If Obama Wins, Will America Go the Way of Spain and Italy?

English: Southern Europe
English: Southern Europe, feeling red with anger (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
With Obama as President, America will go the way of Spain and Italy. That's what Romney just said, earning the ire and justified contempt of both Italian and Spanish citizens. The media here in Italy is full of angry headlines, including the Sole 24 Ore, a highly respectable rightist business paper (something like the Italian Financial Times).  Is Romney really so desperate for votes that he needs to insult two ancient European countries that have always been loyal allies of America? 

Romney
Romney (Photo credit: Talk Radio News Service)

During the last debate with Obama, I had noticed that Romney mentioned how the Obama government spending would lead America straight into a situation like Greece's. At the time, that was picked up by few people: presumably, the American electorate of Greek descent is not very large and the remark passed (nearly) unnoticed. But this time, he really put his foot in it, this is BIG! Americans of Italian descent and Hispano-Americans are millions! Do they enjoy the way Romney disparages the old home country? If Romney ever wins and becomes the next American President, he can be certain that he will not be received with roses in Southern Europe.  Right now, they all see RED!

Particularly if you consider - as most Europeans do - that both the 2008 Big Recession and the unprecedented swell in the American debt have been the work of a succession of Republican administrations, starting with Reagan's deregulation and ending with Bush's two wars, in Iraq and Afghanistan. So if Southern Europe is in the mess it is in today, it is largely as a result of a complex series of events that can be traced to both the collapse of Wall Street in 2008 and the American wars in the Middle East. Sure, local corruption and the dead weight of bureaucracy and red tape have added to the pain, but it all began as a result of investors looking to line their pockets through attacking the Sovereign Debt of relatively weak states (after Dubai in 2009 they moved to Greece, remember?)


US President Barack Obama and Italian Presiden...
US President Barack Obama and Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in Rome (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
If Europeans could vote, the gap between Obama and Romney wouldn't be razor thin the way it is in America. Romney scares Europeans, indeed most of the world, with his astounding lack of diplomacy - but then Americans have never cared about their world image, have they?

Over here, on this side of the pond, we are all keeping our fingers crossed...for Obama! And if Republicans really can't stomach Obama, hopefully they will abstain and not vote for a man who is certain to create havoc in the international community, turning it from a "community" to a theater of war in his determination to make of America a new "uber alles" nation...
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Comments

Emma Calin said…
I always feel a bit reluctant to say anything about the politics of other lands. On the other hand, the direction of the USA deeply affects us all. On a purely human basis I much prefer Obama. He seems to be a man of reason, compassion and and calm. In defence of the Spanish and Italian economies, one of the reasons for growth in public sector employment has been a well meaning attempt to offset the loss of corporate sector jobs that have been exported to low wage areas in pursuit of ever greater profits. Before any politician takes a magnifying glass to the the map of the world, he needs to know the full picture.
I agree with you Emma, a politician "needs to know the full picture" if he wants to be a statesman (and surely those running for the US presidency should want to achieve the stature of statesmanship). Romney is a cause of worry: here you have a bishop of the Mormon Church (because he's been the bishop for Boston) who wants to become US President (and that in itself is amazing: just imagine a Catholic Church bishop running for the Presidency...) and all he does is blast about China, disparage the 2-state solution for the Israel Palestine conflict, insult Southern Europeans etc etc. If he wins, I do hope he will start by trying to learn something about the world out there...
EnnisP said…
Hey Claude,

The only US President who made a full on effort to preserve relations with Europe - not offend them - was JFK and he botched it a few times. Which means, of course, that it's not possible to favor some states without offending others. Even Obama has offended a few, not only at the expense of US foreign relations but also to the detriment of his popularity in the US. So the idea that any president can lead without offending someone is a bit off the mark and the point.

For the record, it was Bill Clinton who deregulated banking and securities and that contributed a lot to the financial woes of the US in recent years. And I like Clinton.

I'm not sure I "like" Romney but I do think he will be better for the US economy than Obama and we at least know exactly what he is religiously even if we can't agree. That is a side of Obama that he keeps close to the chest. It's a mystery.
Jack Durish said…
Italian-Americans are American first. If they favor Obama it is the result of ideological reasons or plain partisan politics. Hispanic Americans are not necessarily tied to Spain. Most originated from Latin American countries where little love for Spain is lost. Thus, I suspect that part of your "concern" is mute.

Ennis has already addressed the fallacy of your assertion that Republican administrations have been the root cause of the American debt crisis. He touched on one aspect in mentioning that deregulation of banking and securities here occurred on Clinton's watch (not because of Clinton if I may be permitted to correct him). It was the Dodd Frank Bill that did the most damage. Also, the short-lived period of deficit reduction that occurred while Clinton was President was the result of a Republican controlled Congress. The spending went up again as the Democrats returned.

Finally, yes, Obama is far more popular in Europe than America. And, let me again offer to drive him to the airport for you. In fact, I imagine that I could easily collect contributions to pay for his airfare.
Well, dear friends, Obama won!
Jack Durish said…
...and already the bleeding has begun. Layoffs. They're doubling down on the risky investments that got the US into its deepest Recession to date, only to be surpassed by the one that is coming. Secrets suppressed during the campaign now coming to light. Will anyone learn? No. They'll continue to blame Bush. They'll blame the Republicans in Congress for obstructing all progress. Oh, and take note all you Europeans, you won't be able to fall back on America for anything. Not defense. Another Hitler rises up and you're on your own. Without a vibrant economy, America can't field an army to rescue you. If you need financial backing, don't look to America. We're broke and its only going to get worse. Yeah! Obama won.