November 5, 2008
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Does President-Elect Obama Have a Mandate?
I was reading an article today written by conservative writer Robert Novak and he said that Obama did not get a mandate from the voters. Here is the link: Link
According to wikipedia a mandate “is the authority granted by an electorate to act as its representative.
Elections, especially ones with a large margin of victory, are often
said to give the newly elected government or elected official a mandate
to implement certain policies.” Here is the link: LinkCurrently we can see that Obama won the popular vote by over 7 million votes (63,768,801 to McCain’s 56,330,231). We can also see that the electoral votes stand at Obama 349 to McCain at 162. Here is the link: Link
Did Obama receive enough votes to have a mandate from the voters?
Comments (64)
I think the Democratic party has received a mandate overall. And, there is a mandate for change, possibly brought forward by Obama.
Stop cluttering our minds!
By most people’s standards, that would be yes, not even questionable.
I don’t think so. It wasn’t an overwelming amount. But, I don’t know what typical victory numbers are for mandates, so I could be wrong.
His only mandate is don’t be named Bush and the econimy damn well better be good come mid terms
He’s married…of course he doesn’t have a mandate.
mm yeah I would think so
No, I don’t think he’s in to dudes. I’m sure he’s had a few woman dates though!!!
@trunthepaige - To mose it seems just don’t be Bush. The economy would a bonus at this point.
@trunthepaige - I do hope everyone realizes that the economy is not going to change overnight. It will take time, much more than two years, to pull out of this recession. Systematic change is a slow process that happens over periods of years. I will be happy to see some improvement in the next 4 years and fully expect it to take up to 10 years to see a huge deal of real change.
Kenyans
How would he not? You’re not even making sense anymore, Dan. Stop it. Stop espousing stupidity. Stop stirring up dissension. Just stop it.
isn’t the answer kind of obvious?
yes
@jberg134 - US recessions rarely last a full year year. If this one is still going on in two years after the democrats have already been in power for two years as of now. Well 4 years of getting nothing done. I hope they enjoyed their majority, because that will justifiably be the end of it.
@desesperada - Agreed.
Dan, you are spreading stupidity.
Don’t spread stupidity. The only president to not have a mandate in recent years was George W. Bush in 2000 because he actually received less votes than his opponent.
ARG!
@nidan - Touche
No. Don’t stop. This stuff is what I like about TheTheologiansCafe.
This is a stupid question. People need to get over the fact that he won already.
He won the election by the people’s vote. we should go beyond the meandering
Mandate? More like a disenfranchised populace wondering “How out of millions of people can this be the two best guys in line for the White House? Oh well, let’s give the kid from Chicago who talks pretty a shot.”
My single daughter has a man date. The President Elect has a very comfortable result in the popular vote and and electoral college. If it is not a mandate like I think it would be, we sure has the support of many citizens and they are very happy and proud of him. This is an historic election. I am going to pray for him and the Democratic congress to succeed in helping lead our nation out the abyss of impending financial collapse. I am also praying for the Republican and Independent parties that they will make positive and helpful suggestions to the majority party.
So much is at stake.
Blessings
frank
<table class=”blogbody” width=”100%” border=”0″ cellpadding=”4″ cellspacing=”0″><tbody><tr><td width=”5%”>
<td valign=”top”>Ok, ok….so Obama, he won.
Despite
my overly intense passion, support and joy regarding this huge step for
America in re-establishing worldwide credibility and progressing
towards change, hope and positive solutions that think outside of the
traditional system – I am very disappointed in the passing of
Proposition 8.
Proposition 8 is a basic civil rights issue.
For how far America seems to have come regarding civil rights and the
breakdown of barriers we still have a huge war to fight.
My
class was in deep mourning today as many of us were so angry,
dissapointed or hurt by the passing of 8 that we cried. Our teacher
cried. We shed tears together because there is a huge problem that is
now brought to light through this election.
I’m wondering
what the fuck is wrong with this place and how much more we have to
fight and much farther we have to go if we don’t let human beings have
the basic right to be recognized by the state as a married couple when
they are in love.
The fact Prop 4 didn’t pass but Prop 8 did
shows that the conservative religious focused its energy on monetarily
supporting the ousting of human rights and constructing borders of the
“other” over children having abortions. I thought both would not pass
since both are so obviously wrong (to not allow children to get
abortions without parental consent and to not allow gay people to
marry).
I don’t get it.
The lesbian, gay, transgendered
and bisexual is the new “nigger” that we fought so hard to free during
the civil rights movement. They are not even allowed to be recognized
by the state.
After the civil rights movement, why is this
discrimination still present? Why is human life rights given up for
the sustainability of the comfort zone from other people.
The next question is: in order for us to vote for Obama and get him elected what did we have to give up?
What deals were made?
For the people behind the scenes, what kind of concentration camps are we building?
Interestingly
enough this whole situation has made me ashamed that I can get married
to a man even if I don’t want to – I have that right. Yet, people who
love maybe more intensely than I are not allowed that right because of
their sexual organs. What makes us want to sharpie the lines between
man and woman, what makes us place so much importance on these organs
on our body?
As an emerging bisexual and lover of all people I hope that together others can blur the lines of sex and focus on love.
My heart goes out to all those in Hillcrest who were celebrating in the
streets last night because they didn’t know it passed – who thought
that they were only one step closer only to learn they are still
ostricised.
I’m
ashamed that I didn’t try harder to get this proposition not passed. I
should have at least posted on it – I’m ashamed that I could have done
something more than put up a sign in my window but I – I didn’t.
It’s not too late.
Luckily,
there is a foundation that is a little more solid being built upon. We
now see that we do have to fight to claim back OUR rights and fight
hard so that gay marriage isn’t banned by the supreme court (who is
very conservative right now) in the constitution. This is the beginning of a movement. Keep organizing. Keep getting involved in
the LGBT communities even if you are strait. Let’s make this less
taboo and celebrate something worth fighting for – love.
i would totally think so.
I think he did.
Yes, he did.
He won. Leave it at that. He will be a good President. Just my personal opinion.
@jediwa72 - nice. lol
yeah because he won the popular vote.
@roosty57 - That’s the most impassioned and succinct passage I’ve read regarding this. Thank you. If you will allow me, I’d like to repost parts of it in an upcoming blog about this. I’d credit you, of course.
why the prejudice against women? come on… whats the deal with the word “man”date?!? dude, so wrong!
Um, yeah.
yes, but a very precarious mandate… a mandate with strings attached. if they screw up, the next charismatic republican candidate (if there is such a thing) will certainly get a similar such “mandate”.
I can’t even think about politic’s anymore.
@trunthepaige - Ditto. The entire concept of a “mandate” is very frightening to me. The entire point of having a republic, instead of a raw democracy, is to protect a minority from the majority. The concept of a mandate throws the protection of individuals’ opinions out the window. Fortunately, this whole “mandate” thing seems to be too poorly defined to mean much at this point…
The probably requirements for a mandate are probably a bit more than that. Something along the lines of a Reagen-esque like landslide.
However, he should proceed like he has one. If he gets it between the uprights on his first try (whatever he does) then enough people will come along for the “mandate ride” and believe that he has one. He has enough of a basis for that.
I don’t know the history of winning margins. Less than 6% of the total vote doesn’t seem like a lot. But he made a lot of promises and his supporters will expect him to keep them. If he sticks to his game plan, I’m sure people will back him up.
Yes.
No, Obama doesn’t have a clue, let alone a mandate.
Yep. 7 million votes is more than a large margin.
@XfantomcatX - Ok I have to play devils advocate on that one. Its been less than a day since Obama got elected. The media, democrats, etc. cried, complained, and b*tched for MONTHS when Bush got elected, so don’t even think they will stop complaining any time soon.
I honestly read the title just then “Does President-Elect Obama Have A Mustache?”
And I was thinking, well he doesn’t, but he should.
GOOD POINT!
S.C.
oh fudgemonkey.
does it really matter? all I care is that Palin, with her airheadedness and dangerous radical conservatism, is miles away from the White House where she belongs.
oh, it helps that the words “POW” and “maverick” will finally stop assaulting my brain, if only for a few years.
