Deconstructing Barack Obama
Wow. What a week.
I hadn't intended to spend the entire week discussing Barack Obama's speech in my home town, but it was difficult not to. There was a lot to discuss, to which the many insightful (and in some cases incite-ful) e-mails and comments I received can attest. In all it was a spirited political discourse about issues of dire national and international consequence.
Looking back over the discussion, I see I have failed to mention one very salient point, one with which I believe few can argue: Barack Obama has a true gift for oratory. As I looked at the faces in the crowd Monday as he spoke, I could see the kind of awe I cannot ever recall seeing during a political speech. I've seen President Bush speak in person on four separate ocassions and, not surprisingly, haven't seen (or heard) him deliver anything remotely similar to the engaging dialogue put forth by Obama on Monday.
In terms of admiration, though, I am afraid this is as far as I can go. What I most longed to hear from Obama I didn't. During this spectacle, I had hoped to hear plans -- concrete honest plans -- about not only where this country stood in Obama's eyes and where he wanted to take it, but how he planned to take it there. What I heard, unfortunately, was merely rhetoric, political philosophy and wishful thinking. Obama did an excellent job delineating the problems, but he failed miserably in his attempts to identify the specific policies, procedures and directives necessary to providing solutions.
But you've heard all this from me, already. So, to end this week's discussion about Obama, I will give the final word to Professor Jack Kerwick, who I'm proud to say is now a regular contributor to US Conservative Politics & Perspectives at About.com. You can expect a new submission from him every Friday in the Guest Commentary section.
In this week's commentary, Dr. Kerwick analyzes Obama's comments about the War in Iraq and foreign policy in general and reveals them to be decidedly "pro-war."
Obama Photo: Stan Honda/Getty Images
Comments
“Obama did an excellent job delineating the problems, but he failed miserably in his attempts to identify the specific policies, procedures and directives necessary to providing solutions.”
But isn’t that true of all politicians during primary season? They usually don’t outline specific plans when they are competing against members of their own party for the presidency. They’re usually too busy trying to court as many votes as possible away from their opponents, and to do so they have to be as vague as possible so as not to offend or drive away any of their constituents. Obama is offering platitudes now, but then again, so was McCain before he clinched the Republican nomination. It was only *after* he beat Huckabee and Romney that he started putting forth concrete solutions.
You’ve made many good points in your two Obama articles. I would like to point out two things, however: one, it is not unusual for politicians to be general in speeches. No one knew what “a thousand points of light” were, either, but it had a tangible effect.
Second, Obama may not change the mechanisms on the ground in Washington, but he can change the atmosphere. When Kennedy became president in 1962, the country had had a succession of old white guys as president. Kennedy’s youth, idealism, and energy changed the country and influenced our politics for thirty years. Sometimes change isn’t just a matter of policy; it’s a matter of tone. Obama will definitely do that.