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| Version | User | Scope of changes |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 16 2008, 1:47 PM EST | echerlin | 29 words added, 1 word deleted |
| Nov 9 2008, 4:03 PM EST | echerlin | 22 words added, 10 words deleted |
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Key: Additions Deletions
"The good news is, we won. The bad news is, we won."
Election Day is over, and President-Elect Barack Obama has won decisively, as shown on the polls page. But the elections are not all over, and we have to look at where we go from here.
Elections
We know that Obama won in a moderate landslide, but not all of the Electoral College votes had been decided at the end of Election Day.
Even though results have been announced, they have not been certified, nor have they been accepted by the Congress as required under the Constitution. There are cases of vote suppression and other electoral crimes to be investigated. It remains possible that Obama's victory is even bigger than we have heard. Voting reform will be a significant issue for the new 111th Congress.
In the Senate, we still have some undecided seats.
The transition team has to identify several thousand people to appoint to various positions in the Executive Branch.
Threats against Barack Obama's life and against his family started up during the campaign and have spiked since. There have been at least two cases resulting in arrests.
Cabinet
Pretty good interactive piece on Newsweek. This rates its own page. At his first press conference, Obama said when asked, "When we have something to announce, we will announce it."
White House Staff
We can expect some policy speeches soon, and plenty of public discussion of the Congressional agenda. Obama gave his first news conference as President-Elect on Friday, Nov. 7.
W is a lame duck President who cannot get new legislation through a hostile Congress, but he still has authority to do a number of things for good or ill. He is negotiating a Status of Forces Agreement for Iraq with a timetable for withdrawal, exactly as Obama proposed. Republicans ridiculed the idea right up to the moment they did it. Watch for last-minute environmental deregulations and Presidential pardons, among other things.
What are the other big issues?
Washington Post transition coverage
Election Day is over, and President-Elect Barack Obama has won decisively, as shown on the polls page. But the elections are not all over, and we have to look at where we go from here.
Elections
We know that Obama won in a moderate landslide, but not all of the Electoral College votes had been decided at the end of Election Day.
- Missouri, 11 votes, McCain
- Nebraska, 1st district, 1 vote, Obama
- North Carolina, 15 votes, Obama
Even though results have been announced, they have not been certified, nor have they been accepted by the Congress as required under the Constitution. There are cases of vote suppression and other electoral crimes to be investigated. It remains possible that Obama's victory is even bigger than we have heard. Voting reform will be a significant issue for the new 111th Congress.
In the Senate, we still have some undecided seats.
- AK, Mark Begich (D), Ted Stevens (R), too close to call, 40,000 ballots still to count. If Stevens wins, he will almost certainly have to resign, and there will be a special election.
- GA, Jim Martin (D), Saxby Chambliss (R), mandatory runoff on Dec. 2. Volunteers needed nationwide. The sleaze is only getting worse.
- MN, Al Franken, (D), Norm Coleman (R), Dean Barkley (I), too close to call, mandatory recount. Coleman is trying to get Franken to refuse a recount. Why would Franken agree?
Transition
The transition team has to identify several thousand people to appoint to various positions in the Executive Branch.
Threats against Barack Obama's life and against his family started up during the campaign and have spiked since. There have been at least two cases resulting in arrests.
Obama Transition Web site
Cabinet
Pretty good interactive piece on Newsweek. This rates its own page. At his first press conference, Obama said when asked, "When we have something to announce, we will announce it."
White House Staff
- Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Chicago) will be the new White House Chief of Staff.
- Senior Obama campaign aide Robert Gibbs will be the White House press secretary.
- Campaign strategist David Axelrod will be Senior Advisor.
We can expect some policy speeches soon, and plenty of public discussion of the Congressional agenda. Obama gave his first news conference as President-Elect on Friday, Nov. 7.
W is a lame duck President who cannot get new legislation through a hostile Congress, but he still has authority to do a number of things for good or ill. He is negotiating a Status of Forces Agreement for Iraq with a timetable for withdrawal, exactly as Obama proposed. Republicans ridiculed the idea right up to the moment they did it. Watch for last-minute environmental deregulations and Presidential pardons, among other things.
What are the other big issues?
- The economy, stupid. ^_^ Stimulus package, rescue homebuyers, re-regulate Wall Street, restore competition and transparency to markets, undo Bush tax cuts, let workers and middle class have a share of economic growth,...
- Trade. Free for corporations but not for people doesn't count.
- Environment. Renewable energy (to combat Global Warming, and for security), reregulate pollution,...
- Immigration. A path to citizenship. Help countries so that their citizens will not have to flee from war, oppression, or dire poverty.
- Afghanistan, Pakistan, Al Qaeda, Taleban
- "Rogue states", failed states, civil wars: Iran, North Korea, Burma, Cuba, Sudan, Congo, Somalia,...
- Foreign aid. Obama proposed doubling US foreign aid, including a $2 billion annual Global Education Fund.
- Supreme Court. Obama could have the opportunity to appoint three Justices.
- Lower courts. Obama will have to appoint about 50 Federal judges immediately.
- The First Dog, promised to the Obama children as a reward for their good behavior during the campaign. It must be hypo-allergenic. They would have preferred to get a shelter dog, but Obama says, "most of them are muttsmutts, like me."
Washington Post transition coverage
