I’m back from the Obama Rally at Rodney Sq
The crowd was amazing. It was awesome to see such a diverse crowd of people. What I found even more amazing was how many young children were at this rally. So many parents brought their children to witness this dynamic person that speaks of hope and Change. I think the biggest difference between him and the other candidates is that he says what he feels. He spoke for about 45 minutes and the phrase that stuck with me most was when he was talking about how “other” people said he needs more time in Washington. That he needs time to stew, time to simmer.
He then said it’s like they are saying that he needs more time in Washington so “They can boil the Hope out of him” I couldn’t agree more. The longer he stays in washington, the more he will become like all the rest of them….
The guy was on point he hit all the notes and really focused in on Energy, Education and Iraq. He said he would reinvest money into a plan that he has to create a clean green economy. He said he would reward teachers for their greatness with incentives. That they won’t have to pay for school supplies out of pocket. He even spoke of college credit money for every kid. Go figure. He said that our education system despites its’ slogan won’t leave thousands of children behid.
Call me crazy, but I believe him, which I think is the difference maker for me. I have hope that he will make a difference and change our country for the better.
I promised a few people that I would post their pictures, so here you go folks.
I think the diversity is the greatest part of this rally. I just don’t see the same crowd or these 2 colors embracing at one of their rallies
I took a picture of a book a lady was reading as we stood shoulder to shoulder waiting for Obama
On the steps of the old courthouse…Anyone else find the Irony in MBNA having bought that building???
I read on delawareonline.com that there were 20,000 people there. That’s pretty amazing!
Has there been any polling in Delaware? Is Obama favored here?
Polling from a few days ago had Clinton and Obama tied. I imagine his visit will propel him to a win.
Allan Loudell agrees with you Dave.
Awesome event. Some quick notes:
Jan Ting wins the Republican of the year award for me for being the man and knowing that this candidate merits support from R’s D’s and I’s.
I loved the way they dealth with the Markell/Carney thing. Class acts all the way around.
Obama was amazing. He had 20k people mezmerized (you could hear a pin drop) when he spoke about the reality of hope being a starting point for work and how that is a theme that winds through the American story.
Also – What a funny guy! He seriously cracked me up on a couple of occasions. That is important.
On the downside – I walked into some right-wing push back. the party line: Barack is not patriotic and does nto salute the flag. I shit you not, that is the right’s line of attack. Laughable I know.
American Research Group, Inc.
http://americanresearchgroup.com/
February 2, 2008 – Delaware Primary Preferences
Democrats DE
Clinton 44%
Obama 42%
Someone else 4%
Undecided 10%
In Delaware, Barack Obama is at 44% among men and Hillary Clinton is at 43%. Among women, Clinton is at 45% and Obama is at 40%. Among white voters (82% of the sample), Clinton is at 50% and Obama is at 36%. Among African American voters, Obama is at 81% and Clinton is at 7%. 16% of likely Democratic primary voters say they would never vote for Clinton in the Democratic primary and 28% of likely Democratic primary voters say they would never vote for Obama in the Democratic primary.
I agree with Dave, his visit should put him over the top. The earned media tomorrow and Tues (with Mon visit to New Jersey carrying over) is going to be tough for Clinton to offset.
Great job getting this up DV. I have some folks that will be looking here for their pics too.
What a day ! I’m still buzzed – inspite of walking into that nit wit GOP smear crap.
Sorry, I didn’t realize Allan was posting the ARG results. Feel free to take this down if it’s duplicative.
I was there (and so was my wife and my dog). I’ve never seen anything like it. And it all happened a block from my apartment.
There was a good Cesar Rodney reference in there, tying in the idealism of the Revolutionary War (and later, the abolitionist movement) to the importance of standing up and fighting for our ideals today. There was a great line about John McCain’s shifting support for Bush’s tax cuts, saying that McCain opposed them before “the wheels fell off on the Straight Talk Express”.
I was there as well. He sealed the deal for me!
Obama ’08!!
Great pictures of the rally on delawareonline.com.
You know you’re from Delaware when you look at the pictures and know 2 or three people in every one.
I was there as well, proudly sporting my t-shirt with G.W. Bush’s picture next to the words “Not my President.”
