Can Barack Obama get a fair hearing from the American people?

Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush both had more substantive experience than Obama, a 1 term Senator and former state legislator, and they were bombs as president.

Can Obama get a fair from Americans? Will the race issue cut both ways? and will it cut so often that no American will be able to differentiate Obama the man for president with Obama the multimedia star and icon?

Amy Klobuchar is a United States Senator with about the same relative experience as Obama, yet she's no presidential contender. Ben Cardin has light years more experience than Obama, he's a freshamn Senator and he's not a presidential contender.

He's where he is because race is an issue, he'll get support because of it, and folks will be against him because of it.

Can he be judged on what he'll do rather than what he is?

 

I think Obama is a smart man with a lot of potential who needs a few years to refine his message and learn more about the political process and how to govern effectively. Obama knows this, which is why a year ago he was explicitly saying he would not run for president.

The East Coast media, however, got such a collective hard-on over the idea of a black man vs. a woman duking it out for the Democratic nomination that Obama got an extremely disproportionate amount of media coverage and buzz. He had to strike while the iron was hot, so to speak, so here he is running for president.

I, unfortunately, don't believe the country is ready for a black president. If Obama wins the nomination, I am almost positive he will not win the general election. Interestingly, Obama doesn't even poll that well amongst blacks. Al Gore, for instance, is a much more revered figure in Black America.

I think Obama has gotten more or less a free ride from the media thus far. I hear more about his good looks, his eloquence and his youth than about anything he's accomplished in the Senate or any of his plans as president.

 

Good looks? I think he looks like Alfred E. Newman...

 

Obama has one great, salient ace: He is the one candidate who has been in the past (but not recently) on record as wanting to bluntly, no-two-ways-about it move on from the 1960s. If he make that case to America, the citizens, especially young people, will listen. We all thought 9/11 would be one of those moments that changed our wiring, but it didn't…we went back, within months to fighting about the same old shit we've been fighting about since Nixon.

 

heyabbott,

I know this is really a gotcha thread, but I'm curious...which candidate do you support? Why?

 

Bloomberg cause he's Jewish

actually not a gotcha thread. I'll vote for Obama before I vote for Hillary. I think she's just as paranoid and controlling as Dick Cheney. I don't trust her.

 

WFW
It seems to me that picking up on that message of moving on would be an obvious thing for other candidates, when you look at the current low popularity standing of Bush and of Congress. It seems like none of the rest of them are smart enough to do that.

 

I fear that America is not ready for a black president. I know we say we are but in the end I just think there is too much of a racist under current still prevalent in many corners of this country and that will ultimately sink his ship before he even really has a chance to get out of the port.

I hope I am wrong, but I fear I am not.

 

The man has raised over $50 million in six months. SOMEBODY'S listening to him.

 

I think the above is a matter of opinion and not a matter of fact. I don't think the question as phrased is necessarily valid, especially if you're comparing Obama to, say, Giuliani, whose experience in foreign affairs is as poor as GWB's was when he came in.

Furthermore, having experience at f'ing up is no better than not having any experience. Kissinger's got more experience in screwing up wars than anyone, and he still doesn't get it!

Obama vs. Giuliani, advantage push (and that's giving Giuliani probably more credit than he deserves since he has demonstrable idiocy in foreign affairs.)

Obama vs. Clinton, advantage Obama (war vote, Hillary!)
Obama vs. Edwards, advantage Obama (war vote, John!)

No one else has a great shot at either party's nomination. So yeah, I think when all is said and done he will get a fair hearing.

 

Project one's own views onto the group much, Zags? (I kid, I kid)

 

I think you're right...maybe in 8 or 16 years as this country becomes browner, we might be ready. I like Obama, but I'm a realist...he's a youngish black guy with a name that sounds a hell of a lot like Public Enemy No. 1. Sadly, that's a lot for some people to overcome.
On the other hand, I live in a state that's on the verge of electing a 37-year-old Indian guy as governor -- 15 years after a professional racist made the runoff election. So there is hope.