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

[florencio]

Could the other states be;

51) The U.K.
52) Canada
53) Australia
54) New Zealand
55) U.S./U.K Virgin Islands
56) South Africa
57) India

Remember the common languages....

[Sam]

Think about it guys - he said 57 states. He ALSO said he hadn't gotten to go to Alaska and Hawaii, and he had one more state to visit. So that's three states he hasn't visited. What's 50 minus 3? 47. Forty-seven and fifty-seven sound pretty similar. Getting tongue-tied and accidentally saying the wrong word happens to the best of us - even when we're not talking in front of that many people. Give the guy a break, he's doing a great job to have gotten this far.

[Sam]

Think about it guys - he said 57 states. He ALSO said he hadn't gotten to go to Alaska and Hawaii, and he had one more state to visit. So that's three states he hasn't visited. What's 50 minus 3? 47. Forty-seven and fifty-seven sound pretty similar. Getting tongue-tied and accidentally saying the wrong word happens to the best of us - even when we're not talking in front of that many people. Give the guy a break, he's doing a great job to have gotten this far.

[Obama/Richardson fan]

I think he meant to say 47 states instead of 57, notice he then said "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." 47+ "one left to go" plus Alaska and Hawaii equals the 50 states. However he might also have been including other areas. For example I notice that many people speak of the 51 states (when speaking of the general election presidential voting), because they are apparently including the District of Columbia as a "state". Further in the Democratic primaries/caucuses Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, and other US territories, as well as DC, cast votes - I wonder if there are a total of 57 contests in the race for the Democratic nomination, however Obama did not visit those territories (though he did visit DC) as part of his campaign for President.

[Marc]

Stop making excuses for Obama. In one's most drunken stuper people who are government officials know the US has only 50 states. Territories are not states and they have never been mistaken for US States.

Get it through your head: Barry is short on facts and long on rhetoric. He was successful as a law student because without Lexus-Nexxus he'd be incapable of something requiring concrete facts off the top of his head.

As a Mechanical Engineer the man is the most mentally stunted of all the candidates in Hard Sciences.

McCain having gone through Anapolis is required to have a solid Science background.

Clinton has shown countlessly her knowledge of even the most rudimentary facts of Science, if not the applied theory.

Obama can't even get current events clear in his head and it's not as if he's been truly pressed seeing as his staff has barred any debates.

Guess what Obama fans: In the General Election you can't deny debates sactioned for the Main Event.

The man can't think on his feet without a teleprompter. This quick wit is crucial in diplomacy.

This isn't something you learn--you have this by the time your personality is fully developed.

[VOTE REPUBLICAN!]

He's an idiot-- a typical ..."govment" ...take care of me-- IDIOT!

[claspur]

NObama will implode in running for the General Election.
I heard about this gaff this morning, and a blogger posted this article off a post on Little Green Footballs regarding how NObama would meet with heads of terrorist nations, unconditionally.
Now, that's some good info reading there, on that issue....with video evidence of John "the Waffle" Kerry style waffling.
No....NObama will im'splode himself before November, folks.

[Kate]

Maybe the seven other states are Obama's seven other states of mind...blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Hey, hey, vote Republican!!

[Kate]

Maybe the seven other states are Obama's seven other states of mind...blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Hey, hey, vote Republican!!

[Mike]

Amazing. Obama admitted that Alaska and Hawaii were the only states he hadn't yet been to. And then your later comments made it sound like it was only Hawaii. What about Alaska voters? What about Anchorage media? Catch on -- there are 50 states, and it's time you started remembering that.

[MotherGinSling]

Their are actually 56 contests in the Democratic primary, all listed at RealClearPolitics.com:
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/presi ...
Some folks aren't aware that the primary includes American Samoa, Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, Democrats Abroad, District of Columbia
I'm not sure where 57 comes from instead of 56, but he phrased it with uncertainty like a question.

[matt smock]

No, it wasn't a joke and he wasn't referring to the territories. Sorry Why would a candidate waste time campaigning in territories that don't have delegates? It was a slip of the tongue. He meant to say forty-seven, not fifty-seven states; he said he skipped one contiguous state and Alaska and Hawaii.

[glo]

I AM SO SICK OF HAVING THIS GUY RAMMED DOWN OUR THROATS.....

