Barack Obama

Earlier today I endorsed Barack Obama for president, and I couldn't be more excited for the Democratic Party, the nation -- and the world.

Barack inspires me -- it's that simple. In the words of President Kennedy:

"The world is changing. The old ways will not do... It is time for a new generation of leadership."

In Barack, I see that next generation of American leadership: a figure who can transcend the divisions in this country that my family and I have fought so hard to tear down.

We were all moved four years ago as Barack told us a profound truth: We are not red states and blue states, but one United States. Since then, he has matched that rhetoric with action, traveling the country to inspire record turnouts of men and women of all ages, races, parties and faiths. Barack has forged consensus in the Senate on contentious issues such as immigration and pushed through necessary reforms like the most far-reaching ethics reform in its history.

But I'm not only supporting Barack because of what he has done. What counts in our leadership is not the length of years in Washington, but the reach of our vision, the strength of our beliefs, and that rare quality of mind and spirit that can call forth the best in our country and our people.

That's why I'm most excited about the promise of President Obama:

As president, Barack Obama will break the Washington gridlock to finally make health care what it should be in America.

He will turn the page on the old politics of misrepresentation and distortion and bridge the divisions of race, gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation that plague our country.

He will end a war in Iraq that he has always stood against, that has cost us the lives of thousands of our sons and daughters, and that America never should have fought.

He will close the door on the old economics that has written off the poor and left the middle class poorer and less secure.

He will make the United States the great leader and not the great roadblock in the fateful fight against global warming.

When Barack Obama raises his hand on Inauguration Day a new generation of American leadership will take charge and restore the hope, peace and prosperity the country so desperately needs.

Looking out from the stage today, I realized just how powerful his campaign has become. It's a movement for change -- and one that I'm proud to be a part of.

Comments

[JDWPS]

I am so happy that you and Patrick and Caroline have endorsed Senator Obama. The event today was moving and exhilarating. I am not surprised that you all have spoken out and are pitching in when the stakes are so high. Thank you!!

[2Truthy]

Dear Senator Kennedy,

Back in the sixties, you were a friend of my aunt's in Springfield and helped her get to Ireland on short notice when my grandmother there unexpectedly died. She and our family were very grateful for your selflessness and compassion that the Irish are known for. The Kennedys have always had this families support.

But now, I have just one question:

Why do you want to sell out our professional jobs to India via sponsoring the McCain-Kennedy bill to raise and or eliminate the H1-b visa cap? Surely you are aware of the great labor shortage myth and studies which prove it is designed to drive down wages here (while costs of living skyrocket) and eliminate white collar jobs for us and our children.

Also, it is not clear whether your support for the inexperienced, receptive orator, Obama, will only serve to further consolidate the portfolios of elites while the middle class here disappers.

http://tootruthy.blogspot.com/2007/03/bill-gates-cant-get-enough-burnt-fries.html

Hopefully, your horse will come up with a plan to reverse such disastrous corporate welfare practices. Sir, "hope" is for free.

Best regards,
2Truthy

[betabeta]

Thank you Senator for standing up and doing the right thing!

[bison1972]

Thank you Senator Kennedy. Thank you for your statemenship. God Bless!

[dantheman]

Senator Kennedy, I must say that watching you along with Caroline and Patrick sharing the stage with Obama brought tears to my eyes. I too am inspired by Barack Obama. But watching the four of you on the same stage made hope swell in my heart in a way that took me back to 2004, when I was first moved and dared to hope that we may yet save the republic.

Although I was not fortunate enough to live during the Kennedy years, I have often wondered what America would be like today if your brothers had not been assasinated, and always sadness fills my heart at the thought of what America lost during those turbulent years. I didn't think I would ever see someone like JFK or Martin Luther King Jr. in my lifetime.

But along came Barack Obama. My hopes and aspirations for this country suddenly seem within our grasp. As such, I have actively sacrificed my time by actively volunteering to help elect Obama to the highest office in the land.

Obama doesn't spend his time making promises like most politicians do. Instead what he does consistently is ask the American people to put aside our differences and work together to reclaim our government. He tells us that he alone cannot bring about the change that we all know must happen if America is to see better days, that if we really want to change the way our government works, then we as a people must bring about that change.

Well I'm sick an tired of broken and ineffective government. I'm ready to move America forward.

Thank you Senator for working hard to make America better.

[amst]

Senator Kennedy,

I am honored to get this opportunity to even reply to you. I am a fan of your entire family.

I thank you for endorsing Obama. Four years ago at the Democratic Convention I was blown away by his speech. I could see touches of JFK even then.

Please continue to guide him through the long and sometime brutal road during this convention, which may be new to him. I am convinced that the more people see and hear him, they will be as drawn to him as I was. You are right, it is time for change.

