As they await the republican onslaught, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune’s editors give props to Obama: “The choice was fitting for a candidate who emphasizes the power of ordinary people to change America. But the big venue also became fodder for GOP shots about Obama’s alleged cultivation of celebrity status. It’s an odd line of attack. Seldom has a politician come under fire for his ability to draw a crowd. Republican candidate Sen. John McCain refused to sully himself with such pettiness yesterday. He released a classy personal ad congratulating Obama — though his surrogates, including Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, continued to pepper the Democratic nominee with the charge that his record is too skimpy for the presidency.

Obama’s acceptance speech should go some distance in addressing such doubts. He described well the problems of average Americans — rising unemployment and underemployment, eroding housing values, and mounting debt loads, energy prices and college tuition. He rightly acknowledged that government was not the source of all those difficulties, and he emphasized personal responsibility. But he rightly tagged both President Bush and “broken politics in Washington” for an inadequate federal response.”

Speech Therapy

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