Go have another scotch, Ted Kennedy, and enjoy the ride. Propaganda politics, Obama style. HRC is getting a raw deal in the media, and apparently Ted and Caroline have bought into it. Name one occasion when CNN, MSNBC, HN or FNC criticized Obama. Criticized him for anything. Really, try to think of one time. Now ask, when has the cable news press ever said anything positive about Hillary Clinton? What I see is intense disdain and condemnation of HRC every single time I turn on the television. Is this journalism? The only way I understand this is that the pundits on these news shows hate the idea of a powerful woman. No women will ever be allowed in the locker room of the oval office if the pundits have their way. Interesting too how Obama has the pundits support for the idea that if anyone ever questions him about anything, they are either playing the race card or being divisive and partisan. The only person who apparently respects the choice I as a voter must make on February 5th is HRC. The fact that I question Obama’s dealings with Rezco, his support of the Cheney energy bill, his less than universal health care plan, his idea that being polite is the most important value a President can have means that I am being unfair to him and am either a racist or an old school “hater.” Well, if we believe this line of garbage, we might as well just hand over our votes to the media and let them decide to elect?

I read Joan Walsh to get my feet back on the ground and be in touch with reality.... After 935+ lies propagated by teh main media free press means soemthing worrying.

By the way no one seem to explain what Obama's change and hope are and what H Clinton's hope and change are. I know what you mean by errie .. when you hear Obama .. it is like hearing a preacher promising you eternal life ..... a religious feeling .. from a preacher reading from an autoQ.

I'm a huge Obama fan and I would be thrilled if Bill continued in the way he's been campaigning since Iowa. It would assure Obama's selection as the Democratic party nominee.

Is it the automatic Kennedy mystique that confers authority on Caroline Kennedy and her endorsement for the Democratic nomination? I have nothing against the woman, but she's a private citizen and I'm not sure why I or anyone else should care who gets her nod. She was barely a toddler when her father was killed, so it's hard to make the case that he personally guided much of her life. Is it because she's a Kennedy? Because we are still fascinated with this glamorous and tragic family? Some of us are pretty sick of dynasties altogether (Bushes, Clintons), and that includes the Kennedys. She seems like a fine person, dignified and decent under unimaginably difficult life circumstances. But I don't give a hoot who she thinks should get the nom and I'm surprised and irritated (obviously) that anybody else cares, especially the New York Times and Salon.

Joan almost parrots the WSJ last Saturday which used a racial shorthand that Obama had to have a double digit win over Hillary to have a "real win"..

According to the WSJ redneck math 2 colored/negro voter equals one white voter . Joan's spin has the same sour taste with her "only beat" verbaige. I am troubled by her choice of words but of course white pundits and Black interpetations of white punits is always in play..

The Kenndy legacy still has a lot of currency in the Black Community now that Bill has revealed his true nature Kenndy's endorsement really has more value than ever..

I'm voting for Hillary.

And not all of the Kennedys are behind Obama. Environmental activist RFK Jr. and his sisters Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and Kerry Kennedy are endorsing Hillary.

But that's why the endorsement will help end the fake "talking point" of wondering whether Obama's reaching out to independents and some Reagan Republicans is really code and he is a Republican in Democratic clothing. This ought to reassure people that he really is a Democrat.

And for those who say that the endorsement doesn't matter, well, it must mean something, or else why would Bill have personally tried hard to get it for Hillary?

Finally, Svenson, please go to barackobama.com and read Obama's policy statements so that you understand what types of changes he's talking about. If he didn't have a plan, would he be getting endorsements from many senators, governors, and congressmen and women? Of course not!

Joan,

You say that "You all know I've taken a wait-and-see approach to Obama's candidacy." Just what exactly does that mean? If he wins, do you get to say "I was for him all along." And if Hillary wins do you say the same thing about her.

Most of us are actually going to have to make a decision among these candidates. We have to look at their records, listen to their speeches, listen to the debates, and make a decision. How nice for you that you can take a "wait-and-see" approach. Is that what you would recommend for the entire country?

Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg is, after all, a private citizen. She is the daughter of an assassinated President, quite well accomplished in her own right, and still, a private citizen.

Edward Kennedy is the second-longest-serving Democratic Senator in US history.

Both endorsements matter, and the endorsement of such a Senator (in fact, of any Senator) can, in this and most cases, reasonably be expected to garner more headlines. That's the way of the news business.

And in the end, each of them has one vote to cast in their respective primary elections.

She was barely a toddler when her father was killed,

Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg was a few days shy of her 6th birthday when JFK was assassinated. I'm a year older than she, and I can remember things and people from when I was 6 very clearly. You might be confusing her age with that of John, Jr., who was not quite three, and who had said that he didn't have any personal memories of his dad.

But that triviality aside, I think Caroline has done a lot to maintain the ideals that she associates with her late father, including overseeing the Profiles in Courage awards and writing two books about the U.S. Constitution and in particular the right to privacy. Her opinion doesn't necessarily sway me (I've been leaning towards supporting Sen. Obama for other reasons), but I found her articulation in the NY Times piece thoughtful and worth considering.