PROMISES FROM OBAMA: "If the Democratic party means anything, it means standing with labor." He's sounding like a preacher today and can't speak for more than one minute without being interrupted by cheers. Quotable lines abound. "I have news for [the Bush administration]: It's not the Department of Management, it's the Department of Labor." "I'm tired of playing defense. The SEIU is tired of playing defense, Andy Stern is tired of playing defense. We're ready to play offense for the living wage, we're ready to play offense for secure retirements. We're ready to play offense for some universal health care." Obama swears, to a standing ovation, to sign universal health care into law by the end of his first term. Yep, it looks like the health debate is increasingly one of political strategy. Obama says, "There are a lot of good health care plans out there. ... Sen. Clinton put out a plan today, and I'm sure there are a lot of good ideas in there, too. But the real key...is bringing people together in a way that builds consensus." Little dig at Hillary's 1994 record. Now onto immigration: "I have never seen an issue that has been used so crassly for partisan purposes." He talks about the millions of custodians and health care workers who are working everyday but "living in hiding." "When I am president I will put comprehensive immigration reform back on the agenda and I will not rest until it is passed once and for all." Standing ovation. --Dana Goldstein
