JFK's Daughter Endorses Obama in Op-Ed: "A President Like My Father"

Posted by Paddy , Cliff Schecter's Blog at 12:25 AM on January 27, 2008.

That is just stunning. Per MSNBC. More as I get it. Supposed to be in a NYT editorial tomorrow. Could be interesting, she's a very good writer.

Just off the top of my head, I really feel like this endorsement is a nomination winner.

Obama has already been compared to both JFK & RFK, and to have the closest person to the originals endorse him (other than Teddy, who really can't endorse yet) is just a total deal closer.

UPDATE

NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL BY MS SCHLOSSBERG-

OVER the years, I've been deeply moved by the people who've told me they wished they could feel inspired and hopeful about America the way people did when my father was president. This sense is even more profound today. That is why I am supporting a presidential candidate in the Democratic primaries, Barack Obama.

My reasons are patriotic, political and personal, and the three are intertwined. All my life, people have told me that my father changed their lives, that they got involved in public service or politics because he asked them to. And the generation he inspired has passed that spirit on to its children. I meet young people who were born long after John F. Kennedy was president, yet who ask me how to live out his ideals.

Sometimes it takes a while to recognize that someone has a special ability to get us to believe in ourselves, to tie that belief to our highest ideals and imagine that together we can do great things. In those rare moments, when such a person comes along, we need to put aside our plans and reach for what we know is possible.

UPDATE II: Ted Kennedy to endorse Barack Obama

The Boston Globe reports:

Senator Edward M. Kennedy will endorse Barack Obama for president tomorrow, breaking his year-long neutrality to send a powerful signal of where the legendary Massachusetts Democrat sees the party going -- and who he thinks is best to lead it.

Kennedy confidantes told the Globe today that the Bay State's senior senator will appear with Obama and Kennedy's niece, Caroline Kennedy, at a morning rally at American University in Washington tomorrow to announce his support.

That will be a potentially significant boost for Obama as he heads into a series of critical primaries on Super Tuesday, Feb. 5.

Kennedy believes Obama can ``transcend race'' and bring unity to the country, a Kennedy associate told the Globe. Kennedy was also impressed by Obama's deep involvement last year in the bipartisan effort to craft legislation on immigration reform, a politically touchy subject the other presidential candidates avoided, the associate said.

The coveted endorsement is a huge blow to New York Senator Hillary Clinton, who is both a senatorial colleague and a friend of the Kennedy family. In a campaign where Clinton has trumpeted her experience over Obama's call for hope and change, the endorsement by one of the most experienced and respected Democrats in the Senate is a particularly dramatic coup for Obama.

The scoop was first reported by Time's Mark Halperin and confirmed by CNN. Suzanne Malveaux reported:

"This is really big and very big for Barack Obama. Senator Ted Kennedy...is a giant in the party. A Clinton campaign source told me the Clinton campaign is in fact expecting it. Already a senior aide from the Clinton campaign reacting on the record to the news that they expect. 'They have been friends,' Senator Clinton and Kennedy, 'for a long time and Senator Clinton has a lot of respect for Senator Kennedy.' ... This is really kind of extraordinary when you think about the relationship between the Clintons and the Kennedys, the kind of personal relationship that the two have. Obviously this is a very big win for Barack Obama."

Tagged as: obama, kennedy

Paddy is a regular contributor to Cliff Schecter.com.