Quincy, IL (AP) – Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has given hands-on help in a flood zone in Illinois. He helped locals in the town of Quincy to fill sandbags to place on the banks of the Mississippi river, which is swelling to dangerous levels.
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“Today I’m acting in my role as a fellow citizen to help those in need,” said Obama. “Sometimes you have to set politics aside and do the work that needs to be done.”
Robert “Rusty” Jones, leader of the local Red Cross chapter and supervisor of the sandbagging project, was grateful for the Illinois Senator’s help. “Well, he DID pick up a shovel eventually, and actually put some sand in a couple bags. Gotta give him credit for that much. Mostly he just pranced around & got his picture took, though. And would ya think one of them strapping Secret Service guys could pick up a shovel? ‘Bout as useful as a porcupine in a lifeboat.”
Obama said: “Since I’ve been involved in public office we’ve not seen this kind of devastation.” He pledged to push federal and state governments to provide aid to the affected areas.
“Well,” said Rusty, “we don’t need ‘aid’ so much as people who bring their own damn shovels & work gloves. Big Tom over there owns the Ace Hardware in town, and he brought every digger & mitt he had in stock. All Barry’s entourage brought was a whole bunch of standin’ around & gettin’ in the way.”
Mr Obama had been scheduled to campaign in nearby Iowa, but that state is also badly affected by flooding and he did not want to draw government resources away from battling the problems.
“Hope Iowa’s ‘government resources’ don’t take as many sit-downs & smoke breaks as ours did,” said Rusty.
[Hat tip: Paul Abrams]
I think he ought to take that shovel & smack some sense into himself with it.
I am from that area and couldn’t help but gag at the local Quincy newspaper lead story about the flooding and sandbagging that day. “Inspiration in the Sand” due to Obama deigning to visit the people and ‘help’ fill a few sandbags. Ugh.
Reminds me of Sean Penn during Katrina. More hinder then help.
At the very least, Barry-O shoulda taken the bucket off his head and helped bail water.
You know…a guy can tell when a guy has done real guy things before and when a sissy is trying to pretend that he has done real guy stuff before but was actually getting wedgies by the real guys instead. One look at Obama handling this shovel and we can all tell that his shorts have been pulled up over his fore-head on numerous occasions while the rest of us were out throwing baseballs, digging ditches or giving dweebs nuclear wedgies…
Before you racist crackers start up any rumors, I’ll have you know that I broke into that elderly couple’s home using my shovel because I thought that I heard someone being waterboarded. And they told me I could have that plasma TV and case of beer. It had absolutely nothing to do with me swinging a shovel over their heads and shouting about honkeys and reparations for slavery.
A leak from inside sources at the Obama campaign claim that he decided to cameo in Ill-annoys and avoid Iowa because “… there are just too many whitey crackers in Iowa…”.
Harvey’s fake news is STILL more balanced than the real thing. Did any of you go to the real article and see this gem towards the end?
“Mr Obama has promised tax cuts for working families and the elderly, while Mr McCain has pledged to maintain GEORGE BUSH’S POLICY OF TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY.”
reparations for slavery.
#6 – Posted by: Barack Obama on June 18, 2008 02:39 PM
Reparations for slavery, Mr. O? You’re half-white. Were you your own Massa?
Since the dems are in complete power here in IL I wonder whose adminstration he’s going to blame for the flood damage?
You conservatives are pathetic look at this trash on this website! Downtalking Obama just because he concedes to terrorists and he has pointy ears is unacceptable! I for one am absolutely apalled, terrorists, afterall have rights too. BTW I can barely move my hands but if I could i’d slap all of you in the face.
BTW vote for me whether you like it or not dimwits!
McCain ’08
While he’s in Illinois and has his tools maybe he should wander on over to the Altgeld Gardens project in Chicago where Obama was community organizer in the late 80’s. It seems that the place was a mess when Obama left and much of it remains boarded up to this day. Hopefully, his new ideas are better than his old ones.
Wow, how big of him to travel to Illinois to appear to help those people…oh wait, he’s supposed to be their senator. Wow, sucks to be them.
He should have shown up with a big loofah sponge. Isn’t that how Democrats usually handle things. Oh wait, he left that at the Treasury Department.
Later on, onlooker were horrified when Obama boasted he really could “piss and make the tide come up”.
Damn, I hate it when I F-up a joke. So, what else is new.
Later on, onlookers were horrified when Obama boasted he really could “piss and make the tide come up”.
Barack Obama is the Andy Warhol candidate for president. Fifteen minutes ago he was nobody, he doesn’t have a record to run on, and his resume is almost nonexistent. He’s got the right image though, and as Andy knew, image is everything.
If only Obama was now President, he could simply issue a Federal mandate the the waters would recede…or he could walk out into the middle of the river and command it to go back into it’s banks and it would immediately obey! If only…
#8 — exactly what I was thinking.
Why is it, Harvey, that that your “Newsish Fakery” has a truer ring to it than most of what’s on CNN or MSNBC?
Barook doing manual labor. What a joke.
I live in Iowa, about 150 yds. from the Mississippi. Sadly, there are plenty of libs here who buy this kind of crap.
Anyway, on a related note…I got this email sent to me today, and think it’s worth sharing.
Something to think about.
Where are all of the Hollywood celebrities holding telethons asking for help in restoring Iowa and helping the folks affected by the floods?
Where is all the media asking the tough questions about why the federal government hasn’t solved the problem? Asking where the FEMA trucks (and trailers) are?
Why isn’t the Federal Government relocating Iowa people to free hotels in Chicago?
When will Spike Lee say that the Federal Government blew up the levees that failed in Des Moines?
Where are Sean Penn and the Dixie Chicks?
Where are all the looters stealing high-end tennis shoes and big screen television sets?
When will we hear Governor Chet Culver say that he wants to rebuild a ‘vanilla’ Iowa, because that’s the way God wants it?
Where is the hysterical 24/7 media coverage complete with reports of cannibalism?
Where are the people declaring that George Bush hates white, rural people?
How come in 2 weeks, you will never hear about the Iowa flooding ever again?
#19 – My stories ring truer because I don’t start by burying the lead, and I don’t finish by gratuitously echoing Democrat talking points about how much the Bush administration sucks.
Don’t turn down aid for other people for your partisan political garbage. Many people will really need it and you have no business turning it down for them so you can play policymaker from your computer. You people are real jerks.
Wasn’t a lot of the damage done because some levees broke? Did Bush order contractors to blow up those levees too? Or does he only do that when it effects white people?
If you mix a cracker with chocolate, don’t you get a smore? Is Obama a Smore?
Well like all politicians they just stand there and smile for the cameras…but hey, if this gets other people to give some of their time and help its worth it!!!
(great blog #24) 😎
Thanks #25, happy you like it!!! Leave a comment or submit your own anecdote if you’ve got one to share!!!
Those lucky people over there get to see him do his “walking on the water” routine.
Not to worry he’s goin to stop global warming and hjurricanes and all that Bush league stuff!
I was born and raised in the Mid-West.
For the most part the people are inteligent, good humored, hard working, patriotic and honest.
But even as a child I had one, never adequately answered question; “doesn’t anyone understand the meaning of the phrase,’flood plain’?”.
We should help the people afflicted by the floods and we will.
Could we maybe this time help them by moving them to higher ground?