Obama: 20,000 In Texas

Incredible.

We are all witnessing history.

UPDATE:(2/27/2007) Here is a photo from the Austin event.

Obama's Cleveland Rally Is Booked

Obama is in Cleveland this Monday. I just tried to sign up for tickets, but they are all gone. I hear over ten thousand people will be there. This is happening everywhere Obama goes.
Something is happening here.

Gore Waiting Until September?

Many people have speculated that Gore might be waiting until summer to make a decision on whether or not to run for president. According to the New York Oberver, this specualtion might be accurate:

It's too much to say that Al Gore has decided to run for President in 2008.

But it does seem that he wants to preserve the option.

Certainly, the recent buzz about a possible Gore campaign in 2008 doesn't seem to be spontaneously generated. According to one influential Democratic insider, close associates of the former Vice President have communicated to him and other prominent fund-raisers who are uncommitted to the other '08 candidates that Mr. Gore will consider entering the race--if an opening presents itself--in September.

Let's cross our fingers.

Video: Obama on Iraq, 2002

Obamarama has posted a must-see video of an Obama interview from Novemer of 2002, where he was asked specifically about his position on Iraq:

Obama's Iowa Weekend

It looks like Obama is hot in Iowa:

Barack Obama is off to a stellar start in Iowa.

The Illinois senator had what is likely to be the largest kickoff ever seen for any candidate in the history of the caucuses.

His crowds in Cedar Rapids and Waterloo were huge - two or three thousand per event. In Ames, about 5,000 people were at the Hilton Coliseum. Even a lowly house party in Iowa Falls attracted 200.

Even though Edwards had a strong early showing in Iowa, I think the lead will change hands many times before it is all said and done. After all, the latest polls had Hillary up after her announcement, and I expect Obama to take the lead there after his big media weekend. Also, don't forget that Obama is from a neighboring state, and that eastern Iowa gets Illinois television. So, he is in a really good position right now in Iowa.

How Black?

Obama, not black enough.

Or

Too Black.

What's it going to be? I guess the media will try to make up the country's mind.

The "My.BarackObama.com" Blogs

One of the interesting things that Obama's campaign is doing is giving a personal blog to anyone who wants one. It is a My.BarackObama.com site blog. My concern is that there are already thousands of blogs that have been claimed by god knows who, and god knows what they are saying and what they will say. So, Obama supporters need to get the word out now that these blogs and their views are not endorsed by the campaign. The campaign is allowing its website to be a public repository for thousands of various viewpoints. There are many nasty, tasteless human beings in the country that will say anything without serious consideration, and some of these people might end up posting an entry that could be damaging to Obama if the media covers it as if it came from his campaign site. So, the campaign and his supporters need to be ready for this when it happens, and it will happen.

This from Ben Smith:

I'm biased, just having spent too much time online, toward Obama's approach here, but it'll require the media to report on the site like what it is -- a loosely organized community, not a vehicle for official message. (The Post actually gets it about right today.) MoveOn.org took a very unfair hit when somebody contributed a video comparing Bush to Hitler to an open contest; Obama may do the same.

It strikes me, though, that the appropriate way to cover a site like this is the way you cover a campaign rally. Attendance is voluntary, and one crazy doesn't speak for the campaign. At the same time, it's fair to characterize sentiments that run across the community.

On Obama

From a new Rolling Stone piece about Obama:

You could almost see the wheels turning in the minds of Washington's best and brightest: Go to work for Obama, they were thinking, and you might end up running the world. "You spend your life preparing for Bobby Kennedy to walk in the door," says one D.C. pollster, "and then one day he walks in your door."

That just about says it all, doesn't it?

Obama Website

Barack Obama's website is now up and running. All I have to say is that I have been predicting that it would be an amazing site, and it is.
It offers an extremely comprehensive look at Obama's life in and out of politics, and it is amazingly inclusive for a presidential campaign. It gives supporters the opputnity to create profile pages where they can create and post on their own blogs within the Obama '08 site.
Take a look for yourself, and don't forget 10:55am is the live webcast of the speech in Springfiled.

Attending to Other Projects

I am going to be posting a lot less in the upcoming months. I have been posting more lately out of excitement for Obama's entrance into the primaries, and because I have had the time. However, my time is up. I have to get back to work. I have a novel and a Picasso biography that are awaiting my attention.
The design of the site has changed and the content will probably be as sporadic as my future posting.
I'll continue to post things that are of great importance to me personally, and I might be back in full swing in the fall.

Obama Skipping Nevada Debate?

This from Hotline:

Jon Ralston reports Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) will skip the 2/21 Carson City Dem forum, and will actually be in IA on that date. Obama will be in NV a few days earlier, however, on 2/18.

This is a bold move by Obama's campaign. This could be a great strategy to set him apart from the other candidates, or it could backfire and make him look arrogant or unprepared for big stage scrutiny.

Debate on Feb. 21

I am an admitted political junklie, but even I have to say that a debate this early is insanity.
Here are the committed attendees:
Sens. Hillary Clinton
Sen. Joe Biden
Sen.Chris Dodd
former Gov. Tom Vilsack
Gov. Bill Richardson
former Sen. Mike Gravel

Obama has not yet committed.
Also, where is Clark and Kucinich? Not that I'll miss them, but...

Obama and Public Financing

The stories about Obama's accepting or not accepting public funding have been all over the political blogs the last two days. However, it turns out that Obama has not officially opted out. He has made a request to the FEC to see if he can keep his options open.

This from Ben Smith:

The request lays out the following scenario: Obama's campaign would accept contributions for both the primary and general elections, but then return the general election contributions later if the Republican nominee agreed to accept public financing. The public financing system provides taxpayer dollars to candidates who abide by restrictions on how much they can raise.

It is a smart move, consistent with his theme of unity and public fairness. He is saying that if he wins the primary, he will accept public financing on the condition that his Republican rival does the same. It would be crazy to accept public financing against an opponent that is raising money hand over fist. Your rival would drown out your message in ad time.
This shows that Obama's campaign is on thier toes and thinking ahead. Good.

Unanswered Question

What will Hillary do or say in New Hampshire on Saturday to try and take the spotlight off of Obama?

Obama Hears Concerns of Netroots

There is a great story on Obama from Roger Simon of The Politico. Here is a snippet that I found particularly interesting:

Obama, as do other candidates, wants to use the Internet to connect people and build support. But he also hinted at the possibility of letting such "net-citizens" play a role in running the campaign.

He said that after his DNC speech, he had gone to George Mason University where "these college kids had organized a rally without any involvement by our staff. We figured there would be a couple of hundred people there, and there were 3,500 people. They had just organized it through Facebook on the Internet."

Obama said letting outsiders run some aspects of his campaign might be worth it. "That kind of grassroots efforts can be scary, in that I think it is hard for any campaign to give up any kind of control and there is a tendency to try to do things top down," he said. "But I think we are in a moment where there is a possibility, not a certainty, but a possibility of bottom-up activism that I think could reshape the political landscape."

Obama also said that his years as a community organizer on the far South Side of Chicago taught him that "if you want to lead, you have to be able to listen."

This is wonderful news for those of us who have had questions about Obama's future web presence. It sounds like he and his campaign have received the message. As I have said before, I expect the new website will match the promise of the campaign. I know I will be giving my refresh button a workout this Saturday morning when he officially announces his candidacy.

"Eternal Embrace"

(Enrico Pajello/Handout/Reuters)

This is just an incredible story:

Archaeologists in Italy have discovered a couple buried 5,000 to 6,000 years ago, hugging each other.

"It's an extraordinary case," said Elena Menotti, who led the team on their dig near the northern city of Mantova.

"There has not been a double burial found in the Neolithic period, much less two people hugging -- and they really are hugging."

