One of the questions making the rounds today is “Obama won…now what?” Quite simply the economy is in shambles and likely to get worse before it gets better. Moreover, much of the agenda outlined by the new President-Elect during the campaign will have to be tabled for at least a little while. Obama even admitted as much himself, and not just in the past few days either. He said so as early as mid-September, when he was interviewed by 60 Minutes.
Indeed the list of obstacles is daunting and the immediate steps are not very appealing. But there is an example right in front of us, from a former Democratic executive, and now a Senator-Elect, Mark Warner. As Governor of Virginia, Mark Warner inherited a financial mess from his predecessor Jim Gilmore; this history was no small reason for Warner’s blowout of Gilmore yesterday in the Senate race. When Warner took over, he had no choice but to tell it like it was to all Virginians and then chart a course to financial health in consultation with a Republican-controlled legislature. He had to cut a number of programs, scale back on some services, and reduce the size of the state workforce. He also had to oversee a long-overdue overhaul of the tax code and restore its progressivity. For that accomplishment he was pilloried roundly – and wrongly – for enacting a “tax hike.” Never mind that moderate Republicans in the Senate supported Warner on the measure.
Since those days, Virginia has turned itself around. Warner has given way to another Democratic governor, Tim Kaine and while challenges remain, the state’s sterling credit rating, previously squndered by Gilmor, has been restored.
The parallels between Virginia in 2002 and the country today are by no means perfect. Moreover the fact that Obama has a Democratic Congress to work with presents its own set of advantages and disadvantages. Obama will, at times have to say “no” to some of our friends in Congress and that will not always go over well. Nevertheless, I think President-Elect Obama would do well to have a long chat very soon, with Senator-Elect Warner, on how the latter did it in Virginia.
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