DISTURBED Frontman Says BARACK OBAMA 'Seems To Be Heading In The Right Direction'

The German edition of Metal Hammer magazine conducted an interview with vocalist David Draiman of DISTURBED at this year's installment of the Graspop Metal Meeting, which was held on June 26-28, 2009 on the festival grounds of the Boeretang in Dessel, Belgium. Watch the chat at this location.

A transcript of Draiman's responses to the interview questions follows below.

On how President Barack Obama is doing so far:

Draiman: "So far he seems to be doing well. He seems to be heading in the right direction. His intentions are certainly good. I don't know how realistic a public healthcare system is going to be, a socialized healthcare; that may be well beyond his presidency, even if he comes through a second term. There just isn't enough medical staff to supply the demand; it's just not enough. People would be on waiting lists for years before they got something done. So I think that, while his intentions are good in a lot of areas, the practicalities don't always match up to them. But as far as getting greener, as far as changing the impression of the United States on a worldwide level — being a little bit more of an open hand as opposed to a closed fist — is a good thing. So we're very hopeful — I'm very hopeful — of what he'll be able to accomplish."

On whether he is surprised by how much Obama has accomplished already in the first few months of his presidency:

Draiman: "No. I wouldn't say that I'm surprised. I'm pleased, but not surprised. I think that, actually, Americans in general, you'll find, by nature are rather impatient. We expect things to happen very, very quickly. So... not surprised, but definitely pleased, and hopeful that it will continue in that direction."

On whether America's image in other parts of the world has changed as a result of the new administration:

Draiman: "With some people. But I think that there are certain people in this world who need an enemy — that they exist because there is an enemy, and if the enemy no longer existed, then they would not have any power. People like [Iranian President Mahmoud] Ahmedinejad, people who gained power from breeding hatred. I think that there's always going to those people who need to demonize something or someone — whether it's the United States or any other country. But it's refreshing to see some of the people who no longer have a reason to demonize, who are letting their guard down. I think it definitely shows hope for the future."

On whether DISTURBED's stance as an American band has changed as a result of Obama's presidency:

Draiman: "Not at all. Our support for this president has been very clear ever since he was a candidate. I, actually, was hopeful that Barack Obama would become a presidential candidate when he first spoke at the Democratic National Convention, when he was the keynote speaker; that was my first exposure to him. And obviously he was within the Illinois state government for quite a number of years. So I think that we've been hopeful to see him emerge and to see him grow and develop. As far as our stance regarding the troops is concerned, that's unequivocal. We are behind our fighting men and women no matter what. No matter what they're ordered to do, they've sworn an oath, they follow orders and they do it without question; they sacrifice their families, their lives, their peace in order to preserve ours. So there's tremendous honor and respect in that, and we will continue and we will always support them."