The First 100 Days: President Barack Obama
from It's a New Day added 30 April, 2009 at 12:45 PM
So the first 100 days have passed and some people say this is a good point to assess the president’s ability to lead, identify his position on major topics, as well as, determine how broad his influence is over the American people, Congress, and the world.
President Obama has had his mix of wins and losses. Whether or not he is successful in his delivery of change is up to each and every one of us. Here are a few issues to stimulate thought:
The Economic Crisis
The Obama Administration passed the largest stimulus package in government history, close to 1 trillion dollars. Bank after bank has been rescued while Wall Street has seen the Dow dip below 7000. Under scrutiny from the taxpayer, some of these companies that were rescued even delivered outrageous bonuses to their top executives. The auto industry still struggles and the retail environment are harsh. However, we do see steps that some sectors of the economy are rebounding.
The housing meltdown continues to be one of the major reasons for the financial downturn. Though President Obama helped pass the Housing & Mortgage Relief Act, many homeowners have already lost their homes. With many people’s retirement savings cut in half, patience and will are being called upon to get us through these tough times.
Foreign Policy
Staying true to his campaign word, the president put the steps in motion to close Guantanomo Bay detention facility in just his second full day of office. A handshake with Hugo Chavez at the Summit of the Americas - who’d have heard of this with the former President Bush? The President has also eased restrictions on travel to Cuba. Pushing a diplomatic approach to foreign policy, he will definitely have his hands full with the president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as well as the often eccentric North Korean president Kim Jong-Il. Both unstable leaders make threats to world peace with their interest in developing nuclear capabilities.
War
Obama set a deadline for the United States combat mission in Iraq - August 31, 2010. Though violence in Iraq appears to be on the decline, Afghanistan sees a continual push into chaos by the Taliban fighters. Shifting troop presence (an additional 21,000) to this war will prove to be a major judgment item, when all is said and done.
Health Care
Still the most expensive in the world, congress continually argues what makes the most sense for the American people. A universal healthcare system, or private. Steps have been made to invest into a digital medical record system.
Cabinet Nominees
Even people in the government skip out on taxes every now and then and it bit Obama a few times with his nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tom Daschle. Apparently he didn’t pay all his taxes from 2005-2007 and had to withdraw his consideration. There were a few other mishaps, like Secretary of Commerce nominee and fellow presidential candidate Bill Richardson, who withdrew his nomination because of a political donor investigation. There always seems to be a few road bumps when a new president comes into office. The jury is still out on how effective Secretary Timothy Geithner has been in his role at the Department of the Treasury.
Scientific Research
Obama signed an executive order on March 9, 2009, which reversed President Bush’s stance on embryonic stem cell research. Scientists and researchers can now apply for government funding. Will this mean cures will be found to diseases and viruses that affect ail of the world? It’s step one.
Tone
It appears that President Obama has captured the attention of Americans and the world. His efforts to regain a transparent moral standard for the United States has led many foreign leaders to open their arms in welcoming his ideas and goals. He exudes intelligence, confidence, and a new approach to politics.
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Tell us what you think of President Obama’s first 100 days below.
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I was seven or eight years old and the words above the water fountains in the old courthouse in my hometown in Arkansas read – ‘White’s Only’ – ‘Colored’s Only’.
I had just gotten my first taste of what it meant to take another persons freedom. At that young age I didn’t understand, yet I knew it made me uncomfortable and I knew it wasn’t right.
I still do not understand man’s inhumanity to man. How someone can suppress the freedom of another person. How a persons color, nationality, religion or political affiliation can cause another person so much discomfort they would react in any possible way to suppress someone’s right to be free is beyond my comprehension.
We cannot let one person or one country control the way in which we express our freedom. How can we sit still and let one man and one nation demand that the rest of the world walk lock step with the ideas of the one at the cost of freedom to many. One person’s freedom just might be another person’s nightmare. Let us walk arm in arm and declare that all men and women, all children and all nations are free to experience and express freedom in the way they choose.
To me freedom means to be unshackled from anything that keeps us from being less than we were meant to be. To be unshackled from tyranny, from oppression and from any politically imposed constraints that would suppress our inherent right to be free from want or fear. Liberation from being confined, enslaved, captured, or imprisoned. And ultimately liberation of heart, mind and soul so that we might free ourselves from our own self imposed constraint.
I can now look with pride at a man that has been chosen by the people for the people and give thanks daily - 100 days further to liberation!