“My Thoughts on” Barack Obama

By: A Collaboration | Cover Art by Robbie Conal | March 19, 2008 | Politics

Jeffrey Clarke Grossman

Malibu Magazine does not fit the mold of nor do we pride ourselves on being a political medium. However, as much of America, we are rivited by the recent events surrounding mainstream politics. More specifically by the close race for the democratic presidential primary.. Even more specifically by Barack Obama. We feel that as a man and as a candidate, Barack Obama embodies the spirit of this magazine. And by that we mean a youthful and creative look at the world wrapped in a very unique and provocative package. He embodies our ideals as a publication in the importance of rising above boundaries to promote change and propogate hope, as well as the embodiment of a genuine and powerful stance, spirituality and voice for change. At any rate, he has our vote, and we’ve asked various individuals with both public and private lives, to chime in and give their opinion of Barack Obama.
-Jason Rouse

Rev. Jesse Jackson, Civil Rights Activist and Two-Time Presidential Candidate
“All of my heart leans toward Barack,” Jackson said. “He is a next-door neighbor literally. I think he’s an extension of our struggle to make this a more perfect union.”

My thoughts on Barack Obama
Written by Joxer Daly

What is it that compels millions of young voters to support Barack Obama’s race for the Presidency? 

Is the notion of a brilliant, articulate, utterly decent candidate enough to inspire a heretofore apathetic group to vote?  Not just vote but really participate.

Or is it the prospect of a compassionate, worldly alternative to the most belligerent, aggressively ignorant administration in our lifetime?

Is it the promise of a principled and incorruptible response to the world’s problems in contrast to Hillary Clinton’s history of political expediency as evidenced by her votes on the Iraq war, provocative
measures toward Iran, the Patriot Act, and (if we are to count eight years as First Lady among her claimed thirty-five years of experience), her support of NAFTA, her reticence during the Rwandan genocide, and her disastrous attempt - however well-meaning - to revamp the health care system?

Is it the allure of a young, indefatigable champion of human rights and opportunities contrasted with the notoriously hair-triggered temper that comes with John McCain’s Guinness Record-attempt to be our oldest elected President as he continues to beat the drum - sadly and without foundation - for a disastrous and illegal war?

Could it be a collective sense that an Obama Presidency is the best
way to repair what we’ve done to ourselves and others?

Yes.

George Clooney
"He possesses the one quality that you cannot teach and you can’t learn. … He is a leader. He walks into a room and you want to follow him somewhere, anywhere. And … I’ve only seen that a couple of times in my life.”

My thoughts On Barack Obama
Written by Jamie Brisick

Above and beyond Obama on the home front is Obama the American PR vehicle on the global front. We’ve spent the last eight years worsening our already dubious reputation abroad. Bush’s imperialistic, cowboy demeanor has perpetuated the ugly, greedy, repulsive, entitled American stereotype, and that’s not even taking into account his political moves. And we elected him in for a second term.  Obama--in name, color, genealogy, speech and mannerism--will at least send the message that we’re not completely out of our minds, that we’re trying to put things right.

Oprah Winfrey
“The reason I love Barack Obama is because he speaks to the potential inside of every one of us. Each one of us has a calling and a potential here on Earth to do the good and the great thing. He knows that.”

My thoughts on Barack Obama
Written By Jordan Tappis

“Every generation needs a new revolution.”

--Thomas Jefferson to Gouverneur Morris, 1879

I was just a young boy when Bill Clinton took office but I distinctly remember my parents talking about the importance of charisma and intelligence when it came to politics.  My mother taught us that good judgment always trumps experience and that a worthy presidential candidate should be comprised of virtue and courage. In her eyes, experience wasn’t synonymous with preparedness. With that in mind, mom certainly understood the value of a good politician because she understood the complexity of the office. She was excited about Bill Clinton. She believed in him. He was the perfect blend of political savvy, fierce determination and honor.

Then came the scandals, a pair of careless mistakes that took the spotlight away from an otherwise successful 2-term presidency. Bill Clinton’s sexual indiscretions became a temporary black eye on the face of American politics.  A shame really, but in an environment paradoxically obsessed with values, the Commander In Chief of a nation cannot afford to make such frivolous mistakes.  Bill Clinton may have been a great president as far as policy accomplishments are concerned, but the collateral damage from his promiscuity and subsequent falsifications on national television may have railroaded the Clinton family’s diabolical 16-year plan, to spend a total of 16 years in office.  In one fell swoop Bill’s public credibility was forever crushed, but the fallout of having lied to the American people seemed to have fallen hard on the shoulders of his wife who unflinchingly stood by his side throughout the embarrassing fiasco.  Hillary Clinton became a pincushion for the pundits, though she had been involuntarily placed in an impossible situation. What the Clinton’s did not know, what nobody could have possibly imagined, was that 7 years later, Bill’s colossal fuck up may have been one of the factors that set the current conditions for the first viable black presidential candidate in the history of American politics.  Sadly, Bill Clinton’s tactical error of lying to the American public on National television may very well have paved the way for George Bush Jr. to become the President of the United States. The bold faced lie telling of two consecutive administrations swung the door wide open for an interesting, honest, savvy politician with a thirst for change.

