Michelle Obama and modern American identity
Last night, Michelle Obama delivered what by many accounts was the best speech not just of the opening night of the Democratic Convention but of either convention to date. As David Gergen put it on CNN, “If they have two more nights like this, they can probably break this race open.”
Gergen’s enthusiasm aside, statements by spouses do not swing elections. (The exception may have been Hillary Clinton’s 1992 rescue operation on “60 Minutes,” in which she stalwartly defended her husband against philandering charges.) But in her well-written, well-delivered speech, the current First Lady nonetheless accomplished something important, reminding a rapt audience in Charlotte and tens of millions watching at home that she and her husband are very much in the modern American mainstream, drawing upon this nation’s traditional values to guide both their private lives as well as their political sentiments.
Even those who disagree strongly with those political sentiments should be able to acknowledge that Obama and his wife are quintessentially, honestly American, and that Obama’s story reflects much of what is best about this nation. Whatever their final verdict of his presidency, for example, historians will marvel that the first black person elected to the White House was elected just seven years after the attacks of 2001, and that he was named Barack Hussein Obama. They will attribute that success, quite accurately, to an American generosity of spirit, a true example of American exceptionalism, even as they are also forced to note the sour paranoia that it inspired in some quarters.
As Obama himself put it in a 2004 speech to the Democratic National Convention, “I stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger American story, that I owe a debt to all of those who came before me, and that in no other country on earth is my story even possible.”
That’s the part that some conservatives cannot accept. To acknowledge that Barack Obama is just as American as they are is to acknowledge the ways in which their America has changed, and they cannot bring themselves to embrace those changes. In their minds, to do so would be to lose an America that has already gone, transformed into something still true to its roots but recognizably different, as it has always been different.
Instead, they flock in large numbers to the demogogic “2016: Obama’s America,” seeking reassurance — no matter how absurd — that this Obama is indeed something different, something unAmerican and even anti-American, and that their own deep-set suspicions are valid.
That is not the Obama that most of their fellow citizens see. It was certainly not the person whom his wife described to them last night. And it’s sad. Those who instinctively reject not just Obama’s policies — which are of course subject to fierce and honest debate — but Obama as an American are in fact alienating themselves from their own country. They are defining themselves out of its mainstream, and by doing so they lose what they are trying so passionately to retain.
– Jay Bookman
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876 comments Add your comment
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
9:40 am
BYTEME,
Too bad the unemployment is up despite claims of all these jobs which have no valid evidence to support. Secondly, the healthcare bill as is will be the bain of our existence and needs to be re-thought…a single payor system is, despite the negative impact on my business, a more feasible alternative….the current plan will leave almost as many without insurance and allows the insurers to use adverse selection as a reason to double rates for those not subsidized.
I agree with gay issue athough I think they comprise less than 1-2% of the population. I also agree with GOP obstruction but are you suggesting the DEMs won’t do the same thing if GOP wins WH?
TaxPayer
September 5th, 2012
9:41 am
Success was G.W’s to lose and he did an exceptional job of it. G.W’s legacy–The Great Recession.
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:41 am
and setting aside the fact that the PRIVATE sector is growing … what’s your beef???
Perhaps his beef is with the fact that we have far fewer government employees than in 2008. And total new jobs under Obama would be even higher if we excluded the cuts made to government size.
kayaker 71
September 5th, 2012
9:42 am
Spare us, liberals. I wonder if Michelle is still just a proud to be an American as she was in 2009. To try to defend her husband’s record his first four years in office is folly at best. This clown has been an abysmal failure and all of the speeches by all of the minorities, latinos, first ladies with a plan, all of those diverse members of the Democratic party do not change a thing. It is all fluff. Trying to put lipstick on a pig but it is still a pig. We are broke. Michelle didn’t mention that. We still have a 8.3% unemployment rate due to her husbands policies but she didn’t mention that. He lies to the voters at every opportunity but she didn’t mention that. She’s sort of like Bookman….. leaves a lot of thing out of the mix. Sort of like a sinking ship named the United States of America with a person at the rail shouting……. “At least I got my free birth control pills”.
DebbieDoRight - A DoRight Woman
September 5th, 2012
9:43 am
do we, the USA want a Marxist country dictated by a strong central government
Please explain, in 25 words or less, how Obama is directing the U.S. into a “Marxist country”. thanks!
