Obama has that It factor.

and yes cord he is very handsome. Check out the video of Obama and snakes on a plane at the sandra rose blog.

Yes it is bad, ones level of pigmentation bares no indication on their ability to do the job.

While I'm sure many of you will disagree, his popularity with white liberals is at least a little tied to his race. A criticism I've heard repeatedly of Deval Patrick, governor of Massachusetts who is black, from that same set is that he's just like the white politicians. Um, and how is that exactly? Obama is the kind of black person that white people are comfortable with which is not at all a criticism of Obama. It's like the way they present MLK and goodness forbid that they deify a black leader who isn't some non-"threatening" who will sprinkle fairy dust on all the problems and get those negroes to get their sh*t together. I don't have this perspective of Obama and certainly not of MLK.

As for black people voting for him because he's black, I do think that as a group that frequently ignores that civic duty, it is important to actually know what the man and his opponents stand for. There are lots of other elections that don't involve black people but are just as important if not more important than this presidential race.

While I do think it's natural to gravitate toward those most like you (or most like you want to be or think you are …) — voting based solely on such things is dangerous.
There is so much more to this election than race or gender or age — but we can't seem to get past it …
http://lifeisacookie.wordpress.....r-and-age/

While I think this would absolutely merit discussion if we were talking about say the Steel election in MD 2 years ago (against Ben Cardin) or say Alan Keyes etc…, I don't think its as much an issue in this election because the candidates are so close on the issues. Now in the general, it may be something to ponder, but it really annoys the heck out of me that my intellectual examination of the issues and subsequent choice of a candidate is reduced to my skin color…

And I think the results in the above mentioned races suggests that while a few people may vote based upon skin color, more often that not repeat/consistent voter vote based upon political platform…. What will be interesting to see is if Obama will be able to keep the scores of new voters engaged in the process long enough to become repeat voters….they say it takes 3 elections……

I'd like to see more people involved in congressional (US and state), gubernatorial and mayoral elections. These matter a hell of a lot more. Not to discourage people from voting (you should and it matters) but it doesn't really matter very much unless you live in a swing state. The popular vote doesn't mean anything. It's a consolation prize. Gore can go to sleep knowing that he won the popular vote in 2000 but it doesn't mean any difference.

I think his skin color is a factor. It's part of the reason white voters are hesitant about voting for him. It's also part of the reason blacks voted in such high numbers for him (and this is just the primaries, expect higher numbers during the presidential election). I also doubt that Obama would be so popular if he was dark-skinned or pure black. I think the fact that he's half white puts non-blks at ease. But the same can be said for Clinton. If she wasn't a "white female", she wouldn't be where she is today (if she was a female of any other color, do u actually think she'd win?).

But race isn't the only reason why he's doing well amongst voters. For the most part, he's saying and doing the right things. He's approachable… he has the "it factor" like Chic Noir says. He's inspiring. Heck… when Al Sharpton was running for president, I didn't see all the blacks running to vote for him (Thank God! Lol)

One word…Charisma. Thats why Obama is successful.

And remember, we are talking about America, where people will vote based on the fact that the "end of days" are coming. So I can't give the people that much credit. The sad thing is many people will decide to vote/not vote for Obama based on the race factor. Its not right, but neither is the way many people think.

This is so dumb. If C. Rice was running for president would she get 90% of our vote? If Clerence Thomas was running for office would he get 90% of our vote? The answer is NO, NO, NO.

Why does Obama receive such a high percentage of our votes? It is because we believe he relates to the issues damaging our community. It's the same reason anyone votes for an elected official.

Black people aren't stupid pawns that lack such intellectual discernment that they cannot distinguish between color and content.

It's surely true that some white liberals like Obama because he's non-threatening, but maybe some of them are also voting for him based on race in the same way that some blacks are: The idea of a black president in this racist country is exciting and aspirational and it makes people feel like we're a better country than we actually are, so we want it to be true. Of course, as Don't Believe The Hype says, most people of all races vote based mostly on policy (I hope!), but I bet that aspirational feeling plays a role.

Ike says:
I think his skin color is a factor. It’s part of the reason white voters are hesitant about voting for him. It’s also part of the reason blacks voted in such high numbers for him (and this is just the primaries, expect higher numbers during the presidential election).

[b]Ike, a think a lot of blacks left Clinton after she and her husband started race baiting.Also, early on a large number of blacks were supporting fringe canidates like Ron Paul. John Edwards also had a large number of blks supporting him [/B]

The issue with his fair skin is one that blks have pushed on whites more than anything. Most whites were/ are not aware of the obession that some blacks have with light skin until they started to look at black entertainment, blk male dating patterns, and blk folks reaction to Alec Wek.

You never hear no one question why white woman are voting for Hillary base solely on her gender. You never here no one asking about what she believe in.

But they want to try and fool us into not voting for Obama based on his color. White Men are voting for McCain based on race because it's sure ain't his policies, so what is the problem if I vote based on color?

He's too young to have the solid record of haters which most politicians collect if they have been around a long time, he calls that an advantage, he is naive, but this will become clear when he starts getting a steady dose of realpolitik. As for Ms Black Republican's comment "Most black Republicans …will…vote for Obama," it is masterful. By her reasoning, when November comes, one might expect obama-whites to go into the booth and vote for the white. Don't feel bad if whites vote color. Ms Black Republican wins either way. She has figured this much, she has a chance of losing if Hillary's in the race.

Ann Brock, You shouldn't be allowed to vote. It is just that type of thinking, voting for someone who is black, just because they are black, that discrimination exists. I'm a white male, and if I vote, it will be for McCain. Although, I don't really like him. I am conservative, and I would vote for a black woman in a second if she would have run for President. Maybe you know who I'm talking about. So voting based on color lines is a very scary thing. IE, what if all people had that attitude, then white males would always be the victors in most elections. What if that attitude existed on the jobsite.
Scary… Just plain scary…