More Words about Obama

Thoughts on the Time cover. A) Barack Obama is ridiculously photogenic. B) Time is hilariously covering their bases with the asterisk. C) Barack Obama is ridiculously photogenic. Did anyone see the articles on Politico and the Times about the senator's visit to the House? The funniest part to me was how Rep. Robert Brady (D-Pa) invited him to visit. As Jameil put it, it was totally teenage-girl-like: *twirling hair* sooo... Obama you wanna like come over and stuff? And this shot from the Times. Tell me this man doesn't just look presidential. Both articles detail how he's able to generate excitement amongst Dems (including Clinton supporters), Republicans, and even schoolchildren. He's presented evidence that he is a uniter, not a divider, and I simply can't imagine Hillary (or anyone) getting the same reception. To be honest, though I'm a huge supporter (and will tell anyone who asks — and some who don't — that he's awesome), I find myself bemused by his rockstar status. When Barack enters a room, old ladies weep, grown men fall to their knees, and crying babies are silenced. He's ... royalty. It's weird, and not really what being a president is all about. On the other hand, personal charisma goes a long way. I wouldn't be surprised if, when he takes the presidency, he's able to just dazzle a few people into doing what he wants. Feckless panderer Wolf Blitzer interviewed him on CNN, and Obama addressed what is my personal biggest hope for his presidency: bridging the gap between the U.S. and the global community. Our reputation has been damaged so greatly in the last eight years, and from the beginning of the race, I have been certain that Barack is the only person who can fix what Bush broke. Hillary made it clear that she was prepared to continue the current policy of not talking to people who don't do what we like. Obama, on the other hand, has said "The notion that somehow not talking to countries is punishment to them — which has been the guiding diplomatic principle of this administration — is ridiculous." In the Blitzer interview, he also pshaws the idea of a Obama/Clinton ticket, which is an interesting response to the way Clinton, just a few months ago was pushing the possibility of a Clinton/Obama ticket. In fact, if you'll recall, at the time, he said: "I don't know how somebody who's in second place is offering the vice-presidency to someone who's in first place." Now that he is definitively in first place, he's returned to a more gracious phrasing — that has a slight dig in it, if you listen carefully — "[I]t would be presumptuous of me at this point ... to somehow suggest that she should be my running mate." Remember those diamond commercials where the woman gets a ring from her sweetheart, and is all breathy-like, "I love this man! I love this man!" That's sort of what this is like.