Andrew Sullivan posts this anecdote from a reader:
I voted for McCain in the primary. As a political reporter and columnist in Michigan, I have the news on in our house with some frequency. That's how my now 6-year-old got to know Barack Obama. And she loved him. She asked to tag along when I went to cover his events. Maybe it's the smile, the calmness. But she felt very assured by the idea of this man being president, long before I was ready to switch my vote.... And I've found that Obama has the same effect on lots of kids, whether they come from liberal or conservative homes.
I think these kids are canaries in the coal mine. They're obviously responding not to policy differences but affect and manner and body language. It reminds me of Malcolm Gladwell's article about Cesar Millan, TV's "dog whisperer." Ignore for a moment the controversy over Millan's training philosophy: Gladwell's point was that both dogs and people respond instinctively to his movements, his commanding and trustworthy physicality. Obama seems to have some of this same quality. Thank God he's on our side.
