Snake Oil

Some may ask: what is the problem with Obama anyway?

Good question. Especially in the light of the race issue raised recently. As an old white guy, I am really afraid to even mention the issue. I don't say that lightly.

Watching Chris Matthews' Hard Ball discussion of Obama the other night, I was disheartened to hear the following statement from Chris, to the best of my memory:"If you don't like Obama you are racially prejudiced." I turned off the show at that point.

Here's my problem: his campaign is run at the lowest common denominator of politics. His web site asks you to believe in him on its home page. Then his campaign, very cynically in my view, promises people that he will solve all their problems without mentioning any specifics. It's a religion, not a political campaign.

Reminds me of the frontier years: 'This oil is made from genuine snake skins and is available only today - it will cure your colds, fix your cancer, stop the gout and plow the back 40. You have my personal guarantee. Only one measly dollar a bottle. Who will be the first among you?'

Senator Obama: as a nation we are at a crossroads. Either we will go down the road of increasing divisions between the government and the people or we will reverse the trends and move toward restoring the American Dream.

But, we can't move in the right direction based on hope and trust. We are Americans. We deserve answers, not platitudes.

Senator Obama: I don't care if you are black or purple with yellow stripes. I do care that you insult my intelligence and patriotism with vague promises.

Show us your concrete plans and talk about them. Your website has lots of policy proposals. Now is the time to flesh them out and name some people who will accomplish the specific tasks we need accomplished in a competent fashion.

Veeps Away

Here's the Dem problem: Hillary and Obama have voting blocs of about the same size, even though the blocs are very different.

To drastically oversimplify: Hillary's bloc is based on white women, blue collar and Latino voters while Obama's is based on blacks, upper middle class and younger voters.

The burning question is what will each candidate's bloc do when the candidate loses?

Hillary has made it clear - she will encourage Obama's bloc to vote democratic even if he loses. She has done that by offering him the Veepship. This is a move to unite the party.

But, Obama has not made a similar move to Hillary. Absent a similar move, he seems to prefer splitting the party and jeopardizing the general election to uniting the party.

Memo to Senator Obama: It's time to grow up. You cannot win the nomination without the superdelegates, just like Hillary. It is time to act like a politician instead of a preacher.

If politics is the art of the possible instead of the art of the pure, then Hillary is demonstrating politics at its highest.

To date, Senator Obama has responded only that he is not running for the Veepship.

He is absent from the discussion so far, seeming to prefer preaching to his choir.

Meet The Press: Rendell on why Hillary

GOV. RENDELL: Well, sure, Tim, because, number one, Hillary Clinton has won states with about 260 electoral votes. Barack Obama has won states with about 190. And we decide the presidency not by a popular vote, we decide it by the electoral vote. And the traditional role of the superdelegates is to determine who's going to be our strongest candidate. Tim, you and I have been doing this for a long time, as Tom has, and we know the big four in any presidential election recently are Pennsylvania, Ohio, Florida and Michigan. And in all four of those states--Pennsylvania hasn't voted yet, but I assume we're going to do real well--Hillary Clinton will have taken those states, if it--she takes Pennsylvania, and will have taken them by significant majorities. She's clearly the strongest candidate in the states that Democrats must win to have a chance. Look, it's great that Barack Obama is doing wonderfully well in Wyoming and Utah and, and places like that, but there's no chance we're going to carry those states. Whether he gets 44 percent as opposed to 39 percent doesn't matter, but we're not going to carry those states. We do have a chance to carry the big four. We've got to in three of the big four. Hillary Clinton's the strongest candidate to do that. That's been proven by the voters in the--those states and hopefully by Pennsylvania as well.