In the months ahead, the new administration will also have
to begin discovering and undoing the worst machinations of
the Bush years. None of that will be possible until the reflexive,
even obsessive opacity of the previous administration is re-
versed and more transparent government restored.
Obama must also reach out to the rest of the world. It, too,
needs reassuring. He will have to overcome the isolation of
the United States that Bush’s policies created. Many other na-
tions seem eager to work with the new president. More than
any president in our history, Obama looks like the rest of the
world. That is an asset of incalculable value. Obama wasn’t
just the choice of American voters. He was the world’s pre-
ferred candidate, in a campaign that was followed overseas as
avidly as the world soccer finals. Just as international coopera-
tion helped save far-flung banks and other financial institutions
in 2008, we will need ongoing international collaboration to
solve such enormous, shared problems as global warming, nu-
clear containment, and potentially explosive economic disparity
throughout the world.
A classic purveyor of hope, Obama was able to energize
young voters as never before. His appeal was even more palpa-
ble than John Kennedy’s. Millions of older voters who had
grown cynical about government and the electoral process
were also galvanized. Those voters, young and old, whose
passion was reignited now constitute a precious pool of talent
excited by the possibilities of public service, including govern-
ment. As a nation we pay a terrible price when we stop believ-
ing in the possibility of good government. In our disdain, we
cede our country to the ideologues and the hacks. Those who
worked for Obama’s election know the joy of struggling for
and achieving significant change. Now, while the crackle is
still in the air, is the time to create twenty-first-century
On Becoming a Leader