Tuesday of Horror for Obama
Published in La Cronica De Hoy
(Mexico) on 3 November 2010
by Concepción Badillo (link to
original)
It’s been exactly two years since Barack Obama was elected president of the United States. Back then, the great joy of his followers did not allow one to clearly see the political divisions prevalent in the country and that today are on the scale with two totally different versions of the government and society the Americans want.
This Tuesday, there were elections. At the moment of writing this column results are partial, but there are 37 governor’s seats, 37 Senate seats and the total 435 House of Representatives seats at stake. Obama was not on the ballot, but, in practice, his two years of government were, because this election is considered as a referendum on the 24 months he’s been in office.
All polls suggest that neither Obama nor his Democratic party will benefit from this election. With an economy that doesn’t show signs of recovery and unemployment on the rise, most likely Republicans will gain control of the lower chamber, and possibly of the Senate as well.
So far the president has decided to cancel all his scheduled public appearances and spent Tuesday at the White House, awaiting, like the rest of the nation, the results of what is predicted to be the greatest Democratic defeat in decades.
The president, who promised to publicly address the elections on Wednesday, is pondering, according to some experts, how to carry on with a Washington controlled by his opponents.
Obama, who had been actively participating in campaigns favoring Democrats, looked tired and without much energyin the last couple of days . At the same time, his proselytizing speeches were lacking the shine and eloquence that characterized him in the race to the Oval Office.
And no wonder. Not only did a recent poll assure that only 35 percent of the public thinks that he will be reelected, but, from tomorrow on, possibly none of his projects and initiatives will come true. That’s without considering the possible setbacks on victories already won, like the health care system reform.
Unlike other countries, in the United States political campaigns don’t end the day before voting. Even on voting day, propaganda is everywhere: on the streets, radio and television.
And if these campaigns were abundant in poison, they were even more abundant in money. It’s estimated that candidates spent over $4 billion in promote themselves and attack each other, to the extent that some broadcasting stations have had to reject electoral advertisements due to time and space constraints.
And that’s nothing. Analysts predict that in 2012, when the presidential battle comes around, this amount of money will double as a consequence of the Supreme Court decision that authorized corporations, unions and private groups to donate unlimited amounts to parties and candidates, without having to disclose it or even identify themselves.
But while money played a key role at this election, the main factor was the so-called tea party movement. They used the strongest rhetoric and the more accentuated ideological division. Its members, right-wing conservatives, believe in a smaller government participation in the citizens’ life and look for a reduction in taxes.
This group, which is said to be made up of Americans angry and frustrated with their country’s political life, has even rejected moderate Republicans, and at the same time presents Obama as a Communist with an agenda against his own country.
By the way, even if it’s said that victory has parents to spare but defeat is always an orphan, here, the blame for the great Democratic failure is thrown, starting today, at Obama. But his most faithful followers claim that the simplest explanation is the economy.
At any rate, as expected, Republicans will obtain majority and the control of at least one of the bodies of Congress; we have probably seen everything the Obama administration was going to accomplish. From here on it will be hard for the president, who promised so much, to turn into law any of his promises.
This Tuesday, there were elections. At the moment of writing this column results are partial, but there are 37 governor’s seats, 37 Senate seats and the total 435 House of Representatives seats at stake. Obama was not on the ballot, but, in practice, his two years of government were, because this election is considered as a referendum on the 24 months he’s been in office.
All polls suggest that neither Obama nor his Democratic party will benefit from this election. With an economy that doesn’t show signs of recovery and unemployment on the rise, most likely Republicans will gain control of the lower chamber, and possibly of the Senate as well.
So far the president has decided to cancel all his scheduled public appearances and spent Tuesday at the White House, awaiting, like the rest of the nation, the results of what is predicted to be the greatest Democratic defeat in decades.
The president, who promised to publicly address the elections on Wednesday, is pondering, according to some experts, how to carry on with a Washington controlled by his opponents.
Obama, who had been actively participating in campaigns favoring Democrats, looked tired and without much energyin the last couple of days . At the same time, his proselytizing speeches were lacking the shine and eloquence that characterized him in the race to the Oval Office.
And no wonder. Not only did a recent poll assure that only 35 percent of the public thinks that he will be reelected, but, from tomorrow on, possibly none of his projects and initiatives will come true. That’s without considering the possible setbacks on victories already won, like the health care system reform.
Unlike other countries, in the United States political campaigns don’t end the day before voting. Even on voting day, propaganda is everywhere: on the streets, radio and television.
And if these campaigns were abundant in poison, they were even more abundant in money. It’s estimated that candidates spent over $4 billion in promote themselves and attack each other, to the extent that some broadcasting stations have had to reject electoral advertisements due to time and space constraints.
And that’s nothing. Analysts predict that in 2012, when the presidential battle comes around, this amount of money will double as a consequence of the Supreme Court decision that authorized corporations, unions and private groups to donate unlimited amounts to parties and candidates, without having to disclose it or even identify themselves.
But while money played a key role at this election, the main factor was the so-called tea party movement. They used the strongest rhetoric and the more accentuated ideological division. Its members, right-wing conservatives, believe in a smaller government participation in the citizens’ life and look for a reduction in taxes.
This group, which is said to be made up of Americans angry and frustrated with their country’s political life, has even rejected moderate Republicans, and at the same time presents Obama as a Communist with an agenda against his own country.
By the way, even if it’s said that victory has parents to spare but defeat is always an orphan, here, the blame for the great Democratic failure is thrown, starting today, at Obama. But his most faithful followers claim that the simplest explanation is the economy.
At any rate, as expected, Republicans will obtain majority and the control of at least one of the bodies of Congress; we have probably seen everything the Obama administration was going to accomplish. From here on it will be hard for the president, who promised so much, to turn into law any of his promises.