America's new president
Photo: Reuters
Hard work ahead for Obama
As he enters White House, new president faces slew of economic, political challenges
WASHINGTON – Barack Obama was sworn in Tuesday as America's 44th president under chilly winter conditions, and no less grim economic and political forecasts. The American public is excited about the new president, who is enjoying an amazing 80% approval rating. At this time he is more popular than he was after being elected as president on November 4th.
If so far we saw the mortgage market, banks and the automobile industry facing crisis, the next in line are credit cards, which are the basis for America's economic activity.
Both Democrats and Republicans put their faith in Obama, and are convinced that America can expect a rosy future under the leadership of this special man.
Yet despite the self-confidence he has been displaying, Barack Obama knows that he is no Houdini. The expectations of Americans skyrocket, yet Obama is attempting to bring them down to reality. In his inauguration speech Tuesday, and also in a speech he delivered two days ago before 500,000 excited people, Obama desperately attempted to lower expectations.
Bush, Obama at White House (Photo: AP)
"Only a handful of times in our history has a generation been confronted with challenges so vast," Obama said, pouring cold water on the masses. "The economy is in crisis; millions of Americans are out of work; many are losing their homes."
To those who still refused to get the hint, Obama made it clear: "I will not pretend that meeting any one of these challenges will be easy. It will take more than a month, more than a year, and will likely take many. There will be setbacks and false starts."
It's all about the economy
Not only America awaits Obama – Ireland, Europe, Israel and the Palestinians are also there. Yet forget about Gaza, Tehran, Kabul, or Islamabad. Without an American economy, the US has nothing to sell. Obama has been entrusted with a state facing the gravest recession since the 1930s. One does not need to be a great economic expert in order to realize that a country that sees 500,000 people join the unemployment cycle every month is in deep trouble. At this time, the unemployment rate stands at more than 7%, yet it's expected to hit 9%, and possibly higher.One forecast predicts a double-digit unemployment rate, which means 30 million jobless in a country of 300 million people. This, of course, influences not only those who have no way to make a living, but also prompts a consumer goods' crisis. Since the start of the financial crisis, about 100 leading chains and stores were closed down. The last one was America's second largest electronics chain, Circuit City.
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Obama's solution is to create public sector jobs via an ambitious plan dedicated to restoring America's infrastructure – roads, bridges, education institutions, etc. - which had not been taken care of for dozens of years. This is a good investment for the future, and Obama says it will create 2.5 million jobs.
Global challenges
However, Obama faces another problem: The world cannot wait for the US to solve its economic problems. Israel ended the war in Gaza before the swear-in ceremony, yet the Israeli-Palestinian problem remains on the agenda.But despite what we seem to think, we are not America's greatest problem. Iran continues its nuclear quest as well as its support for terror groups Hizbullah and Hamas. The nuclear Pakistan faces a tense situation vis-à-vis India in the wake of the Mumbai attacks and is also home to Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. These fighters target Afghanistan, which is about to replace Iraq as the focal point of fighting. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is also turning into a radical Islamic hub.
The Obama Administration is facing other challenges as well – improving the ties with Russia and China, dismantling North Korea's nuke program, not to mention the fight against hunger and disease in Africa and the political instability there. Meanwhile, Obama also needs to keep an eye on Latin American radicalism, whose flames are being fanned by Chavez and his ilk in America's backyard.
Obama won't wait a day. On Wednesday he is scheduled to hold his first two meetings – one with his economic team and another with the national security team. One of his first moves would be to summon the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and ask him to present a credible plan for evacuating most American soldiers from Iraq – with some of them being transferred to Afghanistan.
Obama will also undertake the public act of closing down the controversial prison facility at Guantanamo Bay and put an end to the use of torture in the interrogation of terror suspects, in order to signal to the world that America is retaking the role of moral leader. There is no doubt that very soon we shall hear declarations and be informed of appointments that pertain to the Middle East.
Bill Clinton was young when he entered the White House, and emerged out of it an old man in an era of prosperity and peace (or, if you wish, in an era of ignoring al-Qaeda.) George W. Bush entered the White House as a young man, and is departing as an old man, while leaving behind a faltering economy and two wars. Barack Obama knows that the price for this job is paid through one's health. Those who have been following him can see that even before he has entered the White House, he is already showing some grey hair.
