Wolfpack Alum Taking National Stage
NC State graduate Robert Gibbs will be President-elect Barack Obama’s first White House press secretary. To my knowledge, he will be the first Wolfpacker to hold this position.
In other political news, the Associated Press has called North Carolina for Barack Obama. That means a great deal to me personally.
My wife and I did quite a bit of canvassing this year. I told everyone that the final tally in the state would be under 10,000 votes and it looks like I’ll probably be right on that.
So it means a lot to me as well.
As an advocate for the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and as a passionate believer in American exceptionalism, and as someone who visits this website for news of NC State athletics, I take all of this very personally as well.
This will be the last political post I will make for a very, very long time (hey, we had to balance out the Murtha post from earlier in the week, right?). I assure everyone that this blog is ALMOST NEVER going to wade into politics, and that SFN respects the extremely broad spectrum of political beliefs held by its readership (and the readers that hold them).
Getting Emanual as COS should have some interesting undertones. On Capitol Hill the words powerful & centrist usually start with this dude.
Read that the prediction is Emanual plays bad cop on behalf of the President with Congress and Obama smoothly talks openly in public about how the Democratic controlled gov’t is working things out ammicable.
Atta boy Gibbs. Many have risen to the top in fields of Science, Ag & military from NCSU, but for anyone of you that spent much time over at Tompkins, CHASS needed this. There are some great Poly Sci teachers there but it’s just not attractive to many.
I can disown Gibbs until he leaves the post. Emanuel is far from centrist – he is an ultraliberal tool, totally bereft of human qualities.
I don’t think that it’s necessary to inject political feelings into this (though we have…and I include myself). But I emailed this to BJD earlier because I thought most people would be interested.
We talk a lot about things like the US News and World Report rankings. When Gen. Shelton was chair of the Joint Chiefs, that drew interest. So, I figured people would be interested in this as well.
Politics can be a fascinating field. The turbidity of the times often creates some interesting results. People like Spiro Agnew end up rising far…FAR beyond where they should. (Agnew was the beneficary of the whole Civil Rights Act/Dixiecrat revolution) Jimmy Carter and George McGovern should never have been able to go as far as they did. The turmoil of the times and luck ended up carrying them too far. (That’s not a personal knock on either. They are both fine military officers, highly-intelligent capable people. But they were both terrible politicians)
When Carter took office in 1976, he brought with him basically NO Washingtonians. It was an entire group of outsiders. As a result, Carter was one of the least effective presidents of all time. Clinton came in and tried to build his cabinet first and ignored the transition team and the WH staff. As a result, he was completely unprepared and undisciplined during his first year. He was right behind the eight-ball immediately. Bush the Second decided to use his campaign team to govern with. As a result, we got the old, “When the only tool you use is a hammer, everything looks like a nail”-style of governing.
Obama seems to be trying to learn from those mistakes. Emmanuel is there to be the hard*** and to help with the legislative agenda. Gibbs made his bones running the rapid-response team and is there to deal with the Weekly Standards and the Fox News attacks.
I’ve been a volunteer on a number of campaigns since 1988. I usually left fairly discouraged. The Obama campaign was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. Obviously, I can’t say that this administration will be better or worse than any other…but I can say that it appears to be completely different.
I don’t care what your politics are, this is good news for NC State. Like General Shelton, having an alumnus in an important position reflects well on the university. It shows that an NCSU degree coupled with hard work can take one anywhere.
I said the very same thing about J.D. Hayworth, for what it is worth.
Finally, I think it is high time that the name-calling and pithy insults from both ends of the spectrum stop and we all start acting like Americans and solve our problems through meaningful debate. Obama said repeatedly in his campaign that there are no red states or blue states but a United States instead, and John McCain promised country first. Perhaps it is time the rest of the country lived up to that ideal.
vtpackfan: things have changed quite a lot in CHASS during the past several years. It draws most of its majors straight out of the freshman class rather than from internal transfers. The number of undergraduate majors in communications, political science, and psychology are 600+ each. Some of the social sciences at State are competing directly with Chapel Hill.
Means alot to me also. Means that the rest of NC sucks as bad as NCSU athletics. Never thought I’d see the day that NC would vote for a freaking socialist.
“Finally, I think it is high time that the name-calling and pithy insults from both ends of the spectrum stop and we all start acting like Americans and solve our problems through meaningful debate.”
I can agree to this. There will be those of us that will disagree strongly with some of Obama’s policies. As long as the debate is fair and open — and the Mainstream press will have to be fair to facilitate this — then it will be good.
It means a lot to me personally to be in a country in which the transition of power happens peacefully regardless of our opinion of the person taking power. (don’t apply that only to the incoming President, but past 5 elections or so).
Rahm Emmanuel is an “ultraliberal” the same way Barack Obama was a “marxist.” And of course, some of those same people calling Obama a marxist are now comparing Obama’s campaign to Ikes…and still claiming that the USA is a “center-right” country (which would make it rather odd for 63 million people to vote for a marxist.)
Emmanuel is an “ultraliberal” the same way Howard Dean is a super-duper ultra-liberal (which is odd considering his economically conservative budgets and pro-guns position).
Emmanuel is very VERY centrist. He’s an DLCer, he fought against the 50-state strategy, he’s very corporate-friendly, he supported both Iraq Wars, he’s an AIPAC guy and supported FISA. If that’s your definition of “ultraliberal,” you probably need to recalibrate your measurements.
Wow I really like how this thread progressed. I was reading with a cautious optimism and I couldn’t be more proud of NC State and their CHASS department either. I was an engineering major so I didn’t do much over in the Thompkins building other than print free. This is not only great for Robert Gibbs and our own degrees, but on a much shallower and equally important note, this also gives us more amnution to use against the holes up the road.
