Thursday, November 06, 2008 Editorials: Barack Obama’s historic win
EVEN if John McCain won in the country’s presidential elections yesterday and not Barack Obama, change would still have come to the United States.
Obama, in claiming victory, told supporters that “change has come to America.”
But it has to, whether or not the new US president is the first African-American to take the post in that country’s history.
With the mess that will be left behind by the administration of George W. Bush, the next US president must effect change or any cleansing process would not succeed.
What kind of change “has come” to America, as Obama proclaimed, and whether it is effective, is what other countries, including the Philippines, will closely watch.
Concerns
There are issues that Filipinos in the country and the few millions now residing and working in the US are concerned about, especially in relation to Obama’s plans.
Foremost is the US economy, battered as it is by an economic crunch whose possible fallout has worried Filipinos relying on the income of relatives working abroad.
Obama’s policies, like the one on business process outsourcing, will also impact on the Philippines, especially Cebu, considering the growing presence of US firms here.
Immigration is another sticky issue, and so too the fight against terrorism that Bush championed---some say to an excess because of the US-led invasion of Iraq.
Religious fundamentalists, including Church-based pro-life groups here, will also be watching how far Obama will go in issues like abortion, same sex marriage, etc.
Realpolitik
Indeed, when America sneezes, the rest of the world catches cold; one should not be surprised therefore at the interest shown by Filipinos in US polls and Obama’s win.
It is wrong, though, to rejoice this early and do so based solely on the belief that an African-American president has better understanding of colored people like Filipinos.
Pronouncements in electoral campaigns and current viewpoints will eventually have to go through the wringer called realpolitik once a politician is in office.
The US has a new president, true, but what is in store for us Filipinos because of that is something that can only be clarified fully in the coming months, even years.
