The US Senate...

... a bastion of positive racial stereotypes. From http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/03/17/business/aig.php:

"I suggest, you know, obviously, maybe they ought to be removed," Mr. Grassley said in the interview. "But I would suggest the first thing that would make me feel a little bit better toward them if they’d follow the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say 'I'm sorry,' and then either do one of two things: resign or go commit suicide."

Obama on Open Presidential Debates

Regardless of your political views, I don't think it's possible to make a rational argument that this won't improve the public discourse in this country. That political parties and TV networks could potentially use copyright claims to stifle political commentary is pretty ridiculous. Who knows, being legally able to post this stuff to YouTube might even get my generation to actually vote for a change!

Obama didn't exactly come up with this idea himself, but I think it's a bold step to be the first major presidential candidate to come out in support of it. It's nice to see a politician understand copyright and technology for a change.

More info on Prof. Lessig's Blog.