Obama Enters Camelot

With a sort of nausea inducing predictability, Clan Kennedy is endorsing/set to endorse Obama for the Democratic Presidential Nomination, and as a result, they are endorsing him for President as well. According to Caroline Kennedy* the reason is:

"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."

Yep, we're being asked to support Obama because he believes in hope. In fairness, though, I have never come across any politician who doesn't believe in hope. It is a pretty fucking bold politician who stands up and says "I stand for despair!"

But I digress. There are similarities between Kennedy and Obama. They both represent parts of America that had, at the start of their campaigns, never been in the White House before (Catholic and Black people respectively), they are both (relatively) young, photogenic and with families that play well for the media. But they are both all spin and no substance. The fuckwitted logic is they look good, therefore they must be good. Kennedy arguably ushered in the modern political era, where being photogenic and media savvy is more important than actually being a fucking capable politician. Obama has taken that legacy, and has run with it. He has been embraced by Camelot, and whilst the Kennedy clan ceased to have any real political power after Teddy's "unfortunate incident", they still have massive influence. Whatever way you look at this, the endorsement of a Kennedy is a boost to the Obama campaign.

Which is a massive shame, really, because when you consider what Kennedy actually achieved, it is remarkably little. He scraped a victory in a Presidential election, backed by his father's wealth and possibly by electoral fraud. He fucked around like there was no tomorrow both before he entered the White House and during his time there. He nearly pushed the world towards nuclear war through his cack-handed foreign policy, and failed in his attempt to win back Cuba for the anti-communist world. He escalated the Vietnam war, causing a cost to both America and South East Asia that was felt decades afterwards. The triumph that many people associate with Kennedy - Civil Rights - was actually achieved by his successor in the White House.

See, the Kennedy administration should be linked with failure, and as a result the endorsement of a member of the Kennedy clan should be the kiss of death on any Presidential campaign. However, owing to the years of shameless spin after Kennedy's untimely death, this will help Obama.

So what I hope is this. If Obama does get elected (which is possible, and is a position bolstered by the results of the South Carolina primary) he shouldn't aspire to be like Kennedy. He should aspire to be so much more.

*A woman who in no way trades off her family name, like that foul harpy Clinton...