Penn Democrats | A new direction for America

Six-hundred-and-thirty days ago, Senator Barack Obama began an improbable, historic and grueling journey proving to the American people that he is fit to be our next commander in chief. Through this journey we have come to know his strengths and weaknesses, his policy stances and political philosophy, his campaign style and, above all else, how truly qualified he is to be the next leader of the United States of America.

The most common argument brought against Obama is that he does not have enough experience to be president. Obama has fought this charge of inexperience his entire life, and each time he has been tested, he delivered beyond expectations. Obama was right about the consequences of invading Iraq; the economic crisis being a product of weak government regulation; Afghanistan being the stage of the real War on Terrorism; and the necessity of engaging "rogue states" in negotiations. He knows what he is good at and where his weaknesses lie - an absolutely essential characteristic of a good president.

As someone who has been an Obama supporter since February 2007, I have dealt with more than a small dose of skepticism, cynicism and mistrust toward Senator Obama. I have gone through my own periods of doubt, but each time I feel ready to give up, something happens that rekindles my faith in this movement that Obama began back at the 2004 convention.

Last weekend I was canvassing in Bucks County. Just as I was thinking, "What am I doing and why am I not asleep?," I walked past a group of high-school guys playing football on a lawn. One of them spotted my Obama button. They ran over and proceeded to discuss policy on an advanced level that I quite frankly did not expect given their young age.

One of them complained, "Man, I wish I were 18 so I could vote."

These high-school students, so willing to put in the effort of making an informed vote, reminded me why I joined the campaign in the first place and made Obama's message of personal responsibility a reality.

In fact, Obama's vision and emphasis on an individual's responsibility to contribute to society first attracted me to his campaign. Personal responsibility, as my conservative friends delight in noting, is a traditionally Republican way to approach society. There is an important difference between Obama's individual responsibility and traditional Republican individualism however. That's the idea of "I am my brother's keeper."

We should not be focused on getting the government off our backs as much as getting adequate health care for all Americans. We should not be cutting taxes on the wealthiest 5 percent of Americans when we have a trillion-dollar national debt and growing unemployment. As the recent financial crisis shows, we are all connected. When we operate with the mindset of every man out for himself, America suffers.

Last week at the Impact '08 panel, Henry Kissinger noted the tendency in politics to list all the problems we face and hence become overwhelmed. We do face a lot of problems, but that's not anything new. Our nation has overcome some incredibly difficult ordeals and has grown stronger through those successes.

We face new, more global, issues now, but that does not mean we should despair. We can get out of Iraq responsibly, achieve energy independence, combat global warming, give health care to all Americans and regain our international respect.

Yes we can, but only if we all participate. This view of everyone being connected sounds utopian and idealistic, but cooperation and compromise are essential if anything is going to get done in our government.

It is for that reason that I urge you to vote for Senator Obama on Nov. 4.

Lauren Burdette is a College junior and President of the Penn Democrats.

This is the third part in a three part series. Click here to see the second part in the series, which covers health care reform, or click here to see the first part in the series, which discusses education policy. Don't forget to check back tomorrow for our Presidential endorsement!

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