Let the Fundraising Spin Begin

The battle for big money has grown into spinning your competitors financial expectations:

The front-runner strategy, and the display of force, came as Clinton's aides work in their public statements to suggest her campaign might not raise as much money as Edwards or Democratic Illinois Sen. Barack Obama. Clinton adviser Howard Wolfson has said he expects Edwards to raise $20 million and Obama to raise as much as $40 million this quarter -- his play in the game of setting unattainable expectations for one's rivals, and low ones for oneself.

An aide to Obama, Bill Burton, parried Wolfson's predictions with an expectation of his own for the Clinton campaign. "Whether you call it Bush's fuzzy math or Clinton's Wolfson math, the numbers don't add up," Burton said in an e-mail. "By their account, they should be raising $85 million on top of their supposed 'goal' in the first quarter alone."

I have to say this is a smart strategic tactic that Hillary's campaign is using to try and sink the other campaigns early. Still, no matter how impressives it is tactically, it is despicable ethically. The Hillary camp just continues to alienate me with their arrogant behavior. The actions and the rhetoric remind me too much of the Bush machine.

I will still vote for Hillary over any of the Republicans in a general election, but she is determined to make it difficult for me to support her with anything other than resignation.

Obama Posts Annuncement Schedule

On Obama's website there is a new link that I hadn't seen before. The link shows his announcement schedule. His announcement rollout begins in Springfield at 10am, and then it is off to Iowa for several events on Saturday and Sunday morning. Then he goes back to Chicago for an event Sunday afternoon, and Monday is New Hampshire. It sounds like it is going to be a very busy weekend for Obama fans.

Public Financing is Dead

Opting out:

Obama joins Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC), "both of whom recently decided to skip public financing of their campaigns. Edwards and Obama also say they won't accept money from lobbyists or political action committees."

Hillary's Blog Still Dark

For all the talk about Obama's poor web presence, it is hard to really celebrate Hillary's website. She still doesn't have a campaign blog.

John Edwards' site is clearly the best for the moment. However, I am expecting really big things from Obama's team starting late Friday night or early Saturday.

Obama Back to New Hampshire

Its going to be a fun weekend:

Perhaps this is purely a coincidence, but Barack Obama is planning a trip to New Hampshire on Feb. 12 -- one day after Hillary Clinton is scheduled to campaign in the state, the New Hampshire Union Leader says in a story just posted on its Web site. The trip will mark the Illinois senator's second trip to the Granite State in a span of two months.

Obama to Quit Smoking

Chicago Tribune reports that Obama is attempting to quit smoking:

He said in a Monday interview that, although he has never been a heavy smoker, he has quit for periods over the last several years but then slipped back into the habit. On the cusp of a potential presidential bid seemed the right time to quit for good, he said.

"I've never been a heavy smoker," Obama said. "I've quit periodically over the last several years. I've got an ironclad demand from my wife that in the stresses of the campaign I don't succumb. I've been chewing Nicorette strenuously."

I always believed that he would quit before the campaign was in full swing. I know that a campaign must be a stressfull time, and especially tempting for an ex-smoker to resume their bad habit, but I think that the grueling schedule of a presidential run would just be too chaotic for anyone to sneak away for a smoke. It's not like Obama is going to have many quiet, private moments to sneak behind an Iowa high school for a smoke.

(tip to Obamarama)

Hillary and Obama Shun Debates?

Over at Politico, Roger Simon wonders if Hillary and Obama will skip some of this year's democratic debates:

Debate organizers try to make the debates refusal-proof by co-sponsoring them with major media, labor unions, or organizations like the Congressional Black Caucus.

But guess what? Neither Hillary Clinton nor Barack Obama has accepted any debate or forum invitations as of yet.

"The two people who can blow up the debates are those two," an adviser to the Obama campaign told me. "All they have to do is say: 'Debate without me. Go ahead.'

"There will be some accusations that they are being arrogant, but where it is written that you have to debate this early?"

And Obama and Hillary have the perfect excuse for not showing up: They have day jobs.

I, for one, really enjoy the debates and hope that they participate in all of them. I know I'll still watch them no matter who participates.

The Intensity of an Obama Event

Here's an idea of how intense an Obama event gets:

This video was from this past weekend's "Student for Obama" event at George Mason University. Watch the full speech here.

