There are 55 million Americans of voting age who are currently not registered to vote. That means it's highly likely that each and every one of us knows at least a FEW people who are not registered to vote. If we took the time to ask our friends and neighbors if they are registed to vote and made the case for Barack Obama, it would go a long way toward electing Barack Obama the next President of the United States of America.

Watching Barack Obama's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention last night, I was in awe of The Man Who Would Be President. He was forceful, sure and RIGHT on the issues that matter most to ordinary Americans. Obama made the case for why he should be elected over John McCain: we need tax relief for the middle class, far less dependence on foreign oil, health care and education for all and the kind of judgment in a commander-in-chief that balances our safety at home with our place in the world. His solid policies and proposals stand in stark contrast to John McCain's continued petulance over his opponent's intelligence and integrity.

The choice is clear. Barack Obama MUST be the next President of the United States of America.

I've been saying for some time now that Barack Obama will be the Democratic nominee for President in 2008. Daniel Henninger of the Wall Street Journal makes a more eloquent case for the very same thing in yesterday's edition:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120899521565139921.html?mod=todays_colum...

The people have already spoken for Obama -- he leads in the popular vote, pledged delegates, states won and...fundraising. It's this last and oh-so-important category that has brought heavyweight superdelegates like former Senators Sam Nunn and David Boren over to Obama's side. Like it or not, it's going to take money, real money, to defeat the Republicans in the fall and Obama has proven that he can raise money across a wide spectrum. Add to that class, grace and humility and he far outpaces Senator Clinton in every meaningful way.

There are still far too many superdelegates on the fence (at least publicly), something which will likely shift over the next several weeks. By then, we should be addressing The Man for all Reasons as "the Democratic nominee for President of the United States, Senator Barack Obama!"

I should have seen it coming when ABC News kept promoting its televised Democratic debate last night as "Clinton vs. Obama" -- like it was a prize fight! Boorish anchors Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos came out like hackneyed corner men, urging the candidates to bash and bloody each other with cheap entreaties on overwrought gossip and innuendo. About 50 minutes into the debate (I just happened to look up at the clock), I realized that not ONE substantive question had been asked on issues that matter to the American public. Where were the questions on jobs, trade agreements, education, the environment and a host of other issues that people wanted to hear about, and needed answers to, during the course of the 90-minute debate?

It seems like an awfully long time ago when these debates were hosted by the League of Women Voters. Back then, they were smart, sensible affairs that allowed the PEOPLE to vet the candidates, not the so-called journalists. Gibson, Stephanopolous and their handlers at ABC heaped great shame upon their profession last night. If this is how political debates are orchestrated these days, they no longer serve us.

Finally, I trust that the American people will have the sense to listen to the candidates that choose to discuss the ISSUES as opposed to those who can prop themselves up only if they sling enough mud.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has just endorsed Barack Obama:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08107/873625-192.stm

Terrific essay -- 'nuff said!

Let's see:

1. John and Cindi McCain owns EIGHT homes.
2. Bill and Hillary Clinton earned $109 million over the last seven years.
3. Barack and Michelle Obama finished paying off their student loans not that long ago.

Who's the elitist here?

My gal Erin Kotecki Vest said it even better at The Huffington Post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/erin-kotecki-vest/elitist-my-ass_b_96380.h...

Ms. Vest left her hometown of Detroit because there were no jobs and she IS bitter about it. Obama is NOT out of touch at all, or an elitist, she says -- as a matter of fact, he seems to be the only one that GETS IT. Let's not forget that Obama was a community organizer on the mean streets of Chicago while Clinton was a corporate attorney/Wal-Mart board member and McCain was playing footsie with Washington lobbyists as a junior senator from Arizona.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see which candidate is OF THE PEOPLE. I'm happy to say that more and more of my fellow Pennsylvanians are starting to see that, too.

Time magazine's cover story this week is on Barack Obama's mother, Ann Soetoro. After you read this terrific piece, it's easy to see where Obama got the goods -- his mother rocked!

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1729524-1,00.html

Hooray for mamas!!

The following list was compiled by the folks at moveon.org and some of the items are startling. All ten things are footnoted as to source, with many of the sources major media outlets. Surprisingly, however, these items aren't generating much media coverage.

I, for one, am APPALLED that John McCain earned a ZERO rating from the League of Conservation Voters last year. With global warming arguably the most pressing issue of our time, how can we even consider someone with that kind of voting record (or lack thereof) as the next President of the United States?

Read it and weep, folks.

