The Associated Press
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Posted 35 weeks 2 days ago
Are voters afraid to support Barack Obama?
After Super Tuesday, Barack Obama seems to be holding his own in the campaign battle with Hillary Clinton. But novelist Michael Chabon thinks Obama should be running away with the race -- and would be, if only voters weren't so cynical.
"In a better world, people tell me, in theory, sure, having a president like Barack Obama sounds great," Chabon writes. "But not, you know, for real. Not in the base, corrupt, morally spent, toxic and reeling rats' nest that we like to call home. Things are so bad we just can't afford to waste our votes, people tell me, on some fantasy super-president with magical powers."
Thoughts
I agree that persuasion can
Submitted on February 7th, 2008 by bcsfamilyI agree that persuasion can be in the eye of the beholder, but the ranking comes from a third-party that has been doing the rankings with the same methodology for years. Obama didn't complain that he was the third or fourth most liberal in 2006, so crying foul when he's out there at the end of the spectrum in 2007 rings hollow.
The bottom line: whether he's ranked #1 or #4 or #5, he's very, VERY liberal and inarguably to the left of Hillary Clinton. Is that what the country should have at a time that it is so closely divided? (As I said in my first post, I wouldn't want the most conservative senator in the White House either.)
Republicans Like Obama
Submitted on February 6th, 2008 by AnonymousThe majority of Republicans I know would be more willing to back Obama than McCain. However, if it came to Hillary vs. McCain most say they would vote McCain. They seem to think that he breaks with the old guard and offers up an opportunity for fresh thinking.
Also, I think that white America is also tired of being told that an african american will never be president. I think that many would turn out to vote for Obama to show that they aren't racist, and to help bridge the divide between black/white America. You can look to Obama's wins in some pretty predominately white states last night as proof that Americans are lining up to support Obama.
The question is whether Hillary is better at getting tried and true democrats to the polls. She might be, but it might hurt the Dems more in the long run as independents step up and choose McCain over Hillary in 2008.
Obama's probably not the most liberal senator
Submitted on February 6th, 2008 by JoelCheck the methodology of that ranking.
Two thoughts:
* Trying to rank things like "most liberal" is like trying to quantify "most delicious." Sure: You can quantify elements of it, but you can't really catch it -- it's all about perspective.
* That said, he might still be too liberal for you. But IMHO he's anything but an extremist.
It's really very simple
Submitted on February 6th, 2008 by bcsfamilyNational Journal's ranking of Obama as THE most-liberal senator should give all voters pause (just as we should be wary of elevating THE most-conservative senator; the country doesn't need extremism at his hour).
But the fact is that Republicans would rather Obama be the president (if we HAD to have a democrat). Sure he's more liberal than Hillary, but he comes without the baggage, the untrustworthiness, the Clinton-fatigue, the dishonesty, the scandals, the duplicity, the lack of principles, etc.
But we Republicans are actually pulling for Hillary to win the nomination because her baggage, her untrustworthiness, the Clinton-fatigue, her dishonesty, her scandals, her duplicity, her lack of principles, etc., give McCain or Romney a fighting chance in a year that favors democrats.
So we're pulling for Hillary now, but if the crystal ball tells us there's no way a Republican can win this year, then we'd rather have an inspirational figure in the White House than a divisive force who will polarize us on day one.