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Thursday, February 14, 2008
The Voice of Obama Supporters ... The First Day
[the following Sun Times story was written in Feb 2007, it is very interesting to see how Obama's campaign has grown and matured (to 2008), quite nicely I might add.]
Invoking Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Barack Obama launched his bid for the White House Saturday with a pledge to lead an “improbable quest” to bring the troops home, end poverty, give everyone healthcare and “transform our nation.”
“I recognize there is a certain presumptuousness — a certain audacity — to this announcement,” the freshman U.S. senator said. “I know I haven’t spent a lot of time learning the ways of Washington. But I’ve been there long enough to know that the ways of Washington must change.”
U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks at a news conference before a rally at Hilton Coliseum on the campus of Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, on Sunday ... in Springfield in front of about 17,000 supporters.
BARACK OBAMA: WHO HE IS
PARTY : Democrat.
AGE-BIRTH DATE : 45; Aug. 4, 1961.
RESIDENCE : Chicago.
OCCUPATION : Freshman U.S. senator.
EXPERIENCE : U.S. senator, 2005-present; Illinois State senator, 1997-2004; constitutional law professor, University of Chicago.
EDUCATION : Law degree, Harvard University; bachelor's degree in political science, Columbia University.
FAMILY : Wife, Michelle, and two daughters.
QUOTE : "I am suspicious of hype. The fact that my 15 minutes of fame has extended a little longer than 15 minutes is somewhat surprising to me and completely baffling to my wife." ...
“I know it’s a little chilly,” Obama said as he took to the stage. “But I’m fired up!”
So was the crowd, which came from as far away as Massachusetts, Georgia and North Carolina. Some waved hand-painted signs saying “Barack the Vote.” Others wore buttons proclaiming him “Superbama.”
“Oh! Bama!” they yelled, interrupting his 20-minute speech more than 20 times with applause. ...
Facing Lincoln’s law office, Obama wove the 16th president throughout his speech, telling the crowd “the life of a tall, gangly, self-made Springfield lawyer tells us that a different future is possible.
“He tells us that there is power in words. He tells us that there is power in conviction. That beneath all the differences of race and region, faith and station, we are one people.
“He tells us that there is power in hope.”
“That is our purpose here today. That’s why I’m in this race. Not just to hold an office, but to gather with you to transform a nation.”
Pointing to past generations that explored the moon and embraced the moral challenge of King, Obama called on young people to join him in a sweeping crusade.
Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton downplayed the significance of his candidacy.
“We certainly welcome him into the race,” said Mo Elleithee, a senior spokesman for the New York senator. ...
“Barack, Abraham Lincoln and a lot of others have proven that in America, anything is possible,” the governor said. “This is a place where dreams come true.”
Carrie Grant, a 31-year-old software company employee, drove her two young sons five hours from Louisville, Ky., to see Obama and to emphasize their heroes should not be the latest act to appear on MTV.
“I think he might be a good president and not bad, like George Bush,” said her 10-year-old son, David.
And Joslyn McBride, a 51-year-old state worker from near Springfield, came because of the potential historic nature of Obama’s candidacy.
“As an African American, it was really important because it will probably never happen again in my lifetime,” she said. “Looking at the sampling of the people who are out here, I think everybody is ready. I think we’re all ready to look past race and go with the candidate, no matter what the ethnic background.”
Invoking Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Barack Obama launched his bid for the White House Saturday with a pledge to lead an “improbable quest” to bring the troops home, end poverty, give everyone healthcare and “transform our nation.”
“I recognize there is a certain presumptuousness — a certain audacity — to this announcement,” the freshman U.S. senator said. “I know I haven’t spent a lot of time learning the ways of Washington. But I’ve been there long enough to know that the ways of Washington must change.”
U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks at a news conference before a rally at Hilton Coliseum on the campus of Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, on Sunday ... in Springfield in front of about 17,000 supporters.
BARACK OBAMA: WHO HE IS
PARTY : Democrat.
AGE-BIRTH DATE : 45; Aug. 4, 1961.
RESIDENCE : Chicago.
OCCUPATION : Freshman U.S. senator.
EXPERIENCE : U.S. senator, 2005-present; Illinois State senator, 1997-2004; constitutional law professor, University of Chicago.
EDUCATION : Law degree, Harvard University; bachelor's degree in political science, Columbia University.
FAMILY : Wife, Michelle, and two daughters.
QUOTE : "I am suspicious of hype. The fact that my 15 minutes of fame has extended a little longer than 15 minutes is somewhat surprising to me and completely baffling to my wife." ...
“I know it’s a little chilly,” Obama said as he took to the stage. “But I’m fired up!”
So was the crowd, which came from as far away as Massachusetts, Georgia and North Carolina. Some waved hand-painted signs saying “Barack the Vote.” Others wore buttons proclaiming him “Superbama.”
“Oh! Bama!” they yelled, interrupting his 20-minute speech more than 20 times with applause. ...
Facing Lincoln’s law office, Obama wove the 16th president throughout his speech, telling the crowd “the life of a tall, gangly, self-made Springfield lawyer tells us that a different future is possible.
“He tells us that there is power in words. He tells us that there is power in conviction. That beneath all the differences of race and region, faith and station, we are one people.
“He tells us that there is power in hope.”
“That is our purpose here today. That’s why I’m in this race. Not just to hold an office, but to gather with you to transform a nation.”
Pointing to past generations that explored the moon and embraced the moral challenge of King, Obama called on young people to join him in a sweeping crusade.
Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton downplayed the significance of his candidacy.
“We certainly welcome him into the race,” said Mo Elleithee, a senior spokesman for the New York senator. ...
“Barack, Abraham Lincoln and a lot of others have proven that in America, anything is possible,” the governor said. “This is a place where dreams come true.”
Carrie Grant, a 31-year-old software company employee, drove her two young sons five hours from Louisville, Ky., to see Obama and to emphasize their heroes should not be the latest act to appear on MTV.
“I think he might be a good president and not bad, like George Bush,” said her 10-year-old son, David.
And Joslyn McBride, a 51-year-old state worker from near Springfield, came because of the potential historic nature of Obama’s candidacy.
“As an African American, it was really important because it will probably never happen again in my lifetime,” she said. “Looking at the sampling of the people who are out here, I think everybody is ready. I think we’re all ready to look past race and go with the candidate, no matter what the ethnic background.”
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