Yawn…

WASHINGTON - Democratic Sen. Barack Obama said Tuesday he is taking the initial step in a presidential bid that could make him the nation’s first black to occupy the White House.

Obama announced on his Web site, http://www.barackobama.com, that he was filing a presidential exploratory committee. He said he would announce more about his plans in his home state of Illinois on Feb. 10.

“I certainly didn’t expect to find myself in this position a year ago,” Obama said in a video posting. “I’ve been struck by how hungry we all are for a different kind of politics. So I’ve spent some time thinking about how I could best advance the cause of change and progress that we so desperately need.”

Am I the only one who is getting a little tired of the media’s heavy breathing over Barrack “HE COULD BE THE FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT EVAH!” Obama?  I mean, what’s so special about this guy?  He’s not even been in the Senate for one term yet so it’s not like he’s got an established political record, and nearly every political statement he makes is so ambiguous as to be useless for those trying to make up their minds about the man.

So what’s all the hype about?  The fact that he’s black?  Why does skin color matter?  I thought this was a country striving for racial equality.  If it doesn’t matter that a candidate is white, why should it matter if a candidate is black?

Update:

Well, at least we can’t accuse Obama of not being forward-thinking about his career.  He has a backup plan in case his Presidential hopes are dashed.