Imperial Presidency

Over the past few months I have noticed an interesting trend in President Obama's political rhetoric. Whenever his administration tries to push through a contentious piece of legislation, or begins to run up against any opposition, Obama tries to sweep away all discourse by invoking the November elections as a mandate for his policies. It is almost as if he means to say that after his election, there is no further need for discussion or debate.

The way I see it, the debate is never over. The First Amendment to the Constitution exists to protect contentious speech. Not polite speech or politically correct speech, but the very speech that is irritating and offensive to those with a divergent point of view.

The election of Barack Obama as President allows him to bring his policies and viewpoint to the forefront for debate and discussion. So that as Americans, we can look at his agenda and decide, on each issue, whether or not we agree with the policy.

The November election results does not give the President carte blanche to proceed unchecked and unchallenged. He is the President of the United States. He should keep that in mind every time he says that "he is bringing the change that Americans voted for". Mr. President, keep in mind that what we voted for was for a fresh point of view, for a new point of departure for discussion on each and every issue that lies ahead. Last year we elected the 44th President of the United States, not it's first emperor.