Barak Obama

[Skip N]

This is a serious question i have, can somebody please tell me what all the hype is over Barack Obama?? I have NEVER heard of the guy until maybe 6 months ago. The media seems to love this guy, he's everywhere, he has this rock star appeal, yet i have no idea what all this hype is over! Am i missing something?

What does he stand for?

What has he done to draw all this attention to himself?

Why is the media drooling all over him?

It sounds like he's gonna run for president in 2008, but for the life of me i cant figure out what all this hooplah is about?

I'm dead serious, not trying to be a wise ass, can someone please tell me something, anything, that this guy stands for? What are his views?

He seems like a solid guy, well spoken and such. But why all the hype??

What has he done thats so great and warrents all this atention?

[spence]

Skippy,

Barak is getting so much hype because...

1. He's really smart
2. He's very articulate, speaks directly to people
3. He's inspirational, engaging
4. He has potential to be the first black President
5. He represents a new more pragmatic way of thinking which government needs and our generation seems to be demanding

etc...

On the flip side he's very green which I think may limit any 2008 run. His Senate win was sort of a gimmie, nobody knows how well he'll do against a tough opponent.

He's also pretty liberal. I wouldn't call him a progressive but he's no libertarian.

All in all a very good guy, and someone I'm glad to have in the US Senate.

-spence

[afterhours]

he's a sharp dresser with a really cool name.......current media darling.

[slapshot]

Hopefully Hillary or Obama will be the Democrat nominee in 08. That will be a lock for a Republican Presidential win.

[spence]

Originally Posted by afterhours

he's a sharp dresser with a really cool name.......current media darling.

Certainly a media darling, but he's not an empty suit. I wouldn't even call him a "sharp" dresser...well but not over the top.

And Slapshot, there's no such thing as a "lock" in any Presidential race. Hillary would be a very formidable opponent and as things sit right now the GOP doesn't have a single candidate the base would like to get behind.

-spence

[Skip N]

When you say he's liberal, are we talking moderate Joe Lieberman liberal, or are we talking Ted Kennedy/ Dennis Kucinich far out there kinda liberal?

What are his views on some issues? I honesty have no clue what he stands for, on anything!

But with all this media hype, you'd think they'd at least tell me his views, right?

So because he speaks well, dressses nice, and he's a black democrat, i should just vote for him? Even if knowone tells me anything about what he stands for?

I'm startinng to think he's just a guy created by the media, someone they can build up, just all hype and nothing else.

Come on, i'm being open minded for once, i want to know his views!

Help a guy out!

[spence]

Originally Posted by Skip N

When you say he's liberal, are we talking moderate Joe Lieberman liberal, or are we talking Ted Kennedy/ Dennis Kucinich far out there kinda liberal?

He's neither. Think liberal in the "it takes a village" sense, but not in a politically manipulative sort of way.

http://www.barackobama.com/about/

I think the best way to get a handle on him would be to find some videos of his speeches. Even if you disagree with his politics they are fantastic. This is the prime reason he's a media darling...there are few politicians out there who can really capture an audience.

-spence

[stripersnipr]

I think the one thing that is clear is he's more electable than Hilary.

[spence]

Originally Posted by stripersnipr

I think the one thing that is clear is he's more electable than Hilary.

People always say that but I'm not sure I agree. She's become a very capable US Senator and has some of the best in the business behind her.

Her "electability" is relative to her opponent. Bush in 2004 was a very unattractive candidate, but he managed to eek out a narrow win because Kerry ran a terrible campaign.

-spence

[The Dad Fisherman]

Barack Obama was born in Hawaii on August 4th, 1961. His father, Barack Obama Sr., was born and raised in a small village in Kenya, where he grew up herding goats with his own father, who was a domestic servant to the British.

Barack’s mother, Ann Dunham, grew up in small-town Kansas. Her father worked on oil rigs during the Depression, and then signed up for World War II after Pearl Harbor, where he marched across Europe in Patton’s army. Her mother went to work on a bomber assembly line, and after the war, they studied on the G.I. Bill, bought a house through the Federal Housing Program, and moved west to Hawaii.

It was there, at the University of Hawaii, where Barack’s parents met. His mother was a student there, and his father had won a scholarship that allowed him to leave Kenya and pursue his dreams in America.

Barack’s father eventually returned to Kenya, and Barack grew up with his mother in Hawaii, and for a few years in Indonesia. Later, he moved to New York, where he graduated from Columbia University in 1983.

Remembering the values of empathy and service that his mother taught him, Barack put law school and corporate life on hold after college and moved to Chicago in 1985, where he became a community organizer with a church-based group seeking to improve living conditions in poor neighborhoods plagued with crime and high unemployment.

The group had some success, but Barack had come to realize that in order to truly improve the lives of people in that community and other communities, it would take not just a change at the local level, but a change in our laws and in our politics.

He went on to earn his law degree from Harvard in 1991, where he became the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. Soon after, he returned to Chicago to practice as a civil rights lawyer and teach constitutional law. Finally, his advocacy work led him to run for the Illinois State Senate, where he served for seven years. In 2004, he became the third African American since Reconstruction to be elected to the U.S. Senate.

It has been the rich and varied experiences of Barack Obama’s life – growing up in different places with people who had differing ideas – that have animated his political journey. Amid the partisanship and bickering of today’s public debate, he still believes in the ability to unite people around a politics of purpose – a politics that puts solving the challenges of everyday Americans ahead of partisan calculation and political gain.

