This is a valid request.
I connect with Obama's hope message and I know his specific plans for the economy, healthcare, education... because I've read all of his documents and books and watched most of the town halls.
But the average person, who doesn't connect with hope and hasn't made it a point to read up on Obama, needs more meat. All they've seen is Obama the celebrity. They don't know why he's popular. They don't connect with the local-global economy message. They don't necessarily care that Europe likes the U.S.
They need the: What-are-you-going-to-do-for-me details. Obama needs to pander, to roll up his sleeves and pander, pander, pander. He could also use a lot more help from the democrats because Hillary has been countering much of the work Obama is trying to do. Hopefully, after the convention, we won't have to hear about sore Hillary supporters.
I hope her supporters get everything they want at the convention, find catharsis, and move on. I hope it's a moving event for them.
NYT: These Democrats — 15 governors, members of Congress and state party leaders — say Mr. Obama has yet to convert his popularity among many Americans into solutions to crucial electoral challenges: showing ownership of an issue, like economic stewardship or national security; winning over supporters of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton; and minimizing his race and experience level as concerns for voters.
Mr. Obama has run for the last 18 months as the candidate of hope. Yet party leaders — while enthusiastic about Mr. Obama and his state-by-state campaign operations — say he must do more to convince the many undecided Democrats and independents that he would address their financial anxieties rather than run, by and large, as an agent of change — given that change, they note, is not an issue.
“I particularly hope he strengthens his economic message — even Senator Obama can speak more clearly and specifically about the kitchen-table, bread-and-butter issues like high energy costs,” said Gov. Ted Strickland of Ohio. “It’s fine to tell people about hope and change, but you have to have plenty of concrete, pragmatic ideas that bring hope and change to life.”
Or, in the blunter words of Gov. Phil Bredesen, Democrat of Tennessee: “Instead of giving big speeches at big stadiums, he needs to give straight-up 10-word answers to people at Wal-Mart about how he would improve their lives.”
