For red-meat crowd at Harkin's Iowa steak fry, Obama's '08 choice clear

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT: For This Red Meat Crowd, Obama’s ’08 Choice Is Clear
By ANNE E. KORNBLUT
Published: September 18, 2006

INDIANOLA, Iowa, Sept. 17 — Senator Barack Obama insists, as always, that he is not running for president. But there are compelling clues that he is not exactly not running, either.

The most obvious was his keynote appearance here on Sunday at Senator Tom Harkin’s legendary steak fry, a popular Democratic ritual in Iowa — and a prominent staging ground in this first presidential caucus state. The crowd rushed Mr. Obama when he arrived, then mobbed him for hours as other politicians wandered the fairgrounds introducing themselves and shaking hands.

But beyond his first trip to Iowa — a visit that was guaranteed to set off new speculation about his presidential ambitions — Mr. Obama is in the midst of an unconventional publicity tour of sorts. Fresh off a closely watched journey through Africa, including a stop at the home of his Kenyan-born father, Mr. Obama is about to publish a second book that supporters believe will outpace his best-seller from 1995.

With the book, titled “The Audacity of Hope,” will come an October appearance on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” magazine profiles and a national speaking tour. Throughout, Mr. Obama is keeping up a full schedule of political speeches on behalf of Democrats nationwide; his fame has made him one of the most requested fund-raising guests in the party.

All of which means that, despite his efforts to coolly play down expectations for his future, Mr. Obama has allowed his already stratospheric profile to grow a little higher of late and has done less to tamp down the celebrity buzz than he did when he first arrived in the Senate last year.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/18/us/politics/18obama.html?hp&ex=1158638400&en=6bb813ee7a8599e3&ei=5094&partner=homepage

[Erika]

1. Obama was great. He quoted Newt

The GOP has screwed up so badly on all areas of governance that the only two words the Dems need to campaign on is "had enough"?

[roguevalley]

2. a one term senator is too young and too valuable in the senate.

it takes more than one term in the fire to lead us in this world. IMHO.

[Erika]

3. W got in there with nothing

Obama is one hell of a speaker and the crowd loved him. Several in the crowd begged him to run for pres in 08.

[w13rd0]

5. I tend to use my Missouri rural family...

...as a barometer. Granted, they aren't typical. Heavy union representation, a lesbian matriarch and her school teacher partner, a couple former Reagen Republicans and Reagen Democrats... But they all love Obama, even the ones that I know have expressed fairly racist sentiments in the past. I don't know if one term is enough or if he needs more seasoning, but I think he'd be a strong contender.

[TheWraith]

6. Lincoln only had one term in the House of Representatives.

Time served is not a measure of ability.

And if I were running a presidential campaign for Obama, that's exactly the answer I'd haul out every time the question was asked.

[skipos]

11. You are right, time doesn't equal ability.

I just hope our 08 candidate isn't a senator (since they are easier to smear and have a historically harder time getting elected) and comes from a flippable red state (since every EV counts). I am not saying that those two factors are the end all be all, but if either Kerry or Edwards was a moderately popular governor of Ohio, or if Gore had chosen Graham of FL as a VP, they'd be sitting in the Whitehouse right now. IMO of course.

[Ignacio Upton]

4. I'd rather have Obama in the Senate

He hasn't even completed his first term yet, and he's young enough to wait until 2012 or 2016.

[FrenchieCat]

7. Interesting tibits in this article.....

"In a frenetic question-and-answer session in front of dozens of camera crews
before his speech, Mr. Obama got nearly a dozen questions about the presidential campaign and only one about national security." - Typical for the press to not want to fuzzy Democrat's mind with questions on National Security when asking questions about the not yet here 2008 Horserace ! :eyes:

this part was kind of funny to me..."Tom Vilsack, the governor of Iowa, chatted easily with constituents, watching the news media crush from afar. Mr. Vilsack, who is also considering a presidential bid and recently came in fourth place in a poll of Iowa caucusgoers, played down the response to Mr. Obama, describing it as “certainly predictable.” Asked whether the senator should run, Mr. Vilsack replied, “That’s a question you’re going to have to ask the voters,” and walked away."

This part was hillarious when I conjured it up in my head...."Mark Warner, the former Virginia governor, who is also testing the waters for a presidential campaign, made brief remarks at the start of the event, although he was barely audible from the back of the crowd amid the frenzy over Mr. Obama.

Well even if Obama was positioning himself as VP, he couldn't help those two...who would need as much National Security "cover" in a VP to fill their own National Security gap if either chose to run.

Of course, the press doesn't care about all of that.....cause they ain't here to help Democrats with a formula to win that election....just like they ain't about to provide any direction to help us win the current election we have facing us in 51 days. :shrug:

[1932]

9. Hypothetically speaking, say Boxer-Obama were the Democratic '08 ticket

Your objection to that ticket is not that they would actually have bad foreign policy. Your objection is that you don't think they could beat McCain-Guiliani because voters will be thinking primarily about national security in '08, and Boxer-Obama is too girlish and weak on foreign policy?

[1932]

10. Hypothetically speaking, say Boxer-Obama were the Democratic '08 ticket

Your objection to that ticket is not that they would actually have bad foreign policy. Your objection is that you don't think they could beat McCain-Guiliani because voters will be thinking primarily about national security in '08, and Boxer-Obama is too girlish and weak on foreign policy?

[Tiggeroshii]

8. Jon Stewart said about Obama:

"The Senate seems like a place where smart people go to die."

I hope, personally, that isn't the case with Obama.