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![\"Matt](\"http:\/\/www.sfgate.com\/blogs\/images\/sfgate\/opinionshop\/2008\/02\/28\/GYI0051499793398x500.JPG\")
As today\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s historic presidential election could very well result in a victory for Barack Obama, progressives are considering what such a Presidency would actually mean. While slogans of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153hope,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153change,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d have certainly energized unprecedented numbers of new voters to turn out to the polls, the reality behind the rhetoric has had a sobering effect on left-leaning commentators who see a necessity for continuing social movements on issues such as troop withdrawal and health care. Obama\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s stated policy positions on increasing troops in Afghanistan and his Senate vote on the most recent FISA bill have often been cited as key departures from any semblance of a progressive agenda. In an interview with MIT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s newspaper, renowned political critic Noam Chomsky once more reiterated his preference for an Obama victory but without illusions as he plainly described the potentially first African-American President as a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153centrist Democrat.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Alternative third-party candidacies, such as the Greens\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 McKinney\/Clemente ticket as well as the independent run of Nader\/Gonzalez have stated their critique of Obama throughout their respective campaigns and are urging voters to consider them at the ballot. A recent CNN poll shows the Nader\/Gonzalez candidacy at three percent of the national vote. Whether or not progressives choose to cast their ballots for a third party candidate today, the prevailing sense for many on the left is that the work to achieve social justice doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t not end in an Obama victory, rather it continues starting tomorrow. <\/p>\n