12 December 2007

In Presidential Election, Americans Might Be Looking for Change

Voter support in 2008 could depend more on fresh ideas than experience

 

Barack Obama campaigns with Oprah Winfrey. Obama has been emphasizing that he wants to bring change to America. (© AP Images)

By Michelle Austein
Staff Writer

Washington -- Recent polls show that Americans split their support among many presidential candidates. However, these same polls indicate there is one thing on which many Americans agree: It is time for a change.

A CBS News/New York Times poll released December 10 found that 71 percent of Americans think their country is on the wrong track. Approval ratings for both the president and Congress continue to be low. The poll also showed that a majority of Americans think the economy is worsening.

These factors indicate that Americans are looking for a leader who can change the direction in which the country is heading, said NBC News Political Director Chuck Todd. Todd spoke with journalists at the Foreign Press Center in Washington December 10.

Voters "desperately want change," Todd said. "People are upset; they are worried about America's role in the world."

According to Todd, when Americans say they want change, they generally mean they are looking for a different style of leadership and governing. It does not necessarily mean they want policies to change drastically.

Americans still are interested in leaders with political experience, and even the candidates who campaign on their ability to bring new ideas to the table have to prove that they have enough experience -- particularly on foreign affairs, Todd said.

When voters think about a candidate's experience, Todd said, they think of that person as "commander in chief, world leader, leader of the free world."

This desire for change might explain the recent rise of two candidates who do not have much national political experience -- Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mike Huckabee.

OBAMA’S MESSAGE OF CHANGE

 

Republican candidate Mike Huckabee has been viewed by some as the "anti-Washington" candidate. (© AP Images)

Since the beginning of his campaign, first-term Illinois Senator Barack Obama has said he seeks to bring change to Washington, while New York Senator and former first lady Hillary Clinton has been emphasizing her experience.

Obama's focus on change is evident on the campaign trail. This past weekend, at campaign events before thousands of people with talk show host Oprah Winfrey, signs reading "change we can believe in" adorned the stages.

Clinton has been "changing her message quite frequently over the last three or four weeks," Todd said. A new campaign ad now emphasizes that electing Hillary Clinton would bring "a new beginning."

"She is desperately trying to get some of that change energy that Obama has been basically locking up," Todd said.

A relative newcomer to the political scene, Obama has to show that he has the experience to lead. "If [Obama] can prove just enough experience," Todd predicted, "then he's going to be the Democratic nominee."

If Clinton does not win the nomination, "she will be another in a long line of candidates who have lost change-versus-experience arguments," Todd said. This is especially the case among Democrats, whose most recent presidents were candidates representing change -- including Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter and John F. Kennedy.

HUCKABEE’S ANTI-WASHINGTON APPROACH

Democrats are especially eager for change, but Republicans are seeking this as well, Todd said.

The CBS News/New York Times poll indicates that Republicans still favor a candidate with experience over one with new ideas, but Todd said many Republicans are also interested in seeing the country take a new direction. This might be one of the reasons that relatively unknown Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee has gone from a long-shot candidate to near the top of the polls in the past two months.

"None of the other candidates are impressing the Republicans," Todd said, "so [Huckabee] is serving as a 'none of the above'" choice. Todd noted that other Republican candidates have spent much of their time on the campaign trail proving that they share some of the same traditional Republican values that President Bush holds.

Meanwhile, Huckabee has been campaigning as an anti-Washington candidate, Todd said. "When you look at the [Republican] candidates, the only one that is even coming close to tapping into the change atmosphere that is inside the Republican Party is Mike Huckabee," he said.