February 20, 2008
Governor Deval Patrick went on national TV yesterday to defend Barack Obama against charges that the Democratic presidential hopeful plagiarized Patrick. Patrick said on ABC's "Good Morning America" that the allegations were an unfair attempt to "belittle" Obama's "ability to motivate people."
The governor and Illinois senator have long shared similar principles and policies, Patrick has stumped for Obama, and Obama has borrowed rhetoric from his friend. The issue arose again over the weekend at a Democratic Party event in Wisconsin when Obama - taking the stage after Hillary Clinton said she offered solutions, not just speeches - used similar language about the power of words as Patrick did in a 2006 speech. They both quoted Martin Luther King Jr., the Declaration of Independence, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt to argue that words can influence history.
Clinton told reporters Monday that, "If your whole candidacy is about words, they should be your words." Representative James McGovern of Massachusetts, a Clinton backer, told reporters that the country deserved a president who was "not just someone who can copy someone's homework."
Obama has downplayed the issue, though acknowledging he should have credited Patrick.
Patrick also sought yesterday to lower the volume on the issue, calling the plagiarism allegation "an elaborate charge and an extravagant one."
more
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore