Yes he could! yes we could! Yes he did it! He made it. Today is an important day, at least for the US, although I also want to believe for the whole world. The US desperatly needed change, after the former administration. And the world needs a US that can show a different attitude to world politics and to globalisation. It is an historic day because Obama is the first non totally white president to be elected in the US. Of course the race/colour is not important. And yet it is. Particularly in the US, which is the first economic and military power in the world. Because of its racial history and background. And the democrats finally made it back to the White House.
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It wasn't an easy road for Barack Obama. Yes it was a fast track career yet he has this inner strength and capability of mobilising people, of giving hope, believing and making others believe that change is not only possible, it is an urgency. It was an urgency for the US. And after leaving no one less than Hillary Clinton behind, the easiset part was to defeat McCain. It was a clear and easy victory. There were no doubts that Americans wanted Obama to lead them. And it was clear since a long time that the world too wanted him as a counterpart.
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Obama symbolises a lot of what the US is and what is possible in that country. Of the so called "American dream". A son of a Kenyan man who emigrated to the US, now became US president. Obama is not black, he is not white, he is all that and more. Yet he is nowadays an example, a role model, for many Americans, for many African, European, for many people around the world. Becoming the President of the most powerful country in the world is not for everyone (well, there are some exceptions), and Obama doesn't come from a wealthy and powerful background. yet he made it, because he believed in his dream.
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Yes, there was a lot of rhetoric, demagogy, nice speaches, many promises. Obama gathered a huge capital of hope but also a huge will to change things, to do things differently, to change the US, the way of doing politics, the way to interact with the world. Obama has promised a lot of things and different people may have different expectations. It will not be easy to make everybody happy and certainly not overninght. It remains to be seen how Obama will be able to reconcile certain promises, namely to make tax cuts and increase public medical expenditure, or gather the money to relaunch the economy and help entreprises and banks come out of the crisis. No it will not be easy.
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Obama believes in what he says and has this huge capacity to mobilise people around his ideas and build concensus. He certainly will focus in the economy, the American one, this is the most important issue for Americans. And indirectly for the whole world, after all, particularly in these times of recession. He may not deliver all he has promised or wishes, but at least I'm sure things will be done differently, and not only according to the interest of certain big corporations and economic interests. Although I expect some protectionism in American economic policy in the coming years.
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In terms of foreign policy, hopes are very high, too high maybe. And mostly abroad. We have seen his "evolution" since he started running for the Presidency, after his nomination for the democratic party and in particular after he won the elections. Here I think change will be slower. Hopefully the attitude will be different, after all Hillary Clinton will be there too. But the US is the US and their interests are strong. I believe there will be no radical change in relation to Cuba, to the Middle East or Iran... Maybe more openness for talking but in the end, it remains to be seen what results will be achieved. And the US will not pul out of Iraq overnight. Not that they should, but Obama is nowadays much more cautious in relation to that. And how long will it take to close Guantanamo? Something which should be closed straighaway. And how committed will Obama be to seriously promoting peace talks between Israel and Palestina and the actual independende of a Palestinian state? And how will Obama act in relation to Pakistan? And Afghanistan, a big priority for him? And which attitude towards Mexico and the rest of Latin America? Of course, time will tell, yet I fear few change will come in the beginning.
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Anyway, I salute and congratulate Barack Obama. He deserves well to be the President of the US and for once the dream came true and the right thing actually happened. I am sure his parents and grand parents would be very proud of him. Let's hope in a couple of months we will all (and the US in particular) have forgotten the past eight disastrous years of republican administration and he can actually make up for the lost time. And above all, may the democratic debate continue in the US, open for different ideas and opinions. That is the necessary basis for a healthy democracy, and it certainly is Obama's first achievement.
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