The BobboSphere: Don't believe everything you think.

A lot of people are comparing Barack Obama to Franklin Roosevelt and wondering if Obama can pull off a new New Deal in the face of our catastrophic financial crisis. It's a good question and one that needs to be asked. But I'm going to ask another question. I wonder if Barack Obama could become the 21st century Abraham Lincoln.

There are some obvious similarities. Both Lincoln and Obama got their start in Illinois politics. Both had families that moved around a lot when they were growing up. Neither came from the wealthy elite. Both opposed imperialist wars while Illinois politicians. Lincoln spoke out against the Mexican War and Obama spoke out against the Iraq War. Lincoln was a cautious calculating politician who was only moderately progressive for his time. Obama is also a cautious calculating politician who is only moderately progressive by today's standards. Both ran to succeed 2 of the worst presidents in US history. Lincoln ran to succeed James Buchanan. Obama is trying to succeed George W. Bush.

Probably the biggest difference between the two and the most critical is that Lincoln was white and Barack Obama is black. That still makes a difference, even today.

Lincoln had to face America's original sin of racism in the form of chattel slavery. Obama has to face America's original sin of racism in the form of its enduring  white supremacy. Lincoln dealt with slavery and racism by sidestepping race (he himself held white supremacist notions) and by opposing only the expansion of slavery. He was no abolitionist when he ran for president in 1860. Obama has largely sidestepped the racial issue as well and has taken great pains not to confront white supremacy directly. Lincoln was not going to jump too far ahead of the voting public opinion and neither is Barack Obama.

The genius of Abraham Lincoln lay in his ability to adapt quickly to changing realities. Abolitionist John Brown was hanged as a traitor in 1859 for plotting to arm slaves to fight for their freedom. Abraham Lincoln did the same thing only 3 years and a few months later and far more effectively because times had changed. Encouraging  ex-slaves to join the Union Army to fight against their former masters was a radical act. Lincoln, the cautious moderate Republican with his own white supremacist baggage, put himself firmly in the  tradition of not only John Brown, but of slave revolt leaders Denmark Vesey, Gabriel Prosser and Nat Turner. It was a turning point in the Civil War and was a deciding factor in the eventual Union victory and the end of chattel slavery.

If Barack Obama has that Lincolnesque quality of weighing alternatives and keeping an open mind about changing realities, he could be our 21st century Abraham Lincoln when it comes to dealing with the profound regional and political split in our nation. The heartland of rightwing reactionary politics is still Dixie, pretty  much the same heartland of reaction as in Lincoln's time.

I'm not suggesting that President Barack Obama order a U.S. military occupation of Dixie. I am asking if he has the Lincolnesque ability to make bold radical moves in the face of fierce political opposition. Today bold radical  decisions are the only kind that can get this nation through its current grave crisis.

Lincoln was a quick study and was willing to listen to people who disagreed with him. Radical abolitionist Frederick Douglass became a guest in the Lincoln White House and Lincoln came to weigh his advice and counsel seriously. Will Barack Obama invite the best of America's present radical spokespeople into the White House and weigh their advice and counsel in the same manner?

I don't agree with many of Obama's present political positions and many of his past political decisions, but we have to play the hand we are dealt and in a reactionary country like the USA, Barack Obama is the best there is under the circumstances. If he is elected, we will need to hit the ground running like the abolitionists did after Lincoln was elected and open up some space to push this country and Barack Obama where we as a nation need to go.

If Barack Obama is to become the next Abraham Lincoln, he will need all of the mass mobilization from the Left that we can muster. Remember that Lincoln was very reluctant to jump too far ahead of public opinion.Obama is no different in this regard. All of the phone banking, door knocking, community meetings, protests, and rallies etc. can't stop the day after election day. They will need to change their focus to changing America's mind about a lot of complex issues. This is not something that the Democratic Party normally does, but these are not normal times.

Lincoln, like Franklin Roosevelt, had progressive ideas that  foundered on the rocks of America's racial nightmare. The Emancipation Proclamation was the first step toward ending slavery, but it hardly put a dent into American racism. Roosevelt's New Deal benefited white working class people far more than it did black working class people. If Barack Obama could lead a progressive agenda that does not end up being a candy store for white people and a single lollypop for everyone else, that would be an American First.

From my reading of history we get one great president per century: George Washington, Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt so far. Obama has the potential to nail the title for the 21st century, but only if we do our job and push him and our nation to the greatness that I still believe is possible.

I'm competitive enough that I really do want the USA to be greatest country in the world: not for our missiles, for our imperialist foreign policy, for our abject consumerism or for Mickey Mouse. With our diverse population we could be a living laboratory of social change that serves as a model for the rest of the planet.

You know all of that "Shining City on the Hill" blather isn't all bullshit. Somebody has to light the way to better world. Let's lead by our excellent example, not because we have more  weapons and Walmarts.

As Americans we've been setting the bar far too low. Enough is enough. Vote for Barack Obama and then fight like hell to make sure he lives up to his and our potential.