Guess who can't take a joke? Top Obama Supporters Pushed To Keep Colbert Off Ballot

[Ian David]

Guess who can't take a joke? Top Obama Supporters Pushed To Keep Colbert Off Ballot

Two prominent supporters of Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign in South Carolina called state Democratic Party officials urging them to oppose putting comedian Stephen Colbert's name on the primary ballot, according to party officials and Obama supporters with knowledge of the calls.

Top Obama Supporters Pushed To Keep Colbert Off Ballot
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/11/06/top-obama-supporters-push_n_71323.html

More:
http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2007/11/guess-who-cant-take-joke-top-obama.html






See also:
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The Obama campaign denied any connection to the phone calls.

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At least one member of the executive council, who requested anonymity, told CNN he felt "pressured" by former State Superintendent of Education Inez Tenenbaum to oppose placing Colbert on the ballot.

<snip>

"I placed the calls as a concerned Democrat, realizing that we are a country in despair," Sellers told CNN. "It is not a time for games or to make a mockery of the process."

<snip>

"I understand that Obama might potentially lose some voters," said Huffmon, who also noted that having Colbert on the ballot would likely bring in new primary voters rather than take them from other candidates. "But in a race where every vote counts it's a valid concern."

A

Tenenbaum said her quarrel with having Colbert's name on the ballot was pragmatic rather than political. In deciding which candidates to allow in the primary, the state Democratic Party also had to consider that for every name on the ballot, they would have to pay $20,000 to the state election commission.

More:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/11/06/obama.colbert/index.html

[EST]

1. It's no joke if a bullshit "joke" candidate actually should

get on the ballot and a lot of "joke" voters decide to vote for him, whether as a protest vote or not.
I'm not speaking as an Obama supporter, although we could do worse, but this is serious crap and I resent having a joke candidate fouling up the mechanism--none too well functioning as it is--for a TV show.

The possibility of denying a very real candidate the very votes he or she might need to actually do some good in this country I find appalling. This is life and death serious business.

[Ian David]

2. It's only South Carolina. Not like it's a real state or something. n/t

[EST]

3. Heheh!

Sorry if I come off a little fierce on this, but I am pretty fierce about it and I felt it was a really bad idea when Stephen brought it up.
I haven't a lot of years left on this planet and I am committed to having some confidence in the future of the human race, other than as a few hard-scrabble survivors of an atomic or bacteriological war. This makes the stakes rather high for me and leaves me with little patience for screwing around.

[liberal hypnotist]

4. I agree!

I am a Colbert fan but I believe this is one of the most important elections of my time (65yrs). His comedy candidacy would be just more sound bites for Storm Trooper Druliani and the other geeks to jump on. We need comedy in our lives while Bush destroys more of our country. So Steve stay where you are and do what you do best-parody Awful Bill!

[asdjrocky]

15. I have to agree

Love the show... hated the idea

[Clark2008]

5. And who says Colbert isn't "real?"

Hell, he'd probably do a better job of providing solutions for what average people want than anyone else running.

I, personally, am tired of the debates on abortion, gay marriage and all those other social issues that constantly prevent Congress from taking a serious look at single-payer healthcare, providing good paying jobs by making it difficult to take jobs overseas, finding alternative energy sources, etc.

Granted, I'm pro-choice and couldn't give two shits if Joe wants to marry Charles (why can't two people of any gender have civil marriage protections?) and I certainly don't want to go backwards on these issues, but neither of them matter if we don't have a strong country who's middle class is prospering.

[Ian David]

9. Colbert the man would be a great President. Not Colbert the character.

But that's okay.

Maybe someday, President Al Franken will choose Stephen as his running-mate.

[yardwork]

14. I don't blame you for feeling this way. Colbert went too far with this.

[w4rma]

6. Makes sense. South Carolina is a must win state for Obama. (nt)

[Ian David]

10. Series? n/t

[Vinca]

7. I'm not laughing. I don't want Colbert siphoning votes from any

viable candidate because some people don't take their right to vote seriously and think it's a comedy opportunity. This is the most important election in my long lifetime, not a comedy schtick.

[Terri S]

8. Pretty sad how some people will really stretch to find anything to trash Obama about

Forget the fact that the calls came from 'supporters' -- you know, people who might think the country and the world are just a little too f'ed up to have this election turned into more of a joke than election politics already are. The real joke is that anyone is actually upset by this. A character on Comedy Central is running for president in one state and people were actually thinking of voting for him. Excuse me, but this paints a whole new group of people as 'morans'.

[Tom Rinaldo]

11. Good for Obama's supporters. They have my appreciation

It was a joke as a "write in campaign". It is serious when an attempt was made to get onto the official ballot. Colbert is not a Democratic Candidate for President, he does not belong on that ballot.

[MethuenProgressive]

12. Will somebody please tell Obama that our country is a Democarcy, please?

Perhaps he should focus on running a campaign that more people would support than suppressing the comedian wing of the party?
Every day, Obama's inexperience makes headlines...

[flpoljunkie]

13. Another prominent Obama supporter lobbied in favor of Colbert. Obama camp denies any involvement.

The New York Times' Katharine Q. Seelye sees the Obama camp's fingerprints on -- but not all over -- the bid to keep Stephen Colbert off the South Carolina ballot.

"The lobbying was pretty intense, according to several people, with most of it against allowing Mr. Colbert, the comedian on Comedy Central and native son of the state, on the ballot," she writes. "They included prominent supporters of Senator Barack Obama, Democrat of Illinois, although another prominent supporter lobbied in favor of Mr. Colbert. The Obama campaign said that it had no connection to the vote."

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/TheNote/Story?id=3105288&page=4

[Buzz Clik]

16. This thread smells like bullshit.

and for good reason.

[CyberPieHole]

17. Enough with this stupid joke!

I like Colbert and all but, ENOUGH ALREADY! I think I saw him on "Face the Nation" this past weekend. What is up with that? Pakistan is at the brink of chaos, * is fucking up our country...the stock market is on a roller-coaster ride...the dollar will soon be trading 1 to 1 with the Mexican Peso...and Colbert is being interviewed on shows as if his candidacy were real?:crazy:


Or am I the crazy one?:shrug:

I don't support Obama at all, but I think his people are correct on this. No one should be siphoning out votes...this election is MUCH too important. I would hate to see someone vote for Colbert when that vote could have gone to Obama or another Democrat...It's just ridiculous.