Mandate for this
Responding to David Kurtz' post this morning:
A mandate is what you make of it. The extent to which Obama has a mandate will be shaped not only by the size of his (knock on wood) victory but also by his actions and decisions during the transition and immediately upon taking office. As well as by the speed with which he converts his campaign volunteers, donors and supporters into a grassroots force for legislative action.
Based upon everything we've seen of his campaign and his consistent adherence to the big picture view, I have every confidence he will maximize the opportunities before him and ensure that there is a full mandate for action.
With regard to the question of a mandate for what:
Obama has been crystal clear about where he stands and what his priorities are. He has already created a road map for governing. Obviously the economic meltdown becomes priority #1 but many of his proposals already fit within that prism.
So at the top of the agenda is likely to be a mix of his middle-class tax cuts, another economic stimulus (unless Congress does this in a lame duck session), major investments in infrastructure, and his Apollo-style green energy investment initiative. You should also expect to see changes in how the Treasury Department's bailout is implemented with stronger quid pro quos on businesses receiving assistance and more of an emphasis on helping struggling homeowners.
Along with this should be swift passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (if we can muster 60 Senate votes) as a key element in empowering workers to raise their living standards after eight years of falling behind in good times and bad.
Health care reform will have to be on a longer timeline (hopefully within 6-12 months), but this is as much a part of Obama's mandate as anything.
On a slightly longer timeline perhaps, but also critical, will be enactment of a cap-and-trade regime to fight global warming and reduce our dependence on foreign oil in the process.
While all this is going on, the timeline for withdrawal from Iraq should be cemented and the troop drawdown should be underway.
Above all, I think we'll see Obama restoring Americans' confidence not only in the presidency but in the power of government to improve their lives. We'll see him adopting a mantle of reassuring, inspirational leadership comparable to what FDR did in 1933. And we'll see a style of governing that treats the American people as intelligent adults, not mindless, malleable, fearful children. That's part of Obama's mandate, too, and one I am quite sure he will seize.
A mandate is what you make of it. The extent to which Obama has a mandate will be shaped not only by the size of his (knock on wood) victory but also by his actions and decisions during the transition and immediately upon taking office. As well as by the speed with which he converts his campaign volunteers, donors and supporters into a grassroots force for legislative action.
Based upon everything we've seen of his campaign and his consistent adherence to the big picture view, I have every confidence he will maximize the opportunities before him and ensure that there is a full mandate for action.
With regard to the question of a mandate for what:
Obama has been crystal clear about where he stands and what his priorities are. He has already created a road map for governing. Obviously the economic meltdown becomes priority #1 but many of his proposals already fit within that prism.
So at the top of the agenda is likely to be a mix of his middle-class tax cuts, another economic stimulus (unless Congress does this in a lame duck session), major investments in infrastructure, and his Apollo-style green energy investment initiative. You should also expect to see changes in how the Treasury Department's bailout is implemented with stronger quid pro quos on businesses receiving assistance and more of an emphasis on helping struggling homeowners.
Along with this should be swift passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (if we can muster 60 Senate votes) as a key element in empowering workers to raise their living standards after eight years of falling behind in good times and bad.
Health care reform will have to be on a longer timeline (hopefully within 6-12 months), but this is as much a part of Obama's mandate as anything.
On a slightly longer timeline perhaps, but also critical, will be enactment of a cap-and-trade regime to fight global warming and reduce our dependence on foreign oil in the process.
While all this is going on, the timeline for withdrawal from Iraq should be cemented and the troop drawdown should be underway.
Above all, I think we'll see Obama restoring Americans' confidence not only in the presidency but in the power of government to improve their lives. We'll see him adopting a mantle of reassuring, inspirational leadership comparable to what FDR did in 1933. And we'll see a style of governing that treats the American people as intelligent adults, not mindless, malleable, fearful children. That's part of Obama's mandate, too, and one I am quite sure he will seize.
