Wednesday, April 16, 2008

The Boss Endorses Obama

If you listen to rock music or are a fan of American pop culture, you know who I am talking to. Perhaps New Jersey's greatest talent (sorry Bon Jovi fans, it isn't even close), Bruce Springsteen came out to endorse Barack Obama over Senator Clinton. While it may be a little too late for his native New Jersey to heed the call, the state of Pennsylvania is just across the western border called the Delaware. Bruce carries powerful messages about society in his music, and this endorsement is of the same caliber.

From Bruce Springsteen:

Dear Friends and Fans:

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."

At the moment, critics have tried to diminish Senator Obama through the exaggeration of certain of his comments and relationships. While these matters are worthy of some discussion, they have been ripped out of the context and fabric of the man's life and vision, so well described in his excellent book, Dreams of My Father, often in order to distract us from discussing the real issues: war and peace, the fight for economic and racial justice, reaffirming our Constitution, and the protection and enhancement of our environment.

After the terrible damage done over the past eight years, a great American reclamation project needs to be undertaken. I believe that Senator Obama is the best candidate to lead that project and to lead us into the 21st Century with a renewed sense of moral purpose and of ourselves as Americans.

Over here on E Street, we're proud to support Obama for President.

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen


Now with that said, musicians and celebrities in general are not given much weight when it comes to their endorsement of one candidate or another. Everyone thought that the mega-star Oprah Winfrey would boost Barack's campaign and all it did was make a story or two (or several thousand) for the media to scrutinize and yell at each other over. With that said though, some musicians are "tougher than the rest" when it comes to being active not only in politics, but advocating for social change. With all of the artists out there, Bruce Springsteen is definitely on that short list of extraordinary talent.