Obama's speech
Obama's speech at the Jefferson-Jackson dinner in Iowa has received a lot of plaudits, from myDD to David Yepsen:
Obama has a real talent for this. I still remember the feeling I had when I heard his speech at the DNC convention in 2004... it was like Howard Dean redux. He delivered the same message again: "I don't want to pit red America vs blue America. I want to be the President of the United States."
But while Obama did a fantastic job of highlighting the leadership failure of the Bush Administration, and differentiated himself admirably and with honor from Hillary Clinton (entirely unlike Edwards has done of late), the question remains in my mind, just where is the proof that Obama can deliver?
Obama's recent validation of the frame that there is a "crisis" in Social Security is a symptom of a deeper problem with Obama that the speech doesn't illuminate. Obama seems in many ways as committed to the establishment as Hillary. He says he is change we can believe in, but why should we believe? As Krugman notes, the social security comment is
If Obama had a parcel of policy proposals that were truly visionary and bold, then he would have a leg to stand on as he makes his case. But where is the bold?
Obama has a real talent for this. I still remember the feeling I had when I heard his speech at the DNC convention in 2004... it was like Howard Dean redux. He delivered the same message again: "I don't want to pit red America vs blue America. I want to be the President of the United States."
But while Obama did a fantastic job of highlighting the leadership failure of the Bush Administration, and differentiated himself admirably and with honor from Hillary Clinton (entirely unlike Edwards has done of late), the question remains in my mind, just where is the proof that Obama can deliver?
Obama's recent validation of the frame that there is a "crisis" in Social Security is a symptom of a deeper problem with Obama that the speech doesn't illuminate. Obama seems in many ways as committed to the establishment as Hillary. He says he is change we can believe in, but why should we believe? As Krugman notes, the social security comment is
a bad omen; it suggests that he is still, despite all that has happened, desperately seeking approval from Beltway insiders.
Substantively, this is wrong — and the tone-deafness is hard to understand. Tim Russert doesn’t vote in Iowa.
If Obama had a parcel of policy proposals that were truly visionary and bold, then he would have a leg to stand on as he makes his case. But where is the bold?
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