Posted by
Kilroy on Thursday, May 10, 2007 8:44:51 AM
GREENBURG – Against the backdrop of near total devastation, Democrat presidential candidate Barack Obama’s visit to what remains of this small Kansas town drew over a gazillion supporters. The massive crowd audaciously challenged the capacity of Mel’s Citgo Station, the last remaining structure in Greenburg, after a monstrous level 62 tornado flattened the entire town. Fire marshals temporarily waived the 40 person capacity restriction to accommodate a wave of humanity that dwarfed the pre-tornado population of the town. As Greenburg began it is cleanup operation, Obama’s campaign cleaned up too by raising an estimated $72,000,0000,000,000 in a door to door fundraising drive in a town with only one door left standing.
Obama’s visit drew some criticism when he, in an apparent attempt to disparage the Bush Administration for the tragedy, exaggerated the death toll from the tornado. The candidate cited “
ten thousand people” killed while the actual death toll was 12. Shrugging it off as a gaffe Obama said “
Yeah, I was off by what, 5 or 10 percent, so what? It was a long day, I was tired, there are going to be times when I get weary. There are going to be times when I make mistakes. We’re just gonna have to have the audacity to hope that those times outweigh the times I don’t make mistakes, or vice versa -- whatever”.
Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) rose to Obama's defense saying, "
Nine of one, half dozen of the other. So he's not articulate, he's still clean and bright and 5 out of 3 ain't bad".
