Everyone Wins

Although they may not know it yet, the folks who didn't vote for Barack Obama in this election don't have much to worry about. I am convinced that President-elect Obama listened very carefully to their hopes and fears and that the inevitable public-policy changes that will take place in January, 2009 will not harm anyone.

Let's not forget that the 49% of folks who voted for John McCain are demographically less wealthy than those who voted for Barack Obama. They struggle as much or more with a lack of health insurance. They buy gas at the same stations everyone else does. Their kids have the same hurdles in affording higher education. Their homes are going into foreclosure at the same or higher rates than Obama supporters. They suffer just as much from a tax system that rewards dividends more than work. Their kids are in Iraq in the same or greater numbers than those who voted for Barack Obama.

With a great deal of help from the same folks who elected him, plus some more who didn't, President Obama can make progress on fixing what's broken for everyone.

There will be some changes that will initially confirm some of the 49-percenters' worst fears: 1) the Supreme Court won't be stacked to overturn Roe v. Wade; 2) we will start to listen again to other nations, not to create a world government that supplants our own, but to work together to solve common problems; 3) we will be less tolerant of labeling our fellow citizens "other" or "un-American" or "deviant" because they don't share our religion, race, ethnicity or sexual orientation.

I believe that those fears can be minimized for the vast majority of McCain supporters. We need to keep listening to the anti-choice message, reach out, and help find ways to really support women who choose (without any interference) to carry their pregnancies to term while making sure that the choice is between them and their doctors. We need to point out the benefits of building coalitions of nations to eradicate terrorism, dictatorships, disease and poverty. We need to respect religious devotion and make sure that the devoted understand that the fundamental messages of the world's religions are not really at odds with each other. It's only the evil folks who use religion for personal political purposes that make it seem that way. We need to show each other the millions of examples of ordinary people who will finally shatter all of the tired racial, ethnic and sexual orientation stereotypes.

I believe we will get there.