Hey, folks, this is Matt Neistein. I sit on the Trib’s editorial board, and we’re setting up a thread for each candidate as we prepare to release our endorsements for the state primary online tomorrow (that’s Friday, Jan. 11, for the calendar-challenged) at 3 p.m. So make sure you swing back through tomorrow afternoon to check those out, and let us know what you think in here.
In reality, Obama doesn’t have that much less experience than Hillary does. The problem he faces, and it’s kind of interesting, is that many Americans, especially those on the right, will have a hard time with a president Barak Hussein Obama. This man is outstanding in almost every respect, and is kind of refreshing to listen to. He’s someone that can energize people.
Obama does indeed inspire us. Thank you, Tampa Tribune Editorial Board, for endorsing Senator Barack Obama!
America is ready for a change and our youth is playing a big role in changing American politics. Barack Obama is the right candidate for the Democratic nomination!
Memo to bavarialand: We are not counting on the racist population to vote for him. We will have more than 52% without you because what is remarkable about Senator Obama is that he has already attracted enthusiastic volunteers from all walks of life, all political parties, all ages, all races, religions and income levels. He will unite and lead our country!
That’s quite an argument, there, Bavarialand: that too many Americans wouldn’t vote for a black president, so you can’t support him because not enough other people would vote for him. But isn’t that the same thing as saying you won’t support him because he’s black?
I think you underestimate America and Americans. We have moved beyond our racist past, and skin color is no longer any more an issue than eye color. We have a black Secretary of State; we’ve had a black Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; we’ve had two black Supreme Court Justices...it’s not an issue. Look at Iowa—whitest place you ever saw—and Senator Obama won by a landslide. Look at New Hampshire—even whiter than Iowa—and Senator Obama still got 16,000 more votes than John McCain. The only thing keeping racism alive as a political issue is the sentiment you express: that others’ perceived racism is reason enough to continue voting the way that a bona fide racist would vote.
What’s most remarkable about the Democratic race is that race and gender aren’t issues to voters at all. Twenty years ago, the national debate might have revolved around “Wouldn’t it be GREAT to actually have a president who is BLACK?” versus “No; presidents should be white.” But today, voters aren’t thinking about Senator Obama’s race any more than Senator Clinton’s gender. Senator Obama’s supporters support him because they share his values and believe he will restore Washington’s compromised ethics, improve the lives of working Americans, and regain our standing in the world. The Iowa and New Hampshire voters cast their votes for him because of what he stands for, and they didn’t give his name or skin tone a second thought. If the only thing impeding your support is your perception that others would not do so along with you, I hope you’ll be as overjoyed to learn that you’re wrong about that as I am to tell you so.
It’s hard to find out anything about Obama except on his own or his opponents web sites which aren’t unbiased sources. He seems to draw followers but they don’t seem to be able to explain him any better. They refer you to his web site.
my opinion of Obama is based on conversations with people aged 40+
the youth of America is easily persuaded by charisma and likability, rarely do they vote on what is best for the nation.
rarely does anybody vote on what is best for the nation.. they vote for what is best for the nation in their point of view
I’m young and I will not vote for some bouncing clown on stage, I’ll vote for what I think is best.
oh, and you should try not to generalize people too much. Makes you look very naive.
Please lay off the young voters, friend. The 40+ crowd (the people who voted for Nixon in record numbers) aren’t in any better position to know what’s best for the country than those of us who have to live the rest of our adult lives with the consequences of what our next president does. And Senator Obama doesn’t have any less foreign-policy experience than the mayor of New York, his fellow senators running for president, or the governors in the race. With the single exception of GHW Bush, our last five presidents have been governors with no foreign-policy experience. What’s more important is that the next president be a good person, an intelligent person, a person who favors policies that are best for America on all of the issues of the day, and a person that we trust to get it right when the issues of tomorrow arise. Of everyone in the race, I think Obama is the most intelligent, most sincerely dedicated to improving the everyday lives of Americans and our standing abroad, and in the best position to re-unify our fractured nation. No other candidate comes close.
Well put, UCL. Obama certainly does come across as intelligent, and he’s got the degrees to back it up. Now Bush went to Harvard and Yale but, due to his public speaking skills, didn’t come across as intelligent. In politics, image is everything.
You’re right about foreign policy experience—it’s overrated. Giuliani has almost none and, as you say (and I’ve posted elsewhere), governor’s are where we get most our presidents from (at least recently).
i neither like nor dislike Obama, i feel he does not have the experience to run a nation of 320 million with the foreign and domestic problems America currently has. RACE plays no part in my liking or disliking a political candidate.
Dave
Careful there Dave. You start this up and the Nazi Party may make you remove your Regional Director patch from that sharp looking uni
Why is there such a deafening silence from most candidates
on the urgent issue of illegal aliens? There is no Hispanic
vote because only Americans are allowed to vote here, and
they became Americans by speaking English. Secure our
borders!
Why is there such a deafening silence from most candidates
on the urgent issue of illegal aliens? There is no Hispanic
vote because only Americans are allowed to vote here, and
they became Americans by speaking English. Secure our
borders!
Probably because business wants it that way, so the candidates have to be careful as they want that money. As we know, “the business of America is… business”.
