"Obama and Me" *A Must Read*

[zabet]

"Obama and Me"
(It was the year 2000, and I was a young, hungry reporter in Chicago with a young, hungry state legislator on my speed dial)
By Todd SpivaK

"It's not quite eight in the morning, and Barack Obama is on the phone screaming at me. He liked the story I wrote about him a couple weeks ago, but not this garbage.

Months earlier, a reporter friend told me she overheard Obama call me an asshole at a political fund-raiser. Now here he is blasting me from hundreds of miles away for a story that just went online but hasn't yet hit local newsstands.

It's the first time I've ever heard him yell, and I'm trembling as I set down the phone. I sit frozen at my desk for several minutes, stunned.

This is before Obama Girl, before the Secret Service detail, before he becomes a best-selling author. His book, Dreams From My Father, has been out of print for years."

MUCH MUCH MORE - http://dallasobserver.com/2008-02-28/news/obama-and-me/1


Obama's Kingmaker?

"Emil Jones Jr., president of the Illinois Senate, steered sponsorship of important legislation to Obama."

[goldcanyonaz]

1. Wow, thank you for posting this.

[zabet]

2. Anytime.

:hi:

[LadyVT]

3. Thank you. This is really enlightening. I hope it gets out there. Widely.

[zabet]

4. I have emailed it

to everyone in my address book. :)
I urged them to forward it far and wide.

[IowaGirl]

5. Thank you for posting this. It creeps me out.

This confirms other stuff I've been reading. He seems like a real user rather than a public servant.

[DURHAM D]

6. Amen - a user.

I have been calling him a poser but user is more accurate. This does need to get wide distribution.

[zabet]

8. You are welcome,

He has 'raised my hackles'
since the beginning.
He is definitely a user. He
only invests Political capital
towards his personal gain and
self promotion.

[vireo]

20. You remind me of something that has bothered me

What has Obama ever done for the Democratic Party? Did he ever work on a campaign other than his own? There was that voter registration job or whatever it was, but what has he done to earn the respect of party stalwarts?

Hillary Clinton worked tirelessly on the 1972 McGovern campaign (in Texas of all places) and I respect her greatly because of that. But Obama just seems to be about Obama.

[zabet]

23. He has done little for the party

other than register and run
for office.
Obama is all about Obama.

[DURHAM D]

7. Thank you so much for posting. eom

[zabet]

10. Anytime.

Gonna look a little more
into his 'kingmaker'. I
think I smell cronyism in
the style of old-school
Chicago style politics.

[DURHAM D]

9. This might be a good time to post it "out there". eom

[zabet]

11. Hee hee...

Feel free. I have been called a racist
at least 5 times today, 3 times by posters
I used to respect. I have been called an
anti-semite, a feminazi, a republican and
a couple of other things like 'fucking ignorant'.
All by members of the Obama Church of Hope and
Change. I just ain't up for that beating right
now. If no one here picks it up and puts it out
there, I will put it out maybe tomorrow, while
they are still hungover from tonight.

[DURHAM D]

12. I understand -

I just read over there and generally don't post. Too many wankers.

[zabet]

13. The less rabid ones

seem to post earlier in the
day. May even get some reasonable
discussion if it is posted at the
right time. Sad that you have to
calculate the rabidity level of the
Obama supporters to figure out when
to post something.

[libbygurl]

14. Wow, that's a whopper of a story. In the Dallas Observer, too!

Just as I suspected - man's nothing but a politico, who played not with a level field, but with 'a cleared field'. Yes, this story has to be spread far and wide. Am emailing it to all I know who will care about this.

Thanks, C_J!

[zabet]

15. Yup!

Spread it far and wide!
This is the man behind
the glitter.

[golddigger]

16. Hi citizen_jane, did you post this in GD:P? If you didn't please do.

:hi:

[zabet]

17. Just did it!

:hi:

Go by and give it a K and R.

[libbygurl]

18. On my way! WOO-HOO! Last night victories were just so SWEEEET!

:kick: :bounce: :toast:

[zabet]

19. OMG!! I am still so excited this morning..

I cannot hardly stand it!!!!!

Thanks for the K and R!

:toast:

[UALRBSofL]

21. "YES WE CAN"

:hi:

[zabet]

22. Yes indeedy!!!

We Sure Can!!!

:hi: