The litany of calls for Hillary Clinton to read the writing on the walls, do the math, and decide that this race is unwinnable needs to just stop. For once in this campaign, Bill Clinton is absolutely right that the continued struggle for the nomination will not weaken the Democratic Party, but strengthen it.
Barack Obama is, himself, in absolute agreement on this. Probably for his own reasons, but maybe in part the same reasons I have.
My reasons? It all goes back to the Texas county conventions. They say that over a hundred thousand people participated in county conventions, caucuses really, this past weekend. This is a phenomenal episode in Texas politics. This event brought out people of all ages, from those just put onto walkers to those just out of their braces, all races, all nationalities, all because they are energized by this race that goes on and on.
And I can’t get enough of it.
Why then, call a halt to it? Why? Why deprive the people, people who will vote in the last 10 primaries, the opportunity to have just a small taste of what we had here in Texas last weekend? People are coming out who have never voted in a primary, attended a caucus or attended a state convention, let alone a national convention.
Relax, they say, the superdelegates are going to decide it. The math says that your average voter will not have anything to do with the process. Try telling that to 100,000 Texans who went to their county conventions and stayed all day, and from some reports, all night. The people aren’t listening to that. The people want to participate. And they want to be heard.
We need that this year. Whatever and wherever it comes from, we need it. We need the attitude of the 41,000 strong DC baseball fans that booed George Bush while he was throwing out the first pitch on opening day at the Washington Nationals’ first game. That enthusiasm must be nurtured and allowed to grow to a blazing inferno.
The last thing we need right now is a bucket of water thrown on the renewed excitement of the promise of a Democratic president in 2008.
If anything, we need a bucket of that 4 dollar gasoline.
Barack Obama is, himself, in absolute agreement on this. Probably for his own reasons, but maybe in part the same reasons I have.
My reasons? It all goes back to the Texas county conventions. They say that over a hundred thousand people participated in county conventions, caucuses really, this past weekend. This is a phenomenal episode in Texas politics. This event brought out people of all ages, from those just put onto walkers to those just out of their braces, all races, all nationalities, all because they are energized by this race that goes on and on.
And I can’t get enough of it.
Why then, call a halt to it? Why? Why deprive the people, people who will vote in the last 10 primaries, the opportunity to have just a small taste of what we had here in Texas last weekend? People are coming out who have never voted in a primary, attended a caucus or attended a state convention, let alone a national convention.
Relax, they say, the superdelegates are going to decide it. The math says that your average voter will not have anything to do with the process. Try telling that to 100,000 Texans who went to their county conventions and stayed all day, and from some reports, all night. The people aren’t listening to that. The people want to participate. And they want to be heard.
We need that this year. Whatever and wherever it comes from, we need it. We need the attitude of the 41,000 strong DC baseball fans that booed George Bush while he was throwing out the first pitch on opening day at the Washington Nationals’ first game. That enthusiasm must be nurtured and allowed to grow to a blazing inferno.
The last thing we need right now is a bucket of water thrown on the renewed excitement of the promise of a Democratic president in 2008.
If anything, we need a bucket of that 4 dollar gasoline.
Oh, and in case you missed it, here is our president being booed. Watch his face at 0:55.
1 comment:
Yup, folks just can't forgive him for trading Sammy Sosa. He might as well be wearing the Scarlett Letter A for "Asshat."
Remember that movie "Beau James," starring Bob Hope as the incompetent NYC Mayor Jimmy Walker? Walker walks to the Pitcher's Mound to speak at a microphone to commemorate some ballplayer and is roundly booed. So he announces he's resigning to restore confidence in the city government and is cheered as he walks back to the dugout, as if he'd hit a home run.
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