As President-elect Obama’s transition team takes on the seemingly insurmountable task of fixing a broken country, they’ll grapple with a laundry list of requests from the left and the right. The global financial meltdown, military occupations in the Middle East, and ecological catastrophe are currently on everyone’s mind.
But to some, there is a much more pressing issue at hand. Conservatives say that President-elect Barack Obama mustn’t steer too far to the left: America is a centre-right nation, and must be governed based on centre-right principles. After the Republicans’ tremendous loss on election night, the pundits could only comfort themselves with denial. But there’s no denying that on November 4, the United States sent a powerful message to the Republican establishment and the international community, demanding a new direction in governance and a progressive face in the era of 21st century politics.
While the lengthy campaigning enabled voters to better engage in the political process, the desire for progressive action and rejection of conservative ideology was evident. Poll after poll indicates that Americans want universal healthcare coverage, income redistribution, financial regulation, energy reform, and a diplomatic approach to foreign policy. These issues are at the core of the progressive movement, and Obama’s campaign reflected these emerging goals. With the financial burden weighing heavily on his shoulders, Obama needs to be prepared to make short- and long-term investments to get the country back on track. He has to start by amassing a cabinet filled with innovative thinkers and like-minded intellectuals to help shape the new agenda.
While some recent appointees have been less-than-stellar selections, it is worth noting that Obama appears to be naming the most diverse cabinet in history, appointing bipartisan and pragmatic figures. Tom Daschle for health and human services secretary is a sound choice, as he has long been a fierce proponent of affordable public healthcare. Janet Napolitano, Obama’s nominee for secretary of homeland security, is a wise selection as well. As Governor of Arizona, a western state with illegal immigration woes, she could redirect attention to a domestic concern that’s virtually vanished from the news. Some in his economic inner circle, like future National Economic Council head Larry Summers and Treasury Secretary nominee Timothy Geithner, while holding impressive credentials, are proponents of financial deregulation, and arguably tied to the Wall Street scandal. Will they implement the right policies to get the country out of this mess?
President Bush’s defense secretary Robert Gates will retain his role in the new administration. A supporter of bloated military budgets, nuclear weapons, and an ongoing occupation in Iraq, his misguided Republican worldview may interfere with Obama’s plans for tough diplomacy. As the saying goes, only time will tell. However, forward thinking has not been forgotten. For the first time in history, the President-elect will appoint a chief technology officer to oversee the IT sector and maintain competitiveness with booming technology industries in Asia. Google CEO Eric Schmidt could put his ingenuity and tech smarts to great use by helping the administration into the 21st century. Obama has continuously stressed the need for a transparent and Internet/blogger-friendly government, and with plans to keep a laptop in the Oval Office, it is likely that the White House website will look more like Facebook than a stagnant collection of press releases and documents.
While he may value intellectualism and competency over ideology, Obama’s promise to turn the page on the old Washington and look ahead towards a new and improved country seems difficult to fulfill. As the transition rolls on and more names start to float in the news, the decisions Obama makes will ultimately define him, as an individual and as a president.
