Dear Mr. President:
I supported you in your last election, and I am most likely to vote for you again. I believe that you have tried to work for the best interests for the majority of Americans, and, while I have been uncomfortable with some of your administration's associations with some of the Wall Street insiders who always seem to have inroads to the more powerful political figures in the country, and while I wish there were a clearer explanation for some of our foreign policy, I think that at heart you want more secure civil rights, health care for all Americans, a robust economy, and a stewardship for our nation, both now and for the future.
I am concerned, however, that you have made some strategic errors so far in your administration. I think, for example, that you have overestimated the GOP's elected officials' willingness to follow logic, persuasion, and good faith negotiation to reach accord. I believe that instead of pursuing "filibuster-proof" majorities, it would have been better just to let the opposition talk and demonstrate the vacuity of their positions. I am convinced that, at times, you did not take into account the anti-intellectual bent harbored by many voters and exploited by various political agents. I know that you did not expect the degree of vitriol directed against you by various pundits who would make you a one-term president at all costs, no matter how much our country suffers in their selfish pursuit.
The time has come for you to make a move so cunning and unpredictable that it will change American politics forever in a way that will benefit us all. You have stated that you are more interested in helping Americans than pursuing your re-election, and I will take you at your word. Frankly, I think it would be better to re-elect you than to choose any of the current Republican presidential candidates, but I am going to recommend something that will make the upcoming presidential election even more memorable than 2008.
It appears that the most likely success for your programs would be bipartisan support between your Democratic base and centrist Republicans who have not signed some pledge and who have true conservatives (not NeoCons) as their base electorate. This situation is particularly true now, when the debt ceiling debate has become a point of major contention rather than the semi-procedural vote it has been in the past. It appears that these centrist, pragmatic Republicans have so many problems attempting to convince the Tea Party wing of their party to act in a reasonable manner that they face a quandary similar to what you face. Perhaps it would be a savvy move to throw your lot in with them.
Mr. Obama, maybe you should consider switching to the Republican Party, but conducting yourself as the kind of Republican you wish the Republican leadership to be.
Please, remember that this suggestion comes from someone who supports you.
The immediate disadvantage would be troublesome, I know. There will be some Democrats who will brand you as traitorous--but many of them are already uncomfortable that you are not as far to the left as they would wish. Your administration can still count on them, however, because they recognize that you will still remain their most powerful friend in office, willing to listen to their advocates. And, let's face it, this late in the game it is unlikely that there would be a serious Democratic contender for the presidency in opposing you, who would then be the incumbent Republican candidate. Besides, you have the strongest Democratic opponents from your last campaign on your cabinet already. With Hillary Clinton as your Secretary of State and Joe Biden as your vice president, you would enter the upcoming presidential election practically unopposed. You could even, as Chris Matthews has suggested, make Bill Clinton your Secretary of the Treasury. Your cabinet is your prerogative, and you would not have to follow party lines, as you have demonstrated.
I am making this recommendation with the assumption that the GOP would not be likely to oppose an incumbent president who is a member of their own party. Even if it did, the contenders on the other side would just be in your shadow. Who are the strongest polling candidates now? Mitt Romney will still be attempting to distance himself from a health care plan that closely parallels yours, and Michele Bachmann will be falling back on her Tea Party base. The Tea Party base, in turn, may be so incensed by your candidacy that they would split from the GOP.
The other main consideration would be the effect on the Democratic ticket. I know that many voters select a straight ticket. I am thinking, however, that there will still be a good, solid Democratic representation in congress, because your supporters will recognize the power of a split ticket. The numbers on the Republican side will be worth watching, though, because your running as a Republican will force the division of the party. You will separate the statesmen from the demagogues. You will expose the prejudices behind some of political stances. You will demonstrate that people can run on governmental policy rather than hot-button moral issues. You will liberate the true conservatives from those who would take their party away from them, and you will free them from having to embrace extreme positions in order to shore up a fractious party.
Imagine what benefits our country would derive from the split of the Republican Party. A three-party system requires bargaining, compromise, and negotiation. There will be times when the right will be able to build a coalition on some points, but there will be others where forward-thinking policies will get through. There can be a centrist, progressive agenda that will not attempt to answer to both far extremes at the same time.
Now, I understand that there may be a question about your being able to change parties. Frankly, in the recent debt ceiling negotiations, it was clear that you were willing to accommodate a number of proposals offered by the GOP. They just were not able to take "yes" for an answer. They would have to take it from a president of their own party.
I also have to admit that I would enjoy the "journalistic" backlash that will occur in some of the media. Your switching parties would expose many vulnerabilities of your most vocal opposition. Fox would have to agree that your ideas make sense, and just imagining Rush Limbaugh's reaction cheers me up. The ripple effect through the blogosphere will be seismic.
I understand that in an ideal political system, we would have an informed electorate who would be interested in the common good, with elected officials who practice stewardship and refuse to bow to pressure groups, corporate johns, and ill-considered ideology. Unfortunately, we do not have these conditions in our current political climate. We need a reboot. Your becoming a Republican would be that reboot.
Then, after the 2012 election, let's see how the three-party system works out. Maybe you'll feel like returning to the Democratic Party, but maybe you'll decide that giving the Republican Party needed leadership would be a better route to take. In either case, with the likely splintering of the Tea Party from the Republican Party, you will have made the GOP the distinguished opponents they should be, making them better but not necessarily more powerful.
Ask yourself: who would be the best leader of the Republican Party--Boehner, McConnell, Limbaugh, Norquist, or you? The answer is clear.
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