Ladies and gentlemen… while the traditional media does its best to pump up the silly drama about the sixty or so (yes, sixty… McCain probably has more keys for all his houses) PUMA’s that continue to defy logic and intelligence and hold out for Sen. Hillary Clinton as the Democratic nominee… despite the fact she isn’t asking them to do so… it’s time to recognize this simple fact.
It’s over. Clinton lost… Sen. Obama won. Let it go.
Why would I say such a thing? Simply put, Ms. Clinton knocked it out of the park last night with her speech at the convention.
During the ramp-up to her appearance, I began to worry that her delivery would be muted, which would have caused every media person’s head to explode in order to say obtuse things such as; ‘her reserve shows anger’ or ‘her lack of fire shows a lack of support.’
But she quickly dismissed that notion as she gave an enthusiastic speech that didn’t contain any bitterness or regrets… and she did what she HAD to do; she called her own supporters onto the carpet and told them, in no uncertain words, that this campaign was about more than her… it was about getting rid of the same ole, same ole… it was about electing a Democrat into the White House… it was about getting America back on track… it was about beating Sen. McCain (“No way. No how. No McCain”)…
It was about getting behind and electing Barack Obama.
She voiced her support for Obama as strong as anyone could have expected, perhaps more so.
She was fiery, smart, funny, passionate, and pulled no punches when it was time to take the fight to republicans in general and John McCain specifically, saying; “It makes sense that George Bush and John McCain will be together next week in the Twin Cities. Because these days they're awfully hard to tell apart.” She followed that up with a scathing; “We don’t need four more years of the last eight years.”
Ouch, that’s gotta hoit…
Naturally there have been a plethora of blogs and media analyzing her speech to death… and every word, every movement, every gesture will be examined.
Regardless of how she arrived to this point… she arrived. She put aside her personal hurt and gave her full, unequivocal support to Obama.
And I embrace that… but I still have a problem. And that problem is people whose heads are so far up their asses that they don’t see that this election is NOT ABOUT THEM… and it’s not about Hillary Clinton.
It’s about pushing the republicans out… and the Democrats in.
Ever gracious, Obama phoned Clinton after her speech… from AP; “After leaving the house party [in Billings, Montana], Senator Obama called and talked for several minutes with Senator Hillary Clinton saying how grateful he was for her support, that she gave a terrific speech and that all those he watched with in Billings, MT were moved by her video and introduction from Chelsea. Also said he loved her line "No way, no how, no McCain." […] Senator Obama also called and spoke with President Bill Clinton for several minutes saying Senator Clinton could not have been better and made the case for change. Obama said he knew how proud he must have been watching as he was last night watching Michelle speak and how grateful he was for their support.”
I know some Obama supporters will still complain that her speech wasn’t enough, it should have come earlier… yada, yada, yada…
The truth of the matter is it was enough…and it came at the perfect time when she had the undivided attention of the masses, thus eliminating the worry that only a few would see her message of unity.
It’s over… it’s done… if the woman who they were supposedly figting for is calling for the animonsity to end… then end it must.
To do otherwise would be foolish, inane, and destructive… to the Democratic Party, and our great nation.
Move on… let it go… get behind Obama.
Hillary has.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
It's over...
Monday, March 31, 2008
A Plea to Democrats
A few weeks back, Scott and I endorsed Sen. Barack Obama as our choice for the Democratic nomination, and since then, the two of us, and everyone else, have seen our party become fractured and, in turn, a little weak.
It’s time that we all get over this Obama-Clinton feud, a feud that has become far more divisive than it ever should have and has, at times, reduced intelligent, educated and decent people into something that resembles children fighting over a box of crayons.
The decision over our party’s nominee will eventually be made and that will be that; God-willing.
The arguing between each candidate’s supporters is rising to ridiculous proportions and that must stop… now… because a real fight is coming, and that fight is, of course, the fight to oust the republican party from the White House.
I still believe the Democrats will regain control of the presidency in November, but we need to stop wasting our time arguing amongst ourselves. I understand that everyone is entitled to their opinion and has their favorite… but what I am worried about are those Democrats that have their eyes on voting for John McCain, Ralph Nader or some other inconsequential schlub rather than their party’s nominee.
That talk needs to stop… Right. Now.
As an Obama supporter, the actions of Sen. Clinton have shocked me and have made me lose not only respect for her, but for former president Clinton as well. Having said that, if she were to get the nomination, I would vote for her in a heartbeat if it would mean keeping the gop out of the White House for at least four years.
Those that support Clinton have been shocked by the actions, or at times, inactions, of Sen. Obama. Having said that, a few Clinton supporters I’ve talked to have vowed to vote for him over McCain if he were to win the nomination.
What troubles me are those Obama and Clinton supporters that have said they would vote for someone else if the other gets the nomination…
Explain to me how that would help this nation?
The war in Iraq, the economy, healthcare, education, all of these and more have suffered greatly after 8 years of the Bush White House, and while I, personally, think Sen. Obama would offer more hope for this country, I am also confident that Sen. Clinton would be a huge boost to the nation as well.
Certainly more so than Sen. McBush would… all he would offer is four more years of Bush-like politics; ignoring the Constitution, supporting an unjust and deadly war, further pushing down the middle class and forcing us further into a recession.
So it is for that reason that TBWA endorses both candidates for the presidency.
Should Sen. Barack Obama win, we will offer our full-throated support for him to beat McCain in November.
Should Sen. Hillary Clinton win, we will offer our full-throated support for her to beat McCain in November.
All Democrats and Liberals should choose this option for any other choice, would be foolishly leaving the White House in republican hands for at least four more years.
And our nation can not handle that any more…
Stop the arguing, look further down the road and realize that the real fight is coming.
Unite as one party…
Support one party…
Vote, one party…
Our livelihoods depend on it…
Monday, March 10, 2008
When all else fails, UNITE!
After victories in 3 primaries last Tuesday, Sen. Clinton was ready to call the contest for herself.
Not so fast Hillary.
According to a new Gallup poll, her wins in the Texas and Ohio primaries have not transcended themselves towards any noticeable momentum shift.
According to a just-recently completed Gallup poll, Sen. Obama holds what could best be described as a statistical dead-heat 2-point lead over Sen. Clinton – 47% - 45% respectively.
But that’s not the big news, the bigger news is, as Gallup implies, Clinton gained on Obama in the days leading up to the March 4 primaries/caucus, but her successful showing -- winning three of the four elections held that day -- failed to boost her candidacy nationally. So in other words, Ms. Clinton won… but her victories did not have the huge swell of support that her campaign had been expecting, nay needing.
Despite Obama’s victory in Saturday's Wyoming caucus (he won 61% of the vote and more than half of the delegates) neither of the two candidates has broken through the 50% plus range since mid-February, which is a pretty fair indication that the race is likely to remain deadlocked for a relatively long time, at least until an agreement is reached on what to do about the whiney states of Florida and Michigan. Even that would not guarantee that the race would break decisively one way or another in terms of pledged delegates for either Clinton or Obama.
All of which takes us back to the super-delegates and the possibility of a fight at the Denver convention in late August should the campaigns and the DNC be unable to reach a resolution by then.
It’s promising to be a long, hot summer.
The American people need and deserve a functioning government to deal with pressing domestic issues, and Obama has proven ability to bring in not only Independent voters, but quite a few republicans and millions of Democrats.
Sen. Clinton represents the confrontation domestically and in foreign policy that has brought us to the sorry mess we're in now; a federal government paralyzed by bitter partisanship.
I think Ms. Clinton represents more of the same (as does Sen. McCain, but that's a whole other post)
Having said that… whether the nominee is Clinton or Obama, the most important thing is for the Democratic Party to lead a long-term agenda for building a stronger America and a stronger global community.
Support whichever candidate gets the nomination. Our country and our world could be at stake.
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