Jeffrey Clarke Grossman

So lets talk about Barack Obama.  The Democratic Party seems to have found the one candidate with the intelligence and charisma to unite and inspire a completely beat down and uninspired America. Senator Obama’s quest for change is infectious and his oratory skills have helped to mobilize the youngest block of American voters, historically the most difficult demographic to reach.  His ability to motivate young people is unparalleled in my lifetime and it seems, as Sen. Ted Kennedy put it, “It is time again for a new generation of leadership. A president who appeals to the hope of those that still believe in the American dream,” A direct reference to Sen. Kennedy’s late brother, president John F. Kennedy.

It turns out that Americans really do want change in Washington. In fact, they want it so bad they are willing to put their money where their mouths are.  Over the course of the last year, Barack Obama has built the largest grass roots Presidential election campaign of all time.  Over one million people have donated to the campaign and the numbers are growing exponentially.  Not only has he raised far more money; he is the only candidate that has accomplished this goal without the help of corporate lobbyists or PAC’s.  This means that if he’s sworn into office next November, he doesn’t have to start returning favors day one; he can start rebuilding our country day one. 

Hillary Clinton, however, will not go down without a fight. She has repeatedly called the Obama campaign “inspired but empty.” She has attacked Obama vigorously going so far as to make thinly veiled, vague and inaccurate inferences, stating that Obama wasn’t a Muslim, “as far as she knew,” even thought she knows full well that Barack and his family are and have been practicing Christians for years. As writer Joe Donnelly recently wrote in a column for the LA Weekly, “[Hillary] Clinton, is no longer employing the kitchen-sink strategy; she’s employing the crapper strategy – take it all and turn it to shit.” Her tactless remarks play on the weakness of Americans who don’t follow politics as closely as others, those who read headlines instead of editorial columns. And her tactics have been working.  In some states where Obama’s lead has started to diminish but in the majority of the country the low down dirty game of mud slinging politics the Clinton’s continue to play has only fueled Obama’s momentum, a campaign rooted in positively, honor and virtue.  The Clintons seem to feel comfortable on the offence, but Obama seems to have found his stride by deflecting these attacks and keeping the focus of his campaign on the firmly established policy issues he’s developed. He refuses to grapple with Bill and Hillary, and while some view his position as cowardice, most Americans are smart enough to ignore the calculated media war expertly planned by the Clintons and mastered when they themselves were on the defense.

Do you want a candidate who would rather split the Democratic Party - which could lead to the election of John ‘100 year war’ McCain - than voluntarily back down, even if the race is clearly lost? Or do you want a progressive visionary with a clean record who is ready and eager to turn this country around and start charting a new course? Barack Obama is an inspired symbol of forward trajectory for America and a positive shot in the arm for a great nation with a severely damaged reputation. It’s time for a new era of American leadership. A sea change of gigantic proportions is on the horizon. 

Halle Berry, Tony Award Winning Actress
“I so love what he stands for and respect him so much that when I met him, I was a bit shaky,” she told the Philadelphia Daily News, which asked if she’d endorse him for President. “Oh, my God, yes! I’ll do whatever he says to do. I’ll collect paper cups off the ground to make his pathway clear.”

My thoughts on Barack Obama
Written By Harry Gesner

I hope I’m not alone in taking this point of view, especially within my age group, which I’ll happily ignore because if you manage to reach it, people tend to think you’re delusional.

I’m not delusional about this, however. I am very concerned about world peace and our present situation. This administration is controlled by oil and the military industrial complex that has lied us into a war with two sovereign nations. Unforgivable, considering the present unsolvable consequences.

I think we need a complete break with the past and a president who has no visible ties to the people who profit from war or oil.

God knows I love and respect women, and to have a highly intelligent one for president is a splendid idea- its about time.

But it’s not enough! We need someone who can more easily cross racial and religious barriers and enter into a worldwide diplomatic dialogue. Someone who can begin to erase the hatred generated over nearly eight years of arrogance and thoughtless aggression. Since 911 we have alienated more than half the world’s nations and populations.

We need to show the rest of the world that we haven’t completely lost our moral compass and common sense for all the other people on this planet earth. We can no longer stand alone, thoughtlessly polluting the atmosphere, starting or threatening wars, consuming more than our share of the worlds resources, and not be held accountable.

