Leeza Chowdhry (Special to J K News Today )
New York, November 10
President Barack Obama yet again showed his class in his address to the nation , when he congratulated the president-elect Donald Trump and hoped for the continuity in the American system. It was no ordinary speech. This was a sort of assurance to the American people, many of whom have doubts about the capabilities of Trump as next president and the world which is down with skepticism , what next.
Donald Trump matters to the world, for America is a super power and it has its interests spread all across the continents. With President Obama assuring that there would be smooth transition of the presidencies in January 2017 , it was a sobering message to the anxious world.
Obama has invited Donald Trump to White House on Thursday to work out the transition plans and he has also sent a loud message to his team that he wants best preparations by them for the next president to take over as he had been offered by his predecessor George W Bush eight years ago.
The first black President of America will be facing the unique moments in transitory period . He will be dealing with his successor who raced to White House by tapping the dormant sentiments of white supremacists and other base elements among the Americans fed up with the flow of immigrants and refugees and suffered from Islamophobia .
“We have to remember that we’re actually all on one team…We’re not Democrats first, we’re not Republicans first, we are Americans first. We’re patriots first. We all want what’s best for this country
“ I had a chance to talk to President-elect Trump last night — about 3:30 in the morning, I think it was — to congratulate him on winning the election. And I had a chance to invite him to come to the White House tomorrow to talk about making sure that there is a successful transition between our presidencies.
Now, it is no secret that the President-elect and I have some pretty significant differences. But remember, eight years ago, President Bush and I had some pretty significant differences. But President Bush’s team could not have been more professional or more gracious in making sure we had a smooth transition so that we could hit the ground running. And one thing you realize quickly in this job is that the presidency, and the vice presidency, is bigger than any of us.
So I have instructed my team to follow the example that President Bush’s team set eight years ago, and work as hard as we can to make sure that this is a successful transition for the President-elect — because we are now all rooting for his success in uniting and leading the country. The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy. And over the next few months, we are going to show that to the world.”
President recalled services of Hillary Clinton who lost election to Republican Donald Trump in a manner never heard it before.
“I also had a chance last night to speak with Secretary Clinton, and I just had a chance to hear her remarks. I could not be prouder of her. She has lived an extraordinary life of public service. She was a great First Lady. She was an outstanding senator for the state of New York. And she could not have been a better Secretary of State. I’m proud of her. A lot of Americans look up to her. Her candidacy and nomination was historic and sends a message to our daughters all across the country that they can achieve at the highest levels of politics. And I am absolutely confident that she and President Clinton will continue to do great work for people here in the United States and all around the world.”
“So this was a long and hard-fought campaign. A lot of our fellow Americans are exultant today. A lot of Americans are less so. But that’s the nature of campaigns. That’s the nature of democracy. It is hard, and sometimes contentious and noisy, and it’s not always inspiring,” that was President Obama reflecting his extraordinary class.