Wednesday, 19 March 2008
The Obama Advantage Is Turning Against Him
« Don't Try To Send Beshear an Email | Main | If You Are Going To Break A Promise Might As Well Go All Out »When I watch the Obama campaign I am struck by his messianic appeal to a portion of voters within the Democratic party. It is amazing that he was able to develop such a strong brand.
I realize that part of his appeal was due to his message of post partisan hope. It has a certain appeal which lacks substance but sounds good to the "American Idol" generation. It makes people feel good. The second part of his success stems from the fact that he is a relatively new face into national politics and doesn't carry the baggage of years in political office.
He has a measly four years in the U.S. Senate and didn't spend much more time than that in the Illinois Legislature. The lack of a political resume has allowed him to define himself however he sees fit. And he has taken advantage of that to create a strong brand for his name while avoiding issues. The brand was so strong that it caused the media to swoon and allow him to avoid criticism.
Without a political history to examine, Obama's opponents went to the only thing available. How was it possible for him to rise so quickly onto the national scene? It is in this answer that we may see his undoing as a national candidate.
For him to rise so quickly in Chicago politics he needed to have friends with money and access to the community. He found those resources in Tony Rezko and Pastor Wright.
The problem is that Tony Rezko is on trial for fraud and corruption charges. His trial will probably expose more corruption within Chicago politics. It will expose the kickbacks and patronage of a city with a long heritage of these types of shenanigans. The shady relationship between Obama and Rezko will only be explored in greater detail as the trial goes forward.
Pastor Wright provides another problem for Obama. Obama's involvement with the pastor helped him to gain street credibility among the black areas of Chicago. It provided a spring board for his rise to state senator and the US Senate. Now that Pastor Wright's wild rantings have become public, they are becoming another weight around Obama's neck.
The ironic part of his new found problems is I don't believe they would have been major stories 10+ years from now. If Obama had a real political record as a U.S. Senator or as an Illinois Governor, I doubt his early relationships would be anything other than a minor issue in the race. Instead the focus would have been on his record.
We come to the crux of the Obama phenomenon and problem. He has been able to create a brand because he doesn't have years in political office, but at the same time has created a problem for himself. It exposes him to the questions about how he got there in the first place. Looking into his meteoric rise in Chicago politics, one is bound to finding shady dealings and questionable alliances. It are these issues which might prove to be his unraveling.
