How the hell is Obama even a contender.

Obama's fame and prominence is not about his experience, or his abilities or acomplishments. It's not about his philosophies, they are certainly not any different from most democrats. Issue by issue he is in line with the rest of the party, he has just both personified and isnpired this ideal better than any other democratic candidate since JFK, possibly far more so and even better. No, Obama is not a candidate, he IS an ideal. The nation is in love with the idea of Obama. A greatly orating man who inspired possibilites.

It's totally beyond me as well. I don't think McCain is the perfect candidate either and I don't like to go with the lesser of two evils, but at this point I would vote for just about anyone that were opposite the ballot from Obama. I think the American public is in for a rude awakening. They'll get change alright ...

Congrats! You are obviously in the half of the country that maintains the ability to think when it comes to politics. And when it comes to Obama, you don't even need to think hard to see the disaster that he is. Personally, I think the election puts the leadership of the Democratic party in a very bad light. How could they railroad such a worthless candidate through the process? They obviously beleived that they could brainwash the electorate into voting for anyone they choose. But he does have one resounding qualification. To quote Obama directly, "did I mention he's black?" He is affirmative action personified and perfected. Why has the national media been so entirely sold out for Obama? Is it because he is a liberal democrat? Partly, but I think there is more. The media are totally caught up in the historical significance of electing the first black president, and they want to be involved. That is why they have no concern with who he really is, what he has done or what kind of president he will be. The skin is the deal! djbtol

All I can say is...WE DON'T NEED ANOTHER BUSH!!!!!!!!!!

The answer is simple, the media made him a contender. They put his face on the screen so often that his face is ingrained in people's heads. They made him the center of every debate while ignoring the more qualified candidates who attended. They vilified his closest competitor and called her a sore loser and accused her of being divisive for not bowing out immediately after Obama took the lead. The media chooses the front runners, not the American people. Just ask around and see how many people can name more than 3 democrats from the primaries.

It is amazing, isn't it? People - and the media - are totally in love with the man. Most of what we know about him comes from a book he wrote about himself. (By the way, who decides to write a book about himself when he's so young and hasn't done anything about which to brag????)

I completely agree. The way I can explain it is that people are histerically reaching out to him because they are unhappy with the way things are now. He has said the word "change" so many times that people think they are grabbing onto a lifeboat that will get them out of their bad circumstances. They're too preoccupied to see there is a gaping hole in this "boat."

I do not know much, very little in fact about American politics but what I have seen of Barack Obama I have liked. I find him to be pleasant and charasmatic. I do not feel at all that he is a bad public speaker and felt he was unfairly treat during the Reverend Wright situation. I think to say he hates America is ridiculous. Why would he even want to be President for a country he hated? I am not even American but felt proud when so many people turne dout to see him in Berlin. Like is aid, I do not know much about the whole political side but I can cetainly see why he has so much appeal.

"Obama has less than a one year experience as a JR. Senator." George W. Bush had experience as a Governor, inarguably the closest experience to running a country one could have. And look how that Presidency turned out. I rest my case there. "He is a horrible public speaker, unless it is written down for him" Complete nonsense. On or off a teleprompter, you will never find Obama mixing up Sunni and Shia, yet McCain did that for DAYS, even AFTER Lieberman corrected him. This is one of those ridiculous "damned if you do, damned if you don't". If Obama isn't a good public speaker, he'd be characterized as being unable to handle Presidential tasks and diplomacy. And if he IS a good speaker, you get lines like "Hitler gave great speeches too". It's really pathetic how you people spin. "He is known for disliking America, just as his wife does" Again, complete nonsense. If he dislikes America so much, why did he give up a high-salary law job (which any Harvard graduate could easily get) to go back to Chicago to do community work? As for his wife, no, that's just the conclusion FOX jumped to after mangling her quote and taking it out of context. This is FOX's version, with no context: "For the first time, I'm proud of my country." This is what she actually said: "What we have learned over this year is that hope is making a comeback. It is making a comeback. And let me tell you something -- for the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country. And not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change. And I have been desperate to see our country moving in that direction and just not feeling so alone in my frustration and disappointment. I've seen people who are hungry to be unified around some basic common issues, and it's made me proud." See? She is talking about how she's really proud (not just "proud" which implies she wasn't proud before, but "really proud" which implies she WAS proud before, but is even more now) BECAUSE she's seeing people coming together in a greater way than she ever has before ("in my adult life", remember?). And she's right--people have been shattering voter turnout records all over the country, and that was just in the primaries, when fewer people overall care enough to vote. She's proud of the fact that people are uniting in a common goal to bring much-needed change to this country. Can you handle the truth? "his friends and advisers are are all anti-American wackos." Hagee (Catholicism is the great w.hore), Robertson (9/11 was caused by "pagans, abortionists, feminists, gays, lesbians, the American Civil Liberties Union and the People For the American Way."), Falwell (same as Robertson), Parsley (the US's purpose is to forcefully destroy Islam (freedom of religion, anyone?))...all people John McCain EXPLICITLY SOUGHT endorsement from. I also don't consider it very American to rob the taxpayers of billions of dollars (see Keating Five). "Yet, he is somehow propped up next to an American hero as if he is somehow even in the same league." McCain is a veteran who doesn't care about other veterans. He opposed and didn't even bother to show up for the vote for the new GI Bill, which had wide bi-partisan support, enough to override a veto. But that didn't stop McCain from TAKING CREDIT for its passage when it (of course) passed by a wide margin! How heroic: oppose something that's popular, and then pretend you were always in favor of it when it happens, no thanks to him. The "P.O.W. card" doesn't give McCain an excuse for all of his bad decisions, empty gimmicks (gas tax holiday, anyone?), and shameless flip-flopping (I can name over SEVENTY flip-flops he's pulled since this campaign started). Of course, this doesn't mean his campaign hasn't TRIED to use it as an excuse for all of his failures. You're right, it isn't a hard choice. After eight years of Bush's failed policies, why would anyone want to vote for a guy who promises more of the same? "The fact is that I have agreed with President Bush far more than I have disagreed. And on the transcendent issues, the most important issues of our day, I've been totally in agreement and support of President Bush." --John McCain "I don’t have any need to show that I’m different than President Bush" --John McCain The choice is easy: if you think you're better off now than you were in 2000, vote for McCain. If not, vote for Obama.

Hi totalcomments_com, in reading every single one of the responses that you received I think you guys, Meaning you and your responders should run for President yourselves!! LOL Whatever, whatever, I'm for OBAMA!!! RAH, RAH, RAH!! Respectfully, ~g~

Obama is a contender because instead of looking at the issues and qualifications of each candidate of being able to resolve the problems, the press has single-handedly skyrocketed this candidate into the current position. We aren't voting on issues, qualifications, experience, we are voting on age, race and gender. Every time someone said something positive about McCain, his age was brought up, every time someone said something positive about Clinton, her husband and Monica was brought up, the first negative press the public heard about Obama was when he ditched the loyal fan base of reporters and had a private conversation without out them reporting every breath he took. If we sit down and really think about who can best lead the country without bringing in race, age or gender, could read the qualifications of each person, their responses to the problems each must face, how they intend to deal with them, without any identifying features to tip the scale as to who wrote them before deciding on the candidate, we would be better off. Election time is coming up quickly, the time to REALLY evaluate our next leader is now, not after the election, and not 4 years later. We have serious problems to solve and whoever gets the presidency better be ready to hit the ground running, know where he is going and how he is getting there to solve the problems. Who will win? It won't be us, if we continue to let the press decide who they will promote in a positive or negative light to influence our decision. We need to do our own homework If Obama wins or had Clinton won, you can bet their performance will determine whether another candidate of a different race or gender would ever get the opportunity to serve as President again so lets make sure we vote based on who is best qualified to lead this country and leave race, age and gender out of the decision. The next 4 years depends on it.

obama has become the front runner for the post of president even though i though that hillary might ve been a better president than him i think. but he is now the front runner and no one can deny it now... so hope that he becomes a good president and lives up to the expectation.

