“OBAMA SUPPORTERS” DAILY NEWS Saturday April 05-2008

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

WELCOME TO “OBAMA SUPPORTERS” DAILY NEWS

Saturday April 05-2008


Barack Obama, accompanied by Sen Byron Dorgan, gives a final wave as he leaves the Alerus Center Friday evening after delivering the keynote address at the North Dakota State Democratic convention. Herald photo by John Stennes.

Esteemed DUer's, please consider taking a moment (or more) to graciously participate
by posting news and announcements about the Obama campaign on this thread. You can:

1. Post stories and announcements you find on the web. :think:

2. Re-post stories and announcements you find on DU,
providing a link to the original thread :applause:

3. Please "Recommend" for the Greatest Page :thumbsup:

4. Clinton supporters or “anti Obama posters please start your own
“Clinton Daily News Thread”.

Get your DU-o-matic codificator (to format your posts) here
Read the Daily News Archives here

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

1. Obama having fun in North Dakota, suggest state can ‘grow our own fuel’

Obama having fun in North Dakota, suggest state can ‘grow our own fuel’

Herald Staff Report Published Friday, April 04, 2008

…Obama was introduced by North Dakota’s three-man Congressional delegation, whom he greeted as friends, Sens. Kent Conrad and Byron Dorgan and, as Obama called him, “Ed Pomeroy.” Rep. Earl Pomeroy gave Conrad a sheepish grin at the joke.
Radio talk show star Ed Schultz warmed up the crowd, attacking Sen. John McCain as “a warmonger,” before Obama arrived in the room.

…Obama referred to the 40th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King’s assassination in Memphis, saying King inspired him to run with what King called the “fierce urgency of now.”

“Many of the issues we were talking about 40 years ago we are talking about now.”
He said, like 1968, America is again at war with an economy “in a shambles,” and a grow-ing federal deficit, and wages that don’t keep pace with inflation.

He promised change if he’s elected president. “We can’t afford to wait,” he said.

more at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

2. Photo gallery: Barack Obama at the ND Democratic-NPL Convention

Photo gallery: Barack Obama at the ND Democratic-NPL Convention

A few samples of the gallery:

[FrenchieCat]

11. So more nice ones!

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

3. Dean says he is also committed to seating Michigan

Dean says he is also committed to seating Michigan

By Sam Youngman and Manu Raju 04/04/08

After meeting with Florida Democratic leaders this week, Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Howard Dean met with Michigan party leaders Friday, saying again he is “committed” to find a way to seat the two states’ delegates at this summer’s convention.

In the case of both states, however, Dean said the DNC and the states will need some sort of compromise agreement from Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and Barack Obama (Ill.), an agreement that looks increasingly unlikely.
…The Obama campaign said Friday that the only “fair” way to seat the Michigan delegates is to divide them evenly between the two candidates, “especially since originally Senator Clinton herself said the Michigan primary wouldn’t ‘count for anything.’”

“It's now up to the Clinton campaign: they can agree to a fair resolution or they can continue trying to score political points and change the rules,” David Plouffe, Obama’s campaign manager, said in a statement. “It’s time to move forward. Senator Clinton should accept an equitable solution that allows Michigan to participate fully in the convention.”

Despite the apparent impasse, all parties say they are optimistic a resolution will be found, and the DNC said this week it is securing hotel rooms.

article link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

4. Union group wants Clinton adviser fired

“The meeting was an error in judgment that will not be repeated and I am sorry for it,” Penn said.

Union group wants Clinton adviser fired

By Sam Youngman Posted: 04/04/08

Change to Win, a group of unions endorsing Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), is calling on Mark Penn, senior strategist to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), to be removed from her presidential campaign for meeting with the Colombian ambassador about a controversial trade agreement.

Clinton has steadily railed against unfair free trade, but Penn, in his capacity as head of the lobbying firm Burson-Marsteller Worldwide, met with the ambassador to talk about the country’s trade agreement with the U.S. The Bush administration is trying to move it through Congress over Democratic opposition.

Greg Tarpinian, Change to Win’s executive director, said Penn’s meeting with the ambassador confirms concerns the group has had about Penn for some time.

"It's time for Sen. Hillary Clinton to send her vaunted 'chief strategist' Mark Penn packing — back to his job consulting for union-busting corporations and anti-labor governments for good,” Tarpinian said in a statement.

….more at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

5. Clinton returns: Assets and liabilities

Clinton returns: Assets and liabilities

Ben Smith Politico 4/08/2008

…A few notes on the Clinton tax returns, all noted by readers who have more eyes than I do.
First, a couple of things that could bite Hillary:

The returns show more than $50,000 in income (and $40,000 in losses) in 2006 from funds with the name Quellos, an asset manager accused in a scathing bipartisan 2006 Senate committee report of structuring "tax shelters."

The 2006 return also contains a foreign tax credit worth $285,368, which could be an issue in a race that has been hostile to the notion of overseas jobs — though the details of that figure (line 47 of the 1040 from 2006) aren't immediately obvious.

On the other hand:
A number of readers have e-mailed to say the Clintons' charity is ersatz, as it went to their family foundation. In fact, the foundation was giving the money away to a range of groups; you can see the foundation's 990, which has been written about before, here.

…more at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

6. DID BILL DO TO GET $15M FROM RON BURKLE?

WHAT DID BILL DO TO GET $15M FROM RON BURKLE?

Thomas B Edsall Huff Po April 4, 2008

The campaign press statement accompanying the release on Friday of Hillary Clinton's 2000 - 2007 tax returns includes some useful summary data for the media: Bill and Hillary Clinton's total income over the past 8 years, $109 million; her Senate salary, $1.1 million; his presidential pension, $1.2 million; her book royalties, $10.5 million; his book royalties, $29.6 million; and his speaking fees, $51.9 million.

One big line item is missing from the press summary however: the $15 million paid to Bill Clinton between 2003 and 2007 by Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Global Opportunities Fund.

In fact, the Burkle payments, buried deep in the income tax forms themselves, were the only real news in tax documents, which were made public for the first time.

Burkle and Yucaipa have been involved in a number of controversies that have reportedly prompted concerns in Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign that her bid might be damaged by resulting adverse publicity.

Bill Clinton was, according to sources close to both Burkle and Clinton, deeply angered by a September 26, 2007, front page Wall Street Journal article detailing some of Yucaipa's questionable dealings. The story, which broke on the same day that heads of state and business leaders convened in New York to discuss the Clinton Global Initiative, described plans to invest millions of dollars in a venture to buy up Catholic Church property.

More at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

7. Hillary please pay these debts first

Hillary please pay these debts first

baltogeek at TPM Café - April 4, 2008

We've all heard the stories about Hillary Clinton's debt. The small businesses left to pick up the tab after Clinton came, saw and left an unpaid invoice. Let's talk about the other folks she's stiffed.

The school districts, universities, cities, towns and non-profits.

From Hillary Clinton's February FEC filing these are the numbers:
Clinton owes a total of $19,627.20 to 14 school districts with an average debt of $1401.94. The largest amount, $4411.05, is owed to Winnacunnet Cooperative School District in Hampton, New Hampshire.

She owes 7 colleges and universities a total of $19,983.48 with an average debt of $2854.78. The largest amount is owed to the athletic department of Southern New Hampshire University. She owes them $9542.80.

She owes 11 cities and towns a total of $13,184.63 with an average debt of $1198.60. She owes the town of Hampton, New Hampshire the most with a debt of $4628.96. (Hampton, NH gets hit twice.)

Lastly she owes the Boys and Girls Clubs of Sioux City and Blackhawk County Iowa a total of $1,625.00 with $1000 of that owed to the Boys and Girls Club of Blackhawk County.

More at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

8. Reports that Clinton only raised $7 million in March are wrong

Reports that Clinton only raised $7 million in March are wrong

Fri Apr 4 The Jed Report

Reports that Clinton only raised $7 million in March are wrong

This is my obligatory defend the Clinton campaign post of the month...

Newsweek's Andrew Romano posits that up to $13 million of the $20 million Hillary Clinton raised in March could be designated for the general election, meaning that she raised a meager $7 million for the month. If true, that would be a political earthquake and would almost certainly mean the imminent demise of her campaign.
Only one problem -- Romano's conjecture is totally wrong.…

In February, Clinton raised about $35 million. About $34 million of that was designated for primary usage -- just $1.2 was restricted for the general.
FEC reports are confusing, but I have 100% confidence in my numbers. The bottom-line is Clinton that nearly all of the money Clinton raised in February was designated for the primary, and almost all of the $20 million she raised in in March will be available for the primary.

