Obama wows crowd as star of state Democratic rally
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/News/171093/
Many people who attended a rally for Mike Beebe and other Democratic candidates for Arkansas offices Saturday clearly went to the state Capitol to see the hottest name in politics: U. S. Sen. Barack Obama.
As the sun dipped, people in the crowd of more than a thousand shaded their eyes with copies of Obama’s new book, The Audacity of Hope, and the latest Time magazine, which features Obama’s photo on the cover with the headline, “Why Barack Obama Could Be The Next President.”
Since recently announcing he will consider a run for the presidency in 2008, Obama, a 45-year-old Democrat from Illinois, has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and other shows and has taken a whirlwind tour of the country, ostensibly to promote Democratic candidates for various offices.
After shaking hands and sharing hugs with people, some of whom trembled with excitement, Obama spoke mostly about what he and others call a new age for Democrats.
When Obama first ran for office as a state senator, before he drew fame with his 2004 speech at the Democratic National Convention, he said people asked him, “Why would you want to go into something dirty and nasty like politics ?”
“It feels as if politics has become a business instead of a mission,” he said Saturday, taking the microphone from its stand and pacing the stage. “And so we get discouraged.”
The mission of Democrats, he said, is to use government to help those in need, the way Franklin Delano Roosevelt did with his New Deal.
“For the last decade or so, we seem to have lost touch with that ideal,” Obama said. “Our politics has become sort of like an intellectual WWF [World Wrestling Federation ]. There’s a lot of sound and fury and a lot of nasty growling and snarling... but not much gets done.
“ The good news is... the mood has changed all around the country. People are in a serious mood. A sober mood.”
Working up to a yell, he introduced Attorney General Beebe, who echoed Obama’s message and intensity.
“We’ve got to get back to the ideals that it’s better to unite than to divide,” Beebe said, before calling on citizens to vote. “Let’s go win this thing.”
Beebe faces Asa Hutchinson in the gubernatorial race on Nov. 7.
Will Turner, who arrived at the rally with an “Obama is the bomb” sign, said she wanted to hear the senator speak since seeing him on TV at the 2004 convention.
“He’s just an awesome speaker,” she said, calling his style bold and forthright.
Ben Elliott, a political science student at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, said he went to the rally for Obama. He offers “the best parts of Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter combined,” he said.
Elliott cited charisma and morals, respectively.
“It would be my wildest fantasy if he announced [that he was running for the presidency ] right now,” he said.
Obama has said he’ll wait until after the elections to decide whether he’ll run in 2008. He didn’t address a possible campaign and left quickly after signing hundreds of autographs.
The crowd didn’t let the matter pass, though. After Obama pointed to U. S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., and predicted that one day he will be majority leader of the Senate, a woman in the back shouted, “When you’re president.”
Obama did address a gamut of issues akin to a platform. He called for expanding healthcare coverage, improving access to higher education and increasing research into alternative fuel sources. He spoke of ill planning for the war in Iraq but didn’t call for troop withdrawal.
Calvin R. Ledbetter Jr., a political science professor emeritus at UALR and a former state legislator, said in a telephone interview that even if Obama isn’t saying he’s a candidate, he’s acting like one.
By touring the country on behalf of other Democrats, Obama is working toward a presidential run in three ways, Ledbetter said.
First, he’s earning political capital among all the politicians he supports. Second, he’s introducing himself to potential voters across the country, people who’ve only read about him and seen him on TV. Third, a vast cross-country tour is good practice for a taxing national presidential campaign.
“That’s invaluable experience,” Ledbetter said. “It seems to me his potential is just great. Everybody seems to like him, even Republicans.”
However, Ledbetter said he hopes Obama will wait to run for the White House, to gain “more seasoning” than the two years he has served as a senator.
A spokesman for the Democratic National Committee declined to comment on a possible presidential campaign for Obama but said in a telephone interview that Obama is much sought after on the campaign trail and has done a great job supporting candidates.
A spokesman for the Republican National Committee didn’t return a message, but the head of the state Republican Party said the party isn’t worried about Obama securing more votes for Democrats. On Saturday, 75 percent of the Republicans’ attention was on door-to-door campaigning and the rest went to Razorbacks football, Executive Director Clint Reed said.
For the crowd at the Capitol at least, Obama’s presence had a deep effect. Some, like Shakira Pumphrey, grinned widely after having a book signed. “He has a way with the people,” she said.
Lines like, “Gas prices may be going down now, but after the election they may go right back up,” drew the loudest cheers.
Lieutenant governor candidate Bill Halter said afterward, “I thought he did a great job. It was an excellent speech. It had great substance.”
Pryor said, “There’s a reason why there’s so much buzz about him. He really represents a new Democratic Party. And the Democratic Party represents a new direction for the country.”
If there’s one thing that can win over Arkansans, it’s a good speech, Ledbetter said. “And Lord have mercy, he’s a great speaker.”