Centrist Activist

Many on the left are now bemoaning Obama's so-called "turn to the right." The Republicans have consistently tried to paint Obama as some sort of extreme leftist, but in fact there is nothing in his speeches, writings, or history to suggest that. Few Presidents, if any, have so clearly articulated their point of view before election. For anyone who read his books, or listened to his speeches, or paid attention to those who knew him best, it was always clear that he was anything but a doctrinaire ideologue.

None the less, he has an ambitious agenda, and it's one that many on the left should broadly sympathize with. He wants universal health care, and he wants the US to be a respected world leader rather than the neighborhood bully. Those are huge. Most importantly, he realizes that most of the challenges a President faces were unanticipated when he started running for office. For the US today, that means the world economic crisis that George Bush is leaving him.

Other things prized by many will need to get much lower priority.

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