Starting Gate: Just Another Politician?

For most of the past year, Barack Obama has been more than a presidential candidate, he’s been the leader of a movement that seeks to transcend politics as usual, put away the divisions which have defined politics since the Vietnam era and find consensus among a broad swath of the electorate. But the lengthy and sometimes bitter primary campaign has taken a toll on that image in ways that might not become totally apparent until the general election should he win the nomination.

His past association with the controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright is, of course, the most obvious example of the dents his image has taken. The widely circulated comments made by Wright exposed the still-deep racial divisions, something Obama himself acknowledged in his much-heralded speech on the controversy. Concerns about Wright’s comments about Israel and the American government have caused enough suspicion about Obama’s feelings that he recently has felt the need to reiterate his patriotism on occasion.

But there are other signs that Obama is as much a practical politician as movement leader. This week, Obama signaled that he may decide to opt out of public financing for the fall election and rely instead on the unprecedented network of small donors he’s built. Such a move could almost insure that his campaign would have a huge financial advantage for the runup to November, a smart decision to be sure. But it comes after Obama had earlier said he would accept the public financing system as long as the GOP nominee did the same and all signs point to John McCain doing just that.

Then there is the issue of Michigan and Florida, where Obama forces were somewhat instrumental in stopping any efforts aimed at re-voting in those states. His campaign has a point in arguing against counting the results as they are from the January primaries, which broke party rules. But the moral high ground is not found in stopping voters in those two very important states. Shutting down the voters now may be the practical move to win the nomination but could haunt the campaign in November.

Obama has gotten tremendous mileage from his initial speech opposing the war in Iraq in 2002, contrasting him favorable with Hillary Clinton who is suspected of supporting the war for largely political reasons. Yet Obama’s pledge to end the war and withdraw U.S. troops in a specific time frame has been undermined at least once by a former advisor who acknowledged that what happens in Iraq largely depends on what the next president finds the situation to be upon coming into office. And while discredited to a point, the suggestion that another Obama advisor gave a wink to Canadian officials about his future course on NAFTA raises at least the possibility that what is said on the campaign trail is “just talk,” as Clinton likes to say.

Clinton is the prototype politician. It’s one reason she finds herself in the position of needing a miracle comeback. Obama’s perceived authenticity and grandiosity is the antidote to that. But in this long primary campaign, he’s shown that’s he’s a politician too.


The Real Big Apple? New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg made waves when he introduced Obama for an economic address. It was the second rather high-profile public melding of the one-time presidential aspirant and the Democratic front-runner and set off a round of talk about a possible ticket for the fall. Today, the independent mayor will go back across the aisle by introducing presumptive GOP nominee John McCain at a business roundtable. Bloomberg has indicated his endorsement is open to any candidate in the fall but appeared thus far to be leaning much more toward the Democrats, Obama in particular. "I hope we'll be able to by November say, 'There is a candidate that, while I don't agree with him or her on everything, they are not leading me down a garden path,'” Bloomberg tells the New York Daily News.


He Cares: After criticism that his initial reaction to the mortgage situation was too heavy on laissez-faire, McCain will today propose a plan that would give some homeowners facing foreclosure an opportunity to trade their mortgages for more manageable loans. According to the AP, the plan would help both the homeowner and lender by providing certificates to make up for the loan’s original value which could be shared if the house sells for more in the future. "It is built on the reality that homeowners should have an equity capital stake in their home," McCain will say, according to prepared remarks. "Homeowners would end up with a 30-year mortgage and an equity stake in their home. The new lender would receive a federal guarantee of the mortgage. And the taxpayer gets a benefit if the sale value ever recovers."


Around The Track

Both Democratic campaigns are scouring lists of delegates in California and seeking to purge any suspect delegates who might switch allegiances before party caucuses this weekend select the slate of delegates for each candidate, reports the AP.

Democratic activists, led by one-time conservative journalist David Brock, are launching a $40 million media campaign aimed at attacking McCain over the next few months, reports the Politico.

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar may have had at least one personal incentive when she decided to throw her support behind Obama. According to the Washington Post, when she was discussing the decision with Obama, Kolbuchar lobbied for her daughter to be considered for a vital position – that of babysitter for Obama’s two daughters.

“I've always been a Hillary supporter. There is no one more qualified. … Having said that, I never cease to be amazed at the misogynistic attitude of some of the people in this country. And I say to hell with them. … I love you Hillary, I’ll be there for you at all times.” – Elton John, at his fundraising concert for Clinton last night.