president. there are too many traps in modern american poverty, and too many complexities to the socioeconomic dynamics that produce our presidents, to allow us to say, without reservation, that this really is the country where anyone can grow up to be president. but throughout our history, we've been moving ever closer to that ideal. anyone can grow up to be president. we took a giant step closer to that ideal with our election of the first african-american president. we knew then that one of the nongovernmentelal benefits of his election was that black children and other children would be able to see new possibilities in their lives more clearly. i know that feeling. i remember that feeling of the suddenly expanded universe of possibility. i was one of those little boston irish catholic boys about the age of kid president when i watched john fitzgerald-kennedy take the oath of office as the