Charisma Always Wins

Obama's historic victory only confirms one thing: charisma, more than anything, determines election results. 

More than policies, more than character, more than track record, more than anything, charisma does a President make. Let's look at the evidence:

• In '08, Obama is no doubt more charismatic than McCain. 
• In 00' and '04, Bush, though somewhat dim-witted in perception, was still more charismatic than both Kerry and Gore (ironically, Gore became surprisingly charismatic AFTER he exited politics).  
• In '92 and '96, Clinton was more charismatic than both Dole and Bush.   
• In '88, Bush was more charismatic than Dukakis.   
• In '84 and '80, Reagan was more charismatic than Mondale and Carter.   
• In '76, Carter was more charismatic than Ford.   
• In '72, my understanding is both Nixon and McGovern were charismatic, but McGovern's ill-focused charisma might actually prove to be an anomaly.     

We could keep going, and I welcome you to chime in with your thoughts. The point here is simple: humans are affected more by perceptions and stories than anything. Obama tells a better story, and he tells it in a better way. 

FYI, here's an interesting and informative site on the history of Presidential Elections.