THE ELOQUENCE OF OBAMA
IT’S BEEN FASCINATING THROUGH THE COURSE OF THIS 2008 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN SEASON TO SEE THE METEORIC EMERGENCE OF BARACK OBAMA.
A YEAR AGO NOBODY KNEW WHO HE WAS, NOW HE APPEARS TO BE ON HIS WAY TO WINNING THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINATION.
HOW? WHY?
CONSIDER THAT FOR THE PAST 20 YEARS THE NATION HAS BEEN LED BY EITHER A BUSH, OR A CLINTON. THE LEFT IS SICKENED OF BUSH, THE RIGHT DESPISES THE CLINTONS. THAT PRESENTS AN OPENING FOR A FRESH FACE ON THE SCENE. AND OBAMA HAS PRESENTED WHAT APPEARS TO BE THAT VERY FRESH FACE. HE WAS A BLANK SLATE, UPON WHICH DEMOCRATIC, INDEPENDENT AND EVEN SOME DISGRUNTLED GOP VOTERS COULD WRITE THEIR MAP FOR CHANGE.
AH, THERE’S THAT WORD. CHANGE.
OBAMA’S HANDLERS, AND PROBABLY THE CANDIDATE HIMSELF, RECOGNIZED THE LEVEL OF FRUSTRATION AMONG VOTERS WITH MORE OF THE SAME. HILLARY REPRESENTED THE PAST, AND ALL THAT BROUGHT WITH IT. SO HE POSITIONED HIMSELF AS THE MAN ON HORSEBACK WHO WOULD SOLVE ALL OF OUR PROBLEMS, FULFILL ALL OF OUR DREAMS, AND MAKE THE CHANGES THAT WOULD MAKE AMERICA GREAT. AS IF IT WASN’T ALREADY.
SO HE TOOK TO THE STUMP AND BEGAN TO SPEAK. AND HIS WORDS TOOK HOLD IN FERTILE SOIL. HOW MANY TIMES IN THE PAST FEW YEARS HAVE WE TURNED ON THE NEWS AND HEARD ABOUT YET ANOTHER POLITICIAN BROUGHT DOWN BY THE LATEST SCANDAL, SEXUALLY ORIENTED OR OTHERWISE? WE WERE SICK OF IT. WERE ALL POLITICIANS LIARS, VENAL, SEX FIENDS, POWER CRAZED, OR CROOKS?
HERE WAS A BREATH OF FRESH AIR.
NOW, ANDREW FERGUSON OF THE WEEKLY STANDARD HAS POINTED OUT HOW MUCH OF WHAT HE’S SAYING HAS ALL BEEN SAID BEFORE.
OBAMA’S MANTRA IS…”WE ARE THE ONES WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR”……WHAT DOES IT MEAN? WELL, WHO CARES? IT SOUNDS PROMISING, SELF FULFILLING. BUT SAD TO SAY, IT’S NOT ORIGINAL. NOR AS IT TURNS OUT IS MUCH OF WHAT BARACK OBAMA HAS HAD TO SAY DURING THE CAMPAIGN.
THE “WE ARE THE ONES” PHRASE ACTUALLY COMES FROM LEFT WING RADICAL FEMINIST LESBIAN NOVELIST ALICE WALKER…THAT WASA THE TITLE OF A BOOK OF ESSAYS SHE PUBLISHED 2 YEARS AGO, BEFORE BARACK EVEN ANNOUNCED HIS CANDIDACY. BUT WHEN OBAMA SAID IT FROM THE STUMP, WOMEN SWOONED, MEN CRIED AND MSNBC’S HOST OF SOFTBALL CHRIS MATTHEWS SAID OBAMA’S SPEECHES MADE A TINGLE RUN UP HIS LEG.
NO WONDER, OBAMA’S SPEECHES ARE MEANT TO BE ABSORBED LIKE ARMOA THERAPY, NOT THOUGHT ABOUT.
AND A GOOD THING THAT IS, SINCE MOST OF WHAT HE’S SAYING HAS ALREADY BEEN SAID BEFORE.
“POLITICS IS BROKEN” HE SAYS…ALSO SAID BY SEN. BILL
BRADLEY IS 1996 AND GEORGE W. BUSH IN 2000.
AMERICA NEEDS OBAMA SAYS “A PRESIDENT WHO WILL TELL YOU WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW, NOT WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR”…FLASHBACK, 1994, VP CANDIDATE GERALDINE FERRARO…
”LEADERSHIP IS NOT JUST TELLING PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT TO HEAR, IT’S TELLING THEM WHAT THEY NEED TO KNOW”. OH, ALSO SAID BY ARNOLD SCHWARTZENEGGER IN HIS RUN FOR GOV. OF CALIFORNIA.
“THIS IS A DEFINING MOMENT IN OUR HISTORY” SAYS OBAMA…JUST AS IT WAS APPARENTLY IN 1996 WHEN ELIZABETH DOLE SAID IT WHEN BOB RAN FOR PRESIDENT.
“WASHINGTON” OBAMA COMPLAINS “HAS BECOME A PLACE WHERE POLITICIANS SPEND TOO MUCH TIME TRYING TO SCORE POLITICAL POINTS”…JUST AS IT WAS APPARENTLY IN 1992 WHEN BILL CLINTON SAID IT AND IN 2000 WHEN GEO. W. BUSH SAID IT.
WANT SOME MORE? OKAY…
OBAMA OPPOSES THE POLITICS WHERE WE TEAR EACH OTHER DOWN INSTEAD OF LIFTING THIS COUNTRY UP”…BOB DOLE 1996.
“WE’RE GOING TO TAKE THIS COUNTRY BACK” HOWARD DEAN, 2004.
“WE WILL CHOSOEUNITY OVER DIVISION” OBAMA 2008, JESSE JACKSON 1992.
“WE WILL CHOOSE HOPE OVER FEAR” OBAMA 2008, BILL CLINTON AND JOHN KERRY 2004.
WE WILL OVERCOME OUR MORAL DEFICIT” OBAMA 2008, BUSH 2000. JOHN KERRY 2004 AND NEWT GINGRICH 1994.
SO THE NEXT TIME YOU HEAR A PUNDIT OR COMMENTATOR SWOONING OVER THE INSPIRATION RHETORIC OF BARACK OBAMA…TRY TO RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO SAY.. “WHERE HAVE I HEARD THAT BEFORE” BARACK WOULD HAVE YOU BELIEVE IT’S ALL NEW AGAIN.
