By TODD J. GILLMAN / The Dallas Morning News
tgillman@dallasnews.com
WASHINGTION – The race for the White House has come down to this: a final sprint toward a prize that doesn't seem like such a prize anymore.
The $10 trillion national debt that Barack Obama or John McCain will inherit is only the tip of the iceberg.
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Still, for either candidate, this may be a chance at presidential greatness.
"Presidents, by nature, they want the biggest job in the world," said Rice University historian Douglas Brinkley. "You get remembered for doing big things, not for micromanaging. ... You have the opportunity to be this political savior."
He noted that Lyndon Johnson's 1964 landslide gave him the chance to enact the most sweeping legislation in decades, the Great Society: Medicare, landmark civil-rights laws and more.
"It's a time for boldness, and not temerity," Dr. Brinkley said.
There's little doubt that even in a time of turmoil, both Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain yearn for the job. As Mr. Obama told Comedy Central's Jon Stewart last week: "Now is the time when you can have an impact." "
Saturday, November 01, 2008
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