Reflections on the Election
1. K. Leroy Irvis was a long time member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives elected from Pittsburgh's predominantly black Hill District. Upon his election as Speaker of the House, he said that his colleagues did not elect a black Speaker, rather they elected a Speaker who happened to be black. I think in much the same way, we have elected for the first time, a president who happens to be black.
2. I see a lot of patting ourselves on the back for electing a member of a minority as president. We should remember that in 1990, Peru elected as president an ethnic Japanese, Alberto Fujimori. That administration was less than successful. Facing a corruption scandal, Fujimori fled the country in 2000. He was later extradited back to Peru and is currently serving a six year prison sentence.
3. I know we don't vote for Vice President, but the defining moments for me in this election were the selection of running mates. Obama, taking to heart the criticism that he was relatively inexperienced, picked a seasoned senator, Joe Biden, who made a credible run himself for the presidential nomination. McCain, completely ignoring the concern of many that he would be the oldest person ever to be elected president, and that his vice president might be called on to fill his shoes at some point during his presidency, chose a person with no track record.
4. I'm a registered Democrat (the primaries are more interesting), but my political leaning is probably more to the conservative side. But George Bush has done great damage to the Republican party. For the guy who touted himself as a "uniter," not a "divider," he's done a lot more of the latter than the former. For a guy who talked about America being a "humble" international leader, his foreign adventures have been a lesson in arrogance. So we'll now give the Democrats their own opportunity to screw things up. When the next cycle comes, I hope the Republicans can offer us a better alternative.
2. I see a lot of patting ourselves on the back for electing a member of a minority as president. We should remember that in 1990, Peru elected as president an ethnic Japanese, Alberto Fujimori. That administration was less than successful. Facing a corruption scandal, Fujimori fled the country in 2000. He was later extradited back to Peru and is currently serving a six year prison sentence.
3. I know we don't vote for Vice President, but the defining moments for me in this election were the selection of running mates. Obama, taking to heart the criticism that he was relatively inexperienced, picked a seasoned senator, Joe Biden, who made a credible run himself for the presidential nomination. McCain, completely ignoring the concern of many that he would be the oldest person ever to be elected president, and that his vice president might be called on to fill his shoes at some point during his presidency, chose a person with no track record.
4. I'm a registered Democrat (the primaries are more interesting), but my political leaning is probably more to the conservative side. But George Bush has done great damage to the Republican party. For the guy who touted himself as a "uniter," not a "divider," he's done a lot more of the latter than the former. For a guy who talked about America being a "humble" international leader, his foreign adventures have been a lesson in arrogance. So we'll now give the Democrats their own opportunity to screw things up. When the next cycle comes, I hope the Republicans can offer us a better alternative.
posted by Crotchety Old Fart at 9:49 AM
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