If history were written today, what would it say about President Barack Obama?

[kentuck]

No doubt, they would note that he was the first African-American President of the United States and that he enjoyed unparalleled popularity within minority populations.

Also, history would record the calamitous economy that he inherited from George W Bush. He was handed an impossible situation.

But, history would also record that he bailed out the big banks and, in turn, Wall Street, and that no one ever went to jail for any criminal activity. The Big Banks only got bigger.

He would be compared to FDR in his ability to save the capitalist system from itself. Those at the very top continued to do very, very well under his leadership as those in the middle and at the bottom lost substantially during his Administration. Employment never reached acceptable levels. Jobs continued to be sent overseas with new trade treaties.

His opposition was unmerciful in their criticisms of him. He was called everything from an illegal alien to a Socialist but all his policies belied their criticisms.

That is what they would write today. What will they write four years from now? That remains to be seen.

[Riftaxe]

1. Lord, let's wait till 2016

there is a lot yet to be done and judged by

[kentuck]

2. Yesterday is history.

And history would also say that President Barack Obama was a very successful foreign policy leader. They would note that he was finally able to capture and execute the leader of Al Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden, after many years of unsuccessful attempts. Their capabilities were weakened around the world.

[Buzz Clik]

3. It seems like only yesterday when you opened your last thread hammering Obama.

And that's because it was.

[kentuck]

4. What part do you disagree with?

Instead of attacking me personally??

[Buzz Clik]

12. Ah, it's okay. Nobody attacked you at all.

I simply object to you initiating similar threads every day.

[kentuck]

13. So what!?

I object to your simple- minded DEFENSE of everything this President does or says as if you are in some sort of idol worship. It's fucking sick.

[Buzz Clik]

16. Bummer.

If you didn't offer your lame, repetitive posts as such an easy target, I would have nothing to say to you at all.

Take a day off.

[kentuck]

17. LOOK at the history...

Your posts are much more predictable.

[Buzz Clik]

18. Let me predict this:

You will continue to post endlessly about Obama abominations.

I will comment on some of these threads.


Simple enough.

[kentuck]

19. You will continue to suck up to anti-Democratic policies...

I think that is predictable

[Buzz Clik]

20. I predict you will continue to want the last word.

Well?

[Riftaxe]

7. History will also record

well probably not...that I am opposed to his horrific record on civil rights.

I still voted for the fellow, after all in the end...what choice did i have?

American citizens can be killed at will...a little bit of a problem for me (f*ck due process).

non Americans can be slaughtered at will via drones,...a huge problem for me

Patriot Act...and etc. etc. etc.

Lord, we are back to warrantless wiretaps for another 4 years...was not even worth mentioning on this site. (your privacy does not belong to you).

While President Obama is no friend of civil rights, he was better then the alternative.

[SidDithers]

5. Uh huh...

Sid

[Prism]

6. He's an 1850s President

He's doing what he can under the system as it exists.

I have to say, I like him more now than I did in, say, in 2010. He has done some things which should always earn our admiration.

However.

Given the crisis of our times, of capitalism run amok, he has been as feeble as we'd figure a placeholder president would be. And by placeholder President, I mean the kind who is voted in as the crisis rages, making minor fixes but never quite tackling the problem of our age,

I don't know that I fault him personally. The Democratic Party veered right. They think bragging about tax cuts is a mark of their success. I mean, they've embraced Reagan to this weird degree. And, of course, they've grasped austerity as their mantra. Entitlement cuts are on the table. If President Obama can stave those off in his second term, he will be my personal hero. But offering them up before his second term has begun . . . well, I just don't know.

He is a hero in some ways, and a villain in others.

But all Presidents are.

But I'm glad we have him and not the other at this point in time.

[kentuck]

8. I put most of the blame on the Democratic Party....

in other words, I look in the mirror. The Party has a responsibility to make sure the President goes in a certain direction.

[Prism]

9. They think it's what will get them elected

But I hear you. When I sat there and watched Nancy Pelosi explain to me why chained CPI was just wonderful, I lost a little bit of faith. BUt, I don't expect much from the national party anymore. I just don't think they're in touch, and I don't think they care to be. Nancy does not live where I do, and I do not live in her world in turn.

[kentuck]

10. We compromise our principles...

to satisfy them, rather than have them vote our interests.

[Prism]

11. Our only hope

Is when the electorate rises up as one and says "You're nuts, lady." Fortunately for politicians, our elecorate is polarized, and so whatever our team does will earn the support of team members. And vice versa.

But eventually, people will hurt enough to say no more.

I just think that point is so far down the road that the pain will come irreversibly well after the time our politicians should have acted.

And then we'll all wonder "Gee, what happened?!" And then blame whoever is not us for it all.

[Pretzel_Warrior]

14. Gets shit done. Obamacare and killing 9/11 perpetrator

Allowing gays to serve openly in military and oh yeah, is first Nonwhite president of U.S. in history.

[grantcart]

15. Beyond the obvious they would note that Obama has

overseen the largest expansion of federal power and authority since FDR.

By expanding federal authority into the health and banking industry he has established a beach head that will allow the government to grow and establish single payer health care and more consumer power in banking.

Given the overheated rhetoric and the obvious racist response by the Republican opposition which was started the minute he took oath it will be viewed as a major strategic accomplishment.

Next up will be regularlizing the immigration status of millions of hard working undocumented and semi documented workers so that they can enjoy the full benefit of their labor here bringing them out of the shadows. Ironically this will further undermine Republican demographics and further fragment their base.

The biggest change at the end of 8 years of the Obama administration? The Republican Party will have engaged in 8 years of fruitless mindless opposition and been transformed from a national party to a regional party, possibly further decimated by the emergence of a second conservative regional party operating under the flag of the Libertarian Party.

The so called cultural wars will have come to a virtual collapse with 60-70% of the American public agreeing on extending civil rights to same sex partners, establishing a rational immigration policy.

What is not known is to what degree he will be able to bring the country to face the huge enviornmental and climate changes. I am guessing that after immigration the President will make green industry and fighting climate change the major focus of the administration.