Sen. Hillary Clinton's recent announcement that she will be throwing her hat in the presidential ring definitely makes her one of the top names among Democrats.

Along with Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who is Latino, in the race, this gives the country what is arguably the most diverse pool of candidates ever for the presidential race.

But lost in the buzz over the historical significance of being a demographic first is a crucial point. Now, more than ever, is the time for these Democratic candidates to put forth concrete ideas and solutions that will put this country back on a unified path.

So far, the race has drawn 17 candidates from both parties, and they have much work to do to convince voters they have what it takes to move our country forward.

The State of the Union address will be an early barometer of how any of the announced candidates stack up with the current office-holder. Iraq and homeland security will definitely be key issues. But so will domestic issues such as healthcare and energy policy.

For Democrats such as Clinton, Iraq will be a defining issue. Indeed, the public will be listening closely to their plans for dealing with the crisis.

Front-runners must make their positions known — not just on how they disagree with the current administration, but how they would go about fixing the problem.

The race is on.

Let's get beyond the "first woman," "first African American," "first Latino," and get to the real issue.

Who will be the first candidate to come up with the first sensible and visionary ideas to move America forward? That's what this race is really about.