the rise and fall of contenders such as Rudy Giuliani, Hillary Clinton, Mitt Romney, John Edwards and Mike Huckabee, and the eventual nominations of John McCain and Barack Obama. Although this election marks a decided change in mood in the electorate and comes at a decisive turning point for the capitalist system, it was largely more of the same. A lot more. Once again, despite the lofty talk of change and a new kind of politics, money was again the real measure of a candidate's worth and chances of winning.
Early on, Obama had committed to public financing for his campaign. But as it became apparent that he might actually have a serious chance at being the Democrats' nominee, he changed course and set his eyes on the millions to be had in private contributions. For the first time ever in U.S. history, the candidates for president raised more than $1 billion. Obama raised an estimated total of $640 million - $150 million in September alone. John McCain raised "only" $360 million. This is a marked reversal in fortunes from the last two presidential elections, when the Republicans raised far more than the Democrats. Corporate America is not stupid. They know which side of their bread to butter.
And if you want to know whose interests Obama will serve during his presidency, you need only follow the money. Let's just say that the hundreds of thousands of small donors won't be receiving invitations to White House banquets.
Obama the socialist?
On all fundamental issues, Obama and McCain are cut from the same cloth. Neither of them represent a fundamental break with capitalism, a system based on the exploitation of the working class by the capitalist class. Their only real difference lies in how best to save the capitalist system. Obama's message of "change we can believe in" resonated with millions of Americans tired of war, facing foreclosure, bankruptcy and unemployment, and who cannot accept that this is really "as good as it gets." Obama has made eloquent speeches that promise little but inspire a lot. He has had to attack greed on Wall Street (at least in words), criticize Bush's handling of the Iraq War, and rail against the "status quo" in Washington.
Not to be outdone, McCain raised the exact same issues, but from a slightly different angle. It is significant that these far more concrete issues took center stage, as compared to past elections when issues such as abortion, gun control, gay marriage, and "terrorism" in the abstract were the main issues being discussed. However, McCain's party was held accountable by many for the economic crisis, and from the beginning he faced an uphill struggle to overcome that heavy baggage. His age and bizarre onstage antics didn't help him either. Nor did his choice of a late-night comedy skit caricature as his vice presidential running mate. So he turned to an old trick in U.S. politics: accuse your opponent of being a socialist or a communist. Just a few years ago, such a tactic would have had at the very least a noticeable, if not a decisive effect.
It is therefore revealing that in the context of the growing economic crisis, the word "socialism" has once again entered the mainstream. Even more significant is that McCain's red baiting didn't damage Obama in the slightest. Most people just had a chuckle about it. On the one hand, they understand that Obama is by no stretch of the imagination a socialist. On the other hand, the word "socialism" itself no longer has the same "evil" connotations as it did just a year ago.
Obama has made it clear that he is anything but a socialist. His health care, education and economic plans have nothing to do with genuine socialism. Throughout his campaign he as consistently appealed to the ubiquitous "middle class," rarely mentioning workers, and virtually ignoring the poor. He himself responded to McCain's attacks as follows:
"Now, because he knows that his economic theories don't work, he's been spending these last few days calling me every name in the book. Lately he's called me a socialist for wanting to roll-back the Bush tax cuts for the we