The best way to help heal our image in the rest of the world’s eyes is to honestly demonstrate democracy and elect Barack Obama. Then back him up with a good woman and a happy ending. Just like in the movies.

Ethel Kennedy - widow of Senator Bobby Kennedy
“I think he feels it. He feels it just like Bobby did,” Ethel Kennedy said, comparing her late husband’s quest for social justice to Obama’s. “He has the passion in his heart. He’s not selling you. It’s just him.”

My thoughts on Barack Obama
Written By Michael Levine

Barack Hussein Obama. How did the man with the most problematic name in American politics become the compelling force in the presidential primary campaign? Hope and change. There is no denying that Obama is an inspirational speaker, but when you turn off the TV, even if you do not remember him relaying specific policy recommendations or his plans for the future, you do remember two things about his message. Hope and change.

Barack Obama has become more than a candidate, he has become a movement. He is larger than himself. The public can watch his speeches and feel that he is comfortable in his own skin and oozes sincerity. The fact that his speeches are not heavy on specifics is irrelevant; the feelings that his supporters have about him are not based on detailed policy analyses, they come from an emotional place. It is not that he is without positions on the issues, they are all available on his website, but he uses public appearances to inspire. The suggestion that he is all talk and no substance is clearly incorrect. He’s a brilliant candidate who knows that people need to relate to him to go out to the polls for him. And as people learn more about Obama’s diverse and modest background—with a Kenyan father and a mother from Kansas—they are more inclined to feel that he shares their values.

The cynicism and contempt that most Americans feel about both parties is strong and justifiable. Voters believe that politicians are bought and sold by lobbyists or that they are incompetent. Obama has made it a part of his candidacy to present himself as the new kid on the block, not yet jaded by years of playing politics. In contrast, Hillary Clinton is playing up her experience. By emphasizing that Obama is not a seasoned politician she is attempting to weaken him, in effect she believes she is giving Kryptonite to Superman. In fact, she almost makes Obama’s argument for him, giving spinach to Popeye, and underscoring the fact that he is a different kind of politician.

Senator Obama is the first serious black presidential candidate. Sorry Jesse Jackson. That, by itself is change, but it is more than that. The support he has received from white voters makes a strong statement about the nation’s willingness to move beyond a polarizing political system and a divided social system. Barack Obama not only is running as an agent of change, he is the personification of change. His achievement is a source of pride for minority group members and symbol of a new era for white America.

Former vice presidential nominee Geraldine Ferraro’s statement that Obama is where he is today because he is black not only is patently erroneous, but it misses the point of his extraordinary appeal. Barack Obama is where he is today because he is a candidate who can transcend race and ethnicity. In a country that is increasingly minority, voters of all backgrounds relate to him; not just African-Americans, but Hispanics, Asians, and immigrants from many countries. Ferraro’s comment suggests that she doesn’t appreciate the distinction between being a candidate who can move the public discourse beyond race versus being the affirmative action candidate.

Barack Obama is also the global candidate. This election is being closely watched around the world. The United States is viewed negatively in much of the world both for our wars and our perceived arrogance. Who better to reflect a more humble and collaborative foreign policy than the son of a Kenyan father and an American mother, who grew up in Indonesia, and whose own paternal grandmother to this day lives in a small village in a house with no running water? When we talk about foreign policy experience, the candidate who best represents a change in our approach to foreign relations is the one who has actually lived abroad and experienced what it is like to be American in other countries and to be considered a foreigner at home.

In a sense, Senator Obama is the John F. Kennedy for a new generation. Just as Kennedy made the Baby Boomers want to change the world and gave them the hope to believe that they could, Barack Obama gives this same feeling to their children. But unlike the challenges of 1960, the country faces a different set of formidable problems. The economy, the environment, health care, education, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and genocide in Africa all will be on the agenda for our next president. A new generation is looking for inspiration, and Obama supporters are turning out in record numbers because of the hope that Barack Obama brings them. As Kennedy said in his inaugural address, “the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans.”

In bringing about both hope and change, Obama seems more likely than the other candidates to work with both sides of the aisle and all segments of America. People of all backgrounds and income levels can find something to support in Barack Obama. Unlike some candidates, he is not polarizing. There is a real sense that he will be able to get things done. Most Democrats feel that he will surround himself with smart, new advisors who will give him candid advice rather than what they think he wants to hear. This would represent a major change from the current Administration.

Finally, Obama is respectful and even-tempered, and he has the ability to disagree with others without seeming like he hates them. Senator Obama seems to say that he believes that President Bush is a patriot, but that he disagrees with him on the best way to lead the nation. Voters surely know that in Barack Obama we will get a very different kind of president. And we believe that he will be able to bring hope and change to our country.

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