Barack Obama for President!

Four years ago, the world had never heard the name Barack Obama. He was a professor of Constitutional law and was making his way through the Illinois State Senate. Then, through a series of coincidences, including a speech at the Democratic National Convention and the failure of the Illinois Republicans to come up with a viable Senatorial candidate in fall 2004, Barack Obama won a seat as the newest U.S. Senator from Illinois and shot to national fame.

Just three years later, this same man is running for president--and appears to have a pretty good chance at it too, despite just two years of Washington experience under his belt! Can he really become America's first minority president? And what makes him so appealing?

He's charismatic. America hasn't seen a candidate this charismatic since John F. Kennedy. He is a smooth talker who has charmed America since the first time most of the country saw him speak at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. It is that very same speech that turned Obama into an overnight sensation and the political rock star that he is today. His words that night, and every day since then, have continued to move and inspire Americans: "If there is a child on the south side of Chicago who can't read, that matters to me, even if it's not my child. If there is a senior citizen somewhere who can't pay for their prescription drugs, and having to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my grandparent. If there's an Arab-American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties. It is that fundamental belief: I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper, that makes this country work. It's what allows us to pursue our individual dreams and yet still come together as one American family."

He represents the American dream. Obama is not shy about his past, and he has a past worth talking about. His father came here as a poor immigrant from Kenya, on a full scholarship, searching for a better life. Barack himself grew up as an outsider, a half-black kid struggling to fit in to American society and find his niche. He struggled with drugs, but quit, and went on to Columbia University and Harvard Law School. He became the first black editor of the Harvard Law Review and graduated at the top of his class--no small feat. America loves to hear a rags-to-riches story, and he's given us a phenomenal one. Obama is truly a product of the best that this country has to offer.

He's not afraid to ask for help. Obama is honest about his lack of experience, and wants to make up for it any way he can. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell recently told viewers during an interview that Obama has sought out the veteran politician and asked him for advice and counsel on foreign policy issues, since Obama's experience in the foreign policy realm so far has been relatively limited. The fact that he is courageous enough to reach out to a more experienced politician and ask for help and advice is a testament to the fact that he knows he is human, and America loves someone who can accept their flaws and shortcomings and ask for help.

He's in touch with a younger generation. The under-35 set loves Obama simply because, well, he's young, and he can reach out to us in ways older politicians haven't yet. He was the first candidate to use MySpace and Facebook as part of his campaign strategy. The "One Million Strong For Barack" group on Facebook amassed over 200,000 student members in two weeks, and the Obama campaign has nothing to do with it. "He has unimaginable appeal to my generation," says Brian Klaas of Carleton College, editor of the Carleton Progressive, quoted in an article in The Nation. For our very diverse generation, Obama's multiracial background, transformation from struggling child and former drug addict to top student at Columbia and Harvard, and his dedication to community service in the south side of Chicago make him relatable and ultimately, likable, to many of the under-35 set.

He is relentlessly optimistic. With just over two years of Washington experience, Obama has managed to take what some point to as inexperience and play it off as youthful optimism. He promises that, unlike many of the older generation of "Baby Boomer" politicians who have been in Washington for years, he has not let the political machine make him cynical and jaded yet. He once asked, " Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or do we participate in a politics of hope?" Obama has presented himself as a candidate full of hope and optimism for a better future for America, and who doesn't want that?

A few years ago, a man like Barack Obama would have been seen as an unlikely candidate who didn't stand a chance for president. But against all odds, this man has managed to appeal to Americans in ways that other politicians can't, and is giving seasoned politicians a run for their money in the race for president.

In 2004 he told America: "Now even as we speak, there are those who are preparing to divide us--the spin masters, the negative ad peddlers who embrace the politics of "anything goes." Well, I say to them tonight, there is not a liberal America and a conservative America--there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America--there's the United States of America." It's hard to argue with that kind of optimism.

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