Just one day after theDetroit Pistonsadvanced to the NBA’s Eastern Conference finals for the sixth season in a row, anotherbasketball playing Mid-Westernerexecuted a full-court press to defend against accusations that he can’t put his opponent away, and can’t win the big one. After suffering a 41 percentage point pounding by Hillary Clinton inthe West Virginia primary, Barack Obama turned up the heat on his rival with a fast break to Michigan capped by a slam dunk both contenders had prized – the endorsement of former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards.
Comedy Central’sStephen Colbert quippedthat with Edwards’ nod, Obama had picked up his first white male supporter. A joke, yes, but if you’ve been paying attention to the media over the past few weeks, you just might take that pun seriously.
Obama is having trouble with white working class voters asevidencedby the polls before and after his primary losses in Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania and now West Virginia. In what seemed to be a recognition of this weakness, and a bid to reverse the trend, the Illinois Senator spent May 14 stumping among blue collar workers in Michigan.
An early morning tour of Chrysler’s Sterling Stamping Plant in Sterling Heights provided the candidate an opportunity to hear the plight of Michigan auto workers first hand. Obama was impressed, he said, by the high-tech equipment and “some of the best workers in the world”. Even his gaffe – calling television reporter Peggy Agar “sweetie” – was a nod of sorts to the male-dominated machismo of factory town America. Whether that “bad habit” will cause Obama more problems with the white female vote remains to be seen.
Obama’s second quarter run, an invitation-only town hall meeting at Macomb Community College in Warren was another well designed play for the working class vote. The candidate unveiled his “manufacturing agenda” which calls for:
- Aid to the nation’s struggling manufacturing industry with a $150 billion, 10-year plan for clean economy jobs, including subsidies to help domestic automakers retool factories for alternative fuel vehicles.
- National expansion of Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s 21stCentury Jobs Fund, a state initiative that aims to create new jobs in the technology and alternative energy fields. (Another strategic move: Granholm is a prominent Clinton supporter.)
- Doubling the funding for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, a federal program that helps manufacturers increase efficiency and embrace technology. George Bush has worked to cut funding for this program.
- Commitments to improve education from preschool to university with a proposal of billions of dollars for early childhood education, increased wages for K-12 teachers and a $4000 per student, per year tuition credit for college students.
- A “universal health care” program that would subsidize employer-provided health benefits, expand coverage on individually purchased plans, and provide health care for those who can’t afford it. Obama says his plan would focus on prevention instead of our present state of “disease care”. Experts believe a government-funded health care plan could help business cut costs, and Obama emphasized that $1500 of every car made by the Big Three goes to health care costs.
“We are taking steps in the right direction, and American automakers are on the move,” he told the crowd of around 200 supporters and union workers. Obama praised GM for releasing new hybrid vehicles, touted Ford for spending on research and development and tyingToyotain quality and encouraged Chrysler for its work on electric vehicles.
This was in stark contrast to the hand checks he delivered during his last trip to Michigan, aMay 2007 speechat the Detroit Economic Club where the senator blasted the Big Three for continuing to push gas-guzzling SUVs while the public was crying for more fuel-efficient vehicles. He has repeated those charges in speeches around the country, boasting about his “tough talk” to the auto industry.
Nope. Not this time. This time Obama was courting Michigan voters in a big way, promising to throw money at an all but desperate state that needs lots of help. As Warren Mayor Jim Fouts said when he introduced the senator, “the candidate of hope and optimism will win this election.” Obama has positioned himself as the candidate of hope from the beginning, and Michigan is looking for all the optimism we can muster.
At the very beginning of the friendly question and answer session, Obama guaranteed that Michigan and Florida’s delegates would be seated at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, if he is the nominee, hopefully laying to rest any fears that Michigan will be left out in the cold.
If Obama’s first half of the day in Southeast Michigan was a model of unselfish play and sharing the wealth, his second half in the Republican stronghold of Grand Rapids featured offers of atonement and an attempt to seal victory.
“We didn't have a chance to campaign here during the primary. I felt bad about it,” Obama told the raucous crowd of 12,000 at Van Andel Arena, alluding to his decision to remove his name from the ballot during theJanuary 15 primary. “I felt guilty. As a consequence, I decided to give you something special.”
At that moment, John Edwards entered, as if he had jumped off the bench to launch analley oopto the streakingBarry O’Bomberfor the jam – KA-BOOM!! – right in Hillary Clinton’s face! “The Democratic voters of America have made their choice,” said Edwards. “And so have I.”
The high profile endorsement of Obama by Edwards is seen as a coup, and some say it could help him with those white working class voters he needs to impress. Could anObama/Edwards ticketbe in the works? It’s a bit early to tell, but clearly the Edwards assist finds Obama with what appears to be a clearing path to the basket.
As for the May 14 contest, the entire game was scripted to perfection, from the opening tip to the closing minutes. Clinton faces what appear to be insurmountable odds despite her big wins in Democratic strongholds and the industrial heartland. Undoubtedly she will make the argument to super delegates that many of Obama’s victories have come in “red states” that almost always come up as “L’s” for the Democrats. She may even repeat her divisive notion that she is popular among “hard-working Americans… White Americans.”
So while Obama’s Michigan offensive may have cooled some of the New York senator’s momentum going into the final games of the series, don’t count her out. Hillary’s gutsy determination and no-holds-barred style have earned her a reputation as a “brawler” and a dirty player. The Clintons are known for a tough, bruising political style that rivals Detroit’s Bad Boys in their heyday, and she vows not to throw in the towel until the final buzzer has sounded.
Obama can savor this victory for a moment, but he must remember… this is the playoffs. You can’t let your guard down. It’s win or go home, baby, and Hillary Clinton, isn’t ready togo fishingwith Kenny “The Jet” Smith just yet.