Barack Obama is in many ways a different Democratic nominee, than this party had in the last decade or so; he’s not less liberal than Al Gore and John Kerry, but he is able to present himself as a unifying person. Additionally, he’s considered to be inspiring by many people. Kerry and Gore were intellectuals, Obama is too, but he’s able to present himself as a normal, charming fellow nonetheless. Additionally, he seems knowledgeable but not dry.

The result is that he may very well be able to win states the other Democratic nominees lost. Easily even.

America has had it with George W. Bush and, as a result, with Republicans in general. Additionally, many people feel that the GOP did not do what it promised to do when it was in charge of Congress. It did not cut spending, it did not get things done on a significant scale. No; they were in charge but instead of helping the nation, they helped themselves. As if that’s not enough, the GOP was also hit by scandal after scandal.

Furthermore, the GOP has lost popularity because of the political style of Bush, and the Republican Party as a whole. Americans are reasonably tired of partisanship. They’re tired of ‘hating’ their fellow countrymen; they want a government who appears less aggressive, but not less passionate. They want a government with a clear vision and which, above all else, gets things done.

People are tired of Bush, and of Republicans in general, and then suddenly comes this Democrat along who’s able to appeal to different people, of different classes, of different backgrounds, and of different races. As if that’s not enough, he’s also able to appeal to people across party-lines. Instead of Bush’s - and McCain’s may I add - boring speeches, hell, the man can’t even give a normal speech, his speeches are inspiring. This is finally a politician who’s good with words.

And so, Obama has a chance to win states no other Democrat was able to win in years. The Obama campaign knows this, and has adopted a strategy other Democrats could not adopt. You could say that he truly adopts a 50-state strategy; he, the Obama campaign probably rightfully thinks, will be able to hang on to states that went to Kerry in 2004, and he may be able to make inroads in states that went to Bush; Republican states.

As Plouffe describes it, the much-discussed “50 State Strategy” is pretty close to being just that. While he admitted that only a few staffers will be placed in some states — one of them likely being Utah, one of the most conservative states in the country — Plouffe said that in some states unlikely to vote for Obama, such as Texas, there are “tens of thousands of people who want to help” in some way, like working at phone banks. “The reality is we’ve got a lot of volunteers in these states,” Plouffe said, “and we want a productive way to use them.”

Five states — Indiana, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota — have voted Democratic just three times in the last 20 presidential elections, from 1928 to 2004, and all five did so the same years — 1932, 1936 and 1964, all Democratic landslides. This is a prime example of where the 50 State Strategy comes in, as the campaign has already begun airing television ads in North Dakota and Indiana. Plouffe said North Dakota is “very close right now,” and that Indiana is “absolutely competitive” because of its close proximity to Obama’s home state of Illinois and the fact that McCain has little or no campaign presence there…

There are 18 states the Obama campaign views as “battleground states,” totaling 199 electoral votes. Four are states Kerry won — Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Michigan — while the remaining Bush states are ones the campaign feels are winnable if certain things fall into place.

In short, if Obama’s plan works out… it could be a landslide. Not necessarily popular vote wise, but most definitely with regards to electoral votes. And that’s what matters.

McCain should prepare for a full frontal assault. If he wants to be able to win in November, he should not merely defend states that went to Bush in 2000 and 2004, he should also try to attack Obama in states he feels comfortable about. McCain should adopt a similar strategy as Obama.

There’s only one problem for McCain; although he may most certainly be able to appeal to independents and even moderate democrats he doesn’t have the passionate support Obama has. His supporters are calm. Not passionate.