Obama, call me a cynic
I "saw" Senator Obama at Exeter High School today. There were over 3000 people there, so I didn't actually see him until he visited our overflow room. There were a lot of people there and quite a lot that loved his message. One thing that the overflow room lacked was a visual of the main room--we just had audio of his speech.
After seeing an unappealing defensive Senator Clinton on the Democratic debates last night, I hoped that Senator Obama would seal the deal for me. I have to admit, he is a great speaker. Yes, he is inspiring. You can call me a cynic, but there's this nagging voice in my head... where does Congress play a role in this new, uncorrupted, people-oriented government?
For all those diehard party-liners, neither party is pure. Congressional Democrats and Republicans alike are in the big pockets of corporations and lobbyists. Senator Obama, as a constitutional scholar, knows that the President has no authority to restrict the current excessive behaviors of the K Street lobbyists and their cohorts. So how will he do it? It would be great to see a White House free of corporate influence, but I'm sorry, it's more important to see a Capitol free of corporate influence. How do you think entrenched Washington interests become entrenched? Not with the White House... with the Capitol, where there's a 90% or better reelection rate. I just don't see Congress rising to the occasion. The Congressional Democrats swept into power after November 2006 on a platform of ethics reform. Yet, true ethics reform took until the following summer to come to fruition, and even then, there are plenty of loopholes to exploit. We need more change than just the White House... we need change in the Capitol!
Obama was dead-on about foriegn policy. I think we should speak with the miscreants of the world. However, we don't have to take up the mantle of world policeman, which I am concerned he may want to do. But he is right, we can't cold shoulder our "enemies."
As with Edwards and Clinton, Obama took up the charge of global warming. I hope it gets further than these intangible reforms they are always calling for. We need to act... unfortunately we've been talking about global warming for over a decade and done nothing. We've been talking about independence from foriegn oil since the crisis in the '70s, and done nothing. And remember, good ol' Congress needs to act. Those Congressmen from Alaska, Texas, Louisiana, and other oil-producing/refining states will stand with their oil companies/employees.
I think Obama left the door open for staying longer in Iraq if his Joint Chiefs say so. He clearly will be beholden to the anti-war Left, but I think if the Joint Chiefs say that they need more time, he might give it to them. The war in Iraq started for the wrong reasons, but let's not finish it for the wrong reasons. Chaos there helps nobody.
Obama came out against NCLB (predictable). However, I don't see why anything should take its place. Everything that is suggested still will rely on standardized tests in some way. How else is achievement measured? While Obama has some solutions to education, a lot of it may be tough to actually bring about. After all, even with the Dept. of Education and NCLB, the most power for education is still vested in the states (as it should be). How can the federal government create merit pay or better salaries without a) coercing state governments or b) taking over the school systems, or c) even more complicated, make payments to select school systems? Can there be a federal solution to a system that is SO localized? Think of all the decisions school boards make and State Departments of Eds. I'm left wondering how it will all come to be.
Lastly, despite my dislike for government regulation, I think Obama is wrong not to mandate universal healthcare. If he doesn't allow coverage to be denied for pre-existing conditions and also doesn't mandate coverage, than I won't get health care. But you can count on it, that when I get diagnosed with cancer or some other disease, I'll march right into the ER, get health insurance, and they can't deny me for that pre-existing condition. Looks like I gamed the system! Either we reduce the costs of healthcare or we require that it is truly universal. If we don't, the system will be cheated.
As a parting thought, many say Obama reminds them of JFK. JFK brought a lot of optimism and a strong foriegn policy to the Oval Office. But then I'm left with that uncomfortable realization that JFK's domestic policy was stonewalled by a [conservative] Democratic Congress beholden to party and corporate interests. Can Obama do different? It's possible, but in today's world there's even more money to throw around.
In the end, folks, I lean right-of-center and I couldn't reconcile hope with Obama's love of the federal government to solve our problems. I encourage you to see him speak before Tuesday, because I doubt they'll be back again! Now to get a Republican ballot or check off Clinton...