Barack Obama wants to be president of these 57 United States

Ah, Oregon. The beautiful Northwest. Rain. Trees. Clouds. Rain. Friendly territory for Sen. Barack Obama, the leading contender for the Democratic Party's long-disputed presidential nomination.

So there he was in Beaverton today at the start of a two-day swing through Oregon, virtually ignoring his remaining Democratic opponent, what's-her-name from New York, as part of his new strategy to act like the actual nominee while she flails around way behind in numbers.

Naturally, this being the Northwest where everything is not ruined quite yet, his staff had Obama visit an eco-friendly company, Vernier Software & Technology, that makes products for science teachers. He could get education in there too, see?

In his prepared remarks Obama was ready to start blasting Arizona Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, to show the Illinois Democrat is moving on to the general election campaign.

But first the freshman senator had to go through all the....

...obligatory delighted to see you, delighted to be here part of stump speeches that also require that you actually know where you are.

Obama pulled that off O.K. But then he drifted away from the text a tad, as rookies are wont to do sometimes, forgetting how exhausting this primary process is and should be. And trusting in their instincts, their very tired instincts.

"It is wonderful to be back in Oregon," Obama said. "Over the last 15 months, we’ve traveled to every corner of the United States. I’ve now been in 57 states? I think one left to go. Alaska and Hawaii, I was not allowed to go to even though I really wanted to visit, but my staff would not justify it."

The Times' conscientious Robin Abcarian thought she heard something different there. She checked her tape recorder. It had captured what he had actually said -- 57 states now. A new Louisiana Purchase that's gone unannounced so far? Was he channeling his inner John Kerry-Heinz 57 personality?

(UPDATE: At a later stop Obama was talking with reporters and expressed concern he'd also mis-stated the number of potential cyclone victims in Burma. He said, ""I hope I said 100,000 people the first time instead of 100 million. I understand I said there were 57 states today. It's a sign that my numeracy is getting a little, uh." At that point, an aide cut him off and ushered journalists out. Before he could mis-speak again?)

Oh, and as far as Hawaii voters are concerned, they're probably delighted to learn that Obama's campaign staff doesn't think that tiny state can justify an appearance by his eminence, even though he did a lot of growing up there. Or maybe because he was there.

Let's see what they do with that in the Honolulu media, which the Republicans have probably already notifed.

Maybe it's Obama's age. He's getting up there in his forties, you know.

(ANOTHER UPDATE: Because of a new development in this situation another item on this subject has been posted here.)

--Andrew Malcolm

Photo Credit: AP / Joe Raymond

Comments

[BJ]

TO JB

No problem... actually the past 7 years have been very rewarding. And I am a registered democrat, but you may be right... I might just keep taking those tax cuts, thank you very much!

I was willing to accept a tax hike, if Hillary were the nominee, for a more equitable distribution of the tax burden... but I will not pay for the sloths of society! And this is what your candidate is suggesting.

[Linda C.]

Maybe we are going to have 57 states in some future world of hope and change.

[Patrick]

The Democratic primary season contains 57 events (including Michigan and Florida), so that might be where he got the number. I'm sure some aide said it at one point.

Still, yeah, 50 states is sort of a thing an American says relfexively, which means Obama is unamerican*. Quod erat demonstradum.

*-Offer not valid outside the contiguous 53 states**
**-yeah, I am kidding around here

[Mike]

Actually, BHO thinks that there are 60 states. He has visited 57; there is one more to go to; Alaska and Hawaii are to far away to be worth the bother.

So, 60. That's real Chicago-style vote counting!!!

[sc341]

This is hysterical, when Dan Quayle spelled potato with an E, potatoe the Media went totally nuts. I can't wait to see how they give him a pass. Also, I think this is a little worse than John McCain getting his Shiites & Sunnis mixed up. He forgot how many States there are? Maybe he's been smoking too many funny cigarettes lately.

[Geoffrey Lane]

Andrew Malcolm, you are clearly so rabid in your anti-Obama stance that you have 'lost your bearings'. The article reads like an out of control rant. Are you seriously suggesting Obama does not know how many states there are? Can we move on?

This kind of tripe rises from the small minds of Obama detractors because there is nothing substantive to complain about. Articles like this are so childish and destructive. I am not a democrat, but I am impressed with Obama because of the kind of campaign he has run. This is the first election in my adult life where the candidate is clearly calling for you and all Republicans to unite under one flag. I can't speak for everyone, but we've tried hating each other and polarizing the electorate with pigeon holing and smears, but I, for one, and ready for something different.

