Michelle O. says;
"I'm married to the answer"

"Barack is one of the smartest men we will see in our lifetime."

"Barack Obama will be the kind of leader we need right now, not in four years or eight years or 12 years," she said. "We can't wait to get this right. We need it to happen today."

Michelle wants you to vote for Barack because she thinks what America needs is a healer-in-chief.

And Barry says "I am the one"

I cling to my gut feeling, which has served me well along the way.

Oceankat;
I will answer your question. It IS a natural HUMAN tendency to cling to what is familiar and gives one comfort when the rug is pulled out from under us.

I recently went to law school and with the attendant bar exams that accompany said degree for one who wants to practice in three jurisdictions it was very intense four and a half years!

Sometimes the pressure was overwhelming. I am not ashamed to say that there were times when I would go veg out at some dumb action flick and sit through it multiple times just so I could have a break from the study over load.

And my Dad passed away on Christmas Day in 2007 after a three year battle with cancer. I am generally pretty focused and connected to my heart because that is what I have focused my life on since adulthood.

But I definitely prayed more during my Dad's illness than usual. Was it clinging? I am not sure-but I am not embarrassed if the answer is yes.

If you are a progressive you know that the issue Obama spoke of has been troubling us for several election cycles. The Repubs have fired up the "red state" voters with specious social issues that for the most part do not affect their daily lives-gay rights, the Dems will take your guns and your religion- in order to keep them voting for the very politicians who have largely contributed to destroying their livelihood by smashing the unions (remember when Reagan took on the Air Traffic Controllers?) and outsourcing their jobs.

Obama was addressing this issue with a message or strategy if you will about how to finally bridge a gap with the working class voters so that we can get their support to put the people in office who can actually help them because we ARE pro workers rights.

Unlike HRC Obama actually put his body and mind where his heart was-he passed up lucrative jobs in the corporate sector-where I can tell you as a new attorney-he would be a 7 figure partner somewhere by now-to work to help people.

I do not begrudge Hillary her 6 years at Wal-Mart. I only begrudge that she tries to capitalize on trivia to help her campaign while creating a false picture of her background AND of Obamas. Did you see the video where FOX NEWS interviewed those two guys in the diner and acted surprised when they both said that they agreed with Obama, one of them an older gentleman who was a McCain supporter?

I mean do you seriously believe that Hillary is less of an elitist than Obama? She took at least two tries to pass the bar exam-I am not knocking that-it is a damn difficult exam. And now these many years later she and Bill have a $100 million fortune. But Obama passed on his first try after graduating Magna Cum Laude as President of the Harvard Law Review. He could be sitting on top of any one of the wealthiest law firms in the nation if he wanted.

He has been in politics since the late 1990's. How many politicians do any of us know who are not millionaires many times over after that much time? Obama has a home worth a couple million dollars but aside from that, he is NOT a millionaire.

If you are a strong Hillary supporter then I respect that. If you like her positions better than Obama I respect that as well. But please stop slamming Obama for specious issues that are also Republican talking points right now.

Tell us why Hillary is better than Obama. Many of us supported her in years past. I will tell you what I liked about Hillary when she was First Lady. She has always been smart and articulate. She handled herself with class even in the face of public humiliation because of her philandering husband. I never was a big fan of President Clinton (though he was light years better to me than either Bush!). But I remember in the early 1990’s watching Hillary and feeling like, “Wow! If she was the candidate I would get out and campaign for her.” I loved her youthful enthusiasm and idealism and the courageous way she took on the Senators-from both parties-for the sake of healthcare because it was the right thing to do. I no longer see that idealistic person willing to stick her neck out for unpopular issues because it is the right thing to do in Hillary. She has become too good at parsing the opinion polls to see which way the fickle public sentiment is moving to win support.

What I like about Obama is the very thing I liked about Hillary in 1992. He is enthusiastic and idealistic. He is smart, well read and articulate. And he is young enough that he still sticks his neck out when it is the right thing to do. (To wit, remember back in 2002 when opposing the Iraq Invasion was tantamount to being anti American?!) Obama did that. He could have played it safe and kept his mouth shut. After all, he was a state senator who had no direct responsibility toward national policy. And if you look at the people he is bringing to the polls-the young, the old and the swing voters-there is substantial evidence that he does have the ability to bring desperate groups together.

I am all ears if you would like to tell me what you really like about Hillary! But just remember-if we are all progressives, then we are all on the same side and after this primary season is over we will all need to unite to save our country from another neo-con ruler. So please stop slamming Obama on false issues. Tell us why you disagree with his POSITIONS.

Thank You Oceankat. This is the first time I have spoken publicly about loosing my Dad and I feel better for it. Although I too am very passionate and I love Obama and am doing everything I can to help get him into the White House, in my heart I know that if you are supporting Hillary because you too are a progressive, then we are on the same side. And even if you are not a progressive, in my heart I know that we are still brothers because we are fellow human beings. So please, lets keep it real.

I answered at my blog.

I think the message is that frankly these small town, rural community folks have been the most (not the only by any stretch) demographic to be suckered in by wedge politics. They tend to vote conservative even though conservatives have been shafting them for decades. And they vote conservative over wedge-type issues - they cling to what they know, feel and are familiar with.
This is normal; this is human-nature. Obama's point is that these people in the rust belt have been lied to and beat down so much, they really don't expect any pol to actually come thru for them on any substantive issue (jobs, healthcare, etc.)so they can only vote for pols who purport to share their values...
And in this mind set, Obama really has a disadvantage. Obama is unfamiliar in these areas (at least as a politician) and, culturally, he comes across as a left-coast liberal. So, he has to overcome the trust issue. And he seems to be trying to do this thru message instead of some political stunt like strapping on a hard hat and trying to mine coal (or throwing back a shot or two at the local pub!).
Also, keep in mind, that this is suggestions given to a staffer on how to get thru to a demographic that he has historically had trouble reaching. This was not a speech; this was a clinical method or mindset on how to push thru all of the wedge politics these areas have been raised on and drive the message home that Obama hears and is willing to actually address the economic issues these people (and all of us at this point) are faced with. This is all about overcoming learned voting patterns and voting...for(well,honestly)Barrack!

And finally...as an office working, car (not pick-up) driving city-boy, I hear what you Rubes think of us too. And yes, you're right, I am an elitist Mama's boy that can't turn a wrench to save my life and am just dumb and vain enouugh to spend $7 on a (big-azz)latte every now and again : )

You cling to your religion and I'll cling to my Starbucks!
Peace!!!