Hello Everyone:

Here is the CNN transcript from Friday, February 29 which credibly documents how that "the party's superdelegates are facing growing pressure -- including some racial pressure, even some threats to back Barack Obama" which is terrible and is completely outrageous in my opinion when so much is on the line in this election:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0802/29/sitroom.02.html

THE SITUATION ROOM

Hillary Clinton's New Ad; Geraldo Rivera on Hispanics in the U.S.; Stagflation: Prices Continue Increasing While Economy Suffers; Who is on the List of Possible Vice President Candidates?

Aired February 29, 2008 - 17:00 ET

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: "With the Democratic race extremely tight right now, the party's superdelegates are facing growing pressure -- including some racial pressure, even some threats to back Barack Obama.

Let's go to Carol Costello. She's watching the story for us in Ohio. Carol, how intense is this pressure?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The pressure is very intense, Wolf. You know, I'm in Cleveland right now, a predominantly African- American city. And blacks here are ardently hoping that Barack Obama becomes the next president of the United States. But that's making it very difficult for the people who represent them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): Cleveland city councilman, Kevin Cornwell, a one time Hillary Clinton supporter, is switching sides. He's now in the Obama camp. It has little to do with Clinton and everything to do with pressure from the people who voted him into office.

KEVIN CORNWELL, CLEVELAND CITY COUNCIL: Councilmen, I thought that I would never seen an African-American going for president of the United States of America. You know, this is a dream and you need to get on the right side of history. And my residents want me to be a part of this dream.

COSTELLO: Other nationally prominent politicians have experienced similar pressure. Three African-American superdelegates have also defected, including Georgia Congressman John Lewis, a long- time Clinton ally.

REP. JOHN LEWIS (D), GEORGIA: There comes a time when you have to make a decision. As a superdelegate to the Democratic Congress convention next summer, I will be casting my vote for Barack Obama.

COSTELLO: But other African-American politicians find the shifting loyalties disturbing. Ohio Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones.

REP. STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES (D), OHIO: All due respect to my other colleagues, whoever they are, I firmly believe if you don't have loyalty and integrity, what do you have? Oh, I'm a politician. I'm proud to be a politician. But I'm a woman of my word and I will not leave her.

COSTELLO: Neither will California Congresswoman Diane Watson -- even though she says she's received not just pressure, but threatening e-mails.

REP. DIANE WATSON (D), CALIFORNIA: We can disagree. But I don't think that's a cause for viciousness and for launching a campaign against me.

COSTELLO: Their continued loyalty is no doubt a plus for the Clinton campaign, although her supporters tell me Clinton understands.

ANN LEWIS, CLINTON ADVISER: People have to make their own decisions and you have respect their right to make their decision and say OK, I've got to reach that many more people enough for their support.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: But, you know, Wolf, one community organizer here in Cleveland told me that Ohio Congresswoman would pay for her loyalty to Hillary Clinton. He said there's no way that the people of his community would vote for her because many feel that she's a traitor -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Carol, thanks very much. Carol Costello in Cleveland..."

Here is the CNN link to this story:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/02/29/obama.defections/index.html?eref=rss_politics&iref=polticker

updated 6:39 p.m. EST, Fri February 29, 2008

Black delegates under pressure to switch to Obama

From Carol Costello
CNN

Unfortunately this kind of nonsense is being cheered on and encouraged by many pundits in the mainstream media:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/14472

VIDEO: "Dan Abrams argues the media invented a race war to bait" Obama & Hillary

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on January 21, 2008 - 10:33am.

To be fair, race has also been a problem among some Clinton supporters which this article will verify:

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/politics/local/stories/DN-calleao_28pol.ART.State.Edition2.3ee536b.html

Clinton rejects Dallas Hispanic leader Callejo's comments about Obama

04:50 AM CST on Thursday, February 28, 2008
From Staff Reports

"Hillary Rodham Clinton rejected comments Wednesday from one of her supporters, Dallas Hispanic leader Adelfa Callejo, who said that black politicians have done little for Hispanics and that Barack Obama "simply has a problem that he happens to be black."

Mrs. Callejo, 84, made the comments in an earlier interview with KTVT-TV (Channel 11), and Mrs. Clinton, interviewed by the same station, initially declined to reject her support.

"I want us judged on our merits," she told the interviewer. "I believe strongly that the fact that we have an African-American and a woman running for the Democratic nomination is historical and I'm very, very proud of that. I want people though to look beyond, look beyond race and gender, look at our records, look what we stand for, look what we've done."

