OBAMA JABS AT CLINTON; APPEALS TO SEIU

[Omaha Steve]

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/09/17/365133.aspx

Posted: Monday, September 17, 2007 3:37 PM by Domenico Montanaro

From NBC’s Domenico Montanaro
Obama took shots at Clinton -- on the day she laid out her health-care plan -- saying at the SEIU presidential forum in D.C that his plan would pass by the end of his first term, not “defeated” like “in 1994.” He also said he was right on the Iraq war and took the position of being against the war in 2002 when it wasn’t “convenient.”

He railed against the Washington establishment and defended his experience, talking up his work as a community activist, civil rights lawyer and constitutional law professor. He added that what he realized was that politics is considered a “game” by insiders. “It’s not about who plays the game the best,” Obama said, adding later, “I know I have the experience Washington needs right now. Hope and change are the story of my life. Hope and change are the story of this country.”

Obama also made a direct appeal for the 1.9 million-member SEIU’s endorsement, saying he wouldn’t be where he is today without their endorsement in 2004. Obama showed his community activism experience, as he has before on the trail, riling up the crowd and pledging again to walk the picket lines if elected president.