Call for Unity Resounds at J-J Celebration
By Cathy Patton
Illinois Senator Barack Obama joined Senators Robert Byrd and Jay Rockefeller,
Congressman Nick Rahall, WV Democrat Party Chair Nick Casey, Second District
Congressional Candidate Mike Callaghan. Gov. Joe Manchin and others in calling for an
end to “the misguided Republican agenda” during the premier democratic party event of
the year, the annual Jefferson-Jackson Celebration.
The crowd of over 2000 at the Charleston Civic Center broke into cheers and standing
ovations several times as party leaders lambasted President Bush and pledged to work
together to help Democrats regain a congressional majority.
“I’m sick and tired of the direction our country has taken and the misguided Republican
agenda...,” Callaghan said.
Speakers throughout the evening echoed Callaghan’s sentiments.
“The Democrat Party is a party of balance and responsibility and bringing people
together,” Gov. Manchin said. “I’m sick and tired of the lies and can’t wait to get on the
campaign trail. I’ll be shouting from the roof tops all the way to November about our
great team.”
Touching on several of the things that disturb him about the current state of affairs in
Washington, Sen. Jay Rockefeller noted, “...I’m tired of the incompetence. I’m tired of a
president who says it’s my way or the highway. Well, Mr. President, get ready for the
highway.”
Calling it a critical year for leadership in our country, Rockefeller related that the 2006
mid-term elections are critical to the future.
“This election will set the stage for the battles in 2008,” he said.
West Virginia Senior Senator Robert Byrd, who energized the crowd with his charm and
enthusiasm, lambasted the president for attempting to privatize social security, for the
war in Iraq, for high gasoline prices, for skyrocketing prescription costs and for the
increasing costs of health care.
“Fewer Americans have health insurance now than when this administration took over,”
Byrd said.
Contrasting the Democrat and Republican parties, Byrd said, “Democrats believe in The
Golden Rule. We believe it’s a good policy to govern us.
“The President has said he wants to rebuild the infrastructure in Iraq,” Byrd added.
“What about us?” someone shouted from the audience.
“I’m getting to that, Byrd said, without missing a beat. “If the president is successful
there, maybe he’ll try it at home.”
In introducing Senator Barack Obama ( D-Ill.), Byrd opined that Obama “is now treading
the path to greatness.” Obama, he said “is a work horse, not a show horse.”
Drawing several parallels between himself and Obama, Byrd noted that Obama is the
first African-American to serve as editor of the Harvard Law Review and that the
freshman senator taught Constitutional Law at the University of Chicago.
“Barack and Robert C. Byrd both came from humble beginnings. His father was a sheep
herder in Kenya. My father was a coalminer,” Byrd said. “We both love the Constitution
and the democratic party. We’re both in the prime of our lives, with many more years to
serve our country. We’ve both been called rock stars, and we’ll rock the Senate until we
get it back in control. You can count on that.”
“It’s not just West Virginia that loves Senator Byrd,” Barack said, taking center stage to
thunderous applause. “It’s the entire Senate.”
Explaining that he has just completed a book, Obama stated , “I’m blessed and grateful to
be in West Virginia. This is my first visit to West Virginia, but it wont’ be my last.”
Noting that West Virginia represents some of what’s best in the U.S., Barack said that
America is at a crossroads. Because of the natural disasters, the war in Iraq, escalating
gasoline prices, declining numbers of citizens who have health care and several other
negatives, Barack said there is an anxiety in our country. “America needs to move in a
new direction,” he said. “People don’t have the confidence that the government will make
a difference in their lives.”
When he looks around and occasionally experiences the same anxiety, Barack said he
thinks back to his grandparents who weathered the Great Depression and still managed to
successfully build a life together.
Though the world has changed and times remain tough, Obama said that people still dare
to dream, despite their lack of faith in government.
The Republican’s timidity in taking control of the Ship of State has bred distrust, has
tended to divide us and make us afraid, he said.
Reminding the audience of how the late presidents Lincoln, Roosevelt and Kennedy rose
to the challenge, Barack said that he is thoroughly tired of the can’t do, won’t do, it won’t
work style of government.
“They (the Republicans) believe in dismantling government,” Obama said. “In
Washington, it’s called Ownership Society.”
The Darwinism, he added, says that life is tough, but you’re on your own. “It’s a
tempting idea, but there’s one problem. It won’t work because it defies our history,” he
said. “The history of the U.S. is one in which we look out for each other, which expresses
ourselves in our public policy. Think of how the Golden Rule values express ourselves in
government.”
In essence, Obama said that the Americans are decent people who want to do the right
thing. “The problems have made us pay attention,” he said. “The question is, what are we
going to do about it?”
In concluding, Obama emphasized that history is full of “doers and risk takers and those
who had the moral courage to swim against the tide.”
“If we can be trusted to lead, it won’t be a Democrat agenda, but an American agenda,”
he said.
Another highlight of the evening featured the brief introduction of the Democrat of the
Year from each of West Virginia’s 55 counties.
Harold McBride, Welch, McDowell County’s Democrat of the Year, was introduced as
personifying all that’s good about the Democrat Party because of his can-do spirit and his
continuing dedication to party principles and to the community.
In commenting on the evening, McBride said, “I believe that one person can still make a
difference, if they’ll only choose to participate. We all have the power to influence others
in either a positive or negative way. Choosing to focus on the positive while addressing
the negative is hard to do, but it’s necessary for progress.
“The Democrat Party has always tried to pull the poor, the ailing and the disenfranchised
into the boat. It has long been the party of the little people and the unsung heroes who
helped to make America great. As the party returns to a moderate center, I see more
Americans joining with us because it truly is the party with heart, the party of the
people.”
