Like millions of others around the world, I watched the first U.S. presidential debate last night. It made me more upset than ever about the thought of a McCain presidency. Here are some adjectives to describe what I saw:
McCain: sneering, smug, contemptuous, rude, aggressive, sarcastic, lying, mean
Obama: gracious, poised, smart, eloquent, polite, deferring, stern, respectful, righteous, nice
Yes, it matters to me that Obama is nice, because it shows he is someone who can get his point across without attacking his opponent, and he can remain respectful (and on topic) even when someone else is pelting him with lies and unfair attacks. Do I want this in a president, someone who is going to be representing U.S. interests at home and abroad? You betcha!
It is so clear to me, from watching how they handled themselves in the debate, and throughout the last few weeks during the economic crisis, who is better suited to the job of President. But I know how others will see it. McCain being "tough" on foreign policy. Obama being too professorial. Etc. Even as I watched I could feel McCain's pull, could understand what others were no doubt seeing. The older white man - Santa Claus and good old boy and army commander and father figure rolled into one, all the old archetypes, making us feel safe and reassured in an uncertain world. Oh good, there's a white man, a white-haired elder, a patriarch, at the wheel.
But what if we're driving a brand-new car? A car that no one has ever driven before? On a road which has yet to be built?
I see Obama as a new, different kind of leader for this country. And not only because he is young and of mixed race. He is looking outward, at the rest of the world, with eyes that are still clear and open, and untainted by the usual American arrogance. He has an understanding that McCain will never have, because McCain's view of the rest of the world has been indelibly stamped by war experiences. Obama grew up knowing about different kinds of people, different ways of life, by living them. He is part of the world in a way McCain will never be.
It was interesting to note that during the debate, only Obama mentioned the importance of American's standing in the world, how we are seen by others. This seems so basic, so important, and yet someone like McCain doesn't even seem to think there is a problem. I am amazed, coming back from Europe, how insulated people here still are. How truly incurious and myopic they are when it comes to seeing America's place in the rest of the world, or how others see us. How anyone could ever consider voting for someone who could sing "Bomb bomb Iran" and laugh about it, is beyond me. Do we really not care about the rest of the world hating us?
For all his supposed "inexperience," Obama seems to have a much clearer head for foreign policy. He understands that we are not the only country in the world, and just because we want to end the war doesn't mean that we are "losers." McCain is too attached to the idea of winning, too attached to his own bitterness about the way the Vietnam War ended (don't take my word for it - read this month's Atlantic cover story: "Why War Is His Answer") We don't need a war hero in the White House, as cozy and all-American as that might sound. We need someone who is ready to think beyond the narrow walls of the war room, and lead us into the broad, clear daylight.
(I'm tempted at this point to start shouting, We need a new paradigm! but I feel a little silly doing it while alone at my desk...)
