Jennifer Rubin makes a good point:

"....The “Oprah for President” buzz — some in earnest and some humorous — will rev up. But better than banking on another billionaire celebrity (albeit one who reads, praises diversity and possesses none of the twisted, dark demons that haunt Trump), Democrats and Republicans seeking to defeat Trump (or someone of his ilk) would be smart to identify the qualities that Winfrey demonstrates:

She is hopeful and optimistic, appealing to our better angels and not our base fears. She does not hold up boogeymen or dabble in conspiracy theories. She does not characterize the United States as a dystopia nor exaggerate (let alone create out of whole cloth) a set of challenges that call into question the motives of our leaders.

She is well-versed in history (citing Rosa Parks’s pre-Montgomery bus boycott work on behalf of an African American woman who had been raped by six white men in Alabama in 1944). However, she does not pine for an imaginary past. The good old days were not good for a large segment of the country. She cajoles and encourages her audience to continue the trek toward a more perfect union.

She understands that we come from diverse places but looks for the common thread of humanity — the universal qualities and shared dreams of all Americans (and all humans, for that matter).

She makes clear — even in the context of an acceptance speech honoring her lifetime in media and entertainment — that it is not all about her. She does not set herself up as the savior (“I alone”), nor peddle the false notion that there are easy fixes.

She conveys the most important quality for a political leader (aside from intellectual curiosity) — namely, empathy. The ability to see the world from the vantage point of others is the critical first step for leaders in a diverse democracy. Only then can you problem-solve, summon resolve and inspire others to take a journey with you.

She valiantly defends objective truth and democratic institutions. “We also know it’s the insatiable dedication to uncovering the absolute truth that keeps us from turning a blind eye to corruption and to injustice,” she said. “To tyrants and victims, and secrets and lies. I want to say that I value the press more than ever before as we try to navigate these complicated times.”

Her speech, elegantly delivered, seemed if only for the moment to wash away the bile that Trump spews and the debris that he leaves littered along the landscape. Hey, someone who thinks the press should write what it wants! Someone who knows that the 1950s weren’t the peak moment in American history! Someone with a grown-up’s vocabulary and sentence structure! Before you snap back to reality, realizing we may have three more years of Trump, we should think of Winfrey’s speech as a master class in creating an alternative political culture...."