Obama's Election Is a Vindication of Republican Values

It's been a while since I've posted anything. Of course, the election of Obama was disappointing and I've been, among other things, taking some time to get acclimated to the news. That said, one thought that's been constantly running through my mind is that, contrary to the notion that the election of Obama represents a "sea change" in favor of "progressive" values, what Obama's ascent actually represents is a vindication of Republican values and American exceptionalism.

Bear in mind, during the campaign, we were told over and over that America is a hopelessly racist country and that any failure to elect Obama could only be attributed to racism. Obama's mentor, Reverend Wright, said we live in the "US of KKKA," and Obama himself revealed that what first attracted him to Wright was a speech wherein Wright intoned "white folks' greed runs a world in need." And let's not forget about Obama's friends, Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn, whose new book, Race Course Against White Supremacy, will be published in June 2009. "Progressive" axioms -- such as America being "no better" than any other country -- also permeated the message of "Hope" and "Change" that Obama promised to bring. And so it goes.

Now that Obama's been elected, it is perhaps natural to expect that the sort of ideology associated with the rise of Obamanation will gain a new prominence in American life. Interestingly, however, I don't think that will be the case. Indeed, what the election of Obama actually proves is that, whatever its flaws, America is in fact the greatest country in the world, a place where anyone -- regardless of race, religion or creed -- can achieve beyond his wildest dreams. And given that the new understanding of American greatness, patriotism -- oft derided as the last refuge of scoundrels -- may soon be making a comeback.

Remember What Happened to Obama in the NH Democratic Primary?

Here's a look at what the leading polls said heading into the New Hampshire Democratic primary:

Zogby:
Obama 42
Clinton 29

USA Today:
Obama 41
Clinton 28

CNN/WMUR:
Obama 39
Clinon 29

Rasmussen:
Obama 37
Clinton 30

ACTUAL RESULTS:
Clinton 39
Obama 36

And Obama also underperformed his poll numbers in the Democratic primary in key battleground states Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Does this mean McCain has the election in the bag? Of course not. But what it does mean is that the polls showing McCain down a few points should not be taken as the Gospel truth, particularly given that 14 percent of voters are still undecided, and undecided voters are widely projected to break for McCain.

By the way, guess what was the leading theory for why the NH polls were so wrong in the Democratic primary? They failed to account for undecided voters, who overwhelmingly broke for Clinton.