ACTUAL Transcript of What Obama Said about Small Towns in Pennsylvania.

[Connie_Corleone]

This was just added to the Huffington Post article that started this mess:

OBAMA: So, it depends on where you are, but I think it's fair to say that the places where we are going to have to do the most work are the places where people are most cynical about government. The people are mis-appre...they're misunderstanding why the demographics in our, in this contest have broken out as they are. Because everybody just ascribes it to 'white working-class don't wanna work -- don't wanna vote for the black guy.' That's...there were intimations of that in an article in the Sunday New York Times today - kind of implies that it's sort of a race thing.


Here's how it is: in a lot of these communities in big industrial states like Ohio and Pennsylvania, people have been beaten down so long. They feel so betrayed by government that when they hear a pitch that is premised on not being cynical about government, then a part of them just doesn't buy it. And when it's delivered by -- it's true that when it's delivered by a 46-year-old black man named Barack Obama, then that adds another layer of skepticism.

But -- so the questions you're most likely to get about me, 'Well, what is this guy going to do for me? What is the concrete thing?' What they wanna hear is -- so, we'll give you talking points about what we're proposing -- to close tax loopholes, you know, roll back the tax cuts for the top 1 percent. Obama's gonna give tax breaks to middle-class folks and we're gonna provide health care for every American.

But the truth is, is that, our challenge is to get people persuaded that we can make progress when there's not evidence of that in their daily lives. You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration, and the Bush administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.

Um, now these are in some communities, you know. I think what you'll find is, is that people of every background -- there are gonna be a mix of people, you can go in the toughest neighborhoods, you know working-class lunch-pail folks, you'll find Obama enthusiasts. And you can go into places where you think I'd be very strong and people will just be skeptical. The important thing is that you show up and you're doing what you're doing.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mayhill-fowler/obama-no-surprise-that-ha_b_96188.html

[JeffR]

1. C'mon, Connie, context doesn't matter!

He hates Pennsylvanians, pure and simple.

;)

[napi21]

18. Unfortunately, context probably doesn't matter to the people those

remarks will bother. To them there's a very definate order on the list of things that are most important to them.

God
Family
Guns
Job

I've seen men quit their job because their employer wanted them to either spend time at work that would interfere with their religion or their family. That comment by Heston "They'll take my gun when they pry it from my cold dead hands" is REALLY how they feel!

I am very sorry that someone on Barack's team didn't explain that to him before his speech. I really believe he has the best interests of all Americans at heart, and I hope he can make some explaination they will understand.

I'm not sure this will hurt him much though. It's extremely unlikely he or Hill would have ever gotten votes from there anyway.

[JeffR]

21. You're right on all counts.

But I agree with recent posts that turning this into a "-gate" will give him an opportunity to really drive home what he's getting at here.

[Texas Hill Country]

33. context doesnt matter when you are in a soundbite, media driving culture

unfortunately, Obama takes his time explaining things...

this plays for the politically involved like the avg DUer, but not for mainstream america...


this is gonna go over horribly...

[CreekDog]

35. look at the Wright issue to see how you misunderstand the changing times

10 or 20 years ago, this might go over badly, negative campaigning was more effective then --heck, political advertising of all kinds was more effective then.

but now that people are continually bombarded by it, it has less of an effect. also people have learned that everything they hear often has a bias, so they discount things, somewhat automatically.

while this doesn't make people patient automatically, it appears that the number of people assuming the worst about a candidate from a simple soundbite has diminished a lot.

[napi21]

40. For some people you are right, but this issue & the Wright story

are only understood by those to whom they wouldn't matter anyway. Most of the people in "rural America" NEVER spend the amount of time on the net as we do. Few if any would bother to try to find out if what they heard was true or just a misunderstood soundbite. 10 or 20 years ago, I doubt either of these stories would have ever been known outside the church or meeting room where they took place.

I feel bad for all the candidates because none of them can really be open and honest about anything without carefully calculating how it's going to look on youtube!

[loyalsister]

2. Thanks for posting this

I knew there was more to the story there.

[thevoiceofreason]

3. Hillary "sound bite" Clinton

Dammit, why can't she act like a grown up and read the whole passage?

[george_maniakes]

4. He's going to knock this out of the park, even more so than his speech on race....

He's being given the chance to explain why people are angry.

[thevoiceofreason]

19. Ding ding - winner winner chicken dinner

I was just telling my wife (she who must be and is always obeyed) that he needed another national speech moment, like the Wright situation, to frame this argument and put this statement into context.

Hmmmmmm

[H2O Man]

23. Exactly.

Obama is like a counter-puncher in a boxing match: he waits for his opponen to lead with something, and then he delivers his own blows. The Clintonites will be sorry they tried to twist this into an issue.

[Window]

26. Yes, and you would be right. These people need help, not more lying from Hillary.

[grantcart]

6. its all she got

they have been waiting and waiting for Obama to misstep and this is all they got.

[2rth2pwr]

5. This is like the context for Wright. It doesn't change anything.

[DarienComp]

15. Context won't change the fact that we hate Obama and will trash him every chance we get!

[thevoiceofreason]

20. Except provide a platform for a discussion framing presentation

[Kber]

7. Context?

We don't need no stinking context!

[H2O Man]

8. Thank you

for bringing the truth to us. So many other people have purposefully misrepresented this.

Nominated.

[Bigleaf]

9. Yeah, who wants to read this? I only want to hear Hillary's fucking twisted, warped, lies.

:sarcasm:

Hey Hillary:





Fuck You!

[Coexist]

10. kick

[zulchzulu]

11. Now Obama can do a speech on the effects of NAFTA and pin the Clintons to the wall

Already, we are seeing Clinton play the cheap shot LIE and play some kind of goofy cheerleader to the crowd.

Obama can now do a speech on trade and NAFTA and pin Hillary Clinton as someone who supported it while First Lady. She has said she was always against NAFTA, but the records released say exactly the opposite.

Bring it, Barack. This will NAIL the Clintons to the wall.

[jenmito]

12. They just had a segment about this on Hardball-a new segment that wasn't on at 5pm.

Then they showed Hillary's (predictable) response, distorting his words as "talking down to Pennsylvanians" and the consensus was that Hillary needed this to change the subject from the sniper stuff, and she took it.

[Window]

28. Hillary needs to stop this shit and watch the lies coming out of her own mouth.

She has nothing going for her and her desperation shows more each passing day. Between her and Bill, I don't what in hell is going on.:thumbsdown:

[jenmito]

32. I agree. But she's teaming up with the Repubs. to blow this up out of proportion.

I hope this doesn't stick.

[Window]

42. Just like her. I think Senator Obama will diffuse this nicely.

[Pirate Smile]

13. It is ok to say these people are racist - implying that they wont vote for Obama

because he is black BUT it is terrible to say they might be bitter from decades of having government and life disappoint them.

Bizarre.

[ProSense]

14. Obama Responds To Criticism Of Small-Town Comment -- No Mention Of Hillary

Obama Responds To Criticism Of Small-Town Comment -- No Mention Of Hillary

Here, from Obama spokesperson Tommy Vietor, is Obama's response to Hillary and McCain's criticism of his comment about small-town America:

"Senator Obama has said many times in this campaign that Americans are understandably upset with their leaders in Washington for saying anything to win elections while failing to stand up to the special interests and fight for an economic agenda that will bring jobs and opportunity back to struggling communities. And if John McCain wants a debate about who's out of touch with the American people, we can start by talking about the tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans that he once said offended his conscience but now wants to make permanent."

No mention of Hillary -- only McCain.

Late Update: Here's video of Hillary's hit on Obama:

Video

(check out the girls in the back ground of the video)

[2rth2pwr]

16. Why isn't he explaining it like you guys are doing here? Why doesn't he just say it's the

truth, these people lost their jobs, so now they are just a bunch of racist, gunloving, Jesus talking, shotgun carrying rednecks?

[cali]

24. because he said nothing of the sort and moronic

and disgusting hillbot lies won't change that. And no one here is calling those folks who live in small and dying towns that either. I don't know where you live but I do live in poor, rural America. And despite the fact that my state went strongly for Obama, I know a lot of the people he's talking about.

[bettyellen]

45. LOL, you can cling to that Cali, but mixiing religion guns and racism in a laundry list..

like that was fucking stupid. unbeliveably so. especially since they remember his own oftimes irrational spiritual advisor being lauded. but theirs is something they cling to. it's totally condesending and we all know it. foolish too.

[CakeGrrl]

22. Excellent - take her right out of the argument

and if she tries to force her way in, he can hit her with Colombia, Penn and NAFTA. She's only thinking one move deep, and I think the Obama campaign is prepared for a real chess match.

[Window]

31. Good for Senator Obama. Put Hillary on ignore and concentrate on McWar.

[Nedsdag]

17. It doesn't matter with the Hillbots.

They'll spin it as though Obama hates small town residents.

By the way, what has Hillary done for small town USA besides ignoring it.

[1776Forever]

25. Lou Dobbs has a poll going until 8:00 pm - go on the link to vote!!!!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=5460879&mesg_id=5460879

[Coexist]

30. you can vote more than once, too.

not that I would....

[pnwmom]

27. Would you mind bringing me up to speed? Is the controversy because

he said some Pennsylvanians are bitter? I'm not sure why this would hurt him. I'd think some of them might say -- damn right, I'm bitter. And so is everyone else I know.

[tigereye]

29. see, that's why it's so uncool when people take stuff out of context

for any candidate.

I hate selective editing of any candidate's comments...

so it's good to see the entire comment.

[OnionPatch]

34. I grew up in one of those kinds of communities.

My whole family is from those kinds of communities in western PA and eastern Oh. My husband's too. (We had to leave 20 years ago due to lack of work.) I'm not offended by these words. I doubt any of my family would be either. It sounds like the truth to me. :shrug:

[livetohike]

39. Me too and I left PA three times and tried to come back

Now we are retired and we are back home. I'm the daughter, granddaughter and niece of steelworkers.

I know all about "bitter". I'm not offended either. Anyone from around our area knows the truth about this area. Especially if they were alive back in 1983.

[OnionPatch]

43. I'm an ex-steelworker, myself!

:hi: My father, mother and sister all worked in the steel mills, too, at one time or other.

I am somewhat bitter that I had to leave my hometown. I really didn't want to go. We plan to semi-retire in a few years and move back to my husband's homestate of PA. I'll be nearer my family in OH, as well. Can't wait! Too bad I have to retire to get back home. :(

[livetohike]

44. That's what I thought too

:hi: (Too bad we had to retire to come back home)But we are really happy to be back now.

[usregimechange]

36. So who did the distorting this time, Clinton or Hannity?

[Coexist]

37. she's yelling about it right now on CNN

why does she yell all the time?

[spinbaby]

38. I live in rural PA

And his description is dead on.

[thevoiceofreason]

41. Connie, I've used your passage at least 10 times in the last hour.

Just wanted you to know I got it from you and that I was not claimming credit. Thanks

[Scurrilous]

46. K & R

:thumbsup: