Well, as we now know, McCain's conservative agenda wasn't a success. He lost, and by a big margin. He wasn't that much behind before he started veering so much to the right, and before he picked Sarah Palin as his running mate.
It wasn't a good idea to try to attract independents by appealing to the Republican base.
Here in Sweden, after Obama's victory was announced, the biggest radio channel played a song written for the Swedish soccer team when they were going to play the World Cup in the United States in 1994,
\'När vi gräver guld i USA\' (When we dig for gold in the United States). Sweden did well in that tournament, as we ended up as number three in the world, so the song has remained popular. It reminds us of our love for our own country, of course, but it also pays tribute to our love for the United States. I think many people here in Sweden hope that Obama's win bodes well for us. Of course, that remains to be seen. But I think that the soccer song was an appropriate song for Sweden to celebrate with, even if it most certainly celebrates us more than the United States. But maybe that's the point. In many countries all over the world, the United States has been seen as friendly towards others and good for other countries. The United States has been a very well-liked 'guardian', but it lost so much of its international popularity under Bush. Now, though, very many people all over the world celebrate and hope for the return of the kind of United States they remember and like, even love.
Ann
