DebatablePolitics.com

They say imitation is the finest form of flattery. Barack Obama must be blushing. Hillary Clinton has launched a new twist on her solutions message, one that sounds incredibly familiar.

Yes we will!

This is somewhat clever, although I think most people will spot the source rather quickly. The crowd she rolled it our too in fact seemed a little surprised by it. Hillary launched her new slogan at a rally where she ended a string of policy statements with salute to the greatness of America (always a fantastic idea) followed by, "Yes we will! Yes we will! Yes we will! Yes we will! Yes we will! Yes we will!"

The problem with imitation is often times it is like a page that has been xeroxed too many times, the message degrades, gets a little fuzzy. It was immediately evident in this case since the crowd Hillary was speaking to sat there and watched Hillary try to start the chant. It did not really get off the ground with the crowd. Now that people know what to expect I imagine they will do better with the chanting tomorrow, but the clip I saw today fell a little flat.

Another problem with imitation is often it is only a excerpt of the original message. The Clinton campaign just does seem to get it when it comes to Barack Obama's message. On the surface it appears that Obama's call for change is to end the War in Iraq, address the Healthcare crisis, pursue energy independence, provide middle class tax relief and so on. Problem is those are just the things he wants to get done, the objectives if you will. His message is not really about those objectives though.

Barack Obama's message is about tearing down the walls that divide us. His message is about dispelling the grip of fear that has overcome our society, and most definitely our leaders. He wants to engage the American people in a way that it has not been in decades with the issues challenging us. Of course he wants to achieve a great many policy objectives, but his message is actually focused on removing the barriers to that change, ending old mindsets, demolishing the so called red state blue state divide.

Whether or not the American electorate can put their finger on it, Barack Obama has. That is why his message is resonating so strongly with millions of previously disengaged citizens. Hillary's idea of change is pushing her policies through, policies different than the current administrations, Barack Obama is talking about changing the fabric of our political discourse.

The difference is reflected in each candidates supporters as well. Many women who are supporting Hillary have stated that women voting for Barack Obama are betraying the feminist movement, while the Obama supporters push back and point out that feminism is about freedom. Feeling compelled to vote for someone just because of their gender can be just as oppressive as the system women have been fighting against for so long.

The old politics focused the differences between us. This was indeed necessary because the old world perceptions had to be shattered for progress to be made. The radical changes that were needed to secure individual liberty required this trend towards group identification, a need to establish common cause with those trapped in the same way by the same system. Those that took up that challenge should be commended for their efforts, they brought America a long long way.

Indeed there is still more work to be done. Racism, sexism, homophobia and on and on still impact the lives of most Americans far to often today. The fight is not over, but it is time for the tactics to change. It is time to move towards realizing the ultimate aim any egalitarian social movement should wish to achieve. People across the divides, gay - straight, black - white - hispanic, men - women, christian - muslim, liberal - conservative and on and on, need to be brought back together to recognize that while all of us have our differences, which should be respected, our shared qualities are far more important.

That can never be achieved so long as we maintain the old battle lines. Hillary only knows the old battlefields, the old tactics needed to maneuver on that battlefield. That is why her imitiation of Obama's message rings a little hollow. Barack Obama is offering us a chance to move in a new direction. Success is not certain but it is a chance we must not pass up.

This is yet another reason why I support Barack Obama and encourage you to do so as well.