My Hopes For The Obama Administration

Barack Obama speaking at a campaign rally in Abington, PA (source)

As I promised at the end of yesterday's post, the following is a list of hopes I have for the Obama administration, in contrast to my otherwise deep misgivings about his overall message and agenda. I noted the reason for this by saying: "Though I believe the positives will be vastly outweighed by the negatives, they still deserve mention and analysis." Here goes:

1. An end to the politics of race and the accompanying entitlement mentality. Now that a black man has been elected to our nation's highest political office, it is evident that we are a nation that judges people according to the merits of their character and ability, not by the color of their skin. More cynical commentators and pundits have said they doubt this will change anything, and that the politics of racial division will continue to persist. While racial politics and racism in all its ugly forms does and will likely continue to exist, I say that this event has dealt a critical blow to all such attitudes, arguments, and conversations- a very positive thing for America.

2. Repeal of the Patriot Act and other policies that threaten to turn America into a police state. Here's an area where I agree with a lot of Obama's rhetoric and promises, but where I am prepared to be disappointed, both in Obama's ability to get the act repealed, and in his level of sincerity and consistency in rolling back the policing powers of the Executive Branch. We'll have to wait and see.

3. Shut down of Guantanamo Bay and the trial or release of its inmates. The existence of a prison in legal "outer space" where inmates have been detained for years without any formal charges brought against them is a very frightening historical precedent. Even more frightening is the American public's relative level of comfort with its existence. Obama has not only promised to put an end to Gitmo, but upon entering office has made enormous progress in that direction.

4. Withdrawal from Iraq. We have bankrupted our Treasury and spilled the blood of some of our nation's brightest, most promising individuals in a dubious, pre-emptive war. It's time to fix our mistake and bring the troops home. While I'm also prepared to be disappointed, I share the reasonable hope that Obama will set and enforce a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq.

5. Reform of drug laws and policies. It seems to me that many of our laws and policies surrounding the use of drugs are less informed by calm, objective analysis than by moral panic. At this time, the country seems ready for a renewed conversation about drugs and drug laws. The medicinal use of marijuana- to name just one example- greatly benefits cancer patients who experience extreme nausea and loss of appetite as a side effect of chemotherapy, but its use is often restricted.

6. Backlash against government interventionist policies. This one is less flattering to President Obama than the others, but it is my sincere hope that Obama will implement his interventionist policies, and the American people will be able to connect the dots when they fail to revive the American economy, and possibly make matters worse. Jimmy Carter swept to victory on a campaign of economic reform, but by the end of his first term, when the American economy was suffering worse than it had been four years earlier, Carter was replaced by the venerable Ronald Reagan. I hope that Obama will do us a great service in this capacity, and that he will end up by being a one term president. I don't know that we'll get a result like Reagan, looking at the state of the GOP today, but I can always hope.