Israel-Palestine Opinion: Why Obama's Re-election Offers Renewed Hope for an Agreement

Obama has four years to craft a legacy, and there is reason to suspect he wants to include a Nobel Peace Prize with no accomplishment justifying it.

Taking another crack at a tenable two-state solution is as daunting as ever, but the cost is lower than once thought. Furthermore, after this past Tuesday, perhaps Republicans will realize that being superficially “pro-Israel” is irrelevant to the voters they most need to reach. The GOP will not help, but perhaps it will not stand in the way.

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US Elections 2012 Analysis: The Right's Fantasies about the Constitution, History, and "Americanism" (Crockatt)

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A further consequence of the Right’s historical fantasising is that it militates against negotiation and compromise. If you believe the true faith has been denied and that only the true faith will do, there is no reason to come to an accommodation with your opponents. In the real world, however, negotiation is a necessity. That is true in the near-future in an America where the demographic trends are running against the Republican core constituency of white Protestant males.

It is recognition of this that could forestall confrontation borne out of fantasy, for seismic demographic change is a central challenge in American history which has been met on many occasions. On the basis of the Right’s grasp of America’s history in other fields the omens are not good but --- who knows? ---- realism may win out, despite the Sarah Palins, because it must to ensure the political fortunes of the Republican Party.

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US Elections 2012 Audio: Obama's Victory and What Happens Next --- A Conversation with Ideas Lab

I spoke with the University of Birmingham's Ideas Lab on Thursday about the US elections, President Obama's victory, and the political challenges that lay ahead both for him and for the Republican Party. Topics ranged from the debate over the economy and Government budget to the new social dynamics revealed by the vote to American foreign policy.

The full SoundCloud discussion:

The shorter version featured on Ideas Lab:

US Elections 2012 Opinion: A "Poisoned Kiss" for Europe in Obama's Victory

Barack Obama and Angela MerkelDespite euphoria for Obama and the sense of stability for Europe, the second Obama term brings more perils than prizes. There will be renewed disagreement between European leaders and the Democrats on how to deal with the Eurozone Crisis, while the American focus shifts further east.

This re-election is a poisoned kiss.

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EA Video Analysis: Your 4-Point Guide to the US Elections...& What Happens Next

Four points and 9 1/2 minutes to understand not only President Obama's re-election, but the lessons and challenges for both the Democrats and the Republicans....

1. Why Obama Won: "It's the Centre, Stupid"
2. The Social Front: "Charlie Brown, Are We Still Living in Traditional White America?"
3. The Short-Term Challenge for Obama and....
4. The Bigger Challenge for the Republican Party

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US Elections 2012 Analysis: Republicans Head Towards a "Social Cliff"

Bill O'Reilly on Fox News on Tuesday night: "It's not a traditional (white) America anymore. And there are 50% of the voting public who want stuff....The white establishment is now the minority."

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The question in these days after the election: will Republicans recognize that a majority of Americans may not be interested in using the Bible as guidebook for legislating the lives of private citizens? Can they accept that the same majority no longer see the US as the protected reserve of the descendants of the nation's "white" founders?

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US Elections 2012: Wednesday's EA Analysis --- Obama, Romney, and What Happens Next

Scott Lucas: Obama's Victory and "What's Next for Foreign Policy" --- An Interview with Monocle 24
James Miller: The GOP Needs to Listen to Mitt Romney
Video: When Karl Rove Would Not Believe Fox News "Obama Wins Ohio"
Video: Barack Obama's Acceptance Speech
US Elections 2012 Special: Tuesday's Live Coverage and Analysis

US Elections 2012 Video: When Karl Rove Would Not Believe Fox News "Obama Wins Ohio"

Three minutes summarising Election Night for the Romney campaign and the Republican Party....

Karl Rove, campaign strategist for George W. Bush, refuses to believe Fox's call of Ohio for Barack Obama --- he remains unconvinced as Fox's anchorwoman takes a long journey down the corridors to verify the projection with the political number-crunchers. They explain the reasoning; Rove still does not believe.

US Elections 2012 Special: EA's Live Coverage and Analysis

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0658 GMT: President --- The Victory Speech. President Obama has concluded a rousing victory speech, "We are and forever will be the United States of America....We will continue our journey forward and remind the world why it is that we live in the greatest nation of earth."

0637 GMT: President --- The Victory Speech. President Obama has arrived, with his wife Michelle Obama and daughters, to a wildly-applauding crowd and Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours".

Obama opens, "The path of perfecting our union moves forward. It moves forward because of you. It moves forward because you have reaffirmed the spirit that has triumphed over war and depression."

He continues, "We are one American family and we rise and fall together."

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EA Video Analysis: 270 Votes or Bust - The Electoral Map Favors Obama

Using the latest polling data from FiveThirtyEight, as well as Real Clear Politics, we see that this race is both very close and, at the same time, Barack Obama has a very large advantage in the Electoral College.

But there are several possible ways that Obama, or Romney, could win by the end of the date. There is also a real possibility that we may not know the result because, just like in the year 2000, too many battleground states may be too close to call.

Remember to check out the rest of our election coverage, and adjust your own map, here:

See also US Elections 2012 Special: EA's Live Coverage and Analysis