The historian John Milton Cooper writes in today's NY Times:
"THE three-month “interregnum” between Barack Obama’s election and George W. Bush’s last day in office makes one long for a parliamentary system, where the defeated prime minister leaves and his successor takes over at once. As the country faces the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression, you might think that it’s too bad it can’t happen here..."
Well, it's hard here to know where to start. But let's start here: 1] I don't know too many folks who "long" for a parliamentary system, or for Barack Obama to enter office immediately, besides some left-wing intellectuals. We have a constitution. We should follow it. The country isn't collapsing. Barack Obama needs time to put his plans together. The party breakdown in congress right now would be the same no matter who is president right now; I've seen no evidence that an immediately-made-president Obama could change that. 2] We don't know yet that this is "the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression." The late 1970s still might turn out to be worse.
