The Real Barack Obama

One of the biggest appeals of Barack Obama's candidacy to young and independent voters is his stated commitment to "post-partisanship" and his promise of a presidency run by the people rather than by special interests. After all, how else can you explain how a first-term senator with little experience in getting things done and with no major legislative accomplishments to speak of, has catapulted to become the leading contender for President . When Barack Obama states that he is the one to lead us into a new era of politics, it appeals to a desire than many of us have for a fundamental shift in the way Washington represents the people. My only concern is can we believe Sen. Obama when he says this?

The answer is a resounding no. Barack Obama's brief time in the Senate and several positions that he has staked out on his way to the nomination reveal that he is much more partisan and entrenched with special interests than his stump speech would have us believe.

Not only does Sen. Obama lack a legislative history of bipartisanship that may have provided some credence to his post-partisan claims, he is in reality one of the most reliably partisan voters in the Senate. Since being elected in 2004, the junior senator from Illinois has voted with his party 96.7% of the time, according to the Washington Post's Congressional database. Tellingly, he voted against the nomination of Chief Justice John Roberts -- going against the 3/4 of senators who voted for Roberts' confirmation, a majority that included 22 Democrats. Not quite as "post-partisan" as he makes himself out to be, is he?

Moreover, not only has Obama the legislator not lived up to the bipartisan hype sparked on the campaign trail, but his other trademark issue -- an end to the reign of special interests --is similarly hard to discern from his actions. Indeed, he has built a successful run at the Democratic nomination around support for the very polices and pieces of legislation that appeal directly to these groups.

In pursuit of votes in Iowa, he became a large proponent of the ethanol subsidies that have led directly to higher food prices. More recently, Sen. Obama has voiced support for the farm bill currently sitting on President Bush's desk which gives direct taxpayer handouts to undeserving farmers who have seen their incomes skyrocket due to such rising food prices. While appeasing the farmers groups that have supported this legislation may provide Senator Obama with votes in key Midwestern states that he hopes to win in the general, it does little to reflect his supposed concern for an American public facing higher food prices. Similar pandering to entrenched special interests can also be seen with labor unions, where Sen. Obama has pledged to appoint federal judges who would end much of the oversight of labor that has been used to root out corruption and illegal practices.

The support that Obama has gained from both labor unions and farmers groups have proved instrumental to his success in many of the primary states where these groups hold substantial sway. At the same time, he has been getting the votes of independents and young people who believe him when he says that he is committed to ending the reign of special interests in Washington and working on behalf of the American people. This is truly remarkable. Sen. Obama is receiving the support of both those who have thrived off of the old-style Washington politics dominated by special interests AND those who wish to see an immediate end to such politics. The only thing that can explain Obama's ability to draw together such a diametrically opposed coalition of support is a fundamental divergence between his words and actions.

While some may try to explain his appeal to traditional special interests as a mere function of the primary process (where a candidate is forced to the extreme in order to gain the nomination), such pandering is exactly the type of Washington-as-usual politics that he has pledged to leave behind. On the two traits that have come to define him as an appealing candidate -- bipartisanship and an end to politics as usual -- Barack Obama is not what he appears to be. When faced with the facts, it is hard to believe that he is committed to reforming a broken Washington when he is courting the same interests, voicing support for the same polices, and engaging in the same type of partisanship than led to it breaking in the first place.