NDN Blog

Obama on CBS: Looking ahead

Barack Obama sat down with CBS' Katie Couric in one of his first interviews since becoming the Democratic nominee. In it, he touches on the VP search, McCain, etc. Check it out below:

Friday deadline

In a joint statement released this morning, Democratic Party leaders encouraged the remaining uncommitted superdelegates to make their decision by this Friday. Below is the statement issued by Howard Dean, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Harry Reid, and Gov. Joe Manchin, chairman of the DGA. Via Andrew Malcolm from the LA Times blog:

Joint Statement by Democratic Leaders on the End of the Presidential Primary Process

"We have come to the end of an exciting primary and caucus process - the voters have spoken. As the Democratic leaders of the Senate, House of Representatives, the Governors and the Democratic National Committee we commend all of the participants of the 2008 primary process, especially Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, for making this such a transformational election.

"Because of the enthusiasm our candidates have inspired, our party has brought record numbers of voters to the polls, gained millions of newly registered Democrats and now has advantages in states many thought were difficult to win. We are grateful to the millions of Independents and Republicans who have crossed over to vote for a Democratic candidate for President.

"Democrats must now turn our full attention to the general election. To that end, we are urging all remaining uncommitted super delegates to make their decisions known by Friday of this week so that our party can stand united and begin our march toward reversing the eight years of failed Bush/McCain policies that have weakened our country.

"We once again congratulate all of the candidates for their leadership and dedication to providing this country with a New Direction. We look forward to working with them and with all Democrats to win the White House, congressional seats and state capitals so we can deliver the change the American people deserve and demand."

Open discussion: Reactions from tonight

I'd like to hear your reactions to what you heard, what you didn't hear, etc. in the speeches delivered this evening by Sens. McCain, Clinton, and Obama. One requirement: keep it civil and respectful.

Feel free to post a comment below. If you don't already have an existing account, you can register by clicking here. (Note: if you click on the link to register and it takes you to an empty page, that means you already have an account. E-mail me at the address above if you need help finding your username.)

If you have any trouble doing this, please don't hesitate to contact me at tvalentine@ndn.org. I'll be happy to help, especially if it means that we'll hear from you!

Obama: This is our time

I'll post video as soon as it's available, but here is a link to Obama's remarks he is set to deliver in MN.

Update: The video of Obama's speech is below:

Senator Clinton's speech

Here is a video of Senator Clinton's remarks:

Obama's unprecedented "Mensaje"

Speaking to and engaging the Spanish-speaking electorate has been a focus of ours at NDN and NPI. As we wrote in the Speak in Spanish memo of our New Tools Campaign:

Simply targeting Hispanics is not sufficient - communication must also include a Spanish language strategy. Bi-lingual communication, including a Spanish language component, must become a central part of any strategy pursued by groups seeking to appeal to the Hispanic community.

Having seen his new ad running in Puerto Rico, it seems as if Sen. Barack Obama understood what we were saying at the very least. In "Mensaje a Puerto Rico", Obama speaks with a decent Spanish accent (according to Andres) throughout the entire 30 second ad. This is unprecedented in presidential politics, as no likely nominee or incumbent of either party has ever looked directly into the camera and spoken Spanish for the duration of an ad. Check it out below.

Obama is truly paving the way with this ad, which is a tremendous step forward in engaging a community that is a continuously rising force in American politics and is one that, according to our Electoral maps, could hold the key to an enduring majority. For that reason, it would now be a let down if he didn't air similar ads in the Southwest in the weeks and months ahead.

Obama on Latin America at CANF luncheon

Today in Miami, Barack Obama will deliver a major policy address on Latin America at a Cuban American National Foundation (CANF) luncheon. According to the release, Obama "will deliver a major foreign policy address that rejects the Bush-McCain approach that has neglected the Americas and failed to adapt to the realities of our changing world. He will renew the leadership of the United States in the hemisphere by using direct diplomacy to advance democracy, forging a new regional approach to combat insecurity, and aggressively promoting economic opportunity through new trade, aid and energy policies."

While I doubt the speech will be exactly like the one Obama delivered in Little Havana, I would be surprised if it didn't borrow somewhat from a speech that Gov. Bill Richardson delivered to the NDN/UCLA communities on October 27, 2007 in Los Angeles. You can watch his speech, A New Partnership with Latin America, below. You can also print or download the transcript here.

More Hagee Controversy

In his recent piece for the Huffington Post, Sam Stein highlights the latest controversy surrounding John Hagee, an evangelical leader who backs John McCain. As Stein states, Hagee "argued in a late 1990s sermon that the Nazis had operated on God's behalf to chase the Jews from Europe and shepherd them to Palestine." Listen to the remarks for yourself below:


Mapping an Enduring Majority

Below are electoral maps constructed by NDN that show how an enduring majority of electoral votes can be achieved by flipping the Southwestern states of NV, CO, AZ, and NM. (That's without states like FL and OH, let alone IA and NH.)

(Click the maps below for a larger image.)

Starting off with the Core Democrat/Republican States over the past 4 cycles:

This shows just the Core Democratic States over the past 4 cycles:

Here are the Core Democratic States with the South West added:

Then if we add states with large Hispanic populations on top of all that:

We have an Enduring Democratic Majority:

If you add other possible states like IA and NH, you would have 335 votes:

NDN on Obama the leader and how CA ruling helps Newsom

Over the past few days, NDN commented on two very important news items: the CA ruling on same-sex marriage and the emergence of Barack Obama as a leader.

- John M. Glionna and Lee Romney of the Los Angeles Times asked Simon his opinion of how the recent decision by the CA Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriage will affect San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. In their piece, Same-sex marriage ruling is a boost for San Francisco's Newsom, Simon argues that the decision will help Newsom. "Until now, what voters know about Newsom outside San Francisco is still shallow," he says. "But this cause will help him define himself. Now he can speak to a state and national audience on an issue where he has stuck by his principles." (5/17/08) (This was also featured in the United Press International.)

- In the Washington Independent, Holly Yeager shows how Barack Obama is adjusting to his new position as The Party Leader. Simon walks readers through the process, explaining how "Obama will be controlling the Democratic convention, and the entire convention will be about nominating him and his ascension to the top of the party." He adds: "We’re now going to see Sen. Obama’s insurgent campaign melding and becoming the party establishment. There is going to be a new Democratic Party. There is going to be an upheaval and a new order is going to emerge." (5/15/08) 

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