LOL!! I watched both the Clinton and Obama supporter on MSNBC last night. The Hillary supporter at least spewed out talking points that Hillary pushes but the Obama supporter was just dumbfounded!

Wait. So just because someone doesn't know what Obama's accomplishments are that means Obama doesn't have any?

Hillary, Hillary, Hillary.

It's just sad now.

I think it only indicative of that particular guy's preparation. She has such a tiny chance of pulling this off. She should just step out now and save some dignity.

That Clinton supporter looked like a starving animal that was thrown some meat, too. I think her eyes glowed red.

The funny thing is, and I know you just don't get it, it doesn't matter.

We're not finding a CEO.

We're not looking for a Fundraiser like a University President.

We're not bringing in an old experienced Beltway-vetted hand.

We're electing a Leader.

One to lead this country out of the long dark teatime of the soul, into a bright new century.

We're replacing the system.

Comprende?

I'll name one: He let one of his top donors, the Exelon corporation, off the hook by deep freezing a bill to make them disclose radioactive leaks. That's one.

Hillary Clinton, for her part, in the GOP dominated-Senate, led the winning fight to make Plan B available over the counter.

She did this with our own Sen. Patty Murray, who has endorsed her.

I'm sure we could round up a confused Hillary supporter who thinks she's a Republican. So what? This guy embarrassed himself, and, to a lesser degree, Obama. But it's an embarrassment in political theater. It's not exactly a strong position when the most substantive negative thing you can say about Obama is that one of his supporters is more enthusiastic than educated.

And where's ECB? I'm dying to hear the spin on how WI voters are misogynistic or stupid or something.

I don't think Obama's as light as is being implied by either McCain or Clinton.

Still, this is my biggest fear once he gets the nomination - a collective wake up moment when the charisma wears off a bit and people start to ask, 'Can he really handle the office?'

I'm fine with it if he can show the necessary substance to allay the concerns. This clip isn't Obama's fault, necessarily - but if one of his supporters is hard pressed, what does that say about the general knowledge people have of his accomplishments? I just think it's going to be an uphill battle for him with his short tenure at the national level.

Okay, right right right. She calls him a representative of her opponent. He's just a supporter not a spokesperson. I guarantee you there are some Hillary supporters that can't name her accomplishments in the Senate. I'd be worried if Obama couldn't name his accomplishments, but not some random state senator who supports him. Repeat: That guy was not a spokesperson for the Obama campaign, therefore how unprepared he was has nothing to do with Obama's ability to be president. How about name one thing any of our presidents (who were senators before) did while in Senate? Who cares, supporters aren't biographers. Most supporters probably were drawn in during the presidential campaign, its not like people start watching the Senate and playing fantasy congress, hoping their favorite senator makes a run for president. I just wish the Clinton campaign would get real about things and stop trying to make every tiny thing into a huge flaw with Obama. If she spent as much energy on campaigning for herself as she did against him maybe she would still have a chance.

How low will she go?

Chalk another one up for the benefits of the caucus exchange: at mine, when the Clinton supporters were asked to name some specifics of Hillary's accomplishments and plans, the response was initially silence. Then we heard a bit about things she'd worked on... as Bill Clinton's wife.

@3 Yup... The unfortunate thing is Kirk Watson is a State Senator from Texas... hold the Texas jokes.

Good Job for Matthews, although I can hardly stand him.

When talking with people about the upcoming election,.. I ask what 3 policies they like about whomever they are supporting... the unfortunate thing is I usually get the same blank stare as Watsons across the board...

I got TWO things Hillary accomplished!! (waves hand up in the air) Hillary VOTED for the bankruptcy bill thinking it would not pass (and it did) and she voted to allow Bush to attack Iraq!!

I saw this last night, this guy should never speak to reporters on behalf of Obama again.

Hillary should really talk about her positives, and not focus on Obama so much.

Obama's Negatives ARE Hillary's positives.

Can we get Erica to go on Chris Matthews show and read her vagina article? To compare and contrast what a Hillary fan looks like.

@17

That would be way too awesome for TV.

