hankyoreh

Barack Obama has succeeded in his bid for reelection as US president. Pundits had expected one of the most unpredictable races in US election history, but the win ended up being anything but. Obama solidified his support in the East and West, both traditionally Democratic regions, and won most of the tight contests in swing states like Ohio. It didn‘t take him very long to reach the 270 electoral votes needed for a win.

The key issue in this election was the economy. Obama rode his achievements in getting past the financial crisis that was raging when he took office four years ago, saving the country’s auto industry, and reforming health care in a way that would benefit the whole country. He also played up the improving job market and pledged a government-led economic recovery through lower taxes on the middle class and greater investment in education and energy.

Republican challenger Mitt Romney attacked Obama’s first-term economic policy as a complete failure and called for private sector-led growth through tax cuts for the wealthy and deregulation. Clear class-based divisions in the two candidates’ support bases suggested a tight contest between rich and poor. But in the end, US voters opted for middle class welfare and fairness over the return of neoliberal policies that favor the rich.

Despite his triumph, Obama doesn’t have all sunny days to look forward to. To begin with, he faces the daunting task of healing the divisions of factions, races, and classes that emerged during the election. He may have swept the electoral college, but the popular vote was split almost exactly in half - a clear sign of just how divided the US is today. Obama will need to show leadership as a leader capable of bringing together all of the country’s different segments, not just on domestic concerns but for all the ideals he has stood for, including an end to nuclear weapons.

The biggest question outside the US is how different the administration’s foreign policy will be in its second term. Predictions now are holding that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and the other major foreign policy players are on their way out, but that the administration’s emphasis on cooperating with allies and recalibrating its relations with Muslim countries in the Middle East and elsewhere will remain more or less intact. Nor can the administration afford to ignore the fact that its diminished economic strength means it has to focus more on smart diplomacy mixing hardware and software over “power diplomacy” based on an overwhelming edge in military power.

South Koreans cannot help paying close attention to the new relationship unfolding between Washington and Beijing since the US launched its “return to Asia” policy early this year. This is especially true at a time when China, now the world‘s number two superpower, is undergoing its own transition from the Hu Jintao era to that of Xi Jinping. In contrast with Romney and his characterizations of China as a currency manipulator that should be boycotted, Obama showed a more flexible stance, describing China as a rival, but one that could also be a constructive partner. This would seem to suggest that the administration plans to make appropriate use of cooperation and containment depending on how well Beijing abides by international standards. Now Seoul has the task of acting prudently to ensure that the two countries with the biggest impact on the peninsula’s peace and prosperity opt for cooperation over conflict.

Seoul has also gained more room to maneuver in its relations with Pyongyang. The Korean Peninsula has been pushed to the back burner of US foreign policy behind Iran, Syria, and Afghanistan. This is a good opportunity for us to “South Koreanize” the issues that affect it. The question here is whether our leaders are capable of acting - not just following along with US policies as the Lee Myung-bak administration has done, but offering its own creative wisdom to win over other countries, including the US, China, Japan, and Russia.

Our next president is going to have to do his or her best to take this opportunity to offer independent and constructive solutions on our North Korea issues.

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