Obama: You'd Think This Would Be Easy

Barack Obama implicitly acknowledged on Monday that common sense suggests he should be doing better in his campaign for the president.

"We've got work to do," said the Senator. "This is not going to be easy. It would be nice, you would think, given how badly Bush and his folks have performed over the last eight years and considering the fact that John McCain has facilitated and worked with the Bush Administration on this disaster, you would like to think that folks would say, we don't even have to run TV ads, you just open the papers and say 'we gotta throw the bums out.'"

But, Obama added, "American politics is never that easy." Telling the crowd in Albuquerque, New Mexico, that he was "confident" that the public would be persuaded by the need for change, the Illinois Democrat shifted focus to his Republican opponent.

"You know, Americans will put up with a lot of stuff," he said. "We are not, contrary to what John McCain's advisers will say, we are not a bunch of whiners. We will suck it up and work hard even when things are unfair. But what really gets us mad, what really motivates and activates us is when we start feeling like the rules are so tilted in favor of the special interest, lobbyists and fat cats; that our kids might not have better opportunities we had. And when we start feeling that, that's when we know the American people rise up. That's when we know change is going to come about."

The remarks reflect a brewing debate within Democrat circles over how concerned to be about Obama's small if not stagnant lead over McCain. While the electoral college map looks promising for the presumptive Democratic nominee, observers and strategists concerned about national polls have begun imploring him to make stronger contrasts with McCain.

By and large, Obama has taken a sharper tone since returning from his weeklong break in Hawaii. And, whether for show or a demonstration of real emotion, he has continued to exude confidence about his White House chances. During the question and answer session, for example, he told a woman, "I intend to win the presidency."

Comments

[meanguy]

there's the famous obama hubris on full dispaly: "there is NO WAY anyone could possibly oppose me"---here's a news flash, senator: bush isn't running...and if you keep acting as if he is, you're going to make a fool of yourself....and reinforce the image that is growing that you're out of touch, less than trustworthy, and a bit of a coward-

[brandon102]

Barak: You're the one that's making this hard. America is not an intellectual society. If you read the answers for that disaster with the right-wingnut Reverend it seems you won, but the audience gave it to McCain. And who had the questions when is nitpicking no one but insiders care about.

You need short, simple sharp answers, repeated over & over. Don't over think (McCain isn't thinking at all). If you would have chosen Hilary as your VP she'd be handling this crap for you, but now you've got to get surrogates out everywhere with easy, simple answers to complex problems. Don't ever be reflective -- Americans think that's weakness. And get the Clintons out there, and if they resist smear the hell out of them -- you have that power now and you need Bill and Hillary to handle the Right-wing hate machine that's running rings around you. You are appealing to people much less intelligent than you, and only simple, emotional answers resonate and motivate. You are using a knife in a gunfight.

[Ramirez]

From Investor's Business Daily:
******

No Contest

By INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY | Posted Monday, August 18, 2008 4:20 PM PT

Election '08: Last weekend's McCain-Obama protodebate made it clear why Obama won't keep his promise to debate McCain "anywhere, anytime." McCain, with a robust resume and details at his fingertips, won big.

It was only in May that Sen. Barack Obama cockily proclaimed he would debate Sen. John McCain "anywhere, anytime." But in June, Obama said no to McCain's challenge to have 10 one-on-one town hall meetings.

After what happened at Lake Forest, Calif.'s evangelical Saddleback megachurch Saturday evening, we may have found that debating is Obama's Achilles' heel. Whether or not you like the idea of such events being held in religious venues, the plain-and-simple method of questioning used by Saddleback pastor and best-selling author Rick Warren revealed fundamental differences between these two men.

"It's one of those situations where the devil is in the details," Obama said at one point. He could have been referring to his own oratorical shortcomings when a teleprompter is unavailable. ...

*********
Read the whole thing at:
http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=303952351194789

[rjmiller]

That is just flat out wrong. In no way was this a debate. It was a sham of a Q&A session with questions obviously slanted towards promoting the views of Christian conservatives.

[Ramirez]

I agree with you that O had no business being there. Especially without a teleprompter.

Bad judgment, that.

[StrangeMachine]

I watched both candidates on Saturday night and simply do not see why people are saying Obama "lost" the "debate." First of all, it wasn't a debate. Second, I thought Obama displayed what his supporters love most about him -- He's a man who doesn't just throw out pre-processed talking points. He thinks before he speaks. And his answers were well thought out, fair, and right on. His level of integrity drew a stark contrast to McCain's lack of it.

Did I watch a different show than everyone else?

:-/

[Strywever]

I saw Obama delivering thoughtful, nuanced responses to some tough questions, and taking great pains to be clear and specific. I was thrilled with that.

He did not "lose" anything -- he displayed his ability to think on his feet, while McCain delivered hackneyed bullet points that reflected his disparaging and disrespectful view of the American people as being unable to process any information more complicated han bullet points.