In fact, TPM is now reporting that the Clinton campaign is saying almost all of their $20 million is primary money. They wouldn't lie about something like this -- they have to file documents with the FEC in two weeks or so anyway, and lying would kill their credibility.

More at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

9. Obama Speech today on anniversary of MLK assassination

Obama Speech today on anniversary of MLK assassination

by brueso
Fri Apr 04, 2008

...So much of the speech is quotable, excerpting just a small part seems criminal. But:

"Dr. King once said that the arc of the moral universe is long, but that it bends toward justice. But what he also knew was that it doesn’t bend on its own. It bends because each of us puts our hands on that arc and bends it in the direction of justice.
So on this day – of all days – let’s each do our part to bend that arc.

Let’s bend that arc toward justice.

Let’s bend that arc toward opportunity.

Let’s bend that arc toward prosperity for all.

And if we can do that and march together – as one nation, and one people – then we won’t just be keeping faith with what Dr. King lived and died for, we’ll be making real the words of Amos that he invoked so often, and "let justice roll down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream."
Oh- these historic days we are living in! This campaign has brought many of us to places we didn't expect 6 months ago- even 3 months ago. We can speculate on the effect of this speech- does it silence the knuckleheads at Faux News (temporarily, maybe), will excerpts on the evening news cause folks to talk about it around the dinner table? Will we all advance even a half step because of this? It seems like there's so little of substance that comes our way now that our culture increasingly favors instant gratification, the soundbyte, the fleeting, the "gotcha" and the "quick fix".

…more at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

10. New Obama Anecdote-Use It! w/video (r/e the "training wheels" candidate)

Fascinating New Obama Anecdote-Use It! w/video

maxnyc at DKOS Fri Apr 04, 2008

I was just watching David Gregory's "Race For The White House" on MSNBC and in the segment where they play a voicemail question from a viewer there was a tough question from a Clinton supporter about Obama's fitness to tackle the troubled economy.
• maxnyc's diary :: ::
•
Margaret from Mt. Carmel:

28% of Americans say Obama's greatest weakness is his lack of experience. We need an economic superstar to win the economic tour de france. Do we really want to vote for the Democratic candidate who has training wheels on his bike?

Chrystia Freeland a panelist from the Financial News had a fascinating response:

I'd like to share a little bit of reporting on this point. The caller referred to Bear Stearns and Wall Street. And when you talk to some of the Wall Street supporters of Barack Obama they say that last summer when he was first coming to them, one of their big questions was 'How the heck are you gonna run the economy, you have no executive experience?'

And his answer was interesting. What he said then and it was before the campaign was 'I am going to use my campaign and the way I run it as a way to demonstrate to you and to the country what kind of a manager I am.'

More at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

12. Obama's standard for victory, or "taking the sting out of Carville's Judas remark"

"If Richardson is Judas, which Clinton is Jesus?" pt 2

The Jed Report Fri Apr 4

The title of the post is a fitting epitaph for the Clinton era in the Democratic Party. I wish I could take credit for it, but I can't -- the words belongs to Joel Connelly, the top political reporter in the northwest and one of the best in the country. He's now a columnist for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and his most recent column (digg it) is a devastating appraisal of the Clinton campaign as it heads into its final days.

As Joel argues, whether the Clintons are ready to accept the situation or not, Hillary Clinton's bid for the presidency is in its closing stages -- and they have nobody to blame but themselves.

Most people think Obama's going to win, and that took the sting out of James Carville's Judas attack. Losers can't be bullies, and a growing number of people see the Clintons as losers -- and Barack Obama as a winner.

The polls don't yet fully reflect this trend, but it's real. Here are some examples:

1. Grassroots enthusiasm much stronger for Barack Obama than Hillary Clinton
…
2. Obama has maintained the same rationale for his candidacy throughout the campaign
…
3. Barack Obama quelled concerns from superdelegates by forcefully dispensing with Wright flareup, which could have become a full-scale crisis
…
4. Barack Obama has stuck with a simple -- and widely accepted -- definition of what it means to win
…
5. Obama's standard for victory has gained wide acceptance, and now even Clinton's own supporters are adopting his standard

…more at the link

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

13. SO THEN WHY DID YOU WANT TO WRAP IT ALL UP ON SUPER TUESDAY?

SO THEN WHY DID YOU WANT TO WRAP IT ALL UP ON SUPER TUESDAY?

TPM Cafe- April 4, 2008

Bill Clinton says REAL DEMOCRATS want everyone to have a chance to vote.

