Marc Andreesen, the guy who started Netscape, recounts a 90 minute meeting he had with Obama shortly before he started running for President:
We asked him directly, how concerned should we be that you haven't had meaningful experience as an executive — as a manager and leader of people?
He said, watch how I run my campaign — you'll see my leadership skills in action.
At the time, I wasn't sure what to make of his answer — political campaigns are often very messy and chaotic, with a lot of turnover and flux; what conclusions could we possibly draw from one of those?
Well, as any political expert will tell you, it turns out that the Obama campaign has been one of the best organized and executed presidential campaigns in memory. Even Obama's opponents concede that his campaign has been disciplined, methodical, and effective across the full spectrum of activities required to win — and with a minimum of the negative campaigning and attack ads that normally characterize a race like this, and with almost no staff turnover. By almost any measure, the Obama campaign has simply out-executed both the Clinton and McCain campaigns.
This speaks well to the Senator's ability to run a campaign, but speaks even more to his ability to recruit and manage a top-notch group of campaign professionals and volunteers — another key leadership characteristic. When you compare this to the awe-inspiring discord, infighting, and staff turnover within both the Clinton and McCain campaigns up to this point — well, let's just say it's a very interesting data point.
More on Marc's blog, and here's another take on Obama's leadership abilities, as seen through an expert in graphic design.
I just read Marc Andreeson’s account of his meeting with Obama and amd quite impressed, with the account as well as the point about how Obama runs his campaign. I agree with the point.
It is a clean, taut campaign with no histrionics, no drama, very well executed. How refreshing it would be to have a presidential administration run this way, particularly after 42 and 43.
Red Ruffansore Mar 4, 2008 9:21:40 AM Report Offensive Post
How dare thou question the ObaMessiah! He is here to save you from yourselves and the planet as well you ungrateful prying worms. You would do well to wait patiently until the Messiah is annointed and then and only then shall he come down from the mountain tops with his edicts on how we shall all live in harmony. In the meantime please just fill yourself with the “audacity of hope and change”. It’s the year of the sheeple, gullible simple minded rubes who need a Daddy. We’re stuck with McCain but by comparision….we got a great deal. Deal with it you silly libs.
owiguy Mar 4, 2008 9:24:39 AM Report Offensive Post
I can’t believe that no one has asked Obama where he stands on reparations. I’d like to know. if he were to embrace reparations to passify the majority, what does that do to the minority?
bob-sacamanto Mar 4, 2008 9:26:37 AM Report Offensive Post
If you don’t think Obama is a muslim then do a little google search for the following… Nedra Pickler of the Associated Press wrote on January 24, 2007, that Obama’s mother, divorced from Obama’s father, married a man from Indonesia named Lolo Soetoro, and the family relocated to the country from 1967-71. At first, Obama attended the Catholic school, Fransiskus Assisis, where documents showed he enrolled as a Muslim, the religion of his stepfather. The document required that each student choose one of five state-sanctioned religions when registering â Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Catholic or Protestant. Paul Watson Los Angeles Times reported that the Obama campaign had retreated from that absolute statement that Obama was never a muslim to “Obama has never been a practicing Muslim.” The Times also wrote the following… His former Roman Catholic and Muslim teachers, along with two people who were identified by Obama’s grade-school teacher as childhood friends, say Oba
I found some gems over on MSNBC.COM
If voters really think like this we might need a lot more hope.