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Obama From the Left and RightThe New Republic and the Weekly Standard address Barack Obama's flaws—and his cult appeal.

By Morgan Smith
Posted Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2008, at 4:00 PM ET
The New Republic

New Republic, March 12
In an Obama-heavy issue, the cover story describes how the candidate fits into American mythology as Adam: "[H]e is making a promise to voters that is as old as the country itself: to wipe clean the slate of history and begin again from scratch." … Michael Crowley explains how the Illinois senator is "hilariously confounding the worldview of white supremacists" and explores their perplexing lack of vitriol against him. Since they believe blacks are biologically inferior to whites, they attribute Obama's success to "the conniving of unseen forces"—Zionists and white liberals. One expert notes that supremacist groups are "suffering from emotional exhaustion" from their hatred of Hillary Clinton and McCain, who supports Bush's immigration plan; they say the two politicians are "Europeans" who have "betrayed [their] heritage, [their] rights." … A piece looks at the Clinton campaign's characterization of Obama supporters as "impressionable elites."

The Weekly Standard

Weekly Standard, March 3
Surprisingly in sync with the New Republic, this issue is also devoted to Obama coverage and promises "no swooning." … A piece diagnoses Obama's weakness: that he "minimize[es] difficulties rather than laying them to rest." It cites his recent attempt to clarify his wife's controversial remark that "for the first time in [her] life, [she's] proud to live in America" instead of saying she misspoke; his weak distancing from black liberationist pastor Jeremiah Wright; and other campaign missteps as examples. … A humor piece mocks the fervor of Obama's followers (they act like "squealing tweens whose parents have dropped them off at a Hannah Montana concert"), then gleefully sneers over "the rotting carcass of Hillary's political ambitions." … In light of the plagiarism charges against Obama, an article traces the similarities between the candidate and Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick, who "came to office seeming determined to glorify himself with unprecedented gubernatorial flights of ego."

The New Yorker

The New Yorker, March 3
Margaret Talbot investigates the conditions at the T. Don Hutto Dentention Center in Texas, where immigrant families without legal documents are held. The privately contracted facility avoided having to obtain licensing as a child-care center by requiring that "detainees constantly supervise their children." This policy meant that children even had to be present while their "parents recounted stories of torture, rape, or domestic abuse" to their lawyers. The center has made changes over the last year, like providing children with pajamas—but that happened only after the ACLU sued the Department of Homeland Security for hiring the center last year. "[I]t shouldn't have taken the ACLU to make the government realize that holding innocent children in a converted medium-security adult prison is a bad idea." … Sasha Frere-Jones observes that if Amy Winehouse can "keep writing songs like 'Rehab' there will be nothing surprising about having her around for a long time. Other than having her around for a long time."

New York

New York, March 3
The cover profiles Chelsea Clinton and her recent venture into the campaign spotlight, revealing that "like her father, Chelsea is, in fact, a big flirt." One supporting anecdote: "Approached by a tall model-handsome college jock at the University of Utah, she literally batted her eyelashes at him. 'Hell-o!' she said in a Mae West tone before posing for a snapshot with him." The piece notes that when the Lewinsky scandal broke, the 18-year-old "couldn't resist reading the Starr report online, including the footnotes" and "[w]hen Bill Clinton learned that she'd read the report, he wept." … A commentary proclaims the end of the Clinton campaign and predicts how Hillary will choose to step off the stage. It considers the possibility that she could legally challenge a negative outcome at the Democratic National Convention but concludes that she will ultimately concede to Obama—with 2012 in her sights.

Newsweek

Newsweek, March 3
The cover story is an intriguing look at new medicines that treat the biochemical side of drug and alcohol addiction. Such medicines have been developed with the idea that addiction is the result of the "brain ... malfunctioning, as surely as the pancreas in someone with diabetes." ... An article examines the Clinton campaign's attempts to rally the Jewish vote against Obama. Clinton campaign operatives have insinuated that the Illinois senator's use of Zbigniew Brzezinski (who endorsed the 2006 anti-Zionist book The Israel Lobby) is objectionable and that he lacks support for Israel.

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Morgan Smith is a former Slate intern.
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