Clinton Invokes RFK Assassination

While meeting with the editorial board of the Sioux City Argus Leader (South Dakota) on Friday, Hillary Clinton was asked why she hasn't dropped out of the race; mathematically, she cannot secure enough pledged delegates to win the Democratic nomination. She said that the nomination process is a long one and who knows what will happen between now and Democratic National Convention in Denver.

Clinton's reply follows:

“People have been trying to push me out of this ever since Iowa... my husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. I don’t understand it."

As would be expected, her comments set off a barrage of criticism in response to her invoking Robert Kennedy's assassination in 1968, and within hours, she expressed regrets at a campaign stop:

“The Kennedys have been much on my mind the last days because of Senator Kennedy. And I regret that if my referencing that moment of trauma for our entire nation and particularly for the Kennedy family was in any way offensive.”

Read the New York Times article on Clinton's assassination gaffe here.

Clinton assassination comment and regrets:

plez sez: hmmmm... i guess she isn't holding out for an invitation to be Barack Obama's veep... sounds to me, like she's betting on an assassin's bullet to secure her the nomination!

is it me OR is hillary clinton out of her freakin' mind?!? two weeks from today marks the 40th anniversary of bobby kennedy's assassination by a bullet fired by sirhan sirhan! although, there has been little publicity about death threats, it is obvious that Obama has been the recipient of credible threats since he announced his candidacy; he's had around the clock secret service protection for close to a year! i don't like to bring up such a grim prospect, but this blog published a post that white supremacist groups have been organizing to prevent Obama from ever taking the oath of office.

how can hillary be so crass? so unfeeling? so politically incorrect?!? when backed into a corner, she will say ANYTHING... and i mean ANYTHING to justify her claim to the white house!

and when she realizes how off base her comments were, she can't even muster the fortitude to properly apologize. she doesn't apologize to the kennedy family (she only expresses regret for her offensive remarks). she doesn't apologize to Barack Obama and his family for the implication that she's pinning her hopes of being the democratic nominee while dancing on Obama's grave prior the democratic national convention! if it was good enough for hubert humphrey in 1968, it's good enough for hillary clinton in 2008.

assassination of national figures is the ugliest of american history: lincoln, mckinley, harrison, kennedy, martin luther king, jr., robert kennedy, etc. a Black man is poised to ascend to the highest office in the land and hillary clinton doesn't want to get out of the race because the specter of him getting gunned down before the convention is too great!

some have decided to give her the benefit of the doubt... that could not be what she was thinking when she brought up kennedy's assassination. plezWorld is not so easily dissuaded and asks, if she wasn't implying that there is a good chance that Obama will get assassinated, what was she implying? and why did she bring it up?

keith olbermann commentary on hillary clinton - 10:42

some have called for Obama to offer the veep office to billary. how many weeks would it take for the clintons to plot his assassination? maybe i've watched too many seasons of "24", but something tells me that the clintons couldn't stomach being Obama's second banana for 8 years! something tells me that they couldn't stomach being his second banana more than a couple of weeks!

Early Super Tuesday Vote in plezWorld

I went out at lunch and voted early in the Super Tuesday Democratic Primary at the Main Office.

There was a substantial line at the polling station, I had a 5 minute wait to vote. I usually vote early and have never had to wait to vote.

I then raced home in time to watch Caroline Kennedy, Congressman Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), and Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) endorse Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) at American University in Washington, DC.

That's the way to start the week!

If you live in DeKalb County, Georgia, you can vote this week (Monday through Friday) in the following locations from 7am until 7pm:

MAIN OFFICE
Memorial Drive Complex
4380 Memorial Drive, Suite 300, Decatur, GA 30032

DECATUR
330 West Ponce deLeon Avenue, Room A
Decatur, GA 30030

LITHONIA
Around the Ivy
2614-A Max Cleland Boulevard, Lithonia, GA 30058

NORTHLAKE
DeKalb County Fire Headquarters
1950 West Exchange Place, Room TBD Tucker, GA 30084

