Plot twist: Obama is a good president
As campaigns for office in 2016 gain momentum, candidates are quick to say what they’ll change if elected. The GOP, containing 15 hopefuls, has been highly critical of the nation’s current state of affairs. Subject to these attacks is current president, Barack Obama, who, according to the Republican party, is to blame for America’s supposed decline.
Obama’s promises of “hope, change, and progress” quite literally propelled him to the presidency. Everything is easier said than done, however, as Obama was immediately thrust into the shambles left by former president George W. Bush. In office, Obama was faced with two wars in the Middle East, the housing crisis, and the worst economy since the Great Depression.
Even with all the difficulties that Obama faced, he was still determined to make substantial changes to America. However, by his reelection, Republicans were determined to hinder his efforts. “They plotted out ways to not just win back political power, but to also put the brakes on Obama’s legislative platform,” said Sam Stein, senior politics editor at the Huffington Post.
A group of Republicans met when Obama was inaugurated on January 20, 2013: “We’ve gotta challenge them on every single bill and challenge them on every single campaign,” said Kevin McCarthy, a Republican representative from California. Most famously achieved in the government shutdown of October 2013, the Republican challenge cost the government between two to six billion dollars, all over a refusal to compromise on the Affordable Care Act.
As a result of the midterm elections of 2014, the legislative branch of the federal government became increasingly dominated by the GOP, as both the Senate and House of Representatives became Republican majorities. Earlier this year, the party battled with the president over several issues, that includes: the Keystone XL pipeline, healthcare, immigration reform, and normalizing ties with Cuba. Most recently, they threatened to defund Planned Parenthood and shutdown the government over it.
While faced with a stubborn legislature, Obama was still able to make noteworthy accomplishments–most significantly, Obama is famous for his promotion of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare. The positive effects of the law include health spending that is at a 50-year low, businesses that aren’t dumping employees’ coverage,hospital performance that is improved, and health care coverage that insures 32 million Americans.
Other crucial moments in Obama’s presidency include the withdrawal of troops from Iran and Afghanistan. After nine years, Obama ordered all American troops out of Iraq; the last of U.S. forces left on December 18, 2011. Many contend that Obama’s withdrawal of troops has led to the rise of ISIS in Syria and Iraq. However, the political instability that existed in Iraq was a result of the war itself, rather than the withdrawal of troops. “Crucially, the U.S. military did not adjudicate internal political conflicts like the present struggle between ISIS and Baghdad,” said Jason Brownlee of the Washington Post. Additionally, Obama ordered the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in 2011. By 2014, all American troops departed from the country, successfully ending America’s longest ongoing war of thirteen years. Thus, the withdrawal of troops in both countries has significantly reduced military spending and the death toll.
Other critical developments include reducing military spending and improving diplomatic relations. In 2010, Obama saved $1.4 billion by cutting the missile defense from the Reagan Era. In the same year, he canceled plans to station missile systems in Poland and the Czech Republic in order to focus attention on defense from North Korea and Iran. Obama places a great deal of emphasis on defense in order to save money and reduce tensions, as proved by the START treaty with Russia in 2010. This adjusted the maximum amount of warheads and launchers so that both countries are limited to 1,550 warheads (a decrease of 650) and 700 launchers (a decrease of 700). This critical step improved the relationship between the two superpowers and reduced the risks of a nuclear war. Additionally, Obama has worked towards improving relationships with Cuba, China, between Israel and Palestine, and nations that the Iraq War has damaged.
During Obama’s time in office, his economic policies have been subject to attack, as they are believed to have worsened the economy. However, this could not be further from the truth. An important measure of economic productivity is a lack of a high unemployment rate. Bush’s actions caused an unemployment rate of 7.8%, while Obama’s decreased it to 5.1%.
Another significant factor in measuring economic growth is debt. In noting Obama’s achievements, it is important to remember that he, like any other president,was not perfect. They both contributed greatly to the nation’s debt, with Obama adding $6.167 trillion and Bush adding $5.849 trillion. Having said that, the key difference between the two is what the money was spent on.
On September 11, 2001, America was attacked by the terrorist group, Al-Queda. This occurred while George W. Bush was in office. The way in which he handled these attacks is an accurate way to judge his efficacy. Following the attacks, Bush launched the “War on Terror,” in which he declared war on Iraq. The war was unnecessary, and for that reason it is compared to Vietnam. The Iraq War wasted $807.5 billion dollars. Additionally, Bush had detrimental tendencies of providing ridiculous amounts of financial support to the wealthy. Passed in 2001, the Bush tax cuts benefitted the upper class, who received 73.1% of the tax cut. This reduced the nation’s revenue, which is problematic in that the Bush Administration was increasing spending. Finally, Bush bailed out the banks for $700 billion dollars in 2008, once again helping wealthy corporations over the middle class.
In contrast, Obama’s increases to the debt aimed to improve the quality of life for Americans. $787 billion of the debt that he added was a part of the stimulus package, which was intended to boost the nation’s struggling economy. Obama cut taxes, extended unemployment benefits, and supported public works projects in order to create jobs. These were all enacted in hopes to reignite a consumer-based economy to benefit corporations. In keeping with concerns on the greater public, Obamacare has cut $600 billion from future debt, which is significant in that health care costs are cited as the greatest cause of fiscal problems by newspapers like Washington Monthly.
In addition to working towards bettering the lives of the working class, Obama does the same for the environment. He still continues to work against worsening the state of the Earth’s environment, which includes investing heavily in renewable energy sources, signing Omnibus Public Lands Management Act, and boosting Fuel Efficiency Standards. Obama’s actions towards climate change place a great deal of responsibility on the nation’s future leaders to counteract global warming.
Though faced with an uncompromising legislature, Obama succeeded in creating groundbreaking laws that have positively affected nearly every facet of life in America. To call Obama’s actions during his time in office detrimental is not only invalid, but also uninformed.