If the US electorate votes in Barack Obama as President, it will be truly historic considering the country’s history with discrimination. While an upset at the last minute can never be ruled out, it is very likely the current financial and industrial collapse in the United States will turn the average worker against the Republicans, even Joe the Plumber who has been touted as the average worker who’ll be hit by Obama’s policies.
But though Obama’s view of the world may be a lot less unilateral than President George Bush’s, it is uncertain as to whether his economic policies will be of help to India. He has already hinted that he is not in favour of offshoring, though it is not clear if he plans to ban it or whether he wants to limit himself to giving tax breaks to firms who create jobs in the US. In any case, with the current crisis still getting deeper, it is an open question as to whether any US President can do much for the next few years. Obama’s performance will depend largely on the team he builds around him. Warren Buffet’s name did the rounds briefly as a possible Treasury Secretary but this was clearly not serious. Other contenders for the job appear to be this year’s economics Nobel laureate and The New York Times columnist Paul Krugman. A good team will work wonders.
Ritu Mehta, Gurgaon
