The O/C

For the last several days I've been trying to figure out what to say about Obama vs Clinton and why I prefer Barack to Hillary. But the more I think about it, the less it comes down to facts I can nail down. When I put the major issues at hand (as decided by the press) into the various calculators, Obama comes out on ahead of Clinton in 4 of 4 attempts (although usually as the 2nd choice to various also rans because of the lack of decisive support for civil rights for gays). When I look at their voting histories or statements side by side, on the surface they appear to be close to each other and about 65-75% of what I'm interested in supporting, where that final unmatched 25-35% is taken up by one issue usually favored only by Republicans and the fact that I just plain don't give a damn about most of the big manufactured "issues" that get so many people up in arms and asking ignorant questions on national TV. If Obama weren't running, I'd be supporting Hillary as the most qualified and well matched candidate that I'd be willing to support. But Obama is running, and I like him more.

The first time I heard Obama speak, he gave that oustanding address at the Democratic National Convention. It was eloquent, inspirational, and personal. I heard it on the radio while driving home and stayed in my car for many minutes after I got home so I wouldn't miss a word. If he had kicked Kerry out of the running that night, I would have voted for him. At this same DNC, which was held in Boston, I went with some friends to a Women's Rally with other democratic big names such as Carol Moseley Braun and Madeline Albright, who were awesome and awe inspiring, and Hillary Rodham Clinton, who wasn't. I'm not sure if I discussed this with my friends at the time, and have avoided speaking about it since in case Hillary became the best candidate, but her speech and demeanor turned me stone cold. Her speech was rigid, conventional, and pandering - full of "requisite" soundbites rather than something I could identify as her voice. And after nearly a decade of listening to a man whose every spoken word makes me want to vomit and foam at the mouth, I really want a president I enjoy listening to.

The reasons behind why I respond with joy to Obama and freeze up to Clinton come from why they are saying what they say and voting the way they do. Or at least my perception of why since I'm not close personal friends of either. So it's still subjective (maybe it does come down to a feeling) but I can at least analyze it a little. Obama gets that our international standing is at an all time low. He gets that the current administration leads with fear and tries to get us to hate and fear others - muslims, immigrants, etc... to get us to fall in line with policies that strip our civil liberties and constitutional rights in the guise of providing some dubious "safety". His policy toward immigration is driven by a desire to reduce fear. Fear is reduced when people live in times of plenty, and leaders promote hope and have plans for building the future. All of his speeches are about doing what is best not just in the now, but for the future, how America can again be a force for good, and how he'd like to lead us there.

Clinton, on the other hand, speaks very emphatically about how she is tough and will beat the Republicans, not about reducing fear. Her talking points sound like they've been poll tested to the point where she no longer has an association with them. She talks a lot about solving problems that I don't have with solutions that I don't really like, for reasons I find dubious (like "the people say I need to have an opinion and this is the best tolerated one"). But I know other people like them because they're what I see in the headlines - without any reflection or analysis given. This whole immigration non-issue is being tackled from the point of an immigration problem, when, like Obama, I see the problem being more driven by fear of competition for meager resources and the immigrants are a cheap scapegoat for other problems. I feel like she votes to keep getting elected, not to lead.

People who don't know where their next meal is coming from don't have the resources to consider their actions on the future. If they die of starvation, their grandkids aren't an issue. They will eat the last gorilla for dinner. Never mind that we Americans are far from dying from starvation, but this administration has fostered us thinking that we are constantly on the verge of being wiped out by terrorists and WMDs giving us the same shortsighted outlook as refugees. Cynthia Tucker, a journalist from Atlanta, wrote that the American Dream is not democracy as such; it's the idea of economic mobility. The idea and reality that our lives are not determined by fear or birthright and anyone can become wealthy and successful and powerful is what makes America a place of hopes and dreams. I would argue that our country has been denuded of hopes and stripped of dreams as our economy erodes (they're accepting Euros in manhattan shops these days) and our infrastructure crumbles. Hillary doesn't make me hopeful. Hillary doesn't inspire me to dream of a better America. Obama does.

As leaders, Hillary has a history of getting shut down when faced with opposition. Obama has a history finding common ground between opposing forces. Maybe she's learned from these defeats, but I still see her pushing a preset agenda, rather than negotiating a win for both sides. The Clintons can play dirty, but they don't do so enough against the Republican spin machine; they choose the wrong targets. I honestly don't know how Obama will handle a smear campaign, but he says he's willing to strike back hard and fast - and somehow the nastiness that started early in the primaries got shut down. Who shut it down? I don't know. The fact that it stopped speaks well of both candidates. The attack ads are making a resurgence, though so I don't know if this state of trying to win on merit rather than yanking the rug out from the opponent will stand.

As for electability, a black man and any woman are hard sells in the red states no question. But Obama doesn't have the virulent hatred that Clinton has to contend with. If she gets the nomination, the Republicans will have a field day hating her, and not have to support their own candidate at all. It's not fair, it's not nice, but I honestly believe it to be true. Obama is not a total unknown, but he hasn't made as many enemies. It's going to be tougher to rouse against him because the predisposition to dismiss him out of hand isn't there. And for some reason it's still ok to print and discuss tripe like "women can't control their emotions" as if it is either fact or relevant, but one can't say outright the same thing about a black man.

If we elect Obama, a man with an African father, an American mother (who was into microfinance), an Indonesian sister and a Chinese Canadian brother in law, the world sees the new face of America not only as someone who understands the world outside our borders, but as a symbol of change. I'm not sure if Clinton does the same. I do remember the Clintons taking Chelsea on world tours to meet and greet the world's leaders on every school vacation - that was a good move of theirs. I know that Clinton has cultivated relationships with world leaders. I just don't know if that will hold sway with the world's populace.

Clinton, if elected, will probably walk into the office with a full cabinet and major advisors selected, ready to rock and roll. A lot of good could come from that. But I think a lot of the people will be from the old administration and however good I had it during the Bill Clinton years, I don't want to go back there. We did Reagan-Bush-Clinton-Bush already. I want something new, I want something different - and I'll buy into the soundbite - I want change. Granted, I'm someone who got a job on the opposite coast of a very large country just to force some change on myself, I might not be representative in wanting change that involves unknowns.

Obama has given every indication that he will listen to and incorporate the advice of experts into his plans, so I hope he comes up with a top notch core team quickly, but not all from the Clinton clan. Obama has enough experience that he knows how things work, but not so much that he's given over to it as the only way things can work. One has to understand the rules in order to break them deliberately, but living with the rules for too long makes one lose that sense of needing to break them.

We live in interesting times to be sure. I not only have one, but two qualified "minority" candidates to choose from for president who have a real hope of being elected. If Obama doesn't make it, I'll throw in behind Clinton, but I hope I don't have to. This wound up being more touchy-feely than I'd hoped. Please let me know if you have any facts to back up my feelings. Is it so wrong to want a president I can listen to with pride?