I’m pretty disappointed that I will not be old enough to vote in the upcoming elections, but I still know what I’m looking for in my next president. The next president of the United States cannot be too far to the left or too far to the right on the political spectrum, especially when the political cleavages only seem to be widening as time goes by. He (or she, which I doubt) has to be someone who is willing to compromise or at least consider all fronts, and put his focus on what America needs, not necessarily what America wants. Simply put, the president can’t bend to every single demand (or at least those major enough) that the people want, especially if it will continue to cripple our political unity. 

President Obama’s American Jobs Act, for example, is actually pretty bad timing. Despite the fact that Obama is trying to improve his image with the public and try to hold up to the promises which he had made back in 2008 when he was elected, the Jobs Act simply makes him seem desperate. He claims that he has included many things which Republicans have wanted and would agree with, which is true to some extent, but state of the cleavage between the Republicans and Democrats is so great right now, the American Jobs Act will probably leave everyone unsatisfied. Maybe if the Act was something that Obama had proposed way back when, when Congress could actually get something done, then it would have just a bit more success. 

As for the elections of 2012, it’s pretty clear that there is no contest for Obama to secure the Democratic nomination, even if it is only for now. The GOP candidates, however, are at the same time extremely similar and vastly different. Right now, all the candidates seem to be trying to push front-runner Rick Perry down, but even though I may not agree with many of his stands on a number of issues, I think he has at least had a good amount of experience in various matters crippling the nation today. During the CNN-Tea Party Debate, for example, when the candidates all had a different stance on whether or not to build a fence along the southern border or not and bashed on Perry’s “failure” to actually do something about it, it’s important to note that he actually has legitimate experience on the matter. He has actually tried to find the best possible solution to combat illegal immigration. 

Perry may have his more moderate side, but the true moderate in the Republican bid for the 2012 presidential nomination is probably Jon Huntsman. Huntsman is liked by liberals with his stance on some issues such as his support for civil unions. Being the previous ambassador to China, he knows how China works and, to an extent, what the Chinese people are actually like. He has had hands-on experience with America’s greatest competitor and knows the best way to deal with and to work with China.

Does Obama deserve to be re-elected? To some extent, he does. People continue to say that he has not lived up to his promises in the Middle East and with our economy, and his implementation of Obamacare is simply horrendous to many. But has Obama tried? Yes, he has. It’s unfair to only look at where he faltered. It was Obama who worked to successfully eliminate the most hostile threat to national security since the 2001 attacks, which took a decade. He did finally set a date for the troops to come home, and in a rare change of American foreign policy, took a backseat in Libya which seems to have paid off. Obama has worked hard to improve America’s image on the world stage, sometimes at the expense of the American people. 

This election will most likely prove to be most interesting.