Mandate, baby. Obama mentioned it yesterday during a press conference:
"We had, I think, a decisive win, because of the extraordinary desire for change on the part of the American people," he said in response to a reporter's question. "And so I don't think there is any question that we have a mandate to move the country in a new direction, and not continue the same old practices that have gotten us into the fix that we're in."You may recall that Dick Cheney, I believe, claimed a massive mandate shortly after the Supreme Court gave George Bush the presidency in late 2000 (or, to be precise, I think Cheney said that they should rule as if they had a mandate, even if they didn't). And that's certainly the way they governed. And look where it got them. While Bush and Cheney certainly were able to reshape the country in their image (lots of unfinished wars and broken banks), they also succeeded in destroying their own party in the process. You can only rule like a dictator for so long before someone has to pay a price - usually the American people, followed by your own political party.
Obama has a mandate, to be sure. But he also knows that part of the reason he won was because of the hubris of the guy(s) before him.