How come on December 30th, Hillary Clinton said "It'll be over by February 5th."

Was she hoping to deny all this fine states their rights?

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

14. Quote of the Day

Quote of the Day

"The negative toll on Obama and Clinton will end five minutes after the nominee is chosen. That will be before the first of July."

-- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), in an interview to be broadcast tonight on Bloomberg TV.
Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

15. Key delegates turn to Obama

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3256054

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

16. Florida superdelegates will apparently be combative at the convention. Not eager to compromise.

madfloridian

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/?az=hp_redir&forum=132&thread=5384393&author=112793

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

17. Clinton Charitable Giving is to Clinton Charity

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=5390713&mesg_id=5390713

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

18. readers, please add your articles, pics or DU links

there's plenty of room and it makes this thread more interesting.

Don't forget to recommend!

:yourock:

[chill factor]

19. Latst Gallup Poll

PRINCETON, NJ -- Barack Obama holds a 5-percentage point advantage over Hillary Clinton in national Democratic voters' nomination preferences, at 49% to 44%. Poll conducted between April 1-
http://www.gallup.com/poll/106204/Gallup-Daily-Obama-Five-Points-Over-Clinton.aspx

Go, Obama!
:loveya:

[John Q. Citizen]

20. Obama to speak at sold out U of Montana Adams Center Saturday, 10am!

Arraignments have been made to accommodate an overflow area with audio speakers so those who can't get in can listen.

Over 8,000 tickets were distributed in about three hours on Thursday via the internet and at the just opened Montana for Obama office in downtown Missoula.

This writer volunteered at the fledgling office this evening doing data entry. Lots of folks were there , from families to Seniors to middle aged to college kids and high school kids. people were painting signs for the rally, and doing other tasks. In the two hours I was there I'd estimate 60-80 or so people came through, asking questions about the rally, volunteering, painting posters, hanging out. The organizer told me that

Not just Obama mania, but primary mania as a whole really has swept the Missoula Vally and surrounding environs. Both Obama and Hillary are speaking at the state Democratic Dinner in Butte, and Hillary Clinton is having a private fundraiser in Missoula on Sunday, and then giving a public speech at the hanger of an aviation business out at the airport. The hanger accommodates a couple of thousand people.

So our local news channels, two of three who actually do local news (for commercial broadcast TV, they do a pretty good job most of the time) are all over this. They reported that Hotel rooms are filling up and shopkeepers of all stripes are hoping the candidates stop by. On the street in the store interviews, etc. They were covering the set up at the Adams Field House tonight when I drove by to check out the scene. And our local NPR affiliate and the alternative news weekly. You can't miss it.

[FrenchieCat]

21. Sounds exciting!

How wonderful!

[WillyT]

22. Get out the siren: Clinton leaks tax returns to Drudge - RawStory

<snip>

The man who broke the story that nearly derailed her husband's presidency continues to get first dibs from Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

Clinton's tax returns were leaked early to the conservative website The Drudge Report, "who has been extremely hard on Hillary for months — as good proof as any since the time of Machiavelli that it's better to be feared than loved," "according to Politico.

Clinton has also leaked her fundraising numbers first to Drudge in the past.

Matt Drudge came to prominence during the Bill Clinton Administration when he leaked a report Newsweek was holding on Monica Lewinsky's sexual relationship with the president.

The Washington Times reported in 2007 that Drudge and the Web have played important strategic roles in the Clinton campaign.

"The New York Democrat's third-quarter <2007> fundraising blowout was leaked to the Drudge Report," the Times said. "She made sure an Iowa newspaper printed her comments that she found Sen. Barack Obama's answer to a foreign-policy question 'irresponsible' and 'naive.' She also uses her "Hillary Hub" campaign creation to break news."

Wrote Wired in response: "The story's notable for two reasons: This communications strategy is made to sound like President Bush's, for which he has been continuously criticized during his tenure in office; Clinton's camp deliberately played down its third quarter fundraising numbers in comparison to rival camp Barack Obama's in the days prior to their release. The Clinton campaign then leaked its numbers online to show that it had surpassed Obama -- thereby generating headlines, and, presumably, more financial support in the future. (Obama subsequently appealed to his supporter base on the Web to close the gap.)"

The International Herald Tribune wrote about CLinton's Drudge 'relationship' after her fundraising numbers were leaked last year.

