Iowa State Daily

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Obama for Democrats

We endorse Sen. Barack Obama for the 2008 presidential Democratic Party nomination.

In Obama, we have a candidate who has more to offer than a strategic plan or policy that will change America for the better. What Obama brings above all else is a renewed sense of hope. The past seven years have caused our hope for a better world, a better America, to waver. We have lost a national direction, and Obama can restore that.

But his campaign isn't based on hope alone. Obama has a realistic plan to get the troops out of Iraq, instead of some poorly thought out cut-and-run debacle; he has a commitment to making the U.S. energy independent, which would solve several of our Iraq problems anyway; he takes the changes occurring in our environment seriously and would put measures in place to reduce our impact; and his universal health insurance plan is as realistic as anyone else's.

And unlike some of his counterparts, Obama isn't anchoring himself on a one-issue platform. What needs addressed in America isn't just the war in Iraq; it isn't just health care; and it isn't just that - in the Democrats' view - Bush and his cronies need to be removed from power. Obama grasps the bigger picture.

Perhaps what Obama offers most of all is a change of family. Two families have run the country for the past 20 years, and an election for Hillary would make that 24 at a minimum - longer than most college students have been alive. Political power shouldn't follow through family lines. That in itself is unhealthy for our country's image to the rest of the world as a democracy, and is an example of a political system that seems rooted in its old ways that aren't working.

One of the biggest question marks we have is Obama's level of experience, which pales in comparison to some of the other Democratic candidates. Nevertheless we wonder if that is really such a bad thing. True, he has only served on the U.S. Senate since 2004, but unlike the other candidates, he doesn't seem to be entrenched in a system that only offers pessimism - he still has the drive to offer an optimistic view.

Obama has not been afraid to throw a lot of his time and resources into trying to invigorate the younger crowd. This strategy has failed other candidates in the past, but we appreciate Obama's commitment to the generation who will inherit the country. His message to those of all ages - even those who don't vote in droves - is genuine and inspiring.

He may be raw. He may be too optimistic. But he has ignited a passion for a change in the direction this country is headed. Jump on board, because just like Obama, we're fired up and ready to support him in his quest for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination.
 

Copyright © 2007  Iowa State Daily Publication Board, Inc..  All rights reserved.  Reprinted by permission (Pat Shaver 12/11/07 phone conversation).  See also the paper's endorsement of Sen. McCain.
 
 

NOTES:
Seven people on the editorial staff comprise the editorial board, which meets twice a week.  At the suggestion of the paper's editorial advisor they went through the endorsement process with the intention of backing a Democrat and a Republican.  During a meeting in mid-November, before Thanksgiving, the members of the ed. board reviewed information they had printed out on the various candidates and narrowed the choice down to three Republicans and three Democrats.

According to its website, "The Iowa State Daily prints 13,500 copies daily Monday through Friday during the academic year.  The paper is distributed throughout campus in university buildings, student housing and Campustown."