A Conservative on Obama

Carol Platt Liebau, a self-described "proud conservative," sees five virtues in Obama's character: intelligence, color-blindness, self-confidence, an ability to listen and a sense of humor. Money quote:

He listens. Certainly, Barack is a liberal's liberal, and his leadership of The Harvard Law Review in many ways reflected that fact. But unlike many of his left-wing compatriots, he treated his ideological adversaries with respect on a personal level. Indeed, he always offered the small conservative contingent on the Review a hearing, even though his decision-making consistently showed that he hadn’t ultimately been influenced by their arguments.