Columnist George Will had some Valentine’s Day advice for Barack Obama: “If you get the girl up on her tiptoes, you should kiss her. The electorate is on its tiptoes because (he) has collaborated with the creation of a tsunami of excitement about him.” Standing in front of the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois, where Abraham Lincoln delivered his famous “House Divided” speech, Obama heeded Will’s advice last Saturday and began his much-anticipated bid for the presidency. Clever campaigning and media fascination aligned Obama’s developing political persona with nostalgia for past leaders.
Columnist Ruth Marcus called him the “truly Clintonian figure running for the Democratic nomination,” surely to the chagrin of that other Clinton. These appeals to historical sentiment are overt; but when contrasted to his perceived inexperience, many inevitably question the comparisons as premature.
Newton Minow, a former political advisor, proposed another president: “I thought, ‘I haven’t felt this same thing since Jack Kennedy.’”
Kennedy rallied a nation motivated by fear rather than hope. With Cold War paranoia dominating the collective conscience, the United States remained in the shadows of both domestic and foreign enemies. But amidst the turmoil, Kennedy optimistically implored the nation to “ask what you can do for your country.” With all due respect to NASA and the Peace Corps, Kennedy’s greatest contribution was the restoration of the belief in our broader identity amidst a period of tumultuous change.
Fast forward more than forty years: Barack Obama enters a presidential race in a country jaded by years of war and corruption. Issues like the Iraq war, Iran, nuclear North Korea, budget deficits, health care and immigration have exhausted Americans. To make matters worse, excessive partisanship and ethical lapses in both parties have exacerbated the situation. We are disgusted: According to a recent AP poll, 68 percent of Americans do not approve of the nation’s current path and desire change.
While polarized party identities have solidified extreme bases and isolated the average American, Obama evokes the unifying spirit of JFK by reminding us that “there is not a liberal America and a conservative America—there is the United States of America.” In our time of national pain, Obama has assumed the role of a political healer. Where many petty politicians find temporary victory in political strife, Obama challenges the petty “politics of cynicism” with the “politics of hope.” Obama’s motivation is non-partisan, appealing to ideologues in our nation’s time of need to abandon their trivial identities in favor of greater allegiances.
Pundits will counter my praise with two pedantic responses: that he’s both inexperienced and young. While contrived, these challenges do reflect the fact that, in this early stage of the campaign, Obama’s presidential hopes are painfully fragile. But these criticisms are short-sighted and far from insurmountable. For those who question whether he has enough experience to have good judgment, allow me to remind everyone that it was Obama who had the wisdom back in 2003 to oppose a war with widespread Congressional support. Arguments for the age issue succumb to historical potholes: JFK and Clinton utilized their youth to provide a fresh outlook on politics sorely desired by a wary electorate.
The greatest challenge for the senator is, to borrow a concept from physics, transforming that potential energy he has accumulated and redirect it into the kinetic energy of a tangible campaign. Obama’s political legacy will come down not to charisma but substance. Whether that happens or not is speculation; but from an immediate standpoint, Obama has already contributed to the national debate. Amidst the thousands cheering in Springfield, it became clear that Obama has gotten the United States excited about politics again by resuscitating our belief in our personal efficacy.
He might not be able to walk on water, but Barack Obama is messianic in his own right. In a time where faith in politics has flatlined, Obama has begun resurrecting our hopes for a better future, uniting citizens under a common cause—much like a young idealistic senator from New England did more than forty years ago.
(This is my weekly column that appeared in the Daily Californian. You can also read it here)