Later, her campaign issued a statement saying that at the time of the interview, she was unaware of Mrs. Callejo's comments. "After confirming that they were accurately portrayed, Senator Clinton, of course, denounces and rejects them."

Those words may have been carefully chosen, as Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama, in a debate Tuesday, sparred over whether he had gone far enough in denouncing past anti-Semitic comments by Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who has endorsed Mr. Obama..."

It would be really nice in my opinion if this primary race was based on issues and qualifications instead of race and gender when so much is on the line in this election as David Gergen credibly documented:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0802/11/acd.02.html

ANDERSON COOPER 360 DEGREES

Extreme Challenges - the Next Four Years

Aired February 11, 2008 - 23:00 ET

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening.
Nobody knows who our next president is going to be, but the challenges he or she will face are immense, perhaps unprecedented; the war in Afghanistan, the fight against terrorism, the war in Iraq.

More than 100,000 U.S. troops are still there, still fighting on the front lines. What options will the next president have?

Back home, there's the struggling economy to deal with. The housing market has collapsed, inflation is on the rise and there's fear we are already in a recession...

COOPER: Even the Democrats who were talking about pulling out -- there are some of them talking -- giving 60 days, 90 days, 180 days, whatever. But some of them recognize or say, "Look, we still have to figure out some level of commitment." We now have this huge embassy, what do we do with that? People need to guard the embassy. People need to be able to react to events."

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: If Democrats are elected they're going to face a serious dilemma in Iraq. It's going to be one of the toughest problems they face and one of the toughest presidencies I think we've ever faced.

COOPER: Because of what they have said?

GERGEN: Because of what they believe. What they believe, they believe we ought to start coming down. We ought to start significantly reducing the numbers and leave behind some smaller contingent force to deal if something erupts.

But here's the dilemma. You've promised that you're going to get out. Iraq has been on simmer. George Bush is going to give you something that looks like it's doing better.

You know, Colin Powell has long argued this is like putting a lid on a pot. The American presence is like putting a lid on a pot. And you can keep it on simmer for a long time. Once you start taking the lid off, the pot can boil over.

So if you're a Democrat, you come in there, you commit to coming out -- getting out. You start taking the lid off that pot, and if it starts overflowing, erupting, you suddenly become the president who lost the war. You've become the president who lost Iraq. And that can destroy your whole presidency. So how you do this is critical to the future of your entire presidency. It's not just about Iraq; it's about your political power, your political capacity to govern at home on any number of issues, which are in some ways, I think Fareed now would agree, in some ways are far more important than Iraq. But Iraq is the immediate issue..."

Race, gender, and being able to give high powered speeches will definitely NOT be able to solve these kind of very serious and complex problems that the next President will inherit from Bush on 1/20/09!

The real issues of "Change" and "Hope" in the specific area of foreign policy is NOT so much how we got into Iraq in 2002 but it is rather which candidate is the most qualified and has the soundest plan about how to get us out of Iraq in as responsible of a manner as possible on 1/20/09 when they take office:

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/13948

Obama said strongest foreign relations experience was living overseas as a child

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on November 21, 2007 - 9:17am.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/14640

TRANSCRIPT: Obama tried to have it both ways on setting a timetable for Iraq!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on February 6, 2008 - 11:50pm.

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/14600

ANALYSIS: Hillary is much closer to Gen. Clark's views on Iraq than Obama is!

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on February 4, 2008 - 6:56am.

Democratic primary voters and superdelegates definitely need to be thinking about these kind of serious issues as opposed to the race and gender for the good of the country as well as for the entire world!

If this Democratic primary race is eventually decided by the wrong criteria such as race, gender, most of the mainstream media rooting for Obama while trashing Hillary, and Obama's high powered speeches emotionally hooking people as opposed to the issues and which candidate is truly the most qualified to be President, then this primary system is definitely broken right now in my honest opinion!

Mitch Dworkin

http://www.securingamerica.com/

http://securingamerica.com/ccn/node/10756
StopIranWar.com: "War is not the answer"
Submitted by Wes Clark on February 21, 2007 - 11:40am.

http://www.securingamerica.com/ccn/node/7191
Listen to Gen. Wes Clark fight for Dems on Sean Hannity's radio program: An excellent example for all of us to follow and what we all need to be doing to help fight back against extreme right wing Neocon smear propaganda!