Author, Investor, Speaker, Mentor
Ta-Nehisi Coates’ cover essay for The Atlantic, “The First White President,” explores the role of race and racism in Donald Trump’s election as President of the United States. Coates’ essay, has been widely read, and drawn praise and criticism (a sign of success; the goal of nearly every writer is to elicit a reaction from … Continue reading Donald Trump, Race, and the GOP
The anti-science bent of certain elements of the Republican party (Creationism anyone?) is obviously repugnant to many people, including me. Now it appears that stance came back to bite Mitt Romney during the presidential election. The Obama campaign secretly assembled a team of famous experts in psychology, persuasion, and behavioral economics to plan out campaign … Continue reading Obama uses science to beat Romney
Jeffrey Toobin of the New Yorker has penned a biased but thought-provoking hit piece on Chief Justice John Roberts. Toobin’s thesis can be summed up in his article’s subtitle: The Supreme Court’s stealth hard-liner. Essentially, he argues that behind Roberts’ admitted charm and legal chops lies a hardline conservative, dedicated to serving the interests of … Continue reading Hard Questions Don’t Have Easy Answers: Thoughts On Chief Justice Roberts
“At the same time, the rest of us can’t afford to demonize every investor or entrepreneur who seeks to make a profit. That drive is what has always fueled our prosperity, and it is what will ultimately get these banks lending and our economy moving once more.” –Barack ObamaNow if only people listen…. (via Fred … Continue reading Quote of the Day: “Seeking profit is what has always fueled our prosperity”
It was largely forgotten amongst the sturm and drang of the economy, but President Obama made an important speech about education policy this week. While every president in recent memory loudly proclaims his desire to be “the education President,” very little usually changes. The Democrats are the tools of the diabolical teachers’ unions, and the … Continue reading Nixon : China as Obama : Education?
Much has already been written about President Obama’s eloquence. As I listened to his inaugural address (on the radio, while driving), I was struck by the way he first courts, and then confounds rhetorical expectations.Mark Twain once said, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it does rhyme.” Obama uses this allusive approach to both evoke the … Continue reading Speechwriting, Obama-style: History Doesn’t Repeat Itself, But It Rhymes
How amazing is it that on today, the 47th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Barack Obama announced that he will appoint General Eric Shinseki, a Japanese-American veteran from Hawaii, as the Secretary of Veteran’s Affairs? Like so many of Obama’s moves, this is a master stroke that shows his trademark combination of competence, … Continue reading Obama, Master of Symbolism
A few weeks ago, my friend Ramit and I went through BarackObama.com to analyze what made the site so successful. Here were our conclusions. 1) The site is incredibly audience focused.For example, the text of the site is largely second-person; rather prattling on about Barack Obama, BO.com puts things in terms of you, your life, … Continue reading Be Like Barack: 6 Lessons Marketers Can Learn From BarackObama.com
I just finished reading Newsweek’s behind-the-scenes look at the presidential campaign. Wow. It is an astonishingly rich and detailed piece of reporting, filled with surprising stories and facts, and carrying the ring of truth. While anyone who was ever been in the papers knows that journalists will never get the story exactly right, it seems … Continue reading Best. Campaign. Rundown. Ever.
As a campaign junkie, it’s going to be hard to come down from the high of watching this riveting election cycle unfold (even though the actual election lacked much drama beyond wondering if the Democrats would make it to 60 Senate seats). I’ve already written at length about the major issues, so I’ll just draw … Continue reading Election Roundup: Why Obama Won, Naked Palin, etc.