Words from a colleague about a phone call from Barack Obama. (Emphasis mine.)
On this occasion, he had an important topic to discuss: the controversy over President George W. Bush’s warrantless surveillance of international telephone calls between Americans and suspected terrorists. I had written a short essay suggesting that the surveillance might be lawful. Before taking a public position, Obama wanted to talk the problem through.
In the space of about 20 minutes, he and I investigated the legal details. He asked me to explore all sorts of issues: the President’s power as commander-in-chief, the Constitution’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the Authorization for Use of Military Force and more.
Obama wanted to consider the best possible defence of what Bush had done. To every argument I made, he listened and offered a counter-argument. After the issue had been exhausted, Obama said that he thought the programme was illegal, but now had a better understanding of both sides. He thanked me for my time.
This was a pretty amazing conversation, not only because of Obama’s mastery of the legal details, but also because many prominent Democratic leaders had already blasted the Bush initiative as blatantly illegal. He did not want to take a public position until he had listened to, and explored, what might be said on the other side.
This is the Barack Obama I have known for nearly 15 years — a careful and even-handed analyst of law and policy, unusually attentive to multiple points of view.
The University of Chicago Law School is by far the most conservative of the great American law schools. It helped to provide the academic foundations for many positions of the Reagan administration.
But at the University of Chicago, Obama is liked and admired by Republicans and Democrats alike. Some of the local Reagan enthusiasts are Obama supporters. Why? It doesn’t hurt that he’s a great guy, with a personal touch and a lot of warmth. It certainly helps that he is exceptionally able.
But niceness and ability are only part of the story. Obama also has a genuinely independent mind, he’s a terrific listener and he goes wherever reason takes him.
Good Lord — how could anyone not want someone like that as president?
how could anyone not want someone like that as president?
Because
– it shows that he doesn’t have his own opinions.
– if you listen to the other side you are signalling you are ready to change your mind- you ‘flip-flop’
– if you’re talking to them you are not being tough on them.
– because you’re scared of being seen as being all those things, as you have been taught that you’re country doesn’t have to listen to anyone elses opinion because of your military and economic strength, and you have not yet grasped that the end of the Cold War has brought Asymetric Warfare to a political level, and with the break up of a two bloc system politics is no longer white-hat/black-hat.
Sorry — how could anyone *intelligent* not want someone like that as president. 🙂
Now you put it like that…