The Trail: A Daily Diary of Campaign 2008

Thanks, laplumelefirmament -- shouldn't you be more worried about your OWN President, though, there in France?

Bill Clinton's racist postcard :

click here : http://serr8d.blogspot.com/2007/10/bill-clinton-racist-postcard-buy-it-now.html

Clinton seems to have the right balance.
Since I can't seem to embrace even one of the Republicans, Ill probably support Clinton in the Fall. Might consider Obama if he doesnt go bonkers between now and then.

Was it "racist" for Obama's campaign to urge the South Carolina Democratic Committee to deny WHITE candidate Stephen Colbert a chance to be voted on?

Mr Obama made a remark in his speech on the 13th that bothered me. It seemed to me to be the antithesis of the famous JFK quote "ASK NOT WHAT YOUR COUNTRY CAN DO FOR YOU ... , and this quote is well enough known that I am certain everyone reading it can finish it.
But What Mr Obama said in his speeach , after making a sarcastic joke about people going thru his kindergarden papers ; and yes we as Americans will do that as we have every right to know about who is running for president . I want to know what he thinks and how he was raised and what he has done . I dont know this person well enough yet; and a Chicago political background isn't necessarily a positive recommendation for me .
What he said was, that when he was asked why he was running for president , one of his reasons and inspirations was as follows . Evidently prior to making his decision he was standing in front of a statue of Abraham Lincoln , and thought to himself this (the presidency) was " owed " to him. I found this troubling to hear and consider, and not at all presidential, in whatever context and with whatever backpedaling or spin one might conceive.
The Office Of President is not "owed",to anyone for anything , but a massive job to be done , and I prefer someone who sees it that way, and who actually has the proven experience to do it.
Thank you
S.

Obama's campaign played the race card with this memo:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/01/12/read-obama-campaign-memo-_n_81220.html

And this outburst:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEQV4K1eFjI

But Barack said that his campaign had nothing to do with it...is that a lie, or did he just not know what his campaign was up to? He is not the victim in this spat, sorry. For someone who is all about unity, his campaign is being very divisive by playing the race card.

Barack Obama MADE A STAND against the IRAQ invasion when it MATTERED !
Hillary Clinton played politics.
Everything else is just BUNK !

"Obama's church does not accept any White person to enter"

You KNOW this is a LIE. Why do you people have to lie? ALL people are welcomed at his church; you should know better.

EARTH TO DEMOCRATIC PARTY ... CANDIDATES CLINTON AND OBAMA

The African American community constitutes approx. 12% of the total population. We have two good candidates running neck and neck. This emotional subject of race will blow the Democratic Party to bits. Neither candidate can win without a unified Democratic Party, otherwise, just vote Republican.

The vast majority of Americans are not racists and they get real angry when it is implied that they are. So be careful, very careful about emotional accusations that in this case have no merit.

Senator Obama needs to kick a few hard asses out of his campaign and take charge, just like Senator Clinton did a couple of weeks ago. Democrats are fine tuned at losing elections. If this keeps up, we'll lose another one. Wake up

Hillary Clinton is to African Americans what Strom Thurmond was to Carrie "Tunch" Butler. She isn't ashamed to get "into bed with them" for her own purposes but it doesn't do them much good.

You don't have to back Obama but backing Hillary whether you're black or white is effectively voting for the disaster of the Bush/Clinton years. Time for a change, not time for the same old nonsense.

Obama is the candadate who can bring real change in Washington. Washington doesn't need a president like Clinton who have spent half her life in Washington doing the same time.
I have one question for Clinton. Why now has she taken the path of criticizing instead show to american people how she will do if she become president one day? If she doesn't have anything to say she must shut up and praise Obama doing the best job.

Obama so far has only mouthed CHANGE that he will bring to Washington. All I hear out of his mouth is the same old tactics where the loser just keeps pounding away at his rival and never says one thing about all the good things he intends to do as Pres., how he will bring change (beter or worse) and what he knows about the political system.

Obama claims to come from poor and needy family. Where did the money come from so that he could purchase a home for over ONE MILLION DOLLARS and then purchase additional property for privacy. Who is footing the bills?

Change, isn't this country good enough for this dreadful man that the only thing he can talk about is to change our country.

I was born 81 years ago and always loved the USA and was proud, all my life, to be an American. Now, we are hopefully getting rid of a bum, lets not have a President that wants to change our country, we need someone to bring it back.
We need to honor our Constitution,r does he believe in the laws of the Muslins. Perhaps he thinks the Constitution is just a piece of paper which means nothing to him, just like our VP DEAD EYE Cheney.

