... and the question in aviation circles is, what does that mean for the U.S. air transportation system? The political waters remain murky at this point.
First, stating the obvious, yesterday’s election is nothing short of a watershed moment in American history and once again demonstrates that anyone in this nation can become President … a good thing. It also hopefully will take some of the hatred out of the political winds in Washington, where beating up George Bush has taken precedent over legislating.
Political leadership has become an oxymoron under the Democrats in Congress, and it’s only logical to fear that more of the same is on the way. But in the battle to pass long-term aviation system authorization, the Republicans get their share of the blame for the legislation remaining in limbo. After all, it was the Bush Administration that adamantly pushed for new funding mechanisms that met with so much industry opposition. Despite that, a deal was almost reached in September until Harry Reid and friends stepped in and tried to tack on riders that had nothing to do with aviation.
Back in the mid-80s when I was working at the National Air Transportation Association, one of the VPs used to like to say that despite the fact that general aviation is a very Republican industry, it tends to fare better under the Democrats. We’ll see.
The Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association (www.aopa.org) recently did a Q&A with McCain and Obama, asking their positions on various aviation issues. The President-elect says he is a strong supporter of GA, wants the industry to be involved in FAA decisionmaking, and doesn’t believe in implementing a one-size-fits-all policy for security. He also says he is “firmly opposed†to privatizing the air traffic control system, saying it is a governmental function.
My favorite answer: “As a state senator in Illinois, I supported efforts to accommodate general aviation traffic at a third Chicago-area airport in Peotone, Illinois, after general aviation traffic was displaced from the closing of Chicago’s Meigs Field.†It’s safe to assume the answer wasn’t cleared through the offices of Chicago mayor Richard Daley, the man who illegally tore up the runway at Meigs in the middle of the night and who is the one person most responsible for holding up the new Peotone airport.
During this campaign season the Democrats and Obama did a lot of posturing about losing jobs overseas and a need to reexamine free trade agreements. But if there is an industry that is truly global, aviation is it. Opposing forces on a collision course?
At the very least, the election of a lifetime that seemed to last a lifetime is finally over. Let’s just hope that we get through the rest of the week without Hillary Clinton announcing she is gearing up for another run in 2012.
Thanks for reading. jfi