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| - New York Times photo |
Four years ago I wrote a column headlined 'The World Awaits Obama'. Once again, the world holds its breath!
Link to that November 2008 column:
http://lowrie-chin.blogspot.com/2008/11/world-awaits-obama.html
Today, 5 November 2012, I wrote in the Jamaica Observer:
Indications are that President Barack Obama will get his second term as
President of the United States of America in tomorrow's presidential
elections. First, there was news that the highly respected Republican
and former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Colin Powell had
again endorsed Mr Obama.
Excerpts of the endorsement given in a CBS interview, are now being used
as an advertisement by the Obama campaign: General Powell commends the
president on his fiscal policy that pulled America out of a depression.
"I also saw the president get us out of one war, start to get us out of a
second war. The actions he's taken with respect to protecting us from
terrorism have been very, very solid," he said.
Then came Superstorm Sandy, and we heard a former harsh critic of the
president, Republican Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie, expressing
his appreciation for the president's hands-on support. The president's
tour and the obvious warmth between the two men radiated throughout the
media, with images of the handsome Obama wearing his bomber jacket
inscribed "President of the United States", looking every bit the hero.
To top it off, an unexpected endorsement was announced by the formerly
neutral New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The wealthy and popular mayor
gave the Obama campaign a shot in the arm when he cited the president's
concern for global warming as his reason to support the incumbent.
The Associated Press reported: "Both candidates had eagerly sought the
nod from Bloomberg, who didn't endorse a presidential candidate in 2008
and has publicly grumbled about both Obama and Romney. But Bloomberg
said the possibility that Sandy resulted from climate change had made
the stakes of the election that much clearer. 'We need leadership from
the White House, and over the past four years, President Barack Obama
has taken major steps to reduce our carbon consumption,' Bloomberg wrote
in an online opinion piece."
Tree-huggers like me are heartened that finally we hear wealthy world
leaders acknowledging that climate change is a fact and not a hoax. It
is indeed a fact that the temperature of the ocean was one degree higher
than just a few years ago, sustaining the strength of Hurricane Sandy,
which would have normally diminished by the time it had moved up into
cooler waters.
However, as the saying goes, a day is a very long time in politics, and
this column must go to press three full days before the elections. I
believe there are three factors that could affect Mr Obama's
re-election: the readiness of voting facilities after the storm, the
growing discontent among hurricane victims and the publication of the
latest unemployment figures.
Mitt Romney had blazed into the firmament of presidential possibility
with a stunning victory in that first presidential debate, but he
appears to have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. One of his
latest advertisements announcing that GM and Chrysler would be
outsourcing jobs to China has been debunked by both companies, an
unusual occurrence as the private sector usually stays out of mainstream
political campaigning. "No amount of campaign politics at its cynical
worst will diminish our record of creating jobs in the US and
repatriating profits back to this country," said an obviously annoyed
Greg Martin, spokesman for GM. Chrysler Group CEO Sergio Marchionne
described the content of the ad as "a leap that would be difficult even
for professional circus acrobats to make".
An amusing sideshow is being provided by New York real estate mogul
Donald Trump, who offered President Obama millions to send him his birth
papers, and even extended the deadline for the delivery in view of
Hurricane Sandy. Late night comedic commentator Stephen Colbert returned
the favour by offering a million dollars to Trump for a most unsavoury
service (check YouTube).
Then the Detroit Free Press reported, "The Donald tweeted, remarking
that President Barack Obama 'is a terrible negotiator. He bails out
Chrysler and now Chrysler wants to send all Jeep manufacturing to China -
and will!' A Chrysler vice president for product design, Ralph Gilles
(movie-star handsome African American), tweeted back a (strong) response
... Suffice to say, he let it be known that, when it comes to cars,
Trump should stick to real estate." In politics, it is so important to
have the right people stumping for you: compare and contrast Obama
campaigner, one of the most successful presidents of the US, Bill
Clinton, and "the Donald".
Nevertheless, the world will be on tenterhooks tomorrow as we watch the
vote count on that clever CNN interactive electoral map presided over by
the poker-faced John King. The popular polls have the two candidates in
a statistical dead heat; however, the US electoral system requires a
second step - voting by the nation's Electoral College. Click on: http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/electoralworks.htm for an explanation of the US Electoral College.
Obama supporters may be comforted to know that based on various charts
and analyses, the Huffington Post projects 259 Electoral College votes
for President Obama vs 191 for Governor Romney. Neither party should
feel this is a cake walk - tomorrow will be a tense, nerve-wracking day.
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