The Obama I Know
Not so long ago, the phone rang in my office. It was Barack Obama. For more than a decade, Obama was my colleague at the University of Chicago Law School.
He is also a friend. But since his election to the Senate, he does not exactly call every day.
On this occasion, he had an important topic to discuss: the controversy over President George W. Bush's warrantless surveillance of international telephone calls between Americans and suspected terrorists. I had written a short essay suggesting that the surveillance might be lawful. Before taking a public position, Obama wanted to talk the problem through.
In the space of about 20 minutes, he and I investigated the legal details. He asked me to explore all sorts of issues: the President's power as commander-in-chief, the Constitution's protection against unreasonable searches and seizures, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the Authorization for Use of Military Force and more.
Obama wanted to consider the best possible defence of what Bush had done. To every argument I made, he listened and offered a counter-argument. After the issue had been exhausted, Obama said that he thought the programme was illegal, but now had a better understanding of both sides. He thanked me for my time.
This was a pretty amazing conversation, not only because of Obama's mastery of the legal details, but also because many prominent Democratic leaders had already blasted the Bush initiative as blatantly illegal. He did not want to take a public position until he had listened to, and explored, what might be said on the other side.
This is the Barack Obama I have known for nearly 15 years -- a careful and even-handed analyst of law and policy, unusually attentive to multiple points of view.
The University of Chicago Law School is by far the most conservative of the great American law schools. It helped to provide the academic foundations for many positions of the Reagan administration.
But at the University of Chicago, Obama is liked and admired by Republicans and Democrats alike. Some of the local Reagan enthusiasts are Obama supporters. Why? It doesn't hurt that he's a great guy, with a personal touch and a lot of warmth. It certainly helps that he is exceptionally able.
But niceness and ability are only part of the story. Obama also has a genuinely independent mind, he's a terrific listener and he goes wherever reason takes him.
Those of us who have long known Obama are impressed and not a little amazed by his rhetorical skills. Who could have expected that our colleague, a teacher of law, is also able to inspire large crowds?
The Obama we know is no rhetorician; he shines not because he can move people, but because of his problem-solving abilities, his creativity and his attention to detail.
In recent weeks, his speaking talents, and the cult-like atmosphere that occasionally surrounds him, have led people to wonder whether there is substance behind the plea for "change" - whether the soaring phrases might disguise a kind of emptiness and vagueness. But nothing could be further from the truth. He is most comfortable in the domain of policy and detail.
I do not deny that skeptics are raising legitimate questions. After all, Obama has served in the Senate for a short period (less than four years) and he has little managerial experience. Is he really equipped to lead the most powerful nation in the world?
Obama speaks of "change", but will he be able to produce large-scale changes in a short time? What if he fails? An independent issue is that all the enthusiasm might serve to insulate him from criticisms and challenges on the part of his own advisers -- and, in view of his relative youth, criticisms and challenges are exactly what he requires.
Fortunately, the candidate's campaign proposals offer strong and encouraging clues about how he would govern; what makes them distinctive is that they borrow sensible ideas from all sides.
He is strongly committed to helping the disadvantaged, but his University of Chicago background shows; he appreciates the virtues and power of free markets. In this sense, he is not only focused on details but is also a uniter, both by inclination and on principle.
Transparency and accountability matter greatly to him; they are a defining feature of his proposals. With respect to the mortgage crisis, credit cards and the broader debate over credit markets, Obama rejects heavy-handed regulation and insists above all on disclosure, so that consumers will know exactly what they are getting.
Expect transparency to be a central theme in any Obama administration, as a check on government and the private sector alike. It is highly revealing that Obama worked with Republican (and arch-conservative) Tom Coburn to produce legislation creating a publicly searchable database of all federal spending.
Obama's healthcare plan places a premium on cutting costs and on making care affordable, without requiring adults to purchase health insurance. (He would require mandatory coverage only for children.) Republican legislators are unlikely to support a mandatory approach, and his plan can be understood, in part, as a recognition of political realities.
But it is also a reflection of his keen interest in freedom of choice. He seeks universal coverage not through unenforceable mandates but through giving people good options.
It should not be surprising that in terms of helping low-income workers, Obama has long been enthusiastic about the Earned Income Tax Credit -- an approach, pioneered by Republicans, that supplements wages but does not threaten to throw people out of work.
But Obama is no a compromiser; he does not try to steer between the poles (or the polls). "Triangulation" has no appeal for him. Both internationally and domestically, he is willing to think big and to be bold. He publicly opposed the war in Iraq at a time when opposition was unpopular.