What I find difficult to believe is all the misinformation being spread around about Obama by the Republicans. If they believe that Obama is such a poor choice and McCain is so much better, why spread all the falsehoods?For an example, read this blog that dispels one such piece of information being passed around the Internet. http://ww1.yuwie.com/blog/entry.asp?id=554054&eid=411400

WAIT HOLD UP WAIT A MINUTE! NUH HUH. Obama has a wayyyy better chance of beating out McCain. First of all McCain couldnt answer one measly question. that question was "How many housed do you own" and he said he'll have someone get back with them. He knew he had 9 houses but he just didnt want to say. How many houses do Obama have 1 and soon in a few months he'll have a new house. The White House. Obama is a way better speaker. He is more prepared and he has to be the coolest person ever. I loved watching the political debates between him and Clinton because he mad Clinton look dumb. So i totally disagree with you. I will proudly rock my Obama shirt any given day.

If in fact you are serious, lets clear up a couple of things you have wrong. The first is that Obama is not pro-abortion, he is pro-choice, which any sane woman will tell you that it is ethically wrong to insist on laws controlling her body. Many women would not chose abortion, but not all women share a judeo-christian ethics system and the trauma to body mind and soul over a rape or a forced pregnancy that could degrade a woman's quality of life should not be left to the courts, it should be left to the individual woman. His friends and advisers actually comprise a diverse group, although I will admit that most are anti-war. I suppose that could be construed as anti-American but so is the patriot act and a variety of other abominations perpetrated on the American people under the guise of national security. Bush should be tried for war crimes as well as all the laws of the nation he has willfully broken and disregarded. The American people as a whole have gone mad, or they never would have re-elected Bush. As it happens, of the major parties, Obama is probably the least offensive choice although he is not my choice. The Libertarian candidate Christine Smith would be my choice as her platform is to undo all the anti-American policies and laws enacted by the Bush regime and return to a saner state of the union. As to McCain, that would be like re-electing Bush all over again, and we could expect never ending war, continued deterioration of civil liberties and personal freedom. Much of the ground work that Bush has done has been done before, in Germany.. when Hitler took over the country. I would rather see Obama in the whitehouse than an American Hitler in the world. One last note... you think Bush is a good public speaker??? He makes Obama look very very good. Even with it written down Bush could not speak worth a tinkers dam.

Hello Totalcomments_com, I'm mystified! The only viable answer I can come up with is the power of marketing. With enough money, anyone can be 'sold' to an unsuspecting public. I will admit that I'm really, very surprised that the American Public allowed itself to be corralled into yet another 'lesser of two evils choice'. There has been a vibrant, intelligent debate in this country, for years, which has been exploring the kinds of 'real' changes that might be enacted to create a fairer, more just electoral process. Many terrific ideas have been presented, disected, and perfected. Yet, the parties screwed us again. Moreso the DNC, with its disenfranchisement of Florida and Michigan. Yet, the GOP didn't safeguard against primary games either. So, both parties have failed the nation. And, the only power to change the realities of our system resides with us, We The People.

The answer is simple. White Guilt.

I believe that the Democrats are tired of the Clinton's but knew she was what America expected. They knew it would take some one that the Democrats could except and still not make people mad because Clinton was being challenged. Obama fit the need because he was black and again a minority. They did not care that he is not at this time qualified. At this time we need a leader that is not afraid to show the world that we are not going to sit and talk but if need be we will fight. I am sure in a few years Obama will have the skills necessary to run the country but not now.

many of the points you make have crossed my mind as well as i gather information to make an informed choice in november. i think both choices stink to be perfectly honest and either way i think we lose. but i think we lose big time if obama gets in the white house. i think that people like him because he gives them hope for things that greatly need changing and he speaks of them at the right time in the right places. i also think that many people of color just want him in the white house because he too is a man of color. a president is nothing more than an orating figure head, a puppet if you will for the ruling, majority party. obama can say anything he wants but if congress and the senate do not back him on his IDEALS nothing is going to change. mccain does not impress me either and i have little confidence that anything will get better with him at the helm either. i was all for hilary and have been for years but this is a man's world and they did all they could to make sure she did not make it into the white house. the men have done a lousy job for a long, long time. now it is time for a woman but we will have to wait another 4 years for that possibility.

I'm not voting nor am I American for that matter but i want to comment. i was intrigued with the pcoming US Presidential elections because its the first time a black and a woman were competing to run for the democratic nomination. after the disastrous attack on Iraq as an imperialist move to stop terrorism at all cost, yeah, you guys need a change. i was rooting for Hilary though...