Will there be change or whitewashing when Obama takes office?

Lot’s of politicians talk about change while they are campaigning for office. Publicity companies--essential in getting politicians into office--do a good job in convincing voters that in fact with such and such a candidate there will be change. But usually there are only the most oblique descriptions of what the proposed change will really consist of, and little or no mention of how it will be carried out. The word is a bit confusing, to say the least, and not only politicians, but society in general seems to be very reluctant to alter the status quo unless things have gotten to the point of no return.

In the United States for many decades conservative Republicans and (theoretically) liberal Democrats have no doubt introduced change, but at the same time have been busy borrowing their opponents ideas, so that it is never really clear whether a politician tagged as "liberal" will act in accordance to the basic notions of liberalism and the reverse might be said of Republicans. T

The out-going Bush Administration, for example, is supposed to be conservative or rightwing. One of the notions dear to conservatives is the reduction of the role of the State. Yet in reducing taxes for giagantic corporations and spending millions on the unending war against terrorism, the government has not only stacked up a record deficit: it has directly bailed out many of those same corporations in view of the reckless policies financial institutions, banks and real estate interests--who saw in the reduced State regulations a hay day to pull in fabulous profits simply by "making money make money."

Obama, a patient and hard working politician, has gotten money from financial groups associated with Wall Street, courted Pentagon officers convinced that the war effort should be redirected towards Afghanistan, and is in the process of naming his functionaries--many of them associated with the previous presidency of Bill Clinton, along with some conspicuous Republicans and a number of financial advisors whose ideas are not exactly what one might call change oriented. Will these old faces be able to paint a new picture?

The first non-white president in the history of the country certainly will attempt to introduce measures such as a reform of the medical  insurance policies to provide health care to the millions of citizens who have no coverage whatsoever; policies that bring back the days of Roosevelt’s New Deal will no doubt also be introduced to deal with the problem of growing unemployment and improverishment of lower income groups; a more committed attitude will certainly be taken with respect to alternative sources of energy... But the question remains: will these attempts end up bringing any real changes to the country or will they be watered down--thanks to the powerful lobbys and the powerful pressure politics of the status quo?

Will the much talked about change genuinely modify aspects of the country’s economic, social and cultural behavior patterns or will the "changes" end up as a "whitewashing" of a system clearly in need of revamping?