"Within minutes, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's fund-raising success was injected via Drudge into the day's political news on the Internet and cable television," IHT wrote. "It did not halt coverage of Obama's speech or his criticism of her vote to authorize the war in 2002, but along the front lines of the campaign - the hourly, intensely fought effort to capture the news cycle or deny ownership of it to the other side - it was a telling assault."

"Clinton's aides declined to discuss how the Drudge Report got access to her latest fund-raising figures nearly 20 minutes before the official announcement went to supporters," they added. "But it was a prime example of a development that has surprised much of the political world: Clinton is learning to play nice with the Drudge Report and the powerful, elusive and conservative-leaning man behind it."

<snip>

More: http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Clinton_woos_Drudge_Leaks_109_million_0405.html

:wtf:

[LTR]

23. McCain furious at Schultz over "warmonger" remark

Following on the heels of the whole Rhodes brewhaha, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, John McCain, is calling on Democratic front-runner Barack Obama to condemn Schultz for remarks he made while warming up the crowd at an Obama event.

So what did Big Eddie say? Did he call McCain a 'whore?' No, even worse.

Actually, what he called McCain was probably even more offensive. So devastating that people should take to the streets of Schultz' hometown of Detroit Lakes, MN with torches, pitchforks and shotguns. Okay, not really

Because you see, Schultz had the audacity to call McCain a... get ready... "Warmonger."

http://ltradio.blogspot.com/2008/04/mccain-furious-at-schultz-over.html

:rofl:

[tokenlib]

24. Hillary and Barack speak at Butte party dinner tonight!!!

Yup, Hillary follows Barack again!!!! 8:40 and 11PM ET as scheduled. Hope to see an internet feed tonight!!!

http://www.montanasnewsstation.com

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

25. Obama Campaign Launches Voter Registration Drives In N.C.

Obama Campaign Launches Voter Registration Drives In N.C.
Saturday, Apr 05, 2008

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.--Senator Barack Obama's campaign is blanketing the Tar Heel state today to register people to vote.

Discuss This Story

Obama supporters and volunteers will visit local neighborhoods as part of the campaign's voter registration program aimed at bringing new people into the democratic process.

North Carolina's Democratic Primary is May 6.

Chapel Hill residents can stop by Obama headquarters on Franklin Street and on UNC’s campus to register to vote. Durham residents can go to headquarters on Main Street. There are two other locations to register to vote, one in Raleigh on East Morgan Street and another on Hay Street in Fayetteville.

http://www.nbc17.com/midatlantic/ncn/news.apx.-content-articles-NCN-2008-04-05-0001.html

[Hope And Change]

26. Obama spoke at the North Dakota State Democratic Convention on April 4, 2008

Obama spoke at the North Dakota State Democratic Convention on April 4, 2008


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x114849

[Hope And Change]

27. Missoula, MT: Mayor Endorses Obama

Missoula, MT: Mayor Endorses Obama


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x114850

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

28. PHOTOS: Barack Obama in North Dakota, Montana--turning the red states blue!

These are some awesome pictures, beautiful scenary, and a
baby "crowd surfs" to get a kiss by Obama!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5395702

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

29. Losing Paul Krugman

Losing Paul Krugman
By M.J. Rosenberg - April 4, 2008, 11:05AM

It's a dreary Friday in Washington, even drearier because I no longer have Paul Krugman's column to brighten my weekend. I guess brighten is the wrong word. Krugman never made me especially happy. But he did stimulate me and helped me understand the terrible fix America has been in for the last eight years. For a non-economics type like me, Paul Krugman explained it all.

No more.

Today I read his column about John McCain and the health care issue and I started to get the old feeling back. Maybe he would just write about McCain and how ridiculous his "plan" is. Maybe he wouldn't trash Barack Obama.

...

Krugman is making two big mistakes. The first has to do with his influence as a columnist. By constantly attacking Obama, he is turning off the 50% of Democrats who favor Obama as our nominee. People like me can no longer read him without thinking "What's up with this guy? Has he really developed such a personal animus to our likely nominee based on his differences with him on health care? What's his agenda here?"

In other words, I no longer trust him.

Then there is the larger issue. I no longer think that Krugman understands how our system works. So he likes Hillary's plan better than Obama's (as do I). So what? Neither President Obama nor President Clinton is going to develop America's national health insurance plan alone.

.... more at the link

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/04/04/losing_paul_krugman/

[quantass]

30. k

[Scurrilous]

31. Kick

:kick: