A Distracted Obama Agenda

In the month when it was confirmed that the U.S. president would, finally, grace the continent of his forefathers with a visit, the Obama Administration has been besieged with all sorts of scandal. For those outside the beltway, away from the media hailstorm or just looking for another reason to point fingers at 44, these scandals are a big deal. And yet to the rest of the world, many do not understand what was so important about Benghazi. People died. So? And about the Internal Revenue Service, some may ask what is so wrong with wanting to cross check those that want to be exempted from taxes. Surely, that is not tyranny. And honestly, the crisis with the justice department is not even a crisis.

But that is the life Obama has chosen for himself. With a strident opposition of individuals who absolutely loathe the president and everything he stands for, the truth is that the Obama Agenda is in trouble. In fact, political strategists believe that these ‘non scandals’ are succeeding at one thing and one thing only: Sucking the air out of Obama initiatives. If Obama had been able to pass the gun control act a few months ago, he’d have had more political capital to get other things going. But the loss to the Republican minority in the Senate – on something that had almost unanimous support was indicative of how broken the American political system is.

Invariably, we must also address the fact that Republicans and Democrats really do not like each other these days. Gone are the days when the partisan rancor between the conservatives and liberals was almost as playful as that one in the United Kingdom. In the past – even as recently as the George W. Bush presidency – Republicans and Democrats came together to launch a new largesse in the Department of Homeland Security. But today, if a Republican is seen fraternizing with anyone considered toxic to the Republican base – former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, or God forbid, Barack Obama – there’s a chance that they will be ‘primaried.’ This simply means that a very well funded challenger will be sought for them the next time they want to seek re-election. Hence, the Republican Party is becoming more and more conservative – and whether this is Obama’s fault or not is not at issue.

What remains, under the circumstances, is the fact that Obama does not have as much time as he should for important things – like a policy to ensure that China does not ‘usurp’ all strategic resources in Africa. Right now, although the U.S. has mighty organizations like the Millennium Challenge Corporation – MCC, the Export Import Bank and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation – have boatloads of money to spend on ventures, they cannot do this as effectively as they could without a proper legislative policy. And if Congress is embroiled in ‘scandals’ and inquiries, what time do they have to actually consider real policy? And since the House is controlled by the Republicans – who, for the 37th time, voted to repeal Obamacare with the full knowledge that this will NOT happen – there’s actually little hope for things getting done.

And so, for the moment, China is running all over the place, taking African contracts and opening up hospitals in all manner of places. Meanwhile, the country with the world’s most popular black leader is playing politics and scoring own goals. Of course, Obama’s visit to Africa may generate such an outpouring of compassion that some politicians will be forced to reconsider their acerbic reflexes. But between now and then, everyone can feel the lack of policy oxygen because of some scandals that are not REALLY scandals.

Editorial Board,
The Habari Network