11:09 AM: Clinton campaign: Obama stole part of Founder's Day speech
Hillary Clinton's campaign says Barack Obama lifted part of his speech at the Founder's Day Gala in Milwaukee on Saturday from a speech delivered two years earlier by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick.
"The words he spoke in Wisconsin on Saturday night were inspiring, but now they seem less authentic and more political," said U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass.
Clinton campaign communications director Howard Wolfson and McGovern said the lack of attribution from Obama raises questions about his campaign. They added that Obama's thin record as a public official makes the content of his speeches more significant.
"If you're asking the public to judge you on your promises and your rhetoric and you break your promises and lift rhetoric, that raises fundamental questions," said McGovern.
Wolfson claimed Obama has a pattern of breaking campaign promises dating back to 2003. He cited a disconnection between Obama's words and votes on the Patriot Act and his pursuit of a single-payer health care system.
Patrick endorsed Obama's presidential bid back in October, and there are reports that the two are friends who frequently share lines on the stump.
Video from the Clinton campaign comparing the speeches in question can be seen here.
-- By Matt Steingraber
Labels: 2008 spring primary