Who will take on Obama?

THIS year there will be elections in the United States. On the Democratic side, things are clear, will present President Barack Obama re-election. However, Republicans are mired in doubts. Several candidates vying for election by his party to face Obama, noting the time Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum. The umpire is Newt Gingrich, but away from the other two. The primary system is voting in all states between these rivals, which are getting representatives of the convention in August to elect the official candidate of the Republican Party. In this convention, consisting of more than two thousand delegates will discuss and choose the final candidate to face Obama.

Mitt Romney is so far the one most likely to prevail and to win a greater number of representatives. It also has more money than its rivals to spend on the campaign and, if that were not enough, seems to have the favor of (at least part of) the party leadership.

However, there are many doubts among Republicans. On the one hand, Romney, a Mormon businessman, has been unable to defeat their opponents in any state in the south or the Midwest. The Northeast, more moderate, has supported Romney, but the South and Midwest, they want someone more conservative. Some states like Tennessee and Oklahoma are deeply religious and have become a bastion of Christian fundamentalist Santorum.

They had high hopes for the so-called Super Tuesday because delegates were elected in several states at once and this involved the distribution of many delegates. However, the votes have been hotly contested and Romney has won but with a pretty tight margin, which remains uncertain. Many analysts believe that the race could continue until the end.

What is surprising is not this but the various messages that are launching the candidates. Each choice shows the existence of two Americas ... at least. The two coasts, led by New York and California, are opposed to the interior and south. Not only have different interests, but very different values. All leaders and the media try to smooth out these differences, but many issues seem different countries. It is very difficult to build messages that deployed in both worlds. There are states that are traditionally Republican or Democrat, but the funny thing is that even Republicans themselves have trouble finding a consensus candidate among its various states.

Just as we often speak of the two souls of the U.S., we should speak now of the two souls of the Republican Party. Romney has won, albeit narrowly, and has more than 300 delegates, twice that of their rivals. However, these have already announced they will not give up and will continue in the race to the end. Some Republicans believe that this will benefit Obama, because it will keep the Republicans know who their candidate to end for many months. The important thing is to see why Santorum or Gingrich decided to continue despite the results. The reason is that the number of delegates Romney clearly benefits, but millions of Americans with religious fervor to support Santorum. It is no exaggeration. Santorum has repeatedly insisted that it must end with the church-state separation, that moral values ​​of Christianity should be the guide of public affairs. Is the Other America, which has long crouched and intends to finally take over. Perhaps the crisis and despair of millions of unemployed allowed to move to the moderates in the Republican Party leadership. It is the hope of Santorum. If it stands in March and April, with several states in principle, more conservative, and reaches the finish line a short distance, perhaps to achieve the other candidates will join to oppose Romney ... And then anything could happen in May.

Moreover, in addition to internal dissent from Republicans, the party leadership is preoccupied with other matters. Although some candidates seem to have forgotten, the primary objective is not to beat the other Republicans, but to be chosen by your colleagues to confront and defeat Obama. Most of the Republican leadership believes that the messages ultraconservative Santorum or Gingrich will not convince the millions of Americans undecided and moderates. And without them you can not beat an Obama is rising in the polls. For this reason, the party leadership committed to Romney, a successful businessman who seems to embody the American dream and optimism for economic recovery. However, this strategic decision, probably very intelligent, is viewed with suspicion by many Republicans, who are more identified with the more conservative candidates.

From Europe, things are a certain distance, although the media have devoted extensive coverage to these primaries. In Europe have always been followed with considerable interest the U.S. elections, even with some passion. European social democrats have always defended the positions Democrats, while conservatives do the same with the Republican candidates. It's a bit childish to believe that the contemporary imperial power vary greatly its foreign policy or its major interests in terms of earning one or the other. It is true that the GOP and Democrats are not the same, is not the same as Romney or Santorum, but Europeans should worry us more than the ultra-conservative values ​​and Christian fundamentalists mobilize millions of Americans.

Questioning the church-state, which is what is at stake is too serious to not think about it. Just as Muslims have their supporters to apply Islamic law as the main source of law, or we have Christian fundamentalist institutions and characters like Rouco Varela, also in the U.S. have their discussions. Five centuries of political modernity and two from the French Revolution are concerned.

This symptom indicates that the crisis is not only economic, but also offers a profound moral and ethical dimension to be addressed. Not enough to point out the evil alien and must consider and propose consensus values ​​that our societies cohere. U.S. may see it more clearly, but the phenomenon also occurs here. Beyond the number of delegates to obtain the various Republican candidates in their primaries, these elections are very interested to see how they tackle the two major parties and their leaders matter.

Finally, the European interest in U.S. elections contrasts with the indifference shown by our own European Parliament elections. Should think seriously, in all European parties to make an important electoral reform to mobilize the European electorate, make him share in the great political debates of the European Union and for this we must enable them to participate more actively and effectively. Progress is needed on European real applications, not by state quotas, and the possibility of electing leaders to express our views, even of another State. The American example shows that these elections, if designed well, can encourage the participation of many citizens and launch public debates on issues of timing.