Politicians as Symbols

[Griff]

I heard someone call into an NPR program supporting Hillary preface her comments with, "I'm from the sixties so,.." There is a block of voters out there for whom that connection creates a warm fuzzy and another group that grinds their teeth over the same connection. Do we ever really vote for the person or are we just voting for someone who symbolizes something we believe our country needs?

To me, Obama symbolizes the eventual irrelevance of race. Am I just projecting my desire on the man? Is that how we pick Presidents? Enlighten me, I don't understand democracy.