I totally underestimated how many people would be there, though, and thus wasn’t early enough to actually make it into the square. I waited in the line to get in for probably over an hour and when I was up near the front a Wilmington PD member told the crowd they were about to close down the metal detectors and not let anyone else in, so disperse accordingly. CRAP!
So I ended up standing a little ways behind the fence on the sidewalk alongside King St. in front of the courthouse – difficult to really see what was going on (it doesn’t help being all of 5’6″, sigh…) but I caught occasional glimpses of Obama in between peoples’ heads. And of course I could hear him, which was inspiring to say the least.
My own observations: quite the diverse mixture of people in terms of races, ages, etc. I too was amazed by how many people brought young kids – everything from teenagers / middle schoolers to younger kids, even women pushing strollers with infants.
Somewhat needless to say, I’ll be voting for the big O on Tuesday and encouraging those friends and family who are registered D’s to do the same.
Regardless of your position on Obama, I think we can all agree that this sort of thing is great for Delaware politics. I’m 27 and wasn’t anywhere near this enthused about the elections in 2000 or even 2004. It’s nice to see someone acknowledge that our little ole state matters to them.
I was there with my family. Definitely wanted the kids to have the opportunity to witness and participate in (what I dearly hope is) an historical moment.
Ting’s revenge: DelawareDem photographed Jan Ting wearing an Obama button and posing under a “Change We Can Believe In” banner:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/2/3/151846/8907/497/449011
Johhny X says – “I was there as well, proudly sporting my t-shirt with G.W. Bush’s picture next to the words “Not my President.””
He is your President.
If Clinton or Obama were victorious in November, they’d be mine.
Grow up.
“I think the biggest difference between him and the other candidates is that he says what he feels.”
I agree. I believe he is the genuine article.
Good post & photos.
John — take a pill — even tho Jr is the elected president, he’s not many of ours — and please don’t make us open those old cans of worms from Florida. And I have a HUGE doubt that you’ll claim anyone who’s a “D” as yours.
I was there too, and was so impressed with this crowd, this event, and Obama. We left our houses to walk up to Rodney Sqaure and altho we live blocks away, had quite the wait to get through security. And still didn’t — we went over to the Old Courthouse and the visibility was not great, the sound was awesome. It was though someone knew they’d have to play to the cheap seats. The crowd was so eager to hear him and it was impressive how many people had their kids there to see him. And donviti is right — even in the cheap seats there was not one pin when Obama was speaking. Even the kids were rapt. I am so sorry I did not get into the square, but have already cast my vote for Obama via absentee ballot and just wish I could be in the middle of the action for the next few days.
Great pictures and commentary, guys!
Hi Jason, sorry I could not be there. It looks very exciting. And What a Crowd!
I stood next to Jan Ting and his wife. You should have seen her face when I hugged her and welcomed her to the Democratic Party. ;o)
And, I have a niece who has been friends with David and Julie Eisenhower since she went to grade school with their daughter. She tells me that they are big Obama supporters.
Of course, my tinfoil hat says that they can’t stand McCain and figure Obama will be easy to bump off in four years. But I think they are wrong about that. And who knows, maybe it took Bush to prove that conservatives are just flat wrong, on the economy, on foreign affairs, on our country. WRONG! It just takes some people longer than others to catch on.
OMT, Conservatism is a bankrupt ideology that belongs on the same scrap heap with Communism. If you haven’t already, read Conscience of a Liberal by Paul Krugman.
Hi Rebecca,
I hope you will not sweep civil libertarians and the libertarians into the dustbin of history along with the “militaristic” batch of neo-conservatives. They have nothing to do with real liberty. They only want power and are playing european power politics.
Please do not put the Constitution in the dustbin of history. It gaurentees all our rights which flow from our creator and are inalienable, being a democrat used to mean that we were the party that championed these ideas, questioned everything and were the party of reason not faith in politics. Can we be that again?
