Obama victory is like a fairy tale
Friday, 14 November 2008
Syed Jamaluddin
Barack Obama never talks about how people see him. He said, 'I am not the one making history. You are .. America is a place where all things are possible'. Barack Hussein Obama did not win because of the colour of his skin. Nor did he win in spite of it. He won because at a very dangerous moment in the life of a still young country, more people than have ever spoken before came together to save it. And that was a victory all its own.
NASA astronauts on board the International Space Station sent a video message encouraging people to vote, they did from 200 miles up. A judge in Ohio ruled that homeless people could use a park bench as their address in order to register as a voter. Obama's Ohio volunteers knocked on a million doors in the night before election. That night, a Florida official locked himself in election headquarters and slept overnight with the ballots to make sure nothing went wrong with the vote. Early voting lines were ten hours long and still people waited, as though their vote was their most precious and personal possession at a moment when everything else seemed to be losing its value.
Obama won more votes than anyone else in US history. Democrats widened their margins in the House and the Senate. The Secret Service said it had never seen anything like it.
President Bush phoned Obama to congratulate him saying, "You are about to go on one of the great journeys of life." When McCain called Obama to concede the race, the younger man honoured the elder statesman, 'I need your help'. Obama said and McCain offered it without reservation.
At a moment of peril, America decided to place its fate in the hands of a man who had been born to a white teenage mother and a charismatic African grad. student who abandoned them. His grandmother raised him and shaped him and died on the eve of victory. He found his way into good schools, worked his way up through the tough world of Chicago politics to the US Senate and now the White House in a stunningly short period. That achievement compared with those princes who were born into power or bred to it and represents such a radical departure from the norm that it finally brings meaning to the promise taught from kindergarten, 'Anyone can grow up to be President'. 'Obama depended on those who had lost faith in govt. or never had any in the first place. He ran not so much on any creed as on the belief that everything was broken. He argued that it was necessary to make a fresh start. It was precisely because he was an outsider with few cronies or scars or grudges that he could sell himself as the solution. Obama was a child of change. You can not stop change from coming, he argued; you can only usher in it and work out the terms, he said, 'If you are smart and a little lucky, you can make it your friend.'
From the moment Obama entered the race, he presented himself as the candidate of fundamental change, with a thin biography, campaign strategy and set of priorities to match. His argument found a receptive audience because the country was not going in the right direction. By election day, the national mood was so sour that fundamental change seemed to be the most rational choice. Hilary Clinton was the anticipated front runner for more than a year. But Obama's charisma combined with Clinton fatigue allowed the young Senator to secure early success. He became the choice of party elders such as Ted Kennedy and labour union leaders. Clinton was forced into the role of an underdog.
Obama's victory creates the prospect of a new real America. It is no longer a white country, even though the whites remain the majority. It is a place where the primacy of racial identity has been replaced by the celebration of pluralism. After eight years of misgovernance, it has lost some of its arrogance. It may no longer be as dominant, economically or diplomatically, as it was once. But it is younger, more optimistic, less cynical. It is a country that retains its ability to startle the world. It is a place finally, where the content of President's character is more important than the colour of his skin.
Over the course of three debates, voters got an opportunity to take the measure of the candidates directly -- no stadium crowds, no stunts, no speech writers to save them. They were being told that Obama was a dangerous radical who hung out with terrorists. Simply by seeming sober and sensible, he both reassured voters and diminished McCain, whose attacks suddenly seemed irrelevant. By mid-October, only one in three voters thought Mc Cain would bring the country a real change in direction. He never got close again. Eventually Obama's opponents moved past accusing him of celebrity and socialism to charging his family with witchcraft and warning that his election would bring disaster. Obama, meanwhile, used his financial advantage to run a half-hour prime time ad. that told his story, made the case and never once mentioned McCain.
Barack Obama is the most prolific fund raiser in the history of American politics. He amassed much of the money through internet. In September, Obama collected a stunning $150 million in 30 days. He shattered all previous records. John Kerry raised an impressive $84 million. This figure is for entire election cycle. In one good month, Obama topped all combined. Future presidential candidates will probably try to duplicate Obama's success foregoing the spending limits that come with campaign money.
McCain attacked Obama relentlessly and often foolishly. The public did not buy it. This was apparent during the three presidential debates, which probably clinched the election for Obama. Lacking vision and patience to explain what he(McCain)would actually do as President, Obama calmly set forth what he would do about the economy, healthcare and education. Those who say Obama won because of the financial crisis are telling only half the story. He won because he reacted to the crisis in a measured and mature way. He explained the financial collapse in terms which anyone could understand and the need for a federal bailout.
The fact that people around the world woke up to learn that the new American President-elect is Barack Obama is in itself an enormous paradigm shift in their perception of the US. America will probably be a majority non-white nation by the year 2042. In a very real way, Obama is the face of the new America. The most important thing that Barack Obama brings to the presidency is his willingness to reason. He won his presidency not as a black American but as a reasoning American who happens to be black.
