Obama, Year One: Enough Change To Believe In?
Speaking ill of President Obama is a good way to get cursed out by your favorite auntie, but in reviewing his first year in office I believe one can’t help but note some of the obvious disappointments.
So, in a new piece for AOL’s Sphere, I did just that. Moreover, I pointed to how said disappointments affect Obama’s stock with the youth population — who invigorated his campaign and had much to do with his decisive win.
Will young people randomly switch to the GOP in 2012? That’s about as likely as me fathering Bristol Palin’s second child, but will they come out in full force the way we did in 2008 is the question.
Back in February 2008, I wrote an entry entitled “I Hope He Can” in which I broke from cynicism and fell into a bit of the hype. Another, “Seeing Is Believing,” where I recalled my experience at an Obama really points to my obvious enthusiasm about Barack (particularly after reading his first book, Dreams of My Father).
Do I still like him? Yes. Is there reason to criticize him only after a year in office? I think so, which is why I invite you to read “I Hope He Can” and then compare it to the new piece.
Click here to read “Enough Change To Believe?”
There is some things I left out, namely his record on civil liberties. If you’d like to read more about that, check out the ALCU’s assessment of President Obama’s first year in office.
napptacular
January 19, 2010 at 4:59 pm
Wonderful piece, Michael. The number of parallels between this administration and the last is a shame.
TNR
January 26, 2010 at 3:20 pm
I disagree somewhat.
This is the man’s first year in office. He has 8 years of crap to fix plus a lot of enemies that are doing everything in their power to see him fail.
Actually I wish he was more like George W . W used every option and made up some to will his power of Presidency around. Pres. Obama is trying to be peacemaker and work together and in turn is getting screwed by BOTH Parties.
Michael
January 26, 2010 at 4:39 pm
My piece doesn’t suggest his presidency is a failure. On the contrary, I started off by saying his that is not the case and I also later mention he has years left in his first term.
But, I stand by my comments that much of what he’s done does go against the idea of “change.” He inherited a mess, but he advocated doing business differently. Different isn’t extending a war in Afghanistan, aligning yourself with the architects of financial disasters, and the like.
And while I commend his recent push to take on Wall Street (losing Ted Kennedy’s seat to some Cosmo model Republican will do that to a person), but the very next day he starts saying he’s going to enact a spending freeze — something John McCain said he’d do in the campaign.
I’m confused and evidently he is, too.