Barack, Hillary Compete

ANYTHING you can do I can do better seems to be the position both the Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton camps are taking as St. Patrick’s Day draws near and the push for Irish American support becomes heated.

It is noticeable that the Clinton camp last week was keeping very close tabs on every Irish dignitary who agreed to meet with Obama during the St. Patrick’s period. That includes Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Bertie Ahern. Rumor has it that the Clinton camp were less than pleased that Obama was on the invite list.

Then there is Geraldine Finucane, wife of slain civil rights lawyer Pat. She too will meet both candidates for president. No doubt many other Irish dignitaries over for the St. Pat’s festivities no doubt will too.

The Obama campaign has not been shy about reaching out. The fact that President Clinton’s former National Security Advisor Tony Lake is running foreign policy certainly gives them an in. Lake was a key figure in the Clinton White House in dealing with Northern Ireland, so he has many contacts and friends from those days.

Also working for the Obama campaign is Dublin native Samantha Power, an expert on genocide and Darfur who is able to share Irish expertise with the candidate.

Clinton, however, has one huge string to her bow this year, her award as ‘Person of the Year’ by Irish America magazine, an honor her husband and Senator Edward Kennedy have received in the past. It is a well deserved recognition for her work on the Irish peace process over many years.

In fairness to Obama, he is new to the issue but wasted no time last week. His first foreign policy statement after Iraq was about Northern Ireland, and it ended up as the lead story in both this newspaper and the Irish Echo, which was a clever bit of pre-St. Patrick’s Day timing.

No doubt with Lake at the helm on foreign policy it will be possible for the campaign to be proactive on Irish issues as the months progress. Then again, Clinton’s people, especially her husband, might know a thing or two about that particular issue as well.

Who Will Show Up for ILIR?

WHAT will be equally interesting is whether Clinton or Obama, or both, will show up for the lobbying day event that the Irish Lobby for Immigration reform is holding on March 7.

Last year Clinton was a huge hit at the rally and received a rapturous welcome, especially when she made clear for the first time that she was going to support the Kennedy/ McCain immigration bill.

Obama certainly has had a positive view of the same bill as well and could well find himself a very popular figure if he attends.

Senator John McCain, of course, also attended last year and as the leading Republican on the issue received an enormous ovation from the crowd.

Yet another GOP presidential candidate, Senator Sam Brownback, may also make an appearance. Brownback, from Kansas, is the darling of the conservative right and could be a dark horse if the grassroots turn out for him.

Richardson for VP Slot?

SO who would Clinton pick for vice president if she gets the Democratic nomination, as she is favorite to now?

Some of her backers now believe the obvious choice is Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico, who is also a candidate for the Democratic nomination.

The argument for Richardson is a good one. He is governor of a swing state, this one in the west, where Democrats have begun to make serious gains in several states, including Colorado and Montana.

He also has an impressive resume and is well liked by the Clintons. He served as UN ambassador under Bill Clinton and earned praise for his work on international issues such as North Korea and Darfur.

He is also Hispanic, as his mother was born in Mexico and, yes, he’s Irish too on is father’s side, having descended from a long time resident Boston family which includes Harringtons in their background.

The Hispanic angle could be very important for Clinton as many of the key western swing states have large Hispanic populations

The knock on Richardson is that he may have extra martial woman problems, but that remains to be seen. Certainly, given that the south is probably an electorally arid area for the Democrats no matter who they pick, looking west might make a lot of sense. If they do so Richardson is the obvious choice.

McAleese for U.S.

IRISH President Mary McAleese will be in New York in May to receive the Humanitarian Award from the American Ireland Fund at their annual gala dinner on May 3.

It is richly deserved for a woman who has worked very hard behind the scenes on issues such as Northern Ireland, and has also been an outspoken voice for justice in the Third World.

It is also expected that she will meet with many Irish undocumented when she is here to hear first hand the situation from them regarding the ongoing battle for legalization. All in all a trip to look forward to.