The Possibilities of President Obama

If anything, the presidency of Barack Obama holds the possibility of the rebirth of a United States that has been falling apart at the seams since 2001.

There is surely a great deal that he promises, as most aspiring leaders do. Politicians rarely accomplish most of what they promise, and Obama could very well be too overwhelmed by his country’s financial troubles to be an exception.

But the senator from Illinois, and hopefully president-elect by the time you’re reading this, owes his success to his ability to articulately personify America’s dissatisfaction with its current leadership. His election could prove a willingness among its public to usher in change if the circumstances over the next four years allow.

There is therefore a great deal of possibility that Americans can look forward to, which deserves to be discussed.

The most important asset that America will likely gain with Obama is a sense of confidence. A country’s economic engine has a lot to do with its sense of collective resolve, as evidenced by America’s booms following victories in World War I and II as well as the Cold War.

In the shadow of the Bush administration’s blunders, America is feeling the same sense of wounded pride that it felt after the Vietnam War. It took a charismatic leader in the form of Ronald Reagan to lift American spirits back then, even though Reagan’s policies and actions were far from perfect.

Obama’s policies will likely also be far from perfect, and surely subject to debate in a re-election bid four years from now. But there is no doubt he has that unique ability to make most Americans feel good about themselves and their future, and make the world feel good about America. That in itself is the first step towards a recovery.

Although there is no perfect way to manage a failing economy, Obama the pragmatist will bring educated and experienced minds with differing points of view to the table, rather than rule by strict ideology. Although no guarantee of success, the strategy is an intelligent one.

Amongst all the talk of his foreign policy philosophies, The Economist pointed out in their endorsement of Obama that his election alone would “dispel many of the myths built up about America.” America’s enemies, whether they be Islamist leaders, left-wing dictators, or authoritarian superpowers, would find it much harder to demonize America for their people with Obama as president.

Armed with willingness for dialogue and an understanding of subtlety, Obama could reduce tensions between America and its rivals while renewing American moral superiority in the global community.

Although nothing is likely to happen quickly, Obama would be sure to also move America’s seven-year-old War on Terror forward by leaving Iraq, focusing on Afghanistan and Al Qaeda, and closing Guantanamo Bay.

Without an America that is a leader on climate change, the world’s other energy consumption giants could continue to drag their feet on the matter for decades to come. Obama’s “Manhattan Project” ambitions on the subject of energy independence and carbon emissions are a promising attitude he could bring to the White House. Since his plans focus on job creation, they may have a fighting chance to be enacted in an economic crisis.

Obama may not realistically be able to completely reform the heavily flawed health care system. He could, at the very least, regulate the health insurance industry to make insurance more affordable and reliable for lower income and middle-class Americans.

Finally, Obama’s pragmatic nature would allow him to amend his spending plans should they become unaffordable in America’s economic and financial future. On the other hand, should he see an opportunity to boost the economy through spending like Franklin Roosevelt did during the Great Depression, he would not hesitate to consider it. McCain, on the other hand, is committed to an ideology of a smaller role of government.

With $10 trillion in debt and the possibility of a $1 trillion annual deficit, the country could benefit from hearing all ideas from all points of view.

The possibilities of President Obama are large, but the times are tough, and four years will tell which of them become realities. But because the enormous potential for America to rebound, Obama’s could be a great presidency.

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Alex Leduc will be blogging on election day at www.alexleduc.com

Alex Leduc is a freelance columnist and blogger, as well as a journalism student at Concordia University.