Gore Calls New Hampshire

This could be good news:

"Former Vice-President, and Oscar nominee, Al Gore recently called a high-profile New Hampshire Democrat. The Granite State Democrat said that he and Gore recently had 'a long conversation.' The call took place over the weekend and was initiated by Mr. Gore. This Dem is a hot commodity since questions have arisen has to whom they would support in 2008. Is Gore preparing for a possible run?"

Edwards on Meet the Press

Edwards was very impressive yesterday on Meet the Press. I highly recommend watching the program, which you can do here.

I was amazed at his frankness on tough issues like taxes and health care. Also, I liked how he repeatedly took responsibility for his vote on the Iraq war resolution, and although I'm not not sure I agree with his current Iraq position, it is nice to see that he has one that is easily understood.

Edwards' level of accessibility was the thing I took away from this interview. He seemed to be determined to answer every question honestly, succinctly, and without hedging his bets at every turn.

Obama, Just Getting Started

From the Washington Post:

"For all the buzz about his running, Obama did not enter the race with the conventional weapons of a presidential candidate -- a deep database of donors, a tactical road map for winning primaries or even a sign marking the entrance to his ad hoc campaign headquarters. Obama is only now starting to build a political infrastructure that matches his growing support."

The Obama campaign better have their act together soon. Obama's closest competitors are already in full campaign mode, and he won't offically start until this Saturday, which just happens to coincide with Hillary's first trip to New Hampshire since 1996. Saturday is going to be the first of many days that Hillary and Obama will be wrestling for media attention.

Super Bowl Predictions

Game: Colts win, 31-20

Ads: Big News from Apple. Widescreen iPod? Beatles catalog for iTunes? Maybe some combination of both.

David Sedaris, "The Stadium Pal"

Perfect clip for Super Bowl Sunday when you consider that no one wants to get up during the ads. After all, the ads may be the best part.

This clip is remarkable to me mostly because it is not often that you are going to watch an essay reading on a late night show. That is what makes Sedaris so special, he takes the traditionally drab public reading format to the level of stand-up comedy.

(Thanks to Norm at One Good Move)

Iowa and New Hampshire Polls

American Reseach Group Poll for Iowa(2/3/2007)
Biden 2%
Clark 2%
Clinton 35%
Dodd 1%
Edwards 18%
Gravel -
Kucinich 2%
Obama 14%
Richardson 1%
Vilsack 12%
Undecided 13%

ARG Poll for NH(2/3/2007)
Biden 2%
Clark 2%
Clinton 39%
Dodd 1%
Edwards 13%
Gravel -
Kucinich 1%
Obama 19%
Richardson 2%
Vilsack 1%
Undecided 21%

I think Hillary's recent bump in the polls is mostly due to her major press offensive the past few weeks. One of the ways to see evidence of this is to see if she drops after Obama's official announcement next weekend. If she drops and Obama gains support then we know most of her early support was soft and mostly media manufactured.

However, if Obama announces and does not get much of a bump then he could be in trouble. And even if he does get a bump, where does it come from? We'll need to see his support come from Hillary. I believe a good deal of her support is soft right now and it was smart for Obama to wait a few extra weeks to announce so that he could bite into her early jump.

As far as Edwards is concerened, he seems to have fairly solid numbers in both states. They look consistent in the middle to high teens. So, he has strong, hard support from a small group of voters. However, what can Edwards do to get a bump? We'll see. There is still a long way to go.

Bottom Line: Hillary is growing a sizable lead and it does nothing to hurt her campaign of inevitability. The longer this lead holds, the more the rest of the candidates will fade into the background.

Lieberman Swears Against Another Run

This from Political Wire:

"My days of seeking national office are over."

-- Sen. Joe Lieberman (I), quoted by the Hartford Courant, in a direct question about possibly being Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) running mate in 2008.

This is good news for those of us that believed that there was a more than fair chance that Lieberman could be the VP choice for the Republican nominee.

However, this quote does not exclude him from speaking at the Republican National Convention.