Obama: The First and Last

I read a recent op ed piece that was about how Michelle Obama should spend her last term as first lady. Among a great many points made a sentence jumped from the page.  Under the bullet point of suggesting she "acknowledge race", the author said that the president was the first black president and that there would most likely not be another one for some time.

President Obama undoubtably has spent most of his term and even political history as a living symbol, for the entire country. For many he is the living breathing embodiment of every endeavor towards equality. For others a new social awareness, change, and evolution. For some he is proof of how far we have come as Americans. And for so many who thought that they would never see a black president in their lifetime he is hope.
With all this in mind, the thought of another presidential elect more specifically a black presidential elect seems a hard feat. Sure he has paved the way but how many can actually follow the path. As one tries to think of any successor the list seems short if not non existent, leaving only room to list the many reasons why he is a success.
Obama is from any of his predecessors, this is obvious, but what defines him is the fact that he can see the country as a whole. With almost every other african american politician running for president they put racial issues the first and foremost. Their entire political platforms seemed to revolve around helping the african american community. There is nothing wrong with this, in fact it it is admirable seeing the many disadvantages that african americans face, the flaw in this though lies in the fact that this country is not just made up of one type of person and to only appeal to one excludes everyone else. This tactic isolated them from a larger demographic simply because they didn't address any other groups issue. No appeal made to women, no new plan for farmers struggling to stay afloat, no fresh take on how to close the gap between the rich and poor or rescue the middle class.
Obama did not make race the foundation of his campaign, he didn't pretend he wasn't black, but he went so far as to come from a space of empathy which transcended any race, age, or social class. He became a jack of all trades and the heaviest weapon he has maintained in his arsenal is the fact that he can relate and very few politicians black or white have ever been able to accomplish that.