Hard questions

The time is fast approaching when the American faith in Barack Obama will have to be rewarded or punished.

Of the many words that have been used to describe the president-elect, inspiring is probably the one that carries with it the most weight with regard to the future of our citizens. If Americans are inspired by this man, then logically they must have been uninspired for the last eight years.

This means that, all told, Obama has normal presidential duties, the legacy of America's first black president and the responsibility of being as far (ideologically, politically and personally) from our current president as possible.

It's like having to follow Richard Nixon.

Obama is going to be faced with several opportunities to either distance himself from President Bush or be likened to him. During his two terms in office, Bush expanded the powers of the presidency further than they have been in a long time, while simultaneously giving other branches of government equally unprecedented and sometimes dangerous reach.

For example: Don't talk on the phone about anything sensitive. There is a good chance someone is listening. The domestic wiretapping program has finally made real the long ear of the law, and what Obama does with this program will be a telling facet of his presidency.

The Patriot Act is another Bush-ism that will fall onto Obama's desk at some point in the near future, evoking the measure of the man once again. Does he allow this nasty piece of legislature to go on, or does he excise it from the legal system?

Does he extend it?

Remember that historically there are a few examples of men who have taken power, only to relinquish a major portion of it. Men of restraint like George Washington, who willingly descend from high pedestals without being pushed off, are hard to come by. Rarely does anyone say, "You know what? My reach is a little too far. Cut me back a little."

Obama is untested, and he is a career politician who has attained the highest rank in the land at a moment when we are weak. We need to ensure with our voice as citizens that he does what he said he would do with the country, because we cannot survive a crushing blow to our national spirit right now.

Obama has been handed the keys to Bush's personal tank. Whether he dismantles the thing or takes it for a spin remains to be seen, but we'll all be waiting with baited breath.