Obama Gets Endorsement from Alaska's Largest Newspaper

In what can't really be considered a surprise, although certainly newsworthy, the Anchorage Daily News put its support behind Barack Obama for president. The newspaper cited Obama's stronger grasp of the current financial crisis as well as his leadership qualities as reasons for their endorsement.

The paper addressed Governor Sarah Palin's credentials as vice president, but more importantly the paper argued that Palin was not ready to be only a heartbeat away from leading the nation. That said, her formidable political talents and her undeniable charisma were acknowledged by Alaska's largest newspaper, going so far as to predict that her future in Alaskan and U.S. politics may be only just beginning.

And while both presidential candidates are currently opposed to the opening of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil drilling, the paper hoped that "a President Obama can be convinced to support environmentally responsible development of that resource." That statement may come as somewhat of a surprise to people living outside of the state of Alaska, but the complexities of that particular situation are little understood in any other state.

The newspaper seemed to suggest that John McCain was a worthy candidate, but that he was too closely aligned with the failed policies of the Bush administration to excite the American public. The endorsement argued that Obama was the type of leader necessary to break out of the downward spiral in the economy and the world's increasingly negative view of the U.S. and its foreign policies.

McCain's apparent lack of understanding of the current financial crisis in its early stages was also cited by the newspaper as an area of concern. As was McCain's early statements on the invasion of Iraq and his vision for how that engagement would unfold.