Thoughts on Obama's Wisconsin Victory
For people in Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania and other states which have yet to voice their opinion at the polls in this year's Democratic primary: a reflection of my experience of Barack Obama's campaign victory in Wiscosin...
The pundits and pollsters were saying this would be a close election here in Wisconsin. But I had trouble believing them because polls were at least a week old. Obama has a ground game and infrastructure in place here like none other seen before, so I knew he'd pick up about 10 points in the polls during that week. He made 2 visits to Wisconsin in the past couple years even before he announced his candidacy, so people here have had him on their radar screens for a while and quickly became excited about him once they got a closer look.
The exit polls showed that he won across the board demographically, even splitting the vote of Hillary's base of white women and winning among working class Democrats. That's daunting news for Clinton going into Texas and Ohio, where already in Texas he's almost pulled even before campaigning there and where he's picked up 10 points in Ohio in just last week. This race is all but over now, yet Hillary seems determined to split the Democratic party if necessary to get her way. The management of their respective campaigns has given people insight into the kind of Presidents each candidate would become.
I attended his rally in Milwaukee on Friday to experience it myself, and man was it packed with a powerful energy. I've never seen a candidate like Obama who inspires people to unite in participating in their government, not only in my lifetime, but as a U.S. history major for my bachelors, I can't think of any in history, not even Kennedy. That's why Wisonsinites saw through Hillary's hollow attacks against him...words are action, they accomplish a vital role in giving voice and cohesion to the grassroots movement for change that preceded the election.
People are excited to get involved in politics now, because Obama knows that action doesn't happen through partisan politics by people in Washington, but rather people in Washington are swayed by the energy of a movement in which their consitituents participate. For example, Abraham Lincoln was reluctant to take on the slavery issue but he later gave voice to the abolitionist movement that preceded him to bring about change. Likewise, Lyndon Johnson resisted the civil rights movement but was persuaded in his presidency by the movement that preceded him to take on the cause himself. Now our generation has the same opportunity to elect a President who symbolizes the grassroots movement to change the way America has been governed from Richard Nixon through George W. Bush.That's why this election is historic, not just because Obama could be the first black president, but that he could be one of the few presidents ever to unite a working majority of Americans to participate in their government. We've learned not to trust the system that sends politicians to Washington who will fail on their own to give us health care, end an unjust war, invigorate the economy with green collar jobs for alternative energy that will also improve our national security, and overcome the partisan politics that divides us as a nation. Instead, we've come to see that these goals will only be realized by us taking ownership of the task and getting to work in our government to bring the change we seek. Obama defines how he will govern as President by this principle.
That's what Hillary doesn't understand when she tries to persuade voters with her experience. She has the wrong kind of experience, the experience of a Washington bureaucrat using uncompromising partisan attacks that we've seen divide us and fail us for decades. Obama has the experience of bringing new people on board in a governing process for change that they help to shape themselves. And that is why first time voters, independents, and even many Republicans rally around him to unite in this movement.
Image 1: {http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=21598}
Image 2: {http://votesmart.org/blog/?cat=15}
3 comments:
I'm ready for this man to lead us. I buy the line that it is in fact time for CHANGE, and believe Obama can get us there.
He'll get the Democratic nomination, and will beat even McCain. I can't remember being this excited about an election in the three previous presidential elections I've voted in.
Thanks for sharing your observations Kevan, and peace from Longwood.
Nathan
Hey Kevan! Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts on the election. I always respect your opinion, even when I disagree! ;)
I like Dennis Kucinich. But since Dennis' chances of being elected president are about as good as my chances in getting elected Pope, I've actually been one of those undecided Democratic voters. The primary in Kentucky isn't until May 20th, so I have lots of time to decide.
Right now, I'm leaning toward Hillary. I'll give Obama this: he says nothing more eloquently than any politician I've heard in my lifetime...
I'd love to see an African-American president. I just want an African-American president who is qualified to hold the office. Maybe that's why even Maya Angelou is supporting Hillary?
Then again, Obama has Oprah on his side. Oprah--the woman who also gave the world 'Dr. Phil' and whose book club was severly undermined after she fell prey to James Frey and his fake memoir. Certainly, Oprah's accomplishments are nothing short of inspiring. I mean no disrespect to Oprah; she is a kind, giving, and beautiful person. Yet, it seems that Oprah DOES have a weakness for getting caught up in the latest fad rather than in that which is substantial and has staying-power.
In short, an endorsement from Oprah--while cool--doesn't stack up to an endorsement from Maya Angelou!
But I digress... :P
The main reason I can't vote for Obama in the Democratic primary is because I do not believe he is tough enough to win against the Republican slime machine in November.
In contrast, Hillary is one tough cookie. Her political enemies and her sleazy husband made her that way. But more important: not only is Hillary tough enough to win elections, I sense that she is also tough enough to govern a country that is going to need a tough leader to make tough decisions. It appears that tough times are headed for the USA in the upcoming years. With a quagmire in Iraq and Afghanistan, with an ever-deepening recession, with a suffocating energy crisis, and with a growing environmental catastrophe looming over us, it seems to me that we are going to need more from a leader than the ability to give stirring speeches.
I believe Obama is an exceptional senator. I wish him a long senate career. Maybe once he learns the ropes to law-making and figures out which way is 'up' in Wahsington, he could be a future Majority Leader in the Senate. Perhaps Obama could even be viewed as an even BETTER presidential candidate in a future election cycle?
However, for the time being, the stakes are too high to fall for the latest silver-tongued fad to suddenly appear.
I thank you again for your insights and for your blog. God's peace to you!
-- Chad
I'm definitely on board with Obama, and I feel your same excitement. I was amazed on Tuesday by his statement on race. I could give concrete examples, but suffice it to say that there was a refreshing air of authenticity there.
I think, however, that in order for Obama to win in November, those of us who are in this movement have to help articulate and debunk a couple of assumptions that our society (and the American political machine)has worked with for too long. They are,
1)That in foreign relations, "soft power" is not power, and
2)That the way American politics works is the only way it ever has worked and the only way it can work.
If either of those assumptions are accurate--and neither one of them is--then Obama is not the guy to lead our nation. But if Obama and his supporters can convince America that they are false, he will win in an unprecedented landslide: both in June and in November.
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