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LIVE(ish) from the Obama Presidential Center

Explore episode Jun 19, 2026
Society & Culture
Obama Played It Even-Keeled — and That's What Beat John McCain

LIVE(ish) from the Obama Presidential Center · Jun 19, 2026 Society & Culture

The 2008 Obama campaign ran on 'change,' but what actually carried him to the White House in the final weeks was something quieter: a preternatural evenness and reliability that made voters comfortable taking a chance on him when the financial crisis hit and John McCain seemed erratic. That calm has only grown more striking in contrast to what Trump is.

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