In the Illinois State Senate, this meant working with both Democrats and Republicans to help working families get ahead by creating programs like the state Earned Income Tax Credit, which in three years provided over $100 million in tax cuts to families across the state. He also pushed through an expansion of early childhood education, and after a number of inmates on death row were found innocent, Senator Obama worked with law enforcement officials to require the videotaping of interrogations and confessions in all capital cases.

In the U.S. Senate, he has focused on tackling the challenges of a globalized, 21st century world with fresh thinking and a politics that no longer settles for the lowest common denominator. His first law was passed with Republican Tom Coburn, a measure to rebuild trust in government by allowing every American to go online and see how and where every dime of their tax dollars are spent. He has also been the lead voice in championing ethics reform that would root out Jack Abramoff-style corruption in Congress.

As a member of the Veterans Committee, Senator Obama has fought to help Illinois veterans get the disability pay they were promised, while working to prepare the VA for the return of the thousands of veterans who will need care after Iraq and Afghanistan. Recognizing the terrorist threat posed by weapons of mass destruction, he traveled to Russia with Republican #^&#^&#^&#^& Lugar to begin a new generation of non-proliferation efforts designed to find and secure deadly weapons around the world. And knowing the threat we face to our economy and our security from America’s addiction to oil, he’s working to bring auto companies, unions, farmers, businesses and politicians of both parties together to promote the greater use of alternative fuels and higher fuel standards in our cars.

Whether it’s the poverty exposed by Katrina, the genocide in Darfur, or the role of faith in our politics, Barack Obama continues to speak out on the issues that will define America in the 21st century. But above all his accomplishments and experiences, he is most proud and grateful for his family. His wife, Michelle, and his two daughters, Malia, 8, and Sasha, 5, live on Chicago’s South Side where they attend Trinity United Church of Christ.

[Raven]

that obama rhymes with osama

that creates a problem... for him

even if it means nothing.....or has no signifigance

[stripersnipr]

Anyone know off hand what his position on illegal immigration is?

[spence]

Originally Posted by stripersnipr

Anyone know off hand what his position on illegal immigration is?

In general he's for stronger border enforcement, a guest worker program and more employer responsibliity on hiring.

http://obama.senate.gov/speech/06040...orm/index.html

I think most people would back this position, although it won't please the extremes. It's pretty pragmatic.

-spence

[Skip N]

Originally Posted by Raven

that obama rhymes with osama

that creates a problem... for him

even if it means nothing.....or has no signifigance

But Raven it gets better! His middle name is Hussein.

Barack Hussein Obama

And no, I aint making this up! Google it yourself if you guys dont believe it.

[Raven]

guilty by phonetic association

[Swimmer]

He is a little to light in the sneakers for me to consider voting for him. And I don't mean gay.

[BigFish]

I saw an interview with him a few days ago and he voiced his concern over why we continue to send so much money over seas to countries that do not like us!!!! He got my vote....Hillary can take a powder!

[spence]

Originally Posted by BigFish

I saw an interview with him a few days ago and he voiced his concern over why we continue to send so much money over seas to countries that do not like us!!!! He got my vote....Hillary can take a powder!

Well, that's the point...the conservative pundits can try to paint him as a Marxist as much as they want...he's a new breed of politician they really don't know how to deal with.

-spence

[BassNuts]

You don't have to worry about the Cons...Hillary is already doing some digging of her own...listen to today's news...her "investigators" are already questioning his religous education...Hillary will take care of him all by herself

[stripersnipr]

Originally Posted by BassNuts

You don't have to worry about the Cons...Hillary is already doing some digging of her own...listen to today's news...her "investigators" are already questioning his religous education...Hillary will take care of him all by herself

I've been waiting for the Clinton slice and dice machine to turn on this guy. Didn't take long.

[afterhours]

most anyone but those two.....

[Raven]

Obama hasnt got the support of the blacks

he ain't goin nowhere...

[spence]

Actually the polls show that's changing pretty fast.

-spence

[basswipe]

The man's name is Barak Obama.Isn't that enough to not vote for him?

The guy does not under any circumstances represent the American people,liberal or conservative.Its perceived that he does because the media has portrayed him in that light.The reality of the situation is that he's just as clueless as Swillary,McCain and the rest of the idiots contemplating an '08 run.

Oops,can't leave out oscar boy/mannequin Al Gore.

[The Dad Fisherman]

Originally Posted by basswipe

The man's name is Barak Obama.Isn't that enough to not vote for him?

No, Its not. The man is an American.

If you Don't vote for him do it because of his stance on the issues.....not because his name Sounds like someone who you hate.

.....and NOBODY can be as clueless as the Knucklehead sitting in the Oval Office right now.

[Skip N]

Originally Posted by basswipe

The man's name is Barak Obama.Isn't that enough to not vote for him?

The guy does not under any circumstances represent the American people,liberal or conservative.Its perceived that he does because the media has portrayed him in that light.The reality of the situation is that he's just as clueless as Swillary,McCain and the rest of the idiots contemplating an '08 run.

Oops,can't leave out oscar boy/mannequin Al Gore.

Correction, its Barak "Hussein" Obama. You just cant make this stuff up!

[spence]

There's a clear line between irony and bigotry though...

-spence

[Skip N]

Originally Posted by spence

There's a clear line between irony and bigotry though...

-spence

Even you gotta admit its funny

[spence]

Originally Posted by Skip N

Even you gotta admit its funny

No it's not funny...it's ironic.

-spence

[Redsoxticket]

Why doesn't he call himself Adolf Hitler, maybe he will get more votes.