We have no idea what he stands for, his honesty or his integrety. Perhaps he is just an extention of gwb. Obama's church does not accept any White person to enter
Thats really a sign so deep rooted it is frighening!.

Obama DIDN'T "clearly and unambiguously oppose the war in Iraq" when he deferred to Kerry on the issue in 2004. Obama DIDN'T "clearly and unambiguously oppose the war in Iraq" when he voted for funding said war. Those are simply the facts.

The woman has no shame. She blames Obama for the backlash SHE created with her insensitive remark, then turns around and says how proud she is of him?! Unbelievable.

Blacks in this country will get no respect if they vote for this woman. She is over there just patronizing you, your dreams, hopes and aspirations. I hope these folks are not going to give in to this evil women. Bob Johnson, the creator of black demise (BET) is over there supporting her. The good thing is, he is telling black women especially why they should not vote for Hillary. Bob, do you think black women are going to vote for her because you said Barack was doing drugs as teen. This will remind a whole bunch of mothers what they have beem dealing with. Mark it on the wall, you are toast!!

Obama is being the adult of the two in the race. I personally condemn the way in which Hillary is conducting her campaign. Hillary, the Clinton she is, makes a mistake and the first person she seeks to cast blame on is her enemy. What will she do if her Hillcare Health Care doesn't go as planned? Blame the Republicans! Now do a quick rewind with Obama in the White House.....imagine how much faster and how much more peaceful America will be on the road to Universal Health Care? If this poor showing of character is any indicator of how Hillary Clinton will conduct herself in the White House if she should win, the prospect of change looks dim.

Clinton has sank to a new low. I voted for Bill Clinton twice and I almost cried when I heard his remarks about Obama. How could I have voted twice for a man with so much hatred and such a sense of entitlement? I will never make the same mistake. They have no place in the White House; the country is trying to move past them to a better place but they are determined to push us backwards. Bill and Hillary may not be racist, but they have and will continue to put aside the hopes, dreams, and needs of black Americans when it runs counter to their personal ambitions. Bill Clinton is a bastard for using his position as an ex-president to denigrate the ambitions of Obama. Hillary is a stupid b***h; one for staying married to Bill after he was f**king around in the White House with an intern; two for her votes on Iraq and Iran. You may want people like these back in the White House but I certainly don't and they will have to do it WITHOUT my vote. Successful black Americans have worked too hard to have to put up with s**t like this from people who claim to be our advocates.

My fellow Americans, you be the judge of the controversial comments Hillary and Bill Clinton made in New Hampshire>

Bill and Hillary Clinton are trying to inject race into this historic election, with their comments in New Hampshire. May God and well-meaning Americans not let them succeed. We have seen similar coded message and reminder, given to all white juries in court cases, in which a black person was the plaintiff or the defendant. We all know how the verdicts came back in those instances. Could anyone tell me how this tactic is different in intent, context and outcome from what Hillary Clinton did in New Hampshire? I hope, we Americans are smart enough to read the coded race betting, embedded in the comments by Bill and Hillary Clinton. Though we understand the hidden message in the comments by Hillary Clinton and her husband, let us reject them, out-rightly. The Clinton's do not know how to lose gracefully. The appearance of loss, and loss itself, engenders the worst in the Clintons' politics. Anyone who knows them, would confirm this. Our country has been sicken and saddened by this type of politics. If the Clintons are using such poisonous political tactic against a fellow Democrat, just imagine what tactic they would use against a Republican in the general election, if Hillary is the nominee! I hope we do not let this happen. The Country has had more than enough of Bill and Hillary Clinton's brand of politics. Let is not go backwards.

I do not want us to go backwards, let is reverse the bigoted sentiment and fervor that Hillary and Bill Clinton are trying to fan. Let us in this election, judge the candidates, not on the color of their skins, gender, or religion, but on the contents of their characters, good judgment and capacity to unite our country and articulate a vision and mobilize all of us toward the vision. The 2008 may be the time, when, in our life time, we could make that clarion call, a reality. Let us not go back to the dark past social history that Hillary and Bill Clinton urged New Hampshire voters to remember. I have absolute faith, that voters in others states, after New Hampshire do not want to receive the bigoted education Hillary Clinton and her husband are peddling, as they canvas for votes, Let us reject them. Iowa voters led the way to the new enlightenment in American politics, the Iowa way is the right direction for our country.

Here are the comments by Hillary and Bill Clinton, and my commentary:

Hillary Clinton said in New Hampshire last week: "You know, I have so many opportunities from this country I just don't want to see us fall backwards." "You know, this is very personal for me. It's not just political, it's not just public. I see what's happening, and we have to reverse it,".

My commentary:

ask yourselves and Hillary Clinton: what she does not want us to fall backwards on? The answer is, nominating and election a non- white person (an African American) President of the United States. What else, was she urging New Hampshire voters not to do, but vote for Sen. Obama, who was on the verge of winning New Hampshire Primary, and perhaps, going on to win the nomination and the presidency, both of which, would be going backwards -changing the life long tradition Hillary and Bill Clinton have known, that no African American has ever won the nomination of the Democratic Party, let alone, win the presidency. A win by Sen. Obama in New Hampshire, would have shattered Hillary Clinton's world. How else could anyone interpret Hillary Clinton's comment? The inference in Hillary Clinton's comments: an African American (Sen. Obama) winning New Hampshire, subsequently, the Democratic Party nomination and perhaps, the presidency, would be "'falling backwards", (rather than forward and being progress).

Hillary Clinton went on to urge New Hampshire voters, with this comment: "I see what's happening, and we have to reverse it," What Hillary Clinton saw happening were polls that showed Sen. Obama beating her and winning New Hampshire. Hillary Clinton urged voters in New Hampshire to reverse the support for Sen. Obama. The small margin, 2 percent (about 7,000 votes), by which Hillary Clinton beat Sen. Obama is an indication that, infact, a small number of New Hampshire voters listened to Hillary's call to reverse what was about to happen -Sen. Obama winning New Hampshire, and in good stead to win the Party nomination. If Hillary Clinton's comments were not race betting, then, would someone, please tell me what is? If a Republican or anyother Democrat had made similar comments, the Charles Rangle, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Andrew Young and other "servants", including the NAACP, of the Clinton's in the African American community would have been outraged with demonstration and civil disobedience.

Sen. Obama and living African Americans were not the only people Hillary Clinton and her husband took time to minimize, belittle and insult their dignity and accomplishments, last week in New Hampshire. Here is what Hillary Clinton said about Dr. Martin Luther King (the late Civil Rights leader and Nobel Laureate).

Hillary Clinton:

"You know, today Senator Obama used President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to criticize me. He basically compared himself to our greatest heroes because they gave great speeches.
"President Kennedy was in Congress for 14 years. He was a war hero. He was a man of great accomplishments and readiness to be president. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a movement. He was gassed. He was beaten. He was jailed. And he gave a speech that was one of the most beautifully, profoundly important speeches ever written in America, the "I have a dream" speech.
"And then he worked with President Johnson to get the civil rights laws passed, because the dream couldn't be realized until finally it was legally permissible for people of all colors and backgrounds and races and ethnicities to be accepted as citizens.

My commentary:

The inference in Hillary Clinton's comments is that President Lyndon B. Johnson (my favorite US President) should get the lion's share of credit for the Civil Rights Act, rather than DR. King. However, Hillary Clinton and house helps like Robert Johnson of the Black Entertainment Television (BET), have gone on to blame Sen. Obama for Hillary's and Bill Clinton's ill informed and ignorant comments.

Most Africans recall the personal sacrifice Dr. King made, and the risks he took, the insults he endured, the beatings, including having his headed busted open by a bigot who hit him with a rock in Illinois, during the Civil Rights movement. Dr. King energized the nation to enact the Civil Rights Act, and black people earned civil rights through sweat and blood. Many people died and/or were imprisoned and beaten, for marching for civil rights. Though President Lyndon Johnson, unlike John F. Kennedy, recognized, at the prompting of the civil rights marches and the unrest, that, the nation could not wait any longer, to enact the 1964 Civil Rights Act. How could Hillary Clinton have such a warped sense of the history of the Civil Rights Act? For a person, like Hillary with a law degree from Yale, this is utterly disappointing and twisted understanding of legal history of Civil Rights in the US.

Here are similar comments by the great liar, convicted perjurer, and sexual abuser himself, Bill Clinton:
"Give me a break. This whole thing is the biggest fairytale I've ever seen". He made this comment about Sen. Obama.

My commentary:

Well, all Americans, especially, African Americans, should ask Bill Clinton what he meant by saying that Sen. Obama's candidacy is a "fairytale" ? The message Bill Clinton was sending to Sen. Obama and voters around the nation is that: a non-white person (an African American has never won the Democratic Party nomination, let alone, win the US Presidency, and as such, Sen. Obama's campaign and aspiration is a fairytale -a fantancy. Why would anyone, including, someone, that the African American community has sheepishly branded the 'first black president" -Bill Clinton, have and express such parochial and jaundiced view about a very bright and accomplished African American in the person of Sen. Obama, if he (Bill Clinton) was not still stuck in the bigoted mindset and mentality of the Jim Crowe era?

Bigots are known, by the ease with which they belittle the dignity and accomplishments of the targets of their bigotry. While some of you (including the Clintons' dogs in the African American community) would cite the fact that Bill Clinton appointed a number of African Americans to positions in his administration, lives in Harlem, and has black friends, I deeply, believe, that the comments by Bill and Hillary Clinton, were borne out of bigotry and desperation, and although, targeted at Sen. Obama, the comments demean all of us as Americans, especially, African Americans. The comments were race betting.

I hope you think carefully about these comments and their import, in deciding whom you think would be able to unite our country. Sen. Obama is highly qualified for the presidency, and has more years in elective office and public service, and proof of solid accomplishments, than Hillary Clinton, who talks in generalities about her accomplishments. If the Democratic Party imposes Hillary Clinton on us, rather than vote for her, I urge you to consider voting for a Republican candidate.

Our country would be a more decent country, if the Clintons are not brought back to the White House. Do not, if you care about this country, give this sexual predator, congenital liar and convicted perjurer, Bill Clinton another opportunity to live in the White House again. You would do this by not voting for and nominating Hillary, because, she has condoned, enabled, and often, contributed tremendously, to what ails our politics and country.

Ignatius Anyanwu
California.

Obama is being the adult of the two in the race. Hillary, the Clinton she is, makes a mistake and the first person she seeks to cast blame on is her enemy. What will she do if her Hillcare Health Care doesn't go as planned? Blame the Republicans! Now do a quick rewind with Obama in the White House.....imagine how much faster and how much more peaceful America will be on the road to Universal Health Care? If this poor showing of character is any indicator of how Hillary Clinton will conduct herself in the White House if she should win, the prospect of change looks dim.

All the democratic candidates are ignoring Michigan and focusing on S.C. because the DNC stripped Michigan of all 156 delegates. Where is the media reporting on this? Instead all we are getting is fluff stories about the candidates. Find the full story here: http://www.startplane.com/node/7

In an effort to win at any cost, Hillary is starting to look like she has a split personality! She goes from falsely blaming Obama for her troubles, lying about his record, to "Gee, ain't Barack great?"

HIllary looks more and more bizarre, the more desperate she gets.

She makes a mistake and the first person she seeks to cast blame on is her enemy. What will she do if her Hillcare Health Care doesn't go as planned? Blame the Republicans!

To see the REAL Hillary Clinton search YouTube 'shocking video hillary' (part 1 and 2). The new release of 'Hillary the Movie' is also very interesting.

Change is not just a campaign slogan..

Hillary Clinton's assertion that Lyndon Johnson, or any other Washington politician, is more responsible for the Civil Rights Act than Martin Luther King Jr. and those he lead during the Civil Rights Movement is the ONLY "Fairy Tale" in this campaign.

. . . And the next time that Bill Clinton or his wife conspire to use half truths and outright lies to distort Senator Obama's statements, positions, or his record as a Senator (tactics that George W Bush used so well to slander John Kerry in 2004); they could at least have the decency to preface their misleading attack with the words, "Once upon a time . . . "

It's hard to defend someone like Hillary Clinton when she keeps reminding us why she draws so much fire from both Republicans and Democrats. How can she go from making such an insensitive remark about someone who symbolizes so much to so many people to saying that she's "proud of him." That just seems to reinforce the idea of her being shifty and calculating.

Obama's spouse didn't lie under oath in federal court testimony, but Hillary's did . . .

All that is missing from Sen. Clinton's comments today is that Barack Obama is a "credit to his race."

Stephanie Tubbs Jones, "Ms. Hillary, I don't know nuthin' about 'lectin' no president. Does I needs to boil some water?"

Yesterday Bill was yammering on about how he "brags on Obama" every chance he gets. Today, Hillary is doing the same thing. How phony.

Give me a break. That whole thing is the biggest fairy tale I've ever seen...well, actually, "I didn't have sexual relations with that woman..." is the biggest fairy tale. This is just another lie.

Keep talking Bill and Hill... Keep on keepin' on.

Check out Obama's response to HRC's Meet The Press appearance:

What we saw this morning is why the American people are tired of Washington politicians and the games they play. But Sen. Clinton made an unfortunate remark, an ill advised remark, about King and Lyndon Johnson. I didn't make the statement. I haven't remarked on it, and she I think offended some folks who felt that somehow diminished King's role in bringing about the Civil Rights Act. She is free to explain that, but the notion that somehow this is our doing is ludicrous.

I have to point out that instead of telling the American people about her positive vision for America, Sen. Clinton spent an hour talking about me and my record in a way that was flat-out wrong. She suggested that I didn't clearly and unambiguously oppose the war in Iraq when it is absolutely clear and anyone who has followed this knows that I did. I stood up against the war when she was voting for it, at a time when she didn't read the intelligence reports or give diplomacy a chance. She belittled the most sweeping ethics reform since Watergate despite the fact that she stood on the sidelines during that negotiations on that bill.

I have to say that she started this campaign saying that she wanted to make history and lately she has been spending a lot of time rewriting it. I know that in Washington it is acceptable to say or do anything it takes to get elected, but I really don't think that is the kind of politics that is good for our party, and I don't think it is good for our country, and I think that the American people will reject it in this election.

What I want to do is spend time talking about how we are going to make sure that people who are losing their jobs get work. How are we going to make sure that our young people are going to afford college? How are we going to make sure that the subprime lending crisis does not lead to an all-out recession? How are we going to create the kind of foreign policy that allows us to bring our troops home and makes us safer and goes after a genuine terrorist threat? Those are the issues that we are going to spend time talking about in this campaign and if Sen. Clinton wants to be distracted by the sorts of political point scoring that was evident today then that is going to be her prerogative.

Thanks to Ben Smith at Politico.

lamachina,

You may feel that it's unfair that the Clintons need to be careful how they critique Senator Obama so as not to piss off black voters, and many feel it's unfair that Senator Obama cannot respond to attacks without seeming hypersensitive to white voters, but those are the realities of race in our political discourse. It is of course "politics as usual" to express contempt and condescension about your opponent, but if the Clintons think that being contemptuous of a brilliant, talented black Senator who is a credit to his party just to advance their own campaign will not cause a backlash with black voters, they aren't thinking at all.

And, along those lines, to say you are "proud" of someone is to imply that that you are responsible for their accomplishments and it comes across as pretty patronizing. It would sound very odd for Obama to say he was proud of Hillary, because she is older than he and we know it is something parents/teachers say of their children/students. Mr. Clinton's remark that he's always "bragging on" Barak, sounded even more like a parent talking about a child. I don't doubt that it was meant to be complimentary, and I don't at all believe that the Clintons are actually racists, but I think that this is another instance that shows how tone-deaf they are, and that the character assassination techniques they learned from the right are not serving them well in this contest.

Obama Trinity United Church of Christ, an African-American mega-church unorthodox pastor Reverend Jeremiah Wright describing the September 11 attacks as a "wake-up call" to America for ignoring the concerns of "people of colour", and for claiming that Americans "believe in white supremacy and black inferiority . . . more than we believe in God". Wright travelled to meet Muammar Gadaffi, the Libyan leader, in the 1980s with Louis Farrakhan, the black supremacist leader of the Nation of Islam, and subscribes to the "Black Values System", which preaches self-reliance but claims "middle-classness" is ensnaring blacks. Reverend Jeremiah Wright went to Tripoli to visit Colonel Gadaffi with Farrakhan., The arguement that Obama offers white voters a chance to free themselves from white guilt, is continuing to create a negative race issue..
Billionaire Clinton backer Bob Johnson, who founded Black Entertainment Television, said he's "a little bit insulted, if you will, by Senator Obama letting his campaign imply that Hillary Clinton does not revere what Martin Luther King did for African Americans.""I think that's taking it way too far," he said while campaigning with Clinton in South Carolina. "I think Barack understands clearly what the senator was saying." "Nobody believes either Hillary Clinton or Bill Clinton would say anything that would denigrate either Barack Obama or Martin Luther King. And to me, what may happen is a backlash may occur when people see that Barack Obama is allowing his PR people to let out the notion that Hillary Clinton did not respect everything that Dr. Martin Luther King or any other person who faced the problems and the threats of being a part of the civil rights movement faced. ""And to me, Barack knows better than that.

Lamachina:

Way to "shuck and jive" with racist idiocy. The issue isn't either treating him with "big-boy gloves" or calling him "boy," and you know it. It's about MAKING S--T UP AS YOU GO. You're all for lying. You think it's great. You think why not elect our next leader based on s--t. Fascists have won plenty of elections that way. We shouldn't.

Hilary is a chameleon, Be afraid, be very afraid.

and when we are at that, your fairly takes and MLK belittling remarks are not just inappropriate to blacks, they are inappropriate, period.

lamachina,
Great trick to pass yourself for a black.A trick learned from the Clintons, perhaps.Or a house black?
You guys would be all over the place marching if a republican denigrated blacks, let alone, MLK.Where's the outrage when the racist tricks come from the Dems?
I wonder if the Clintons will weep their way back into the oval office.How gullible are people in this country?

lamachina appears to miss the point of the article. I didn't read anything that alleged or implied that Clinton was "disrespectful". The obvious point was that she completely shifted her tone and message in order to manipulate and pander to a particular audience. Why didn't she sing Obama's praises on "Meet the Press" or criticize his voting record in front of African-American church congregation? Where was her political courage evident in either venue? And is it not patronizing of her to profess that she is "so proud of Senator Barack Obama". Of course the subtextual message here is that she wants her audience to be proud of Hillary in her transparent efforts to engage the empathy of future women voters through false humility. Re-read or re-watch "Primary Colors" if your memory needs refreshing as to how manipulatively negative the Clintons can sink in pursuit of their political goals.

I used to respect Hillary Clinton a great deal, but she has disappointed me profoundly over the course of this campaign. I believe she and her husband have been simply and blatantly dishonest. There has been no consistency of purpose to her campaign. She seems willing to say whatever is necessary to whoever she is speaking to in order to win their vote. That is dishonest. It is dishonest to me for her to sully the memory of Dr. King, and then turn around and declare pride in Senator Obama before a black audience.

I am so disappointed that the democratic party is split in its support between Senator Obama and Senator Clinton. I gave Hillary a fair hearing, but how she has run this campaign is self interested. Shes put herself before the party, before the country, and before the truth. Senator Obama purity of purpose is clear. We saw what he stands for after he won Iowa. Thats the America I'm proud of. Hillary's attack on that vision has left me so disappointed in her that I cannot vote for her in any general election. I don't think it would be good for the democratic party, nor for the country as a whole.

Barack Obama will accomplish real change in Washington. He is not as experienced in political gamesmanship as Hillary. He does not need to manipulate the system, he will change it. His message is resonating from Maine to Los Angeles.With record INDIVIDUAL donations, record crowds to hear him speak,and an individual record of community service on behalf of common people.Instead of taking on high paying jobs, when they were offered, he chose helping others for $13,000 per year and a beat up car.With Barack Obama what you see is what you get. No carefully scripted,robotic comments with mechanical gestures. Barack Obama speaks from his heart. While others make a big deal about race and political divides Barack Obama lets it be known that America is a country that was built on Liberty and Justice FOR ALL. All indicators point to he fact that he would beat the Republican nominee in more cases than Hillary would. A Hillary Cinton victory will mobilize the Republican right like never seen in history.While Barack Obama has the respect and admiration of colleagues on the other side of he aisle. Barack Obama took Iowa with a very strong margin and he lost New Hampshire by a small margin. The national Polls are closing and will continue to close until Barack Obama overtakes her. Barack Obama is picking up large endorsements from respected Democratic leaders and individuals on a very regular basis. Now that more and more Americans are being exposed the Barack Obama you will see logarithmic growth to his support, as those who wanted to vote for him but did not think that he could win, join the march for true change.
Barack Obama does not have the personal and political baggage that Hillary Clinton has.Hillary is a great American and a good person but we need to support the candidate that has proven he can reach out and get a firm grip on consensus and effectively end the gridlock caused by partisan politics..We need Obama ,not the drama.

The shift? What shift? Since when is it disrespectful for political rivals to slam each other's records? I'm sick of people demanding we treat Obama with kid gloves because he's black. It's insulting to me as a black man. Let Tim Russert and the useless pundits continue to patronize Obama. Hillary treats him like a man, not a child. By the way, Hillary was a legal monitor at the Black Panthers trial. She has a life-time commitment to fighting racism and the Klan descendants in the Radical Right.

Keep trying to run from your comments on MLK, Senator Clinton. Way to "shuck and jive" in front of those voters who must be voting for Obama because he's "their imaginary hip black friend." What a "fairy tale." David Geffen said it best, "every politician lies, but (the Clintons) do it with such ease, it's troubling."