I nearly fell off my chair election night when I heard CNN’s Roland Martin say Obama was studying Ronald Reagan.
Is he going to turn “trickle down” into “trickle everywhere”? How’s that for redistribution?
But just the thought of Obama reading Reagan confirmed my sense of how Obama is hell-bent on outdoing Bill Clinton.
The excitement most people are feeling today is historical and hopeful. A black man is president, and the economics of the times are so dark that any change is welcome. I felt the same change when Clinton was inaugurated. Coming out of the dark Bush One years, everyone was renenergized. But Clinton at the start was doubted by the left and ultra-left for being a blue-dog dem, a conservative DLC type. He ended up ruling as a centrist and getting us out of debt.
Obama’s pick of a former Clinton staffer to be his chief is a good step. But it also signals we’re in for some real hardball political fights with coalitions hammered together with bare-knuckles. If Obama is reading Reagan, I guess he’s getting ready to placate the Pritzker’s and all his big money folks. As for his other big constituency, the youth, he’ll just put to work and get them to manipulate the digital world. And play basketball a lot and preach service themes. Obama is the perfect generational blend. Just old and square enough, just young and hip enough.
I expect his ideas to be a real blend. Obama’s no idealogue. He’s considered more liberal than most, but he’ll be less predictable than people think. He wants to be on the winning side, that we know. I don’t expect to agree with him 100 percent. But I do expect him to be smart, ethical and fair. I don’t think he’ll play any favorites. And that’s more than we can say for the current lame duck, or the other folks who wanted to lead.
I remember how people were so energized with the Clinton win they wanted to go to Washington. I think we’ll see something similar now. Obama’s will be a wonky, work-oriented administration based on merit and talent. The best and the brightest of a new generation. If he can turn the country around, now that will be even more historic than what he’s accomplished before day one.
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