How much influence does the President really have?

A lot of people are asking whether Obama is really going to change Washington or if Washington will change him.  Here are some of my thoughts on that:

The Presidency is bigger than any one person; it's just one part -albeit a very powerful part-- of the "filty rotten stinking system" (as Dorothy Day called it) in which we live.  Which is why nothing short of a real old-fashioned revolution (i.e. from-the-ground-up movement to overthrow the current government) will ever really bring about fundamental change in this country. 

[Make no mistake: despite my enthusiasm for the Obama administration I (still) believe that.  It's what my conscience demands.  I cannot give 100% support for a system that results in such huge economic disparities between the haves and the have-nots (such as we have not seen in this country since the 1920s), locks up such a large percentage of its population (primarily black men), and continues to attack and invade other sovereign nations (talk about a "rogue state"!).  This system is immoral, corrupt and dangerous to the majority of the world's people.  Indeed, it should be overthrown.]

That said, I think that the past eight years have showed us just how much influence (for better or worse) an individual President can indeed have.  Putting G.W. behind the wheel was probably the most disastrous decision the people of this country have made in a hundred years (longer?).  He nearly crashed us and it's going to take some time (and lots of money) to undo the damage.  Obama can be as influential as Bush was just hopefully in a positive way instead of a negative way.

So do I think Obama will change Washington or will Washington change him? Yes. I do (think both).