(The writer is an economist and columnist)
Barack Obama never talks about how people see him. He said, 'I am not the one making history. You are .. America is a place where all things are possible'. Barack Hussein Obama did not win because of the colour of his skin. Nor did he win in spite of it. He won because at a very dangerous moment in the life of a still young country, more people than have ever spoken before came together to save it. And that was a victory all its own.
NASA astronauts on board the International Space Station sent a video message encouraging people to vote, they did from 200 miles up. A judge in Ohio ruled that homeless people could use a park bench as their address in order to register as a voter. Obama's Ohio volunteers knocked on a million doors in the night before election. That night, a Florida official locked himself in election headquarters and slept overnight with the ballots to make sure nothing went wrong with the vote. Early voting lines were ten hours long and still people waited, as though their vote was their most precious and personal possession at a moment when everything else seemed to be losing its value.
Obama won more votes than anyone else in US history. Democrats widened their margins in the House and the Senate. The Secret Service said it had never seen anything like it.
President Bush phoned Obama to congratulate him saying, "You are about to go on one of the great journeys of life." When McCain called Obama to concede the race, the younger man honoured the elder statesman, 'I need your help'. Obama said and McCain offered it without reservation.
At a moment of peril, America decided to place its fate in the hands of a man who had been born to a white teenage mother and a charismatic African grad. student who abandoned them. His grandmother raised him and shaped him and died on the eve of victory. He found his way into good schools, worked his way up through the tough world of Chicago politics to the US Senate and now the White House in a stunningly short period. That achievement compared with those princes who were born into power or bred to it and represents such a radical departure from the norm that it finally brings meaning to the promise taught from kindergarten, 'Anyone can grow up to be President'. 'Obama depended on those who had lost faith in govt. or never had any in the first place. He ran not so much on any creed as on the belief that everything was broken. He argued that it was necessary to make a fresh start. It was precisely because he was an outsider with few cronies or scars or grudges that he could sell himself as the solution. Obama was a child of change. You can not stop change from coming, he argued; you can only usher in it and work out the terms, he said, 'If you are smart and a little lucky, you can make it your friend.'
From the moment Obama entered the race, he presented himself as the candidate of fundamental change, with a thin biography, campaign strategy and set of priorities to match. His argument found a receptive audience because the country was not going in the right direction. By election day, the national mood was so sour that fundamental change seemed to be the most rational choice. Hilary Clinton was the anticipated front runner for more than a year. But Obama's charisma combined with Clinton fatigue allowed the young Senator to secure early success. He became the choice of party elders such as Ted Kennedy and labour union leaders. Clinton was forced into the role of an underdog.
Obama's victory creates the prospect of a new real America. It is no longer a white country, even though the whites remain the majority. It is a place where the primacy of racial identity has been replaced by the celebration of pluralism. After eight years of misgovernance, it has lost some of its arrogance. It may no longer be as dominant, economically or diplomatically, as it was once. But it is younger, more optimistic, less cynical. It is a country that retains its ability to startle the world. It is a place finally, where the content of President's character is more important than the colour of his skin.
Over the course of three debates, voters got an opportunity to take the measure of the candidates directly -- no stadium crowds, no stunts, no speech writers to save them. They were being told that Obama was a dangerous radical who hung out with terrorists. Simply by seeming sober and sensible, he both reassured voters and diminished McCain, whose attacks suddenly seemed irrelevant. By mid-October, only one in three voters thought Mc Cain would bring the country a real change in direction. He never got close again. Eventually Obama's opponents moved past accusing him of celebrity and socialism to charging his family with witchcraft and warning that his election would bring disaster. Obama, meanwhile, used his financial advantage to run a half-hour prime time ad. that told his story, made the case and never once mentioned McCain.
Barack Obama is the most prolific fund raiser in the history of American politics. He amassed much of the money through internet. In September, Obama collected a stunning $150 million in 30 days. He shattered all previous records. John Kerry raised an impressive $84 million. This figure is for entire election cycle. In one good month, Obama topped all combined. Future presidential candidates will probably try to duplicate Obama's success foregoing the spending limits that come with campaign money.
McCain attacked Obama relentlessly and often foolishly. The public did not buy it. This was apparent during the three presidential debates, which probably clinched the election for Obama. Lacking vision and patience to explain what he(McCain)would actually do as President, Obama calmly set forth what he would do about the economy, healthcare and education. Those who say Obama won because of the financial crisis are telling only half the story. He won because he reacted to the crisis in a measured and mature way. He explained the financial collapse in terms which anyone could understand and the need for a federal bailout.
The fact that people around the world woke up to learn that the new American President-elect is Barack Obama is in itself an enormous paradigm shift in their perception of the US. America will probably be a majority non-white nation by the year 2042. In a very real way, Obama is the face of the new America. The most important thing that Barack Obama brings to the presidency is his willingness to reason. He won his presidency not as a black American but as a reasoning American who happens to be black.
(The writer is an economist and columnist)