How Should Barack Obama Respond to Hillary Clinton’s Plagiarism Charge?

February 18, 2008
Category: The Situation Room

February 18 was a day when the Hillary Clinton campaign finally got the chance it vwas waiting for: It tried to take advantage of one of the rare “mistakes” ever committed by Barack Obama since the candidate launched his bid for president of the United States.In an interview with Politico on Monday, Feb. 18, Howard Wolfson, the Clinton campaign’s communications director, accused Barack Obama of “plagiarism” in the speech he gave in Milwaukee last Saturday evening. Barack was, in effect, seen using a number of words or phrases similar to those used in a campaign speech by his friend Deval Patrick during his 2006 run for the office of Massachusetts governor.

Even though Barack Obama has explained that he and Governor Patrick have a tradition of bouncing ideas off each other, and admitted that he should have specified that the format of the passage indicted was indeed inspired by his bouncing ideas off of his friend, the Hillary Clinton campaign, of course, have pounced on this “mistake” and seen it as a chance to finally crush their Democratic rival ahead of the Wisconsin primaries.

The real question, however, is the following: Did Barack Obama commit plagiarism?

Technically, perhaps: it is of good taste to always give credit to those from whom we borrow ideas, especially phrases that are so very easily traceable.

But, in reality, no: the original author not only knew Obama was going to use his words, authorized Obama to freely do so and declined any type of public acknowledgment. This seems to be what Deval Patrick and Barack Obama agreed upon, at least based on the various reports and statements that have been issued so far by the media and Patrick and Obama themselves.

Thirdly: even in the original Deval Patrick’s speech, Patrick is not actually mentioning the names of those who had used the words that he himself was quoting either (JFK, MLK, etc.). Yet, he was not accused of plagiarizing those great names from America’s past. Since Barack Obama had already been referring to those great lines and names in his campaign speeches in one way or another, the “plagiarism” charge seems to be a bit exaggerated, and, rather, shows how desperate Hillary Clinton is for arguments to use against her rival. And when analyzed closely, the only thing Obama seems to have really borrowed from Patrick is the rhetorical use of the “just words” phrase as inserted between his own quotes of JFK, MLK and others.

Obama’s omission to credit his friend was therefore what one might call an innocent mistake, especially when one looks at the very similar campaign context he is faced with: Hillary is accusing Obama of being just about “words” and rhetoric, exactly as the then-Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey (R) accused Deval Patrick of being in their gubernatorial confrontation in 2006, which Patrick won by the way.

What should Barack Obama’s response be, then? Obama should:

Do exactly as he has begun doing, that is, admit the mistake as totally innocent based on the clear political affinity he and Deval Patrick have had for a number of years, with him helping him with his political speeches and Patrick returning the favor during this campaign.
Explain that all politicians, at one point or another, do borrow ideas from one another without always citing their source. This is common in politics and it is also common after a while for speech coincidences to occur unintentionally. Hillary Clinton herself, in her attempt to steal some of Obama’s rhetoric, used several expression from Obama’s repertoire (“fired up and ready to go,” “Yes, we can!”, “Yes we will”, etc.). Even if this borrowing was very obvious, Obama did not accuse her of plagiarism, because he is trying to run a dignified campaign.
Seethe through Hillary Clinton’s speeches to find areas where she may have also used other people’s lines without giving them credit, and blast these not only on the campaign trail, but also in ads in the upcoming states.
Continue to use the incriminating lines over and over again, so as not to appear “guilty” in the eyes of the public. But this time, he should use the lines in a way that shows it is a quote of his friend. One way to do this is to introduce his “just words” lines with formulas such as, “Just as my dear friend Deval Patrick responded to his critics in 2006, critics who claimed he had only words to offer, I have to say that I disagree with Hillary Clinton. That’s why I have to ask her whether it was just words when throughout our history, men of vision declared “We hold these truths to be self-evident”? Was it just words when they said that “all men are created equal?” Was it just words when they said, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself,” “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,” “I have a dream.” Were these just words, Hillary?”
Be ready with an answer to this charge during the Thursday, Feb. 21 debate, as there is no doubt Hillary Clinton or the journalists will bring this accusation back into the debate. What Obama does with it could well determine the results of the Texas, Ohio and Pennsylvania primaries, especially if she manages to win in Wisconsin on this Tuesday. The story must lose its legs immediately and the only way Obama deflate it is to be smart about it. He must be ready with several counter charges of his own during the debate that will drown Hillary Clinton’s attacks under a barrage of examples of what she borrowed, not only from his speeches, but also from the speeches of others.

Obama should not shy away from using these very effective 2006 Deval Patrick lines in response to Hillary Clinton’s insinuations. The “just words” line is the perfect answer to Hillary Clinton attempt to kill the American dream that Obama is trying to rekindle. What Obama should do, therefore, is simply to acknowledge the borrowing and continue to use his friend’s words as suggested above. This way, he will be able to deflate the charge very quickly and pull the rug of personal destruction from under Hillary Clinton’s feet.

Dr. Daniel Mengara
The author is an Associate Professor of French and Francophone Studies at Montclair State University (New Jersey). He is also the leader of Bongo Doit Partir (Bongo Must Go), a movement of expatriated Gabonese citizens opposed and seeking an end to the 40-year-old dictatorial regime of Omar Bongo in Gabon.

Comments

2 Responses to “How Should Barack Obama Respond to Hillary Clinton’s Plagiarism Charge?”

Frank from Holland on February 20th, 2008 10:35 am

Hmmm. It sounds a lot like the advice given in a Clear and Present Danger.
“Listen, if they asked you if he’s your friend,” you should steer into him, say, “No, he’s my best friend.
Joe Black on February 24th, 2008 7:40 pm

so, what do you propose, friend?
Any suggestions for Mr. Obama?

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