I’ve been following Barack Obama since his his 2004 Senate bid to replace the seat vacated by Republican Peter Fitzgerald. A number of people claim that his presidential campaign began with his keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. The 2004 Illinois senate run was filled with scandal and controversy on the Republican side of the ballot. In the general election, Obama received 70% of the vote to Alan Keyes‘ 27%. It was one of the largest margins of victory in Illinois history. When he officially announced his candidacy for US President in February, I was thrilled. The turnout in Iowa has further bolstered support in Illinois, and the midwest in general.

All of this may be interesting, and may say something about how Obama came to the national political stage, but it explains very little about the man himself. To address that shortcoming, I have picked up his latest novel, The Audacity of Hope. The Audacity of Hope is Obama’s second book. It expands on a number of themes he introduced in his 2004 Democratic National Convention keynote address. His positions on corporate governance, energy policy, network neutrality, taxation, the budget deficit, immigration and the environment resonate strongly with my own. I hope reading this book will give me further insight into this fascinating public figure in the midst of an exciting political run