The Longing for Charisma

Up to now, Barack Obama has not made the blind see again, and he hasn’t walked on water. But it could just be a matter of time-–at least for those who seriously buy into the messianic healing message associated with his person, and don’t just dismiss it as politically unserious day dreaming.

In recent years one could occasionally have the impression that the rift of mutual misunderstanding is so deep that it is impossible to even have a serious argument since we no longer have common concepts and criteria. Now, it turns out that we still have a great deal in common.

On both sides of the Atlantic there is an enormous longing for a charismatic leader. Everything needs to get better; a new, young candidate needs to do things differently than the professional politicians that are despised by large segments of the population. This contempt and this longing for a strong man contain an anti-democratic aspect. And above all, it blurs the view of the different interests that the U.S. and Europe will continue to have after George W. Bush has left office.

We will all breathe easier when the stunted, militaristic and bigoted president departs. But that doesn’t mean that all of the conflicts between Europe and the US will end-–or that a resolution of these conflicts is simply a matter of good will.

If Barack Obama is elected to the office of president of the U.S., then it will be his duty to represent the interests of his country. Charisma will mean nothing. This means, for example, that the NATO members will be asked to increase their expenditures on the military. When Obama advocates for this he is merely fulfilling his oath of office. If the German government then refuses, it is merely doing the same. The White House is not a concert hall and the Oval Office is not a stage on which we throw flowers and stuffed animals. Not even if Barack Obama moves in.