He favors high-level meetings with some of the world's worst dictators. He would rethink the embargo against Cuba.
He proposes a $150 billion research budget for climate change. He wants to hold an unprecedented national auction for the right to emit greenhouse gases. He has offered an ambitious plan for promoting technological innovation, calling for a national broadband policy, embracing network neutrality, and proposing a reform of the patent system.
His campaign has spoken of moving toward "iPod Government" -- an effort to rethink public services and national regulations in ways that will make things far simpler and more user-friendly.
These are points about policies and substance. As president, Obama would set a new tone in US politics. He refuses to demonize his political opponents; deep in his heart, I believe, he doesn't even think of them as opponents. It would not be surprising to find Republicans and independents prominent in his administration.
Obama wants to know what ideas are likely to work, not whether a Democrat or a Republican is responsible for them. Recall the most memorable passage from his keynote address at the 2004 Democratic Convention: "We coach Little League [baseball] in the blue [Democratic-voting] states, and, yes, we've got some gay friends in the red states. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq, and there are patriots who supported the war in Iraq."
In his book The Audacity of Hope, he asks for a politics that accepts "the possibility that the other side might sometimes have a point". Remarking that ordinary Americans "don't always understand the arguments between right and left, conservative and liberal", Obama wants politicians "to catch up with them,"
After he received an email from a pro-life doctor, Obama recalls how he softened his website's harsh rhetoric on abortion, writing: "[T]hat night, before I went to bed, I said a prayer of my own -- that I might extend the same presumption of good faith to others that the doctor had extended to me."
In short, Obama's own approach is insistently charitable. He assumes decency and good faith on the part of those who disagree with him. And he wants to hear what they have to say. Both in substance and in tone, Obama questions the conventional political distinctions between "the left" and "the right". To the extent that he is attracting support from Republicans and independents, it is largely for this reason.
From knowing Obama for many years, I have no doubts about his ability to lead. He knows a great deal, and he is a quick learner. Even better, he knows what he does not know, and there is no question that he would assemble an accomplished, experienced team of advisers. His brilliant administration of his own campaign provides helpful evidence here.
But there is some fragility to the public fervor that envelops him. Crowds and cults can be fickle, and if some of his decisions disappoint, or turn out badly, his support will diminish. Some people think it might even collapse.
My own concern involves the importance of internal debate. The greatest American presidents (above all Lincoln and Roosevelt) benefited from robust dialogue and from advisers who avoided saying, "how wonderful you are," and were willing to say: "Mr President, your thinking about this is all wrong."
Because Obama himself is exceptionally able, and because so many people are treating him as a near-messiah, his advisers might be too deferential, too unwilling to question. There is a real risk here. But I believe that his humility, and his intense desire to seek out dissenting views, will prove crucial safeguards.
In the 2000 campaign, Bush proclaimed himself a "uniter, not a divider", only to turn out to be the most divisive President in memory. Because of his own certainty, and his lack of curiosity about what others might think, Bush polarized the nation. Many of his most ambitious plans went nowhere as a result.
As president, Barack Obama would be a genuine uniter. If he proves able to achieve great things, for his nation and for the world, it will be above all for that reason.
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Great post Professor Sunstein. This and your TNR letter to the editor have been invaluable. I hope our country sees this promise before it's too late. I think he may need to do much more than deflect her attacks and go negative in a big way. I don't know if he has it in him.
I'm sold but first he needs to serve as Hillary's vice president. After he gets gains experience and proves himself capable he could reconsider running for president at that time.
Barackanot is sold!
If experience is your deal, rather than judgement, can you think of Hillary's greatest foreign policy achievements?
When you realize that her "experience" is actually pretty thin, maybe judgment will become the dominant prerequisite in your analysis. Try reading Obama's books too. The deeper you look, the more impressed you'll become.
Phylo Hussein Sefiser
What more "experience" does Hillary have, quantifiably? 35 years? So she is 60, graduating from law school at 25, she is including 15 years at the Rose Law Firm in Little Rock, first lady of Arkansas, first lady of US, and 1 term US Senator. Heck, let's elect Laura Bush next... she can run for the senate in TX and be on the same bar as Hillary.
Bush Clinton Bush Bush... Clinton... Bush?
Hillary may not make it to the Presidency becos the GOP is just waiting to hit her with this:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=56868
Anyway, I think Barack would be a tremendous President. Thank u Cass R Sunstein for your opinion.
