What I admire the most about Barack Obama is___________________.

[Colobo]

Let's talk about something positive: What we admire the most about Our Nominee!

What I admire the most about Barack Obama is his ability to inspire us to get involved in the process of fixing the mess of the Bush years.

[Alexander]

1. His intelligence.

[Starlight]

6. That was my first thought, too.

[Alexander]

10. Great minds think alike.

[NYC_SKP]

2. He's Genuine and Credible.

And doesn't speak to me like I'm stupid or gullible.

[Colobo]

7. I agree!

[NattPang]

3. His Steadfastness.

[sandnsea]

4. Refusal to bend in the political wind n/t

[BlooInBloo]

5. Intelligence + work ethic + intentions = ftw!

[JanusAscending]

8. I'm afraid there is more than one thing.........

First, is that he can relate to all kinds of people, he has empathy,and he KNOWS what he is doing at all times. He is one of us,and has a clear understanding of all of our issues. Finally, he is a man of GREAT perception, who knows where he is going, and I for one am willing to let him take me along !!!

[AspenRose]

9. Self-control/restraint.

I think I would have lost it long ago if I had to deal with the rumor circus he deals with *every single day.*

He is also not afraid to admit when he's screwed up. That's admirable and refreshing in light of what we've endured for the past 8 years.

[jenmito]

11. His demeanor-no drama Obama. 180 degrees from McCain's.

[rurallib]

12. judgment.

[AnnieBW]

13. He can see multiple sides of every issue

He examines things thoroughly before making a decision.

[Overseas]

14. His courage and demeanor.

The way he respectfully challenges John Sidney McCain III's military policies. He does the requisite preamble thanking him for his service to our country and then gets to the problems with his support for a continuation of the failed Bush policies.

He is courteous but doesn't back down from his much wiser foreign and military policies. He speaks much more intelligently on military and international issues than JSM III ever did.

[Awsi Dooger]

15. He understood this was the year to seize presidential opportunity

It would have been sheer idiocy to wait, the lame and cautious wait-my-turn crap. Obama stood out as soon as it was evident he would run. I may have preferred others but Obama leaped in my respect when he made that decision. I always appreciate excellent handicapping and Obama demonstrated it. It's a favorable cycle and his strength of speaking ability is magnified in significance, based on the Bush level.

[Olney Blue]

16. he punches back

[Frustratedlady]

17. His ability to hold people's interest and attention.

He will probably be admired most for keeping his cool while others were trying to tear him down. He has incredible control and discipline.

[Buck Rabbit]

18. He'd be the first president since I could vote who is both

smarter than me and could beat me at basketball.

Bill might have been smarter than me but I could mop the floor with his sorry ass on the court.

[scheming daemons]

19. No question about it after the past 8 years.... his I.Q.

Intellectual Curiosity.


He has it.



Bush doesn't.



It's like Obama has a whole extra lobe of his brain that is missing from Dubya.

[mtnsnake]

20. I admire how he doesn't hesitate to fight back or to clarify things, plus his pushing for diplomacy

[Diamonique]

21. His calmness and strength under fire.

[NattPang]

22. This should be getting a lot of recommends.

People said more than one thing,
so I will add to my one adjective earlier.

He is calculating, but in a positive way.
It is what we need to win.

[Name removed]

23. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Diamonique]

24. WTF?!?!?!

[NattPang]

25. Stop the presses! What a terrible thing to say!

[Shae]

26. Who would have thought a very few years ago . . .

that a black man with a name like Barack Hussein Obama could be the Democratic nominee for President (and will likely go on to win the Presidency)?
The obstacles of his circumstances didn't stop him from going after what he wanted. He didn't use his circumstances as excuses for not obtaining his goals. I really admire this about him. "Yes we can" is more than a slogan to him; it's a way of life.

[madura]

27. ,,, he does not flinch

he handles all the crap thrown in his face by both democrat and republicans with aplomb.

hmm, new word for me, didin't do the dictionary thing just think it fits.

aplomb bob

edited, i looked it up.

[TexasObserver]

28. His dancing.

No, wait, his basketball playing.

But seriously, he's so damn smart, and so cool about keeping everything organized and drama free. I'm really, really impressed with his executive skills, as evidenced by the way he built such a solid organization.

[TheKentuckian]

31. His understanding of the game

of politics and people.

I also have to say he does a great job of sticking to his guns (despite the strange flip/flop charges), if you have read his book you wouldn't be surprised by any of the stances he has taken, except perhaps FISA and not understanding that one stems from apparently great faith in the electorate's ability to understand and care about complex issues.

[On the Road]

29. His Optimism,

greatness of spirit and insistence on staying positive and bridging gaps.

[pollard1]

48. totally agree

I think its his best strong point!

[Skwmom]

30. Hmmm... Foremost, I admire how he spoke out against the war when it

wasn't the politically safe thing to do.

Is Obama a perfect man? No. But I do think he is a good and decent man who will put this country first.

