Having spent several years as a political science major and politically active student, I am aware of the cynicism that dominates the political world and manifests itself in the minds of voters and everyday Americans, many of whom are struggling due to the ignorance of the Bush administration. Politically active individuals such as myself are not immune to this cynicism and mine has caused me to begin to harbor great resentment for "politics as usual." Barack Obama is not "politics as usual," and for that reason I am proud to give him my endorsement for president.
All around the country, a movement has arisen with the purpose of electing a man who has embodied change and departure from "politics as usual" more than any other candidate for any office in an entire generation. Obama's supporters are not "cultists" as some commentators and political opponents have foolishly claimed. His supporters are tired of deadlock in Washington, fed up with partisan bickering and absolutely sick of the politics that have caused their elected officials to ignore the best interests of the country for the purpose of getting re-elected. Obama will stop that deadlock when he is elected the 44th president.
His choice to forgo a six- to seven-digit salary job on Wall Street and become a community organizer after college is a great example of his lifelong desire to improve the lives of Americans. Doing his best to meet this goal was hardly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for him. In the Illinois State Senate, Obama worked in a bipartisan manner to pass tax cuts totaling $100 million for Illinois residents and also fought for increased childcare subsidies. After his election to the U.S. Senate, he continued his reputation as a warrior against extreme partisanship. He has worked with both parties on immigration reform, ethics reform, alternative energy initiatives, nuclear non-proliferation and many more issues of great importance to Americans.
Of course, as is the case with any political reformer, Obama has not created this movement without resistance. In fact, he has taken fire from both sides. On the Democratic side, Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign has implied that he cannot bring the change he talks about. Clinton recently bewildered the political world with a ridiculous claim of plagiarism. Former President Bill Clinton has made comments that caused even his former supporters to accuse him of race-baiting. On the other side, presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain baselessly suggested Obama cannot bring change saying, "I will fight every moment of every day in this campaign to make sure Americans are not deceived by an eloquent but empty call for change." Conservapedia, the far-right Wikipedia alternative, made the idiotic and despicable claim that Obama "has no clear personal achievement that cannot be explained as the likely result of affirmative action." Regardless of his detractors, he is on pace to become the Democratic nominee and president. This election gives the American people a clear choice. We have a choice between clear change and a carbon copy of antiquated partisan politics. This is a campaign of agreement about what we have in common versus exploitation of the deadlock we have had on a handful of issues. In Obama, we finally have a candidate who espouses the change side of that argument. In my opinion, Clinton and McCain both represent the politics that Americans have grown to detest. No party within the American political system has an enemy within that same system, regardless of the anger we all feel sometimes. Our differences are meaningless in comparison to what we all have in common as Americans.
The greatest attribute we have in common is the knowledge that all Americans have a responsibility to work hard in order to leave their country and the world in a better state than they found it so that their children might enjoy the same rights and privileges that we enjoy. Barack Obama is the only candidate who understands this fact. Democratic voters in Ohio and the rest of the country should vote for Obama to be their nominee and American voters should cast their ballot for him in November.
Brian Murphy is a senior in political science. He can be reached at murphy.718@osu.edu.
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