[International
Herald Tribune, France]
Liberation, France
Still Time for Obama to Let His Allies
Help Him
"From Jerusalem to Tehran via Moscow, Beijing, Paris, London
and Berlin, all the important capitals that matter are telling themselves that
they don’t have to worry about Obama and that they have a free hand…. America
can play more of a leading role now by combining its power with others … But
this idea is still so foreign that even a visionary like Obama hasn't even
considered it."
By
Bernard Guetta
Translated
By Elise Nussbaum
September
2, 2009
France
- Liberation - Original Article (French)
Eight
months is a short time. Barack Obama still has another forty before him to end
his term as brilliantly as it began, but the grace period is now behind him.
Domestically, the extension of medical coverage to the poor, the reform that
would be his greatest work, has simultaneously met with opposition from a newly-mobilized
Republican right, lobbying from private insurance companies and the Democratic
left, frustrated that the president hasn't even attempted to draw inspiration
from health care systems in Europe.
The
likelihood is that Obama has already failed to become a new Roosevelt, an
architect of a modern New Deal that without increasing health spending who would
offer some form of protection against disease for the nearly 60 million
Americans who have none. A bad compromise is the only thing in the works; it’s
better than nothing, but it's really just a poorly constructed and extremely
costly mini-reform at a time when rescuing banks and the auto industry has
widened the budget deficit. The polls are becoming worrisome for the White
House. Doubts have set in just as the horizon is darkening abroad.
Posted by
WORLDMEETS.US
In
Iraq, relations among Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish communities are strained again
over the need to quickly conclude an agreement on sharing the revenue from the
region's oil. The violence has resumed. Despite the fact that the healing peace
of the past two years has led everyone to believe that the U.S. could withdraw
in dignity, it will be impossible for the United States to withdraw its forces
amidst such chaos. If he does, Obama will have to assume a national humiliation
that would damage his authority at home and abroad - and things aren’t going
better in Afghanistan. There, participation in the presidential election [August
20] was as low that allegations of fraud are strong. One can no longer see who,
how and on what grounds a semblance of peace can be brought to a country more
divided than ever between the Tajik North and the Pashtun South, where the
Taliban reign supreme. [map below].
This
period is a tough one for Barack Obama because, weakened as he is, he finds
himself being scrutinized on the international stage. From Jerusalem to Tehran
via Moscow, Beijing, Paris, London and Berlin, all the important capitals that
matter are telling themselves that they don’t have to worry about Obama and that
they have a free hand - a sentiment that benefits the Israeli-Palestinian peace
process about as well as it contributes to progress with Iran.
One
year after winning the Democratic nomination and awakening such great hopes
around the world, this president must refocus his efforts, set priorities and
bring home a real success that will reverse the trends - but can he? That's the
this autumn’s big question, as Obama is confronted with three fundamental
difficulties: economic, personal and historic. The first is that no one yet knows
if the economic crisis has passed its peak or if it's still in its initial
phase - a harbinger of a much more violent collapse. In the first case, Barack Obama
will be America’s savior and this moment will be quickly forgotten. If it's the
latter, he'll be blamed for everything he did and did not do, for not having
done enough to right the ship and heaping too much debt on the state.
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WORLDMEETS.US
The
second problem the president faces is that he's a born conciliator, more
inclined to understand opposing opinions than he is to obstinately stick to his
own. Black and White, American and African, raised by a family of modest means
but powered by his own intelligence into the most exclusive elite class, he has
always deeply wanted to adapt to any environment and be accepted, seeking any
door to achieve a consensus and persuade his adversaries rather than crush them.
All of his speeches bear this hallmark. From his oration on race in America to
his speech to the Muslim world, this has perhaps made him sound more like a
hair-splitting analyst than a determined statesmen.
SEE ALSO ON THIS:
Der Tagesspiegel, Germany: Americans Demand 'Freedom' to Pay More for Less
NRC Handelsblad, The Netherlands:
U.S. Healthcare: 'Prime Example of How Not To Do It'
Le Figaro, France:
Health Care: Obama's 'Moment of Truth'
Le Quotidien d'Oran, Algeria:
Health Care Knocks Obama Off of His Cloud
The Independent, U.K.:
The Brutal Truth About American Health Care
Daily Mail, U.K.:
U.S. Debate on Health
Care 'Fit Only for Children's Ward'
As
for Barack Obama's third difficulty, it is America itself. Once the USSR disappeared
under Bill Clinton, the U.S. thought it could step into the role of the world’s
sole superpower just by virtue of its victory, its virtues and its wealth.
September 11 dispelled this illusion. Under George W. Bush, the U.S. thought it
could rely on force of arms alone. Under his successor, the country is attempting
a moral return to its roots, the use of goodwill and the “soft power” of the
outstretched hand. But so far, the results haven't been any more convincing.
America
can play more of a leading role now, by combining its power with others and
choosing allies with which it can cooperatively reach decisions. But this idea
is still so foreign that even a visionary like Barack Obama hasn't even considered
it. There is still time.
*Bernard
Guetta is a member of Liberation’s Supervisory Board.
CLICK HERE FOR FRENCH
VERSION
[Posted by
WORLDMEETS.US September 3, 7:15pm]
