Obama Raises Almost $1 Million In New York Friday

Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) made a quick trip to New York on Friday and, before a couple of events were over, the charismatic presidential candidate's campaign had raised almost $1 million in Senator Hillary Clinton's (D-NY) back yard.

“We are here because the country is calling us,” Obama told an overflow crowd. “We are here because we are at a crossroads. Every 20 or 30 years, every generation, a moment comes when we have to look up and ask ourselves, ‘Are we prepared to meet the challenges that this generation faces?’ ”

Here's more on Obama being introduced at one event by Ted Sorensen, key adviser and speechwriter for a guy named John F. Kennedy.

Theodore C. Sorensen, one of President John F. Kennedy’s closest advisers, introduced Mr. Obama at one fund-raiser last night. He endorsed Mr. Obama’s candidacy, saying the senator was the only candidate he believed could restore the nation’s credibility around the world.

“It reminds me of the way the young, previously unknown J.F.K. took off,” Mr. Sorensen said in an interview, adding: “Obama, like J.F.K., is such a natural. He’s very comfortable with who he is.”

“I’m a New Yorker,” Mr. Sorensen said, “but I want to support the best candidate. I don’t dislike Senator Clinton, but I’m for Obama.”

That last sentence typifies how a lot of us in New York -- including yours truly -- are feeling these days. In addition to having great delivery of an inspirational message, Obama has been showing the true leadership in the Senate on the Iraq war and treatment of Veterans that Clinton has lacked.

I like Hillary Clinton. I believe she's been a good Senator for New York. And yet, on the things that matter to me in a presidential candidate, I'm leaning heavily toward Barack Obama -- and that's the symptom of a problem Hillary Clinton is going to have to face.