In just a few years, Austan Goolsbee has gone from being just another star professor at an institution brimming with them to the next big thing—an economist in a position to help shape public policy from the top down.
Topic: Barack Obama
The Professor and the President
Former colleagues and students reflect on implications of Obama presidency – including Douglas Baird, Richard Epstein, Saul Levmore, Geoffrey Stone, Dennis Hutchinson, and Austan Goolsbee
Election night Barack Obama rally in Grant Park (slideshow)
Photos from the Chicago rally.
Obama’s most fervent supporters also most frazzled
Second-year Mark Redmond pulled two straight all-nighters last week—not unusual during midterms, but this was no academic matter. The real culprit was repeated forays into neighboring swing-state Indiana.
All eyes on Obama as campus revs up for Election Day
While students and local residents have exchanged expectant smiles and glances in passing on the street, on crowded buses, and across grocery checkout counters, few have been so daring as to call the outcome a foregone conclusion.
Four more days
Senator Barack Obama was in Indiana on Friday to give one of his last rallies before the election.
Obama’s ties to former U of C international studies prof raised as campaign liability
It’s no full-blown October Surprise, but Republican presidential nominee John McCain has invoked his Democratic rival’s relationship with a controversial Palestinian scholar with increasing fervor in a seeming effort to undermine Barack Obama’s professedly pro-Israel foreign policy stance.
Obama’s Secret Service diverts traffic, but neighbors don’t mind
For most students living in the area, “inconvenience” is the word most frequently used when discussing the Secret Service’s presence in Hyde Park.
Dirt off his shoulder
It had been a rough month-and-a-half for Barack Obama. Since the Texas and Ohio primacaucusaries on March 4, he’s jumped from one mini-controversy to another, sometimes with grace, sometimes with agility, and oftentimes with neither. At a stop in Scranton,…
For bitter and for worse
…And John McCain wins the election. In the extended run-up to November’s presidential toss-up, it has appeared inevitable to many that after eight long years a cleansing blue wave will sweep over the crimson that has stagnated in the White…
Letter: No candidate can compare to Jesus
Nathan Bloom’s piece “He’s No Messiah” (4/8/08), presents an image of Jesus that is rarely recognized or acknowledged in society—Jesus the unpopular servant and sufferer. Bloom eloquently writes, “He did not ride the tide like Obama, but crashed violently against…
He’s no messiah
David Cardero was prophetic when, in early 2007, he put his life-sized sculpture of Barack Obama depicted as Jesus on display at the Art Institute of Chicago. The messianic overtones of Senator Obama’s campaign have since led some to see…
After Goolsbee-gate, should we invade Canada? Hold off, for now
Oh Canada, say it isn’t so! All of North America is in turmoil over the revelation that a Canadian bureaucrat told the press that Barack Obama is a politician who sometimes says things he doesn’t mean. The controversy began when…
After Goolsbee-gate, should we invade Canda? Yes, we can
Last week there was a fundamental shift in the world’s international order. I’m not talking about Colombia’s air strike against FARC rebels in Ecuador. Nor am I referring to Saudi Arabia being stood up by the Arab council, or the…
Be “friends” with Obama on Web 2.0
In order to stay in vogue and surmount competitive obstacles, politicians have always taken advantage of available technologies to gain endorsement and to engineer the consent of their constituents. In the past this meant decidedly undemocratic methods such as “the…
Obama inspires unique hope in youth
The University of Chicago is ground zero for the semi–nation wide Barack Obama lovefest. Here at the U of C, the Hyde Park resident and former Law School professor is probably idolized above, I would venture to say, just about…
Property adjacent to Obama’s on market
Presidential hopeful and Kenwood resident Barack Obama may soon have new neighbors. An empty lot next to his Kenwood home is on the market for $1.5 million. According to George Rumsey, president of the Hyde Park–Kenwood Community Conference, development of…
Students undertake Obama activism
About two dozen U of C students attended the kickoff meeting for Students for Barack Obama (SBFO) last Wednesday to rally support for the senator’s presidential campaign. “We focus on converting the grassroots energy and activism on campus into forms…
Obama scales back U of C Hospitals duties
Michelle Obama, vice president for Community and External Affairs for the University of Chicago Hospitals, is scaling back her duties in that position to make time for her two young daughters and the presidential campaign of her husband, Senator Barack…
Obama doc lacks senator’s charisma
Senator Obama Goes to Africa, a documentary-in-progress from director Bob Hercules, was screened at the closing ceremony of the Chicago International Documentary Festival (CIDF) at Doc Films on Saturday night. The evening was sponsored by CNN and the Society for…
Osama Obama: The missing link to 9/11
Dear Constance, So there’s this guy who lives in my neighborhood. Actually, he lives right down the street from me. He’s nice enough, got a big toothy smile, warm and disarming voice, even has a couple of cute young kids….
Obama explores ’08 bid
Illinois Senator and U of C law professor Barack Obama took the first step toward a presidential run Tuesday, forming an exploratory committee that allows him to begin fundraising and building a campaign organization. Obama, elected to the U.S. Senate…
Remember Blair Hull? Barack Obama does.
Like life, politics can turn on a moment. Blair Hull will not be remembered by many; if anything, he will be a footnote in history. In 2004, Hull decided to seek the Democratic nomination for Illinois’s open Senate seat, vacated…
Obama kicks off tour on home turf
Hundreds of Hyde Park residents and Chicagoans began lining up outside 57th Street Books at 5 a.m. to meet Senator Barack Obama (D-Ill.) as he signed his new book, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. The…
Too soon for Obama ’08? Think again.
A common response when someone says that Barack Obama should run for President in 2008 is, “it’s too soon.” I’ve heard this from professors, political operatives, and pundits. To respond, I need to separate the complaint into two components: first,…
Local Chicago aldermen to appoint Obama’s back-up
The possible election of law school lecturer Barack Obama to the U.S. Senate has managed not only to ravage Illinois’ floundering Republican party, but it has also presented local Chicago aldermen with the task of appointing a new senator to…
Obama, Keyes highlight political agendas
A forum held last Friday night for U.S. Senate candidates Barack Obama and Alan Keyes highlighted drastic political and personal differences between the two politicians. While the forum initially began as a serious attempt for the two candidates to outline…
Obama and Keyes to speak at Forum
The Community Renewal Society will sponsor a senatorial forum for the Illinois candidates for the U.S. Senate, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Alan Keyes. While the two candidates will not be debating over the campaign issues on the same stage,…
Obama soars leading into Democratic primaries
Newspaper endorsements and a recent poll show public support for Barack Obama skyrocketing as of late, indicating that he may win the Democratic candidacy for Illinois senator in the primaries next Tuesday. Obama received endorsements from the Chicago Tribune and…
Democrat Barack Obama
On March 16, Democrats all over the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois will flock to the ballot box to vote in their party’s primary. Although Illinois Democrats will have little effect on the presidential primary, they will…
Obama prepares to run for U.S. Senate
With the Democratic primaries one month away, U.S. Senate candidate and law school lecturer Barack Obama is wasting no time making sure the voters remember his name. Obama, a 43-year-old state senator and a senior lecturer in constitutional law, is…
Obama may seek US Senate seat in ’04 race
Democratic State Senator and University Law School Senior Lecturer Barack Obama has begun assessing his chances in the 2004 US senate race. Obama has commissioned a statewide poll by the Colorado firm Harstad Strategic Research, and he has filed for…