An Obama question that will make many people squirm and fidget

Skimming through the Obama-thon coverage from New Hampshire, this quote from a Newsweek story about Hillary vs. Obama by Jonathan Alter caught my eye: “After seven years of the ‘we kick a–, go it alone’ foreign-policy response to 9/11, the American voter will be ready to try a leader who projects better on the world ...

By , a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast.

Skimming through the Obama-thon coverage from New Hampshire, this quote from a Newsweek story about Hillary vs. Obama by Jonathan Alter caught my eye: "After seven years of the 'we kick a--, go it alone' foreign-policy response to 9/11, the American voter will be ready to try a leader who projects better on the world stage," says Jeh Johnson, a corporate attorney and former general counsel of the Air Force under Clinton. "Barack's multicultural heritage will represent that change." Johnson's quote is fascinating, because while I have no doubt that there would be parts of the globe where Obama's heritage would be a plus, I'm not entirely certain that the effect is as global as Johnson claims. Racism is hardly a phenomenon that's unique to the United States, and without naming names there are some countries out there that are not too keen on dark-skinned people. Even in regions of the globe where reason and light ostensibly prevail, there are football fans who dissent from this view. Here's an uncomfortable question to readers -- are there any regions, countries, or classes of the globe where Obama's African heritage might not be considered in a favorable light? Just to be clear -- these kind of responses do not constitute a knock on Obama. But Johnson's quote got me thinking, and it's worth pondering all of the effects of Obama's media coronation candidacy.

Skimming through the Obama-thon coverage from New Hampshire, this quote from a Newsweek story about Hillary vs. Obama by Jonathan Alter caught my eye:

“After seven years of the ‘we kick a–, go it alone’ foreign-policy response to 9/11, the American voter will be ready to try a leader who projects better on the world stage,” says Jeh Johnson, a corporate attorney and former general counsel of the Air Force under Clinton. “Barack’s multicultural heritage will represent that change.”

Johnson’s quote is fascinating, because while I have no doubt that there would be parts of the globe where Obama’s heritage would be a plus, I’m not entirely certain that the effect is as global as Johnson claims. Racism is hardly a phenomenon that’s unique to the United States, and without naming names there are some countries out there that are not too keen on dark-skinned people. Even in regions of the globe where reason and light ostensibly prevail, there are football fans who dissent from this view. Here’s an uncomfortable question to readers — are there any regions, countries, or classes of the globe where Obama’s African heritage might not be considered in a favorable light? Just to be clear — these kind of responses do not constitute a knock on Obama. But Johnson’s quote got me thinking, and it’s worth pondering all of the effects of Obama’s media coronation candidacy.

Daniel W. Drezner is a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast. Twitter: @dandrezner

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