Today is Barack Obama's 47th birthday. He shares the same birthdate as Louis Armstrong, Helen Thomas, Billy Bob Thornton, Roger Clemens, and Percy Shelley.
Much has been made about Obama's youth, and I've joked about how much I love to hear that, being just nine days older than he is. In 1908, an American man could expect to live just 49.5 years. Had they lived a century ago, Barack Obama would likely have been nearing the end of his life and John McCain would've been dead for decades. It's only now, as average life expectancy nears 80, that Obama is considered to be barely middle aged. But as he closes in on the half-century mark, Obama has had plenty of time to gain wisdom and perspective.
Go below the flip to learn why someone born in 1961 is ideally suited to be president ...