Reply #79: He is a Liberal who knows how to LISTEN.

[johnaries]

I applaud him for his desire to build a Lincolnesque "Cabinent of Rivals" instead of a gaggle of "yes men".

The best example is how he presided as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review:

Beyond his appearance, what set him apart was his approach to argument, the lifeblood of the law school and the constant occupation of the young lawyers-in-training. While other students were determined to prove the merits of their beliefs through logic and determination, Obama preferred to listen, seek others' views, and find a middle way.

"A lot of people at the time were just talking past each other, very committed to their opinions, their point of view, and not particularly interested in what other people had to say," said Crystal Nix Hines, a classmate who is now a television writer. "Barack transcended that."

.....

"Even though he was clearly a liberal, he didn't appear to the conservatives in the review to be taking sides in the tribal warfare," said Bradford A. Berenson, a former Bush administration lawyer who was an editor at the review.

"The politics of the Harvard Law Review were incredibly petty and incredibly vicious," Berenson said. "The editors of the review were constantly at each other's throats. And Barack tended to treat those disputes with a certain air of detachment and amusement. The feeling was almost, come on kids, can't we just behave here?"

(emphasis added)

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/01/28/at_harvard_law_a_unifying_voice/

Considering the constant squabbling in politics today, isn't that exactly the kind of leader we need?