‘Lincoln, Kennedy, Obama’

Is Barack Obama comparable to some of America’s greatest presidents in terms of the level of inspiration he inspires? Continuing a wave of worldwide acclaim, this op-ed article from Germany’s Frankfurter Rundschau points out that in the United States, hope and optimism are far more than simply a ‘political side dishes’ – they are the ‘internal engine and power source of the nation.’

“In the United States, hope and optimism are more than just political side dishes. They are the internal engine and power source of the nation. … Lincoln, Roosevelt, Kennedy: Hope is the magic potion administered to the nation at its darkest moments.”

By Dietmar Ostermann, Translated By Ulf Behncke, January 6, 2008
Germany – Frankfurter Rundschau – Original Article (German)

It can be no coincidence that the two victors in the U.S. state of Iowa had the same message: “CHANGE” transformation, alteration. Like a thunderbolt the word is now being heard across the land. Right at the beginning of this long presidential election campaign, Democrats and Republicans alike have voted for those candidates who most embody a new beginning.

Among the Democrats, that candidate is Barack Obama, the young and promising man with an incredible biography, great charisma and an intuition about the desires and longings of the people. Not that his policies or promises differ all that much from “Iowa-loser” Hillary Clinton.

But in the United States, hope and optimism are more than just political side dishes. They are the internal dynamo and power source of the nation. Americans revere those presidents who manage to get this dynamo in gear. Lincoln, Roosevelt, Kennedy: Hope is the magic potion administered to the nation at its darkest moments. And as many people throughout the country perceive it, these are tough times. What would otherwise be considered pathos and kitschy is now being gratefully accepted. With her sober and matter-of-fact ways, a presidential candidate like Angela Merkel wouldn’t stand a chance in the United States – and Hillary Clinton must now fight for hers.

Experience doesn’t count for much in times like these – that’s the second lesson of Iowa. Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Colin Powell had huge amounts of experience when they formed George Bush’s alleged Dream-Team. It all ended in Iraq’s desert sands, where the superpower remains stuck to this day. Neither has experience saved Hillary Clinton from error – she voted to authorize war in the Senate. Long before, green horn Obama correctly warned about the consequences of that fatal decision. Yet Hillary Clinton centered her election campaign around experience. That was always a workaround, because it not only concerns her experience, but the political achievements of Bill Clinton. This will certainly influence Democrats substantially, but in the process, Hillary has turned herself into a candidate of the past. In Iowa, the party didn’t want to follow her back to the 1990s.

For Hillary Clinton, it will undoubtedly be a bitter irony if the deep-seated desire for a new beginning at the end of the Bush era now damages her election chances. After her third placing in Iowa, the aura of inevitability of her presidential candidacy has vanished. If she wants to turn the tide, Clinton will have to base her candidacy for the White House on new grounds.

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