This is my first diary. So please bear with me because I'm not a writer.
I’m an Obama supporter and will be to the end. But I’m extending an olive branch to the Edward’s supporters here because things are getting a little too mean spirited, and exaggerated, and I don’t want there to be fractions in our support for the candidate, whoever it may be, when the nominations are over and the dust settles. I, by no means, am clean from bias or past exaggerations. But I’m writing this hoping to take a deep breath and see the forest through the trees before I go down the road of despising a candidate because of some of his supporters.
I’m also writing in response to the Kos post earlier today about Obama taking a dig at trial lawyers. The comments blew up afterwards with people either piling on calling Barack a Lieberdem or a Republican or some variation thereof. Or people trying to rationalize his remark in defense of him. And it’s just ridiculous to watch and get angry at people I would mostly agree with.
There are good and bad trial lawyers. John, from what I know, was the good kind. End of story. Barack knows that and so do his supporters. He’s not campaigning against lawyers. He added it to a speech, from what I know, and I would prefer he take out.
Obama is not a perfect candidate just like the rest. I believe in him for the myriad reasons that have been stated by his supporters here and other places. I want to see some hard ingrained barriers broken down and I believe he can do that. I also cannot support (in the primaries) someone who voted for the war if I have a choice. He has made some mistakes in my opinion (namely McKlurkin and Coal To Oil – which he has since recanted) but so have the others (namely Iraq).
It seems that Edwards has become the blogosphere’s candidate of choice. And even though I wish I could, I know you probably won’t be changing your mind now that Edwards’ new rhetoric sounds tough. I’ll admit the thought of walking into Washington and "kicking some ass" does sound good. I just don’t think it will happen, but that’s my opinion. If he is the nominee I’ll be getting my steel toes ready.
One last thing I would like to point out that, yes, Barack’s rhetoric is definitely not to the extreme left, but if you look at his record he is a true progressive and has fought for the under privileged his whole life. You can see his record here: http://www.ontheissues.org/... There also seems to be a meme that he is not the best candidate on the environment. He is rated a 96 by the League of Conservation Voters which is the highest rating of any of the candidates. Source
So his rhetoric is middle of the road, but his policy making is solidly progressive. He will bring the middle roaders with him on the path to prosperity and to the left before they even know what happened to them. The right has shown that they cannot govern. But the country doesn’t trust the left either. If the next president succeeds in bringing them to the left and they find out they like it that will only bring a new sustainable era of progressivism.