeved that AsianAve.com (http://www.asianave.com/barack_obama) blocks Safari though (tells you to "upgrade" to FireFox... ouch). I gotta remember send them an e-mail... :rolleyes: [EDIT: Wow, that was quick... they removed the notice earlier this weekend I guess.]

~ CB

[leekohler]

That is promising. Let's hope his momentum continues to build.

[Blue Velvet]

That is promising. Let's hope his momentum continues to build.

I think I may have to eat my words the way things are going... I'm not particualrly pro-Hillary, I just thought he didn't have a chance. But a week is a long time in politics. ;)

[leekohler]

I think I may have to eat my words the way things are going... I'm not particualrly pro-Hillary, I just thought he didn't have a chance. But a week is a long time in politics. ;)

No kidding. He could slip up at any second. But I think he made his mistakes early. Time will tell.

[Cleverboy]

He got a lot of early criticism for not attacking Hillary... now Hillary is getting a lot of criticism for attacking him. It's a bit ironic. Even though he's biracial, and he's had a lot of trouble winning black votes, opponents are beginning to float the idea that he's representative of some boogey-man "black agenda" (especially given Oprah's recent endorsement). I think if people are foolish enough to believe it, that could be most costly for him.

~ CB

[solvs]

He still needs to clarify his positions on things like gay rights and his fiscal plans, as well as improve his healthcare plans, before I'll actually support him. I've liked what I've seen of most of the rest, and would be fine with him not having enough foreign policy experience as long as he surrounds himself with the right people. Better than having the wrong kind of experience or plans for foreign policy, or ignoring domestic policy to deal strictly with that. But I'm pretty cynical, and expect a lot more than he, or any of them, have shown so far. There's a lot going on right now that most of them could take the lead on if they wanted, but most of them don't. Biden and Dodd have made some gestures, but I still think they're just angling for cabinet positions. Both of whom also have their problems. As much as I dislike Hillary, if she could do any of those things as well, even if only slightly, I would also lean my support.

Still, it was a good zing, not likely to turn anyone off (at least not anyone who already wouldn't be), but I still worry about his viability nationally, even as much as we hate the GOP right now (especially since we aren't all that thrilled with the Dems overall either).

[Cleverboy]

Still, it was a good zing, not likely to turn anyone off (at least not anyone who already wouldn't be), but I still worry about his viability nationally, even as much as we hate the GOP right now (especially since we aren't all that thrilled with the Dems overall either). No doubt. Most people will want to dismiss him PURELY on the grounds that either "Nationally, people may use race as a negative" or "Regardless of his biographical confessions, more may be revealed that sink the dems in the general election." Those are tough ones, and have nothing to do with his views, policies, and integrity. --Which is a little sad.

New news... the Boston Globe (here where I live) just endorsed Barack Obama. They have a detailed write-up about their endorsement. For republicans, they've endorsed McCain, citing "Honesty" in a nutshell.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/12/15/for_the_democrats_barack_obama/

A sample of the article:
THE FIRST American president of the 21st century has not appreciated the intricate realities of our age. The next president must. The most sobering challenges that face this country - terrorism, climate change, disease pandemics - are global. America needs a president with an intuitive sense of the wider world, with all its perils and opportunities. Senator Barack Obama of Illinois has this understanding at his core. The Globe endorses his candidacy in New Hampshire's Democratic presidential primary Jan. 8.

Many have remarked on Obama's extraordinary biography: that he is the biracial son of a father from Kenya and a mother who had him at 18; that he was raised in the dynamic, multi-ethnic cultures of Hawaii and Indonesia; that he went from being president of the Harvard Law Review to the gritty and often thankless work of community organizing in Chicago; that, at 46, he would be the first post-baby-boom president.

What is more extraordinary is how Obama seals each of these experiences to his politics. One of the lessons he took from organizing poor families in Chicago, he says, was "how much people felt locked out of their government," even at the local level. That experience anchors his commitment to transparency and accountability in Washington. I grabbed the paper at th Donut shop this morning... in spite of the weather. I look forward to reading through this.

~ CB

[IJ Reilly]

I tried to resist, I really did...

http://hillarynutcracker.com/HillaryART/SnowCrackA.gif

[Blue Velvet]

I tried to resist, I really did...

Freud would have a field day with that.

[IJ Reilly]

Freud would have a field day with that.

Sometimes a walnut is only a walnut.

[solvs]

That was pretty funny, but yeah, also pretty telling.

[AP_piano295]

Sometimes a walnut is only a walnut.

But not this time....