Clinton Football & the Wednesday Morning Quarterback

I was waiting in the car while my husband collected some vegan victuals from the Elevator in downtown Columbus. It had been fun driving around the capital during the first half of the Buckeye football game that afternoon, because every person we encountered on the street had something better to do than get sucked into the Scarlet & Grey. The team playing against OSU gained a defensive touchdown as I anticipated the box full of luscious humus and pita. Cut to the over-sized voice on the field, “By all rights, the game should be over,” he sputtered. Players and spectators are permitted a full hour, but this sour soul wanted to end the game on the first victory.

As candidates emerged for the 2008 Presidential race, I felt the same frustration listening to the media declaring Hillary Clinton the unquestionable Democratic nominee. The game was already over. Why was a junior Senator with only one more year of publically-held office than George W. Bush had when he was installed by the U.S. Supreme Court deemed the “experienced” candidate, I wondered?

I find it hard to believe that people as intelligent as Bill and Hillary Clinton are can be so oblivious to the crowds drawn to Barack Obama who are inspired by the possibility of a new chapter of history that speaks to our desire for collective problem solving and healing of past transgressions. Are the Clintons’ so desperate for another term of office that they would destroy the next generation’s potential for peace and prosperity?

I am not so naïve to believe that a President Obama can take office on 20 January 2009, and drain away all of the conflicted tea in which the world is currently steeped. Indeed, I worry that young people may cast a too idealistic veil over Obama only to be disappointed when he doesn’t produce a Potteresque-magic wand. It will be difficult to break divisive habits, and it will take time to wean the world from fear-mongering. But, Barack Obama is the leader who is and will continue to inspire change in neighborhoods and communities: in these places, change will come with a human touch appropriate to its people.

This time, I am the radio commentator on the field. “By all rights, Barack Obama should be the Democratic nominee,” I shout. As triumphant as that moment will be when Mr. Obama accepts his party’s nomination, he must earn that place honorably by making long drives to the end zone. Only by sweating through sacks, blitzes, and fumbles will he prove his endurance to Clinton Democrats, McCain Independents, and Bush-weary Republicans.

To continue the parallel, perhaps Mrs. Clinton is the Tom Brady of American politics; her coach caught with his hand in the cookie jar at the beginning of the season. Her opponent, a younger, discounted underdog has four minutes on the clock, is down by four points in the polls, and pulls ahead with a phoenix play and a pass to Plaxico Burris.

An unforgiveable mix of metaphors, but did anyone believe that Tom Brady “deserved” to win the Super Bowl simply because the Patriots were 18-0? Hillary Clinton no more deserves a claim to the White House merely because she is a woman or a Clinton. The post-1969 generation of Americans understands this. Their favorite quarterback deserves the win not because he is black or is endorsed by most of the Kennedys. The underdog will win the White House because he will play to the end of the game without taking a knee. Someday, someone will begin a new chapter of history with hope. Why should we wait? Barack Obama is ready now. America is ready for Barack Obama.