Obama makes a big mistake.
At a fundraiser in California, per a Huffington Post story, he analyzes the psyches of the Pennsylvanians whose votes he needs:
"You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton Administration, and the Bush Administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."
To count the ways in which this is bad: It sounds condescending. It tells people you want to like you that you think they're "bitter" about their lot. It suggests that guns, which are a huge voting bloc in Pennsylvania, and religion, which is huge everywhere, are manifestations of bitterness.
McCain campaign has pounced: "It shows an elitism and condescension towards hardworking Americans that is nothing short of breathtaking. It is hard to imagine someone running for president who is more out of touch with average Americans."
So has Clinton: “I saw in the media it’s being reported that my opponent said that the people of Pennsylvania who faced hard times are bitter. Well, that’s not my experience. As I travel around Pennsylvania, I meet people who are resilient, who are optimistic, who are positive, who are rolling up their sleeves. They are working hard everyday for a better future, for themselves and their children. Pennsylvanians don’t need a president who looks down on them, they need a president who stands up for them, who fights for them, who works hard for your futures, your jobs, your families.”
Obama's campaign, for what it's worth, hasn't confirmed or denied the quote yet. The Huff Post has an audio clip, with more extended remarks here, and you can read the longer transcript after the jump. The only Obama campaign statement responds to McCain:
"Senator Obama has said many times in this campaign that Americans are understandably upset with their leaders in Washington for saying anything to win elections while failing to stand up to the special interests and fight for an economic agenda that will bring jobs and opportunity back to struggling communities. And if John McCain wants a debate about who's out of touch with the American people, we can start by talking about the tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans that he once said offended his conscience but now wants to make permanent.”
Transcript of Obama's remarks in California, from Huffington Post:
OBAMA: So, it depends on where you are, but I think it's fair to say that the places where we are going to have to do the most work are the places where people are most cynical about government. The people are mis-appre...they're misunderstanding why the demographics in our, in this contest have broken out as they are. Because everybody just ascribes it to 'white working-class don't wanna work -- don't wanna vote for the black guy.' That's...there were intimations of that in an article in the Sunday New York Times today - kind of implies that it's sort of a race thing.
Here's how it is: in a lot of these communities in big industrial states like Ohio and Pennsylvania, people have been beaten down so long. They feel so betrayed by government that when they hear a pitch that is premised on not being cynical about government, then a part of them just doesn't buy it. And when it's delivered by -- it's true that when it's delivered by a 46-year-old black man named Barack Obama, then that adds another layer of skepticism.
But -- so the questions you're most likely to get about me, 'Well, what is this guy going to do for me? What is the concrete thing?' What they wanna hear is -- so, we'll give you talking points about what we're proposing -- to close tax loopholes, you know, roll back the tax cuts for the top 1 percent. Obama's gonna give tax breaks to middle-class folks and we're gonna provide health care for every American.
But the truth is, is that, our challenge is to get people persuaded that we can make progress when there's not evidence of that in their daily lives. You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration, and the Bush administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.
Um, now these are in some communities, you know. I think what you'll find is, is that people of every background -- there are gonna be a mix of people, you can go in the toughest neighborhoods, you know working-class lunch-pail folks, you'll find Obama enthusiasts. And you can go into places where you think I'd be very strong and people will just be skeptical. The important thing is that you show up and you're doing what you're doing.
Comments (17)
He's right though, religion guns, fear of outsiders is always greater among the poor, Karl marx once called religion the opiate of the masses.
Obama once again tells the people the truth forgetting that Americans don't like truth
Wake Up People.........
He's an empty suit, with a speech...........
from swimming freestyle:
"Barack Obama is a remarkably eloquent man and turning into a remarkably capable politician. But if the Senator believes it's smart to insult voters from a state critical to your success, he's hit one of the worst false notes yet in his campaign.
Yeah, I know what his campaign said, and that may have been what he meant. But a sophisticated candidate doesn't refer to voters in language that can be construed as derogatory or insulting. Obama asserted Pennsylvania voters are bitter and so simple and lacking in maturity and intelligence that they address their frustration by clinging to primitive and reactionary crutches rather than addressing their problems in constructive ways.
It's divisive. And not the way to attract the voters you need most."
http://swimmingfreestyle.typepad.com
I think he let slip EXACTLY what he thinks:
RELIGION, protected by the First Amendment; BAD !
GUNS, protected by the Second Amendment; BAD !
How in the world does he think he can put his hand on the bible and swear to uphold these RIGHTS ? !
There are real Americans in Middle America, and then there are the liberals in LA-LA Land.
good grief...he's not saying guns are bad, or religion is bad...he's showing a frank empathy for some who feel disconnected from the government...those who feel they have been left by the wayside...and , so, they vote for the things that are more tangible to them...things where they know their voices will be heard...the government is shipping their jobs overseas, the rich are getting the tax breaks, and the regular joe is taking the brunt of this mess...i was raised in a small town and he's spot on...put whatever "wonderspin" on this that you like, but he hit the mark with many people...unfortunately, the news will present only snippets, hillary will do her bait and switch dance to remove the glaring spotlight and mccain(absolutely laughable and absurd that he, of all people, would say anything) will jump on this convoluted bash train to make himself look to be the regular joe...it will become an unneccessary whirling vortex of a mess, taking away time from all candidates to carry on with the issues...
As a voter all this blather is making me more angry and bitter.
So shut up already; before someone gets shot fer god's sake.
I am one of those bitter Americans that Barack Obama speaks of. I am mad at my government and at the media (the real elitist who want to tell us what to think), who aren't here to help Americans one bit. I am Bitter for having to pay for a war that should have never been fought.
Bitter to watch our Soldiers fall in vain.
Bitter to know that homeless soldiers exists.
Bitter for all of the cuts made to our education system.
Bitter for being fleeced by predatory lenders.
Bitter by watching CEO make more in a year than most Americans make in a lifetime.
Bitter for watching jobs being shipped overseas via NAFTA and CAFTA and CHINA Trade, etc....
Bitter for China owning us in so many ways.
Bitter watching our politicians play gotcha politics that solves nothing, and a willing paid media that helps them do it.
Bitter because our media dwells on non news and keeps from us from knowing what we should know.
Bitter for watching our Civil liberties being chipped away bit by big bit.
Bitter in watching the cost of college education go sky high.
Bitter for what we have to pay in medical premiums, if we can even afford insurance.
Bitter that dental coverage is not part of "medical".
Bitter because we cannot save any money, although we are told that this is what we do be doing.
And you know what else?
I AM READY FOR A CHANGE!
With deep disappointment, I listened to the mortifying words Senator Obama uttered about people he purports to represent. To be a strong nation, a united nation, we must obliterate the notion that some are, by birth or by destiny, superior to others.
In a free country, every citizen, no matter how humble his or her beginnings, can aspire to anything the mind can imagine. To cast the values, circumstances, or lifestyles of others as unworthy, because they differ from one's own, represents the height of arrogance.
I do not want a president who speaks down to me from on high. I do not want a president who believes in coercing me to accept his "vision" of a country where elitism is valued more than humanity. I do not want a president who mocks the simple pleasures of life.
Senator Obama unites by polarizing, oblivious to the fact that unity comes from mutuality. To be one Nation, we must all be equal.
For these reasons, I stand beside future President Hillary Clinton. Our relation to one another is not superior to subordinate, but one of camaraderie. She, and all Americans, will fight side-by-side, in a battle for a better future for America. That day cannot come soon enough.
I can't decide whether the anti-Obama comments are just Hillary shills plying their agendas, or whether they are well-intentioned folk who simply do not see the depth of their double-speak.
Barack Obama is the ONLY candidate who is willing to take risks - to not "play it safe" - by speaking truth (his words) to power (the voters). The sad shame is that hordes of spinsters are prepared to take their pathetic actions, and the media duly reports them to the vast apathetic majority who are willing to take things out of context because they will not do their own research to the source materials.
As has been the case since the outset of the campaign, Senator Obama's words are blunt, but they are truthful.
Read to yourself the posts of readers "Catherine" and "Andrew G." above - then ask yourself, "Who speaks truth?"
To Mark D.; Only Daniel P. speaks the truth here.
Hillary and John on the same side as usual. This is becoming a bit too uncomfortable for me. As far what Barack stated about the smalltown America being bitter...HE'S DAMN RIGHT! What are John and Hillary saying? Oh, I know, things are just fine. Which is the way she's going to run this country...Just the way it is now. I live in Pa...Allentown to be exact. And her comments spoke volumes to me, my family and friends. I can honestly see John McCain stating what he did...He's a republican!!! BUT, for her to agree with him. She should have jumped on this with Barack and brough more attention to it!!! She should have said HELL YEAH, their BITTER and with damn good reason to be so! But, instead, as always (I'm now beginning to see) she took the low road and squashed the issuse that could have and should be a vaulable weapon against the republicans. I just pray the residents of PA don't feed into this. Instead stand up and say...HELL YEAH WE'RE BITTER AND WANT CHANGE, IMMEDIATELY!!!!!
Dear Mark D, Obama did not speak truth to the voters .He spoke privately to millionaires in the bay area. He only spoke to the voters when someone pulled his cover.
