The Obama Opportunity

There are opportunities we regard with interest, even with longing, that it ultimately seems more comfortable to turn down. We turn them down because of their unfamiliarity, because we are afraid of the risks involved, or because a more conventional path once seemed inevitable and we had already resigned ourselves to it.

These are the decisions we regret the most.

Right now, progressive American voters have an opportunity to nominate a presidential candidate who signifies a repudiation of the politics of war, entitlement, and dour incrementalism. Barack Obama is a unifying figure; his erudition and charismatic intellect -- profound nourishment after the barren Bush years -- make him the candidate best equipped to represent us to the world, but it's the sense that his proclamations of empathy and hope are authentic that draws crowds of 13,000, 18,000, and 20,000 people and causes his poll numbers to surge wherever voters become familiar with him -- while his opponent's numbers stagnate.

The loudest arguments against Obama are that he does not offer substantive policy proposals and has relatively little experience. The former argument is a lazy one; his policy proposals are available here, and they are as comprehensive as those of his opponent. The latter argument is deceptive. Abraham Lincoln, JFK, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush: all relatively young presidents who defeated older, more experienced opponents. Experience or lack thereof is no real indication of how a president will fare in office; character and intelligence are.

At that extraordinary UCLA rally for Obama yesterday, Maria Shriver, Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, and Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg urged Americans not to vote out of race or gender allegiance. No woman owes Hillary Clinton a vote just as no black person owes Barack Obama one. We have a galvanizing, unifying candidate who's adored by the world running against a dull, divisive one who's disliked by a sizable chunk of our own electorate. A vote for Clinton is a vote for the incremental politics we've known for decades, but a vote for Obama is a profound statement of desire for reconciliation not just with the world but amongst ourselves.

There won't likely be another opportunity to have such a figure represent America anytime soon. We would do well to take it while we have the chance.

Comments

[pbarba1969]

You know what the best part is if Hllary wins, you can count on the Obamaista's to stay home because their candidate didn't win. Thats the difference between the Hillary and Obama supporters. Obama supporters are willing to see the country go down in flames if their guy doesn't win while Hillary's want to do what's best for the country and if even if Huillary doesn't get the nod, we are determined that either of our candidates are better than the repubs....

[Serfie]

Typical Obamanista

No positive argument for Obama's policies

Mindless drivel about how he is the "hope and change" candidate.

Attack Hillary.

The worse thing about Obama's candidacy is the lack of intellectual depth of his supporters.

They make George Bush supporters look like intellectual giants.

[RabidRightRebel]

While I support Obama, the one thing that I worry about is whether or not he will sack all the loyal Bushies. He has talked a lot about moving away from partisan politics towards politics and policies based on competence, but we will never get there if we leave a bunch of incompetent Republican hatchet men in positions of power in the government.

So the question that I would like answered by Obama is will he resolve to rid the government of all loyal Bushies and replace them with people who actually are competent in their jobs or will he compromise with the Republicans and let them keep their jobs.

[Boadicea]

Amen!