This statement deserves a response as condescending as your own. If you think you're scoring points with Obama's supporters, you're very mistaken. I'm more inclined to sit the election out that vote for Hillary when I see campaign drivel such as this.
I hope Senator Obama is smart enough NOT want to be associated with Clinton beyond being in the Senate together. He has a long career ahead of him and being Hillary's VP or having her as HIS VP will sure ruin him for life.
She has much to gain from having him on board, but has little to offer him (just what one would expect from a Clinton, wouldn't you say?)
Besides, the primary season is not yet over. The way it's going, Hillary may very well become so radioactive that anybody in their right mind will stay far away from her, experience and all.
Thank you for this...it was very informative. I just wish more people would make the decision for whom they will vote after reading items such as this rather than as a result of viewing SNL!
A blog praising BHO sans spin is rare on HP today, 3/5/08. Thanks for it.
Don't forget his stances on issues such as the internet and media censorship, which is very important topics in my field and just pile on to why i think Obama needs to be the next POTUS. We need someone who understands the changes that are happening in America and the world. Obama has taken stances that he thinks are correct even though they aren't good PC wise. Such as saying he would cut maned space exploration budget. That is something that isnt going to win him any votes but he believes that we need to cut some of it to be able to fund education more and that robotic space exploration is a better cost benefit. Bill Clinton attacked him for this a bit in Texas but i think Obama is right and it shows that he isnt just saying things to win votes.
NC4Obama - funny you bring up space robotics. I have to say, the day I heard Clinton say that, I just laughed, as did many Houstonians - like we are going to choose our President because of a promise to keep funding an antiquated and dangerous space exploration program designed more for "awe" than for real knowledge and advancement. Is it any wonder Obama won Houston by a landslide Tuesday?
This is one of the main arguments of agreement with the Clinton campaign. More people that intimately know and have worked with Obama need to come forward and tell their stories just like Cass did.
The MSM hasn't properly vetted Barack Obama yet, because when they do, the truth about his exceptionalism should sway any doubting voter's concerns over whether he's ready or not to be President. I'm afraid that Obama doesn't need America as much as America needs Obama so that we can move forward from the ditch that 20 years of Bush/Clinton/Bush has driven this nation into.
For another such look at someone who knows Obama and is an avowed Conservative, check out this article: http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/CarolPlattLiebau/2007/03/05/the_barack_i_knew?page=full&comments=true
You've only confirmed what so many of Obama's supporters believe to be true about him. It's not that we're fanatics or delusional, it's just that we know when a leader is "genuine " . He's managed to tap into something that the American people have been looking and hoping for. I only hope that the rest of the country will soon awaken and realize that he is our best hope and best choice to lead this country,
This should be mandatory reading for anyone who thinks they have Senator Obama figured out. Well done sir.
Thank you for this insight into Barack Obama's intelligence and character. It has been frustrating to watch the smear campaigns against him, and testimonials such as yours are an excellent way to counter them. I will ask everyone I know to read what you have written, and I hope many other Obama supporters will do the same.
Excellent post just in time to confirm our trust in Obama as the best leader !
Thank you, it was a great necessity to hear all you've said.
Well, he better get off that good faith and decency thing this time, Hillary has none of that. In point of fact, the electorate has none of that, and that will be the deciding factor. As a Black man, he will have to be far better than even the portrait you have given here.
Good point. He probably is too good for the electorate, let's hope he can soldier through in spite of this.
Let's hope. I think that his biggest asset is that he thinks. I am too old to worry about stances on this, that or the other. Whoever gets it is going to have to get it. The old ways have got to be put to rest.
Get off the "Black" man thing will ya! It's getting really old.
Thank you for this wonderful post. I have also been amazed by THE AUDACITY OF HOPE, and it demonstrates to me how essential personality, integrity, approach, and respectfulness is to progress in our political process. Obama can disarm many of whom we Democrats have previously identified as "the opposition" with his new approach and even lead both "sides" to unchartered common ground. I do hope our party is ultimately savvy to this invaluable asset.
Wonderful piece. I hope it gets spread far and wide. And I hope others will add their own testimonials to his brilliance.
Mr. Sunstein -- Thank you for this insight into Senator Obama's character. After a disheartening display at the polls yesterday, I have been discouraged since going to bed last night, thinking of a Bush v. Gore scenario with Clinton v. Obama. As someone who has been disillusioned with the process my whole life, Obama erodes that cynicism. You reinforce what I see... a truly brilliant and gift talent that our desparately nation needs.
I felt the same.
This is an excellent post. It is clear why Obama is our best choice for president of the US.
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