On the cusp of becoming the first African-American to capture a major party nomination, Mr. Obama remains a protean political figure, inspiring devotion in supporters who see him as a transformative leader even as he remains inscrutable to critics," Michael Powell writes in The New York Times. "He has the gift of making people see themselves in him and offers an enigmatic smile when asked about his multiracial appeal."
Obama gives Powell a quote that cuts both ways: "I am like a Rorschach test," he said.