I turned on the television this morning hoping that I would not stumble across any political news. After watching Arizona beat Illinois in college basketball on ESPN, I resorted to channel surfing. I started surfing through the news channels and noticed that Oprah Winfrey was appearing on every channel. Now usually when I see Oprah flicker on the television, I avoid that channel at all costs. But this time I saw ‘VOTE OBAMA’ on the podium she was speaking from. Could it be that Barack Obama (D-IL) was utilizing a celebrity’s power to generate more support and votes? I couldn’t believe my eyes. The citizens of Iowa were jammed into an auditorium while Oprah was speaking about “the spirit of the American people” and continuously chanting “Vote Barack Obama!” I would guess that more people came to see Oprah than they did for Obama. But besides that point, Obama is making huge strides in Iowa which holds the first major electoral event of the nominating process for President of the United States. As of today, the RCP shows Obama slightly leading Hillary Clinton (D-NY) in Iowa. 
Hillary got a boost of her own in Earvin “Magic” Johnson. Just a few months ago, Obama was considered dead in Iowa. Now he is the bi-product of Oprah and taking in all he can get from her “words of wisdom” that she preaches every day at 4:00 P.M. E.T. on ABC. Almost every woman in America loves Oprah. Apparently she makes a lot people cry through her stories and is very giving. Although she does get annoying and thinks she’s God, I do give her credit for her work in helping many people fulfill their lives. By bringing her along on the campaign trail, Obama is immediately capturing a large number of those people who are unsure and on the fence about two different candidates. All I can say is that this is pure genius on Obama’s part.
I have been paying close attention to this presidential race that seems to be starting earlier and earlier as the years go by. This will be my first presidential election I can vote for. I am neither a Republican, Democrat, liberal, conservative, libertarian, Green, etc. I am more liberal on some issues while conservative on others. My vote this election will not be influenced by who has the most experience. My vote will be for the person who will make decisions that will account for everybody. The current presidency has decided to expand its executive powers drastically while jeopardizing the civil liberties we are guaranteed. Certain groups have benefited while others have suffered. I will not go into this subject but I will say that some candidates are more genuine than others. Oprah was correct when she said that ‘politics as usual’ is not sufficient. In my opinion, many politicians in Washington D.C. have a political veil filled with fluff about key issues. Very few politicians can speak their heart on certain issues without taking criticism from the media and other politicians. But Barack Obama successfully evades the criticisms and speaks the truth simultaneously. He is not afraid to answer the question “Have you inhaled?” (He quickly answered with an emphatic “Yes”) He holds his beliefs close and has aided broken communities through lower taxes while improving health-care and education. His honesty and cool assertiveness on stage lends to his exceptional public speaking. But the question remains – how will our country change for the better if our government continuously settles for mediocrity and apathy towards riveting issues that are tearing us apart? The negative perception and hatred of our country by others around the world has deteriorated our ability to effectively promote change peacefully. Right now, I am a believer that Obama can bring our divided nation together while improving our relations with our allies and enemies. We must not only love our allies but it is imperative we start to love our enemies. Turning our back against diplomacy is not the option. If Obama stands correct that past experience is not an indicator of success, then he has great potential to move our country forward from this rut we have been thrown in since 2000. Although it is still too early to decide on a candidate, Barack Obama is proving he is a noteworthy individual that would bring statesmanship to the White House.
