A European View of Obama

[H2O Man]

June 9, 2008
Obama, like JFK, has the wind behind him
The Democrat presidential candidate is trying to create a new kind of politics in the United States - and beyond
William Rees-Mogg

Obama is the Kennedy of a new generation. I have strong personal memories of the Kennedy election in 1960 that took a Roman Catholic to the White House for the first time. As early as January and February of this year, starting before Super Tuesday on February 5, I was discussing the comparison between the Obama and Kennedy campaigns.

On February 18 I wrote: "It is hard to see who can stop Senator Barack Obama becoming the next president of the United States. He has built up an excitement such as no candidate has created since President Kennedy in 1960." Hillary Clinton tried to stop him and she failed. The Republican candidate, Senator John McCain, is a fine man, but he will not wage as forceful a campaign as Senator Clinton. ….


Kennedy was himself an excellent speaker, but Obama is an even better one. He had a warmer voice and better natural rhythms of speech. Kennedy's Boston accent sounded more elitist; he broke up his sentences into little chunks, which interrupted his flow.

Obama combines the reflective with the declamatory; he has managed to use the black rhythms, which remind one of orators such as Martin Luther King, while avoiding the exaggeration of some black preachers. Indeed, his tone of thoughtful moderation enabled him to diminish the impact of some foolish remarks by his own old preacher. ….

It is Obama, like Kennedy, who has the momentum of history.

More:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23837947-5013948,00.html

William Rees-Mogg was editor of London newspaper The Times from 1967 to 1981.

[saltpoint]

1. It feels awfully good, doesn't it, when other countries' observers praise

our presidents.

And there hasn't been a whole lot of that for the last 8 years.

[Window]

3. Absolutely.

Peace:thumbsup:

[Window]

2. K/R.

Why is it most of the really excellent articles regarding our nominee come from foreign news sources. Rhetorical.

:kick:

[FatDave]

15. In answer to your rhetorical question...

...it is because they are not fascist states like th US is becoming.

[NotThisTime]

4. My Aussie friend is hoping for Obama, she's very impressed... it is nice to have someone to be proud

of as possible president, sure beats what we've had for the last 7+ years

[Tinksrival]

5. History may be repeating but

just like then it is not just about the candidate but our country's movement. Leadership to inspire movement of the masses.

[grantcart]

6. Thank you concerning Europeans and American Presidents just saw

Bush at trilateral conference in Slovenia.

He babbled through the press conference and I mean literally babbled, it was rather stunning even though we thought we had gotten used to it. Broken syntax and simply unfinished sentences including jibberish. His final response was that he was "glad that he could leave Slovenia because it was not only his first stop in Europe but as he was leaving it would also be fine to understand that he was leaving and last trip in Slovenia would be also his first" - except it didn't even sound that good.

I am assuming that the teleprompter was broken.

[saltpoint]

8. I think what the president meant was that he was in Slovenia NOW,

meaning then, and that he would be leaving it, eventually, to go to another place, which was not Slovenia, and that because he was in Slovenia but would eventually leave it, it was the first place he was at before he eventually leaves, and that once he has left it, it would naturally be the first place he had been before he went to a second or even a third place, given the general order of the trip and the fact that Slovenia can't be BOTH first AND second. Whoever packs the president's luggage -- socks, undies, coloring books, Batman toothpaste, etc. -- would likely have all this on a schedule or something that they brought along, because otherwise, how would the president know what country he was even in, nevermind what order the countries are on the itinerary?

- - -

good morning. :hi:

[BigAnth]

7. With all due respect H2O Man, when did they move Australia to Europe?

[H2O Man]

9. If you look,

you'll notice the author is from England. The article was reprinted in numerous newspapers, including in Europe, Australia and the USA.

[scheming daemons]

10. Wow.... that plate tectonics stuff works faster than I thought!

[Bucky]

13. Apparently you don't watch Lost. Moving islands is child's play.

[liberaldem4ever]

11. It will be great to have a President we can be proud of

After having one who has been so embarrassing. McCain would just be as embarrassing as Bush, IMO. President Obama is going to be awesome. :)

[muriel_volestrangler]

12. Interesting - Rees-Mogg is a fairly old-fashioned conservative

economically, at least (and that's his specialist area - though he's made some embarrassing mistakes in his time in articles). But he has also had his liberal side - in 1967 he wrote an editorial in The Times condemning the prosecution of Mick Jagger and other for drug possession - "Who Breaks a Butterfly on a Wheel?", which was widely held as a turning point when 'The Establishment' stopped trying to hold back change in the 60s.

[Me.]

14. The Response Has Been A Joy To See

On the one hand we have Obama and on the other they have the green man. What is even better has been the response of the GOP to their vaunted candidate. Let me be the first to predict that they are trying to think of a way to yank him out of there.

[applegrove]

16. You Americans should be proud. You have a great nominee.

[BooScout]

17. A conservative view of Obama would have been a better title...

Because William Rees-Mogg is a conservative.