Posted on 04/21/2007 4:48:14 PM PDT by ItsForTheChildren
NEW YORK (AP) - Wooing black voters while tackling questions about his experience, Democrat Barack Obama said Saturday that his years as a community organizer and accomplishments in the Illinois state Senate have prepared him well for the presidency.
Addressing the National Action Network, a civil rights group founded by Rev. Al Sharpton, Obama touted his successes as an Illinois lawmaker in providing health insurance to children and reducing the price of prescription drugs for senior citizens.
He also told of passing legislation to monitor racial profiling and to require that police interrogations of suspects in capital cases be videotaped.
"I haven't just talked about these things, I've actually done them," he said, adding that he'd worked well with the Republicans who controlled the state Senate for most of his tenure there.
(AP) Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., gestures while speaking during the 9th... Full Image
With just over two years in the U.S. Senate, Obama has faced questions over whether he has sufficient experience to be president.
On the campaign trail, front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton stresses her long career in public life and often warns voters that the next president will need to "hit the ground running."
Sharpton, who ran for the Democratic nomination in 2004, has also openly questioned Obama's credentials for the job. Obama, running to be the first black president, acknowledged those concerns. He also assured the largely black audience he did not believe he was automatically entitled to their support.
"I've said to Rev. Sharpton and I'll say it today, if there is somebody - I don't care whether they are white or black or they are male or female - if there is somebody who has been more on the forefront on behalf of the issues you care about and has more concrete accomplishments on behalf of the things you're concerned about, I'm happy to see you endorse them. But I am absolutely confident you will not find that," he said.
With black voters a key part of the Democratic party base, the four-day NAN convention has attracted nearly all the 2008 Democratic contenders, as well as former President Bill Clinton and DNC Chairman Howard Dean. Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd had been expected to speak but scheduling problems forced him to cancel.
(AP) Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., laughs with Rev. Al Sharpton during a... Full Image
A spokeswoman said Sharpton was not expected to endorse a candidate soon.
Hillary Clinton, who spoke Friday, won several standing ovations from the audience.
Obama, who also addressed an enthusiastic, overflow crowd, tailored his remarks to the urban issues Sharpton has championed.
He spoke of the need for fathers to step up to their responsibilities and the importance of helping ex-convicts escape an "economic death sentence" by securing jobs for them when they leave prison.
While he stumbled occasionally - calling Sharpton's organization the "Urban Action Network" several times before the audience corrected him - he also drew some unexpected laughs.
Early in Obama's speech, he stopped briefly as a cell phone on the podium began to buzz loudly.
"There's something humming down here. Is that Hillary calling?" Obama asked, to an explosion of laughter and cheers.
Addressing the National Action Network, a civil rights group founded by Rev. Al Sharpton, Obama touted his successes as an Illinois lawmaker in providing health insurance to children and reducing the price of prescription drugs for senior citizens.
He also told of passing legislation to monitor racial profiling and to require that police interrogations of suspects in capital cases be videotaped.
"I haven't just talked about these things, I've actually done them," he said,
That's it? This is the man blowing his own horn, and that's it?
Obama touted his successes as an Illinois lawmaker in providing health insurance to children and reducing the price of prescription drugs for senior citizens.
He also told of passing legislation to monitor racial profiling and to require that police interrogations of suspects in capital cases be videotaped.
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Lets see Hoss. He mentions two things that dont amount to a hill of beans and claims experience? How about taxes ,budgets, the military, foreign aid,illegal immigrants, nuclear war, missiles, Navy ships, new planes,federal legislation ,the IRS,homeland security, this kid is wet behind the ears and proves it every time he opens his mouth.
Makes one wonder how someone that useless could get elected to the United States senate.
Or maybe being a U.S. senator doesn’t mean very much these days.
This clown is way in over his head.
And hasn't got a clue. Spending waaay too much time listening to his own yes men and looking in the mirror.
I wonder if he’ll point out JFK or Abraham Lincoln...
Obama won because embarrassing information from sealed divorce records of his Republican opponent were somehow leaked to the media, and the opponent dropped out of the race. After that the Illinois Republican party couldn’t find anyone to run, and finally settled for an out-of-stater with no chance to win.
Most of his experience, whether spoken or written, is delegated to self-promotion.
Yeah, but, for a Democrat, that degree of experience puts you at the top one percentile in relation to other Democrats.
He is black and has a muslim name ~ that is what makes him electable in America.
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