The Surprising President Obama

Make no mistake I disagreed with just about everything President Elect Obama campaigned on and for over a year I worked hard — and spent too much money — for his opponent Senator McCain.  However, there are a few things everyone needs to acknowledge. First, Tuesday’s election of Senator Obama was a great day for America.  Never in the history of the world has a white nation elected a person of color as its leader.  Senator Obama’s election could only happen in America.  I hope and I pray that President Obama can significantly heal the racial divide in this country.  Tuesday’s election goes a long way toward doing that but more work must be done.  Second, I am giving President Elect Obama the benefit of the doubt.  Unlike the intolerant Left who immediately launched personal attacks on George W. Bush from day one, I am supporting my President.  President Elect Obama asked for my support on Tuesday night and I am more than happy to give it to him as I think all Americans should.  If and when he does something I disagree with I will criticize him and point out why.  But until he does I am remaining open minded.  Third, I think President Obama is going to surprise many on both the Left and Right.  Must to the chagrin of both I may add. 

President Obama and Michele Obama are still finding themselves.  Over a year on the campaign trail has changed both of them.  This is not surprising.  They both lived in a bubble of intellectualism that shaped their values.  The campaign trail opened them to new ideas and different values than those held by there Hyde Park neighbors and colleagues at the University of Chicago.  The Left is going to be upset that Senator Obama is going to be much more conservative then they hoped.  His selection of Rahm Emanuel indicates this.  Emanuel is considered a centrist.  He also volunteered for the Israel Civilian Defense Force during the first Gulf War.  Emanuel is hardly the radical Leftist the Left was hoping for.  Moreover, if Obama follows through with the selection of Larry Summers as Secretary of the Treasury, it spells more bad news for far his far Left supporters.  Meanwhile, the Right will be upset because Obama will not be as easy to attack as a far Left ideologue that they said he would be.  Finally, I suspect that when President Obama is faced with the reality of the dangers our nation faces he is likely to react far more conservative than some think.  It would be a disaster for a fledging President Obama to show weakness towards Russian placement of nuclear missiles on the Polish border.  Those on the Left and Right should expect him too. In all, President Elect Obama is still an evolving person.  I think the next four years will be both interesting and surprising.  We should all support President Obama until he is wrong and for the good of our Republic disagree with him when he is.