McCain conceded shortly after 11 eastern time, but I was already heating up my helping of crow.
Congratulations and good luck to Obama, and I’ll put some of that crow in the freezer to hopefully eat in a few years if his presidency is actually successful and beneficial to this country.
I hope he gives a hearty thank you to Secretary Paulson and Rep. Pelosi — Paulson for transforming a difficult financial situation into a full-blown panic, and Pelosi for sabotaging the first bailout bill with her poisonously partisan speech, thereby undermining McCain’s work on pushing the compromise.
I doubt I will be getting any job offers from the Psychic Friends Network, but here are a couple things I see happening and/or questions I have about the next few years:
REZKO
This is a tough one for President Obama. Indications are that federal investigators are paying more attention to the circumstances of Obama’s home purchase, and at the same time Rezko is presumably squealing in exchange for a lighter prison sentence. If Obama has nothing to hide, or if Rezko cares enough to keep silent through four years of federal prison, no problem. However, if there was something shady that Rezko can and may reveal, does President Obama pardon him? At that point, I think it becomes a balancing game between how likely a criminal investigation (and possible impeachment) would be versus the damage a pardon for Rezko would do to Obama’s chances for a second term. Tough call, but I think the answer is to wait it out — the media hasn’t shown any inclination to be tough on Obama, or, historically, on Democrats in general. If Whitewater didn’t sink the Clintons, Obama could probably avoid any serious repercussions at least until he won a second term.
LIBERAL/SOCIALIST AGENDA
Another tough call. How much of his ‘progressive’ agenda does Obama actually push? That depends mainly on how firmly Obama believes in the cause, as opposed to political power — which we should have known in advance, but didn’t. Unless he truly does amazing things, I think he has only two years to push any agenda. If the bloom is off the rose before 2010 — and I don’t see how it can be avoided, with the insanely high expectations of the ‘messiah’ — expect signficant Republican gains in the mid-term elections, and probably the loss of the Democratic majority.
If Obama governs with an eye on two terms, I think any lasting harm from Obama policies will be minimal. Sadly, I have to join the legions hoping that Obama is a cynical opportunist in the Clinton mold rather than a idealogue. If he uses his first two years, with significant (although not filibuster-proof) majorities, I think he’ll only have one term but that it will be more disastrous for the U.S. than Carter’s. Good for the Republicans in 2012, maybe (unless some of the more hysterical predictions of liberal fascism come true), but bad for the country.
UNITY/PARTISANSHIP/RACE RELATIONS
With regard to Obama’s claims to be a uniter, and to be post-racial, post-partisan, etc., I will state unequivocally that his presidency will have the opposite effect. If nothing else, his willingness to use race as both a shield and a weapon leads me to believe that his presidency will be more ‘divide and conquer’ than ‘unite.’
SCARIEST PART OF THE OBAMA WIN
What probably scares me the most about Obama’s victory isn’t the prospect of four (or more) years of President Obama, because I believe that even if he tries to govern as a radical he will be checked — Republicans aside, just having a (D) after one’s name does not make someone a left-wing loon. What does scare me, though, is Vice-President Joe Biden. God love ‘im, but the thought of something happening to Obama and Biden having to step up scares the pee out of me. Obama may be entirely out of his depth, or even have a sinister agenda, but Joe is just a chucklehead.
Leeboxz2…
Wonderful blog post, saw on…
article. you just need to concentrate well…
and complete the task in the minimum amount of time.following are some tips on how you can succeed in writing an article in only twenty minutes:make a list of ideasany idea can become your inspiration. so it is the best writing…
area. you need to be motivated to…
succeed and picking a topic you love can give you that motivation. blogging isn’t something you can just do once before moving on to something else. success relies on updates and ongoing attention. failing to consider your passions can prevent you…
it. most bloggers these days use social…
media to increase traffic and build relationships with their readers and customers. you can also keep in contact with your new blogging buddies by posting comments, questions or answers to their facebook or twitter pages. bloggers use these platforms t…
to postshow to posts have a great…
chance of going viral as they are very informal and people love to have their problems sorted.many people searching for information will also start their searches with ‘how to…’ so a post starting with ‘how to…’ has a greater chance of…
new roman – 99.70% trebuchet ms -…
99.70% comic sans ms -99.46% georgia – 99.12% there’s not a lot of difference between any of the percentages for these fonts so you are fairly safe to use any of the both in the knowledge that they will be installed…
rest of your college career. it can…
be a challenge, but if you keep a few tips in mind, you should excel in this important class.one of the most important things to remember is to use your handbook. you will likely be assigned a writing handbook, of which…
Gems from the Internet…
[...] Are you absolutely convinced that is the right data? I learned something different. I’ve basically had an additional concept that pop right into my head [...]…
It is really fine…
you’re actually a excellent webmaster. The site loading pace is amazing. It kind of feels that you’re doing any unique trick. Also, The contents are masterwork. you have performed a wonderful process on this topic!…
billboards from highways. the reasoning was, they…
felt drivers were being distracted and therefore more accidents occurred. the same principle applies to your mlm blog.if you have various affiliate programs that you are promoting, use links vs all images in your side-bar. give the side-bar section an …
Hard Day…
It was a hard day here today, so I just took to piddeling around online and found…
Tumblr and Digg…
Tumblr and Digg just now linked to this super interesting website…
Great article…
You could certainly see your expertise in the work you write. The sector hopes for even more passionate writers like you who aren’t afraid to mention how they believe. At all times follow your heart. “Everyone has his day and some days last longer th…
the blog isn’t a priority.your blog may…
only be an add onto your main site, something else to help boost the visits to your site.again, your priorities may be to other parts of your site or business, and having a blogger write for you means you site’s blog…
Just Looking…
When I was browsing today I noticed a excellent post concerning…
Websites you should visit…
I really liked your blog, appreciate the great information….
for content. to make your blog stand…
out from the crowd, write pillar articles. these articles are designed to help someone solve a problem. they provide useful and informative information that provides great value to the reader. blog post writing will get easier when you learn how to…
getting 50% percentage in his 12th class…
fails to get minimum 50% marks in each of these subjects would not be eligible for admission in any of the b. tech courses, whether it is computer science engineering or any other.similarly it is in the case of pursuing master…
participate.nutri-systemwhen you don’t want to go to…
regular meetings and are self-motivated, nutri-system offers meals delivered to your door. while the cost may seem more than other plans, when the cost of food and preparation is considered, it is an affordable and easy way to stick to a…