Illinois Lawmakers Defend Obama

In most legislatures, lawmakers vote either "yes" or "no" on bills, but in Illinois, senators and representatives can hit a third button for a "present" vote. Now that quirk -- not unique to Illinois -- has sparked heated exchanges among Democrats vying for president. The two main rivals of Illinois' U.S. Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination accused him during a debate Monday (Jan. 21) of ducking important votes by voting "present" about 130 times during his eight years in the Illinois Senate.

So why use the present button?

The "present" vote in Illinois is sometimes cast by state lawmakers with a conflict of interest who would rather not weigh in on an issue. Other times, members use the option to object to certain parts of a bill, even though they may agree with its overall purpose.

"The 'present' vote is used, especially by more thoughtful legislators, not as a means of avoiding taking a position on an issue, but as a means of signaling concerns about an issue," said state Rep. John Fritchey (D), an Obama supporter.

Kennedy's Endorsement Helps Obama With Latinos...

Intended or not, one of the consequences of making Barack Obama the "black candidate" is to damage his cause among Latino voters. And that's a constitutency where having Ted Kennedy's endorsement might matter. There are still lots of households with photos of JFK, RFK, and César Chavez in the living room...like this one top left of Robert Kennedy and César Chavez taken March 11, 1968.

Caroline Kennedy Endorses Obama... "A President Like My Father"

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.
Read on @ New York Times

And now is it time for Ted Kennedy...

Barack Obama: South Carolina Victory Speech

Obama wins 44 of 46 counties in South Carolina!

Barack Obama has crushed Hillary Clinton in the South Carolina primary, beating her by a margin of two to one, and throwing the increasingly bitter battle for the Democratic nomination into fresh doubt.

Exit polls suggested he had received four in five black votes - and a quarter of those cast by white voters. But he also beat his rival in every age or income group on Saturday.