Wisconsin race close, with pointed exchanges
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- February
- 18
A telephone poll taken Friday and Saturday by the American Research Group shows Hillary Rodham Clinton with a 49 percent to 43 percent lead over Barack Obama among likely voters in Wisconsin.
Although that gave Clinton a lead that’s better than the survey’s margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points, four other polls taken in Wisconsin last week found Obama with a small lead over Clinton.
Wisconsin is a significant battleground because it is a swing state in the general election and it has demographics similar to Ohio, which is considered a key to Clinton’s hope for regaining ground in the delegate count.
Regardless of the outcome, Wisconsin will be remembered as the state where the two Democratic hopefuls put up television ads attacking each other and where Clinton attacked Obama for using part of a 2006 speech delivered by Deval Patrick when he was running for governor of Massachusetts.
Obama repeated parts of Patrick’s speech on the importance of words during an address Saturday evening in Milwaukee to Wisconsin Democrats. A side by side comparison has been posted on YouTube:
The Obama campaign played down the plagiarism allegation by noting that the candidate received permission from Patrick, but the Clinton campaign said that doesn’t negate the offense to members of the public who have supported Obama in large part because of his skillful use of rhetoric.
“When Senator Obama uses them and doesn’t acknowledge their origin, those same words seem less inspiring and more calculating,’’ Rep. Jim McGovern, a Clinton supporter and Massachusetts congressman who supported Patrick in his successful race for governor, told reporters in a conference call Monday. “They seem less authentic and more political. They’re not his words. They’re not his ideas. They’re someone else’s.’’
The Obama campaign responded with a list of Obama phrases Clinton has used on the campaign trail such as “fired up and ready to go.’’
Clinton’s spokesman, Howard Wolfson, said the plagiarism represented more than just the use of a phrase.
“In all fairness, there are phrases in American life that are more common than others,’’ Wolfson said, responding to a reporter’s question why Clinton has not objected to Obama’s use of the phrase, “Yes we can.’’
“Yes we can’’ is an English translation of the phrase “Si, se puede!” originally used by farm workers organizer Cesar Chavez.
David Plouffle, Obama’s campaign manager, offered this as his bottom-line assessment of the plagiarism dispute: “This is another effort by Clinton campaign to try and create distractions and kind of grasping at straws to try and create some momentum for their campaign.’’
That brings us back to Wisconsin.
Clinton, who has done well among older voters, could be hurt by the weather. The National Weather Service is forecasting a chance of afternoon snow showers and flurries Tuesday. Temperatures are expected to be in the single digits in the northern Wisconsin and in the teens in the more populous southern part of the state.
Obama, who has relied on independents to help win in states such as Wisconsin with open primaries in which all voters are free to vote for a Democrat, could benefit from the fact that the other candidate who appeals to independents—Republican John McCain—is so far ahead in the race for GOP delegates that he’s already considered the presumptive nominee.
Clinton’s campaign said last week that the open primary favors Obama because of his support among independents.
But Plouffe, Obama’s campaign manager, said the Clinton campaign doubled its advertising since Friday and has been running negative TV ads that provide an indication they think they can win.
“By their own definition this should be a very friendly terrain for them,’’ said Plouffe, pointing out that the state is largely rural, has only a small black population and has a significant blue-collar manufacturing base.
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Accusations of plagiarism when the guy who claims to be plagiarized proposed that Obama use the lines in the first place and when the Clinton campaign routinely borrows lines that work for Obama and other politicians.
Defying the DNC by reneging on the agreement to not count FL and MI delegates because her greatest successes come where Obama/Edwards do not campaign (FL) or do not have their names on the ballot (MI).
Changing her positions depending on who she is talking to and when she is talking to them: NAFTA, Iraq, etc.
Claiming experience when her previous efforts (Healthcare in ‘92) and even administration of this campaign are managerial disasters.
None of this even touches on the ethical boundaries the Clintons are always crossing, whether it be behavior in the white house that in a CEO suite would lead to immediate termination, leading the Senate in earmarks, collecting the vast majority of campaign money from PACs and failure to disclose their latest W-2 (which Obama and McCain have both done).
Hillary and her husband represent the worst in America politically. It is all about position, power, polls vs. the people. Let’s hope that the country finally sees this family for what it is and moves past them to a better future for the DNC.
This is a desperate and pathetic charge by the Clinton campaign. I can’t understand how anyone can continue to support her. I have acute Clinton fatigue.
