January 8th, 2008

(7 votes, average: 4.86 out of 5)

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“Change” or Real Change?

Change is a funny thing when it comes to politics. Every candidate who is not an incumbent president (or vice president) seems to be self-declared change candidate. We hear a lot about change. We hear a lot of promises that go unfulfilled. We have a lot of politicians tied to special interests who claim to want to do one thing, but after the elections are over, do another.

It seems like everyone claims to be an agent of change, but for some reason we just never get the genuine article. Is Barack Obama a real change candidate? Is Mike Huckabee a real change candidate? How about John McCain, Mitt Romney, or John Edwards? They all throw about that six-letter word, don’t they? Change.

Change is more than a promise. Declaring it alone achieves nothing. Politicians are, to say the least, a suspect group when it comes to promises. That’s because real change is difficult. Real change requires talent. Real change requires a specific plan. Real change requires experience, and the ability to negotiate with herd of competing forces. Our next president will have to work with Congress, big business, confront a potential recession, geopolitical situations, and a myriad of other situations we haven’t even considered.

Our current president, back in 1999 fashioned himself as a change candidate too. We were to “trust” him because he was an outsider. What he lacked in experience he’d make up for in character. He was “one of us.” That didn’t work out too well, did it?

Now, I can’t imagine that someone like Barack Obama would turn out like George W. Bush. Obama is certainly more genuine. He’s certainly more of a political outsider than our current president. He’s not going to make the same mistakes. He’ll find a way to get along with Congress and make things better. But then again, do we know this for sure? How much of what I have written above is just hope? How much of it is just a personal, perhaps desperate need, to believe that we are looking at real change this time?

The best way to ensure real change is to support someone with a proven track record of real change. Someone who knows our economy from the inside. Someone who is of the most successful entrepreneurs in our nation. Someone who also knows the public sector. Perhaps someone who is one of the highest-rated mayors of the largest city in our nation? What about someone who doesn’t need to raise money from special interest groups to run for president? What about someone who just don’t play party politics? Someone practical.

This person that I am talking about, of course, is Mike Bloomberg. His accomplishments are real. His talent is real. His sincerity is real. He is real. Mike Bloomberg is Real change, and we’d be a fortunate nation if he were to be our President.

Sign the petition! Keep the draft Mike Bloomberg movement going!