A piece in New York magazine on Obama's transition planning makes an interesting point: when it comes to any forthcoming battles over legislative priorities with Congress, his hand will be strengthened by the bottom-up mass movement built by his candidacy:
“Personally, I think the depth of the Obama realignment is being underestimated,” says the Republican media savant Stuart Stevens, who helped elect Bush twice. “They have basically invented their own party that is compatible with the Democratic Party but is bigger than the Democratic Party. Their e-mail list is more powerful than the DNC or RNC. In essence, Obama would be elected as an Independent with Democratic backing...”
Add to that a hobbled GOP and an economic crisis that demands firm executive action, and you have a recipe for an unusually powerful new president.
Hmmm, I'm not convinced about this analysis - doesn't that hold true for all Presidents? Or at least all presidents with a sizable majority? To get elected, or at least to get elected with a majority of the popular vote, you have to get the votes of a whole load of people who aren't registered as members of your party... Just because Obama has their emails, does that make him more powerful?
Posted by: RobertCinnamon | October 28, 2008 at 08:18 PM