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Barack Obama: He Completes Us

The Daily Show, taping before Obama's big speech last night, had to settle for this "biographical film."

For those who missed the actual speech:

I did think it was a little strange that after the speech, as the Obama and Biden families were gathering together on the stage, there was this over-the-top country song called "Only in America" playing.

Maybe it was one of those hedging-your-bets things. Like -- all right, we've just seen a black man nominated for president by one of the two major parties for the first time in history. Let's give them a little twang to take the sting out of it for those people who are a little freaked out. When Bruce Springsteen's not patriotic enough you've gotta find somebody in an actual cowboy hat.

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Tags: Television, politics, Music, Comedy

Posted by Joe Killian on Friday, August 29, 2008 at 9:09 am

What do you think?

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Melissa Westmoreland (imported)

August 29, 2008 - 10:31 am EDT

Am I the only one who remembers that song played when Bush accepted the GOP nomination at the Republican convention in 2004? So much for "change".... Obama can't even find a different song!

Joe Killian (imported)

August 29, 2008 - 11:39 am EDT

Apparently the song, recorded by Brooks and Dunn, was recorded in 2001 for the "Steers and Stripes" album and was used as the "official campaign song" by the president in 2004.

But from the video footage, it doesn't look like that song was playing when Bush came out at the 2004 RNC convention...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTHdhft42Ic&feature=related

or at the end of the speech, where we got The Star Spangled Banner...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0Ge4revRp0&feature=related

It might have played as things were winding up and we just can't see it in these clips, or could have played throughout the convention.

As Brooks and Dunn are apparently big Bush supporters and played on the eve of his last election, I'm curious how they feel about Obama using it. You've got to wonder if it was chosen just to stick it to Bush. I'm not a big fan of the song -- but even the most hardened of Bush acolytes would have to admit its lyrics seem more applicable to Obama than Bush.

I remember John Mellencamp asking John McCain to stop using his music earlier this year and of course there's the famous story of Reagan wanting (for reasons passing understanding) to use the upbeat "America has its head up its ass" anthem "Born In the U.S.A." but Springsteen putting the kibosh on it.