President-elect Obama faces numerous challenges as he enters office, not the least of which being the expectations of those who supported his candidacy as well as those who did not (see an example here). Putting aside the expectations of the rest of the world community for a moment, Obama faces a situation that bears an uncomfortable similarity to FDR's first term in office. Obama has acknowledged that, and has been (to his credit) studying FDR's moves to learn from both his successes and missteps.
Ira Chernus wrote a piece in Mother Jones about the depth and context Obama should consider applying to his study of FDR's presidency. The piece begins with a introduction that references Studs Terkel and the recent sit-in by workers at the now shuttered Republic Windows and Doors plant in Chicago over payment of wages and benefits by the bankrupt firm. The real meat (and the focus of this post) follows.
