by John McCormick
DES MOINES – Waking up to a new year and new lead in a closely watched poll, Sen. Barack Obama kicked off a daylong Iowa fly around by making a relatively rare appearance with his two daughters and wife.
"Happy New Year everybody," the Illinois Democrat said late this morning. "I think 2008 is going to be a good year…I think some big things might happen in 2008."
The stop was the first on a day when Obama will visit three of Iowa's four corners in advance of Thursday's presidential caucuses.
"You've given everybody a fair hearing," he said. "You've been bombarded by mail and phone calls, and 'I have approved this message,' and so you have earned this special place you have in this democracy."
Obama asked those who have decided to support others to keep him in mind as their second choice.
"If I am not your first choice, you know, if you made a mistake," he said. "Then, make me your second choice."
Obama walked on stage holding hands with his daughters, after being introduced by his wife, Michelle.
"I want to thank Sasha and Malia for putting up with me running for president for the last 10 months," he said, after the girls waved shyly to an audience of hundreds in a high school gym. "And how about the Christmas commercial? They hit their lines perfectly."
Obama was talking about a campaign ad that featured the girls and his wife sitting next to a Christmas tree and fireplace that played before and during the holiday.
The rally came as Tuesday's edition of The Des Moines Register carried a large headline that reported that a new Iowa Poll shows Obama ahead of Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards.
The poll, whose methodology has been criticized by the Clinton and Edwards campaign for having too many independents and first-time caucus participants, provided a critical psychological boost for Obama after several days that the media storyline had focused on a surge by Edwards.
Independents and even Republicans are groups that Obama routinely reaches out to while campaigning. But Obama warned against over confidence.
"The polls look good, but understand the polls are not good enough," he said. "The only thing that matters is if you show up to caucus."
Obama said he rejected the "politics of slash and burn" when he was behind Clinton in the polls over the summer and early fall, saying he opposed doing a "Tonya Harding on the front-runner."
Those gathered at the rally were preparing to knock on thousands of doors as part of a canvassing effort. Campaign officials said Obama volunteers had knocked on about 50,000 doors on Sunday.
After a motherly instruction to wear hats and mittens on a cold day, Michelle Obama pledged her husband would be "the best president we have seen in a long time."
As he has in recent days, Obama continued to reflect on the journey he has taken this campaign, after kicking off his effort on the steps of the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Ill., in February.
"Ten months later, Iowa, you have vindicated my faith in the American people," he said. "Ten months later, we stand on the brink of doing something very, very special."
Obama, who is set to travel aboard a plane with a growing media contingent, was scheduled to also make stops today in Sioux City, Council Bluffs and Dubuque, where he is expected to end his day with a 10:30 p.m. rally.
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Comments
May Obama go forward, having won Iowa, to win the rest of the hearts and minds in America
Posted by: swoods | January 1, 2008 2:00 PM
Somebody please put a fork in the Clinton Machine...
It's done.
America is a Democracy - Not a Monarchy.
No more failed Presidents elected on the back of Nepotism.
Barack Obama for President of the United States of America.
It's time to Rise and Shine again.
Posted by: PulSamsara | January 1, 2008 2:09 PM
1. Edwards lost Iowa in 2004.
2. Edwards lost the Primary bid for the Democrat Presidential candidate.
3. Edward then went on as part of the 2004 loosing ticket for the general election as V.P.
Even IF Edwards won Iowa. He will then loose NH, NV.SC. Which means Hillary would possibly be the nominee. So a Vote for Edwards in Iowa is a vote wasted and for Hillary (NOT FOR CHANGE).
Why go through all this and then WASTE your vote Iowa? You voted for Edwards already in 2004 and he LOST it.
It means that anyone who caucus for Edward will have a wasted vote. Even if Edwards wins 2nd or first in Iowa. Edwards will loose NH, NV and SC etc. He has no money to compete in those states. It is no coincident that the Media all of a sudden wants to promote that Edwards is now relevant. He is NOT. But Hilary wants American to think so. Just so she cannot be seen as a complete looser in Iowa. She would then destroy Edward through out the rest of the nominating process. Iowa Voters must know a vote for Edwards is a vote for Hillary in the long run, But Hillary would loose the General election. Obama is the only Democrat that beats ALL Republicans in the General election.
Posted by: Kevin, Landover, MD | January 1, 2008 2:22 PM
In 2008, the Democrats don’t need to choose the lesser of the evils; this time around, it’s the GOP voters who find themselves in that position. Democrats have a field of qualified, experienced, intelligent, viable candidates, while Republicans are scrambling to determine whose skeletons are least likely to fall out of the closet before the general election.
The Clinton campaign has made a big to-do about Obama’s supposed lack of experience, and his relatively short tenure in Washington, D.C.
Given the corruption that runneth over in the nation’s capitol, I’m not entirely certain that lack of years in Washington is a negative quality. In fact, I think it’s one of Barack’s strongest advantages.
Barack Obama is a candidate that the average American voter can relate to. He wasn’t born into wealth, or a political family, or big business. His mother and grandparents were from Kansas, his father a student from Africa, and he was born in Hawaii, a state known even in the tumultuous 1960s for its tolerance and acceptance of diversity. Like most of us, he went through a phase in which he partied and experimented with drugs, but ultimately his intelligence and drive led him on a path away from temptation and towards great academic success. He was the first African American editor of the prestigious Harvard Law Review. He established himself as a civil rights lawyer, and taught at the University of Chicago. He got elected to the state legislature in Illinois, fighting for health care and welfare reform and an end to racial profiling by law officers. He won his U.S. Senate seat with 70% of the vote and became a household name after his moving speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
He didn’t spend eight years in the White House as the spouse of the President. He’s been in the Senate only four years shorter than Hillary. He didn’t tour the world as Hillary did in her role as First Lady, he lived abroad, in Indonesia. There’s something to be said of experience, the kind of experience that Senators Biden and Dodd have after decades in the Senate. But Hillary’s attacks on Barack’s experience are unfounded, particularly when her own experience is not so involved as she often makes it seem. There is a great deal to be said for real world experience, the kind that Barack had while Hillary’s husband (not Hillary) ran this country from 1992-2000. Indeed, Hillary has served in the Senate a few years more. But Barack has served as an elected official since 1997, and his understanding of the political process is every bit as developed as hers.
Real world vs. Washington experience is why I believe Barack is the best candidate for the Democratic nomination. Hillary has been in the public eye and Washington for 15 years, and with that comes a degree of protection that makes walking down the street impossible. Barack has spent more time, more recently, with everyday people. Before 2004, he was everyday people. His anti-lobbying stance has helped him elude the number of special interest friends and enemies the Clintons and other Washingtonian politicos have made.
I think Barack Obama is the candidate most likely to bring a fresh, untainted perspective to the presidency. We need that, in this day and age where all the friends in high places and experience cannot guarantee our safety from our enemies or a balanced budget. I’m tired of the old establishment. I don’t feel 20+ years of Bush and Clinton presidencies will bring about any significant degree of change in the way the rest of the world views our nation, or peace in the Middle East. If Hillary Clinton is such a foreign policy expert, why have many of Clinton’s advisors decided to lend their support to Barack Obama and not their former boss’s wife?
Hillary’s campaign has taken ugly turn after ugly turn since Obama’s recent surge in the polls, and I’m not a fan of Democrats who focus to much of their attack on their Democratic colleagues in the primaries. The big picture is, can you beat Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee, and Fred Thompson? Many feel Hillary has the best chance because of her noteriety across America. I think she is vulnerable to attacks from the GOP that will make the Swift Boat ad look like child’s play.
Republicans HATE the Clintons. They sought to destroy everything the Clintons stood for during Bill’s administration, and they will stop at nothing to destroy Hillary’s chances at the presidency. If she is elected, she will face the same music Bush did, a Congress unwilling to sign blank checks at the president’s bidding. Even if the Democrats maintain a slight majority, it’s clear that a slight majority in Congress, especially if Joe Lieberman is considered part of that majority, is worth little when it comes to controversial legislation.
Barack Obama conducts himself with a calm, collected, level-headed demeanor. He speaks openly and honestly, admitting to past mistakes like his drug use with a frankness Americans aren’t used to hearing from their leaders. He is a deliberate debator, and while many consider the pauses in his speech to be a sign of unpreparedness or stage fright, I believe he is the kind of candidate who likes to think about what he’s saying to you. He’s not spewing talking points hashed by a team of advisors and debate prep staff. He listens, he thinks, and then he talks. He doesn’t have the rapid-fire responses Hillary has, and I believe that helps him avoid damaging missteps in debates and Q&As.
I like that he’s young. I like that he’s new. I like his open-mindedness, his honesty, his sense of humor, his intelligence, his diverse background which has given him an original perspective. I like him, which is a lot more than I can say about many politicians in Washington.
Simply because I’m not supporting Hillary Clinton doesn’t mean I don’t want a woman in the White House someday. But America is at a critical junction, and so much is at stake in this election. I believe now isn’t the time to vote based on gender, race, or religion. It’s time to vote for a change. Out of the entire candidate pool, GOP and Democratic, I feel Obama is the one most likely to bring about change for our nation.
On February 5, 2007, in the Illinois primary, I will proudly cast my vote for Barack Obama, and I encourage each and every one of you to do the same.
P.S. - and as far as foreign policy experience goes I give you the George W. Bush administration as exhibit 1A of it not meaning squat.
Posted by: ObamaGirl | January 1, 2008 2:24 PM
I believe that Hillary's feeble claims to 35 yrs of what is in reality Bill's experience has likely sold voters on Joe Biden. And Joe will make a strong Secretary of State. For leadership I support Senator Barack Obama for President!
Posted by: TishiJo | January 1, 2008 5:00 PM
"Comments aren't posted immediately. They're screened for relevance to the topic, obscenity, spam..."
So this is another blatant lie, right? You're just going to allow John E Obama Girl Paolo copy-and-paste the same meandering drivel day after day after day... right?
I wonder, will you permit anybody else to spam the Swamp?
Posted by: MJ | January 1, 2008 5:18 PM
Wow, this is a good long posting from ObamaGirl. Next time cut it short and have many postings instead. Mr. President Obama, you better start getting used to the name.
Posted by: baba | January 1, 2008 6:06 PM
I wonder, will you permit anybody else to spam the Swamp?
Posted by: MJ | January 1, 2008 5:18 PM
Quit crying Juanito,
You've been kicked off this site at least three times for being a racist and yet you always create a new post name and then reappear. Go away you hater.
Juanito
Leo T
Anonymous
Anonymous 1
Anonymous 2
and now, "M J"
You're a real loser....
Posted by: J M | January 1, 2008 9:02 PM
Iowans hold history in their hands, and our nation's future. Please give us Obama for President for 2008. We must NOT go for dynastic rule. Hillary would not be where she is if she had not made a pact with an adulterous husband, if she had not voted for the Iraq war, knowing it was wrong, and placed our children in mortal danger. She has a track record in failure, and her Presidency would also be an enormous failure. Women of the US, do we really want a woman President who closed her eyes to her husband's humiliating sex addiction and who has sent our children off to war for her own political ambitions? She is like a character out of "I, Claudius," and HER US will be like the Roman Empire on its last legs.
Posted by: shirlim | January 1, 2008 9:54 PM
For those referring to wasting "votes" in Iowa, or that "Iowans" are deciding the nominee, you may want to look up how a caucus works.
Posted by: prescott | January 2, 2008 12:36 AM
MJ,
Leo T. Juanito--Is that you blog-mom? While I don't care for spam, I don't like four hour delays on post, easier to ignore it. Put in dirty-word filter and let things move along.
Posted by: dusty | January 2, 2008 1:36 AM
TONY REZKO IS THE REASON FOR OBAMA'S RISE AND TONY REZKO IS THE REASON FOR OBAMA'S FALL...OBAMA IS NOT A FRESH BREATH IN POLITICS HE IS THE STAME STENCH LIKE ANY POLITICIANS FROM ILLINOIS. ARE YOU PEOPLE READING ABOUT ALL THESE SCANDALS IN ILLINOIS BEFORE YOU REACH TO AN EDUCATED DECISION?
Posted by: haroun | January 2, 2008 3:13 AM
Bush, Clinton, Bush . . . Clinton???? What are we - a 3rd world country or something?
Move out of the way, Hillary, let real change begin!
Posted by: obamafan | January 2, 2008 3:22 PM