Posted November 11, 2008.
Blacks, Latinos, single women, young voters, union members and gay people elected Obama. How will he represent them in his staff and his policies? Barack Obama was elected by a broad array of constituencies, more diverse and less white, than any candidate in American history, and arguably the most progressive. A new majority, sure to grow in the future, has emerged in this election, as minority voters registered and turned out for Obama in record numbers, led by 95% of African American voters, as younger voters become more engaged in politics and voted decisively on behalf of the new president, as union members and gays voted for Obama in high numbers, and as the single women vote, which included a huge share of minority women, came down overwhelmingly for the new president at the rate of 70-29%, (compared with married women who went for McCain 50-47%) creating a huge, record breaking "marriage gap" of 44 points among women.
Furthermore, the decisive Obama victory should put the rest the enduring myth, perpetrated by innumerable media pundits, that the United States is a conservative country. Poll after poll, as well as long-term research, underscores that on every issue, the electorate is far more progressive -- and getting more progressive all the time -- than what people have experienced over the past eight Bush years, and even during the Clinton Administration.
If the Obama administration is going to be in tune with its voters, there will need to be massive policy changes in every aspect of government. The power of lobbyists, corporations, and over represented constituencies, like gun owners, senior citizens, white males, married women, and the wealthy, are by necessity going to need to cede ground to a more populist and rainbow confection that is the Obama coalition.
On the other hand, the pressure of the multiple international and national crises Obama faces is motivating him to staff up as quickly as is feasible. This combined with his penchant for smart, savvy, experienced insiders, is leading Obama to bring in a host of Clinton administration operatives into his administration, with many more on the queue. This early trend is so obvious it lead the New York Times writer Peter Baker to observe that Obama "faces the challenge of building an administration that does not look like a third term for former president Bill Clinton, as Obama reached deep into the Clinton fold naming John Podesta, former Clinton chief of staff to lead his transition team, and former Clinton aide Rahm Emanuel to be his chief of staff, and is said to be choosing between two former Clinton veterans to be his National Security advisor. "
Molly Ivins, the late and revered populist Texas journalists and humorist was fond of saying, "You Gotta Dance With Them What Brung Ya." Time will tell how well Barack Obama knows how to dance with his constituencies. Will he stay true to his change oriented supporters who brought him to his crowning moment, who are ready to do any number of dances with him from the funky chicken to the mashed potato, from crumping to salsa, from the jitterbug to the lindy. Or will the Illinois Senator stick to the old insider dance card and slow dance with those who have enjoyed the fruits of the dance floor for so long?'
Furthermore, the decisive Obama victory should put the rest the enduring myth, perpetrated by innumerable media pundits, that the United States is a conservative country. Poll after poll, as well as long-term research, underscores that on every issue, the electorate is far more progressive -- and getting more progressive all the time -- than what people have experienced over the past eight Bush years, and even during the Clinton Administration.
If the Obama administration is going to be in tune with its voters, there will need to be massive policy changes in every aspect of government. The power of lobbyists, corporations, and over represented constituencies, like gun owners, senior citizens, white males, married women, and the wealthy, are by necessity going to need to cede ground to a more populist and rainbow confection that is the Obama coalition.
On the other hand, the pressure of the multiple international and national crises Obama faces is motivating him to staff up as quickly as is feasible. This combined with his penchant for smart, savvy, experienced insiders, is leading Obama to bring in a host of Clinton administration operatives into his administration, with many more on the queue. This early trend is so obvious it lead the New York Times writer Peter Baker to observe that Obama "faces the challenge of building an administration that does not look like a third term for former president Bill Clinton, as Obama reached deep into the Clinton fold naming John Podesta, former Clinton chief of staff to lead his transition team, and former Clinton aide Rahm Emanuel to be his chief of staff, and is said to be choosing between two former Clinton veterans to be his National Security advisor. "
Molly Ivins, the late and revered populist Texas journalists and humorist was fond of saying, "You Gotta Dance With Them What Brung Ya." Time will tell how well Barack Obama knows how to dance with his constituencies. Will he stay true to his change oriented supporters who brought him to his crowning moment, who are ready to do any number of dances with him from the funky chicken to the mashed potato, from crumping to salsa, from the jitterbug to the lindy. Or will the Illinois Senator stick to the old insider dance card and slow dance with those who have enjoyed the fruits of the dance floor for so long?'
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