Using your definition of “mandate”, I’m sure he does. However, just so Mr Novak has no hurt feelings, let’s assume “mandate” means a date with another man, which Obama apparently does not have.
yeah he did. That was quite a beating John McCain took…
first, Dan, I’m glad you didn’t give up on xanga, as you threatened in a recent post, especially since you just sent me a friend invitation…
mandate?…hmmmmmm…while watching Ellen degeneris, yesterday, i learned that a mandate was something she had in the 80′s…lol…i would say, that the number of electoral votes Barack Obama received, elicited more of an outcry, than a mandate…it’s time to replace the politics of derision, and division, with that of concern, compassion and hope…when you get a minute, i’d like you to stop by, and read my latest blog…i believe you will find it to be an eye opener…we were never this aware, at the same age, and never had to be…but, guess what?…if what my kid, and her friends had to say, is any indicator, we are in good hands, once we pass the gauntlet…peace, animal
uh based on past numbers that have led to the pronouncement of a leader having a mandate then yes, he has.
robert novak is full of shit.
sadly the popular vote and the Congressional vote dont matter for shit…….also the fact Obama won the popular vote is bullshit and we all know the popular vote was 50 50 because we all watched it for 7 days because freaking CNN was showing it non freaking stop; we all could not wait for them to shut up and for it to be over. its over now and they are still talking about this stupid fucking popularity vote.
What matters is the electoral votes. However if McCain had the popular vote all the way through the election and then won the congressional vote; we might have had a problem………however that was NOT the case………
It is over; let it fucking die already!
lets all talk about law and order; i think it going to be a good season. i dont know about you all but i am about shit of the political shit. im not saying we should not talk news; just not politics; i mean damn.
“”
In politics, a mandate is the authority granted by an electorate to act as its representative.
Elections, especially ones with a large margin of victory, are often
said to give the newly elected government or elected official a mandate
to implement certain policies. Also the period a government serves
between elections is often referred to as a mandate and when the
government seeks re-election it is said to be seeking a “new mandate”.
A mandated political party.
This term is often confused with majority rule.
“”"
Thats the congressional vote but there are now new federal laws that overpower it and dont make it any good unless there is a overwhelming support for someone in the popular vote. sadly that did not happen.
not only that but even if there was all full congressional vote and a full popualre vote for one person from the primaries; they would only get to plea it to the Supreme Court and they may turn the person down or deny them the rank of president…….
electoral votes are all the matter any more……….
50th!
In 2000 the Democrats won the popular vote but lost the electoral vote.
I thought you were asking if he had a moustache and I was wondering why youwere questioning it.
Bush won by far less than that and Republicans claimed to have a mandate. They are changing their tune now only because it isn’t their party in office.
I agree. The Democrats in general have a mandate. People aren’t rejecting Mccain, they are rejecting platforms, behavior and performance of the Republican Party as a whole.
I think that the same people who believed W received a mandate in ’04 should also believe that Obama received one in ’08. And that the people who believe that W didn’t then shouldn’t think the same now about Obama. Somehow, I’m fairly certain that that’s not the case.
I will say that it’s slightly different in that some in Congress are going to owe Obama for the turnout that may have helped him get elected, so whether or not it’s a mandate, it might work like one.
That last him was supposed to be them. :p
OH LORD, OBAMA WON ALREADY, PEOPLE NEED TO BUILD A BRIDGE AND GET OVER IT BECAUSE HE’S PRESIDENT!! WOOHOO!!
@SiXELA_onCRACK - Yes, instead we get the words “Hope” and “Change” for the next four years. Joy.
No, that’s nowhere near enough votes for a mandate. As I understand it, mandate = landslide, and seven million votes is not a landslide.
I disagree with the whole idea of a “mandate” anyway – does it even matter? He still has to follow the constitution, just like the rest of the government.
As much as I would like to disagree with Robert Novak (I am still very angry at him for outing a CIA Agent for political purposes), here I find he is not too of the mark. The election of Obama is historic, yes, but it is also as much a vote against the last eight years as for the actual man.
