The Obama Era: A New Age for America

The office of President occupies a special place in the hearts of all Americans. Former heads of state are immortalized as if they were gods. Their faces grace our currency, schools across our country bear their names - their faces are even carved into mountainsides. While our commander in chief is primarily responsible for the official duties associated with the presidency, he also is bestowed with the tremendous task of representing our nation for the rest of the world. Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, will use this power to re-brand America in the eyes of countries abroad during his years in office. Obama will be seen as a dynamic force in politics due to his tremendous support abroad, the brilliant execution of his campaign for the presidency and his significance in popular culture. These factors, along with his youth and standing as the first African-American president of the U.S., will ignite excitement about the future of the U.S. that will at least temporarily restore America’s image in the abroad.

Obama’s profound support overseas will go a long way towards helping him reestablish America’s image as a proud and accountable nation. Since the moment he announced his candidacy in early 2007, “Obama Mania” in Europe has been flourishing. This was proven by a poll conducted by the BBC in September 2008. In the 22 nation survey, Obama was favored over John McCain in the Presidential election by a four-to-one margin across the 22,500 people polled. The most common view of respondents was that U.S. relations with the rest of the world would improve under Obama, whereas they would remain “about the same” if McCain were elected. The survey also showed that 46% of those polled said the election as president of the African-American Obama would "fundamentally change" their perception of the U.S. Simply, those living in Europe and across the preferred Obama to McCain and believed his election would tremendously change how they view America. With Obama now in position to take his place as our 44th president, this change in perception should manifest itself in the coming months and years.

People abroad did not limit their expressions of support for Obama to polls. When his victory in the presidential race was announced at 11 P.M. EST on November 4th, 2008, the United States wasn’t the only country paying attention. Masses of citizens from far off countries such as Indonesia, Kenya and Japan stormed the streets, cheering, dancing and celebrating Obama’s win. Impromptu celebrations broke out in countless communities with citizens of all ages, genders and races showing their jubilance in response to Obama’s historical electoral triumph. Luis Clemens, a freelance journalist based in Mexico, told NPR that in his home country, “there was disbelief. They couldn’t believe they actually elected an African-American President.” When detailing the celebrations in Africa, Nigerian reporter Constance Ikokwu said, “there was celebration everywhere. They couldn’t believe it happened. [Nigerians] think [Obama] will bring recognition to the black race. They don’t think he will change their lives dramatically. His policies won’t affect him in a huge way. It is about race between whites and blacks…that is the major story.” In Kenya, November 6th was deemed a national holiday by President Mwai Kibaki in honor of Obama’s triumph. The reaction of the world to Obama’s election was an international festival unlike anything seen before. It marked Obama as a unique President possessing an appeal that transcended race or nationality. A conversation on NPR featuring a roundtable of journalists from around the world can be accessed at following link.Obama’s strong support outside of the U.S. can be chiefly attributed to the historical nature of his campaign for the presidency. His innovative approach to politics in the 2008 election contributes to feelings of hope around the world that he will bring a new and better approach to Washington. Obama ran a brilliant campaign from start to finish, taking on one of the top political machines in the history of the modern Democratic Party, created by Bill Clinton and inherited by his wife, and leaving it in the dust. Immediately after this tremendous victory, he took on the Republican Party, which, except for the Clinton intermission in the 1990s, had controlled American politics since 1980 and had even forced Bill Clinton into accommodations he would not otherwise have made. From money to message to campaign organizing to drawing voters, Obama outpaced his two rivals and pioneered a number of new strategies that future politicians will review and study in the years ahead.

Campaign finances were one of the main arenas in which Obama outplayed his rivals. Both Senators McCain and Clinton amassed considerable financial support last year as their party’s frontrunners – and both of them squandered their millions. McCain’s campaign bottomed out last summer, so much so that he had to lay off key staff and take out a $4 million line of credit. Clinton spent so carelessly in the early contests this winter that she had very little left to compete after Super Tuesday and was forced to loan her campaign $5 million. Obama averted a financial downfall, spending his money so wisely that he had enough left to purchase a 30 minute time slot on every major T.V. network to air an “Obama Infomercial” about himself and his presidential campaign in late October. The piece, which cost between $3 and $5 million to air, put an exclamation mark on the dominant campaign spearheaded by Obama.

Obama also inspired an unprecedented number of voters to get out and voice their support for him, where as his challengers did not. Between 22 and 24 million young Americans ages 18–29 voted, resulting in an estimated youth voter turnout of between 49.3 and 54.5 percent, according to an exit poll analysis released Nov. 4 by CIRCLE, a nonpartisan research center at Tufts University. This is an increase of 1 to 6 percentage points over the estimated youth turnout in 2004, and an increase of between 8 and 13 percentage points over the turnout in the 2000 election. This increase largely benefited Obama, who captured 68 percent of the youth vote. According to CIRCLE, this was the highest share of the vote obtained by any candidate since exit polls began reporting results by age in 1976.