He's stupid, arrogant, inexperienced, did I say stupid...he want's to be President and he doesn't even know how many states there are......A junior college graduate knows that......GET A CLUE FOOLS THIIS GUY IS A FAKE.

Go Hillary

[James]

How stupid are you people? It's a *JOKE* phrase that's been around for years, as is "That would be illegal in 57 states."

Maybe you also think the Beatles really thought there were 8 days in a week?

Get a life, or at least get a brain.

(Nice try, James. If you get a chance, watch the video. But then you'll see he wasn't joking. So, nevermind.)

[John Kenny]

It must be part of the Change thing he keeps talking about.

I guess in that unifying he will first divide a few states, into two or so.

[James]

Must be a Roschach test -- it sounded like an ad-libbed joke to me (and, it would seem, to the audience as well, from their appreciative laughter), but maybe I was already primed to hear "57 states" as a punch line, since I've heard it so many times before. It seemed like the kind of joke where you start to say something, realize it's close to a punch line, and just go with it. But I can see where others might not have gotten that.

So there seem to be three possibilities:

(1) It was a joke (70% chance, by my estimate)
(2) He started to say "50", attempted to correct it to "47" and it came out as "57". (30% chance?)
(3) A scholar and senator who's been to 47 states, has done the math to get delegates from them, and has done the math to get the required EV's in the general election, doesn't know how many states there are (less than 0.0000000000000000001% chance).

Why ignore the obvious choices when you can choose the absurd one?

Btw, what's the take on McCain's persistent confusion wrt Sunni vs. Shiite, and his confusion about which side Iran is supporting? (Oops, sorry, that would be a conversation about something substantive.) Actually, since I'm traveling, I can't follow up on this, but go for it anyway if you wish...

Btw, there seems to be another James who posted earlier. My only previous post was just before this one.

[fltii]

he apparently meant to say 47, and said fifty.

when he was asked about it again, he wasn't about to mis speak, but over speak. using the obscure linguistic term numeracy... numeric literacy, actually a word... new to me, but he may have been labeled as intellectual, if a slightly absent minded one after 15 months of 15+ hour days.

obama mis spoke once and works all the time...

what is bush the vacationer's excuse?

[Carly]

I guess Obama isn't smarter than a 5th grader...

BTW: Is ANYTHING ever Obama's fault?

[Ardeshir Dolat]

Where did he get number 57 from?? Have you wondered??

The answer is here:

http://ardeshird.blogspot.com/

[Fuldermox]

I guess if the phone rings at 3:57 AM, we'll be okay.

[MrUniteUs]

Let's see Obama was head of the Harvard Law review,
a Constitutional law professor, and unlike Hillary he past the bar the first time. He knows there are only 50 states.

Now who can tell us what other locations particpate in the Democratic primaries.

[molaske]

If there is 1 to go and he had to skip 2, then he obviously meant to say 47. Can you imagine that -- saying 57 when you meant 47?

Now Hillary's supporters have posted in 1000s of blog comments that this is clear proof he's not ready for the job of president. Of all the things they could post as an argument for why super delegates should support her against the pledged del plurality, this is what they chose to cut and paste.

This is why she has lost the nomination.

[Jay]

He sounds like a person on the street for one of Jay Leno's pieces! That is too funny!! But hey, he's for HOPE and THE FUTURE, so maybe he will convert some of the US possessions into states sometime in the FUTURE, or they can certainly HOPE! What an empty suit!!! Woohoo, I can't wait for the general election!

[submandave]

James, one possibility you failed to list is that he just spoke without listening to what he was saying. I don't buy either the joke or, in fairness, stupidity theories. It seems much more likely that he was just phoning in his appearance and not paying much attention to what he was saying. Not a particularly flattering picture of the candidate, but one that makes more sense for me than him being a total dunce or making a stupid joke that isn't even funny in theory.

As for the silly "states + teritories" nonsense, if his staff couldn't justify going to HI, a place the Senator lived, please explain how he's been to American Samoa, Guam or the Northern Mariana Islands. The fact that I saw the exact same thing verbatim in multiple posts indicates to me that this may a semi-official deescalation effort.

[Truth]

There are 51 US states (yes, Washington DC is considered a state) and there are 6 US territories. 51 + 6 = 57
Perhaps people should check the facts before they blow things out of proportion…do the math!