Obama opens up about his grandmother
By SilentPatriot Friday Oct 24, 2008 1:00pm
Barack Obama opens up to CBS's Harry Smith about why he's suspending his campaign at the most crucial time in order to go see his sick grandmother. This is some pretty powerful stuff.
Harry Smith: You've said in the past that you regretted - your own mother's illness - and her death came so quickly. You didn't have time to get back to see her.
Barack Obama: Yeah, got there too late. ... We knew - she wasn't doing well. But you know, the diagnosis was such that we thought we had a little more time, and we didn't. And so I want to make sure that I don't - I don't make - the same mistake twice.
Andrew Sullivan puts it perfectly:
If you have read Obama's memoir, you will immediately understand why he would suspend a national campaign for the most powerful job on earth to be with his grandmother right now. One gets the impression from Robert Gibbs and from this decision that this might indeed be one of the last chances he gets. "Toot" was a formative figure - she brought him up with her husband during some critical years. Her death would be the death of his last parent. Reading about her again tonight, you can see where Obama's personal social conservatism comes from. There's a lot more Kansas in Obama than most people on the right seem to think.
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If Obama is fortunate enough to win this race, I sincerely hope that "Toot" is able to see the most remarkable inauguration in American history.
I'm sending good thoughts and prayers to both of them.
You know she had a tough time raising a grandchild in Kansas fortysome years ago. I hope she knows what a great job she did and how special the person she raised turned out to be.
and all Michael Savage (proper last name I think) can do is question his motives and suggest he looking for his birth certificate. What an asssssssssssssssssssssssssssss
Let's work extra hard this coming week and weekends to get this man elected.
http://www.BarackObama.com
http://www.Moveon.org
Well how bout cuttin the Rebop?
Sorry...But I don't give one wit about his (or anyone's Grandmother or how they feel about them.) because it doesn't matter.
Just. Do. Your. Job.
And what might that job be? If we lose sight of our own humanity, we can not possibly be an effective leader.
1) Nobody's asking you to care- This is a personal matter for Obama and his family. Onlookers are free to make their own value judgements on conduct, of course.
2) He hasn't gotten 'the job' yet.
There, rebop cut.
That's what I thought.
of being kicked off here-[Deleted. Civility, please. Thank you. Site Monitor]
It doesn't matter? Boy, it must really suck to be you.
Compassion is something we all need, as people of this country. We have suffered under the 'compassionate conservative' meme for so long, we no longer matter.
I love that Obama is human. He loves his wife. He is a good husband, father and as honest a politician as there has been in a long time.
He exudes real family values. He is what every Republican espouses as a value but cannot accept him which proves them to be basing their everything on partisanship and not values at all.
This is very important. It is not enough to do your job. You have to do it FOR people...not to people, which has been the way for too long.
[Deleted. Abusive. Let's please try to keep it civil. Thank you. Site Monitor]
I'm sorry that you're so hardened to true family values.
But I'm unclear how anyone is not doing their job at the moment.
And as someone who just lost my grandmother this year to a long and debilitating disease, I pray that you never have to go through what I and my family had to.
My heart is with You,Nicolle.
I am sorry for your loss.
My mom died of cancer...they gave her six months to live and she lived four miserable years, the entire last year of her life being in a nursing home or hospital bed.
I am very, very sorry for your more recent loss. It's hard and it hurts.
My grandmother died of Alzheimer's. It was a painful 14 years of watching my witty, dynamic grandmother--the first woman in her family to go to college -- become a helpless child, dependent on her children and grandchildren for everything. Towards the end, she didn't know who any of us were and was more or less mute.
My grandmother was such a huge influence in my life, being so strong and from a time that didn't value female strength and independence. I miss her all the time. I wish that my kids had gotten to see the grandmother I knew, instead of the one that her illness cruelly made her.
My ex's aunt was visiting us once when she was pretty early into Alzheimer's and she told the same stories over and over. I loved this woman. She was raised in the 20s and not only went to college but got a PhD and was involved in higher education for her entire life. She was such a lovely lady and to watch that energy get sucked out right in front of your eyes makes Alzheimer's one of the hardest diseases to cope with.
My dad had dementia and passed away in 2001. My mom died 26 years earlier and in my dad's last years, he didn't remember my mother. That was one of the most heartbreaking things ever.
I pray every day that I am blessed with a quick and fatal heart attack.
[Deleted. As hard as it might be, please try to keep it civil. Thank you. Site Monitor]
I guess he made me mad, sorry about that.
Johnny2Sad's momma died and his employer said tough shit, Johhny. No funeral for you....you have a job to do. So quit your crying and get back to work. Would he sing a different tune?
you can tell alot about a man by how he feels towards the women in his life.
We would be blessed to have this man as our President -- lets work hard to get this done!
And what might that job be? If we lose sight of our own humanity, we can not possibly be an effective leader.
E.G. GW Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, Karl Rove, Tom Delay, Bill Frist, Dick Cheney, Paul Wolfowicz....
a tragic beauty to all this. Her time Here is over. Her job is done.
that she lives long enough to see her beloved grandson sworn in as POTUS.
is my favorite word. Peace to You MsJoanne.
Peace to you, too, sweet UncaDave. :)
So do I. It would be a fitting final reward for her.
but like Martin Luther King Jr.... she may not get there with Obama, but she has seen the promised land.
I hope she lives long enough to see him get elected on Nov 4.
You can add me to the long list of those who hope for that also! I haven't yet but will get a Vermont postcard mailed out to her Monday.
i would rather have a man as president with a
caring heart than someone who is without.
bless Obama and his grandmother.
[Deleted. Off topic. Site Monitor]
It is fundamental humanity to be there when your loved one is to shuffle off this mortal coil.
Failing to have done so is the source of a lifelong lament. That last breath is a sound you will never forget, and never be able to recreate in your mind if you have missed it.
-and she IS a parent-lived long and fruitful lives. You can never be ready for That day. You may kid yourself,but You aren't.
I'd hug his neck, if I could.
Did you hear that O said he did not want to make the same mistake twice.
Something you never heard george bush say! Well you will never hear bush admit to a mistake no matter how bad it was.
bush just keeps doing the same things over and over again and again.
republican = insanity!
loving my family makes me a social conservative.
Who knew.
All the best in these difficult times to Barack and his family. I wish them much peace.
But it's a nice story. I think we should all be respectful. I've lost people in the past when I was too wrapped up in my own life. It hurts. And you can't go back and change what you do. You really never know when someone is going to go. My grandmother, bless her heart, is 94 years old and has had a few scary moments over the last few years. I don't want to miss out on seeing her one more time.
Let's just be nice here. Please.
Good post.
You probably want to edit the "Tags"
Tags: Barck Obama
I know in my life I have lost lots of family and friends and the ones that have gone without the chance to say goodbye is always a source of heart ache.
You are doing the right thing O we will vote for you.
I hope your Grandmother pulls through this and lives to see you take the oath of office. God what a great day for her, America, and the world!
Loving your family is now a "conservative" value? It's a Kansas thing? That's a basic human value-- we do that even out here on the left coast, believe it or not.
Reading about her again tonight, you can see where Obama's personal social conservatism comes from.
He said after "reading about her again". His site has a wikipedia link.
My own grandmother was very very special to me. She loved me when I questioned the love of my parents. I think I understand how he feels to some degree. Maybe that's why this touches me so much. Anyone who just blows off what Obama has done, is something more than heartless, maybe they are emotionless too.
It's fairly easy to see that Obama loves and respects the women in his life. Could there be more contrast in the picture than what we have heard and seen from McCain?
Best wishes to Toot and Obama.
My Granny raised me; I miss her.
I miss her every day. I wish she was alive to see Obama become president. She would be so proud. She didn't have a single racist bone in her body and didn't tolerate anyone who did.
They say you really don't become a true adult until your parents have departed. For a lot of people that is true, (I'm still a kid at middle age) but I think in Obama's case he's mature already.
That being said it's a rough time to go through. And what a time to essentially become head of the family.
My thoughts go with you, Barack.
Is there an Impersonal variety?
Link to Sullivan's article. He has a link to Obama's Grandmother's Wikipedia page. As Sullivan says in his blog: "if you read Obama's memoir".
I give it a day. He will have DeLay or someone equally odious and get him to say that Obama 1) made it up to deflect the fact that he is an Islamofascist terorist or 2) paid someone to throw his grandmother down the stairs?
One republican talking head was bitching yesterday about the cost and energy resulting from this trip. He said Obama could have flown commercial instead of using the campaign plane.
This guy needed a swift ass kicking, if you ask me.
He was trying to deflect the $150k RNC shopping spree for the white trash Palins. It was a low blow. David Shuster giggled in the background during his self-righteous rant.
wouldn't feel it. Turd.
Rush, Savage and others are still harping about Obama's birth certificate and that is why Obama rushed off to "visit his grandmother" as Media Matters reported it today.
http://mediamatters.org/items/200810230020?f=...
I read this a few days ago, too, from some idiot blogger. Glad the right wing asshats are jumping on that bandwagon.
My husband was very close to one of his grandmothers as I was to mine. The other day we were talking about Obama's situation and we both came to the same conclusion. Grandmothers can be one of the most influential people in a kid's life.
My husband's grandmother was all about nature, animals, insects, birds, plants, all of it. Today my husband is a marine biologist and he credits his grandmother for opening his eyes to the natural world around him and making him curious about it all.
My Mom did the same for Me. She showed Me the Universe and I've been loving it.
My grandmother helped raise me. But all of my grandparents were of Depression Era and the lessons in frugality, recycling and generally not wasting a thing were not lost on me.
My grandma didn't raise me in the physical sense, but she has imparted a lot of wisdom in me. She taught me how to make something out of nothing, how to sew and how to keep going when times are rough. Plus she taught me that you should never save champagne for special occasions. She is old now, but still going. I am not a praying person, but I am going to go by church with my rosary and light a candle for Barack's Granny.
Just in case no one has told you yet today, you are a good and sweet person.
I never knew either of my grandmothers and the only grandfather I did know died when I was 11. It's a void in my life that I will feel until I leave this life. The fact that Barak would leave at this crucial time in his political career to see his grandmother before she dies is all the more reason to vote for him in my book. He is truly a mensch.
I didn't think I could respect him any more than I already did, but now I know I was wrong. My respect for him is up to the soaring level now.
here's a toot for toot.
you did an amazing job raising that young man.
rip
My grandmother died when I was 16. It was in my little kid years of my life where she played such a big roll. She always had time to play with me, teach me poems, teach me nursery rhymes and she taught me to take pride in what I could do. She would read to me when my parents had better things to do. And she was forever taking my face in her hands and just kissing me all over my face. It was so much fun just being with her.
it's beautiful. Thanks for your memories, POP. My granny did the same with me and I do it every chance I get with my grandbabies.
My family was very toxic in alot of ways, so I wasn't as lucky. You, and everyone else, treasure your loving families and the memories they bring. Be sure to pass them on.
I am proud to be in This fraternity. While Our discussions may at times be contentious, We are showing Our Compassion and Humanity on Our way to a common goal. Good stuff folks!
for the Senator and his beloved grandmother. My prayers are with them during this, I'm certain, very difficult time. Can you imagine having to deal with the stress of a national campaign for the past year or so, and now having to worry about whether or not the woman who helped raise you will be able to live long enough to see you finally win? I can't...or maybe I just don't want to.
May G-d bless the entire family.
So, according to Sullivan, apparently one has to be from Kansas to care about one's family? New Yorkers don't? Californians don't?
Don't these references drive you nuts?
Barack Obama is a man with incredible dignity, intelligence, grace, and kindness. He understands that when it's all wrapped up, family and friends, warm memories and personal contact is what it's all about.
I love that he's taken time off to be with his beloved grandmother. She did an excellent job of raising him to manhood. Well done, Toots! if I may call you that. Bless you and may peace be with you.
I don't really agree with the idea that he "suspended his campaign". Barack Obama, himself, is taking less than two days off. However, his campaign (i.e., the organization) is out there chugging along as hard as they can. This campaign suspension is in no way like the McCain "suspension", which was advertised as a complete cessation of campaign activities.
He never said he was suspending his campaign.
McCracker said that,!!! I MEAN McjimCrow,!!! I meanJean
Can you imagine if he DIDN'T visit his Grandmother. She is seriously ill, and they expect him to fly commercial. Who do they think he is, Palin when her so called waters broke?
I hope Obama tells his grammy that he is going to be the next POTUS. She should be reassured of that.
God bless Grammy Dunham.
...with everyone here who wishes the Obama family the best. "Toot" did an outstanding job raising Sen. Obama and I sincerely hope that she will be here with us long enough to see President Obama elected on Nov. 4.
Frequently, people with terminal illnesses create milestones for themselves - a child's birthday, Christmas, etc., that they look forward to, that they try to live long enough to see. I believe that Sen. Obama's Tutu is doing this.
Sen. Obama's story is the perfect example of "ohana", Hawai'ian for "family".
If "Toot" was born in 1922, then she did not go through two world wars, as Obama said, since World War I was fought from 1914-1918. Maybe this is like Obama being conceived after the civil rights march as he claimed, except he was born too early.
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