I know tis almost election day and I think you should vote... Particularly for Giannoulias in illinois for Treasurer, but this just came up after reading a few responses to why Obama should not run in 2008.
That being said Obama should run in '08, if for no other reason than because politics is a game and you have to go when you have momentum. If a democrat wins on 08 and Obama is not on the ticket he can't run in '12 because the democrat from his party is going for re-election. In '16 the vice president would be the presumptive nominee which would leave a bruising primary that he may or may not win. If he skipped that race and the Democrat lost in '16 then maybe he would be set for 2020. Of course by that point he would have spent 16 years in the Senate, practically a deathwish for someone running for President (and part of the reason why all the talk about John McCain is nonsensical.) Not to mention that no one remains a superstar for 16 years, at some point you have to choose a side. Factually, Obama is a very smart man who can gain a grasp on the issues but he is not the best politician from any account. He is fond of the quote "Politics ain't beanball" but does he have to stomach for the dirt and knives that come out as you go for the top. Momentum and popularity can deflect a great deal of those things and have him only have to survive a couple of barrages instead sustained attacks, which means he's got to run...
Everyone talks about is Obama ready? Black folks are funny in that way because we are protecting or young star. But that is the mark of greatness, the reason people believe in Obama is that since 1968 America has been Searching for Bobby Kennedy. Somebody young, energetic, with a mix of pragmatic optimism who would lead America to answer its call to greatness. The country has been so thirsty for it they fell for the cheap reincarnations where the rhetoric did not match the reality because the presentation was good, but as they say, the truth sounds different, and to most Americans Obama seems the closest to Bobby. His final challenge, and a necessity if he runs is to break free of the mold of the Washington insiders and embrace the big ideas and grand plan as it seems like he has in the Audacity of Hope. Honestly, if you ever go back and listen to Bobby Kennedy talk then tell me when was the last time you have heard anyone speak like that where you believed them? Where their actions backed it up... and even more when you weren't afraid that the world would destroy them.
That is the legacy of the 60s in my opinion. America lost its innocence and lost its way. The deaths of JFK, MLK, Bobby Kennedy, and Malcolm X showed that it was not enough to be strong and powerful and stand up to the system. That you could be destroyed, you could be silenced, and since then there has been a gap in greatness. After that point and the fiascos of Vietnam and Watergate the best and the brightest turned their energies to making money which led to the corporate cultures and excesses that took over the 80s and 90s, and have led to the moral vacuum that is public life in the 21st century. There is hardly shock anymore when candidates are caught on youtube being the assholes that they are and the general lack of believablity is choking the democracy. It is strictly amazing how many people truly believe that the Republicans will keep control of Congress on Tuesday because the voting machines are fixed, yet we take it because no one really believes that one party is better than the other.
But then there is Obama. The power is that correct or not people who generally hate politicians BELIEVE IN HIM... The cynics are working overtime to prove that he is shady, and just like the rest with a slightly better rap, and it all may be true, but right now the people believe, and America needs that... Even in 2008...
Plus he can win... The country is so polarized that states like New York, Illinois, California, Massachuttes, and Pennsylvania are definitely going Blue. In the current climate he has a stronger possiblity in Ohio and with Bush leaving Florida this year the fix is not in like it once was. Finally in Michigan, Virginia, Nevada, even Iowa are possiblities particularly given that Obama isn't Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton Black. If he pulls Mark Warner as VP it is VERY doable. Harold Ford has shown how much headway you can make with a well run campaign so don't count it out...
Run Obama Run
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