Obama's little sister: he only recently decided to run

[BeyondGeography]

==Despite occasional family jokes that he might be president someday, Maya Soetoro-Ng said Monday evening in Chicago that her big brother, Sen. Barack Obama, was not serious about it until very recently.

"There's a big difference between a childhood story…and real plans," she said. "I can assure you that he had no intention of running for quite some time. "The comment came a day after Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign suggested Obama was being disingenuous about when he first started thinking about running for president.

...Soetoro-Ng, meanwhile, was in Chicago to kick-off a phone banking effort on the part of Obama volunteers from Illinois working out of the 10th floor of a Loop high-rise. She told the roughly 75 volunteers gathered that her older brother of nine years is someone who can "translate idealism into action."

Asked what her favorite memory of her brother was, she pointed to his help in raising her. "Our parents died young, too young," she said, as four television cameras recorded her appearance. "He really took over the parenting and he did a really good job."

Soetoro-Ng said her brother had taught her how to cook "the three dishes he knows how to cook" and that he made chili for a family gathering in Hawaii last Christmas when a dinner reservation fell through.

She said she is cautiously happy about recent news that Obama received 28 percent of support in a widely respected poll of likely caucus participants in Iowa, compared to 25 percent for Clinton.

"I just want to make sure we don't stop working," she said.==

http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/blog/2007/12/obamas_little_sister_he_only_r.html

[MadBadger]

1. Liar

Shes obbbbbbviously biased for Obama. Obama's have no character at all.

[joeybee12]

2. oooh...a totally objective comment...

...I soooooooooooooooooo believe the sister of this power-driven career politician.

They ALL thought about running for a long time. Gimme a freakin' braek.

[Colobo]

3. She knows more than Obama than Clinton and her staff.

[BeyondGeography]

4. She loves big brother

[joeybee12]

11. And she certainly has more reason to cover his ass...

...give it a rest...you are supporting a politician...don't give me this crap about how he's different...he's a politician and it's all about him...

[BeyondGeography]

13. You sound miserable

The World Series didn't do it for you?

[joeybee12]

14. No, these sanctimonous Obama supporters did it for me...

...so did Donny McClurkin.

[sandnsea]

21. Ignore n/t

[ClarkUSA]

5. Clinton's Hillaryous attacks on Obama are good for moments like these...

Who seems more believable and honest -- Obama's humble and lovely schoolteacher sis or the ego-driven mudslinging Hillary?

[BeyondGeography]

6. No kidding

Let's make people more curious about these appealing people...another Team Flawless master stroke.

[ClarkUSA]

24. "Team Flawless master stroke"

:rofl:

[rufus dog]

7. BG - I don't know if it is required to respond

The majority of the country thinks Team Hillary is fucking nuts for making this an issue. The Hillary supporters will keep driving this, but is it asinine.

[ilovesunshine]

8. The majority of DU, but certainly not the county. nt

[BeyondGeography]

9. I posted this mostly for the family angle

These are two siblings who grew up an ocean apart. It's great to see how they've pulled together, gone so far with their lives and grown close. Forget the politics, on a human level it's good.

[rufus dog]

15. and it is a good angle

as for the majority of the country - look at the talking heads, she is getting killed for the comments, it ain't a DU issue, it is a candidate that has high negatives going negative on a candidate on what he said in kindergarten. It is laughable and embarrasing.

[BeyondGeography]

17. She wanted a character referendum, she got one

;)

[jefferson_dem]

10. Hmmm...Who to trust... Obama's sister or Hillary'sHubby.com?

:shrug:

[MADem]

12. I didn;t know he had a sister. NT

[flpoljunkie]

16. Photos: Barack Obama's sister Maya Soetoro-Ng talks to campaign volunteers today in Chicago

Maya Soetoro-Ng, Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama's sister who is a history teacher from Hawaii, talks to campaign volunteers in Chicago, Monday, Dec. 3, 2007. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)


Maya Soetoro-Ng, Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama's sister who is a history teacher from Hawaii, makes campaign phone calls to Iowa residents from the Obama campaign's volunteers headquarters in Chicago, Monday, Dec. 3, 2007. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)


Maya Soetoro-Ng, Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama's sister who is a history teacher from Hawaii, meets campaign volunteers in Chicago, Monday, Dec. 3, 2007. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

[BeyondGeography]

18. ...

:yourock:

[here_is_to_hope]

19. "little sister" now?

Wow, whats next, his friggin' puppy?

And what difference does it make if Hillary or Barak or Edwards or any of them wanted to be president since (insert timeline here), does it really matter?

[BeyondGeography]

20. Guess you missed Kindergate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=3784314

[Evergreen Emerald]

23. actually, that was not the beginning of the issue Beyond G.--it started with the republican

distortion: that Clinton has been aiming for the presidency for 20 years. Obama picked up on that right-wing lie and started suggesting that Clinton has a sinister motive for running, based on the fact that she has planned to run for years..unlike himself... and Clinton responded.

[here_is_to_hope]

25. I did miss that and I still

wish I did. I havent seen that many 'ignored' on one page since...well, ever.
Boy, we are a silly bunch, aint we?

[BeyondGeography]

28. We're just spectators

gotta blame the players for this one.

[Evergreen Emerald]

22. you are right. It should not matter. But Obama made it an issue when he questioned the motives of

Clinton's run for president. He suggested that she has sinister motives for running, based on the fact that she has wanted to run for years, not like Obama, he continued to claim, who has not wanted to run for years.

So, Clinton responded with facts that showed that Obama, indeed, despite his assertions, had been planning to run for president.

So, Clinton was responding to a character attack by pointing out that, Obama was not being straight with the people.

[Madam Mossfern]

26. She could have simply said

"Of course, I've wanted to be President for a while, I want to serve my country and I know that I will serve it well now as much as I did then." Or something like that. That would be turning it around. Instead she seems like a harpie reciting "I know you are but what am I".

[Evergreen Emerald]

27. that is one way to look at it. --Welcome to DU

Another was it to remind people that those assertions are right-wing talking points as well as hypocritical.