Please let’s not get rid of life, liberty, pursuit of happiness stuff, and run off trying to make the world perfect. We do not own the world and cannot make it perfect. But we can help each other and we can help others in a good way. And the state can assist that. For example there are over 10,000 homeless veterans. There are over 22,000,000 Americans going hungry tonight. There are over 47,000,000 with no insurance and no oppurtunity to get it. There are another 10,000,000 who eat two times or less a day becuase they do not have steady work or enough money. Can we help them before we send money overseas?
I have read Krugman’s book, but I am also affectionate of the ideas of Jeffersonian Democracy. This system of individual excellence and freedom seems to work very well in the world and for the people. It works becuase of its reliance on reason and perosnal innovation. I am not ready to discard that for a utopia. I do not want us to think like Europeans….rather I want us to be great in our own unique way. Let’s make sure not to throw the baby out with the bath water. Can we begin the peaceful transition back to our republic now?
Let’s not let “conservative” themes dominate democratic polices and really shake things up. Typically in the past democrats have only tweaked conservative policies, but kept them intact for a new conseravtive party to come roaring back years later. Can we change that please?
Are these a reasonable request before you throw the neo-conservative kooks into the dustbin? If so, I will be the first to open the trash can.
Hey John,
I voted against the guy both times. If the past 8 years are any indicator, I stand by both decisions. I understand that he is my president in the literal sense that I have no other choice – the point of the shirt is that I want no part of his policies.
But I don’t know why I’m even arguing this point with you. I thought the idea of the first amendment was that I can wear whatever fucking t-shirt I want. And I will continue to do so, regardless of what you think.
You gonna send your son to beat me up and take it away from me now?
(p.s. if you would like one to burn in effigy they are available here http://www.amazon.com/President-T-Shirt-Officially-Licensed-Merchandise/dp/B000GRA192)
“I thought the idea of the first amendment was that I can wear whatever fucking t-shirt I want. ”
You can, and I can call you a fucking idiot…and I stick by my suggestion that you grow up.
As you said though and no argument here, who cares what I think, do what you want, that’s what makes this country great.
“As you said though and no argument here, who cares what I think, do what you want, that’s what makes this country great.”
Well, we can agree on that much at least!
I fail to understand how being critical of a politician whose policies you don’t like equates to immaturity, however. Explain?
“You gonna send your son to beat me up and take it away from me now?”
Unfortunately he’s too upset the Pats lost, but I explained to him that life goes on. I don’t know how effective my consoling was because he’s four and he really doesn’t process things the same as adults.
However I’m sure all those wonderful children who attended the Obama event were quite impressed by the shirt you wore and understood it.
Maybe I’ll send my son to school next year if you guys win with a shirt that says “_____ Not my President”. I don’t think he’ll get in trouble though because I’ll just explian to the school that he’s five and doesn’t know any better.
“I fail to understand how being critical of a politician whose policies you don’t like equates to immaturity, however. Explain?”
You can be critical all you want.
I just gave you my feedback on your shirt.
Personally that’s not the response I find effective for your position.
I do believe it’s an immature way to communicate your feelings.
Alright, I’ll admit, the line about your kid was dumb, I was just venting some anger and referencing past threads on this website in the process. Sorry about the Pats – being an Eagles fan I didn’t really care which team won, but I was glad to see a competitive game at least.
You’re probably right that kids at the rally wouldn’t get the shirt, but then again it’s not directed at them. I did however get a number of positive responses from other adults, including a couple people who asked to take pictures of me.
The shirt is not meant to suggest that in absolutely everything G.W.B. does I am in all ways opposed to the guy and completely disown him as a president. It’s my way of saying I don’t agree with the majority of his policies and I look forward to seeing his term in office end. “Not my President” is just a much more succinct thing to print on a shirt. And as you saw if you clicked the link, I didn’t make the shirt myself – so the wording wasn’t my choice.
Anyway, I just wonder what bothers you so much about the thing and why you see expression of my views in this way as a sign of lacking maturity. Perhaps I made a mistake in admitting that I’m 27…?
I think the 61-year-old president who will tolerate no criticism, never admit a mistake, says one thing and does the other with Scooter Libby et. al, and has turned our nation into a nightmare from “1984” as he smirks at the people of America is the one who needs to grow up John.
This is the guy who was “ready” on day one. Ready to invade Iraq based on the neo-con plans that had been pumped out of their conservative think-tanks during the previous ten years. They were ready all right, but oh so wrong.
I like Obama’s claim to being right. Right is better than ready.
And I’m glad to see the younger crowd rejecting this president and the incompetent and corrupt cronies he’s let run our country because he’s too mentally lazy to do it himself.
Wear your t-shirt proudly JohnnyX! You’ve had to live through the last seven years during a vital part of your life. You, at the very least, deserve the right to be mad and say so!
Oh, Johnny, have you noticed how members of the “Daddy” party never talk about substance, just distractions, like your t-shirt? There was a wind of change blowing through Wilmington yesterday and they won’t mention it. They’d rather spend time and blog-space challenging your wardrobe choice.
“Anyway, I just wonder what bothers you so much about the thing and why you see expression of my views in this way as a sign of lacking maturity.”
For me Johnny X it’s very simple, it’s all about the enemy.
Our nation’s enemies are better at “Strategic Communication” than we are. They kill us on the Internet when it comes to spreading their message, one that often includes erroneously the position of the American People. They interpret a Democratic process inclusive of an open opposition as a potential opportunity to attach to that opposition. It’s the basic “See, we have support within the U.S., we just need to show them we can do it.”
I know you don’t want to give any comfort to the enemy, they don’t.
As simple a thing as this might seem, it is in fact the main area we are trying to address in combating a real enemy, not internal democratic discourse.
When it comes to showing the rest of the world who we are, they must not have material that can be misinterpreted to an extent it causes deadly consequences for our people.
Having said that, I don’t want to make your shirt out to be more than what it was, but if a thousand people wore it, it sends a powerful message; the wrong message.
I don’t think you thought it through, and thus the immaturity line.
“I didn’t Vote for Bush”, Bush Sucks, blah, blah, blah” is fine. (Note: It’s free speech, so it’s all fine – I’m just talking about other items that would not have caused a reaction from me personally)
“Not my President” – If I’m the enemy and am planning my strategy, I argue that 50% of the population does not recognize Bush as the legitimate President of the U.S., therefore if we can spark the opposition, we will have an internal piece to our effort in place. Show pictures, show pictures, show pictures…nods, nods, nods…
Rebecca – I didn’t say anything regarding the gathering? I thought I was being courteous above providing info to the poll question.
As far as your choice for President, that’s what it is, your choice. I didn’t say anything positive or negative because I thought it was a good day for our state and it deserved a day of respect.
And they accuse me a wearing a tin-foil hat. The ENEMY doesn’t have to divide us, our president has done that for them. To wit, this whole comment section.
Ok John, I understand what you’re getting at now but I respectfully disagree. Not supporting the guy’s policies doesn’t equate to not recognizing his authority as president or having any realistic thoughts of overthrowing him.
I know your argument isn’t so much that you think I feel that way as that some “enemy” person (I assume you mean potential Islamo-terrorist) could interpret my shirt’s message as such. But then we’re arguing semantics – that somehow “Not my president” is more powerful ammo than any of the countless other lampoons of Bush / Cheney that I have seen in the past few years or that I saw firsthand at the rally yesterday. For example – I saw a guy with a sweatshirt bearing Bush & Cheney’s likeness where each one wore an “I’m with stupid” shirt and an arrow pointing to the other. If I read your response correctly, I would assume that you’d just call that free speech and say it’s fine. But in your imaginary scenario described above, couldn’t your potential “enemy” just as easily say “Oooh, look, the Americans think their leaders are idiots, let us latch onto that thought and promote dissent!” I would think in the “enemy’s” mind that the distance between “they think their president is an idiot” and “they don’t recognize his legitimacy” is not a big jump.
Anyway, I think we’ve done an expert job at making a mountain from a molehill on this issue so I’m personally ready to drop it unless you’ve got more to say. If my first post was a little brash, consider that I had just returned from a Super Bowl party and was BUI…blogging under the influence…at the time. I shouldn’t do that, apparently it’s quite dangerous!
It’s totally dropped.
Thanks for not dismissing my views.
No problem, thanks for taking the time to explain your views to me instead of just dismissing me as another crazy young liberal.