by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright January 27, 2008
All Rights Reserved.

rushing Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) in the South Carolina Democratic primary Jan. 26, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Il.) kept his hopes alive of becoming the first black president in U.S. history. He faces a daunting challenge heading into Feb. 5 Super Tuesday where 22 states compete for 1,644 delegates that could seal the Democratic nomination. Only hours after Barack's victory, the only surviving child of former President John F. Kennedy, Caroline Bouvier Kennedy [Schlossberg], endorsed Barack for president. “I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president—not just for me, but for the new generation of Americans,” said Caroline, raising the possibility that the age of American idealism lost with her father could return.

      Caroline's endorsement gives Obama added octane with only 10 days before Super Tuesday. National polls still show Hillary leading Barack by around 10% but no one predicted the magnitude of the South Carolina victory. Barack beat Hillary in virtually every category, including white women, suggesting South Carolina started something different. Shortly after Caroline's endorsement appearing on the op-ed page of the New York Times, rumors swirled that her uncle Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), would also endorse Obama. “I'll let Ted Kennedy speak for himself. And nobody does it better,” said Barack, reluctant to confirm to Bob Schieffer on CBS' “Meet the Press” that the eight-term Mass. senator would endorse the junior senator from Illinois. Kennedy's endorsement turns upside down the Clintons' key argument against Barack that he lacks enough experience.

      JFK's assassination Nov. 22, 1963 pulled the rug out from a generation of young Americans. Kennedy's inspirational speeches powered a young generation to achieve and dedicate unprecedented involvement in public service. Former President Bill Clinton credited his passion for public service to meeting JFK as a youth. Caroline, a mother of two teenage girls and one boy, reminds today's youth that the same inspiration lost with her father now finds itself again with the 45-year-old senator from Illinois. He launched himself onto the national stage at the 2004 Democratic National convention, appealing to young and old, liberal and conservative, rich and poor, to abandon partisan divisions and begin a new age of national spirit. Three years later, Obama's same tireless theme resonates with voters tired of Washington's gridlock and bitter partisanship, looking for a fresh start.

      If there's a lesson from South Carolina, voters rebelled against old style slash-and-burn politics. Voters witnessed at the Jan. 21, Myrtle Beach Democratic debate, a level of nastiness not seen before. Hillary was booed when she told a Barack-leaning crowd that the Illinois senator worked on behalf of a slumlord in Chicago's Southside. Before the debate, former President Clinton raised the race issue, warning that Hillary could lose South Carolina because of blacks supporting Obama. That insulted black voters whose choice of Barack had more to do with politics. “Maybe he got a little carried away. You know, that comes with a hard-fought election,” Hillary told CBS' “Face the Nation” anchor Bob Schieffer, trying to explain Bill's tactics. Yet immediately after Barack's big victory, Clinton told another group that Obama was like Rev. Jesse Jackson.

      Equating Obama with Jackson, Clinton tried to dismiss his wife's loss in South Carolina to regional black politics. What he didn't expect was a backlash for racial stereotypes. Black or white voters picked candidates, like they did in other states, they liked, not because of gender or race. “It comes at a time of sleep deprivation which, you know, I think is marking all of us, our families, our supporters,” said Hillary, implying her husband became a loose cannon in the final days before the South Carolina primary. Sleep deprivation causes erratic behavior, not something the former president typically shows in the middle intense campaign. Neither Hillary nor Bill could stomach Obama's Jan. 17 comments to the Reno-Gazette Journal in which he lauded former President Ronald as a “transformative” candidate.” Since then, both Clintons have been on the warpath.

      Winning the endorsements of Sen. Ted Kennedy and niece Caroline puts an exclamation point on the gravity of Obama's candidacy only 10 days before Super Tuesday. It's difficult now for Hillary to argue Barack's lack of inexperience, when one of the most senior members of the U.S. senate gives his endorsement. “The choice in this election is not about regions or genders,” Barack told a boisterous crowd at his victory bash in Columbia, S.C. “It's not about rich versus poor, young versus old, and it's not about black versus white. It's about the past versus the future,” the closest yet to saying voting for Hillary keeps the country stuck in partisan warfare. Picking Obama invites the very real possibility that Republicans and Democrats can find common ground to work for the good of the country. More bitter partisanship can only lead to gridlock and more national discontent.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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