American Election: Diluting Obama’s Vision?

By promoting an agenda that put the United States above international law, and by ignoring international agreements (like the Kyoto Treaty), George W. Bush has done little to enamor himself with countries around the world. This is part of the reason that Barack Obama is so hugely popular outside the US-his message of change seems to really strike a chord in the US domestically as well as internationally.

But it’s interesting to note how now that he’s the democratic candidate, he’s moved back towards the center the way American candidates often do to appeal to the greatest percentage of the electorate. One example: in the past Obama made a large issue of campaign finance reform and limiting the amount of public funding a candidate can use-however there isn’t a limit if you only use private funding and Obama has decided to go that way. His supporters say he’s doing what it takes to win; others more cynical believe his message of change is being diluted and he’s just a traditional politician after all.

Obama became a master of conveying a vision and getting people on board during the primary season. If traditional Washington politics force him to abandon his vision, he may suffer for it in the general election.