Timothy C. Winegard: The View from Colorado, a Presidential Swing State

Timothy C. Winegard is a professor of history at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, Colo. He wrote this article for the Globe and Mail's series U.S. Election 2012: Canadians in America series – Canadian expats talking about life and politics south of the border.

I support President Obama, and his political and social platform, although as a Canadian citizen I cannot vote.

Has Mr. Obama lived up to the popular hype and the promises of his brilliant inaugural speech? No. One of my fellow participants in this project reminded me that I should not be so disparaging. “If this country is good enough for my wife and kids,” he argued, “then it is good enough for me.”...

But I still see the American future under President Obama as sanguine and as a leading catalyst for positive global engagement. Socio-cultural and political evolution, and progressive change, takes years, and this election is an important stepping-stone in the United States redefining its role as a democratic beacon for the world – and for its citizens and residents at home.