As if we didn't already know

CNN - Obama declares he's running for president

Sen. Barack Obama stood before a cheering crowd at the Capitol in his home state Saturday and announced he will seek the 2008 Democratic nomination for president.

Invoking the memory of fellow Illinoisan and the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, the first-term senator addressed thousands packed into the Springfield, Illinois, town square on a chilly day in America's heartland.

Well, I guess it is now completely official. I still don't understand what all the hype is about. He's a first term senator, just like Edwards was last time around. Everyone acted, and still acts, like Edwards is too inexperienced and doesn't stand a chance, and yet everytime you turn on the TV someone is talking about Obama. Let's stop acting like an articulate black man is something new or special. He seems like a nice guy and he doesn't carry with him all the baggage of someone like Jesse Jackson, but that doesn't mean that he can automatically win because of it. Someone please tell me what makes this man seem so electable all of a sudden.