Field Notes Inside an Integrated Communications Agency

As Barack Obama continues to garner widespread support and momentum on the road toward Super Tuesday, parallels and comparisons between himself and the late President Kennedy are being drawn more and more frequently. Senator Obama is gracious in his acceptance of the compliments that such a characterization imply, but visibly reluctant to embrace or buy into his own hype.

Coming on the heels of a huge victory in South Carolina this weekend, Barack Obama's campaign scored big with public endorsements by two members of the influential Kennedy clan. Caroline Kennedy, daughter of President Kennedy, ran a glowing op-ed piece in yesterday's New York Times, formally throwing her support behind Obama. Senator Ted Kennedy is set to appear with Obama and Caroline on the campus of American University in Washington, D.C., where he is expected to offer a similar show of support. What sort of shot in the arm can Obama's campaign expect from such a glowing endorsement by not one, but TWO members of America's Royal Family? More important, how much of a punch in the nose will this prove to be for Hillary Clinton's campaign?

My interest piqued, I decided to dig up some details of JFK's race for the White House in 1960, to compare against this year's epic battle for the Democratic nomination. Thanks Wikipedia.

In 1960, Democratic party leaders united in a call for change - for a fresh face. Adlai Stevenson, the party contender in both 1952 and 1956, had offered little competition, getting trounced in both general elections. Neither himself nor Lyndon Johnson, the party's other Establishment figure, could compete with John Kennedy's ability to ignite and motivate throngs of people. Kennedy handily won the nomination. In what would later be called a brilliant campaign maneuver, Kennedy offered LBJ a spot on his ticket going into the general election. Johnson threw the full support of his Establishment behind Kennedy, ultimately helping secure major victories in critical states - among them, Johnson's home state of Texas, an historically devoutly red state. Kennedy went on to win the Presidency in a close battle with Richard Nixon. I will stop short of drawing any conclusions or making any predictions based on historical record. Rather, let's call it further physical evidence that having friends in high places can benefit your cause.

Those critical of this weekend's endorsements are quick to point out the perceived shortcomings of the Kennedy clan. Here's one particularly scathing response I found in combing the blogosphere:

Just Like Her Daddy and Worse

The Princess Royal of the Kennedy clan, who has herself accomplished nothing in life except being born to wealth and privilege, has draped her father’s moth-eaten cloak on Barack Obama, who, in her father’s White House, would have been a footman or cook. Say what you will about Obama, he got there himself without the benefit of a rich daddy or corrupt political machine. He may be more unprepared to be president and more disastrous for this country than was JFK, but we hope, at least, that he will be impervious to “love notes” from middle-aged political camp followers who are still trying to be influential without ever being relevant.

Ouch.

I cry distraction! I'm well aware of the Kennedys' checkered past. I'm well aware that the legacy of wealth and privilege that the Kennedy name implies is worlds away from my own. And knowing this, I could not care less in this context. Caroline Kennedy voiced her opinion. Using the power and influence of her position, she did so in a very public way - but the fact remains, she gave her own personal opinion, love it or hate it. Like her, I've never been truly inspired by a president. To my generation, the legacy of JFK has been abstracted to a collection of nostalgic anecdotes of an inspired America and an over-analyzed snuffing out of the voice behind it. The authors of such nasty criticism as this are missing the point entirely. The point is, I can't write my little campaign contribution check to Obama fast enough. I am glued to the television/radio/web anytime the man speaks, and it is ELECTRIFYING. I want to help. I want to get involved. I want to participate in the reclamation of my nation and its good name.  

Endorsements are a normal, natural, and some would say necessary part of the modern election process. Governors, religious leaders and socialites of all grade and color of celebrity are clamoring to publicly voice support for the race horse of their choosing. Candidates depend on the buzz generated for and about them to promote name recognition and voter awareness. At nearly 300 million strong, the American populus is, more than ever, a moving target, difficult for a campaign to hit with any effectiveness. I read Caroline Kennedy's endorsement and I think, 'Well, okay. That's how Caroline Kennedy feels about Barack Obama.' I do not feel like I am in any jeopardy of compromising my integrity or ethical standards because I agree with something a Kennedy said. If I had to pull one sentence out as a summation of her points, it is this:

"I want a president who understands that his responsibility is to articulate a vision and encourage others to achieve it."

Rather than offer up my NY Times login info, I'm just going to list the full text of the op-ed piece at the end of this article. Have a read and decide for yourself - does this sound like something you might be interested in? For the record - Robert Kennedy, Jr. endorsed Hillary way back in November.

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A President Like My Father
(As run in NY Times, January 27, 2008)

By Caroline Kennedy, Op-Ed Contributor

OVER the years, I’ve been deeply moved by the people who’ve told me they wished they could feel inspired and hopeful about America the way people did when my father was president. This sense is even more profound today. That is why I am supporting a presidential candidate in the Democratic primaries, Barack Obama.

My reasons are patriotic, political and personal, and the three are intertwined. All my life, people have told me that my father changed their lives, that they got involved in public service or politics because he asked them to. And the generation he inspired has passed that spirit on to its children. I meet young people who were born long after John F. Kennedy was president, yet who ask me how to live out his ideals.

Sometimes it takes a while to recognize that someone has a special ability to get us to believe in ourselves, to tie that belief to our highest ideals and imagine that together we can do great things. In those rare moments, when such a person comes along, we need to put aside our plans and reach for what we know is possible.

We have that kind of opportunity with Senator Obama. It isn’t that the other candidates are not experienced or knowledgeable. But this year, that may not be enough. We need a change in the leadership of this country — just as we did in 1960.

Most of us would prefer to base our voting decision on policy differences. However, the candidates’ goals are similar. They have all laid out detailed plans on everything from strengthening our middle class to investing in early childhood education. So qualities of leadership, character and judgment play a larger role than usual.

Senator Obama has demonstrated these qualities throughout his more than two decades of public service, not just in the United States Senate but in Illinois, where he helped turn around struggling communities, taught constitutional law and was an elected state official for eight years. And Senator Obama is showing the same qualities today. He has built a movement that is changing the face of politics in this country, and he has demonstrated a special gift for inspiring young people — known for a willingness to volunteer, but an aversion to politics — to become engaged in the political process.

I have spent the past five years working in the New York City public schools and have three teenage children of my own. There is a generation coming of age that is hopeful, hard-working, innovative and imaginative. But too many of them are also hopeless, defeated and disengaged. As parents, we have a responsibility to help our children to believe in themselves and in their power to shape their future. Senator Obama is inspiring my children, my parents’ grandchildren, with that sense of possibility.

Senator Obama is running a dignified and honest campaign. He has spoken eloquently about the role of faith in his life, and opened a window into his character in two compelling books. And when it comes to judgment, Barack Obama made the right call on the most important issue of our time by opposing the war in Iraq from the beginning.

I want a president who understands that his responsibility is to articulate a vision and encourage others to achieve it; who holds himself, and those around him, to the highest ethical standards; who appeals to the hopes of those who still believe in the American Dream, and those around the world who still believe in the American ideal; and who can lift our spirits, and make us believe again that our country needs every one of us to get involved.

I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans.