It's been interesting to note the parallels in history. For those who speak of Obama as an empty suit who happens to be good with words, here's some widely held public opinion on Lincoln's candidacy on the first page of "Team of Rivals:"

"The conduct of the republican party in this nomination is a remarkable indication of small intellect, growing smaller. They pass over...statesmen and able men, and they take up a fourth rate lecturer, who cannot speak good grammar."

--The New York Herald (May 19,1860), commenting on Abraham Lincoln's nomination for president at the Republican National Convention.

In that presidential race, Seward was considered the inevitable candidate, and Lincoln was the dark horse. Seward was so convinced that the candidacy was his, he travelled to Europe rather than spend any time securing his nomination. Lincoln spent the same time travelling the states impressing all with his speeches, and when the convention in Chicago met on May 20th of that year, he had spent a considerable amount of time doing the delegate math and insuring it favored him.

Seward was Lincoln's main rival that year, and one paragraph from Goodwin's book (p.255) that contrasted Seward to Lincoln could just as well have been an analysis of the contest we see now between Obama and Clinton. Posting the paragraph and leaving the names out is very telling, I think:

In his years of travel on the circuit through central Illinois, engaging people in taverns, on street corners, and in shops, _____ had developed a keen sense of what people felt, needed, and wanted. _____, too, had an instinctive feeling for people, but too many years in Washington had dulled those instincts.