Now that the election hype is behind us and a clear winner has emerged, it is now time for everyone to ask themselves, "Now what?" Our guy was elected and now is the time to get some things done for the nation but how are our expectation of President-Elect Barack Obama too high? I think people may be expecting a miracle in the next few years. I hope they can keep these expectations in check because Presidents, while they can influence world leaders, inspire us and make us feel better about what is going on in our country, can rarely make that much change especially quickly.
There is a checks and balances system in place which often because a speed bump or a barrier to rapid changes or laws being passed. There is the balance of power issue where Republicans keep Democrats in check and vice versa and often times, party politics and partisanship keeps good things from going forward. Sometimes, parties try to put riders on perfectly good Bills which then prevents them from becoming law. So while 80% of the bill is good for America, 20% could be very bad and so the entire Bill goes down in flames. Too bad the Line Item Veto was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court otherwise, the President could have the power to only pass what he wanted in a Bill preventing this "all or nothing" type scenario for some powerful Bills. Needless to say, I think the people who voted for Barack Obama, our 44th President, need to keep their expectations in check and realize that he is not a messiah who can deliver us from a bad economy, high taxes, high gas bills, and take our sons and daughters out of Iraq immediately. He may have more influence on those issues but he still has to work within the confines of the framework in the Constitution and .... that may be take some time.
So, to all the folks out there who are excited - I Know I am- keep your patience, and do not lose hope and above all, realize that when he takes office, President Obama will be just that- the President of the United States, not a miracle worker. Hopefully, we will see some great things in bringing our country together from this man and the impact will be on the economy, on education, and on employment rights in this great country but if we do not see these changes right away, let's all not be disappointed.