The public has had its view of the center moved to the right. That perception, whether actually true or not (I am still convinced that people have taken everything in the GOP agenda because they agree with a few stances on issues, thus making the actual belief of everything in this new center something of which I am not convinced), meant that people were weary of handing the Congress over to another political party.
The reality is that McCain never truly had the backing of the GOP. If he had then despite his federal funding vow, he would have received much more help. This next four years was going to be a mess no matter who won. The true strategy was to distance the party from Bush and concentrate on simply not losing the chance to enact a filibuster.
Now of course the first time they do this Novak will congratulate them on upholding a moderate America. If the Democrats do it it is an unjust obstacle. If the GOP does it, it is for the good of the people. That is going to be his mantra becasue in his old age he has become less of a commentator and much more of a pundit.
Still, he is correct. This election was not a mandate. If the Democrats create eneough positive change in peoples lives, then a mandate is possible in two years.
That’s a 2-1 majority in the electoral college. And you, as a Republican, LOVE the electoral college. So, yes, this is a mandate. The country has voted for Democrats to run the White House, the Senate, and the House. Obama will appoint around six Supreme Court justices. We have our mandate and we will use it wisely, intelligently, thoughtfully, and rationally — for the good of the country. You can thank us later.
It hardly matters whether Obama thinks he has a “mandate” or not. His power base lies in decadent domestic interests and in a voting block of those whose loyalties lie beyond the borders of this country. He came to power on the basis of an engineered economic crisis, the support of a corrupt media, machine politics (of which he is a veteran) and the blind race-hate of self-proclaimed minorities. He is, in essence, the heir of the same Third World politics that brought such men as Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez, Vladimir Putin and Robert Mugabe to power in their respective countries… and has sustained them since.
On that basis, we should know what to expect. Obama’s first job as President Coupe D’etat will be to consolidate power. To that end, he will bring the full force of a huge, sympathetic and unconstitutional federal bureaucracy into play.
Here’s what to expect:
1. Amnesty for illegal aliens. (Power base)
2. “Reparations” for slavery. (Power base)
3. “Hate Crimes” legislation. (Suppression of dissent and the Bill of Rights.)
4. The “Fairness Doctrine”. (Suppression of dissent and the Bill of Rights)
5. Anti-gun legislation. (Suppression of dissent and the Bill of Rights.)
6. Expansion of Government Sponsored Entities. (Power base and control of the economy… i.e. undercover socialism)
7. Expanded government control of education. (Future power base)
8. The conversion of Clinton’s Americorps into a paramilitary force. (Ongoing… to suppress dissent)
9. The degradation of the Armed Forces. (To curry favor with radical foreign allies and suppress any Loyalist movement)
10. Control of the electorial process. (To maintain power through voter fraud… in the manner with which he largely gained it)
11. The relaxation of all restrictions on perversity in the popular culture. (A degraded young generation is a controllable one… and it’s payback for his Hollywood supporters)
12. Tougher restrictions on all Christian churches and organizations. (A “Leader” must not allow God to cramp his style. He must either abolish Him or, like his own “pastor”, redefine God in his own image)
These are among the major steps that Obama will (and must) take to secure his power over this country. The formula is an old and established one. It may not come blatantly at first. It will largely come in degrees, in hidden legislation items or in fanfare as an item of “social justice”. But, unless vigorously opposed by an alert and patriotic citizenry, it WILL come.
America is now in the hands of its implacable enemies. That reality must be understood and acted upon if there is to be any country in our future or for our children. The American Revolution has been betrayed and the Constitution reduced to tatters. This is the result of that process. To regain our country, we must rededicate ourselves to America’s founding principles and be prepared to resist its enemies at home and abroad.
sure why not?
The wikipedia definition and mine differ slightly. My assumption has always been that a “mandate” would have to be defined by a larger winning percentage than 53%. What about the roughly 47% that voted another way? I hardly think that 53% is a mandate.
This brings up the question of a mandate for what? Change, no doubt. I wonder if the 53% knew what specific changes Obama has in the back of his mind if they all would have voted for him. I have my doubts. Change for the sake of change is a very foolish way to vote.
Unfortunately for many of us, as a population we get what we deserve in elections.