10 Things you should know about John McCain (but probably don't):

1. John McCain voted against establishing a national holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now he says his position has "evolved," yet he's continued to oppose key civil rights laws.1

2. According to Bloomberg News, McCain is more hawkish than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China. Conservative columnist Pat Buchanan says McCain "will make Cheney look like Gandhi."2

3. His reputation is built on his opposition to torture, but McCain voted against a bill to ban waterboarding, and then applauded President Bush for vetoing that ban.3

4. McCain opposes a woman's right to choose. He said, "I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned."4

5. The Children's Defense Fund rated McCain as the worst senator in Congress for children. He voted against the children's health care bill last year, then defended Bush's veto of the bill.5

6. He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires. The Associated Press reports he and his wife own at least eight homes! Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.6

7. Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too reckless to be commander in chief. One Republican senator said: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He's erratic. He's hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."7

8. McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but his campaign manager and top advisers are actually lobbyists. The government watchdog group Public Citizen says McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign, more than any of the other presidential candidates.8

9. McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious right in recent years. The pastor McCain calls his "spiritual guide," Rod Parsley, believes America's founding mission is to destroy Islam, which he calls a "false religion." McCain sought the political support of right-wing preacher John Hagee, who believes Hurricane Katrina was God's punishment for gay rights and called the Catholic Church "the Antichrist" and a "false cult."9

10. He positions himself as pro-environment, but he scored a 0—yes, zero—from the League of Conservation Voters last year.10

John McCain is not who the Washington press corps make him out to be. Please help get the word out—forward this email to your personal network. And if you want us to keep you posted on MoveOn's work to get the truth out about John McCain, sign up here:

http://pol.moveon.org/mccaintruth/?id=12407-8058842-6p1g4t&t=232

Thank you for all you do.

–Eli, Justin, Noah, Laura, and the MoveOn.org Political Action Team
Saturday, April 5th, 2008

Sources:
1. "The Complicated History of John McCain and MLK Day," ABC News, April 3, 2008
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/04/the-complicated.html

"McCain Facts," ColorOfChange.org, April 4, 2008
http://colorofchange.org/mccain_facts/

2. "McCain More Hawkish Than Bush on Russia, China, Iraq," Bloomberg News, March 12, 2008
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aF28rSCtk0ZM&refer=u...

"Buchanan: John McCain 'Will Make Cheney Look Like Gandhi,'" ThinkProgress, February 6, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/06/buchanan-gandhi-mccain/

3. "McCain Sides With Bush On Torture Again, Supports Veto Of Anti-Waterboarding Bill," ThinkProgress, February 20, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/20/mccain-torture-veto/

4. "McCain says Roe v. Wade should be overturned," MSNBC, February 18, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17222147/

5. "2007 Children's Defense Fund Action Council® Nonpartisan Congressional Scorecard," February 2008
http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/PageServer?pagename=act_learn_score...

"McCain: Bush right to veto kids health insurance expansion," CNN, October 3, 2007
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/03/mccain.interview/

6. "Beer Executive Could Be Next First Lady," Associated Press, April 3, 2008
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h-S1sWHm0tchtdMP5LcLywg5ZtMgD8VQ86M80

"McCain Says Bank Bailout Should End `Systemic Risk,'" Bloomberg News, March 25, 2008
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aHMiDVYaXZFM&refer=h...

7. "Will McCain's Temper Be a Liability?," Associated Press, February 16, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=4301022

"Famed McCain temper is tamed," Boston Globe, January 27, 2008
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/01/27/famed_mccain_tempe...

8. "Black Claims McCain's Campaign Is Above Lobbyist Influence: 'I Don't Know What The Criticism Is,'" ThinkProgress, April 2, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/02/mccain-black-lobbyist/

"McCain's Lobbyist Friends Rally 'Round Their Man," ABC News, January 29, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4210251

9. "McCain's Spiritual Guide: Destroy Islam," Mother Jones Magazine, March 12, 2008
http://www.motherjones.com/washington_dispatch/2008/03/john-mccain-rod-p...

"Will McCain Specifically 'Repudiate' Hagee's Anti-Gay Comments?," ThinkProgress, March 12, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/03/12/mccain-hagee-anti-gay/

"McCain 'Very Honored' By Support Of Pastor Preaching 'End-Time Confrontation With Iran,'" ThinkProgress, February 28, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/28/hagee-mccain-endorsement/
10. "John McCain Gets a Zero Rating for His Environmental Record," Sierra Club, February 28, 2008
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/environment/77913/

Our small township just south of Pittsburgh has leaned Republican for decades, maybe longer. While the Dems are making inroads, as seen in the last school board elections, it's still the kind of place where folks are a bit reluctant to announce themselves as Democrats for fear of being the odd man out. That's why it's all the more surprising that Obama yard signs are outpacing Hillary signs in our little burg by about five to one.

Yep, Spring has finally sprung, with the daffodils in full bloom. Their sunny yellow color pairs beautifully with the rising sun on Obama's yard signs. The season is full of promise. Full of HOPE.

Former U.S. Rep. Lee Hamilton (D-Indiana) endorsed Barack Obama this morning. Endorsements are always good news but in the case of Hamilton's endorsement, it's great news: the guy's got serious cred. Hamilton co-chaired the 9/11 Commission and also co-chaired President Bush's bi-partisan Iraq Study Group. He's considered a leading authority on foreign policy and had a storied, decades-long congressional career.

The Indiana primary will be held two weeks after the Pennsylvania primary. As my cousins from Indianapolis reminded me this past weekend, Indiana is definitely in play -- it has very different demographics than Pennsylvania.

Yippee! It's a good day in the neighborhood, as our friend (and fellow Pittsburgher) Mr. Rogers liked to say.