Des Moines Register
02-12-07
Obama: Attitudes must change
'We have a stake in each other,' he says at ISU
By ABBY SIMONS
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Ames, Ia. - U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois painted a new picture of himself to
a packed Hilton Coliseum crowd Sunday - as that of a nonpolitical politician, a
diplomat who claims he could salvage the country's broken foreign relations.
But it will take more than just a new breed of presidential candidate to revive
voters, he said. It will take a change in American attitudes to make a difference in
politics.
"Most of us are cynical about the political process, even those of us who are
involved in it," he said. "It seems as if politics has become a business instead of
a mission, that power in Washington is always trumping principle. We've got a lot
of so-called leaders who don't do much leading.
"Yes, there is that brand of politics, but there has always been another tradition of
politics that says, 'I am connected to you,' that we are acceptable to each other,
that we have a stake in each other."
Wearing a sport jacket and no tie, Obama was greeted with applause and
intermittent whoops from the crowd of about 5,000 inside the coliseum.
Supporters waved hundreds of campaign signs. Some held up cardboard
placards that read "We Need a Hero - Thank You" and "Obama-Rama."
Obama touched on a range of issues and was scathingly critical of the Iraq war.
He continued to emphasize that he was against the war from the beginning of his
political career as an Illinois state senator.
"We ended up launching a war that should have never been authorized, and
should have never been waged, and on which we've now spent $400 billion, and
have seen over 3,000 lives of the bravest young Americans wasted."
Remark regretted
In an interview following the rally, Obama, who said he has visited with the
families of military personnel who have been killed in the war, said he regretted
saying the lives had been "wasted."
"I was actually upset with myself when I said that, because I never use that
term," he said. "Their sacrifices are never wasted.... What I meant to say was
those sacrifices have not been honored by the same attention to strategy,
diplomacy and honesty on the part of civilian leadership that would give them a
clear mission."
During the rally, Obama was flanked by two prominent Democrats in Iowa state
government - Attorney General Tom Miller and Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald who endorsed him over the weekend.
Miller, who like Obama attended Harvard Law School, called Obama the
smartest person to attend the institution in the past 25 years.
"Imagine President Barack Obama in the world, as a world leader," Miller said.
"One of the great tragedies of this administration is how George Bush relates to
the world. This man (Obama) would be 180 degrees. Diplomacy would work, the
world would be more peaceful, and more safe, and a better place to live."
Obama appeared relaxed during the post-rally interview, leaning back in a folding
chair while propping his feet up on another one. He smiled and shook his head
when reminded again of the photo of him in a bathing suit that emerged last
month while he was vacationing in Hawaii.
Obama said the intense focus on his life and his popularity should not be allowed
to obscure his message.
"This isn't about me"
"The way I keep the momentum is by reminding people that this isn't about me,
it's about them," he said. "I think I am a vehicle, or this campaign is a vehicle, to
talk about how we want to reduce the influence of money in politics; how we want
to put an end to the nasty slash-and-burn, trivialized politics of the last couple of
decades; how we want to come up with common-sense and practical solutions
instead of being driven by ideology."
Obama's emphasis on foreign relations was particularly impressive to Etse
Sikanku, 25, a graduate student at Iowa State who came to the United States
from Ghana last fall.
"I think it was helpful to know a presidential candidate is willing to work with the
international community, or at least willing to reach out," Sikanku said. "Many
Africans already think America stands on its own and will not do that."
Obama's Sunday stop in Ames was part of a flurry of weekend campaigning that
included the announcement of his candidacy Saturday in Chicago, visits to Cedar
Rapids and Waterloo, and breakfast at the Iowa Falls home of Tom and Patty
Friend.
Another rally was planned for Sunday evening in Chicago. On the flight, Obama
was likely to relax by listening to anything from rappers Outkast to crooner Frank
Sinatra to Bach's cello suites on his iPod; or by visiting with his children, Malia, 8,
and Sasha, 5, who, with wife, Michelle, were along for the ride.
"They're better than TV," he said. "They've always got something to say."
Reporter Abby Simons can be reached at (515) 284-8088 or
asimons@dmreg.com