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Politics and presidents were the topic of choice for longtime CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather as he addressed a sold-out audience Monday night at Hall Auditorium.
Commenting on President Barack Obama's first 100 days in office, Rather told listeners it would be hard to determine Obama's progress so far.
"I don't think I'm alone in feeling that Obama can be a difficult politician to get a real sense of," Rather said.
Rather said interest in Obama's presidency has remained high because of the circumstances in which he took over the office.
"It's clear the United States and the world are in midst of the crisis, and I use that word lightly," Rather said.
The first 100 days can, in most cases, set the tone for an entire presidency and sometimes can signify the chances for re-election quite early in the presidency, according to Rather.
"It's early, very early in the Obama presidency, but the clock ticks," Rather said, "Does he have a unified political and policy command? We simply don't know yet."
Rather said he believes Obama has had what he calls an "uneven start."
Obama must stick with his long-term solutions to current economic and political problems rather than inventing short-term resolutions, Rather said.
"If President Obama comes off to very many people as muddling in the middle then it will be very difficult for him to lead the country as many of us hope and believe he can do," Rather said.
Much of the media coverage has recently compared Obama to Franklin D. Roosevelt, since both men came into power during financial and banking crises and both inspired hope in Americans, according to Rather.
"The comparison seems to go too far in my opinion," Rather said, "but the parallels are still hard to resist."
Rather said Roosevelt and Obama were both young, charismatic men, which is why the comparison has been put in play. However, Rather added comparing the specific economic situations of the two presidencies is a rough comparison.
Many students were enthusiastic after hearing Rather's speech.
"Just seeing him up there was inspirational," junior Christy Connolly said. "He seemed pretty fair in his judgments. He was funny and entertaining."
A few students felt that Rather's speech was too broad for their liking.
"I liked it, (but) I kind of fell asleep during part of it," sophomore Chris Voigt said. "It was more general than I thought it would be."
Rather said the 2008 presidential campaign was probably the most exciting time in his career and encouraged the audience to actively take a part in government.
"The beginning of a new presidential election is truly a time to treasure. We are seeing a historic new era," Rather said. "This is no time for citizens or the press to sit back and watch. Democracy is not a spectator sport."