MM: No mention of Castro & his lame attempt to relate his experience (an illegitimate kid who only got into Stanford because of Affirmative Action after testing at a crappy 1200 on the SAT) as being the “American Dream”???
I thought all the kids were back in school. Must be a teacher’s work day or something…..
HDB
September 5th, 2012
9:43 am
Jay
September 5th, 2012
9:32 am
THANK YOU!! You’ve made the point I’ve tried to make to conservatives for YEARS!!
Joe Hussein Mama
September 5th, 2012
9:43 am
Jay — “In MiltonMan’s America, this is all well and good. That is how things “ought” to be.”
“Affirmative action, on the other hand, is deeply unfair and discriminatory because it allows “an illegitimate kid” by the name of Castro or Obama at least a shot at the success all but guaranteed to someone named Bush.”
OUCH.
That’ll leave a mark.
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:43 am
a single payor system is, despite the negative impact on my business, a more feasible alternative
I happen to agree with that… and I think the impact on any business (other than insurance) would be a net positive, because it’ll move that cost off the bottom line of businesses, giving them an immediate profit bump.
And, yes, I think Democrats will obstruct as much as possible if they are in the minority, especially if the Republican agenda of transvaginal and rectal probing is pushed the way they continue to push that.
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
9:43 am
JM,
Agree with the fact that most democrats get sexually aroused when thinking about this guy despite record and manipulation of middle class and other less fortunate…the seas will subside, “clean energy” will be as cost effective as gas, and every pot will have a chicken….
USinUK - thug with a uterus ... and former Girl Scout
September 5th, 2012
9:43 am
“We are broke.”
maybe if you were more responsible with your money, you wouldn’t find yourself in this pickle.
bootstraps, babbee …
Keep Up the Good Fight!
September 5th, 2012
9:44 am
Trying to put lipstick on a pig but it is still a pig
I thought lipstick made it a hockey mom?
Common Sense
September 5th, 2012
9:44 am
“The United States has slipped further down a global ranking of the world’s most competitive economies, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) survey released on Wednesday.”
The New American Identity.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/48905756
TaxPayer
September 5th, 2012
9:44 am
Secondly, the healthcare bill as is will be the bain of our existence and needs to be re-thought…a single payor system is, despite the negative impact on my business, a more feasible alternative
And what was the Republican contribution throughout the process?
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
9:45 am
BYTEME,
Too bad the insurers and hospital management companies spread around billions of dollars to both parties which renders any single payor concept impotent…we are seeing projected insurer rates climb, by some estimates, by 50-75% over the next few years as more of this erroneous bill takes hold…
We Love Our First Lady - The FLOTUS with the Mostest
September 5th, 2012
9:46 am
@USMC
September 5th, 2012
9:25 am
“As David Gergen put it on CNN, “If they have two more nights like this, they can probably break this race open.””–JAY BOOKMAN
Beat the drum all you want Jay, but if you are basing your victory on David Gergen I feel pretty confident for Romney.
What you saw last night was a gathering of Racial and Identity groups that ignorantly pray to the Government for the cure to all of their problems and insecurities.
******************************************************
USMC is obviously one of those people who (if he did) joined the military
after he graduated from high school because he could not get into college.
If you SAW what you think you SAW you need to enroll in college TODAY.
A mind is a terrible THING TO WASTE.
Peadawg
September 5th, 2012
9:46 am
“Last night, Michelle Obama delivered what by many accounts was the best speech not just of the opening night of the Democratic Convention but of either convention to date.”
I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.
Common Sense
September 5th, 2012
9:46 am
“Perhaps his beef is with the fact that we have far fewer government employees than in 2008″
Not Federal government employees, however. They have been on the rise.
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
September 5th, 2012
9:47 am
At the end of the day this guy was not properly vetted and is not qualified ( no, not the birther issue)to be President. He is a hard left guy thus the luv affair with the regulars on here. A battle cry of ” we didn’t know how bad it was or need more time is BS. The guy has made it worse. Wasted money. Regulated the private sector, handcuffed the energy sector and refused to meet with the other party unless you big a damn tax tax increase with you. He loses big time in November. The sentiment of this blog, thank the Lord, is not the one of this country. Hold on.