If you would just take a deep breath, Obama would listen to all your brilliant proposals. He has made a career talking to both parties and building consensus. To all the Republicans reading this, I hope you guys take a second look at this guy. He is not nearly as far left as you think, and he has shown he is willing to accommodate opposing views. I am a proud Republican, but this is a once in a lifetime candidate. I like capital gains taxes low, but if people at the bottom cannot fill up their gas tanks, I will gladly sacrifice 10% of my investment income and pay a few more taxes.

I may be naive, but I have a very good feeling about Obama, and what he says he will do. As long as he keeps telling the truth he will have my support and I am willing to support, even pay for, a different strategy for America.

(Lighten up, Geoffrey. We're equal opportunity offenders if you'd ever read anything other than the ones about your fave. Be sure to return here in a few hours because we'll have the actual video of Obama announcing the new states. Plus news of an amazing political gadget for his campaign.)

[BarryManilow]

Andrew Malcolm, well he made some mistakes because he is a rookie. But what's your girl, Hillary's excuse? With all those incedible 'experience' she has been trumpeting about, not to mention her not so young years and the connections the 8-year stint in the White House guarantees, she has done a pretty miserable job, don't you think?

Oh, she also had an ex-president going around like a person on some substance rallying behind her while Obama had to clean up the mess his crazy ex-pastor created. Despite all this, this 40 something rookie still managed to keep his grace and cool under fire whereas you girl was all over the place from shotting down whisky to gun totting while dropping lies after lies.

It has been one hellavue test of character and we all the who the losers are and they are the last to know, as always.

[SandyS]

I just don't understand why so many Obama supporters feel the need to bash a very intelligent, experienced stateswoman like Senator Clinton. I like Obama, but Senator Clinton is my choice based on her experience. After 8 long years of total disaster, I truly don't want a learning curve - I want someone who knows what they're doing from the very beginning. Why do you folks do that? I suspect it truly is misogyny. When will it ever end? What woman would be good enough for you people - maybe not to vote for, but good enough not to bash and denigrate?

[liamascorcaigh]

His remarks imply 60 (sixty) states: 57 (inc. Oregon) which he has visited plus one (1) more to visit plus Alaska and Hawaii (2) which his staff won't let him go to. Sixty.

He's obviously exhausted and misspoke. Still, no more cracks about McCain's "bearings" anytime soon.

For mor epolitical comment visit my blog "Chris Mathews Other Leg" by clicking on my name.

[Ward Tipton]

He may have said fifty seven states. What I like was the one more being both Alaska and Hawaii. So now 57+1 =59 which is the same as 50 right? Hmmm. I understand how tiring campaigning must be but ... ummmm ... from someone to want to run this country, that is not very comforting.

[James]

You guys should get a grip on life and move on...

The guy was joking...

He was born in the USA, He graduate from Harvard; he was in charge of Harvard law review; he was a consitutional Lawyer; he was teaching law in the university; he was a state senator for about 7 years; he has been in the US senate for about 3 years.....

Do you guys really thing a guy with such a history does not know the number of states that are in the US.

This is the bases for that joke...

There are 50 states in the US....

Six US territories.

1. Puerto Rico
2. Virgin Islands
3. American Samoa
4. Guam
5. Northern Mariana Islands
6. Minor Outlying Islands (Wake Island and Johnston Island)

And one US-Administered region:

1. Guantanamo Bay

If you do the maths, the US president is in charge of these 57 states, territories, regions...

(Nice try, James. He wasn't joking. Did you watch the video? But it is hilarious.)

[zach wilson]

Jesus Christ, it was a joke. Humor by exaggeration. I don't think Obama is pandering to the Guantanamo Bay Statehood faction up there.

[Bobc]

I'm not a McCain supporter, but can you imagine what the press and others would be saying about him, if he had said this?

Where are the politicians with the common sense and pride of country of our forefathers......they were much more intelligent than the ones we have now!

[Clintonfatigue McCloned]

the guy is saying the truth...the US have 57 states, territories or regions...

Obama must have been joking or applying a more advanced analysis of USA's laws & boundaries, the type you see from constitutional lawyers that knows the law and US territories. His problem was talking about it as if, this is a common knowledge to the everyday American.

