Saint Barack of Iowa

So after reading the latest cover story on Obama it's starting to get creepy how how the conservative press (and perhaps even certain kinds of conservatives, which I am probably one) are fawning over Obama. What is up with this? Is this support real or is a cynical Anything But Hillary agenda based on the foregone conclusion that the Republicans have no chance in '08.

In my case, I've only voted in two Presidential elections since I was of age (1988 and 2004) and I voted for a Bush in both, but real soon now you are likely to see Obama '08 bumper stickers on both our blue Hondas and I might even contribute 25 bucks. Both would be a first for me and this might be the explanation of why someone who can't help find Rumsfeld and Cheney amusing (and not frightening) would even consider Obama

This is the Obama trick, and it explains why, despite his very liberal voting record in the Senate (and in the Illinois Senate before that), he is not viewed as a left-wing ideologue. When a student asks Obama for his views on the Second Amendment, he reminds his audience that he taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago and is thus familiar with the arguments regarding the right to bear arms. He acknowledges "a tradition of gun ownership in this country that can be respected," and says that his academic studies convinced him gun ownership "is an individual right and not just the right of a militia."

Or perhaps I'm just politically schizophrenic, since I certainly do not agree with his entire platform -- particularly on Iraq, which I'm much more in line with McCain. Of course my strange enthusiasm for Obama (although I'm ambivalent about his speech at Google but I did like his "not bubble sort" answer to a Google interview question) leads to some interesting discussions with my wife who "likes" Obama (and has actually read his memoir, I have not) but is willing to settle for Hillary because she thinks Obama is unelectable. And she thinks the "Republican machine would crush him." She also thinks McCain will be the Republican candidate. I wish that were the case (and I liked McCain in 2000) but it ain't gonna happen.