Hillary Campaign: Obama Plagiarized Speech From Supporter
The Clinton campaign is busy pushing a new line of attack against Barack Obama: That he plagiarized a section of his speech this past weekend at the Democratic Party of Wisconsin dinner, from a speech given two years ago by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, a prominent Obama supporter. Here's a side-by-side comparison:
More after the jump.
The Clinton campaign argues that this act of plagiarism fundamentally, along with the current arguments about taking public financing, seriously undermine Obama's candidacy. "So if you're asking the electorate to judge you on your promises and you break them, and on your rhetoric and you lift it," argued campaign spokesman Howard Wolfson on a conference call with reporters, "there are fundamental questions that are raised about that campaign and that candidacy."
Election Central asked Wolfson about comments in this morning's New York Times from Patrick himself, who said he freely exchanges speech ideas with Obama and didn't think a citation was necessary. Wolfson said the plagiarism charge still holds because listeners go in with the assumption that Obama's speeches are original, unless credit is given. "So I think it's fine that Deval Patrick said that," Wolfson said. "But what I'm concerned about is that the public has an expectation that Sen. Obama's words are his own."
The Obama campaign also sent us further comment from Patrick. "Senator Obama and I are long-time friends and allies. We often share ideas about politics, policy and language," Patrick said. "The argument in question, on the value of words in the public square, is one about which he and I have spoken frequently before. Given the recent attacks from Senator Clinton, I applaud him responding in just the way he did."
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