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Oct

16

WaPo endorses Obama for president


From the horse’s mouth, the conclusion first, because it is a long piece and worth reading:

ANY PRESIDENTIAL vote is a gamble, and Mr. Obama’s résumé is undoubtedly thin. We had hoped, throughout this long campaign, to see more evidence that Mr. Obama might stand up to Democratic orthodoxy and end, as he said in his announcement speech, “our chronic avoidance of tough decisions.”

But Mr. Obama’s temperament is unlike anything we’ve seen on the national stage in many years. He is deliberate but not indecisive; eloquent but a master of substance and detail; preternaturally confident but eager to hear opposing points of view. He has inspired millions of voters of diverse ages and races, no small thing in our often divided and cynical country. We think he is the right man for a perilous moment.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 10:47 pm October 16th, 2008 in Barack Obama, Endorsements, John McCain, Politics, WH2008 

Comments

7 Responses to “WaPo endorses Obama for president”

  1. 1 Tim Higgins on October 17th, 2008 9:00 am

    I can’t say that I agree with the argument made or the conclusions drawn by the Washington Post, but I seldom do (unless I am reading the George Will column). I do agree with their statement that his resume is thin. The Senator has shown no leadership or ability at either the state or national level, except the ability to campaign. This might get him elected to office, but will not insure good job performance.

  2. 2 Jill Miller Zimon on October 17th, 2008 9:30 am

    Tim, what do you think about their critique of McCain’s running mate, which seems to be one of the prime reasons they feel they can’t endorse McCain?

  3. 3 Tim Higgins on October 17th, 2008 1:15 pm

    Jill,

    I found their critique of Palin inconsistent, even if it is right. WaPo rejects McCain because his running mate is not ready to be president, then admits that Obama (the actual presidential candidate) may not be either. They do not make their case against Palin, simply leave it handing their as an assumption that we must all agree with. Their endorsement, in their own words, “hope”, is an emotional judgment and not one based on fact.

    The rest of their endorsement is simply more hope (and confidence) without a shred of fact or history to back up their claims. They may be correct that Palin isn’t ready, neither may Obama. Hell, neither was Harry Truman, and he did OK. No one knows who will be ready to be president before that person becomes president. Some of the smartest people in the world have failed miserably at the job, some of the dumbest have succeeded. The reason that the WaPo uses is far too simplistic for such discerning journalists.

  4. 4 Jill Miller Zimon on October 17th, 2008 1:19 pm

    Having criticized endorsements before, I completely understand the weakness you see. I agree that more might have been said to back up the assertions about Palin, but we don’t agree on whether Obama also is unprepared or not ready and maybe we disagree on who is more unprepared and not ready (I don’t really like getting into those because they are SO subjective).

    I think the point about the running mate choice goes more to decision-making abilities and those, I do believe, are not abilities I believe McCain has – to my satisfaction.

  5. 5 Tim Higgins on October 17th, 2008 1:36 pm

    Jill,

    I don’t know if Obama is more ready than Palin to be president. I don’t believe however, that he is more ready for the job than McCain; and that’s more to the point. The other comparison only has meaning if I assume that McCain will die within 4 years. And remember, I say all of this while not being a big fan of McCain either.

    I agree with you though that the choice of running mate is important and a good indicator of decision making ability. I therefore, am unsure about both presidential candidates. McCain chooses someone with some executive government experience, but not much, and none on the national stage. (Good move, bad move, I don’t know.) Obama chooses Biden though Obama is the candidate of change and Biden is the poster child of the same old thing. (Again, good move, bad move?)

    My problem with this election, more than perhaps any that I have voted in before, is that I know more about what I don’t like than what I do. This greatly concerns me, as I am not willing to make a “lesser of two evils” decision.

  6. 6 Shamika on October 17th, 2008 2:06 pm

    Some Obama supporters have enlightened me about what they see in Palin. http://www.bpmdeejays.com/upload/hs_sal_in_Harlem_100108.mp3
    Let me know what you think.

  7. 7 Jill Miller Zimon on October 17th, 2008 2:29 pm

    Tim – I think you are the poster child for a LOT of voters all along the spectrum. As I’ve written before, Biden is the only one of the four who I liked to begin with. Obama was below Clinton on my list. So – yeah – I hear you.

    I saw let’s work on the pipeline – whichever one you like – that goes for conservative women too – more Elizabeth Doles, etc.

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