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Thoughts From Philly's Mayor
I was delighted to read the ABC article about Philly's Mayor Michael Nutter. I know many Obama supporters have felt a little sickened by certain tactics of Hillary's campaign and I read a lot about that in the media.
However, many Hillary supporters have also felt sickened by Obama's campaign's tactics as well. For instance, here is this gem from a while back:
In an interview, Cleaver offered a glimpse of private conversations.
He said Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. of Illinois had recently asked him "if it comes down to the last day and you're the only superdelegate? ... Do you want to go down in history as the one to prevent a black from winning the White House?
Jackson, an Obama supporter, confirmed the conversation.
This is the same Jesse Jackson Jr. who claimed Hillary didn't cry about Katrina.
So, here are Nutter's refreshing thoughts about being an African American and supporting Hillary:
Nutter has been called Philadelphia's Barack Obama. He is black, Ivy League-educated, popular and an agent of change -- just like Obama. But Nutter has remained steadfast in his support of Clinton -- to the surprise of many in this city.Full article
The mayor acknowledges that some voters have approached him and asked, in his words, "Why not support a brother?"
"Somehow, someway, for some people there's an automatic assumption that a mayor who is African-American or some other elected official has to support another African-American," Nutter said.
"I thought that when Dr. King said that he wanted people to be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character, I thought that's what he was talking about," Nutter added.
Nutter is sticking with Clinton, even though by doing so, he said he might be thwarting the election of America's first black president.
"Certainly the opportunity to demonstrate to my 13-year-old daughter that there is a bright future for her, that a woman could get elected president of the United States, is equally compelling," he said.
"I think that we are at this historical moment," Nutter said. "Either candidate will clearly make history. But you only get to vote for one. The most important thing is winning in November, putting a Democrat in the White House."
He added, "I'm a great fan of history. I don't know that when people are struggling to pay the bills, that they ultimately conclude that, 'Well, if we can just make history with this vote, then all of my problems will be solved.' It still, for me, always comes back to performance [and] track record."











Comments (10)
Um, Nutter is endorsing Clinton b/c Obama gave a courtesy endorsement to Congressman Chaka Fattah when Fattah went up against Nutter in the mayoral primary. It is simple politics, nothing more.
March 31, 2008 11:25 AM | Reply | Permalink
From the story:
Nutter met with both senators before deciding his endorsement. He brushes aside those who say he did not back Obama because Obama endorsed someone else for mayor.
"We're talking about president of the United States. They're not running for high school class president," he said.
"I think Sen. Clinton is the absolute best candidate for not only Philadelphia but for other cities like us, certainly for Pennsylvania [and] the United States of America, to restore our leadership role all around the world."
March 31, 2008 11:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
"refreshing thoughts "
It would be refreshing if Feinstein and other female superdelegates would take the same "Refreshing" attitude and not vote for Hillary just because she's a woman.
March 31, 2008 11:35 AM | Reply | Permalink
I live in Philly. Everyone is happy Nutter is our mayor now. I like him. Obama simply endorsed the wrong candidate for mayor and now he's paying for it. Rendell is ok. He just wants a cabinet position. He can lick my balls though for putting casinos in Philly. No one in the city wants them. The state goverment wants them for revenue so they're happy to infect our city with these blights.
March 31, 2008 11:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
Good, I am glad that the good citizens of Philadelphia are happy with their mayor. It is good when people like their elected leaders. Meanwhile, I agree with you entirely about casinos. They are a blight on the cities which are stuck with them.
March 31, 2008 12:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
A lot of people in Pa have problems with Rendell. I'm originally from Pittsburgh and I know many there also have problems with the casinos, and in turn, Rendell.
I also might add that Claire McCaskill was criticized by some women when she came out for Obama, as she was the only female senator to do so until today. I think Jesse Jackson Jr. was wrong for criticizing Cleaver, just as I think McCaskill shouldn't have been criticized. I doubt either Obama or Clinton would condone this, although I'm sure they were both disappointed to not have their support.
Some people are idiots. But most of us think everyone should be allowed to endorse whoever they think best suited to the job.
March 31, 2008 12:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm not sure what Jesse Jackson, Jr. has to do with Mayor Nutter, and your lead is, frankly, a little clumsy in attempting to draw out the connection...
That said, as an Obama supporter, I was also happy to read this article today. Too much gets made of the supposedly monolithic "Black Vote," and I think that is to the detriment of our party. It is as simplistic and insulting to assume that all of Barack Obama's support from the Black Community is because of his skin color as it is to assume that all of Hillary's support from women is because of their genitalia. If Mayor Nutter is going to feel any heat about his choice, it should be because his constituents profoundly disagree with it. Any elected official should have the courage to do what is in their heart and deal with the consequences of their actions.
March 31, 2008 12:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Given Hillary's recent record of leaving small companies holding the bag, I don't think I would have included a quote about people struggling to pay the bills. ;)
I'd also second Hilarym99's comments (and yours) about just choosing the candidate you think is best, regardless of race or sex. (Am I the only one having trouble getting past my English teachers' admonitions that gender is for nouns and sex is for people?)
March 31, 2008 12:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ben,
Expected more out of you than that. Come on man. Sack up.
March 31, 2008 12:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
?
Are you referring to my gender/sex question? My understanding is that the rules have now changed, but I still can't shake the rules that I learned as a youngster.
Also, I don't know what the expression "sack up" means. I suppose it has something to do with cojones, but that's just a supposition. If it does have something to do with cojones, it seems like a bit of a nonsequitor.
March 31, 2008 1:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
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