Observers also say Democrat's victory due to fortuitous political moment into which he stepped.
By HAVIV RETTIG GURobama girl 248.88(photo credit: AP)
Barack Obama's victory was due partly to his consummate political skills, but even more to the fortuitous political moment into which he stepped, say observers of the 22-month American campaign that ended on Tuesday with a larger than usual turnout for US elections.
Experts on American politics seemed unanimous - and used nearly identical words - in describing Obama's campaign as "almost flawless."
"Obama's campaign was clearly the better of the two. It was the most impressive thing Democratic [party] politics have seen in the 20th century," said Col. (res.) Dr. Eran Lerman, a former IDF intelligence analyst who heads the Israel office of the American Jewish Committee.
Obama "learned more from Reagan than from any Democratic predecessor. His campaign was exemplary in its careful management, internal cohesion, fundraising on an unimaginable scale and its efficient use of resources."
Indeed, it was so "corporate, conservative and careful" in management style that it seemed "almost the opposite of the political environment Obama comes from," that of Chicago Democratic politics, Lerman reflected.
"A good campaign is one that doesn't make mistakes - campaigns are about not doing damage [to a candidate]," said Danny Ayalon, formerly Israel's ambassador to Washington. "Obama's campaign was successful, focused, well-funded, disciplined, mobilized, able to utilize every advantage offered by having such a charismatic candidate."
McCain's, in contrast, was "very unfocused, undisciplined, sprang internal leaks and failed to stick to a message. For this reason, McCain raised fewer funds and ended up attracting criticism even from fellow Republicans," said Ayalon.
"Obama ran one of the most brilliant campaigns in the history of America," agreed Shmuel Rosner, a veteran analyst of American politics who blogs at jpost.com. "He understood better than anyone else, including [Hillary] Clinton, how to utilize the rise of a new generation of Americans. He figured out how to build a campaign for a new political audience, the 'Generation Me.'"
Yet for all his political skill, Obama's victory perhaps owed more to the historical moment.
"The Obama campaign enjoys the advantage of coming in the wake of the Bush administration," noted Ayalon. "I don't think they would have been quite so successful in other times."
"Democrats entered this race with such a lead they would have had to appoint a donkey in order to lose it," according to Rosner. "The story here is that after eight years of the Bush administration, Americans are giving the Republicans a kick in the pants."
Even so, Rosner was quick to credit Obama with making good use of the advantageous political climate. "As the old adage goes: luck is what happens when you plan ahead and take advantage of opportunities."
Lerman, too, insisted the credit still belonged to the candidate himself. "Obama changed American politics" by "turning the Democrats into the more organized and serious party.
"This is a party with a history of anarchy and internal dissension. From a professional perspective, it's an impressive achievement."
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