Why McCain's constituency is so comfortable with a candidate who clearly believes they are too stupid to process complex information is utterly beyond me.

[ChetHolly]

We are fixated on what these candidates say as it relates to Poll trends.
Looking for the sources for the polls numbers you'll find the Media and the American electorate and not flip flopping, for ex., by Obama or McCain. Most American are not involved enough to get at the truth through the Media Blitz. Centrist positions are the only way for a Democrat to win in this election given the current state of the Electorates attitudes. Recently in Cleveland I noticed a 50 plus year old white haired waitress wearing a pin supporting McCain, I asked her why, she said without a moments hesitation because he will keep us safe. This election was ALWAYS tight and favoring the Republicans open your eyes and look at the history not the blurbs of the so called fair and balanced pundits.

[PatrickforO]

Several people below are referring to 'pumas.' What is a puma? What does that mean?

[AmHope]

P=Party
U=Unity
M=My
A=Ass

That is, "Party Unity My Ass" --a group formed after Hillary lost and almost everyone was calling for party unity.

[Ramirez]

From John Tomasic at HuffPo:
*****

"Will Bower is spokesperson for P.U.M.A., which stands for "party unity my ass," an organization he founded and launched on Facebook and that is made up largely of Hillary Clinton supporters. P.U.M.A. is now part of the larger Just Say No Deal coalition of groups that coalesced after Clinton officially suspended her campaign and that are united in their opposition to the candidacy of Barack Obama."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-tomasic/hell-no-puma-spokesman-wi_b_108581.html

[breakfast]

Had Obama stuck to the positions he took during the primary campaign, he would still be leading by very comfortable margins. Now that he has adopted so many "centrist" Republican positions, there doesn't really seem to be that much of a choice. So his lead has vanished.

Domestically, Obama would be light years better than any Republican, but his foreign and economic policy statements indicate more of the same.

[Strywever]

Obama has always been farther to the center than the most left-leaning Democrats bothered to understand, initially. However, saying he's at the *Republican* center is not accurate or fair. What I believe draws most of us to Obama is his vision for a different type of leadership -- leadership that is inclusive, responsive, engaging, and driven by reality rather than ideology. I may not agree with him on every single position, but I admire the heck out of that vision and his proven ability to draw enact it.

[timm0]

"By and large, Obama has taken a sharper tone since returning..."

And I'd be happy to donate a metric ton of whetstone to keep it that way - or make it sharper!

[pupbayer]

Yeah, well it should have been easy 4 and 8 years ago, too. Again, the chaotic, incompetent Democratic Party shows it is incapable of winning the Presidential election. And the country suffers because of the egos of the Party's supposed leaders.

[wendynyc]

The choice is not about Obama or Hillary or McCain - it is about our Supreme Court and abortion rights and taxes and a new direction for our country.
Hillary lost guys - and she ran a terrible operation that could not inspire enough people to donate.

Obama has raised all his money through individual donors - let's gie him some credit.

However, he still faces several hurdles - racial bias, a well oiled Republican character-defamation machine and all the corporate lobbyists who will see their agendas going down the tubes. They all want McCain in there - so their agendas will remain intact.

[PatrickforO]

You've hit the nail on the head with this comment. Lots of groups have a huge economic interest in keeping things as they are.

[BBackSoon]

Can you say Vast Rightwing conspiracy?

Maybe not, but it is true that the people in power will fight ferociously to stay in power.

[DaOne]

I am glad that I am alive at a time when Americans decided to take back their country. Of the people, by the people, for the people hasn't rung true in a long time. In 2008 this changes. Tell everyone you know to register and then make sure they vote. It's the only way we get our country back.

Obama 08

[ggmome]

In this country, nothing is easy if you are of color, driving, walking, living, striving, or existing... So Sen. Obama, your Presidency will be more difficult then our current Simple Simon in power.. Only in America can you be 894 th in your class of 899, and run for President if you have no melenin in your skin, but dragged through the mud they create for you, if you excelled and exceeded if you do have color in your skin...

[bluehorizon]

True... only in America. In other countries, the black man would not get as far as that. ;)

[DutchOven]

It's because of people like you, and comments such as these, that prevent me from voting for Obama. If you want to make this some kind of racial 'battle', you will lose. Blacks are 12% of the national population. Sorry.

People have said that "America is not ready for a black President," but your comments prove that it is mostly black people who aren't ready. I have lost count of the times Obama's candidacy has been heralded as some kind of revenge against whites or "reconciliation" for things that happened hundreds of years ago.

Straight Democratic ticket in '08 - except Obama.
Many others feel the same way.

[DaOne]

Straight Dem ticket in '08-except O?

Maybe you missed the primary race, he won fair and square. If you are a Dem and you won't vote O then please switch party affiliation because we are interested in the good of the nation and not your personal pick at the head of the Dem ticket. A true Dem would vote for any nominee we have because we support the party platform and country vision. Too bad you are so small and petty.

