David Brooks is right. By any measure, Obama’s victory in the Iowa caucuses is a profound and moving accomplishment. But it’s not just this result that matters. Obama’s insistence on staying positive has changed this campaign. No doubt many factors have contributed to this campaign being less negative (not, admittedly, never negative, but certainly less negative); I’ll bet Jon Stewart has had an effect as well. But the Senator from Illinois has, I think, shamed Democrats and Republicans alike by his example, and this is perhaps his most remarkable accomplishment of all. “Obama is changing the tone of American liberalism, and maybe American politics, too.” My, oh my – this really is going to be interesting.