Hillary Clinton’s camp is desperate. I cannot believe that people who pretend to lead this country have such disgusting reactions. Hillary borrowed without credit some words used in the first place by Obama. The way she has been attacking Obama on his rhetoric skills demonstrates how greater her opponent is. She might end up destroying the unity in the Democratic party if she continues her skills of “winning by all means necessary”. So sad for a dignified First Lady who intends to become the first Lady President. Apparently, her negative language portends a gloomy future in the U.S.international relationships in case she unscrupulously gets nominated.
Typical Clintonista crap. Those two, themselves,
are about as unethical as it comes. So yes, they must
be getting very desperate to pull this stunt.
It would have been better if Obama said, “As my
friend Deval Patrick has said….”
But to make a big issue over it is ridiculous.
The way Obama rants on and on about Hillary in his speeches he is starting to sound like that Penelope character on Saturday Night Live, I do everything better, I did that before you did, I already said that, I invented that before you did. What’s next? is Obama going to tell Al Gore he invented the Internet first and so he already did that too and it was better?
Hillary All the Way
From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jan. 11, 2008
“Indeed, Mrs. Clinton made some of the same arguments Sunday in New Hampshire when she defended her earnest speaking style by saying, in an indirect reference to Mr. Obama, “you campaign in poetry, you govern in prose.”
That particular political maxim was first uttered in a 1985 speech at Yale University—by [former New York governor Mario] Cuomo.
“She didn’t attribute it to me, although it’s in Bartlett’s Quotations and they did,” the former governor said, laughing.”
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08011/848437-176.stm
Hillary, you throw mud, you get dirty.
ethan hit the nail right on the head..if you are going
to use almost verbatim any words or phrases used by
anyone else in essentially the same cadence and order
the least you can do is attribute those words to the
original speaker..it does not diminish your use of them
one iota because the atribution is before you invoke
the passages…ie the crowd will not react to the
originator but only to your delivery..Obama is revealing
himself to be a self serving upstart who doesn;t excite me
for a moment and who cannot win this election because in
terms of substance he just doesn;t have it..and while we
are on the subject I can’t wait till the liberal press
examines his relationship with rev louis Farakind and
a rev white both of whom are violently anti Israel
I don;t use the term anti semitic because it is over used
and portrays jews as victims which at this point in history
we certainly are not.nor do I think Obama is remotely
anti semitic .but Israel and its security is
fair game in a general election along with a mideast
solution…so bring it on Barack…Mc Cain will have you
for lunch
Obama is an empty suit, a carnival barker
and a snake oil salesman rolled into one.
He’s bottling and selling “change” and “hope”—
but alas, the bottle is empty.
Links to Farrakhan, even one step removed,
are as bad as it gets.
The Clintons are no better. For her to talk
about “change” is laughable. She and Billy Boy are
throwbacks to the bad old days.
I think McCain will win this one.
After the Rudy impolosion, ‘the consultant’ has little credibility when it comes to the ‘08 pres race. You’ll be eating crow in November just like you ate crow when your man Rudy went down in a ball of flames.
The Clintons are for the “Clinton Party”. They don’t care about the damage they do to their own party. They are only for themselves. At least Barack Obama wanted to have civil competition. As soon as Obama picked up speed, the Clinton’s started the attack.
This woman is ambitious at all cost. Now it is clear why she didn’t divorce Bill Clinton after his embarrassing her nationally and internationally with his frisk with Monica Lewinsky. Any woman demanding respect would have. She is from the old South. Women her age believe in allowing the man to do what he wants as long as she gets what she wants. She knew the United States Citizens would never elect a divorced woman. This was her long term ambition. She has ruined it. I am an independant, and I was hoping to say, if Obama lost, that I would cast my vote for her. I can no longer say this, because of the ignorant, low life way the Clinton’s have run their compaign. Believe me, any Vice President of Hilary’s will be that in “name only”. Bill Clinton will be the Vice President, or perhaps this is his actual fight for his Third Term. This old fashioned way of campaigning shows a lack of growth.
Who the hell cares whether Obama used words from other people. Everyone does it. It’s the way they are delivered. The Clintons sound like kindergarten children, complaining because Hilary can’t reach the people. She’s too damned cold. I for one, do not care who has a plan. Most nonimees plans are changed anyway, once they reach office. I care about the person who can get our young peole interest and hopeful into politics again. Barack has done this. Hilary is dillusional. Is she considering her 35 years being married to Bill Clinton as experience. She was the wife of the Arkansas Governor, then the wife of the President. THose are her husband’s accomplishments, not hers. I am done with the Clintons. I voted for him both times, but they have no real concern about this country, only their own ambitions.