Dónal F. Kennedy
US Election Blogger
Let me start with a quick formality: I’m honoured to be blogging on the U.S. presidential election on behalf of the University Times, and I hope to provide updates and opinion as we close in on the final weeks of campaigning. Come November 4th I’ll be in Washington D.C., giving on-the-ground impressions and covering election night as it happens. Welcome to Dónal F. Kennedy’s Presidential Election 2012.
At this critical stage of an election, when debate performances, media appearances and poll numbers can easily swing voters based on little more than rhetoric and intuition, it’s critical to have a clear look at who the candidates really are and what they stand for. First up is incumbent candidate and current President of the United States, Barack Obama.
The Good
He’s Barack Obama. Just as much the charming, charismatic, intelligent family man he was back in 2008, his personability speaks for itself. In addition to his intensely likeable persona, which captured hearts and minds on a global scale, Obama has a wealth of policy triumphs to his name from his first four years in the White House. Although not loved by either liberals or conservatives (for completely different reasons), the passing of the Affordable Healthcare Act, or Obamacare, and Wall Street reform represented major successes for the President. The repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was a huge step forward for gay rights in the military, and Obama even came out in support of same-sex marriage towards the end of his term. However, his crowning achievement was surely the quick, clean assassination of universally-despised terrorist mastermind Osama Bin Laden. This, more so than anything, earned the (albeit grudging) respect of Republicans in a political environment of uncompromising partisanship and petty politics.
The Bad
To be fair to the President, he inherited an unholy economic mess from his Republican predecessor; by the end of Bush’s second term a budget surplus had morphed into $3 trillion in debt, banks were engaged in greedy and unethical practices with few government regulations and federal revenue was dangerously low thanks to record tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Add to the mix an impending economic implosion and the slow slide into long-term recession, and it becomes clear that turning the economy around was to be a running theme of the Obama presidency. So, how did he fare? “Not great,” seems to be the consensus. Although unemployment has finally dipped under 8% for the first time in over four years, regular Americans have plenty to complain about. Middle-class incomes fell while CEOs made record-breaking bonuses, home foreclosures skyrocketed to a ten-year high and frustration with the perceived lack of legal consequences for those implicated in triggering the recession lead to the fervent but disorganised Occupy Wall Street movement.
Policies like the fiscal stimulus, the bailing out of General Motors and increasing third-level grants certainly helped return the economy to modest growth, but for many the resuts have been unconvincing. Giving Obama a gold star or a black mark on this issue all comes down to whether you believe four years is enough to single-handedly reverse the effects of a global recession. In an age of soundbites and instant gratification a presidential term may seem like an eternity; regardless of the economic reality, in this election Americans will be looking for policies that will improve their situation sooner rather than later.
The Ugly
By far the most disturbing features of Obama’s presidency have a been his continuation and expansion of civil liberties violations and the lethal drone strikes he authorised that continue to terrorise and kill cilvilians in Pakistan and Yemen. We are all aware that Privet Bradley Manning (alleged to have given classified information to WikiLeaks) was kept in inhumane conditions without trial, and he continues to be held in militay custody hundreds of days after his legal right to a court appearance. Current reports suggest that the trial will finally take place in February 2013, but sadly Manning’s case is unlikely remain an isolated case thanks to the signing into law if the National Defence Authorisation Act by Barack Obama. This act, among other things, permits the indefinate detention of US citizens suspected of being involved in terrorist activity – a provision the President himself dislikes, but refused to veto. In addition, the Commander in Chief’s tacit approval of Guantanomo Bay’s continued operation, warrentless wiretapping of Americans’ phones and monitoring of social networks for terroristic keywords marks him out as tough on terrorism but downright shambolic on civil liberties. Worse than all this is the current administration’s record of performing “signature” drone strikes on Pakistani soil; essentially bombs aimed at suspected al-Qaeda targets whose identities aren’t necessarily known. The result is a culture of fear in which innocent civilians are living with the constant threat of death from above – not exactly a shining example of virtue in the War on Terror.
Of course there is far more to any presidency than six hundred words can tell you, but outlined above are the President’s key successes and pitfalls over the last four years. While he is a gifted speaker and a convincing campaigner, it should be his actions – not his words – that win him a second term. Whether these actions have helped or hindered his chances of securing this remains to be seen.
Keep an eye on this blog over the coming days for analysis of Thursday night’s vice presidential debate and the second instalment of this feature, where I’ll be looking at Mitt Romney’s pros and cons. Thanks for reading; keep it political.
