The Power of O

Oprah Winfrey - philanthropist, media mogul, billionaire ... king maker?

Can Oprah's clout put Obama in the White House? (scrippsnews.com)
Forbes: Oprah Richest Woman in Entertainment (10News.com)
20 richest women in entertainment (MSNBC)

Obama's Star on the Rise in Hollywood

According to the Los Angeles Times:

"Take the speculation that began to swirl around entertainment industry mogul David Geffen this week when Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) announced that he was forming an exploratory committee to look into a presidential run.

Geffen's name surfaced immediately as one of Hollywood's early major supporters of the young senator, a significant snub to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's (D-N.Y.) possible presidential bid. Although Geffen — once a powerful Clinton ally — has not yet spoken publicly on the matter, his longtime friend Arianna Huffington believes the message is clear: "David Geffen has already declared for Obama, and many other Hollywood power brokers, who are not ready to go public yet, are making it known in private that they are in the ABH (Anyone But Hillary) camp," Huffington wrote recently in a Los Angeles Times column."

Poll: Obama Leads Clinton in New Hampshire

...but Edwards leads them both in Iowa. (Lifenews.com)

Early NH Poll Puts Obama and McCain in The Lead (All Headline News)
New Poll Has Barack Obama Leading Hillary Clinton (watch CBS2 Chicago)

and yet another poll - Shows Senator Clinton and Ex-Mayor Giuliani Lead '08 Picks (All Headline News)

ABC Asks "Who the Hell is Barack Obama?"

And MediaMatters asks 'Who the Hell is Jake Tapper?'

Barack Iowa Bound

Hold please, for Senator Obama (Radio Iowa)

"Illinois Senator Barak Obama has begun telephoning key Iowa Democrats as he prepares to seek the Democratic party's presidential nomination... Obama talked with Mike Gronstal, the Democratic Leader of the Iowa Senate.

"I also talked with him last week and (Obama) called me yesterday to let me know he had filed his papers," Gronstal says. "I told him Iowa is a place where Iowa Caucus attenders are very studious about their job of picking a presidential nominee." Gronstal told Obama he would be welcome to speak privately with the 30 Democrats who serve in the Iowa Senate."

Barack Really This Unknown?

U.S. News and World Report comes up with maybe two things we didn't know about Barack Obama on its list of "Ten Things You Didn't Know About Barack Obama."

Obama Forms Committe, Sends Press into Overdrive

• "Obama Takes First Step Towards Presidential Bid" (Watch story on CBS2 Chicago)

• "Obama takes first step in White House bid" (Chicago Tribune)

• "Obama takes first White House step" (AP/Time)

• "Who does Barack Obama think he is?" (Guardian Unlimited - UK)

• "The skeptics take a turn: Reasons why Barack Obama will not be the Democratic presidential nominee in 2008" (Chicago Tribune)
  

Obama Takes First Step in Presidential Run

Dear Friend, As you may know, over the last few months I have been thinking hard about my plans for 2008. Running for the presidency is a profound decision - a decision no one should make on the basis of media hype or personal ambition alone - and so before I committed myself and my family to this race, I wanted to be sure that this was right for us and, more importantly, right for the country. I certainly didn't expect to find myself in this position a year ago. But as I've spoken to many of you in my travels across the states these past months; as I've read your emails and read your letters; I've been struck by how hungry we all are for a different kind of politics. So I've spent some time thinking about how I could best advance the cause of change and progress that we so desperately need. The decisions that have been made in Washington these past six years, and the problems that have been ignored, have put our country in a precarious place. Our economy is changing rapidly, and that means profound changes for working people. Many of you have shared with me your stories about skyrocketing health care bills, the pensions you've lost and your struggles to pay for college for your kids. Our continued dependence on oil has put our security and our very planet at risk. And we're still mired in a tragic and costly war that should have never been waged. But challenging as they are, it's not the magnitude of our problems that concerns me the most. It's the smallness of our politics. America's faced big problems before. But today, our leaders in Washington seem incapable of working together in a practical, common sense way. Politics has become so bitter and partisan, so gummed up by money and influence, that we can't tackle the big problems that demand solutions. And that's what we have to change first. We have to change our politics, and come together around our common interests and concerns as Americans. This won't happen by itself. A change in our politics can only come from you; from people across our country who believe there's a better way and are willing to work for it. Years ago, as a community organizer in Chicago, I learned that meaningful change always begins at the grassroots, and that engaged citizens working together can accomplish extraordinary things. So even in the midst of the enormous challenges we face today, I have great faith and hope about the future - because I believe in you. And that's why I wanted to tell you first that I'll be filing papers today to create a presidential exploratory committee. For the next several weeks, I am going to talk with people from around the country, listening and learning more about the challenges we face as a nation, the opportunities that lie before us, and the role that a presidential campaign might play in bringing our country together. And on February 10th, at the end of these decisions and in my home state of Illinois, I'll share my plans with my friends, neighbors and fellow Americans. In the meantime, I want to thank all of you for your time, your suggestions, your encouragement and your prayers. And I look forward to continuing our conversation in the weeks and months to come. Sincerely, U.S. Senator Barack Obama

Obama Announcing on Oprah This Week?

A well connected "tipster" has Taegan Goddard, speculating about an official statement from the senator on Wednesday.

