Forecasts of Gathering Storms

Campus Report ^ | February 17, 2009 | Daniel Allen

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Forecasts of Gathering Storms

by: Daniel Allen, February 16, 2009

The Salon Speakers Series began in 2004 as an idea of Rudyard Griffiths and Patrick Luciani who felt that Canadians would benefit from learning more about international issues through conversations with those who know the issues best. This effort has grown and expanded, and now attracts some of the West’s most qualified experts.

In late 2007 and early 2008, the Salon Speakers Series invited speakers from the U.S. to discuss the developing battle for the presidency. In a book called The Race to the White House that was published following the discussions, four distinguished professionals discuss the personalities of the candidates and the importance of the race for Democrats.

Camille Paglia, a professor and feminist who has followed the Clinton’s careers for many years, delivered the first speech, in which she discussed Hillary Clinton. The writing is less engaging than the speaking would have been—it is obvious that the text was adapted from a conversational atmosphere. Nonetheless, Paglia offers insights into a strong but severely flawed Hillary that we rarely read about.

Paglia describes Clinton as a skilled politician that simply has too much baggage ever to be president. She was opposed to Hillary being nominated as the Democratic candidate from the start, because with a troubled past and an unpredictable attitude, “she would be the easiest by far to defeat.”

Her conclusion is that the time to elect a female president has come, and the country is ready—“But it’s just that this particular woman may not be the right woman.”

Discussing the other name on the Democratic ticket, Shelby Steele’s explanation of Barack Obama’s persona and the issue of race provides a fascinating post-inauguration read. Steele is an author and fellow at Stanford who specializes in race and culture....

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What makes Obama an extraordinary leader, though, is that he has been able to avoid the “white guilt” that manifests itself through affirmative action. This he did on merit alone, through his books and early career and educational achievements. “It is these two qualities, his natural talent and his separation from affirmative action, that make Barack Obama the first black in American history to plausibly run for the presidency.”

The first affirmative action President is just as incompetent as most other affirmative action hires.