That's
the only way to describe Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama,
D-Ill., on stage at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center Monday evening in
Newark.
What
are the three things that Obama said went into his decision-making processes
before declaring his candidacy? Click on the video below to watch.
Taking
the stage to a raucous ovation after being introduced by Newark Mayor Corey
Booker, Obama spent 44 minutes covering everything from Bush
administration
policies and the Iraq
war, increasing the minimum wage, expanding healthcare, stopping the genocide in
Darfur,
and increasing financial aid to stop AIDS in Africa.
Obama
even found a moment to jab at his extended family tree when referring to his newly discovered cousin, Vice President
Dick Cheney. "We've been trying to hide that for a long time," Obama said to
laughter and applause. "But everyone has a black sheep in the
family."
Currently,
Obama trails Clinton
by as many as 26 percentage points in New
Jersey,
according to recent polls.
The "Countdown to Change" event
was designed to enlist the support of average citizens. Tickets for the event
ranged from $15 for students to $25 for general admittance.
One
of Obama's main topics was the war in
Iraq.
He recalled a 2002 rally that he was scheduled to attend shortly before the Bush
administration
sent troops to Iraq.
Since he was running for the U.S. Senate at the time, friends advised him that
the issue was a political quagmire and to steer clear. "But I went to that rally
and I spoke out against this war. I did not want to start my career not telling
the truth. I didn't want to start by being afraid to tell the truth," he
said.
Obama
pledged one of his first duties if elected would be to return the troops home.
"Now, every Democratic candidate is going to tell you that," Obama said. "But
who's more apt to do it? The person who voted for it in the first place? Or
would it be someone that was against it from the start?" Obama said, referring
to Democratic frontrunner Sen. Hillary Clinton's early support for the
war.
Seeking
to separate himself from Clinton,
Obama positioned himself as an outsider trying to change
Washington
politics and as the underdog who's faced an uphill climb from the
start.
"When
you're a 46-year-old black man named Barack Obama running for leader
of the free world, you're always going to be an underdog," he said. "But we knew with the help of people at the grassroots level that we could be successful."
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