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October 18, 2006 2:16 PM

What to say to Barack Obama over lunch?

I might be able to attend a small Democratic fundraiser this weekend outside of Philadelphia where Barack Obama will be present. I have a general sense of liking him and his policies but I don't really know what he stands for and how he's voted. I would like to be able to ask him something other than, "So... do you like toast?"

I'm looking for:
1. A site that gives summaries of what he's voted on and why

2. Any suggestions of questions to ask him or topics to bring up that are informed and interesting but not confrontational or putting him on the spot.

So, assuming you know and like Obama, what would you say to him over lunch?

posted by rmless to law & government (27 comments total)

the new issue of harper's has an article called "barack obama, inc." i havent read it yet but it seems to be about his agressive fundraising.

it might be worth reading to see if it seems reasonable, and then ask him some questions about it.

of course everyone else there might do the same thing, though.
posted by joeblough at 2:20 PM on October 18, 2006

I have read the Harper's article. It's not about aggressive fundraising at all; it's about how he's tha balance he's been forced to strike between sticking to his ideals and compromising in order to "get things done". The author isn't particularly keen on Obama. He says something like, "In a world of two-foot-tall midgets, Obama is two-foot-four." Talk about damning with faint praise. I get the impression that the author really wanted to like Obama, but was disheartened to see that Washington has taken a toll on him, too.

Still, even after reading that article, I admire the man. If I were to meet him for lunch, I don't think I'd ask him about much related to politics. He hears about that all the time. I'd keep the conversation geared toward other stuff. I'd want to know what sorts of books he likes, and why? I'd try to get him to relax so that I could see the real man. I can find out his political side anywhere. I want to know what he's like as a person.
posted by jdroth at 2:25 PM on October 18, 2006

This weeks TIME has another piece on him if you’re looking to read up on him. I'm starting to think he may have a better publicity machine than Paris Hilton. Either that or he has so many skeletons the whole media industry is just setting him up for the most tragic fall in American political history. Where are you from? He's been pretty active in a few mid term contests so you might be able to find common ground working that angle; the MA gubernatorial race is one he's been involved in, raising money and stumping for Deval Patrick. If he’s as normal as he comes off I bet you could discuss your favorite socks and he would be genuinely interested.
posted by paxton at 2:26 PM on October 18, 2006

Yikes. I goofed up that second sentence. How did I not catch that on proofreading. After the semicolon, it should read "it's about the balance he's been forced to strike..."
posted by jdroth at 2:27 PM on October 18, 2006

Well, here is a little about Obama from Project Vote Smart, including his voting record in the Senate. There are a ton of interviews of Obama out there that will give you an idea of his talking points and his point of view on things.

I think that he tends to be quick on his feet, eloquent, polite and intelligent in the interviews with him that I have seen. So, in regards to what questions to ask him, what issues are important to you as a citizen? What do you most fear? What do you most value? Ask him about his opinion on those things or how he would approach legislation about something that you care about.

Being from Illinois but highly skeptical of politicians, I have researched him and find him to be appealing as a Senator. I might vote for him if he ran for President. I think he plays politics as any politician would, but he is intelligent and seems reasonable, something that I find to be lacking too much in politics as of late.
posted by jeanmari at 2:32 PM on October 18, 2006

For background info, be sure to read this week's TIME cover story:

Why Barack Obama Could Be The Next President.


posted by ericb at 2:32 PM on October 18, 2006

I met Barak Obama at a similar event. There was a "blogger breakfast" at the Democratic National Convention in 2004 and a few of the Dems who sort of got the web (him and Howard Dean esp.) came in to sort of high five everyone and say hello. He took a few questions, he was really on a crazytight schedule, but he mentioned that he had a blog and was open to ideas about how to make his blog better, you know, typical stuff. So at one point he asked "I'm really looking for information from bloggers about how I can make my blog better" and the fairly unanimous response from the crowd was "write it yourself" which he sort of laughed off as if we were making a joke and people were like "no really"

My point in all this is that you might want to think ahead of time if you want to put him on the spot (seems the answer is no), get information from him, or make him think about a particular issue that is meaningful to you. My question for him would be about how it feels to be set up waaaaay in advance as some sort of savior to the Democratic party and whether that gets in the way of the intermedia work he's trying to get done in Congress, always looking forward to a potential run for a bigger office.
posted by jessamyn at 2:41 PM on October 18, 2006 [1 favorite]

It depends on what context you'll be asking the question - one on one as he's working a room, or in front of the small group while he's answering questions. I like the idea of the non-politics question if you're one on one, but not for the whole group to have to listen to, if you're taking up the group's opportunity to ask questions.

I like jessamyn's question. It might get a quick "it's tough" or it might get a more thoughtful response.

