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Saturday, June 03, 2006

Barack Obama says he's "had enough."

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois was the main speaker Saturday night in Columbus at a $150-a-head fund-raising dinner for Ohio Democrats.

When he first ran for state senate in 1995, Obama said on the door-to-door campaign, he always was asked, "Where'd you get that funny name? Although people wouldn't say it right. They would call me 'Alabama.' Or they would call me 'Yo Mama.' And I would have to explain that it was O Bama."

"I never thought that I'd hear myself say this at a Democratic Party dinner,'' Obama said.
"But Newt Gingrinch made a great point the other day. He was being interviewed, talking about what an awful job his party has done in running the country. . . A reporter asked, 'Well what would you do if you were a Democrat?' ''
The former Republican House speaker said, "I would just use a two-word slogan. 'Had enough.' "

Then Obama ramped up his speech, attracting several standing ovations:
"I think we've all had enough. Enough of the broken promises. Enough of the failed leadership. Enough of the can't do, won't do, won't even try style of government. Four years after 9-11, I've had enough of being told that we can't find the money to make sure that our ports are protected and our railroads are protected and are chemical plants are protected, but we can find the money to give a tax break to Paris Hilton. I've had enough. I've had enough of the closed-door deals that give millions to HMOs, but we're told that we can't do a thing for 45 million uninsured, or the millions more that can't pay the medical bills. I've had enough of being told that we can't afford body armor for our troops and health care for our veterans and benefits for our wounded heroes that risked their lives for this country. I have had enough of that. I have had enough of giving millions away to oil companies, but we're told we can't invest in the renewable energy that will create jobs. . .and finally free us from our dependence on oil wells in Saudi Arabia so we can't stop funding both sides of the war on terror. . .I've had enough of being told that all we can do about this is sit and wait and hope that the good fortures of the few trickle down on everyone else in the country, including Ohio. I've had enough of that Ohio."

Obama, the only African American in the U.S. Senate, attended a reception at Veterans Memorial Hall sponsored by the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus, which includes state Rep. Tyrone K. Yates of Evanston, state Sen. Eric Kearney of North Avondale and state Rep. Catherine L. Barrett of College Hill.

Kearney introduced Obama before his keynote speech. In July 2004, Kearney hosted a Cincinnati fund-raiser for Obama. Kearney's wife, Jan-Michele, was in Obama's class at Harvard Law School. And the Kearneys attended Obama's wedding.

"We find ourselves at a crossroads in American history,'' Obama said. "I believe it is out time to lead this country once again."

The state Democratic Party raised more than $550,000 at the dinner attended by 2,500 people, according to party spokesman Brian Rothenberg.

Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, a former state senator, said he's been attending annual party dinners for 15 to 20 years, "and this is the biggest crowd I've ever seen. I think this says Democrats are energized.''

Mallory was named Ohio Democrat of the Year by Chairman Chris Redfern, who cited Mallory's leadership and "seamless transition" as the Queen City's new mayor.

Asked about Republican hopes that black Democrats will "cross over'' and vote for Secretary of State Ken Blackwell in this year's race for governor, Mallory said, "It's a two-way street with crossovers. There will be white Republicans who will cross and vote for (Democrat) Ted Strickland.''

Former Cincinnati Council candidate Samantha Herd, who is now working on the campaign to elect Ohio Rep. Barbara Sykes of Akron as state Auditor, added, "Electing Ken Blackwell is not the kind of historic we need."


23 Comments:

at 3:41 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm no Karl Rove, so what do we call it when Obama puts in an appearance against Blackwell:
1. Playing the race card?
2. Fighting fire with fire?

 
at 5:57 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Consider yourself lucky not to be Karl Rove. That would make you a traitor to your country. But on a serious note...

1. You cannot pretend for a minute that Blackwell hasn't played the race card every chance he gets. For instance, in 2004, he played the race card when he disenfranchised thousands of black voters and took polling machinces out of black neighborhoods. In 2006, he has played it time and time again, telling African-Americans only to vote for him because he's the some color as them.

2. Ken Blackwell is not Barack Obama. It may be fighting fire with fire in the sense of putting a matchstick (Blackwell) next to the Olympic torch (Obama). But to claim Blackwell is even on the same plain as Obama is just ridiculous.

 
at 7:00 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Had enough is right. Is it any wonder that the party that does not believe in government (the GOP) cannot or will not govern. That appointing party loyalists with no experience to important positions is a disaster. Literally.

In the proud tradition of "heckuva job Brownie" meet Tracy Henke...

From:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/local/story/422998p-356987c.html


The Homeland Security official who signed off on funding cuts for New York and extra cash for the heartland is a small-town gal whose back-door appointment to the job was mired in controversy.
Tracy Henke, 37, assistant secretary for grants and training, wasn't quickly confirmed by the U.S. Senate after her nomination last year because of allegations she played politics in her previous post.

So an impatient White House appointed her while Congress was in recess, drawing howls of outrage from lawmakers and sparking questions about her qualifications.

snip

Henke is from Moscow Mills, Mo., a town of 1,700 that touts a strip-mall pizzeria, a tractor dealership and a Citgo station as amenities on its Web site.

She majored in political science at the University of Missouri and worked for two GOP senators from her home state, John Danforth and then Kit Bond.

Incidentally, Henke just approved funding increases for two Missouri cities. St. Louis' funding increased by 24% and Kansas City, Mo., got an extra 12%.

Another Missouri native, former Attorney General John Ashcroft, brought Henke to the Department of Justice, where she oversaw a grant program and the Office of Domestic Preparedness.

At Justice, she caused an uproar when she demanded changes to a press release about a study that found minorities were more likely to be arrested or handcuffed during traffic stops.

Accusations that she undermined the objectivity of the department dogged her when the White House submitted her name for the high-level Homeland Security job the next year.

Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) questioned whether Henke had "politicized" the Bureau of Justice Statistics, and he fumed when the White House gave her the job before her nomination was even voted on.

snip

Before Henke had her say on funding levels, Homeland Security relied on an anonymous panel of more than 100 reviewers to rate security plans from around the country.

According to sources and documents obtained by the Daily News, the department drew the reviewers evenly from 48 states, 43 cities, three territories and several federal agencies.

Many were officials from emergency management offices or grant experts. They were each given 60 projects to evaluate - with about an hour per project - before meeting for a week in April in Emmitsburg, Md., to hash out the results.

That's where New York City's terror plans ended up rated among the nation's worst. Homeland Security officials refused to discuss how they decided New York City had no national monuments and few major banking institutions.

Heckuva job, Bushie. Not.

 
at 7:07 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ken Blackwell is hoping African Americans hate gays more than they care about their own economic self interest. Trickle down economics is a farce.

 
at 10:13 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

I forget, what party is Ken Blackwell, again? Hasn't he been a member of three political parties?

 
at 10:42 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

So Obama thinks it's time for the democrats to control the country.
Well they controlled it for 60 yrs. They gave us the great society which is responsible for many of the problems we now face in the U.S. Give the republicans 60+ yrs. and see if they can straighten things out.

 
at 10:44 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh, we are much better with a w(R)ong wing nut as leader.

We are a better nation with a coke head decider with one finger on the straw and the other on the nuke button.

How do you spell christian republican leadership:

HYPOCRITE !

Why is his left snorting nose so runny ?

Perhaps bush and rubberstamping chabot and buckwheat blackwell could start hanging with that Southgate, MI pioneer !

--

 
at 11:31 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Glad to see the Ohio Democrats praising Mallory's "seemless transition." Cincinnati's homicide rate continues to skyrocket unabated. Great job, Mr. Mayor!

 
at 11:31 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

The Secretary of State cannot pull machines out of black neighborhoods. That is up to the local (bipartisan) board of elections...doofus.

 
at 11:55 PM, June 04, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Barack Obama's visit was planned LONG before Blackwell was invited to speak at the Ohio Black Republicans summit. Trust me.
I hear Lee Fisher's pulling together $10,000 pledges for August houseparties featuring Bill Clinton, too. Will Republicans invite Bush back?

 
at 8:25 AM, June 05, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Isn't interesting that these democrats met at "Veterans Hall" but not one of them has wore this country's uniform?

 
at 10:05 AM, June 05, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Anonymous 8:25 AM,

I wouldn't talk about the subject of 'leaders' who haven't worn their countries uniform. The Republican Chickenhawks in Washington lied to get us in a war in Iraq, they have sent 2500 of our young men & women to die and 18,000 of them wounded, yet Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz and the Neocons all got deferment after deferment. Then there is our AWOL Chickenhawk-in-Chief who couldn't even complete his cushy national guard stint.

People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

RVGIV

 
at 10:13 AM, June 05, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Are you kidding me? George Bush went AWOL, and you complain about Dems not serving? Dick Cheney got five deferments while John Kerry was patrolling the Mekong Delta. Jack Murtha served while Newt Gingrich was resting his fat ass and avoiding the draft. Bob Kerrey lost a leg. Max Cleland lost two and an arm! How dare you diminish their service? This is just another example of how Republicans despise veterans. Maybe that's why they've cut their benefits, sent them to fight an illegal war, and can't even protect their social security numbers. How many active duty soldiers are going to come back from Iraq thousands in debt because of Republicans responsible for their identity theft? You're pathetic.

 
at 7:19 PM, June 05, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Subject: : Unreported

* Did you know that 25 Iraq students departed for the United States in January 2005 for the reestablished Fulbright program?

* Did you know that the Iraqi Navy is operational?! They have five 100-foot patrol craft, 34 smaller vessels and a naval infantry regiment.

* Did you know that Iraq's Air Force consists of three operational squadrons, which includes 9 reconnaissance and 3 US C-130 transport aircraft (under Iraqi operational control) which operate day and night, and will soon add 16 UH-1 helicopters and 4 Bell Jet Rangers?

* Did you know that Iraq has a counter-terrorist unit and a Commando Battalion?

* Did you know that the Iraqi Police Service has over 55,000 fully trained and equipped police officers?

* Did you know that there are 5 Police Academies in Iraq that produce over 3500 new officers each 8 weeks?

* Did you know there are more than 1100 building projects going on in Iraq? They include 364 schools, 67 public clinics, 15 hospitals, 83 railroad stations, 22 oil facilities, 93 water facilities and 69 electrical facilities.

* Did you know that 96% of Iraqi children under the age of 5 have received the first 2 series of polio vaccinations?

* Did you know that 4.3 million Iraqi children were enrolled in primary school by mid October?

* Did you know that there are 1,192,000 cell phone subscribers in Iraq and phone use has gone up 158%?

* Did you know that Iraq has an independent media that consists of 75 radio stations, 180 newspapers and 10 television stations?

* Did you know that 47 countries have reestablished their embassies in Iraq?

* Did you know that the Iraqi government currently employs 1.2 million Iraqi people?

* Did you know that 3100 schools have been renovated, 364 schools are under rehabilitation, 263 schools are now under construction and 38 new schools have been built in Iraq?

* Did you know that Iraq's higher educational structure consists of 20 Universities, 46 Institutes or colleges and 4 research centers, all currently operating?


* Did you know that the Baghdad Stock Exchange opened in June of 2004?

* Did you know that 2 candidates in the Iraqi presidential election had a televised debate recently?

OF COURSE YOU DIDN'T KNOW . .

AND I DIDN'T KNOW!

WHY DIDN'T WE KNOW?

OUR MEDIA WOULDN'T TELL US!


Instead of reflecting our love for our country, we get photos of flag burning incidents at Abu Ghraib and people throwing snowballs at the presidential motorcades.

The lack of accentuating the positive in Iraq serves two purposes. It is intended to undermine the world's perception of the United States, thus minimizing consequential support, and it is intended to discourage American citizens.

*** Above facts are verifiable on the Department of Defense web site.

 
at 10:42 PM, June 05, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Did you know that Rumsfeld told us he knew where the weapons of mass destruction were located?

That fact is verifiable on the DoD website, as well.

 
at 11:30 PM, June 05, 2006 Blogger G. Patrick Colvin said...

This is for wake up america from The Alarm at WakeUpNowAmerica.blogspot.com! Are you really a simpleton or do you just play one in the blogosphere?

Guess what genius, it's hard for the media to tell us about the schools that have opened when they refuse media coverage because it will make them a bombing target?

Phone use is up? Who gives a crap? Well at least its one way that families can keep in touch since they can't go outside for fear of being kidnapped or shot?

25 Iraqis came to America on Fulbright scholarships. Kudos! Between 38,000 and 42,000 Iraqis have died as either a direct result of military action or from circumstances created by the war.

The Iraq navy! Are you serious? Less than forty vessels none bigger than 100 feet. Ivy league crew teams have more seapower! And, by the way, WHO CARES? No one is being kidnapped, bombed or shot on the high seas. Were not dealing with pirates you imbecile. Were dealing with terrorist, who by the way weren't in Iraq before we invaded.

The Iraqi police has 55,000 fully trained and equipped police officers. That would be great except for the fact that most of them are Shiite militiamen who are busy killing Sunnis instead of maintaining order.

There are 1100 building projects in Iraq because we obliterated ther infrastructure. Most Iraqis still have no running water in their homes, there electricity is rationed and there is sewage backing up in both the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. These rivers, in case you are unfamiliar with world history (and being a Republican apologist I'm sure you are), gave rise to the first civilizations in the entire world. By the way, how many of those 1100 projects are being run or staffed by Iraqis whose unemployment rate is close to 46% in case you care, which I know you don't.

Oh boy, the Baghdad Stock Exchange is open. Well hallelujah, Praise the Lord and Pass the Doctored Account books. In a country with 46% unemployment, who in God's name is going to be buying stock. Especially when they are to bust trying to buy ice and clean drinking water.

Listen you Pollyanna, you can blow sunshine up my hind end all you want but don't expect me to thank you for the breeze. Shut your piehole and get some real facts before you try and claim that things are going swimmingly in Iraq, when we all know it is an A1 Cluster. . .

As far as accentuating the positive, let me ask you a question? Should my cousin be singing "Always look on the Bright Side of Life" while his Chinook is being shot at in Iraq. There is no need for the media to undermine our standing in the world and minimize public support for the war because unlike you we can see what's going on and we don't like it and we haven't liked it for a long time. So, why don't you climb back under your rock and leave the important stuff to the rest of us. So long then. Bye, Bye now.

 
at 11:30 PM, June 05, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

*Did you know that more than 6000 civilians have been killed in Iraq in the past 5 months alone? This brings the Iraqi body count to over 38,000 dead since the beginning of the war.

*Did you know that According to statistics by Iraq's morgues institute, 6,002 Iraqi's were killed in the past five months: 1,068 in January, 1,110 in February, 1,294 in March, 1,155 in April and 1,375 in May?

*Did you know that most of the corpses had gunshot wounds, while others showed marks of burns or electrocution?

*Did you know that morgues institute officials said that since the institute was established in 1927, it had never received such a huge number of corpses as currently, with the daily average now 35 to 50 per day?

*Did you know that before the US-led coalition invasion of Iraq and the toppling of Saddam Hussein in 2003, the institute used to receive only seven to 10 corpses per day?

* Did you know that overall, the number of Iraqi military and police trained and equipped is more than 190,000, according to the U.S. military, which has also said there are 107 operational military and special police battalions. As of last month, however, U.S. and Iraqi commanders had rated only three battalions were capable of operating independently from the US military?

*Did you know that 33% of Iraqis still don't have access to a flowing water? That's less than half the prewar level.

*Did you know that Baghdad residents still have an average of just 3.6 hours of electricity per day? The pre-war level for Baghdad was 16-24 hours per day. The national average now is 6.8 hours per day, compared to 15-16 hours per day prewar.

*Did you know that Washington has allocated nearly $20 billion to reconstruction Iraq's infrastructure, but programs will largely to end this year and over 75% of that $20 billion has been squandered on incompetent and crooked subcontractors and security contracts?

*Did you know that 75% of Iraq's garbage goes uncollected? There is rotting trash everywhere and it is spreading diseases.

*Did you know that there is a cholera outbreak that is on the verge of a pandemic in Baghdad?

*Did you know that One in four Iraqi children suffers from chronic malnutrition, while over 9 percent of Iraqi children are acutely malnourished, even though enough food is being produced at the national level?

BUT DID YOU KNOW THIS??

OF COURSE YOU DID, IF YOU READ OR WATCH THE NEWS!!

UNLESS OF COURSE YOU RELY ON THE RIGHT WING BIASED ENQUIRER FOR YOUR NEWS, CINCINNATI'S OWN VERSION OF FOX NEWS.

The apologists for Bush and the neocon chickenhawks Iraq war need to accept reality and just shut up. We were lied to and misled. This president should be impeached and Cheney should be in jail.

 
at 8:37 AM, June 06, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

wake up america....
Did you know that if we were told the truth to begin with -- that there were no weapons of mass destruction to warrant an illegal invastion -- we wouldn't even care about these stupid facts?

 
at 8:43 AM, June 06, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Has anyone noticed that Barak Obama could be Chris Smitherman's "nice" twin?

 
at 9:14 AM, June 06, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Subject: : Unreported

Nothing like w(R)ong wing nut propaganda !

Assasinate a family then site vacant housing as an opportunity !

Spin, spin, spin !

The coke heads are so creative !

Just because my nose is runny and my eys are High gloss does't mean I'm not a good little christian

--

 
at 10:32 AM, June 06, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

it seems that the Liberals are just looking for a reason to abandon the Irai people.

everything is hate and negativism with them. I don't know why they want to follow leaders like Howard Dean who are so full of hate that it spreads throughout the party, but you can read the anger so clearly here, and it's so dark and evil.

and for what? all this anger and lying just for political power!

there's no solutions, only hate, who just want to call black Republicans racist names, and are always so willing to make our troops look bad.

democrats are singularly sour people.

 
at 10:45 AM, June 06, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

You w(R)ong wing nuts don't have a clue!

Stop trying to build bridges with the blacks, because we're sending buckwheat blackwell down the river in chains!

If you think you are going to deprogram ohio blacks then you obviously don't know schmidt ! lol lol lol

Even this w(R)ong wing nut fishwrap knows that the blacks dance to our tune!!

And Howard Dean is a genius, not some coke head Christian decider!!

lol lol lol

 
at 11:25 AM, June 06, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Barack Obama is just too darn pretty.

 
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