Barack Obama: The Democratic Party's Nominee for President

Tuesday night Senator Obama reached the number of delegates needed to win the Democratic nomination for President.  That vote will be confirmed at the Convention in August and Obama will carry the mantle of Democratic leadership in the general election in November. 

 

It is now Mr. Obama's responsibility to convince the voters that he is the best candidate to lead the country for the next four years.  Mr. McCain will carry the same burden for the Republican party.  There will now be a lot of focus on who will be picked as V.P. on both sides and the news media will try to tell us how important that choice is, but make no mistake, it is the Presidential candidate themselves who will bear the responsibility for selling their vision to the voters. 

 

There are those in the news media and other supporters of the candidates who are already talking about blaming some one else if the candidate they support looses.  The blame game has already been placed in the fast lane.

 

The chance of a nasty campaign in the general election are high.  The Republicans are masters at saying nasty things about their opponents because they themselves feel inadequate.  Because for the first time an African American is a Presidential nominee the race card will be played when nasty remarks are made even though it may not be a racist remark and before you know it the nasty campaign will be in high gear.

 

Personal attacks and false statements by politicians have been accepted by the voters for many years.  That is why it works.  Voters say they do not like it but end up using it to support their vote.  They also tolerate it by watching it on T.V. and listening to it on talk radio for hours.  Who wants a dull campaign when you can have a nasty one and the winner accomplishes nothing after the election.

 

The voters will find out real soon what kind of campaign Obama and McCain choose to run.  They are both talking change and the people have given them a chance to do so.  Lets see if they deliver on their promises and articulate what kind of change they are talking about. Lets also see if the voters have learned anything.

The November General Electrion And The American Voter

In six months the American people will go to the polls and cast their vote for a new President.  A process that is repeated every four years and in the last twenty eight years, three of the last four Presidents were reelected to a second term.

 

On the Presidential ballot will be a representative of the Democratic and Republican parties and one or more third party candidate representing their affiliations.  Third party candidates have been able to influence the out come of some past elections and no doubt hope to have the same influence in November.  The voting public has the right to vote the candidate of their choice or not vote at all.  That last option does not sit well with many Americans but those who choose to exercise that right are comfortable with their position. 

 

No one really knows how many Americans would like to see some one on the ballot other than the Democratic and Republican nominees representing those two parties, but I believe that number is probably significant.  The long primary season has a way of distracting the people and the candidates away from the issues and continuity is lost.  A shorter primary season would bring out just as many voters and would give the lesser financed candidates a chance to compete and be heard in all the primaries.

 

In my judgement and from what I see, even at this late date, If Al Gore or Governor Ed Rendell, both democrats or Senator Chuck Hagel or Mayor  Bloomberg, both independent-minded republicans entered the race and could get on the ballots in every state as third party candidates and have the financial resources to compete, the election results would be something never heard of before. 

 

The election and reelection of George W. Bush has had a traumatic effect on the American voters even though the people gave Mr. Bush their vote twice.  The voters elected the least qualified person to be President in my life time and I go back to the WWII generation.  That is spilling over to the present election and I sense the people are in a bad mood.  Senator Obama, who is the Democratic nominee for President, has much less experience than Bush had at this same junction.  Senator McCain, who is the official Republican nominee, is a veteran with years of congressional experience but has really had no significant impact concerning those things that really matter and make a difference in leading people in the political arena.  Both Obama and McCain talk about change but has not articulated what or how they would change things and has no record of change in the Senate. 

 

So the people are caught in a gotcha situation: Who to vote for, a Democratic, a Republican or a third party candidate?  We the voters have put ourselves in this situation by not holding our elected officials accountable for their actions.  We let ourselves be divided by them as liberals, conservatives, right or left instead of being just a plain American.  In the 2000 election, state officials in Florida allowed a confusing ballot be used by the voters which sure enough confused the voters and threw the election in the lap of the U.S. Supreme Court. 

 

Now we are in another election year cycle and the media and others have taken sides.  Lets see if those who wanted to short circuit the process will make their voice known in the future for a shorter primary season for both parties.  I would not hold my breath. 

 

Senator Clinton and Obama are not very far apart in the popular vote yet a wedge has been used against the people for this close race with a demand for closure months ago.  Those who pursued unreasonable demands may be disappointed in the next four years.  Time will tell.

The Next Four Presidential Years...

...should be an eye opener for America and its people because it will allow the people to judge just how much the new President has learned from the failed policies and leadership of George W. Bush.  The people witnessed Mr. Bush's failed policies, his secret government, an unnecessary War in Iraq, and his violation of our laws as a public servant.  Mr. Bush's reckless behavior was so blatant the next President will have no excuse for repeating the same mistakes.

 

The thing to watch for is the voters' attention as to what is going on.  Will the voters say amen that Bush is gone and then not hold the new President responsible for his actions?  Remember Mr. Bush started an unnecessary war in Iraq that claimed lives and was still reelected by the voters.  Will the status quo be accepted?  What change will take place for a better quality of life for the people instead of more benefits to special interest groups?  We heard the song and dance  before when Bush ran in 2000 and then failed to deliver.  Now we are hearing a new song and dance from a different source.  Are the people prepared to do something about it if the new President does not deliver on its promises?

 

History has shown the people have not yet learned how to deal with politicians who break their promise and go back on their word.  History has also shown the people let themselves get duped by the news media about Presidents who have done well for the people, only to be degraded by the media.

 

What will you the voter do if the next President decides on a new course unlike the one he campaigned on?  The voters should keep that in mind and have a plan of action.

A Void In Economic Leadership

The Labor Department announced that the economy lost 49,000 jobs in May and unemployment increased to 5.5%, the largest monthly increase in unemployment since 1986.  The economy has lost jobs every month so far this year and when Bush leaves office his job creation record will be pathetic. 

 

Budget deficits and creating debt continues to be at record levels under Mr. Bush.  That is a sure way to a failed economy and insufficient job creation for an expanding work force.  This administration reversed all the benefits the Clinton administration created for the economy and the people.  And the sad part is that in a Presidential election year only Senator Clinton said her administration would return to balanced budgets.  The other candidates, both republican and democrats never spoke to the issue during the campaign.  That includes Obama and McCain, the nominees of their party.

 

If any one thinks we can have a sustained and growing  economy, low inflation, low unemployment and steady job creation without a balance budget and creating debt please name that administration.  The only administration to accomplish that in the past 50 years was the Clinton Administration.

 

Congress is about to vote on a multibillion dollar bill that includes over $150 billion for Iraq thru next year with no way to pay for it.  Lets see how Obama and McCain vote on this bill.  They may even skip out on the vote and blame it on campaigning.  A likely excuse and a failure of leadership if that happens.

 

Both Obama and McCain should be talking and promoting the greening of America to begin early in the next administration.  They should be talking about balancing the budget and creating surpluses as Clinton did instead of adding debt to the record levels we have at the present time.  The Republican ploy of reducing taxes for the most wealthy people does not get the economic job done.  The voters have fallen for that line to often.

 

If Obama and McCain do not take the balance budget issue seriously, forget about any economic prosperity in the future.  A balanced budget will allow our country to fund and pay for needed services.  Retention of the status quo, budget deficits and debt will bankrupt the United States.  Our debt is approaching 10 trillion dollars and cost the tax payers over $400 billion each year for the last two years in interest payments alone on the debt.  Wasted money, something that elected officials are good at.  The voters need to think real hard about what is happening.