Obama’s Shift toward Right

Two disturbing events happened today. One is Obama’s meeting with military generals on Iraq withdrawal. The generals ignored Obama’s call for early withdrawal during his election campaign, instead presented a plan of much slower withdrawal until 2011. At the meeting, there was no objection or pushing back from Obama’s side. The second development is that Obama invited an evangelical Christian pastor to deliver invocation at his inauguration. It turns out this pastor, Rick Warren, is a strong opponent against gay rights and abortion rights. Such ideological views are driving edge between people who are moderate and people who are extreme (with the disguise of religion).

Instead of being the agent of change, Obama changed himself. He adapted himself quickly to the Washington politics, and we are watching another dream slip away from our eyes. But this should not be a surprise. Given democrats’ behavior after they took over congress, and how they yielded to Bush and never tried to stop Iraq war, we know what Obama’s administration will be like. He is just another democrat, no more and no less. The power of corporate influence on democrats is so clear and so disturbing.

Ralph Nader has observed that, Obama’s voting record in the Senate demonstrated “lack of political fortitude”. Shortly after Nader’s comment, Obama voted to give Telecommunication industry immunity for helping government spying on citizens (Ironically,  Hillary voted against it). It’s a big disappointment for people who want to preserve civil liberty in this country. But the general election is between McCain and Obama, and Obama is certainly a less evil between these two. Thus we kept our hope alive and gave him a pass in the election.

Obama was a big supporter of the Wall street bailout plan, which cost taxpayers $700 billion dollars. The fact that democrats push for this bailout suggests the big influence on Wall street on the democrats. Obama is one of them. In his book The Audacity of Hope, he mentioned about fund raising with big donors in New York City. He realized that how these donors started to have much more influence on a candidate as they generate quick cash for him. He talked about how you have to return phone call from these people because you don’t want to risk losing their future donation.

Obama may think he is in the center, by bridging two sides. But he reached too far into the other side that he slipped into them. By embracing a person of fundamentalist view and giving him prominent role on nation’s stage, he shuts out progressive voices. In a battle of ideology, you are either for something or against it. You are either for segregation or against segregation. You are either moving forward or backward. Obama may think himself a great compromiser. But he has compromised the fundamental princinple and our hope for real change.