The pledge in Berea

[Hope And Change]

August 05, 2008
Categories: Barack Obama

The pledge in Berea

A slightly odd moment at the beginning of Barack Obama's event in Berea, OH, when a man on the press riser -- apparently a photographer -- began loudly demanding that the crowd recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

The crowd began to chant, drowning the man out, but Obama -- perhaps sensing a moment of peril -- quickly shushed them, and led the crowd in the Pledge.

"We usually do an invocation and a pledge before we start," he said. "I don’t know why we didn’t, but this young man reminded us."

A spokeswoman, Jen Psaki, said Obama was referring to invocations that take place as the events open, and before Obama arrives.

The Pledge aficionado refused to give his name to reporters, but did take the time to accuse a member of the local press of lacking patriotism.


By Ben Smith 03:26 PM


more...

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0808/The_pledge_in_Berea.html#comments

[Bicoastal]

1. Call me a conspiracy theorist...

...but this has all the making of Republican sabotage.

"The Pledge aficionado refused to give his name to reporters, but did take the time to accuse a member of the local press of lacking patriotism."

And after nearly getting away with destroying Obama's event with tired old "unpatriotic" accusations--what? This mystery Pledger just disappeared into the night? Or did he dash around the corner into an alley, waiting for the Not-So-Straight Talk Express to pick him up?

[FrenchieCat]

2. Odd in that CNN was able to "find" the young Black protestor from a recent rally in FL

and have a televised interview with one of them, in where the young man stated that Obama still hadn't won him over.

Funny how conveniently the press is able to "find" those they believe need finding.

Makes me go Mmmmmm.....

[sufrommich]

3. The creepiest thing about American politics of late is

the constant drumbeat for more and more superficial bows to phony nationalism. So what if the National Anthem wasn't said at a political event? It's not a government function,it's a political rally. It's given a true love for this country all the gravitas of a McDonald's Happy Meal and it strikes me as very McCarthyesque.