April 18, 2008 5:46 AM

Too bad Bruce Springsteen isn't a superdelegate

Like most of you, I've been following the campaign and I have now seen and heard enough to know where I stand. Senator Obama, in my view, is head and shoulders above the rest. He has the depth, the reflectiveness, and the resilience to be our next President. He speaks to the America I've envisioned in my music for the past 35 years, a generous nation with a citizenry willing to tackle nuanced and complex problems, a country that's interested in its collective destiny and in the potential of its gathered spirit. A place where "...nobody crowds you, and nobody goes it alone."

On the one hand, there's no real reason why anyone should care a whit about which Democrat a candidate chooses to endorse. In the interest of full disclosure, I'll own up to being a HUGE Bruce Springsteen fan...and that I endorsed Sen. Barack Obama myself back in August. So, no, I'm hardly an impartial observer. Regardless, I've always admired Springsteen, both for his music, but also his thoughtful approach to the issues facing this country.

Springsteen is anything but a struggling member of the middle class these days, but the circumstances of the people he grew up with and around mirrors my own experience. I grew up in the county with what at the time was the lowest per capita income in the state of Minnesota. Neither of us grew up around wealth and privilege, so when Springsteen speaks his mind, I can understand where he's coming from.

Springsteen is also a musician and celebrity with a high degree of gravitas- and the willingness to speak out when he encounters an issue he cares about. The mere fact of being a celebrity doesn't automatically mean that a person lacks credibility or gravitas, but the way that so many conduct themselves publicly can certainly creat that impression. Springsteen has somehow managed to maintain both his credibility and his gravitas when he decides to speak out on an issue. I've always loved the man's music (and I've seen him in concert three times), but I think his most important contributions have come when he's taken it upon himself to speak out on issues he cares deeply about. Unlike most celebrities, Bruce Springsteen is both credible and serious...and his endorsement of Barack Obama is heartfelt and the product of much reflaection- and besides, I'm a sucker for "Born to Run" performed live.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on April 18, 2008 5:46 AM.

This is what happens when Presidential politics gets confused with Entertainment Tonight was the previous entry in this blog.

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