Sunday, October 12, 2008

Expectations From an Obama Prsidency

What can we expect from an Obama Presidency if, as seems increasingly likely, Senator Obama wins with increased Democratic majorities in the House and Senate?

We may be clueless because we still do not know the man. Is he representative of the extreme left wing of the Democratic Party, as seems likely from his years in the Illinois Senate and U.S. Senate?

Or was this past just a matter of blatent political opportunism?

Does he have any leadership abilities? We understand his charisma and rhetorical skills, but he never exercised leadership in his legislative career, and always dodged, whenever possible, difficult issues, either by voting present or skipping the vote.Maybe he is more than talk, but then again?

His leadership past is a tabula raza, and his political past is somewhat murky.

Even if he is more conciliatory than his record indicates, the left wing Democrats in Congress will veer him to the left as they did in the first two years of President Clinton’s first term. They are salivating, and will strike while the fire is hot.

If we are to assume under these circumstances that Barack will take us to the extreme left, then this is what we can expect:

High taxes, especially on those who work for a living

Protectionism

Say hello possibly to the Great Depression II since high taxes and protectionism
were causes of the Great Depression

Large “stimulus” packages for the usual Democratic favorites

Universal health insurance and quasi-nationalism of medical care in the United States.

Tennessee earlier tried, and backed away, from universal coverage and Romney’s
Massachusetts health plan is costing the state dearly, Even California rejected
universal health insurance earlier this year because of the costs.

Never underestimate the seductive power of a compelling, but economically
bankrupt, idea.

Open borders and amnesty.

Appeasement, pacifism, and gutting of the military.

Enactment of The Employee Fair Choice Act, which substitutes card checks for secret ballots in representation elections.

This oxymoron may ironically further reduce union membership in the private work
force as employers will cut jobs rather than unionize..

Judicial Activism

Depending upon which Justices die or retire first, a potential radicalization of the
United States Supreme Court, and in any event, turning many of the Circuit Courts
and District Court judges into versions of the Ninth Circuit.

Reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine

Environmental Zealotry

Large misallocation of limited resources to alternative fuels, carbon offsets, and ethanol, with great potential for fraud.

Discouragement of increased production of our offshore and Arctic reserves

Increased regulation of the capital markets and society in general, perhaps even nationalization

Incidentally, many if these will also occur if Senator McCain is elected President

High inflation or stagflation

Continuation of the corruption of Congress

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