Rhodes Scholar

Two New Inaugurated Democratic Governors Give Us Hope For Future!

This week saw the inaugurations of two new young Democratic Governors in the Northeast-Mid Atlantic area, and both represent great hopes for the future.

In Maryland, a state which has advanced in the areas of race and gender more than most states, we saw the inauguration of an African American governor, Wes Moore, formerly head of the Robin Hood Foundation, a Rhodes Scholar, and serving in the war in Afghanistan. He is only the third African American governor in US History, and is very inspiring and charismatic at age 44.

And in Pennsylvania, we saw former state Attorney General, and newly inaugurated Governor Josh Shapiro, who is equally inspiring, and is seen by some as the first Jewish President in the future, take over leadership of a crucial state in the Electoral College past, present, and future. He is 49 years old and offers great potential in the future beyond the governorship.

So while there is so much cynicism and negativism about American politics among many Americans, there is indeed a sense of hope for the future!

A Political Figure To Watch: Could Cory Booker Be The Next Black President In 2017?

Cory Booker is the Mayor of Newark, New Jersey since July 2006.

Cory Booker is a handsome, charismatic African American politician, who has been very effective as Mayor of an embattled city with a horrible reputation.

Cory Booker is well spoken and impressive on the stump.

Cory Booker has ambitions to be Governor of New Jersey, and it is expected he will run for that position in November 2013, making that race the major one to follow in an off year election year, when few major political races are conducted.

Cory Booker would have Governor Chris Christie, the hero of conservatives and Republicans as his competition, with Christie running for a second term.

Nothing could make progressives and Democrats happier than Cory Booker retiring Chris Christie from the Governorship a year and a half from now.

Chris Christie was the original “Bully” Republican Governor, setting a standard for Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Ohio Governor John Kasich, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, Florida Governor Rick Scott, and Maine Governor Paul LePage, among other GOP Governors who have warred on public workers, women, the elderly, and the middle class and the poor since 2010!

Christie is the “Godfather” of the loudmouths, the blusterers, the aggressive nasty Governors who have made clear that they are owned by right wing elements, including the Koch Brothers, and the major corporations!

Chris Christie needs to be sent back home, so we don’t have to see his blustering, his obnoxiousness, his boasting, his victimizing nature, a man truly obscene in his public utterances, making one wish to vomit in response! This kind of mean, nasty, “in your face” politics is not good for America!

IF Cory Booker indeed does run for Governor, and wins the office, a very powerful office, one of the most powerful Governorships of one of the major top fifteen states of the Union, he would have to be seen as a prime front runner for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in the Presidential Election of 2016!

Booker is not only very articulate, but he is also very courageous and bold, as shown by the news that he rescued a neighbor yesterday from a raging fire, and sustained second degree burns and smoke inhalation. This proves just what a hero he really is, adding to the admiration many have for him.

With seven and a half years as Mayor of a major urban area, Newark, and three years as New Jersey Governor, how could one argue that Cory Booker is not qualified to become our second black President, and as it turns out, second CONSECUTIVE black President?

This is the kind of person we need to focus on as a strong possibility to succeed President Barack Obama, or if unfortunate enough to have President Mitt Romney in office, to deny him a second term in the White House!

Cory Booker is definitely a man to watch over the next few years! He would be a youthful 47 upon taking the oath as President in 2017, the same age as Barack Obama was when he took the oath of office in 2009. We could do far worse than a President Cory Booker!

A good friend of MSNBC talk show host Rachel Maddow when they both attended Stanford University, he not only earned a degree at Stanford, but also a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University, and a law degree at Yale University. He also has been given credit for urban transformation reform, a real leader in reviving declining urban areas such as Newark, producing a renaissance! He has been subject to threats of death from gang elements who do not want to see Newark and other urban areas transformed away from crime and drug infestation and toward economic renewal, and is a true example of courage more than almost any American politician!

So do NOT take your eye off Cory Booker, as he may be the future of the Democratic Party!