Where Is Our Focus?

On Tuesday, even before the final votes had been tallied, it looked as if Sen. Barack Obama had won the race to be the 2008 Democratic Presidential candidate. The race with his opponent Sen. Hilary Clinton proved to be close, as each candidate fought to make history as either the first woman or first black man to take a major political party into the race for presidency. While Obama pushed for change in Washington, Hilary continually offered her experience with political America. Though both were competitive in their campaigns, it seems that Obama was able to pull through in the end according to The Associated Press as seen in editorial, "Obama's first change: The course of history". This competitive campaign, however, did create division within the Democratic Party with the degrading ads and deliberate misinformation. This gap must be healed before Obama can effectively fight against McCain, the Republican candidate. Despite being rivals, Obama could use Clinton’s help to strengthen the democratic campaign. As we get closer to the presidential election in the fall, every move of the candidates will be recorded, reviewed, scrutinized, and replayed for the entire country. Any mistake could cause a downfall. But instead of pushing for personal victory and focusing on how to scrutinize their opponents, Americans should want these candidates to focus their attention on issues such as reforming education and healthcare. It seems American’s can get so wrapped up in media coverage and scandalous slip-ups that we forget to listen for and demand these candidates to address issues that make a difference in the lives of the average person. Middle class Americans are finding it hard to pay for their college education and a simple tank of gas as it climbs to almost $4 a gallon. These are issues that we should be inquiring about, as we get closer to electing the next leader of our nation.

This article is worth reading because it brings to our attention the importance of the candidate’s focus on political issues that affect the average American, rather than on solely winning the presidency. It brings to light how easily we get distracted from the issues that most directly affect a majority of the people.