Steve Shamrock
September 5th, 2012
9:48 am
I think Jay has “a tingle in his leg”…
Not sure if it is the $16 trillion in debt, 8.3% unemployment, $4.00 gas prices that are causing the tingle.
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
9:49 am
TAXPAYER,
GOP contributed nothing to be certain although it was ill timed relative to economic issues and slammed thru, without meaningful transparency, a DEM controlled congress…the GOP is littered with as much insurance company cash as the DEMs but despite what Romney did in MA, this bill is not good for all of us…may work in individual states but that doesn’t translate to national success.
What’s the difference who did what…the thing is still a horrid thingy…
Granny Godzilla - Union Thugette
September 5th, 2012
9:49 am
He’s a hard left guy…..There’s your sign
RB from Gwinnett
September 5th, 2012
9:50 am
Jay, did you get a tingling feeling all up and down your leg listening to her read the speach the writers wrote for her to read?
You’re a partisan hack, Bookman.
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:50 am
we are seeing projected insurer rates climb, by some estimates, by 50-75% over the next few years as more of this erroneous bill takes hold…
The projections won’t happen the way you think. It’s not the law’s fault that drugs are priced higher here than anywhere else in the world and that we consume more of them than anyone else. Even without the law, insurance rates were climbing too fast… but now insurance companies must spend a minimum percentage (85?) on medical care instead of on salaries and overhead and that’s a really really great thing to hold costs down.
Right now, we’re seeing 10% per year. So unless your “few years” means 5-7 years….
I think hospitals would buy into single-payer, just because that way they know they would always get paid.
Insurance companies would freak, especially the smaller ones that aren’t competitive. But I think a single-payer of basic coverage and insurance companies to augment is the best results. But for too many morons, that would be “socialism”.
TaxPayer
September 5th, 2012
9:50 am
I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.
You might want to rinse that.
Matti
September 5th, 2012
9:51 am
Mr. Bookman,
SLAM and DUNK at 9:32!
Steve Shamrock
September 5th, 2012
9:51 am
46 million on Food Stamps…now that is some change.
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
9:51 am
STEVE,
Bravo…the $16 trillion of debt is our security achilles heel..lack of any meaningful energy policy is a factor, and the real unemployment numbers are a multiple of 8%…Yup, we are all better off…too bad DEM supporters are blinded by the wizards front as to actually buy this crap..
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:51 am
At the end of the day this guy was not properly vetted
So you’re saying all those news outlets you read absolutely SUCK at vetting a candidate for the most important political office in the country?
I feel bad for you now.
kayaker 71
September 5th, 2012
9:51 am
You liberals may notice that none of these fabulously diverse Democrats will, in their speeches, mention the economy. It is the rather large elephant in the room that just won’t go away. Romney’s dog, Sandra’s BC pills, spitting on John Lewis, Romney killing cancer patients, all of those women who the GOP hate….. anything but the issues. You can dodge it, make believe it doesn’t exist, try to feign it’s existence….. anything……. but it is still there, staring all of those articulate speakers at the DNC who won’t give it any air time. Only fluff. That’s all you have.
tiredofIT
September 5th, 2012
9:52 am
Watching parts of the conventions I can’t believe how little the GOP loves America. It is all about THEM and tax cuts for their masters. You cannot get more shallow than that.
Jay
September 5th, 2012
9:52 am
This outbreak of concern about my leg has me a bit concerned….
Keep Up the Good Fight!
September 5th, 2012
9:52 am
At the end of the day this guy was not properly vetted and is not qualified ( no, not the birther issue)to be President.
So to properly vet Mitt you of course demand that the GOP makes him reveal his tax returns, right?
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:52 am
46 million on Food Stamps…now that is some change.
Under Romney/Ryan, they’d just starve. Change you can believe in.
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
September 5th, 2012
9:52 am
The race is coming down to 15%. Obama would get 40% if he appeared Thursday night on stage in Muslim garb with a goat and opened with a prayer from the Koran. I don’t think the independents will be duped twice.
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:53 am
This outbreak of concern about my leg has me a bit concerned….
They want to hump it and are ironically concerned about its cleanliness.
