Change I can believe in.
Jan. 4th, 2008 11:51 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
readingredheadIf you're not interested in reading about my personal politics right now, you don't have to, but last night I watched Barack Obama win Iowa by a margin of eight points over edwards and nine points over Hillary, and I needed to talk about it.
I have always loved what Barack stands for. From the first time I heard about him as a candidate, he appealed to me in a way that others didn't. While everyone else seemed to think that Hillary Clinton would be the presumptive nominee for the Democratic party, I hoped that I could be part of a change that would do more than just reaffirm the unfortunate dynastic element that has lately come to play a large role in American politics.
Barack Obama had my vote before I was even old enough to give it. But now I'm eighteen, and I want my first presidential vote to go to a candidate I can believe in, a candidate who can honestly inspire.
Early in Barack's campaign, I was worried. When he first decided to take no money from public interests for the financing of his campaign, I was both impressed and appalled. I wanted to believe that he could do what no presidential candidate had ever done before, and take the White House without turning to special interests for support. I wanted to believe that America, and not large political lobbies, could claim ownership over the next President of the United States. But although I'm young, I'd seen enough of politics to feel cynical about Obama's ability to pull together a convincing national campaign without relying upon monetary donations from people who, quite frankly, had a greater interest in giving.
What I have seen over the last few months has astounded me. Barack Obama has gone from a name floated about by my more radical and politically active friends to a viable candidate for the presidency. He has campaigned with more integrity than any other politician I have encountered, and I am proud to count myself as one of his supporters. His message of change is more than just a message -- it is an agenda, and one that I believe he can follow through on. Experience is just another way of growing old and cynical about the status quo. I want to believe in a candidate young enough in outlook to support the goals of those who are still hopeful, those who have not given in.
Obama's hope and optimism have infected me, not just because I want him to be right about Washington and right about America, but because he has proven that his outlook is viable. Last night's win in Iowa proved to me once and for all that my vote for Barack would be a vote well-spent.
Many -- including my mother and grandmother -- have complained that he is too young and inexperienced to get the job done. But I say that this isn't a job that requires age and experience. What America needs now -- what I need -- is a president who's young enough to dream and hopeful enough to compel our nation to join him. My grandmother discounts Obama's Iowa victory, stating her frustration that he was propelled to the win by thousands of young people and first-time caucus-goers who "don't know any better." But with all due respect to my grandmother, if the youth of this nation doesn't have the greatest say in its future, then who does?
Before last night, I was still divided. Not on whether to vote for Obama in the California primary -- he's got my vote as long as his name's on the ticket. But I was struggling within myself over whether he was a viable candidate who could beat the Republican nominee in a general election and turn his rhetoric into reality. But after his staggering win in Iowa, I can now say proudly that I have no doubts left. Barack Obama is my man, and I'll do whatever I can to make sure that in a little over a year from now, he's standing in front of a cheering crowd as he's inaugurated to be the 44th President of the United States of America.
I have always loved what Barack stands for. From the first time I heard about him as a candidate, he appealed to me in a way that others didn't. While everyone else seemed to think that Hillary Clinton would be the presumptive nominee for the Democratic party, I hoped that I could be part of a change that would do more than just reaffirm the unfortunate dynastic element that has lately come to play a large role in American politics.
Barack Obama had my vote before I was even old enough to give it. But now I'm eighteen, and I want my first presidential vote to go to a candidate I can believe in, a candidate who can honestly inspire.
Early in Barack's campaign, I was worried. When he first decided to take no money from public interests for the financing of his campaign, I was both impressed and appalled. I wanted to believe that he could do what no presidential candidate had ever done before, and take the White House without turning to special interests for support. I wanted to believe that America, and not large political lobbies, could claim ownership over the next President of the United States. But although I'm young, I'd seen enough of politics to feel cynical about Obama's ability to pull together a convincing national campaign without relying upon monetary donations from people who, quite frankly, had a greater interest in giving.
What I have seen over the last few months has astounded me. Barack Obama has gone from a name floated about by my more radical and politically active friends to a viable candidate for the presidency. He has campaigned with more integrity than any other politician I have encountered, and I am proud to count myself as one of his supporters. His message of change is more than just a message -- it is an agenda, and one that I believe he can follow through on. Experience is just another way of growing old and cynical about the status quo. I want to believe in a candidate young enough in outlook to support the goals of those who are still hopeful, those who have not given in.
Obama's hope and optimism have infected me, not just because I want him to be right about Washington and right about America, but because he has proven that his outlook is viable. Last night's win in Iowa proved to me once and for all that my vote for Barack would be a vote well-spent.
Many -- including my mother and grandmother -- have complained that he is too young and inexperienced to get the job done. But I say that this isn't a job that requires age and experience. What America needs now -- what I need -- is a president who's young enough to dream and hopeful enough to compel our nation to join him. My grandmother discounts Obama's Iowa victory, stating her frustration that he was propelled to the win by thousands of young people and first-time caucus-goers who "don't know any better." But with all due respect to my grandmother, if the youth of this nation doesn't have the greatest say in its future, then who does?
Before last night, I was still divided. Not on whether to vote for Obama in the California primary -- he's got my vote as long as his name's on the ticket. But I was struggling within myself over whether he was a viable candidate who could beat the Republican nominee in a general election and turn his rhetoric into reality. But after his staggering win in Iowa, I can now say proudly that I have no doubts left. Barack Obama is my man, and I'll do whatever I can to make sure that in a little over a year from now, he's standing in front of a cheering crowd as he's inaugurated to be the 44th President of the United States of America.
