Michelle Obama’s uplifting, poised speech to the Democratic convention Monday night was terrific, and should silence GOP critics still trying to paint her as an America-hating radical.
Instead, she came off as an all-American Horatio Alger story, someone who rose from a working-class background on the south side of Chicago to the pinnacle of success by adherence to old-fashioned values of hard work and faith and family. It’s a story even Obama’s conservative opponents should admire.
She helped show the human side of Barack, too, with a touching account of how he drove her and their newborn daughter home from the hospital, nervously moving along at a snail’s pace and looking in the rearview mirror. And the Obama kids were adorable when they took the stage.
What’s not to like about this family? The Republicans will have a hard time making Michelle Obama a liability after Monday night, or calling the Obamas “elitists.”
“Until the end, aides said, a small team inside the Chicago headquarters planned for four possibilities: Mr. Biden, Mr. (Evan) Bayh, Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia and Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas. Speeches were written, media plans were made and private planes were at the ready to take any of the four to Springfield, Ill.” — New York Times story on the final stages of Barack Obama’s decision to pick Joe Biden as his running mate
It’s encouraging that Hawker Beechcraft Corp. and Machinists union leaders have agreed on new contract terms. Here is hoping that union members also agree when they vote Thursday. The strike is in its fourth week, and a long work stoppage isn’t in the best interest of anyone — Hawker Beechcraft, its employees or the community.
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who’ll speak at the Democratic National Convention tonight, began her week in Denver by being the good soldier for party unity on CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday. She tried to reassure Hillary Clinton die-hards that women’s issues would be a priority of an Obama-Biden administration. And in light of the John McCain house-counting flap, she suggested the Republican nominee is “totally out of touch” with the home foreclosure crisis. “We still don’t have any idea how many homes John McCain owns,” she said. “And I don’t begrudge him seven, 10, whatever the number is, but I think it’s an indication that he has no idea. . . . John McCain has lived the American dream, but he somehow doesn’t feel that that should be opened up to all Americans.”
If the Wichita City Council wants to ensure the future of the historic Broadview Hotel with a name franchise flag, it probably should bite the bullet today and approve the incentives package for Drury Southwest, including up to $25 million in industrial revenue bonds and a five-year property-tax abatement. Doing so would allow for the $6 million sale of the long-bankrupt hotel to close Sept. 9. Unlike an earlier proposal by New York-based PAZ Management, this deal has the advantage of not involving a city handout for renovations. Even so, Missouri-based Drury Southwest intends to spend up to $19 million on upgrades and transaction costs over the next five years. The Broadview badly needs financial stability and renovation if it’s to be a key piece of downtown Wichita’s slow but sure rebound. This 86-year-old riverfront jewel deserves better than a sheriff’s sale.