I remember watching the movie about Kennedy and the Cuban missile crisis. He sends his political guy away so that he can discuss the issue with his brother. Today, the majority of our politicians would consult with their top political strategist before making a move.
I don't think Obama is this type of politician. In part, because of the fact that Ted Sorenson said Obama is the first politician to remind him of JFK.

[DFLforever]

32. HIs intelligence, his determination, and his calmness under

pressure.

As someone mentioned above, Obama has tremendous self-control.

[Kaleko]

33. ... that he combines within him all the traits

of a transformative leader. It is very rare that someone with these qualities gets even close to the nom for Prez. Happens MAYBE once in a generation.

He's self-aware and seems to have accurate self-assessment. That's almost impossible to find in a politician.

[Tim4319]

34. His never seem to get rattled demeanor!

It seems that no matter what he is faced with he never seems to show worry.

[ColbertWatcher]

35. That he has a smart wife.

It means a lot when a person can have a significant other who is just as smart and powerful as they are.

[redcatcherb412]

55. Naturally

Just look at Bill and Hill as a shining example of that.

[democrat2thecore]

36. His Unflappability - It Amazes Me. -nt

[Hoof Hearted]

37. I wish I had the money to have teeth like that!

I would smile all day!

Keep the money, I just want decent teeth!

Here's to trickle-down dental care!

[mopinko]

38. he is great with kids (not counting his own adorable girls)

boy, y'all took all the big ones.

but the kid thing is important. his statement after 9/11 pointing to the poverty and the dismal outlook for the children of many countries as the seat of the real unrest in the world hit the nail on the head, afaic. lot's of politicians spout that kind of stuff, but i think he understands it, really, and means it. in his speech after the wisconsin primary, he talked about dumping nclb, not teaching to the test, and having art and music and real social studies in the schools.
and those 2 girls. they just peg the cuteness meter.

and, i think, he is a white sox fan. (saw a pic of him wearing a sox cap.) be still my heart.

i could go on. and on. good thread. thanks.

[BeyondGeography]

39. His broad perspective on humanity

and his dedication to making something good of it.

[olkaz]

40. David Axelrod.

Seriously, he picked a winner. That's a talent.

[Capt. America]

41. The fact that he can talk in complete sentences ...

...it will be soooooo refreshing not to have a moron who assaults the English language as President.

[Allyoop]

42. All the above

and he's ambitious, but for all the right reasons, not just for his own ego.

First candidate I will be able to vote for as the best choice, not the least worse choice!!

[NatBurner]

43. basically

[me b zola]

44. He speaks to us as if we were adults

2) Michelle

3) His calmness under fire

4) His belief that we can and should be better

[Voice for Peace]

45. His talent in motivating a team to work together, pulling the best out of people.

His respect for people, his ability and willingness to listen to and consider many points of view.
Courage, sense of humor, vision, warmth.

[AllentownJake]

46. Competence

[butterfly77]

47. There are too many...

I can make a list, but one thing I like is the way he doesn't let them get away with the fake talking points, he brings it too them and he goes indepth in his explanation..I really like his tanacity...

[elizm]

49. Judgement

[seasat]

50. His ability to frame Democratic ideas in clear simple phrases.

One of the biggest problems that we've had on the left is the ability to communicate our ideas to the general population. Obama has the ability to take something complex like health care reform and describe it in a way that folks that don't research policy can relate to. We understand nuance of the issue since most of us on the DU study the details. However, the general public mainly responds to simple sound bites. That is how the Iraq war was sold. That is how the Repubs are selling their drill everywhere policy. Obama has the ability to make the counter argument by condensing our rebuttal to these Repub frames into precise messages that the folks that receive all their information from the main stream media can understand.

[High Plains]

51. His willingness to expand the war in Afghanistan?

Er, I mean....

[Imagevision]

52. Overall intelligence, after going 71/2 years without it, it will be refreshing, reassuring...

[Brigid]

53. His coolness under fire.

And his intellligence. Can't wait to vote for him again in November. :)

[goclark]

54. I love his mind and the way that he articulates his thoughts

to masses of people.

The article in Rolling Stone is a must read!

[blindpig]

56. raising the dead and dividing the fishes.

[anaxarchos]

58. So...

...apparently in one of the Gospels that didn't make it into the Bible (no surprise), there is a story of Jesus as a child, playing on a rooftop with another boy. The other boy falls off the rooftop and dies. Upset by the events, several of the villagers question Jesus, implying that he may be responsible. Frustrated at his own ability to dispel that doubt, Jesus walks over to the boy and with one touch raises him from the dead.

"I didn't push you off that roof, did I?", asks Jesus.

"Oh no, Jesus, I fell on my own.", replies the boy and promptly falls dead again.

I couldn't help being reminded of Reverend Wright by your comment...

"Oh no, Barack, you didn't throw me under that bus."

[BigBluenoser]

57. His fan club.

Seriously,

While I myself am baffled by his appeal beyond the (D) after his name, the man clearly has star power that works on a lot of people. This results in a rabid fan base that can really help him (or more rarely - hurt him, like with the New Yorker flap).