Getting the job done

Senator Hillary Clinton
Originally uploaded by Laphoto1

If the US election would classify as an illegal drug, I would be by now either jailed or in rehab. I just cannot get enough, I just cannot. I am not that much into the mud-slinging but I am really driven by the in-depth journalistic analysis on the weaknesses and strengths of the candidates. Just yesterday I listened to NBC's Meet the Press at the gym (highly recommendable podcast) which reminded me again that the United States is the superpower of journalism.

I cannot vote but I feel still somewhat puzzled. Already at an early stage I found myseld inclined to support Hillary Clinton instead of Barack Obama. This choice is constantly tested, lately by the following factors:

1. Bill: The ruthless and ugly campaigning of the former president really disgusts me. Clinton reacted like a 6-year-old boy to Obama's comment in Nevada that Clinton was not reforming, modernising president. Clinton has been fiercely profiling Obama as a black candidate like Jesse Jackson. As Maureen Dowd pointed out in Meet The Press, this is an ugly strategy to drive the Latinos and whites on Hillary Clinton's side but it has a negative effect on the image of politics as a whole.

The other criticism on the Bill factor is a feminist one. Somehow his big role somewhat seems like Hillary Clinton's campaign would think that she cannot handle it on her own.

2. Obama's supporters: Most of the people I value in US politics and also most of the cool celebrities support Obama. He has most of the people who are cool (Scarlett Johansson, Oprah, will i.am., George Clooney), maybe with the exception of the fab America Ferrara. Obama is much more popular among young voters and he is endorsed by the leading Kennedys.

Still, I stick to Hillary Clinton. If Obama wins the Democratic nomination, I think he will become a wonderful president. But I trust Clinton more in getting the job done. The US is a mess after the Bush era and Clinton has an impressive track record. Madeleine Albright, one of my political idols, supports her. When Obama's talks in abstract soundbytes, Clinton focuses on what can be done.

I also dislike Obama's branding as the most Kennedy-like candidate: I don't see the same passion and emotional, personal involvement, I see a preacher. And every leader should create their own style, rather than warming up an old one. We all know that a dish is not as good on the next day when heated in a microwave.

And yes, the tears moved me too. Most people, even Obama supporters, state that Hillary Clinton face-to-face is an incredibly compassionate and warm person. And it is about time that the world is led by a woman.