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Republican take on Obama’s first year

Republican take on Obama’s first year

By Conner Whitehouse

As President Barack Obama’s first year as head of our nation draws to a close, we find ourselves looking back at things that he has done for our country. Whether or not we agree with what he has done or mostly has talked about doing, it’s hard to deny him the fact that he is taking some dramatic steps to bettering our nation. Sure there have been several issues that have ruffled some feathers even to the extent of full political brawls, but every leader endures these things. The healthcare reform being one of the greatest of his attempted reforms, this and military involvement in Middle East, environment issues, and finally the economy have all been major points in President Obama’s campaign and political agenda since his inauguration. I will issue the standard A through F grading scale on the following major issues and evaluate President Obama’s performance on the year.

C+: Healthcare Reform- As one of his moves in office it’s clear to see this reform is very important to President Obama. It also finds itself being one of the most controversial bills to date. At first, most all Republicans were against it, and it even caused a rift in the Democratic party. Regardless it met a large amount of opposition and where it might be a start to a good idea, there is serious work that needs to be done on it. The reform itself is somewhat Socialistic in nature and for that reason it intimidates many Americans. Steps are being made though and that’s what warrants the C+ grade.

B: Military Involvement- This was an issue that was greatly incorporated in Presidents Obama campaign. And frankly I haven’t seen much change, we’ve come to realize that we cannot simply pull all troops and equipment from the Middle East for fear of the large backlash that we could face. It seems that we haven’t taken steps to even begin the process though, the extra 30,000 troops justify this. Now the extra soldiers might be a necessary addition in order to clear things up quickly so the promises will be kept. Though the way Middle Eastern countries and their neighbors have been acting it will be interesting to see if we pull out as soon as we would like.

C: Environmental Issues-  In a year filled with Economic chaos and war. It’s no wonder an issue such as environmental sustainability would take the year off. President Obama used the Green Initiative to help drive in his campaign, so it’s odd that he would almost forget these issues. Mountain topping has continued strongly, and no move has been made on wind, solar, or nuclear power to clean up out emissions and get us in a healthier energy standing. Minor bills have been approved on car emissions and states rights to regulate it but nothing very major has been done.

B: Economy- Despite the government money that had to be spent to get the major banks and automobile makers back on their feet after years of unwise spending, the Obama administration has handled the crisis very well. It is unfortunate that we were put in a deficit by previous administrations, but the new guys have showed cunning and wisdom by avoiding a full economic failure and creating jobs. The economy is getting stronger and it’s safe to say that it will continue to improve over time.

All in all I do not believe that President Obama has lived up to the hype and praise of the media and citizens. In his defense he has only had one year so far, and shows plans for the future, but thus far there has not been too much action and more talking. I’ll give him a C+ on the year since the positive have far outweighed the negative. Inaction could get old after awhile as well though.

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Republican take on Obama’s first year