Catherine,
As an unabashed Hillary Clinton supporter, I can understand your desire to support Obama, and interpret his comments in the best possible light.
BTW, you didn't preface "the war that should never been fought" with obligatory Obamism, "that should never have been authorized". He has the dumb luck to fall back upon his one speech at some south Chicago rally, and parlay into a viable candidacy, two years into his first senator-dom.
You have rattled off a number of issues that you care about. doesn't becessarily follow that Obama is the man to deliver on all those issues, even if he agrees with you on all of them. Hope and Change are nice words, so is Peace and Prosperity. Spouting just the words doesn't give you the ability to achieve them. But the ability to con millions of people into buying the premise has to be appreciated.
Andy O'donnell: You hit the nail on the head. Obama spoke in private to millionaires his true feelings. How then can someone trust him as president? It is sad because so many people were looking to him to make a change but unfortunately, he is no different than all of the rest of the politicians. There are a plenty of bitter individuals all over the world yet he never addressed them in this manner. Also, I was offended by the religion and guns comment. To say that people who have been economically challenged turn to guns and religion as a comfort says that he is an elitist.
As usual we haven't heard the full speech but his opponents are ready to turn what he has said upside down and twist the truth. Obama is surely not a fool, anything he said in that closed room could be said in public. So what if some people in small towns are bitter? Is it wrong to be bitter and cling to whatever you can to cope? What about the part concerning the Bush and Clinton Administrations? Why doesn't anyone mention that?
HIllary is really desparate and is doing anything she can to bolster her sorry excuse for a campaign. She is not bitter, she and Bill made $109 million over the past years as her tax returns show. What does she understand about spending your last dollar to pay the rent and going hand-to-mouth for the rest of the month.
What does she understand about not having enough food for your children to eat?
Catherine (below) is bitter and I am proud of her! Damn straight - say it as you see it. If everyone else who faces a similar situation is not bitter then good for them. Let them ask Hillary for some of her money. But those who are honest and can read and understand what was being said would agree that he was in no way being condescending. Instead he was speaking the truth about life in America today for some people.
What about Mc Cain, riding on his wife's wealth? Is he bitter? I think not. You see, they cannot understand how Obama is able to run such a sucessful campaign against all odds. And as supposedly intelligent people I can't understand their misinterpretation of his words. Ofcourse I expect that from their supporters who cloud their vision with emotional rhetoric.
Maybe Obama's campaign should also hand out stickers that read: I bet many people would gladly take one. I know I would.
The race is increasingly about who will slip the most. McCain's unbridled anger, Hillary's misspeaking or Obama's misfirings. This election has the power to change the world for a better place. No doubt any/all of these 3 will be better than what we have now. But when it comes to the issues 2 things matter right here, right now, mandate and beating McCain.
The winner must have a clear mandate and so comfortable majorities in Congress/Senate and be able to deliver.
I love the change speech, I'm not convinced on health, worried about delivery and not sure he can rule Washington but he sends an important message round the world and Barack will unite - can a black man with a misspeaking wife get this mandate? The shame on america minister and bitter comment will cost Barack a lot in modern American media frenzy? He could easily be foxifried. Will that cost him the mandate? He needs to run with someone who can definately deliver.
John McCain is old and very head strong. He is almost certain to drive headlong into a pile-up if he doesn't control his angry side - any sensible opponent will goad him mercilessly. But he will almost certainly have every media outlet and big business behind him. McCain Schwarzie will appeal to a lot of people. He will not be easy to beat.
Clinton is a done deal - she is clean confident and can definately deliver - in Washington and around the world - she's cold, efficient - basically charmless, much like a lot of modern America. Can she get the mandate? If the Dems want to win Clinton Barack combo offer delivery and charm whichever way they stand. McCain with a big ticket item is a much more tasty package than he might be right now. He's gonna have a big lead, a clear focus and a lot more of the media support and focus than the Dems.
Post WW2 is littered with dreams that were not realised. Climate change and the loss of western moral high ground won't wait. They're ebbing away right here, right now.
He's right that people are bitter, but to say the result is church-going (esp. in light of his bitter pastor) is stupid. He clearly doesn't know that people use their guns to hunt -- for fun and for FOOD. Like some "minority" people, he can't accept that people may not like him because of who he is and not because he's a different color. He thinks that people dislike immigrants -- and slides over the fact that millions of aliens here are not immigrants, but illegally in our nation. Obama still sees things from the high peak of his education, his immersion in among people with strange ideas such as his wife, reverend, church, and academia, and he sees from within the protection of his status and his money. And he sees things incorrectly as this quote shows.
If he says this at a fundraiser, what does he believe in the privacy of this thoughts?