Barack Obama ran a campaign unlike any the American public or the world had ever witnessed. He captivated the country, capturing the affection of millions of first time voters as well as seasoned balloters. He made no large public gaffes during his entire campaign, failing to give his detractors an opportunity to halt the momentum of his surprising ascendancy in the early primary turnouts. Obama’s tight ship set a new precedent for political campaigns. With such a calculated and masterful performance, it’s hard not to believe Obama can harness the same energy generated during his campaign and utilize it during his time in office.

The excitement created by Obama’s campaign has also had the affect of catapulting him to prominence in popular culture. This has as not only contributed to Obama’s status an accomplished politician, but also made him a global icon. His influence has reached many prominent international figures, several of which have voiced their support for Obama. Coldplay front man Chris Martin said, "If Obama was to be president, it would immediately change the whole outside world's opinion of America overnight. America's public image at the moment is really bad. And it's a bummer, because over half of Americans are the coolest people on the planet. But they've been so misrepresented." Pop superstar Shakira also voiced her support for Barack Obama. The Colombian singer urged fellow Latinos to vote for Obama in the U.S. presidential elections: "I support Barack Obama because I think he's the person who can truly represent what the U.S. is to other countries. I feel in my heart that he can restore peace and confidence in the U.S." Such support gives Obama another platform for reaching out to normally ignored groups of American society, as well as scores of citizens overseas. Even those abroad that are disengaged from American politics can’t help but take note of Obama’s place in American culture as a unique and ambitious leader, such as when he was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone.

After the administration of the last eight years, the United States has lost credibility amongst the prominent nations of the world. Under the leadership of George Bush, the U.S. defied international objections when it invaded Iraq and has failed to cooperate in lessening the affects of global warming. America has an image problem, and Obama is the guy to fix it. Many contend that the President alone does not hold the power to transform how the rest of the world views our country. Such a theory, however, ignores the symbolic nature of the presidency. Michael Novak detailed the significance of the office in his 1974 book Choosing Presidents: Symbols of Political Leadership:

“While the current commander in chief arguably holds more political influence than any other individual on earth, his office has a larger function than that. The president inevitably becomes a representation the country he leads, reflecting the values and culture of his people...the president enters into the innermost symbols by which we identify ourselves. We do not think about him all the time; on many days we give him not a thought. It is the property of basic symbolic forms to influence us even when we are not conscious of them. When the president acts as president, he acts in our name. He is us. If he goes by a way we do not approve, he uses us against ourselves. This alone is a remarkable power.”

Judging by how Obama wielded his influence during his campaign for the white house, it seems as if no one is better equipped than he to take advantage of the symbolic influence the president can have on every citizen of the U.S. and the globe. If Obama exhibits the same cleverness, efficiency and innovation he employed during his battle for the oval office as commander in chief, an epic restoration of America’s image will be in store. Obama, being very young for a President (forty-seven-years old) and an African-American, is more suited to present our culture to the world than any other politician in the country today. Obama is a member of a minority race which suffered extreme discrimination in our country only fifty years ago, making him a prime example of the equality and opportunity afforded to all U.S. citizens and proof of the positive change that happens within America over time. Even Obama’s challenger for the presidency, John McCain, recognized the magnitude of Obama’s victory in the election. McCain offered his admiration to the future president for "inspiring the hopes of so many millions of Americans who had once wrongly believed that they had so little at stake or little influence in the election of an American president.” He also recognized the Obama’s race, saying, “This is an historic election and I recognize the special significance it has for African Americans. And for the special price that must be theirs tonight. I always believe that America offers opportunities to all who have the industry and will to seize it."

During the next four years, the image of Barack Obama and the image of the United States will inextricably linked. How those living outside the United States view our country during that time will largely be a result of the actions of Barack Obama. As Colin Powell noted in his endorsement of Mr. Obama, “the new president is going to have to fix the reputation that we’ve left with the rest of the world.” Our country is in the midst of a war on terror that has cost us over $600 billion (up to the moment calculation here) and an immeasurable amount of credibility in the eyes of other nations. To make things worse, September 18th, 2008 marked the most catastrophic day on U.S. markets since 2001. Speaking about the immediate economic future of the U.S., financing legend Donald Trump said, "I think it has the chance to be the worst period of time since 1929." And the Wall Street Journal seconds that opinion, giving one of their stories on our economic struggles the title: "Worst Crisis Since '30s, With No End Yet in Sight." Some say these challenges will make a successful Obama presidency nearly impossible. However, if Obama were able to gracefully resolve to our occupation of Iraq and get our economy on the right track, he could be remembered as one of the most revered Presidents in recent memory.

In his historic bid for the presidency, Obama connected with America and succeeded in gaining the votes of blacks, whites, Hispanics, southerners and northerners, the educated and non-educated, the politically engaged and those who had previously stayed on the sidelines. Using the same principles that gained him support in the U.S., Obama can succeed in winning over his latest group of interest, a group who never has or will cast a ballot for him - the citizens of the globe living outside of America’s borders.