Political Wire:
"The Oprah schedule for Wednesday, January 17 says to "check back later" for more details on the show. Since all shows are taped in advance, this suggests something is up."

And this was on CBS2 Chicago's website before it was yanked off later.
Barack Obama will reveal his intentions on a possible presidential run on the Oprah Winfrey show this week. CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery reports ...

McCain Yes, Obama No on Troop Surge

WATCH the two senators square off over Iraq on CBS' Face the Nation.

• Bush plan for Iraq swells '08 intrigue (New York Times)
• Obama, McCain: 2 War Views (Chicago Tribune)

Another Money Man for Team Obama

Louis Susman, seen here in the Chicago Tribune when he was raising nearly a quarter billion dollars for the Kerry campaign in '04, is now on board the Obama train.

From the Chicago Sun Times:

"If you want to be president of the United States, he is the one you want to call before you even talk it over with your own mother. Louis Susman is his name. He lives in Chicago. And at this moment, he is ready to do whatever Illinois Sen. Barack Obama needs him to do to take the White House in 2008. If Obama is running (and he is), then Susman will be pivotal to raising the cash...
How much money did Susman raise for Kerry? A bundle: $247 million. A vacuum cleaner was how someone once described him for a 2005 Tribune article, saying Susman was able to ''Hoover'' money from ''deep pockets.''

Team Obama Taking Shape

So says the Chicago Tribune. The Trib lists
David Axelrod as the senator's right hand man.

Recently the long time political strategist was advising the new Governor of New York. Axelrod also spent time in John Edwards' camp in 2004. (Meanwhile, it seems his son was busy getting into court side fights with NBA players' wives. But I digress.)

There's also Axelrod's business partner David Plouffe who is listed as likely campaign manager.

Julianna Smoot, fund raiser extraordinaire and another veteran of Edwards '04 will reportedly be finance director.

Pollster Paul Harstad (left) seen below in a picture from his firm's website with Sen. Obama and Senator Ken Salazar...has apparently been tapped to reprise his '04 role.


And of course there's Michelle Obama... America's Next First Lady?

Barack and the Black Community

Blacks appear lukewarm on Barack Obama presidential bid (The Louisiana Weekly)

"(Taylor Media Services) It could be because he has no history in the Civil Rights Movement or because it appears he is being promoted by the white media. Regardless, several recent reports suggest that the presidential ambitions of Black Illinois senator Barack Obama is receiving only lukewarm support among other Blacks.

Radio talk show host George Wilson concluded recently that based on views expressed by his listeners, Obama is "not getting as much of an enthusiastic send-off from black people as he is from whites."

Sharpton Asks Where's the Obama Beef? (New York Press)

"Right now we're hearing a lot of media razzle dazzle," Sharpton said. "I'm not hearing a lot of meat, or a lot of content. I think when the meat hits the fire, we'll find out if it's just fat or if there's some real meat there."

Update: 1/15/07

"Regular" Black Folks Split on Obama (Chicago Sun-Times)

Black Leaders Wary of Obama (Newsmax.com)

Obama Announcement Imminent?

The blogs are abuzz that Senator Barack Obama will officially declare he'll run for president very soon.
Will he make history on Monday? (What would have been Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 78th birthday)

Political Insider: "There is growing speculation in Democratic political circles that Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) will announce his presidential intentions on Martin Luther King Day. That timing would certainly highlight the historic nature of his candidacy."

Draft Obama Site: Genuinely Grassroots?

A keen-eye'd New York Observer peeped the very polished steez over at Obama4America.com. The article suggests the site is not so much a pure expression of the power of the people as a project of professional political operatives.

"Among the numerous unofficial "draft" Barack Obama websites that have been popping up lately, one struck me as particularly professional looking: Obama4America.com.The company that created the website, it turns out, is registered to Joel Berman, whose email address is for a California-based company called Catapult Strategies. That's the company co-founded by Howard Dean's former campaign manager Joe Trippi, who now works there "on a project-by-project basis," according to his bio.I called Berman to ask whether the website was part of some potentially more involved relationship with Obama, but after I introduced myself, he hurried me off the phone. (He said he was going into a meeting and would call me back.)"

Obama's Primary Concern

• Illinois House Speaker wants to aid Obama by changing primary date (AP)
• Edwards backer: Don't give Obama Advantage (Bloomington Pantagraph)
• Obama may get boost with earlier primary (Lincoln Courrier)
• To get in dance Illinois needs better date (Chicago Sun-Times)
  

Daily Show Obsesses about Obama Obsession

Presidential-Run Prep

• Hillary, Obama Load Up (New York Observer)
• Senator Barack Obama Appears on Larry King Live (CBS2 Chicago)
• Playing President in the Senate (Time)
• No Vieira Softballs for Stone Cold Barack Obama (NewsBusters)
• Morris: Obama can be whatever he wants to be (Salem Statesman Journal)

Some Actual Work Gets Done in Senate

"WASHINGTON Jan 11, 2007 (AP)— Potential presidential rivals John McCain and Barack Obama are joining with newly independent Sen. Joe Lieberman on a plan they say would reduce annual global-warming gases by two-thirds by mid-century."

Climate Bill Sets Stage for Debate in Congress (ABC News)

Chillin' in Chicago with Conan