Has the nonsense that Obama does not lead on anything been put to rest yet? Why is it that whenever a politician fails to do this your way on your issue it is a sign of epic failure in leadership?
Well, Obama is at it again on one issue that will define his tenure in the Senate should he not become our next president -- cleaning up government.
A primary ingredient in cleaning up government is sunshine. On this note Sen. Obama made a significant gesture today, yes, leading on the issue. This morning Obama posted each of his FY '08 earmarks on his website for all the world to see...and challenged other presidential candidates to do likewise.
U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) today announced that he had requested federal funding for the following projects, in the amounts designated by his constituents and several national organizations, as part of this year's annual appropriations process...
113 of them in all their glory.
Via TPMCafe his campaign had this further "statement":
As a matter of transparency and good government, Obama thinks it’s important that voters know who their candidates are, what their sources of income are and whether they have any potential conflicts. We would hope that other candidates follow suit in disclosing their earmarks as well.
In the big picture, the "what's good for the country" sense, this ranks right up there co-equally with the war. While the war has tragically undermined our national security efforts, the devastating impact this administration and Republican rule of Congress until '06 had on the idea and practice of government is a true threat to our national identity.
Political scumbagginess is a bipartisan issue, but I will feel much more comfortable relying on someone who actually believes in government to take the lead on the issue of real government reform. Let the vampires sucking the government dry suffer the consequences of having a little sunshine poured on the system.