What We Seem to Be Forgetting About the 2008 Presidential Election

Last night I watched Hardball with Barack Obama as a guest on the show at some Pennsylvania college with which I was previously unfamiliar. I got to watch Chris Matthews kiss his ass a little more than he probably should have and I got to see the university students screaming and cheering like much of the nation is for Obama. I also got to listen to his answers.

I like some of Obama's agenda, definitely more so than the other two people left in the race. I especially like the $4,000 tuition grant idea and I like it even more because he is stating that he would require civil service (ie: working in a homeless shelter) in exchange for this grant. The trade-off is fair and a good plan, especially with issues such as homelessness and college expenses being two of the most primary in the contemporary United States.

I may like Obama's idea but I am still keeping in mind something that most people seem to be forgetting: the Executive Branch has to answer to the Legislative Branch. People think presidential candidates make a bunch of empty promises but I think they mean them with a great deal of sincerity. The problem is when they get that seat in the White House they have to deal with 535 other individuals.

With such a bipartisan Congress right now that is essentially split down the middle when all is said and done (because Congresspeople do not universally vote down party lines on every vote) it will be hard to get everything that either party wants in the Executive Branch, more so than usual.

That means that we might not get all the wars John McCain wants or all the college grants that Barack Obama wants. That's an unfortunate reality that we as the American populace have to face, but it is a reality we have to face nonetheless.

Remember that there is another branch of government and while the President needs to put forth the platform in order to advance his (or perhaps her) agenda, it is still far from a free ride. When we listen to the candidates, we should be challenging them on this and remain skeptical of promises that might not be so easy to fulfill, this despite how idealistically appeasing they may seem to be.