Posted on 10/18/2005 9:42:05 PM PDT by Nasty McPhilthy
Even for a man who made the cover of Newsweek before he was sworn in, its an impressive achievement. Senator Barack Obama, according to last weeks Tribune/WGN-TV poll, wins the approval of 72 percent of Illinois voters.
If that werent enough, state Republicans give the new Democratic senator a 57 percent approval rating.
These results will generate more speculation about his placement on the national ticket in 2008 or 2012. They will also fuel, if more fueling were needed, the media swoon over the junior senator.
He is, were told constantly, a star. That message has come from the New York Times, USA Today, CBS News, the Christian Science Monitor, NBCs Andrea Mitchell and many other news outlets and talking heads.
OK, so the guys gotten phenomenal press coverage and that influences public opinion to some degree. Other than that, what has Obama done since election thats made him so popular?
We know hes extremely visible, shows up at town hall meetings, provides liaison with Federal agencies to constituents and turns out reams of self-serving press releases.
Thats pretty typical though.
So is what he says in the Congressional Record. Statements from Obama, such as the ones he made commending the Congressional Black Caucus on its work on behalf of Afro-Colombians and congratulating Northwestern Universitys womens lacrosse team, are routine fare.
As is the senators inflated ego. In Time magazine this summer, he compared himself to an American icon:
"In Lincolns rise from poverty, his ultimate mastery of language and law, his capacity to overcome personal loss and remain determined in the face of repeated defeat - in all this, he reminded me not just of my own struggles."
Thats right. Lincolns challenges remind him of not just his own struggles, but even other peoples. You know, those common folks who arent superstar senators.
Maybe the reason Barack Obama is so popular with Illinoisans is the way hes representing them in Washington. Perhaps he votes on issues the way we want him to.
When this session of Congress ends, assorted groups will compile the votes related to their special interest and issue a rating for each member of Congress. Organizations from both Left and Right and everywhere in between do this. The ratings are helpful in identifying where elected officials stand on particular issues.
Mr. Obama hasnt been in Washington long enough to be ranked by most of the groups. That doesnt mean, however, that he hasnt established a record.
Since the senator was sworn in, there have been 255 recorded Senate votes. Hes missed seven.
Of the remainder, hes voted the same as Senator Edward Kennedy well over 90 percent of the time. I selected Kennedys record to compare for a reason.
Say whatever you want about Teddy and I have - theres little doubt that he is a liberals liberal.
Unlike many of his colleagues, Kennedy doesnt conduct an opinion survey to decide how he will vote. He is philosophically pure and unyieldingly dogmatic.
Kennedy can afford to be. Bay Staters have repeatedly shown a willingness to keep him in the Senate no matter what. Heck, he could probably get away with murder and theyd still support him.
Teddy is a living caricature of Big Government: Fat, bloated and out of control. Most of the people in Massachusetts want that type of representation.
But is that what the people of Illinois yearn for? A liberal who votes with Kennedy more than nine times out of ten?
Kerry won the state in last years election, but that was because of the Peoples Republic of Chicago. Of the states 102 counties, 88 went for George W. Bush.
Obamas voting record doesnt reflect his constituency. The Illinois electorate may not have intended to send Kennedy Lite to the Senate, but thats what it did.
And today a big majority, including Republicans for heavens sake, approve of what hes doing.
Theres the story of a woman conducting a public opinion poll by telephone. One of the questions was, "Which do you thing is the greater danger to our survival, ignorance or apathy?" She called a man whose reply was, "I dont know and I dont care."
The superstar should be thankful hes blessed with so many constituents like that man.
Mike Bates
We geezers also remember the Trib endorsing Carter over Reagan in 1980.
Although that wasn't much of a surprise. The Trib endorsed RINO John Anderson over Reagan in the primary the previous March.
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