I think what fitz meant to say was; Hillary shouldnt focus on obama supporters by telling them they are clueless mopes. antagonizing your opponents base doesnt make them any closer to liking you.

Oh really, Watcher. And that explains why she has lost 10 consecutive contests.

The whole federal experience thing is a red herring. We haven't had an ex-senator win the presidency since Kennedy (Nixon and LBJ moved up from the VP spot). The most effective and revered (albeit by different people) president in recent history was Reagan, an ex-Governor. "Battle Tested in Washington" as a key qualification was invented by HRC, and the traction it's getting is the tail wagging the dog.

I NEVER STUDIED LOGIC IN COLLEGE THEREFOR I CANNOT SEE THE FALLACY IN YOUR ARGUMENT.

CLINTON-BUSH DYNASTY 100 MORE YEARS!

Try this:
http://obsidianwings.blogs.com/obsidian_wings/2008/02/solutions-adden.html

Seriously, just because blowhard mental defectives like Chris Matthews don't know anything doesn't mean knowledge is impossible. For Clinton to use this is desperation, and I hope it hurts her.

Honestly people, we have a nominee at this point. And the next President of the United States is going to be a black man from Chicago.

Cann't we all just get along?

If Sen. Clinton really believed that Washington experience was the most important requirement for serving as President, she would deferred to candidates with far greater experience than her: Joe Biden, Chris Dodd, and Bill Richardson.

AND ... that experience argument won't stand up against John McCain.

And let's not forget the Washington experience of Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfield!

Painting yourself as a DC insider is NOT a way to win an election... Seriously, who says "Gee, let's vote for the out of touch Senator who has lived in DC for nearly 20 years?"

Bub is right. this whole i'm more experienced thing is malarky as a pertinent issue to the democratic nomination. mccain hands down can beat them on experience at the federal level, state level, and on the level. but the thing is obama has a campaign that seems to work in spite of this hole in his candidacy, and hillary has a campaign that has failed to actually prove her experience is worth talking about.

and here is the major failing that i want to tie this back to; play up your strengths, play down your weaknesses.

experience apparently flows like this:
mccain>hillary>obama
why play up a strength against one person that is a weakness against another?

Look, this "attack" just makes us laugh.

It doesn't matter. The WaPo pundits have been getting slammed all morning for taking this tack, carrying Sen Clinton's water for her, doing Sen McCain's dirty work, in promoting these attacks.

You're just turning out MORE pro-Obama votes.

You. Just. Don't. Get. It.

I can't stand her "work" argument. Whenever she's in front of white working class crowds she starts spouting on the "I'll work harder" theme. It's a thinly veiled racist argument that she thinks will resonates in Ohio and Texas. It plays to the stereotype that black men are lazy.

Her "experience" argument is weak. Before she became one of the most compliant Democratic senators, she had no other significant political or executive experience. Think of her management experience: the white house travel office, Whitewater Real estate, Wal-Mart Board. All she has ever done is run interference for rackets and her husband.

Since entering the U.S. Senate, Senator Obama has written 890 bills and co-sponsored another 1096 including **the Coburn-Obama Government Transparency Act of 2006 - became law, **The Lugar-Obama Nuclear Non-proliferation and Conventional Weapons Threat Reduction Act, - became law, **The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act, passed the Senate, **The 2007 Government Ethics Bill, - became law, **The Protection Against Excessive Executive Compensation Bill, In committee, and many more.

people get upset when she's called a harpy, but all she does is harp harp harp on this negative crap people feed her. Is there any other candidate who would stay in the race against a winning opponent for so long just to tear him to shreds? YOU'RE IN THE SAME F-ING PARTY

Thanks Miles #32. Very concise.

Eli,

You are carrying water for the Republicans here. This Chris Mathews agressive questioning here was a set up job for today's soundbites. I have never seen election night coverage interviews agressively attacking a campaign representative in this way.

You didn't show the whole clip, where Olbermann reminds him that they are doing election night coverage, not Hardball.

That guy was booked to come on the show to talk about the election in his district and Mathews sabbed him with a wholely unplanned line of questioning.