I love the red states and the blue states but most of all I love my North Carolina State! Go RED AND WHITE! DOWN with blue and white!
Screw unity within the triangle… at least on the weekends and after 7pm during the week.
My fleeting hope that maybe I was wrong and the Obama will be a uniting force last no longer than the ultra-left wing Emmanuel selection and the press’ continued trashing of Palin this morning on the Manhattan morning shows.
I think it is disgusting that people wrote bigoted remarks on the ‘Free Expression Tunnel’ and I think it is right for the University to promptly cover these kind of things up. Though the University should be very careful from using words like ‘hate speech’ which is typically more political code words than a way of speaking.
I guess that any reference to Bush being a Nazi or Hitler were never put up on the tunnel? Any word anyone could write about Obama would never more vile than to be called a Nazi or compared to Hitler. I certainly hope there is no documented evidence of that kind of talk being allowed but others are silenced.
Good common sense move.
http://www.change.gov/
Gibbs is a great guy. I lived in DC for a great while and knew Gibbs when he worked for Bob Etheridge. This is a solid hire.
As an aside – Obama’s amazing fundraising machine was directed by another North Carolinian – Julianna Smoot of Clinton, NC. Save your barbs for the Brickyard board, regardless of one’s political stripes, it is GREAT to both NC State people and other home folk at the right hand of power.
I am glad for the Wolfpack alum and thought the post started out well. It is a shame to come on here and see the likes of a “noah” has turned it into a forum for his leftist agenda. To put other fellow Wolfpackers into his category that somehow by not voting for Obama we are now calling Obama a marixst and such is offensive. I am sure he was running down Franklin Street with his fellow Tar Holes on election night.
I am glad an African American has shown that anyone can accomplish their dreams in this great country. I am disappointed that the person was Obama. I agree with the above his appointments thus far go right in line with his record not his campaign rhetoric. I was at a business convention today and heard someone tell a die hard R politician that he needed to get over it and support Obama. I thought he had a good answer. He said he had the same right as Obama had to totally bad mouth the president, agree with nothing he attemted to do, undermine every effort made by the other party, be the number rated Anti president supporter in govt.like Obama was, and never attempt in way shape or form to reach across the isle with any attempt at bipartisanship. He said Obama set a new standard and he was going to be just like him. He now calls himself an Obama clone politician.
I personally liked McCain’s speech election night asking we come together as Americans. I felt good about that until I heard Obama speak. I came away feeling like America was a bad place. And several times he only referred to people “that voted for him” as the ones he was going to DC to help. I got no sense he cared at all for all Amreicans.
McCain is a great man, war hero, and a fair politician that had no problem working with people from both parties. We can only pray the next president will attempt to be as great an American as McCain has been.
“..and thought the post started out well.”
Your right, after reading that I would have to agree more and more that what came before it started well.
Noah emailed the news to BJD95, he also admits to being partisan and obviously has had great life experience working and volunteering for this Obama/Biden Victory.
And several times he only referred to people “that voted for him” as the ones he was going to DC to help. I got no sense he cared at all for all Amreicans.
You must have listened to a different speech I heard, and another one from the transcript I just read:
“Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House – a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, “We are not enemies, but friends…though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection.” And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn – I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.”
I personally liked McCain’s speech election night asking we come together as Americans. I felt good about that until I heard Obama speak. I came away feeling like America was a bad place.
“And to all those who have wondered if America’s beacon still burns as bright – tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.”
Yep, he really outlined how bad a place we are. By saying that America has enduring power, and that “yes, we can” overcome our troubles.
Regarding Obama’s “bad mouthing” the president, President Bush actually said himself that he understood that it was part of the political process and that it did not bother him. That was a rather candid and mature remark from the President, and shows that indeed he understands how political campaigns work.
Finally, I would suggest that you watch this video of John McCain’s speech at the Alfred E. Smith dinner in New York City on October 16th. Pay close attention to what McCain says he really thinks of Barack Obama and how he would accept the election results, which was then 19 days away, then compare and constrast them to the words in your post above.
I just want to remind you all that the coffers of the Wolfpack Club will be diminished when we all are paying excessive taxes to support the Obama administrations idea of government.
Please remember that the financial problems we face are not of Obama’s doing,but he is charged with fixing them, along with all the other things that have been totally screwed up over the past 8 years. Is there one area, one policy or financial area, that we are better off with today than 8 years ago? Obama could be a disappointment and still exceed the Bush record.
Sad to see that the excellent discussion of a couple days back has already started to separate into oil and water.
Congratulation to Gibbs. It’s good for NC State and that’s good for ALL of us.
Yea Wolf Dog America is such a terrible place and Obama such a heartless guy. I mean, he didn’t unite anyone in this campaign, didn’t prove that you can come from nothing and become something, and didn’t inspire but a few souls. Terrible terrible guy.
Let me put it to you this way and on a very personal level. He moved my 62 year old mother, conservative as they come, to tears with his speech. And I will tell you they weren’t tears of anger or resentment. She was proud of her country and truly happy for a very talented man, even though it wasn’t her choice. She’s agreed to get behind him, maybe you ought to begin to think about doing that, too. Might make your next four years a little more cheery.
Stop.
Go look at who you are debating.
Reevaluate.
Continue your discussion with the non-excrement flinging members of the forum.
There’s plenty of excrement flinging going on from both sides of this arguement.
I come here to read and enjoy insight about NC State sports.
I can plenty of bs from both sides by picking the right/wrong tv station. That’s why I was looking for a less partisan place to spend an hour.