Reviews of Obama's Speech At Take Back America

[illinoisprogressive]

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On the Take Back America speech, Ezra Klein writes:

Obama gave the best speech I've seen him give -- and I was at the 2004 Democratic convention.

argued that when citizens turn away and the voters accustom themselves to disappointment… a vacuum opens up. And politics, like nature, abhors vacuums. So the lobbyists and the special interests and the lawyers rush in to fill it.

This is why Obama's movement, his 20,000 person events, matters. Because the citizens must return to squeeze out the interests, and only he's proven able to spark that sort of civic revitalization.



Adele M. Stan, also on TAPPED, writes:

I found myself weeping during Barack Obama's levitational address, during which I found myself embodying a veritable panoply of cliches, including goosebumps and smeared mascara.

He took what the crowd so eagerly wanted to give him, channeled it through, and gave it back to them. He became more preacher than politician -- no, make that faith healer -- as he delivered his standard lines about how hope is the reason he is standing here before us, meaning the hope that the civil rights activists had that they could indeed prevail against racism.

David Corn writes in The Nation's blog:

Obama touched the right policy points.... But his appeal was not his policy shopping list. He was promoting himself foremost as an agent of change who can bring about "a new kind of politics."... And he connected. The crowd was jazzed by the combo of personal story, progressive policy proposals, and message of transformation. For an audience member looking to be inspired--to be wowed--Obama made it easy.

And here's some more reaction to Barack's speech at the AFSCME forum. Ari Berman posted a piece on The Nation's blog:

… t was Obama... who stole the show.
Even the National Review said he "blew the doors off the Marriott Wardman Park ballroom."

… Obama also had the strongest personal connection with the hundreds of activists in the crowd, noting his work with AFSCME as a community organizer in Illinois registering new voters, raising the minimum wage as a state legislator and helping to organize workers at Chicago hospitals.

[jaxx]

1. That made me go read the speech.

http://obama.senate.gov/speech/060614-remarks_of_sena_7/


Thanks!!

[TeamJordan23]

2. really good speech indeed. any video clips of it?

[ariesgem]

3. The Video is here -

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=956538877666825429&hl=en

[Radical Activist]

4. "An agent of change"

That's what I think a lot of people don't get about Obama. He comes from the perspective of community organizing where the best thing you can do is empower people to act for themselves, which is a strong theme in his campaign. I want to see a President who understand that change comes from the people and will help create a society of those who take ownership of their government.

I still can't believe people are claiming someone with a liberal record who got his start registering black people to vote on the south side of Chicago is too conservative. They don't get it.

[mckeown1128]

5. Gobama!!!

[Adelante]

6. I'm glad Obama was such a big success here

Kind of glad for Hillary, too. She survived another year. She did good. :D

[Kingstree]

7. This was one Hell of a Speech.

[BringBigDogBack]

8. I hadn't seen this until today...

Wow is right. Amazing speech. The more I see of Obama, the more I come to like him.

[Stop Cornyn]

9. Thanks for posting this.