But balance of power is still unchanged in Washington. Not only did democrats continue the presidency, "they held off a concerted
drive to take over the Senate and instead added slightly to their
majority." This article posted in NY Times discusses how Obama only won 50% of the popular vote, still showing how divided the country is towards his leadership. The bigger issue, as the author describes, is the divide of Washington over the size and role of government, "the balance between stimulus spending and proper level of taxation has not been settled." The only issue resolved by the election was the health care plan, which Republicans now do not have the ability to overturn it.
Obama told supporters in Chicago:
“You elected us to focus on your jobs, not ours. And in the coming weeks
and months, I am looking forward to reaching out and working with
leaders of both parties to meet the challenges we can only solve
together: reducing our deficit, reforming our tax code, fixing our
immigration system, freeing ourselves from foreign oil.”
Where do you think our government will go in the next few months with such a divide?
I think once people stop complaining about popular vote and realize that they need to work together changes will begin to occur. I would hope that healthcare would be at the top of the list since it can no longer be overturned; we for certain know which direction it is moving in so why not start working on that plan. In an ideal world the country would continue to work together towards common goals and not let political party disputes cause a screeching halt in the reformation of policies.
ReplyDeleteMaureen is right, our nation is most definitely still divided. A perfect example of this was the stock market decreasing this morning more than it has in a month. Though Obama won, this does not mean he has any more or less support than during the campaigns.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to next steps, governors who were previously not in support of the health care changes need to prepare to make those changes. The first the government is going to be tackling and implementing healthcare changes above all else.