This whole plagiarism attack by Hillary is beyond silly. It's beyond silly because Patrick and Obama are spiritual and political allies. There's no "plagiarism" here, only a common approach to politics and policy.
But what makes it even sillier is that, before Obama "stole" from Patrick, Patrick "stole" from Obama. From a Boston Globe article entitled Patrick, Obama Campaigns Share Language of 'Hope':
The similarities between Patrick and Obama, who have known each other for more than a decade, are obvious: Both are idealistic African-
American leaders who came of age after the Civil Rights movement. Both
have Chicago roots, a Harvard Law degree, and a gift for appealing to
both blacks and whites.
Their political likeness runs deeper. Both believe that people long
for a new dawn of postpartisan, hopeful, and optimistic public
leadership. Both staked their fates on grass-roots activism and fund-
raising. Both campaign on supplanting cynicism with citizenship.
It was Obama who first tested the approach during his Senate victory
in Illinois in 2004. Patrick improved on it last year. Now Obama is
building on both of those successes as he makes his historic run for
the White House.
I couldn't have said it better myself. When two people share a common vision and purpose and use the same language, that's not plagiarism. That's synergy. I hope Obama continues to use Deval Patrick's words. After all, they're his words too.