He was born in the USA, He graduate from Harvard; he was in charge of Harvard law review; he was a consitutional Lawyer; he was teaching law in the university; he was a state senator for about 7 years; he has been in the US senate for about 3 years.....

Do you guys really think that a guy with such a pedigree does not know the number of states that are in the US.
This is the bases for his thoughts...

There are 50 STATES in the US....

Six US TERRITORIES.

1. Puerto Rico
2. Virgin Islands
3. American Samoa
4. Guam
5. Northern Mariana Islands
6. Minor Outlying Islands (Wake Island and Johnston Island)

And one US-Administered REGION:

1. Guantanamo Bay

If you do the maths, the US A president is in charge of these 57 states, territories or regions...you know this from civil classes and before one becomes a USA constitutional lawyer or in charge of Harvard Law review, he will know this and more..

[Patrick]

Obomba said children were a punishment. The only punishment for him is looking in the mirror day after day.

[Stevo]

Hussein is just trying to give Hillary a little HOPE that things can CHANGE for her before the primaries.

[raven]

OMG! Is this what we would have to look forward to
W.O.R.M.? My family, which includes veterans, says to
Sen. Clinton, carry on! Every voter has a right to cast their ballot and be heard. We need the strongest candi-
date to run as our nominee. The MSM does NOT get to
pronounce who that individual is .
Sen Obama is seeking to make a "victory" speech of a
sort on May 20th before he's secured the nomination.
That is the height of disrepect for the process, those
who've yet to vote, and Sen.Clinton. What is the need
to further alienate her supporters?
Sen.Clinton is fighting to represent ALL of us. Not as
Donna Brazile identified the "new coalition" of the Demo-
cratic party. So, she would just dispense with the rest
of us. Donna ihas really gotten on my third nerve! As a
multi-racial person, I say run til the end. We are be-
hind you and proud of you! We are now telling our daug-
ters...ONE DAY THAT CAN BE YOU!!!

[Radarmel]

What a fool... if this guy is elected it will make GW look like a Yale gradutate... oh, wait he was... and look how that turned out. I can't believe that everyone is so snowed by this guy, It remindes me of 2000, how the Republican zealots stood up for GW, defending him around every turn and miscalculation and everytime he misspoke his team and army would correct him... "oh, what he meant to say was...blah blah blah"
And here we are again... defending him, correcting him and carring him.... DO WE WANT ANOTHER 4 YEARS of someone that is so out of touch with what is really happening in the USA??? I don't and good luck keeping him up while he is falling.

[Duros Hussein 62]

Geez, Andrew, editorialize much?

[Andrea]

Who cares if Hillary won states like New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, California, Texas, Nevada, and is poised to slam Obama in West Virginia and Kentucky? Obama was annointed from the start by a Republican-owned media who used every tool at their disposal to derail Hillary. If I were her, I'd shun the VP spot and lead millions of white working voters to victory in 2012. McCain will have really fouled things up by then.

[John Wayne]

57 states??? Well, it will go with all his other things.... flag lapel pin etc. Individually they are nothing, together they are something. While I do think he made a mistake in this one, there has been a lot of them in his candidacy, and it does bring up his inexperience yet again.

[Are you kidding me?]

So I guess McCain should be President now. After all, Obama said "States" instead of "States and Territories".

But then McCain said: "Bomb-bomb-bomb ... bomb-bomb-Iran"

And McCain said: "We should stay in Iraq"

And McCain said: "Sunnis come from Iran"

But hey, if you mis-speak about something REALLY important, like "57 States" instead of "57 States and Presidents" ... well, that's just too important.

I'd rather have McCain, and his promised 100 years of protracted war in the wrong country, and an inference that we'll further invade the rest of the region.

McCain's eternal war sounds much more appealing than Obama. After all, Obama omits words like "territory". That's so important to me as a voter.

[Ken Pressley]

It appears Obama thinks there are 60 states not 57. He said he has been to 57 with one to go but was not allowed to go to Alaskea and Hawaii.

[Laurence McCabe]

Obama thinks Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan , Cuba and Mexico are the other states in The 57 States.
Great, just what we need more aid to dependent children.

[Trevor]

Come on, he obviously meant to say 47 not 57, big deal, so his misspoke. 47 would be correct because he said there is 1 to go to and he didn't go to Alaska or Hawaii, hence 47. The guy doesn't get much sleep and he said 57 instead of 47, give him a break, damn.