Democrats are Talking About Obama On 2008 Ticket

In its cover story, Newsweek (12/27-1/3, Alter) profiles Sen.-elect Barack Obama of Illinois. Newsweek reports that "desperate Democrats -- viewing Obama's electrifying speech at the Democratic convention and landslide victory as about the only good news in a dismal election year -- are already talking about him on the ticket in 2008. Although he will inevitably make most shortlists for vice president (and at 43, he's the same age JFK was when he was elected president), this speculation is almost comically premature for an incoming senator. But it does allow Obama to use what his Harvard Law School classmate Ken Mehlman, soon to be chairman of the Republican Party, calls his 'star power' to work with the GOP on bridging Red-Blue divisions and getting some things done." Rep. Rahm Emanuel sees Obama "as a bridge from the left to the center of the spectrum." Obama "isn't cocky but he is confident, and fully prepared to step into a leadership role for the Democrats. Incoming Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, who calls Obama 'a gentleman and a scholar,' expects him to travel abroad as a member of the Foreign Relations Committee and fit in well in the clubby Senate, where Obama has hired defeated Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle's chief of staff to run his office." The Frontrunner December 20, 2004

• Obama Does Not Want To Be Seen As A Leader Of Black America. In its cover story, Newsweek (12/27-1/3, Alter) profiles Sen.-elect Barack Obama of Illinois. Newsweek reports that some Democratic Party activists "might be in for a surprise. Obama may be the only African-American in the Senate, but this is not a man who wants to be seen as the leader of black America. When he spoke at a Congressional Black Caucus reception recently, Obama graciously thanked several caucus leaders by name, then concluded with a short but telling statement: 'I'm looking forward to working with you on behalf of all Americans.'"
• Manning Marable vs. Donna Brazile on the Future of the Democratic Party [more]