This morning I officially launched my campaign for U.S. Senate.
This campaign is not about me … it’s about all of us, and we are going to need your help to win.
In Pennsylvania, like all around the country, we find ourselves in challenging times.
But this nation has always thrived on the knowledge that with adversity comes opportunity. We have an opportunity – if we act now, with vision and resolve – to root out endemic problems in our financial system, to provide health care and educational opportunities for all, and to recommit ourselves to our core principles of honesty, accountability, and hard work … and to put principle above politics.
We must restore the promise of the American Dream – that our children will have the opportunity, based upon their talents, to do even better than their parents.
For too long, people in powerful positions have failed to remember that the American Dream has never been about getting ahead. It is about having an opportunity to do well and to create a better world for the next generation so they will be inspired to do the same.
It is that great pact between generations – that we will pass down a better world than the one we inherited – that has been lost for the first time in our history. That is why I am running for the U.S. Senate.
Why has that pact been lost? Because the people you sent to Washington to represent you – to look out for you – failed to do so, and must be held accountable. That’s why my District voted for change in 2006, our nation voted for change last year, and Pennsylvania will vote for change next year to remain committed to a new direction.
The challenge we face today is itself an opportunity to remember that America’s strength has never come from force of arms, industrial might, or even innovation. These are simply the fruits of the conviction that everyone deserves a fair shot, that everyone can and should contribute to their full potential, and that honest hard work will be respected and rewarded.
If you believe in that message, I ask you to please show your support at this time by making a contribution. We need every dollar to help restore the American Dream!
Check out the new Obama volunteer tool we just put up on the sidebar of DoubleSpeak (veer eyes to the right). It’s very important that in these final days of the 2008 campaign, you get out – make some calls, knock some doors, call your friends and family and Get Out the Vote for the Obama/Biden ticket.
As I write this post, Matthew is in Winchester, VA, Josh is working hard in Pennsylvania, and I’m bringing up the rear in beautiful Tampa, FL.
This is the moment we’ve all been waiting for – let’s finish the task of electing Sen. Barack Obama as our next President of the United States of America. Volunteer tomorrow, Monday and take the day off for Election Day on Tuesday.
Go to work! We’ll see you on the other side of victory.
Just in case you needed more inspiration to get to work:
released three battleground state polls this morning showing Obama slightly ahead in Ohio and Florida (within the margin of error) and holding a substantial lead in Pennsylvania. Read the poll results here.
It is certainly a minor point, but the media continues to be tremendously lazy with the actual results of yesterday’s Pennsylvania primary. As of 11 am the day after the race, with 99.44% reporting (still missing 52 districts out of 9,264) Clinton is on top of Obama by 9.2%, not the 10% that is widely reported. Yes, this is a small number, but there is a tremendous psychological difference between a double-digit and single-digit win.
Where we stand today (according to the AP Delegate Tracker):
Obama: 1,481 pledged + 233 super = 1,714 delegates
Clinton: 1,331 pledged + 258 super = 1,589 delegates
I’m not sure if this includes this morning’s superdelegate endorsement of Obama by Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry. As Chuck Todd noted on NBC last night, Clinton now needs to win 70% of the delegates on May 6 in NC and IN and 80% after that date if she can’t meet that number.
This morning, Bruce Springsteen endorsed Barack Obama for President of the United States. Here is the letter that he posted on his website.
Dear Friends and Fans:
LIke most of you, I’ve been following the campaign and I have now seen and heard enough to know where I stand. Senator Obama, in my view, is head and shoulders above the rest.
He has the depth, the reflectiveness, and the resilience to be our next President. He speaks to the America I’ve envisioned in my music for the past 35 years, a generous nation with a citizenry willing to tackle nuanced and complex problems, a country that’s interested in its collective destiny and in the potential of its gathered spirit. A place where “…nobody crowds you, and nobody goes it alone.”
At the moment, critics have tried to diminish Senator Obama through the exaggeration of certain of his comments and relationships. While these matters are worthy of some discussion, they have been ripped out of the context and fabric of the man’s life and vision, so well described in his excellent book, Dreams of My Father, often in order to distract us from discussing the real issues: war and peace, the fight for economic and racial justice, reaffirming our Constitution, and the protection and enhancement of our environment.
After the terrible damage done over the past eight years, a great American reclamation project needs to be undertaken. I believe that Senator Obama is the best candidate to lead that project and to lead us into the 21st Century with a renewed sense of moral purpose and of ourselves as Americans.
Over here on E Street, we’re proud to support Obama for President.
In 2004, Bruce passionately endorsed John Kerry and played some great shows for him in the final days of the fall campaign. Alas, there is no President Kerry, but given the fact that Obama has had some trouble “connecting” with working class voters (I don’t believe this, but it’s out there in the media narrative), this endorsement from the Boss should help solidify some of that blue-collar support.
Here’s video from that 2004 event in Madison, Wisconsin.
Bitter. That was the word of the weekend. The press, pundits and talking heads are running away with this story, trying to turn it into a full-blown scandal and as expected, the Clinton campaign is pushing Obama’s quote to just about anyone who will listen. This doesn’t surprise me – at this point, they need to find any opening to try and knock down Obama, especially as he picks up a little headwind in Pennsylvania. In fact, Obama’s comments have now taken on a life of their own. He’s being accused of being a snob, out of touch and elitist, even though he said something that Bill Clinton has echoed many times in the recent past.
In fact, many Democrats have made the argument that voters have been acting against their economic interest by simply voting on wedge issues like guns, gays and god and ignoring what policy makers are actually saying about the issues that touch them most – the economy, health care, war and peace, etc. It’s also pretty clear that some Americans are bitter at the way the government have been treating them over the past couple decades. If I didn’t have adequate health care for my family and I had a sick kid, or needed care myself, I too might be a little bitter.
Rest assured for all you worrier’s out there – this story will go away in the next couple days. There is a debate at the Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Wednesday, and assuming that this issue is still swirling, Obama should be able to pacify the situation by giving a more artful explanation of what he meant in his comments and to clarify the pieces of the statement that have seemed to take on a life of their own.
The Obama campaign has wisely decided to put up Bob Casey on television to defend Obama. Here’s the ad.