Given the continuous thumping Clinton & McCain are giving Obama for so-called "small town elitist" remarks, it's time to turn this issue on its head.
If Obama ran an ad all over PA this week based on this clip of his Terre Haute remarks, it would blast the entire matter out of his opponents' hands. He should make a new ad for Pennsylvanians and let them know he's actually listening to them in ways no one else is.
What I loved about his message in Terre Haute: when it comes to a major loss of jobs from a plant closing or a poor quality education for your kid or no way to afford a doctor's care for a sick parent - hardcore issues that, if not dealt with directly, can break family life in a million pieces - folks have absolutely given up on receiving any help from government and from elected officials because neither ever delivered. So folks will focus attention on other issues in elections - such as guns, immigration, religious differences - that are legitimate but are truly secondary to a more deeply-rooted need of families for important new sources of jobs, a serious focus on schools and affordable healthcare.
And Obama's response that he is listening - above all the noise of secondary issues - and that he seeks the Presidency to address the fundamentals comes through loud and clear in his Terre Haute remarks. I hope to heck his campaign makes an ad out of this ASAP and gets it to Pennsylvanians (and, frankly, everyone else):
http://www.youtube.com/...