We Love Our First Lady - The FLOTUS with the Mostest
September 5th, 2012
9:53 am
@Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am…
September 5th, 2012
9:43 am
JM,
Agree with the fact that most democrats get sexually aroused when thinking about this guy despite record and manipulation of middle class and other less fortunate…the seas will subside, “clean energy” will be as cost effective as gas, and every pot will have a chicken….
**************************************************************************
“that most democrats get sexually aroused”
CONS are fixated on sex.
What’s up with that?
Is it the lack of?
Is it the envy of maybe liberals are getting more than their share?
What’s up with that?
Cons sound like they need some TLC.
tiredofIT
September 5th, 2012
9:53 am
“46 million on Food Stamps…now that is some change.” Thanks to the failed economic polices of the GOP.
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:54 am
The race is coming down to 15%
Try 4% in 8-10 states. Something like the total population of Rhode Island.
TaxPayer
September 5th, 2012
9:54 am
What’s the difference who did what…the thing is still a horrid thingy…
Stevie,
The difference could have been significant if the Republicans had chosen to work for the good of the people instead of the good of themselves and their wealthy backers. However, the Democrats did manage to give us a good start with healthcare legislation in spite of the Republican’s best efforts to stop it.
By the way, any word yet from the GOP on their progress toward fulfilling their 2010 jobs campaigning.
Li'l Aynie
September 5th, 2012
9:54 am
Wow, what a speech! She aced it!
… and how ’bout that Castro, the keynote speaker? The difference between Castro and Governor Fatso (Republican keynoter) is the difference between Democrats and Republicans; talent, looks, accomplishments vs. bluster and bull.
DwayneL
September 5th, 2012
9:55 am
All I see is an angry black woman that admitted she hates America, but has no problem using taxpayer money for lavish vacations, clothes and anything else she can steal!
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
9:55 am
BYTEME,
I advise on insurer rate setting and I can tell you that 10% is a myth…adverse selection will cost us trillions over time…
Yes, I have no idea why we pay more for drugs than any other country…kinda similar to DEMS tax policy…our national “fair share” seems to be much, much more than other countries…we are sponsoring R&D while others benefit..could this be in exchange for campaign cash???
Granny Godzilla - Union Thugette
September 5th, 2012
9:55 am
Jay
Don’t worry.
At least yours is dry.
Aquagirl
September 5th, 2012
9:55 am
So to properly vet Mitt you of course demand that the GOP makes him reveal his tax returns, right?
Now THAT’S gonna leave a mark.
Union
September 5th, 2012
9:55 am
in my america.. if i want to send my child to a better school.. i work more.. save more.. not take it from someone else because i dont have the motivation to do it for myself.
DwayneL
September 5th, 2012
9:56 am
Vote Romney/Ryan to restore prosperity and dignity back to America!
TaxPayer
September 5th, 2012
9:56 am
Republicans do have a plan fro getting 46 million people off of food stamps–Eliminate funding for the program. Brilliant plan there, cons.
BuckeyeInGa
September 5th, 2012
9:56 am
bottomline..Mrs. Obama gave a great speech..
Innocent Bystander
September 5th, 2012
9:56 am
Bookman, why don’t you just admit that you would have given a positive review to anything she said, even is she had simply stood there and said “I like carrots.”
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:57 am
our national “fair share” seems to be much, much more than other countries…we are sponsoring R&D while others benefit..could this be in exchange for campaign cash???
It’s because they can. Medicare is legally — thank you Republicans — prevented from negotiating with drug companies over costs. Americans have an outsized affection for life at all costs, unlike other cultures, so we spend lots more on end-of-life unnecessary care than other countries.
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
9:57 am
TAXPAYER,
No way the DEMS recieved any less campaign cash from insurers etcetera….they are all the same…if the GOP pushed the same bill silently in the night, the DEMS would oppose simply due to competitve principals….GOP say black, DEMS say white and so forth.
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
September 5th, 2012
9:58 am
They should of played the Michelle Youtube where she say’s ” All this for a damn flag” with her hand over here heart. It’s a classic.
