Obama can be a regular guy, but he's an outstanding candidate, say, like Payton Manning as a quarterback.

The L.A. Times writes an almost perfect article on today's state of the election, appealing first to Hillary supporters, then to Obama supporters, since they're the only ones who actually read to the end of the article. Thus, as an Obama supporter, I copy the end for you:

"Mike Fisher, a resident of Beech Grove, Ind. (population 14,000), got a call from the Obama campaign last week. He was told that Obama wanted to talk to someone whose job was in jeopardy, said Fisher, who is in danger of losing his position at an Amtrak maintenance facility unless he agrees to a transfer.Obama and his wife, Michelle, showed up at his door and spoke with the Fisher family for more than an hour. Fisher and his wife laid out a buffet, including cold cuts and fresh fruit."When I said we had some food, Sen. Obama said he wasn't bashful and just got right up and fixed himself a plate. Just like a family gathering," Fisher said. Later, the campaign asked if Fisher would introduce Obama at a stop in Indianapolis. He agreed, and the campaign e-mailed him to suggest talking points."He sat down at our kitchen table, put both elbows up on the table and said, 'Let's talk,' " Fisher told the crowd Saturday. "Barack and Michelle listened and understood and it was like talking to family. It was that easy talking to those two. They're a regular couple. They're regular people." A folksier, more informal Obama is also often on display. Last week he stopped at a VFW hall in North Liberty, Ind. (population 1,357). Shirt sleeves rolled up, he ordered a beer. Domestic beer."I'm going to have a Bud," he said. Drinking deeply from the can, Obama took some questions about high gas prices and cast himself as a champion of the working class.Saturday night, the Obama family popped into roller rink in Lafayette, Ind. As a deejay played the Village People's "YMCA," Obama spelled out the letters with his arms and legs, as any Village People fan would.While Obama shook hands, his two daughters, ages 6 and 9, skated. Obama later went out and joined them, protectively holding his younger, Sasha, as she struggled to stay upright. A battery of TV cameras captured the father-daughter moment.New language in Obama's stump speech is meant to reassure voters who may have been put off by Wright and wonder how much of the preacher's philosophy rubbed off. Obama tells how he was raised by a single mother, how his father left the family when he was only 2."You want to understand my patriotism? It's my understanding that only in America is my story possible, Michelle's story possible -- that I owe everything to this country," he said. "

From the LA times at this link.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/la-na-campaign6-2008may06,0,3255172.story?track=rss