OBAMARAMA

Enjoy!

An interesting video of what young people in Athens, Ohio know about Sen. Obama. This was apparently taped a few weeks ago, and while most of the commentary is positive, it underscores how important it is that we get information about Sen. Obama out there over the next 10 months.

I have to say, though, “Barack 2008 — Why Not?” wouldn’t be my pick for a campaign slogan.

(Hat tip goes to Blog Obama ‘08.)

From Jimmy Kimmel:

This may not seem like the sort of video you’d expect to find on a site dedicated to promoting Sen. Obama’s candidacy, and for good reason: it is a negative spot conflating his name with that of known tyrants and terrorists.

The video’s focus on Sen. Obama’s name is purely superficial, and belies more than anything the creator’s discomfort with the idea of a black man with an unfamiliar name running the country. I opted to post it because I think it’s typical of the attacks we’ll see on Sen. Obama from many on the right once he becomes the Democratic nominee.

Some Democrats are undoubtedly uneasy with what they perceive as a vast swath of this country that simply will not vote for Sen. Obama based on his name and his skin color. I think that logic sells Americans short. I wouldn’t put “Hussein” on the campaign literature exactly, but we should welcome discussion about Sen. Obama’s name — and showcase the small-mindedness of those who will try to use it against him.

The fact is, if that’s the line conservatives choose to take, it means they’re unable to engage on the issues, and Sen. Obama’s supporters shouldn’t miss an opportunity to point that out. I was encouraged when reports came out a few months ago that callers to Sen. Obama’s office inquiring about his middle name were told that “It’s Hussein, like the dictator.” That, my friends, takes balls. And if there is one thing Democrats need…

At the end of the day, I’m confident that those who are persuaded by the sophomoric “Obama rhymes with Osama” line wouldn’t have voted for Sen. Obama anyway — and that many more will be turned off by such ignorance than will be drawn to it.

In an effort to get that ball rolling, here is a video entitled “How To Remember Barack Hussein Obama’s Name” from RepublicanMan10, whose depth of argument is matched only by his camerawork:

Long story short: A well-made internet ad based on Apple’s original commercial introducing the Macintosh computer was customized into an anti-Hillary Clinton, pro-Barack Obama spot using digital technology. It was then posted anonymously on YouTube. The ad’s creativity, as well as its author’s anonymity, fueled intense media coverage this week.

Now it’s come to light that the creator worked for a company that consults for presidential campaigns and is currently under contract with the Obama campaign. He made it on his own time, with his own equipment, and without the knowledge of his bosses. He never worked on his company’s Obama account, and he has since been fired.

Given the buzz the ad generated, there’s no doubt the media will be discussing the “political ramifications” of the creator’s vicinity to the Obama campaign today. Howard Fineman was just on the Today show talking about how there are “too many dots too close together” here. That’s undoubtedly just the beginning of coverage that will inevitably question whether this undermines Sen. Obama’s attempt to rise above petty political games.

Of course it doesn’t. While the way this situation has shaken out is unfortunate — some might even say “boneheaded” on the creator’s part — it’s still just an internet ad made independent of the campaign. (UPDATE: The ad’s creator even says, “I recognize that this ad is not [Sen. Obama’s] style of politics.”)  Sen. Obama can’t reasonably be held accountable for it. And given Sen. Clinton’s previous dismissal of the ad’s significance, I can’t imagine she could have much to say about it. Right?

More to come on this today, I’m sure. If you happen to be one of the few people left on the planet who hasn’t seen the ad, it’s after the jump.

(Read more after the jump…)

Appearing last night on CNN’s “Larry King Live,” Sen. Obama said that he thinks “it’s about time” for Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez to be replaced:

This week, Chris Rock answers the incessant question of “Is America ready” as only he can, in the hilarious opening sketch from last night’s Saturday Night Live:

Watch Sen. Obama discuss national security and Iraq, as well as the attorney purge, with Meredith Vieira on March 15:

Jon Stewart weighs in on the Nevada Democratic Party’s decision to cancel the FOX News debate — and how if they needed to use Ailes’s joke as their rationale, they must not watch FOX News very often:

On CBS’s “Sunday Morning” yesterday, essayist and actress Nancy Giles presented her answer to the ubiquitous media-generated question about Sen. Obama’s race: Is he “black enough”?

Pundits take note — this storyline has run its course:

(Thanks to Stacy for pointing us to the video.)

Enjoy:

Following a speech to the Radio & Television News Directors Association Foundation in which FOX News Channel president Roger Ailes compared Sen. Obama’s name to Osama bin Laden, the station received a letter from the head of the Nevada Democratic Party and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid:

“Comments made last night by Fox News President Roger Ailes in reference to one of our presidential candidates went too far. We cannot, as good Democrats, put our party in a position to defend such comments,” state Democratic Party Chairman Tom Collins and Nevada Sen. Harry Reid wrote in a letter sent Friday to Fox News.

In the same letter, they pulled out of the debate. Here’s what Ailes said in the speech that prompted the letter, at something called the “First Amendment Awards”:

“And it is true that Barack Obama is on the move. I don’t know if it’s true that President Bush called Musharraf and said, ‘Why can’t we catch this guy?” [Full video below]

While not remotely funny, I’m not sure Ailes’s comments warrant the NV Democratic Party’s move. Rather, their move is justified by the incessant falsehoods streaming from the channel Ailes operates — but since that’s not the reason they cite, it positions them to be judged on the comments themselves, which strike me as a joke about President Bush as much as anything. It also opens them up to the charge that the NV Democratic Party is “controlled by radical, fringe, out-of-state interest groups,” which is exactly how FOX News responded.

(Read more after the jump…)

Here’s a great video collection of people explaining why they’ll be supporting Sen. Obama’s campaign:

I was in the Orlando airport as CNN broadcast Sen. Obama’s speech in Selma, Alabama yesterday, in which he commemorated Bloody Sunday and honored the civil rights movement. Our plane was delayed, and in the 150 or so people stuck at the gate his remarks found a captive audience. Everyone seemed to be watching intently as he addressed the crowd.

The speech was powerful, touching on Biblical themes and positioning Sen. Obama as a black leader of a new generation — the “Joshua generation” — that understands and pays homage to the contributions of its predecessors, without which this younger cohort would never have the opportunities it does today. “I could not be here if not for the foot soldiers,” he said.

Sen. Obama also looked to the future:

“Don’t tell me we can’t do better by our children,” said the 42-year-old senator, who has two young daughters. “We can achieve. We can do it. The power is in our hands.”

About 1,000 people stood outside the church as Obama, U.S. Reps. Artur Davis and John Lewis and other nationally known leaders spoke inside where civil rights workers plotted strategy for the successful 1965 demonstrations that changed the political face of America.

Obama took advantage of a religious setting to dig into the Old Testament and refer to Moses’ trek through the wilderness only to be told he could not proceed “into the Promised Land.”

That’s where he began to address young people in the audience, telling them they are members of the “Joshua Generation” and must do all they can to pick up the baton of older civil rights leaders.

Here’s the video: