CNN: Barack Obama's education may hurt him

[Bluebear]

He never delivered a pizza, never carried a lunch bucket to work. Working class Illinoisans (?) may not respond to him. Touting Alan Keyes to oppose him. As an African-American he can offer a conservative balance to Obama. True, he lives in Maryland but that didn't matter to Hillary.

The Conservative News Network is pulling out all the stops!

[LuminousX]

1. Joke's on them

Let them say what they want. Illinois is responding very well to Obama!

[cthrumatrix]

35. CNN : "talk to the hand" .... you worthless propaganda outlet

[deacon]

67. CNN sucks n/t

[59millionmorons]

2. Oh please that race was over a month ago

That race was over a month ago. Obama has already order his stationary with his name on it.

[displacedtexan]

3. It's too late.

IL has a residency requirement for candidates, and it's too late for an outsider to establish residency and file.

[KC21304]

4. Can Keyes buy a house in Illinois before tomorrow ?

I believe Hillary and Bill had a house in NY before she filed the papers to run.

[LiberalTechie1337]

5. 3 Reasons Why Obama Can't Lose

First, Illinois is a fairly Democratic stronghold.
Second, the Jack Ryan scandal and the fact that Obama stayed away from any mud-slinging opportunities
Third, his performance at the DNC was spectacular and even some moderate Repubs I know were impressed.

[Walt Starr]

6. Sorry, Keyes can run

He has to be an Illinois resident on the day of the election.

He must move to Illinois by no later than September 5 in order to vote for himself.

[gratuitous]

God, I love the smell of desperation in the afternoon

Flailing away, casting about, taking wild potshots in the dark. Yeah, Obama won't connect with blue collar workers, right. And George W. Bush, Mr. Common Touch himself, is the kind of guy everyone wants to sit down and have a beer with. That is, if you went to Yale as a legacy, had daddy buy your way into the National Guard and then didn't show up for duty, spent your first 40 years in an alcohol- and cocaine-induced fugue, failed to find oil in Texas and walked away with $848,000 nevertheless, then yes, you'd be the sort of person Lil George would like to sit down and have a beer with. As long as it's an O'Doul's {wink}.

[maxrandb]

24. Please don't forget his keen baseball mind as well

This is the guy who "effing" traded Sammy Sosa away for squat, got a sweetheart deal on a stadium and walked away with millions in a bail out of one of the worst teams in baseball. He's the Art Modell of baseball. Want to see Cleveland OH go 100% for Kerry?, just mention the fact that * is a lot like Art Modell.

I question the judgement of anyone that traded Sammy Sosa.

[redwitch]

7. AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRR

I don't even know what to say to this. Obama is here, he is brilliant, passionate, popular and he would kill Keyes at the polls. That's my opinion anyway. I no longer watch CNN, they are such panderers.

[Bluebear]

9. Agreed. I checked in with them as I used to with FOX

Just out of curiousity to see how they would spin this old terror disgrace. In so many ways they are getting more blatantly conservative than Fox now.

[redwitch]

11. "the most trusted name in news" my ass!

I actually do scout a bit, I am no longer "glued" to their coverage as I was years ago. And it does now seem the Fox and CNN folks are joined at the hip.

[Jacobin]

8. "education may hurt him"?????????????????

Wow, that's pretty racist. Wonder if they would say the same thing about Smirky's supposed vaunted Ivy League Legacy Sheepskin?

[SidDithers]

23. From his speech at the DNC...

<snip>

Don't get me wrong. The people I meet in small towns and big cities, in diners and office parks, they don't expect government to solve all their problems. They know they have to work hard to get ahead and they want to. Go into the collar counties around Chicago, and people will tell you they don't want their tax money wasted by a welfare agency or the Pentagon. Go into any inner city neighborhood, and folks will tell you that government alone can't teach kids to learn. They know that parents have to parent, that children can't achieve unless we raise their expectations and turn off the television sets and eradicate the slander that says a black youth with a book is acting white. No, people don't expect government to solve all their problems. But they sense, deep in their bones, that with just a change in priorities, we can make sure that every child in America has a decent shot at life, and that the doors of opportunity remain open to all. They know we can do better. And they want that choice.

Sid

[Dastard Stepchild]

64. That was actually one of my favorite parts...

That part of the speech was the one that I thought took a little chutzpah - I liked it.

[ibegurpard]

10. How can anything hurt him?

As of right now, he doesn't have an opponent.

[Ilsa]

12. Of course, they pulled the residency crap with Cheney in 2000.

He was a resident of Dallas TX and they had to fly him back to WY to register to vote or something bacause he and the Chimp weren't supposed to have residency in the same state. When someone tried to bring a lawsuit over it, the GOP judges squashed it flatter than an armadillo roadkill pancake. It wouldn't surprise me if they tried to backdoor Keyes in somehow, claiming he had partial ownership of real estate with an Illinois resident or something.

[Bluebear]

14. Sorry, that case was different.

It involved Republicans. So now we have two Texas oil men in office. Gee, and oil is at a record high. Go figure!

[PA Democrat]

13. Yes, let's aspire to STUPIDITY

CNN= Ministry of Truth. :grr:

[stevedeshazer]

21. We don't want our leaders to be edjumacated

I didn't get no edjucation, and it din't hurt me none.

[justjones]

15. How many other senators delivered pizza or carried a lunch bucket to work?

I would guess none. So why Obama would have to do so in order to relate to the working class in Illinois is beyond me. Is it because he is "black"?

The man wasn't born with a silver spoon in his mouth and didn't gain entrance into Harvard law based on a "legacy admit." The man worked for what and who he is today.

I don't believe someone has to personally experience another person's struggles in order to understand it....if that were the case, we wouldn't be where we are today. Granted, some would argue we are still in a shit hole, or slipping back deeper into the shit hole with all of this administration's regressive policies, but we must admit we have made stride. We're still struggling, but I digress.

Saying Obama can't relate to the working class people of Illinois ain't gonna fly. Next!

[slinkerwink]

16. what the fuck?

[sleepystudent]

17. It won't work this time...

and it may never work,but it's not like CNN pulled that out of thin air. When Obama ran against Congressman Bobby Rush in 2000( I think it was 2000 ), he lost resoundingly because many voters, beyond thinking he was a upstart who had not been in Chicago long enough, also questioned his "blackness", and his educational background and the fact that his mother was white and he grew up in a white community was brought up and it worked against him. Obviously he got over this.

Also, there have been articles in the New Yorker and other publications speculating that many white voters who are not inclined to vote for a black candidate ( in polls, whites will say of course they will vote for a black candidate, but when push comes to shove in the voting booth, they often won't ) will vote for him because he is not "that black" or that 'stereotypically black" due to his mixed background and educational background. He "transcends race" whatever that means. Black pols who appeal to white voters the way Obama does are going to have the problem of not seeming like sellouts and not kowtowing to white voters interests and remembering who was there for them first. Obama realizes this and he knows where his roots are. Apparently in his autobiography he said when he was 12, he decided not to talk about being half white because he did not want to ingratiate himself with white people or appear deferential to them-which is smart if you are a black politician.

I think he will win and I hope he does, because it would be nice to have a black guy in the Senate ( freudian slip-I wrote White House first ). But yeah, that issue is out there and it's not made up. Exaggerated, yes. But not fiction.

[Danger Duck]

18. He's unbeatable

He had a twenty point lead before Ryan's little habits became well known.

[in_cog_ni_to]

19. Sorry, CNN...

We Illinois voters choose our OWN Senators. Obama WILL be our Senator. Ain't a damn thing you can do about it either!

[Skidmore]

20. What a bunch of racist crap.

If they want to play that stereotyping game, does this mean that they consider Keyes a homeboy? God, this is racist and beyond stupid.

[lebkuchen]

22. The GOP media is saying "education is bad."

Too bad. They could use some.

[dumpster_baby]

25. Why is everyone so excited about Obama? He is not a progressive

He is a neoliberal centrist.

[Skidmore]

26. Ah, labels....

He's a pragmatist, a refreshing concept in a world of convoluted labels. He's also progressive...what's more progressive than seeking ways to advance the quality of life for all?

[dumpster_baby]

34. Oooh...he's a "pragmatist"! Well, where is my vaseline, then?

I have had quite enough "pragmatists".....

[Skidmore]

40. Checked your beside table? nt

[Trajan]

43. LMFAO ! ....

Im reminded of an old joke: something about Camping, and waking up with yer pants around yer ankles, and a quarter in yer pocket ....

Er ... nevermind ....

[Logansquare]

46. Ralph's busy using it on us n/t

[SidDithers]

47. I've always found Karl much funnier than his brothers...

Groucho, Harpo and Zeppo

Sid

[LoZoccolo]

55. Yes, screw the "pragmatists"!

We want the kind of change that'll leave us with a repressive government which eventually crumbles and leaves capitalism in it's place again, but this time overrun with organized crime!

Sounds pretty unpragmatic to me! Bravo!

:eyes:

[LoZoccolo]

53. And I am a COUNTER-REVOLUTIONARY!

DON'T BE A FOOL FOR YOU ARE A CHAP WHO DARE TO THWART THE REVOLUTION.
- rule 3 of "The Security Regulations", S 21 Prison, Cambodia

[Doomsayer13]

56. Yes, Barack Obama the "centrist"

the man who pioneered bringing affordable healthcare to low-income and minority families in Illnois. Sounds like a "neo-liberal centrist" to me. These are some more of the "centrist" things Barack Obama stands for -


ENERGY
Barack Obama believes that by investing in alternative energy sources and improving automobile fuel efficiency, America can be a leader in this global market while spurring new industries and creating jobs at home. His “Energy Independence for Illinois” plan will reduce American dependence on foreign oil and promote emerging markets throughout the country.

Invest in Renewable Energy. Obama will support legislation requiring that by 2020, 20% of the nation's power supply portfolio comes from renewable sources like wind, solar, biomass and geothermal energy. Promoting renewable energy will create new investments and new jobs without increasing the prices families pay. Obama has proposed a flexible market-based approach that allows electricity providers to either generate the renewable energy themselves, obtain it from other companies, or purchase credits from providers who exceed the standard.

EDUCATION
A good public education system is the greatest hope for millions of American children, but widening achievement gaps and escalating college costs are threatening the very communities most in need. Barack Obama has a strong record of making our public institutions stronger and more accessible -- he has consistently fought for increased education funding, championed charter schools, and has worked to keep college affordable by limiting tuition increases and supporting state scholarships. As a U.S. Senator, Obama will build on that record. He will fight for full funding for Head Start and expanded pre-school, so every child starts school ready to learn. He has proposed a national network of teaching academies to add 25,000 new teachers to high-need urban and rural schools. And, he will work to send deserving students to college through loan programs that help middle-class families instead of banks.

Barack Obama has outlined a plan to create National Teacher Academies that will place 25,000 new teachers in high-need public schools over five years. One hundred academy schools will be created around the country. Each year, 5,000 men and women will be recruited for teacher resident positions. Each resident will commit to a six-year contract -- one year training and five years in probationary schools, those where less than one third of its students tested at grade level.

HEALTH CARE
Barack Obama believes health care is a right for everyone, not a privilege for the few, Throughout his legislative career, he has made affordable health care a priority -- he delivered coverage to an additional 65,000 Illinois families and sponsored a bill to protect the uninsured from price gouging. In Washington, Obama will continue to champion affordable health care on the national level. He has proposed a detailed health plan that covers every child in America, allows those near retirement to buy into Medicare, and ensures coverage for those losing jobs through no fault of their own. He will fight to ensure that our nation’s seniors have access to affordable prescription drugs – by allowing re-importation of drugs from other industrialized nations for our citizens, like we do for drug manufacturers, and fighting for a real Medicare prescription drug law that allows the federal government to negotiate drug prices.

JOBS AND THE ECONOMY
Real economic stimulus does not come from tax breaks for the wealthiest few, but rather from a focus on putting every American back to work. Illinois has lost more than 200,000 jobs under President Bush’s economic plan. Barack Obama has a strong record fighting for the American worker -- he supported tax relief for working families, helped design innovative job training programs across the state, and authored legislation that cut Illinois’ welfare rolls. As a U.S. Senator, Obama will close the loopholes that give corporations incentives to move jobs overseas, provide a safety net for displaced workers, and increase research and development funding to spur new markets.

Quite the neo-liberal centrist DINO sell out, don't you agree?

[dumpster_baby]

58. well, that sounds pretty good to me. However I found references on the net

....that said he is a neoliberal centrist.

But I like what he is saying.
Maybe I was wrong?

[Doomsayer13]

59. Here's some more info

According to the interest group ratings compiled by Project Vote Smart, Barack Obama Recieved (Reference his record in the IL State Senate)

Abortion
2002  Based on information available in 2002, the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council chose to endorse Senator Obama.

Budget and Spending
2001-2002  On the votes that the National Taxpayers United of Illinois considered to be the most important in 2001-2002, Senator Obama voted their preferred position 10 percent of the time.

1999  On the votes that the National Taxpayers United of Illinois considered to be the most important in 1999, Senator Obama voted their preferred position 0 percent of the time

- National Taxpayers United is a Conservative group

Environment
2003  On the votes that the Illinois Environmental Council considered to be the most important in 2003, Senator Obama voted their preferred position 100 percent of the time.

1998  Based on information available in 1998, the Illinois Sierra Club chose to endorse Senator Obama.

Gender Issues
2002  Based on information available in 2002, Illinois National Organization for Women chose to endorse Senator Obama.

Guns
2002  Based on voting records and a questionnaire sent out to all state legislative candidates by Illinois Citizens for Handgun Control, Senator Obama was assigned a grade of A (with grades ranging from a high of A+ to a low of F).

2002  Based on lifetime voting records on gun issues and the results of a questionnaire sent to all state legislative candidates in 2002, the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund assigned Senator Obama a grade of F (with grades ranging from a high of A+ to a low of F).

Social Issues
2003  On the votes that the Citizen Action Illinois considered to be the most important in 2003, Senator Obama voted their preferred position 96 percent of the time.

2001  Based on the percentage of time Senator Obama voted their preferred position on the votes that Citizen Action Illinois considered to be the most important in 2001, Senator Obama received a rating of Excellent.

Citizen Action IL is a liberal public advocacy group.

[Paragon]

27. Never shined shoes, never ate watermelon, never buck 'n' shuffled

What's the matter, CNN? Can't call a spade a spade, so to speak?

:puke:

[enigmatic]

28. Jesus....

this has got to be the stupidest (and most bigoted) line of reasoning I've ever heard about Obama; who is going to take CNN's take seriously?

[NewJerseyDem]

29. I don't think that CNN was saying that

I thought that was just what a Republican official was saying that they showed a clip of.

[MO_Dem]

30. Man, this is a new low for CNN

Funny how they never mention what a fake "good ole boy" Duh?bya is and that his edumication (I use that term loosely in this instance) might hurt him. Maybe CNN thinks it is better that a candidate buy his degree like the really privileged do, instead of earning it.

I'd bet a million bucks if I had them that this story comes straight out of the RNC and directly on the air.

[scottxyz]

31. Well I heard that Alan Keyes has "self-evident brilliance"

And he won the 2000 Presidential debates.

Guess all that braininess won't hurt HIM though - because he's a Republican.

http://www.renewamerica.us/keyes/quint.htm

[goclark]

52. Alan Keyes is a loser

There is no way that any clear thinking person,even a Born Aaain Rethug, could pick Keyes over Obama. I would be shocked if Keyes could get 10 African American votes against Obama. I'm giving him 10 votes because he may have 3 in his immediate family and some distant cousins in Chicago may vote for him.

Obama can clean his plate.

[tom_paine]

32. The Craven Cowardly "News" Network

It's official, only marginal differences remain between them and Faux.

It's as if only 1/3rd of the nation exists for these people.

Of course, 1/3rd of the nation was what Nazis, Commies, and Ferdinand Marcos also had...

[sleepystudent]

33. There is some truth to this and I have heard some black people voice this

I guess I worded my first post wrong and it was ignored, but instead of just bashing CNN, which is too easy, you could read this

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/01/weekinreview/01malc.html>

I'm hot right now, so I have lost the ability to format properly, please forgive me. But yeah cut and paste the link to read this.