NORTH DEKALB
Brook Run
4770 North Peachtree Road, Dunwoody, GA 30338

SOUTH DEKALB
South DeKalb Senior Center
1931 Candler Road, Decatur, GA 30030

All pictures courtesy of plezWorld Treo 680

Kennedy Endorsements of Obama

On the heels of a convincing victory in the South Carolina democratic primary on Saturday, Barack Obama woke up on Sunday morning to endorsements from two members of the Kennedy clan. Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) plans to endorse Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) due to the rancor that has bubbled up during the campaign for votes in Nevada and South Carolina over the past 2 weeks; the Clintons has caused much distress in the Black community who up until a few days ago were staunch supporters. The Clintonistas have insisted on bringing Obama's racial DNA into the contest in an effort to create a wedge, but it seems that their strategy backfired in South Carolina.

Senator Ted Kennedy's Endorsement

Read the New York Times article about the Ted Kennedy endorsement here.

In a surprise move, Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy, penned a glowing endorsement for Barack Obama, stating that "I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans."

The text of Caroline Kennedy's op-ed piece in the New York Times follows:

OVER the years, I’ve been deeply moved by the people who’ve told me they wished they could feel inspired and hopeful about America the way people did when my father was president. This sense is even more profound today. That is why I am supporting a presidential candidate in the Democratic primaries, Barack Obama.

My reasons are patriotic, political and personal, and the three are intertwined. All my life, people have told me that my father changed their lives, that they got involved in public service or politics because he asked them to. And the generation he inspired has passed that spirit on to its children. I meet young people who were born long after John F. Kennedy was president, yet who ask me how to live out his ideals.

Sometimes it takes a while to recognize that someone has a special ability to get us to believe in ourselves, to tie that belief to our highest ideals and imagine that together we can do great things. In those rare moments, when such a person comes along, we need to put aside our plans and reach for what we know is possible.

We have that kind of opportunity with Senator Obama. It isn’t that the other candidates are not experienced or knowledgeable. But this year, that may not be enough. We need a change in the leadership of this country — just as we did in 1960.

Most of us would prefer to base our voting decision on policy differences. However, the candidates’ goals are similar. They have all laid out detailed plans on everything from strengthening our middle class to investing in early childhood education. So qualities of leadership, character and judgment play a larger role than usual.

Senator Obama has demonstrated these qualities throughout his more than two decades of public service, not just in the United States Senate but in Illinois, where he helped turn around struggling communities, taught constitutional law and was an elected state official for eight years. And Senator Obama is showing the same qualities today. He has built a movement that is changing the face of politics in this country, and he has demonstrated a special gift for inspiring young people — known for a willingness to volunteer, but an aversion to politics — to become engaged in the political process.

I have spent the past five years working in the New York City public schools and have three teenage children of my own. There is a generation coming of age that is hopeful, hard-working, innovative and imaginative. But too many of them are also hopeless, defeated and disengaged. As parents, we have a responsibility to help our children to believe in themselves and in their power to shape their future. Senator Obama is inspiring my children, my parents’ grandchildren, with that sense of possibility.

Senator Obama is running a dignified and honest campaign. He has spoken eloquently about the role of faith in his life, and opened a window into his character in two compelling books. And when it comes to judgment, Barack Obama made the right call on the most important issue of our time by opposing the war in Iraq from the beginning.

I want a president who understands that his responsibility is to articulate a vision and encourage others to achieve it; who holds himself, and those around him, to the highest ethical standards; who appeals to the hopes of those who still believe in the American Dream, and those around the world who still believe in the American ideal; and who can lift our spirits, and make us believe again that our country needs every one of us to get involved.

I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans.

Read the entire op-ed piece on-line here.


plez sez: both of these endorsements had to deal a blow to the clinton camp - hillary (and bill) were dissed & repudiated by the daughter of Camelot and the godfather of the democratic party. this is not good news for the clinton strategy of divisive politics within the party. slowly, more and more democrats are moving away from the clintons... and Obama appears to be the direct beneficiary.

endorsements are nice, they tend to lend legitimacy to a campaign... but at the end of the day, they don't amount to a hill of beans if they aren't converted into votes! plezWorld will take advantage of the early voting option here in georgia and vote for Obama on monday morning!