The Country Saw Historic Highs and Lows in 2008

Summary

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We are almost at the end of the year, and what a year it has been. In January 2008, who would have thought that Sen. Barack Obama would win the Democratic nomination for president and then go on to win the election in November? This was history writ large, and it was -- and is -- stunning in its implications. Who would have thought last January that a seemingly prosperous America would finish the year in an economic crisis the likes of which we have not seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s? In fact, we may not ever have seen its likes.

The election of Obama has fundamentally changed American politics. He has raised our standards, and when was the last time that happened? The smart money, which initially backed Sen. Hillary Clinton, was proved wrong. She had it sewn up, said the pros; Obama can't beat the formidable Clinton machine with its ability to raise money and bring out the vote. Obama was too laid back, they said; he gave inspirational speeches, but he lacked the proverbial fire in his belly. Besides, he was black, and Americans will not elect a black man as president, whatever they might say in front of the television cameras.

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Extract

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The Country Saw Historic Highs and Lows in 2008

Never were the pros more wrong. The Obama campaign turned out to be a grass-roots money machine, raising a phenomenal amount of money, much of it in small donations. His get-out-the-vote tactics were stunningly s...

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