Obama’s slip in front of Russian president shows same dirty tactics as used in past
President Barack Obama ran into a bit of a gaffe on his trip to South Korea this week. Speaking to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in front of what he didn’t know to be an open microphone, the president was caught saying, “This is my last election. After my election, I have more flexibility.” While I’m sure there are plenty of government officials who attempt to undertake ambitious initiatives when the next election cycle isn’t weighing on their shoulders, the fact that a sitting president would consider and admit this in order to push an agenda should worry Americans about the current state of the political system.
While foreign policy is an intricate, complex dance of appeasing other countries while getting what you need from them, the overarching issue holds true beyond the state department. An elected official should never shy away from an action for fear of re-election, nor act brashly without consideration for the populace he or she represents. While the president’s remark falls upon the latter instance, it also can imply that he’s shied away from certain issues — in this case foreign policy — for fear of creating political baggage for the upcoming 2012 presidential elections.
Sure, many can say this is simply politics and that Obama certainly isn’t the first — nor likely the last — to act with some consideration for future electability. But it does highlight the potential pitfalls of the system, as progress can largely be inhibited as officials fail to take action they deem politically damaging, even if it may be the right thing to do.
This isn’t a Democratic or Republican issue; it’s, by and large, simply how politics work. This most recent open-mic incident only further solidifies that, whether we like it or not, politics is a dirty game. Obama supporters will be quick to note that Republicans likely pushed the president to such tactics, as they’d probably use what could be an unpopular agreement in order to win seats in the next election cycle. That argument deserves some merit, but it’s a two-way street that Democrats and Republicans walk.
All-embracing changes in the political system aren’t going to happen any time soon, and that may be a shame. Far too many have failed to take the reins and tackle major issues — notably the federal budget and overhauled entitlement programs — for the sake of re-election. And it appears in this case that Obama has done the same in his dealings with Russia. Mitt Romney may have been too quick to crown Russia as America’s No. 1 threat, but it does reveal Obama’s “hope” campaign receded to the typical inside-the-beltway practices his campaign renounced just four years ago.
Citizens appear to be getting the short end of the stick yet again, only this time it stings just a little more than usual, as it came from the man who ran on a platform of rising above run-of-the-mill politics.