[truelie]

Thank you Senator Kennedy! They don't call you the "Liberal Lion" for no reason. You have the heart of a lion Sir. Despite the seismic pressure from the Clinton Political Machine, you have stood up for what you've believed in your heart of heart what is good for our country and to that courage, I salute you. Thank you Caroline and Patrick for your vision and courage as well. America is grateful to you and your family.

[FogBelter]

Thank you Senator Kennedy for your service to the Country.


I know this was a difficult decision to make, and it is appreciated by all of us who look forward to a new direction for our beloved country.

[mudfiles]

Thanks for this. I hope your endorsement frees up the other (many) delegates who have wanted to endorse Obama, but were afraid up until this point for political reasons. They shall now be free.

[bobdob]

Dear Senator Kennedy,

It warmed my heart to see you and dear, sweet Caroline experiencing firsthand today the power and exuberance of the Americans Senator Obama has brought together and inspired. I could see it on Caroline's face today. And I could see it on yours. The first time the crowd went wild, you looked like a little kid. I'm not kidding, sir. Your smile positively lit up the room.

I thank God for your courage and your integrity, sir. And I thank God for great Americans like your brothers and like Caroline and like Barack Obama. Thank you so much for validating and supporting what many of us already knew: that Barack is the voice of a generation. He is the Real Thing. This is history in the making. I feel so lucky to be a part of it.

[FirstAve]

Over the Holidays I was in Barnes and Noble with my daughters. On display was a Biography of Robert Kennedy that came out about a year ago or so. I picked it up. I called my two girls over and showed them the index with their grandfathers name (John Burns - NYS Democratic Chairman). We opened up to one of the pages, it was the part where their Grandfather ran on to the plane to inform Kennedy about LBJ dropping out of the race. I explained to the girls how there were no cell phones and that the president had made the announcement while Kennedy was in the air. Dad ran onto the plane and was so excited that he couldn't speak. Couldn't get it out. Kennedy told him to sit down and catch his breath. He then gave Kennedy the news. Oh, what exciting stuff.

Suddenly, standing there holding this book, unexpected, uninvited, the sadness from long ago came over me. Then the thoughts of what might have been. Since Bobby Kennedy was shot there has been no candidate that could change the social fabric of our world. Poverty, war, racism. Nothing has changed since 1968.

Until now.

While watching my television the night of the Iowa primary, I happened to have tuned in to the news channel as Barack Obama was about to give his victory speech.

My God. Who is this man? Could this be real or am I in a dream?

The light has come back on The goose bumps have returned.

[johnnydajogger]

Neither Obama nor Clinton have any real experience. Clinton supports the War in Iraq. All the rest of the dems and repugs support the War with the exception of Paul and Gravel neither of whom can get the nomination. It looks like this is another sham election, set up to give the public the impression that they actually have some say in what happens. We dont. All of this is set up in advance and supported by big corporations and the media which is controlled by the corporations. And the public goes along with it, like lemmings running off a cliff. I refuse to hold my nose and vote for "the lesser of 2 evils". I'm sitting this one out.

[RnR]

Senator Kennedy: I respect your judgment but have a few questions regarding Obama, seems they haven't been asked.

Will he stop this march towards globalization, the wto, and the destruction of peoples/cultures worldwide?

Will he stop the privatization (Monsanto) of the sources of our food supply? I don't really think that the ok'ing of cloned animals is a minor issue. Who will own the 2 last cows, chickens, pigs, sheep, goats etc., on earth? Moses? I think not. Monsanto, I think so. This
is totally unacceptable. The only way the native americans were defeated was through the destruction of their food supply (buffalo) and the destruction of their pony herds (got to love that white boy mentality don't ya?)

I think the answers to these 2 questions will put a lot of people more at ease supporting him. It will me.

Thank you,

[LionEater]

Let me also say thanks, Senator Kennedy, for doing the right and noble thing and endorsing Obama. He is who we need right now. Also, please note that if Hillary wins the nomination, I will be voting Republican in November. I would rather sit through 4 years of a Republican presidency and vote for Obama again in 2012, than sit through 4-8 years of a Billary presidency.

[skindoggy]

As I listen to the Cheerleader in Chief conduct the annual State of the Union Pep Rally,(stand up and cheer each time he passes gas)I am forced to realize that the shallowness of this country has reached new levels while the national intelligence of the greatest nation on earth has reached new lows. Senator Kennedy, with all due respect, you have fallen directly into the plan from the outset by the Republican Party. Their leaders are dancing with glee that the Democrats could move with momentum from their senior leadership to position a black candidate in clearly still, a country with deep seeded feelings and conflicts about race, evidenced already by the up-roar already between the Clinton and Obama campaigns. Despite the years of progress and positive change in race relations, we still have fundamental issues to overcome. While Obama is clearly the best choice to run, he will not get elected. Period. We will then be faced again with 8 more years of Republican incompetence. That is the impact of your endorsement.
Skindoggy