Why I think Obama will be the 44th US President

Two observations about Obama’s victory in Iowa caucus this week that I found significant and which is why I had mentioned his name in my 2008 predictions as the next US President – and not HIllary Clinton:

1. His support is across the board, not just his supposedly “natural constituency”! Oprah has thrown her weight behind a guy who makes sense now – fresh face, fresh ideas, fresh demeanour!

It was that he brought several different kinds of voters to the Iowa caucuses – a process that for years has been dominated by hardcore Democrats, and middle-aged and elderly voters – and has seen miserly turnouts even for a sparsely populated state.

The newcomers were both young and middle-aged. Many of the latter were women who had never attended a caucus before – a group that should have been owned by Clinton.

And, guys, he is the first democrat since the young Bill Clinton to fire the imagination of even the Republicans and Independents! Enough for them to register as Democrats! Until now, the democratic party never had anyone like that in years!

Many had never voted for a Democrat before. At the check-in tables, workers filled in sheet after sheet of newly registered Democrats. “A lot of people used to be Republicans and Independents are registering Democrats so they can vote for Obama,” said Charlie Wittmack, a local lawyer.