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• Monday, November 24, 2008 10:28 AM

  It remains to be seen ...

  Here's what (I hope) is going to happen. Obama nominates a bunch of centrist Democrats who, while their appointments aren't going to please those of us on the left, are going to be difficult for the right to contest. He'll even toss in a Republican or two for good measure to build a government which is going to be insulated from the sort of partisan attacks that have prevented real change, especially with respect to foreign policy.

  So when it comes time to play hardball with the Israelis to pull out of the occupied territories, knock down the security wall and reach a two-state solution (which I'm sure Obama supports, his speech to AIPAC not withstanding), who has more political capital to spend than the reflexively pro-Israel Hillary Clinton?

  REAL change is going to come, albeit slowly. But this time, when the change does come, it will be here to stay. That's what will differentiate Obama from other Democratic administrations - lasting change.

  I'd like to see us out of Iraq in 16 hours instead of 16 months. I'd like to see universal health care now, not in several years. I'd like to see a foreign policy built on human rights and socio-economic justice rather than simply maintaining a steady flow of cheap consumer goods and labor markets. I'd like to see gay marriage and medical marijuana legalized on a federal level. And I think it is important that we all pressure him to do these things.

  But while patience and faith are the last things I ever advocate, I'm afraid of the consequences if we don't cut Obama a little bit of slack with regard to his appointments.

  Despite the apparent quantum shift in the public attitude, I'm afraid it would only take one terrorist attack on American soil for people to go running back to the Republican warmongers screaming "Save us! Save us!" Unfortunately, that's why I think Obama, by necessity, must move slowly and carefully.

  That said, it remains imperative that everyone keep up the pressure on Obama to enact the change for which we voted.

  —Eric Rife Read Eric Rife's other letters
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