This issue has come up for black politicians before and it is usually from other black politicians, not white media conglomerates or white liberals. When Corey Booker ( Stanford grad, Yale Law, Rhodes Scholar ) ran for mayor of Newark, NJ, he was attacked by the current mayor Sharpe James, for not being "black enough" and not truly understanding the lives of the black poor in Newark beyond theory. He lost the race. He is on the city council now and is planning to run again. Even his light skin and diction was used against him-again by other blacks. And I am black and I can't lie, when I see a black pol who brags about "transcending race" and appealing to white voters, I have to battle knee-jerk cynicism and suspicion that he or she is just using black voters as a base and is not responding to their concerns-which is what the Dem party does in general, IMO. And I went to an elite college, which makes me think that if I have that attitude, it may be stronger in more isolated deprived communities.

[sleepystudent]

36. oops...

let me try the link again...

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/01/weekinreview/01malc.html

Just cut and paste. Sorry about that.

[Karenina]

42. You're bringing up an issue

which has merit, goes to the core of the black "caste system" and the legacy of racism but I can assure you this board is not the place to discuss it. Just a word to the wise.

Maybe Obama is "overqualified." ;-)

[bobbieinok]

48. why can't this be discussed on DU???

I know posters have been yelled at for being racist etc etc etc. But this comment sounded straightforward with personal experience to back it up.

As a white woman over 60 who grew up in OK and went to college in TX and grad school in CA and worked in the civil rights movement, I think the more discussions we can have on such topics as the poster brought up the better.

And if we can't have such discussions on DU, WHERE CAN WE DISCUSS SUCH ISSUES/QUESTIONS???????

[Karenina]

57. I DUNNO.

I DO know that most posters who have been yelled at for being racist etc etc etc... log on the next minute STILL NOT GETTING IT. We are a much smaller minority here than in the general population. Lots of us loquacious posters tend to avoid discussing race wit'chall. Mostly I perceive the difficulty is rooted in dat ribba in Africa, an assumption of superiority and the unwillingness to SHUT UP AND LISTEN that proceeds from it. So ist das. :shrug:

[sleepystudent]

62. I know that DU is not the place

to discuss race(or anything?)with any nuance. Oh well...

[smirkymonkey]

37. Quick! Name one Senator

that has ever delivered a pizza or carried a lunch bucket to work.

How ever did they get elected to office with out the working class vote???

They're desperate and this insinuation is racist to the core.

[nickgutierrez]

38. It's hard to 'hurt' someone that doesn't even have an opponent...

[guitar man]

39. Well then

<He never delivered a pizza, never carried a lunch bucket to work. Working class Illinoisans (?) may not respond to him.>

If this is true, they must REALLY hate Boosh*.

[jdj]

41. Ah, the racism, though hidden, creeps out in one way or another.

"He's the only African-American with an education."

yeah, right.

[terrya]

44. Who said this? Tucker Carlson? What a load of horseshit.

This race is OVER. Barack Obama should start looking for housing in DC.

[Gloria]

45. I don't know what Keyes' education is, but he has some academic

backround, doesn't he? And on TV, he sounds like an elitist snob as he spouts his crap......guess that's OK with CNN....

UGH

[bobbieinok]

49. I think he has a Ph.D. and was an ambassador

[depakid]

50. An insightful person might infer

that educated people (or those who are trying to get educated) aren't well respected at CNN.

Seems to me the logical conclusion to that would be for educated people to simply turn them off. And in fact, that seems to be the trend....

[LoZoccolo]

51. Hurt him against who?

Bahahahahahahahahaha!

[greekspeak]

54. Who is Ryan set to replace there in IL?

[Walt Starr]

60. How will it hurt him if he's running against Alan Keyes?

Keyes is one of two potential candidates now.

[Doomsayer13]

61. Keyes is such a nut

and I don't think anybody takes well to such carpetbagging. Granted, it's what Hillary did, but she was a Democrat running in a liberal state. Keyes will be an arch conservative running in a liberal state... I'd relish the chance to see his ass kicked

[PROGRESSIVE1]

63. CNN SHOULD BE SHUT DOWN!!

I HATE THEM!!!!

:grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr::grr:

[goclark]

65. Me too!!!!

We can't continue to let them do this to the American citizens.

[yardwork]

66. What an incredibly stupid and arrogant thing for CNN to say

but then, it is CNN. I have less respect for them than Faux now.