Barack Obama has prospered in this presidential campaign because of the steadiness of his temperament and the judicious quality of his decision-making. They are his best-known qualities. Full Story »
Posted by Derek Hawkins
A very revealing profile of Barack Obama. Joe Klein seems to have tapped into his nature as a leader -- and by extension has made some predictions about how he would act as president -- without fawning over him. That said, I don't think this piece is going to sway many people to vote for him, or move a John McCain supporter to reconsider his vote. Most of the article revolves around analysis of the high water marks of Obama's campaign, with campaign insiders brought in for comment. Some of the anonymous sourcing is frustrating, but not a deal breaker. His choice of anecdotes is not as predictable as I would have thought -- there was a good deal of new information here for me.
Klein says that America is in need of "supervision" -- he implies that it will take a strong, charismatic leader to pull us through what is bound to be a trying time for the country. I disagree. I have never grasped this fascination with the American president. Then again, maybe I'm just aloof. I read a quote recently, that Americans today want their government to do more for them than ever, but more than ever they want less government. I'm interested to see how that plays out after November 4.