I, also, have heard that he has become washingtonized to a certain extent, and find it disheartening. In the right context, I might want to ask him about the challenges of balancing being a successful politician and being true to himself and his own beliefs.

I'm also curious about how long he thinks he can be a senator before running for the presidency, given the prevailing belief that a long senate career is a disastrous setup for a presidential bid.
posted by Amizu at 2:50 PM on October 18, 2006

I would ask him about his recent trip to Africa - light conversation that could eventually deepen or even lead to an unguarded moment.
posted by muddgirl at 2:54 PM on October 18, 2006

I would ask him about his decision to vote in favor of the Patriot Act. In fact, a lot of his votes are very out-of-step with what he says during speeches. That could make for some interesting conversation.

I'm becoming a bit disillusioned in him, but man, he gives good speech.
posted by elr at 3:07 PM on October 18, 2006

Barack Obama's appearance on NPR's Wait Wait Don't Tell Me (RealPlayer link) was just hilarious and might provide some background.
posted by MegoSteve at 3:13 PM on October 18, 2006 [1 favorite]

Ask him why he didn't apologize for stepping on my foot at the DNC.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 3:14 PM on October 18, 2006 [1 favorite]

a lot of his votes are very out-of-step with what he says during speeches.

I think he's trying to be a centrist or a moderate -- and politically alive -- in an extremely polarized political landscape.

Tell him to run for president!
posted by goethean at 3:26 PM on October 18, 2006

Ask him about his speechwriting—I hear he actually writes his own speeches, a rarity in these times.
posted by limeonaire at 3:37 PM on October 18, 2006

Ask how he had time to write a book while serving in the senate and running for president. It's even getting good reviews, though not as good as his first book.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 3:49 PM on October 18, 2006

Oprah just asked him that. Says he's a Night Owl.

He says his politics are based ona principle of empathy. Ask him how you can write a budget based on empathy.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 4:19 PM on October 18, 2006

Ask him why he scheduled Con Law III for like 8:30 in the morning on Mondays and 4 in the afternoon on Fridays. Only reason I didn't take his class. (This was before he was running for Senate. Who, me? Bitter? Nah.)
posted by raf at 5:01 PM on October 18, 2006 [1 favorite]

Ask him if he likes toast. Pastries are more interesting than politics.
posted by gregoryc at 5:39 PM on October 18, 2006

Ask him how his having been a cocaine user affects his position on U.S. drug laws, and whether he thinks it appropriate that 25% of incarcerated persons in the world is American, although Americans only make up 5% of the world's population.

Follow up, if you can, with the interesting factoid that the number of Americans in prison in 2000 for drug offenses equaled the number of American in prison in 1980 for any reason.

Then politely enquire whether he knows that 63% of all drug offenders in prison are black, although only about 13% of regular U.S. drug users are black.

Then, and only then, ask him about pastry.
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 6:50 PM on October 18, 2006

Toast is a pastry? Or does alliteration just trump all now? I agree with jdroth -- ask him about something that's non-political, that he won't have a rehearsed answer for. What games does he play? Scrabble man? Backgammon? I've found that this sort of line can lead to a much more interesting and deep connection.
posted by TonyRobots at 6:56 PM on October 18, 2006

I would say to him, "PLEASE choose Mark Warner to be your running mate."
posted by 4ster at 7:59 PM on October 18, 2006

I did a survey of some of his more questionable aspects of his voting record. The links will take you to the rest of his voting record. Personally, I'd ask why he supports illegal surveillance of law-abiding citizens, given his support for the PATRIOT Act, among his many other nepotistic decisions.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 9:06 PM on October 18, 2006

Ask him if there's anything that he's been surprised about, positively, since he's been in Washington.
posted by LobsterMitten at 9:54 PM on October 18, 2006

After watching his interview with Oprah he will probably be happy to talk about his kids. There is a strong sense that he is very aware of the things that made JFK and WJC very popular to the public at large. No politician lost a race pedaling hope.
posted by ptm at 12:01 AM on October 19, 2006

"Hey Barak Obama, do you like toast, too?"

Ya know, because when you meet a legend and you do not know their body of work you have to divert from that fact.
posted by wemayfreeze at 1:48 AM on October 19, 2006

erm, BaraCk
posted by wemayfreeze at 10:29 AM on October 19, 2006

Follow-Up for those who care:
He was (as Jessamyn predicted) on a crazy tight schedule so I didn't get to ask him any of your really good questions. He was running late, came in and shook some hands, gave a short speech touching on global warming, healthcare, and Iraq, and said a few things about the need for a candidate like Sestak (whom the fundraiser was for). I was impressed by his ability to speak naturally and hit his talking points without seeming forced or too suave. I wish he had given a little more detail about his plans to fix the aforementioned problems, but I guess that's not really what the event was about.

Thanks for all your great responses!
posted by rmless at 9:45 AM on October 23, 2006