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Opinion: Bobby Jindal is having his close-up

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7:21: It’s like dueling American success stories. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, in his response to President Obama’s speech about reviving the economy and restoring luster to the tarnished American dream, recounts Obama’s life story and his own story as the son of immigrants from India.

‘Regardless of party, all Americans are moved by the president’s personal story,’ Jindal begins. ‘The son of an American mother and a Kenyan father, who grew up to become leader of the free world. Like the president’s father, my parents came to this country from a distant land. When they arrived in Baton Rouge, my mother was already 4½ months pregnant. I was what folks in the insurance industry now call a ‘preexisting condition.’ To find work, my dad picked up the Yellow Pages and started calling local businesses. Even after landing a job, he could still not afford to pay for my delivery -- so he worked out an installment plan with the doctor. Fortunately for me, he never missed a payment.’

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This is a big moment for Jindal. It almost doesn’t matter what he says, it’s how he says it. The GOP is trying out potential presidential candidates for 2012, and Jindal has been given this opportunity to introduce himself to the American people.

Jindal is earnest, trying hard to be persuasive. He does not appear at this moment to possess the oratorical skills of Obama, but hey, he’s new on the national stage.

He is folksy, but looks really, really young. Which, frankly, was one of Obama’s shortcomings in the beginning, remember?

-- Robin Abcarian

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In Baton Rouge, La. Gov. Bobby Jindal delivers the Republican Party’s official response to President Obama’s address to a joint session of Congress.

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