Almost one month ago, a brilliant writer made a bold prediction — that Senator Barack Obama will be president by 2016. That brilliant writer was me — and it appears as though my prediction may come true sooner than anticipated.
On Sunday, Obama appeared on Tim Russert’s Meet the Press on NBC. Russert popped the question — which Obama is asked everywhere. He goes: “Will you run for president in 2008?” Obama replied, “I would say I am still at the point where I have not made a decision to pursue higher office, but it is true that I have thought about it over the last several months,” which in layman’s terms translates to, “blah blah blah — probably.”
The presidential election in 2008 promises to be one for the ages with so many exciting candidates. In addition to Obama, there are other democrats interested in the position. John Edwards (more experience needed) will be back to make another run at the democratic nomination. There is speculation that Hillary Clinton (no chance at winning) may run as well. John Kerry (already had his chance) may even attempt another presidential nomination. Howard Dean (WOO!!!) may also run.
On the Republican side, John McCain (great candidate) is thought of by many to be the front-runner for the nomination. McCain would make an excellent president and if it ends up being him vs. Obama, I don’t know what I’d do. I might have to flip a coin. Other speculation for the republican side includes Jeb Bush (no chance unless he changes his name) and Rudy Giuliani (shoe-in, but probably won’t run).
So many great candidates! Whom do I choose? The election is only two years away! I am more excited about the 2008 presidential election than I was for Star Wars: Episode I and the season premier of Lost COMBINED.
There are so many subplots going into 2008. Can the democrats nominate someone uglier than John Kerry? Will republican smear tactics work for a third-straight election? Will the democrats stand up for themselves or roll over again? Will we ever have a real debate? Can Howard Dean be taken seriously again? Can the democrats win a state that isn’t in the north or west? Is there a candidate who can make us laugh more than George W. Bush? The answers as I see them now are no, maybe, roll over unless Obama runs, not really, probably not, not unless these states learn to read and no.
I get more excited about presidential elections than I do about professional sports. Come to think of it, presidential elections are exactly like professional sports.
The regular season in presidential politics is the time following the end of the previous election leading up to the primaries. During this time, we get a feel for who the stronger candidates are and who the underdogs are. The regular season seems to go on forever, but finally, the playoffs start.
The playoffs officially begin with the first primary election. In 2004, we saw the No. 1 seed Howard Dean being upset by the No. 3 seed John Kerry, who later joined forces with the No. 6 seed John Edwards to battle Bush for the championship. Exciting things always happen in the playoffs.
Once the primaries are over, the final two teams are set. Both sides begin to trash talk each other and the public begins to take sides. Vegas even establishes odds so you can bet on who will win the presidential election. If your candidate didn’t make it, you generally root for someone from the same conference.
It is sad, but in this country, Americans regard politics the same way they regard sports. Each has his or her team to blindly root for until the end, regardless of what the team does or who is on it. Sometimes we inherit our teams from our families. Sometimes we go out and find one we like. We watch the news to see highlights of our team and our favorite players.
Political talk shows like Meet the Press, Crossfire and The O’Reilly Factor are basically ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption, Around the Horn and Quite Frankly with Steven A. Smith.
And in politics, just like in sports, there are bandwagons. The Barack Obama bandwagon is gearing up and ready to ride and I’m proud to say I was one of the first ones on board.
Contact Todd at [email protected].