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
September 5th, 2012
9:59 am
As a old white curmudgeon, I will tell you this…after listening to all of the speeches last night and comparing them to what I heard from the RNC, I have come to the conclusion that Barak and Michelle Obama are exactly the type of people I want in my White House. In fact, I would love to see all of Congress peopled with their clones, then “We, the People” would mean something again, instead of “Us, the Rich”, or “We, the Corporations”.
wisconsin
September 5th, 2012
9:59 am
People people people why why why do you think that President can fix the world problems in 4 yrs when it took Bush to create the mess in 8 yrs do the math the President needs 4 more yrs to try and straighten the mess all you people can talk about is the vacations the Obama’s have taken since they have been in the White house all the comes with being the President Bush did it nobody had a dam problem about it the bottom line is the First Family is Black and that has bothered you white americans (some not all) for the last 4 years of course you wont give credit where credit is do a Black man can’t clean up what a white man has messed up no way that is the way Americans have been thinking for the last 4 years… did you see the audience last night diversity people of all walks of life did you see the audience last week at the GOP all white u could count the black people on one hand and maybe two hands for the rest… Mitt/Ryan don’t give a damn about the middle class he is rich and all his kids will never have to struggle a day in there life …OH but you want him in the white house instead of a black man that is really what this is about you rich white (some not all) conservatives..Mrs Obama gave a fear better speech than Ann could ever dream of… What first lady have you seen in our history that has been that connected to the American people than Michelle what first lady is the concerned about the children and obesity all that will go away if america put the rich white man who has no clue about the middle class and the poor…people you better open your eyes wide and see that Mitt & Ryan are all about making there family richer and they don’t give a dam about You…..
ByteMe - Political thug
September 5th, 2012
9:59 am
I advise on insurer rate setting and I can tell you that 10% is a myth…adverse selection will cost us trillions over time…
Actually, we’re forcing people into the system who were healthy and going “naked” on coverage, so that offsets the pre-existing conditions issue. And hospitals were losing money serving those people, so the cost was already being paid somewhere in the current process.
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
10:00 am
BYTEME,
I can’t believe that any party is more negligent on this issue than the other..
Good point on end of life costs which represent 80% of healthcare expenditures for the average american……that’s where the money is at….
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
September 5th, 2012
10:00 am
Where was Oprah?
Lord Help Us
September 5th, 2012
10:00 am
Quick, one of you cons that claimed to have the ‘whitey tape’ better get it on youtube…
USinUK - thug with a uterus ... and former Girl Scout
September 5th, 2012
10:01 am
“the healthcare bill as is will be the bain of our existence”
best freudian slip of the day
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
September 5th, 2012
10:01 am
Hell, I don’t need a tape!
St Simons - he-ne-ha
September 5th, 2012
10:01 am
oh!!! dam – Bill Nelson, Claire McCaskill, and E. Warren (native approved
by ME) – all take the lead.
and Ohio, Virginia, and Florida are still blue.
where did your shiny November gooooo, cons heheh
kayaker 71
September 5th, 2012
10:01 am
“I’m a liberal, 9:58,
And note which hand that she and Bozo put on their chest. We might inform them that the heart is on the left side of the body and needs to be covered with the right hand instead of the left hand. They both look like a couple of amateur pretenders.
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
September 5th, 2012
10:02 am
kayaker 71
September 5th, 2012
9:51 am
And I will ask you what I ask everyone else who brings this up. What can President Obama do without the help of Congress or corporations? Tell me one thing he can do by himself to fix the economy, please.
Bernie
September 5th, 2012
10:02 am
Last Night America turned another corner and changed GEARS! Unfortunately, The Republican and Tea party apparatus and their many supporters have failed to realize that occurrence.
America’s growth spurts always come suddenly and without prior Notice. The last time it happened, it was with the Election Of President OBAMA.
Boom! like that! It was upon us and we all were stunned and astonished. There is now NO going backwards of America as The Republican Party of the 1950’s have fought for and long desired these past (2) two years. Last Night, America saw exactly how morally Bankrupt and OUT OF STEP their polices are.
The train has arrived. Either you get on Board NOW or Risk being Left behind of a
New American culture who is already MILES ahead of you!
This is the Question for The Republican Party? Are you with Us or are We to Leave you Behind………?
Doggone/GA
September 5th, 2012
10:02 am
“Four years ago she said that for the first time in her life she was proud of her country”
if you’re going to base your rant on something that was said, why don’t you try quoting it ACCURATELY?