[newunderground]

You're being very short sighted. You're not votiing for O because of something some supporter of his said? Gimme a break, your racism's showing.

[bellepepper02]

[bellepepper02]

"It's because of people like you, and comments such as these, that prevent me from voting for Obama," you said.

Why base your vote on other people's comments?

It's because of people like you that the country had eight years of gross stupidity.

[Strywever]

So it isn't the candidate himself that keeps you from voting for Obama, but the way his supporters talk about him -- and in particular, supporters he's never even met?

Hmmm . . . .

[Ramirez]

Keep playing that card.

[westcoastsc]

His position on FISA did hurt him, but from the plays of Hitler's playbook, it seemed like a setup. If Obama and the dems had not voted for FISA, don't you think they would have staged or let happen some terrorist attack and would have blamed it on the people who voted against their clever littlle bill.

[meanguy]

that's ignorant AND paranoid...


so, obama's votes are nothing more than political 'plays' and calculations? beyond 'politics as usual'? heck, he's a MASTER of the art form

[westcoastsc]

I think the polls are flawed. Most young people don't have land lines. Pollsters are not allowed to call cell phones. Make sure there are no computers taking the votes. Look up Peter Soby. The only time in history that exit pols have not agreed with results in this country has been in recent years. How about that?

[PennP]

Diebold is about that.

[Daisy1111]

There was a study done. You can poll cell phones -- the lists are expensive to buy. One pollster did buy them during the primaries. They found a 1% difference that's all. Don't put all your faith in the cell phone theory.

[TNT2008]

Don't be so sure about that 1% figure.....currently almost 13% (12.8) of American households do not have home telephones. The percentage that will eventually be added to 0bama's numbers is huge! Please site a link to the study you referenced.. Thank you.

If you're interested, here is a link re: cell phones and land lines....as you will see the numbers are a bit different than what you have stated.

http://pewresearch.org/pubs/515/polling-cell-only-problem

[beboy]

Accordind to nutjob.com, 62% of old Republicans don't hear the phone ring when pollsters call.

[lboucher]

Bayh is really really boring. I mean real boring! ZZZZZ

Kane10 months ago was a small town Mayor??!

Biden is a heart beat away fro making a campaign killing GAFFE!

Hillary must be Obama's VP Choice! 18 million Democrats will be watching!!

[hexham]

I'm one of those 18 million who voted for Hillary, and so are my wife and sister and parents. And *none* of us are demanding she be on the ticket.

Personally I think Hill can be more effective as a Senator who works with the new Obama administration; bills like Health Care Reform.

[DinSea]

The HONEST total was not 18 million for HRC .... I guess if you tell a lie often enough, people start accepting it as truth.

[uheardme]

Would you please send her some money?

[mnash]

Thank you for your comment. It is certainly refreshing to hear at least a few people not "demanding" she be on the ticket or demanding the world. HRC was a good candidate. Unfortunatly there were many obstacles in her path. And I think she will do very well in the Senate. I think Obama will give her that task and I did hear they had agreed on health care.

[DutchOven]

Your 'identity credential' - tossing out anonymously on the internet that you are a former Hillary supporter that has 'gotten over it' is an incredibly cheap trick.

Even if you are sincere, you should realize that some other supporters gravitate towards certain candidates for certain reasons. For example, there may have been many probable McCain voters that would have gone to Clinton, but never to Obama.

People are not born red or blue, and thus not caged to support the eventual Democratic nominee. Currently I am working to elect a slate of state and local Democrats and privately discouraging my red state peers from even considering Obama. Note: in my state, distancing from Obama has actually helped gain credibility for local Dems. What does that tell you?

Obama is a dead weight dragging down what could be a Democratic landslide. Why is he polling even when McCain when the Dem brand in general is lightyears ahead of the GOP?

He is a weak candidate, and anyone that wanted to point out that the emperor wasn't wearing any clothes was deemed to be a racist. That's a tool they borrowed from W - "either with us or against us."

[PatrickforO]

Hillary had the nomination 'sewn up.' She was the Democratic front runner. Everyone said so. But when Obama came out of nowhere and won, even though it was a very close race, it showed us all that Hillary might have been a very flawed candidate - not to mention how poorly and chaotically she ran her campaign. In terms of capturing the hearts of the American people enough to win the election, Hillary would have had to struggle just as much as Obama will.

[bluehorizon]

Shove it.

[Strywever]

The more you talk like this, the more you alientate people against her. You're persuading absolutely no one on this blog with comments like these. Why do you make them?

[UrbanInterloper]

Slow and steady wins the race, and Obama's operation continues to be impressive. Of course, if you want Obama to win and you're anything short of fully confident in this outcome, you could always lend a hand to the effort:

http://action.barackobama.com/page/s/volunteer

Then Maybe come election day, you'll feel a lot more confident going into the voting booth. Instead of crossing your fingers and worrying, take charge of the situation!