@6: Oh, Josh, stop with your lies. The bill you praise (the one to make plants disclose leaks) was Obama's very own, and Exelon lobbied his office for changes. But it wasn't until the Republican committee chairman, James Inhofe, "deep froze" it that Obama responded with a weaker but still useful bill—which Clinton then cosponsored. Check your facts.

Obama's accomplishments in the U.S. Senate include passing tough ethics reform and nuclear nonproliferation bills; his state record includes successful legislation to videotape interrogations in death penalty cases and expand health care for children.

Obama is now the likely Democratic nominee. It's about time to quit taking cheap potshots and start reading up on his record.

Don't worry, Annie. Everybody knows about Josh Feit. Did you see the column he wrote whose centerpiece was a spelling flame about a missing apostrophe in an email?

No, really. A spelling flame. About an email.

I watched Matthews grill this guy last night. Yeah he's just a state-level politician and not an official rep for the Obama campaign, but one BETTER be able to deliver some meat when going on a national show.
It does raise the issue about whether Obama is filled with fluff. The good rhetoric better start having some details - some find print - about just how he expects to change things as president.
Over the weekend, one pundit made a comment I've thought about - that an Obama presidency could be like a Jimmy Carter presidency. Think about the parallels - and mark my words, the repukes will evoke this in the general election if Obama is the Dem nominee.

Madashell: looks like you were so busy watching Mathews tell you what to think that you didn't watch Obama's victory speech last night where Obama went on and on and on with policy specifics. Looks like your interest is pundit talking points rather than facts.

here's Mathews and Olbermanns exchange after Mathews interviewed the unprepared state senator, via crooksandliars.com :

Olbermann: In defense of Sen. Obama and also in context, can you name one accomplishment of the US Senate in the last seven years?

Matthews: That’s a broader question requiring a larger preparation.

Olbermann: Yeah, you don’t have an answer to that one either. (Studio laughs)

Matthews: Let me say…but you know what, Keith? They should be able to make some points..

Olbermann: I’m not disagreeing with you on that…In two weeks, Chris …

Matthews: And I’m not here to defend the US Senate, he’s here to defend Barack Obama and he had nothing in his—he had nothing to say. That’s a problem.

Olbermann: In two weeks, Chris and I will have complete coverage of the primaries in Ohio and Texas, at which point I’m expecting a written reply to may…

Matthews: Why do you think they call it Hardball?

Olbermann: Alright, but this isn’t Hardball, we’re doing election results. (more laughter)

What's more fascinating is that Clinton has a thin history of legislative accomplishments, and she's been in the Senate nearly a decade.

Moreover, off the top of my head I can think of several legislative accomplishments of McCain: McCain/Feingold, immigration compromise, anti-torture (ok so he didn't win the last two).

Additionally, in the modern era, Presidents had a small legislative accomplishment. Except for LBJ, presidents for the past 60 years have relied on leadership skills, not legislative.

Hillary is really reaching...sort of sad.

Hey, I can think of one Hillary accomplishment in the Senate: H.J.R. 114.

I don't need more.

People who support Clinton must be people who, like her, were completely and foolishly hoodwinked by George W. Bush and his gang of tools in 2003 about Iraq. So they can totally understand why she would have gone ahead and made such an incredibly horrible and stupid vote, ignoring all the real evidence and falling for the propaganda instead, like all good leaders do.

Barack Obama was not one of those people. Nor was I.

Do I want a president who can be so easily fooled by utter bullshit that they vote to authorize the most ill-founded war of the past 60+ years?

No.

@ 39 - I DID watch Obama's speech. It was short on specifics and looooooong in duration. What did I miss?

Madashell, you missed his plan. He touched on a lot of the major tenets. Were you scanning for numbers or something? The Blueprint for Change [PDF]

Also, folks, Chris Matthews is an Obama supporter, and it's good that we see this unpreparedness now. I take this incident as a challenge to step up our game. I can talk policy with anyone but I have to make sure I'm up on it. We should encourage everyone else to be too. This is just embarrassing. :p

Obama's Senate record is enumerated in that Obsidian Wings blogpost (thanks Fnarf). I personally think the The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 is pretty representative of the character of the guy we're running with.