Or, as I like to put it…if you have to lie to make your point, you have no point
Jay
September 5th, 2012
10:02 am
“In my america.. if i want to send my child to a better school.. i work more.. save more.. not take it from someone else because i dont have the motivation to do it for myself.”
So sign Union onto the list of those opposing school vouchers.
Li'l Aynie
September 5th, 2012
10:03 am
Stevie Ray … we are the only country that permits consumer advertizing of prescription drugs, which are controlled substances not freely available to consumers. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each year by Big Pharmaceutical to clutter our magazines and interrupt our TV programs with inane advertisements. Guess who ends up with the bill!
tiredofIT
September 5th, 2012
10:03 am
Why is it the GOP likes to privatize profits, but socialize losses?
Why do they hate government, but expand it?
Why have no concept of what is good for society, but only what is good for them.
If you are not for the overall good of the America society, there is always Somalia.
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
September 5th, 2012
10:04 am
What time does the oceans rising speech start?
Butch Cassidy (I)
September 5th, 2012
10:04 am
I’m a liberal…. – “The sentiment of this blog, thank the Lord, is not the one of this country. ”
True, but it does seem to be the sentiment of the states that hold the most electoral votes for an Obama win.
Doggone/GA
September 5th, 2012
10:04 am
“46 million on Food Stamps…now that is some change”
Are we to take it you would prefer to see them starving in the streets?
Keep Up the Good Fight!
September 5th, 2012
10:04 am
Hell, I don’t need a
tape!FACTHell, I don’t need a
tape!sensible statementNow that your nonsense is throught have a seat, but not that one…it’s taken.
We Love Our First Lady - The FLOTUS with the Mostest
September 5th, 2012
10:04 am
@kayaker 71
September 5th, 2012
9:51 am
You liberals may notice that none of these fabulously diverse Democrats will, in their speeches, mention the economy. It is the rather large elephant in the room that just won’t go away. Romney’s dog, Sandra’s BC pills, spitting on John Lewis, Romney killing cancer patients, all of those women who the GOP hate….. anything but the issues. You can dodge it, make believe it doesn’t exist, try to feign it’s existence….. anything……. but it is still there, staring all of those articulate speakers at the DNC who won’t give it any air time. Only fluff. That’s all you have.
****************************************************************************
Sour grapes Kay?
NOT one time did we hear the word “outsourcing” from the CONS.
NOT one time did we hear the words “off shore bank accounts” from the CONS.
NOT one time did we hear the words “tax returns” from the CONS.
This is a CHOICE election:
The man with the religious underwear and offshore bank accounts.
OR
The man who will help and include everyone.
“When you walk through that door of OPPORTUNITY
you do not close it shut”. Michelle Obama
Peadawg
September 5th, 2012
10:05 am
“For the first time in my adult lifetime, I’m really proud of my country.”
What a ‘female dog’.
DebbieDoRight - A DoRight Woman
September 5th, 2012
10:05 am
Watered down to the CNN edition of a Conservative! Classic!!
Ted Kennedy, the Democrat icon praised in memorial last night, the very same Ted Kennedy that saw women as an object to satisfy his lust for power over them, a murderer of one woman we know of, is put on a remembrance pedistal last night. They ought to be ashamed. What a party…
Oh no!! Not the same old tired, “Kenendy Killed MaryJoe!!” lie! Gosh can’t you guys think of something new….like…..a JOBS BILL or something?
k71: We are broke. Michelle didn’t mention that. We still have a 8.3% unemployment rate due to her husbands policies but she didn’t mention that.
Exactly WHEN did budget start mattering K71? When we were under Bush and Cheney went on national TV and said “Reagan proved that budgets don’t matter”; not ONE teaparty person, (you know those deficit hawks?), reared its ugly little pointed head. But Time some guy named Obama became president….WHAM!! The budget! The Budget!! THE BUDGET!!!
If I was a betting woman, which I’m not, I’d say that this is just a bunch of faux outrage brought about by a bunch of silly people.
Peter
September 5th, 2012
10:05 am
Jm. So what part is nonsense ????? The millionaires not paying their taxes ?
Or the fact Bush almost had us in a DEPRESSION ?
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
10:06 am
BYTEME,
There is zero chance the healthy will offset unhealthy….that’s actuarial fact. Here’s the problem. Anytime one obtains healthcare coverage for the first time, they have thru the roof utilization rates. In addition, the pre-existing (which is a good thing but not to be confused with insurance) will eclipse the “healthy’ folks in geometric proportions. Too may newly insured will have $800,000 preexisting conditions (diabetes, heart disease, obesity etceters) that a 12k premium will not offset….
The biggest immediate issue is that we have a scary shortage of doctors, particularly primary care and nurses, to accomodate new demand….and that number is getting worse not better….
Aquagirl
September 5th, 2012
10:06 am
They should of played the Michelle Youtube where she say’s ” All this for a damn flag” with her hand over here heart. It’s a classic.
You really believe that’s what she said? Stop, the irony of your name is gonna kill us with laughter.
http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/barackobama/ss/Michelle-Obama-Vs-The-U-S-Flag.htm
Granny Godzilla - Union Thugette
September 5th, 2012
10:06 am
Classless Dems use tribute video of deceased Ted Kennedy to attack Mitt Romney.
— @Reince via Twitter for iPhone
Listen, @Reince, you can’t air a guy yelling at a chair he’s pretending is POTUS for 12 minutes then complain about the other guy’s class.
— @WillMcAvoyACN via web
TaxPayer
September 5th, 2012
10:06 am
No way the DEMS recieved any less campaign cash from insurers etcetera….they are all the same…if the GOP pushed the same bill silently in the night, the DEMS would oppose simply due to competitve principals….GOP say black, DEMS say white and so forth.
Stevie,
No way Republicans contributed anything toward the healthcare legislation, as evidenced by the likes of Tom Price, et al. What is your point regarding campaign cash. What was its impact. The GOP pushed much of the very same as that in the Democrat legislation until the Democrats announced that they supported it. Then the Republicans decided that they were agianst it. As for your “black” “white” attempt at something, you’ll have to elaborate on that one.
USinUK - thug with a uterus ... and former Girl Scout
September 5th, 2012
10:07 am
“if you’re going to base your rant on something that was said, why don’t you try quoting it ACCURATELY?”
they haven’t in the last 4 years, why should they start now
St Simons - he-ne-ha
September 5th, 2012
10:07 am
“Quick, one of you cons that claimed to have the ‘whitey tape’ better
get it on youtube…”
heheh, yeah, i hope, reeeally hope the koch-scum and rove try
something typically scummy & dirty on her.
mrsstsimons has met ms. obama socially a couple of times,
and let’s say,
i’d mess with all of texas before i’d mess with either one of them
Steve Shamrock
September 5th, 2012
10:08 am
Speaking of Family Values and Women’s Rights…is Bill Clinton speaking tonight?
willydoit?
September 5th, 2012
10:08 am
“Obama is a 1%’er American”
Funny how the democrat 1%’ers know what its like to be middle class, but republican 1%’ers are all evil and stole their money from the middle class.
Jay Bookman is a 1%’er (lets see those tax returns)
Granny Godzilla - Union Thugette
September 5th, 2012
10:09 am
Something that I didn’t see in Tampa — wait staff cheering for convention speaker… Michelle
— @GlennThrush via Twitter for BlackBerry®
Chris Christie is wondering why Julian Castro’s keynote speech is not more about Chris Christie.
— @tbogg via web
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
10:09 am
PETER,
The top 10% pay over 70% of all taxes…(up from 30% I think in the sixties) millionaires pay taxes as required by IRS and have no more incident of audit problems than the rest….change the tax code if you think the millionaires and all those earning more that $250k should pay say…90%..
Proud to be me
September 5th, 2012
10:09 am
Certainly if Michele says it (or Obama) it must be true! NOT!!!!
Peter
September 5th, 2012
10:09 am
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am…
Come out and say it.. the scarey part is the amount of unhealthy folks that live in America that are way over weight, and totally out of shape…….
Mary Elizabeth
September 5th, 2012
10:10 am
“. . .historians will marvel that the first black person elected to the White House was elected just seven years after the attacks of 2011, and that he was named Barack Hussein Obama. They will attribute that success, quite accurately, to an American generosity of spirit. . .”
============================================
The best example of American exceptionalism – not based on power but on egalitarianism – has been seeing America move from an acceptance of Jim Crow to an acceptance of Barack Obama as President, within 60 years.
Yet, we must acknowledge that nearly half of our fellow Americans do not, yet, embrace that uniquely American “generosity-of-spirit,” which sees beyond surface realities such as race or class and wealth status to that core American value that all people are all inherently equal. Current Republican ideology neither reflects that spirit nor that consciousness.
This coming election is a critical one. Every vote counts. The nation is almost equally divided in its consciousness. Make your voice heard, and your vote count, in continuing the egalitarian ideals, upon which this nation was originally dedicated and upon which it was rededicated 150 years ago, into posterity.
b-troll
September 5th, 2012
10:10 am
http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2012/09/michelle-obama-democratic-convention
a more balanced review
“There was lots of stuff about what a sweet, loving and admirable husband and father Mr Obama is, which frankly did not advance the cause of human understanding very much: the Democrats in the crowd lapped it up, while those watching at home who dislike the current president will not have had their minds changed.”
Doggone/GA
September 5th, 2012
10:11 am
“the scarey part is the amount of unhealthy folks that live in America that are way over weight, and totally out of shape”
Jim Fixx died of a heart attack
RB from Gwinnett
September 5th, 2012
10:12 am
Yes Byte, the costs are being shifted from those who have insurance to the 53% who pay taxes. Just more “fairness” being dumped on people for having the nerve to do enough for themselves to get to the middle class.
We Love Our First Lady - The FLOTUS with the Mostest
September 5th, 2012
10:12 am
@kayaker 71
September 5th, 2012
10:01 am
“I’m a liberal, 9:58,
And note which hand that she and Bozo put on their chest. We might inform them that the heart is on the left side of the body and needs to be covered with the right hand instead of the left hand. They both look like a couple of amateur pretenders.
*****************************************************************
Please?
Give us a break.
Give hate a break
Find something of substance to complain about.
Not everything is a NAIL because you have a HAMMER.
Give us a break with the hate.
Ain’t you tired Kay?
kayaker 71
September 5th, 2012
10:13 am
DDR, 10:05,
“a bunch of faux outrage”? Tell that to some schmuck who has been out of work for the last year or two. Tell that to some conscientious black male about 28 without a HS education who is trying to find a job. Tell that to all of those who file for unemployment compensation every month which will soon run out for most of them. I am sure that this outrage is very real for them. For all of this concern, those in the WH don’t seem to let that interfere with Hawaii vacations, fancy wardrobes and spending the taxpayer dime on themselves. Tell me how Michelle’s 7500 dollar jacket identifies her with the little guy.
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
10:13 am
TAXPAYER,
Point is that either side will take the polar opposite position, no matter the facts, of the opposition which is akin to kids in a sandbox..
The fact that both parties get piles of money from the same pools indicates that the outcome is known before the debate….at that time, GOP was the sand throwing child likely suggesting to it’s cash source that they would produce a more lucrative outcome for insurers and the like…they simply obstructed leglislation..much like the DEMs will do if they lose WH..we get the shaft either way..
skydog
September 5th, 2012
10:13 am
What`s with the “just 1210″ on the SAT.
Did that thing get easier?
Don`t worry about a politician who didn`t score higher than 1210. Worry about an Engineer who puts your bridges together who didn`t crack 1000…….not me…..ah…this friend of mine.
Rightwing Troll
September 5th, 2012
10:13 am
“Trying to put lipstick on a pig but it is still a pig.”
HE CALLED THE FIRST LADY A PIG!!!!!
Common Sense
September 5th, 2012
10:13 am
“So you’re saying all those news outlets you read absolutely SUCK at vetting a candidate for the most important political office in the country?”
When the whole focus of the rhetoric from Charlotte is about who Obama is, how can you deny it?
getalife
September 5th, 2012
10:14 am
I think she should run like Hillary after her husband’s second term. She connects with the people.
The Ted Kennedy video was outstanding and the dems showed some major spine last night.
Stevie Ray..Clowns to the left and Jokers to the right..here I am...
September 5th, 2012
10:15 am
Peter,
Yes, those previously uninsured are much less healthy that the opposite and need attention…my point is that this is not the right way to deal with it because once again, the fox is allowed full run in the henhouse…