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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: tejek who wrote (325311)	2/9/2007 6:58:16 PM
From: Road Walker	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1576351

In order to survive the primaries, I think he has to articulate some policy details. Maybe I'm just old fashioned... Obama to announce 2008 plans in Illinois Democratic Sen. Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record) plans to stand outside Illinois' Old State Capitol on Saturday, a building indelibly linked to Abraham Lincoln, and tell the world about his 2008 presidential plans. In a video preview announcement on his Web site, Obama said he's humbled by the enormity of the task ahead and urged supporters to get involved. "Tomorrow, we begin a great journey. A journey to take our country back and fundamentally change the nature of our politics," Obama said. Obama will be able to evoke a long list of positive images during his speech. He could remind people that Lincoln served as a legislator there. He could note Lincoln's role in ending slavery and ultimately making it possible for a black politician to run for president. Obama might mention his own eight years as a state senator in Springfield, or talk about the city's Main Street values and common sense. But don't expect him to mention some other pieces of the city's heritage: a race riot, government corruption, even a brush with cannibalism. Obama could have announced his presidential plans in Chicago, where he lives, or Washington, where he works. Instead, he chose to do it in Lincoln's hometown. "There is a terrific Lincoln aura around that site and the city," said local historian and author Taylor Pensoneau. "By picking Springfield as opposed to Chicago, it goes along with the attempt to push this almost fairy tale aspect of the whole Obama political explosion." Even some of Springfield's biggest fans admit that Americans know little about the city beyond its Lincoln connections. If they have any impression, it's probably of a pleasant, nondescript midwestern city. "It's Every Place," said Curtis Mann, manager of the local library's Sangamon Valley Collection. Still, Springfield has had dark moments, including its share of Illinois' famously corrupt politics. When one state official died, a shoebox was found among the personal items in his Springfield hotel room — inside was $800,000 in cash. A state auditor embezzled at least $2.5 million. The last Illinois governor was convicted on a variety of corruption charges in 2006. Springfield also has struggled with race. Its police department is embroiled in a discrimination lawsuit right now. City government was overhauled in the 1980s because of a voting rights case. Most famously, though, it was the scene of lynchings and rioting in 1908 that helped inspire the creation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. A black barber was shot and hanged from a tree, where his body was riddled with more bullets. An 84-year-old shoemaker had his throat slashed and, still alive, was hanged. Black-owned homes and businesses were burned. The Illinois National Guard had to restore order. "The outrage was tremendous," Mann said. National activists concerned about this and other incidents met in New York and ultimately formed the NAACP. Obama may want to avoid thinking about another historic quest that began in Springfield, a westward expedition known as the Donner Party. Their wagon train became trapped in California's Sierra Nevada mountains. Nearly half the party died, and some of the rest survived only through cannibalism. ___ On the Net: City of Springfield: springfield.il.us