MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Financial Times supports Obama; questions trade policy

FT hope that Mr Obama gets the job

Britain's leading Financial Times newspaper threw its weight behind US presidential candidate Barack Obama, saying the campaign had shown that the Democrat was the “right choice” to lead the US.

"At the outset, we were not so confident. Mr Obama is inexperienced. His policies are a blend of good, not so good and downright bad," said the newspaper in a Monday editorial. But the public had "learned a lot" about Obama and the Republican candidate, John McCain. "In our view, it is enough to be confident that Mr Obama is the right choice," it said. Obama had fought a much better campaign, although campaigning was not the same as governing, said the Financial Times. "Nonetheless, a campaign is a test of leadership. Mr Obama ran his superbly; Mr McCain's has often looked a shambles. After eight years of George W. Bush, the steady competence of the Obama operation commands respect," it said. However, Obama was "most disappointing" on trade, said the Financial Times. He had "pandered to protectionists" during the primaries, and has not rowed back. But he had impressed in his response to the economic emergency - not by advancing solutions of his own, but in displaying a calm and methodical disposition, and in seeking the best advice. The Financial Times points out that on foreign policy, where the candidates have often conspired to exaggerate their differences, this contrast in temperaments seems crucial. "For all his experience, Mr McCain has seemed too much guided by an instinct for peremptory action, an exaggerated sense of certainty, and reluctance to see shades of grey". He has offered risk-taking almost as his chief qualification, but gambles do not always pay off. His choice of Sarah Palin as running mate, widely acknowledged to have been a mistake, is an obtrusive case in point. Rashness is not a virtue in a president. "The cautious and deliberate Mr Obama is altogether a less alarming prospect". "Rest assured that, should he win, Mr Obama is bound to disappoint. How could he not? He is expected to heal the country's racial divisions, reverse the trend of rising inequality, improve middle-class living standards, cut almost everybody's taxes, transform the image of the United States abroad, end the losses in Iraq, deal with the mess in Afghanistan and much more besides," said the newspaper. "The challenges facing the next president will be extraordinary. We hesitate to wish it on anyone, but we hope that Mr Obama gets the job".