i guess that's my point, nothing made him exceptional. don't get me wrong, i think the guy is ok. after seeing him on tv and all the media attention i expected him to have presence like during the convention. while i'm sure that he is intelligent and will uplift AA, I found him to be just like the guy next door. he's down to earth and all - i guess i was expecting him to challenge me like a martin luther king. i don't want to take away from him, i just thought he was ok nothing more and nothing less. i spoke after him and started out with something like i did not ride the bus with rosa, i did not walk the streets and highways with martin and i did not attempt to eat at the lunch counter with the brave souls in greesnboro - the media only gave him a second and then played my speech - maybe i just had a good day. anway, i wish him the best and he has my support

More Obama
 

Professor,
I guess that we will have to agree to disagree on this one.
Barack Obama, as an IL state Senator for the past several years has been an exceptional force in the state legislature. This is one of the reasons that he was able to sweep the Democratic primaries besting at least 7-8 other Democratic primary candidates, some of which were real movers in IL.

Additionally, having had the pleasure of listening to him as my professor of Constitutional Law during the time that I was in law school (he's also a lecturer at my lawschool and teaches Voter Rights and Constitutional Law: Equal Protection), I can say that he is very well-respected as a great mind both by faculty and students alike on an academically level as well as a real-world level.

I would disagree that he's an average Joe. It was not only Black people in IL who put him in office (although I don't want to diminish our efforts -- Black people from ALL economic levels worked tirelessly for him in a ton of capacities from donating to his campaign to hosting receptions for him at our various lawfirms, etc. to those who worked on the streets during election day to get out the vote) - he got the majority vote from Black, White, Hispanic and probably every other group in IL. I would say that he's far from average and go as far as to say that he's probably the next great rising star.

No, he's not going to sound like MLK, which is part of the reason that I think that he appeals to some in our community. Of course this is my opinion but I think that folk are tired of the old guard which was solely comprised of preachers having the preaching style and are ready for some new fresh faces and styles. And yes, he is down-to-earth. This is something else that I think that alot of people really like about he. It may be an act, who knows, but he genuinely seems to care about people.

SC

Re: Well, it's Sen. Obama
 

Hi Soror Steeltrap,
I think that he will be a solid senator. He did very well in the state legislature as IL state senator and while Capitol Hill is different, I don't see him floundering once he gets there.

Yes, that fool Keyes (who isn't even from IL by the way - has a mansion in Maryland and rented a little makeshift apartment here in IL just for the election) got sent home, where I hope that he will stay. Do you know that that fool didn't even have the decency to call Barack Obama and congratulate him? Additionally, after hte race was called for Obama, Alan Keys STILL left his supporters standing down in the hotel ballroom not knowing when he was going to come down and at least thank them for their work. He is a mess. He took so long to come down and thank his supporters (and NEVER called Barack Obama to congratulate him or to even do the traditional conceding of the race, stating that "it's not his traditional so he doens't have to do it") that Barack Obama just went ahead and made his acceptance speech (at a different hotel at which the Barack Obama victory party was held).

There was a strong Republican candidate before Alan Keyes but he dropped out after allegations that he abused his wife when he was married to her. Yet still, Barack Obama got more votes than even the strong Republican candidate did - even before the news of his alleged behavior came out. So there were other Republicans for him to contend with and he ended up beating them.

SC

SC, given that you're closer to what B.Obama has done, can you perhaps share a few of his legislative accomplishments/initiatives from his time in the Illinois legislature?

I enjoyed his speech and "national introduction" if you will, and look for good things from him, but I think the national media has done a poor job of profiling him beyond his speechmaking and personality profiling articles.

Here is a link to a record of all of the bills on which he has been either a chief sponsor or a co-sponsor:
http://www.legis.state.il.us/Senate/...p?MemberID=747

Here is a synopsis of a few bills that he has proposed (just in 2003-04 - other years aren't avail online) (didn't have time to go through and see which passed, etc.). This is not an exhaustive list and I looked briefly so there is a chance that I have mischaracterized something so be sure to check the site on your own.

Helped to reform the IL death penalty system
Required police confessions to be videotaped
Required training for police on ethnic and racial sensitivity; 4 year traffic stop statistical analysis

Extend the earned income credit for families indefinitely
Created IL Alzheimer’s task force to study various issues re Alzheimer’s
Request more money from feds for sexual assault prevention
Pollution board can’t amend its current laws to be less stringent
Health care access bill for wide range of types of services
Requiring each hospital to develop an assistance to the uninsured policy re how hospitals will determine financial responsibility of uninsureds; violation of policy to subject hospital to suspension


He's also the Chair of the Health & Human Services Committee and sits on the Judiary, Local Gov't, Senate Committee of the Whole, and Welfare Committees.

SC

Good lookin' out, SC.

I'm going to read some of this. :)

Sure thing frat,
Glad that I could help.
SC

Who knew...
 

Did you know that Senator-elect Barack Obama's Campaign Chief of Staff was an Alpha Brother. Beta Alpha Chapter Morgan State University!

Re: Who knew...
 

Ok, that explains why dude has blown up on the national stage! I knew it had to be a good reason. :cool:

Bruhs: Kings, Kingmakers, it don't matter.....

fyi
 

BARACK
OBAMA
United States Senator ? Illinois
Internships with Senator Obama
An internship in the office of Senator Obama is an excellent way to learn
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Students will have the
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staff with administrative, press, legislative and correspondence duties.
Washington, DC Internships
Interns in the Washington, DC office will be able to observe the inner
workings of the federal
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encouraged to take advantage of everything Capitol Hill has to offer,
including listening to floor
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research facilities, and
visiting Washington's museums.
Illinois Internships
Internships in the Illinois offices will allow students to learn about how
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people of Illinois through constituent service. Interns in the state
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offices are located in Chicago, Springfield and Marion.
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Interns in all offices participate in a broad range of office operations,
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Applying to be an Intern
Applicants for the program should submit the following materials:
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to the office where
you wish to apply:
Washington, DC office:
Senator Barack Obama
Attn: Intern Coordinator
SD-B40 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Fax: (202) 228-5417
Please be aware of the continuing mail delays associated with security
screening of
incoming mail to the Washington Senate office. You may want to fax your
materials to
avoid delay.
Illinois state offices:
Senator Barack Obama
Attn: Intern Coordinator
230 S. Dearborn St., Suite 3900
Chicago, IL 60604
Fax: (312) 886-3514
Senator Barack Obama
Attn: Intern Coordinator
607 E. Adams, Suite 1520
Springfield, IL 62701
Fax: (217) 492-5099
Senator Barack Obama
Attn: Intern Coordinator
701 N. Court St.
Marion, IL 62959
Fax: (618) 997-2850
Session Dates and Application Deadlines
Session Dates Application Deadline
Spring Session 2005* April 4 - May 20 March 1, 2005
Summer Session 1 2005 May 23 - July 8 March 15, 2005
Summer Session 2 2005 July 11 - August 26 March 15, 2005
Fall Session 2005* September 5 - December 16 July 15, 2005
*Start and end dates for the Spring and Fall sessions may be flexible to
accommodate student
schedules.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are internships paid?
Interns work on a voluntary basis and do not receive financial compensation
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Interns must provide their own housing and transportation. Funding for
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Who is eligible to apply?
Priority is given to Illinois residents who are undergraduate students in
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to work full time (35-40 hours per work week), but high school students and
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those applicants will generally be considered separately. For an overview
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I think he is phenomenol -and far from the average Joe how many African Americans were the first president of the Harvard Law Review? he came from humble beginnings and proves that education can elevate a person. He has a lot of charisma and could conceivably be the first Black President!