The US Elections: Not A Solution But An Enigma

The US elections is finished, Barack Omaba has won but my questions about the US electorate still linger.  I cannot comprehend why despite a disastrous presidency by George Bush of the GOP, John McCain was in contention for the whole of the campaign and might have even won if not for the financial crisis that hit the US.  In the Philippines, nobody will ever question, if ever elections are held right now, that candidates of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s parties will certainly be routed by a landslide.  Is the Philippine electorate more discerning then than America’s electorate?  Maybe it is not this simple.

I have been told that in any US elections, the GOP has already 40% of the votes sewn, whoever the candidate is.  And that the Democrats will have a third of the votes locked.  So that means the election is only a contest who will will the remaining 27%.  I do not know if the term “independents/undecided” is the proper term for them.

But whatever, it seems Barack Obama won the bulk of the 27%.  Maybe it is only here that the unpopularity of Bush and his failed presidency is reflected.  So Americans are really loyal to their party or whatever that attracts them to it.  But not the Filipinos.  Maybe they know there is really no platform, no principles behind the promises and the posters.

But 40% is a significant minority and a strident minority at that.  I do not think Obama will have an easy rule.  This minority, who is used to smear tactics and spins can easily pressure a sitting president with catcalls the like of “soft on terrorism”, “throwing away American gains/interests/strength”, etc.

However American politics develop in the next four years, it cannot be denied that America is in deep crisis and its standing in the world is not firm.  If the Vietnam War turned to be the US’ Waterloo after the ’50s record prosperity, I predict that the consequences of its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will bite just as deep.

Bring Back Bill Clinton?

So it seems the Democratic Party made a mistake in choosing Barack Obama as its standard bearer. While he projects an image of change it seems the US electorate is leery of his credentials and lack of experience and suspecting he might not have the answers to the current problems of the US.

Some oldtimers say that is sometimes the result a party gets by using the primaries in selecting its standard bearer. They pine for the days when the Bosses dominated the Democratic Party. Bosses, they think, tend to select candidates who are winnable and has the characteristics needed to be successful in running the country. And they usually point out to Franklin Delano Roosevelt as their most successful candidate.

So it seems the Democrats are now paying the price of not choosing Hillary Clinton who certainly is more experienced and has greater stature than Barack Obama. The other half of the Clinton duo who successfully ruled the White House, she might probably been a better match against McCain and could have foiled the choice of Palin.

Palin undoubtedly energized the McCain candidacy, enabling McCain to draw level with Obama. But with her apparent shallowness and lack of experience one will doubt the capacity for discernment of the US electorate. Did the issues change because McCain chose a lightweight running mate? Or the elections all a matter of perception without reference to the “issues”? Will bringing in Palin make McCain a better problem-solver if he gets elected as president? And yet she gave the McCain campaign a boost. Incredible!

Many are not even sure if McCain has the right answers to the current problems of the US. What is sure is that the current woes of the US happened under a Republican watch led by a less-than-capable president who threw away his predecessors legacy. I do not know if this has been Osama bin Laden’s goal all the time but it’s sure he succeeded in throwing the US out of whack.

Bring back Bill Clinton! Nobody doubts he is a first-rate problem-solver and consensus-builder. If only the Republican party can show statesmanship of the highest order and show remorse for the miseries they have brought their country.

Third World citizens don’t assume they have the answers to the problems of the US. But one thing is sure. The US always thinks it has the solutions to Third World woes and the US will never by shy in pushing for these “solutions.” And recent history normally bears that out.