In my opinion, Barack Obama has now solidified his position as the best President the US (world) has ever had, at least in modern times. Let’s leave Honest Abe out of this one.
*Before I begin I want to clarify a few points. First, we all understand the concept of taxation. When I claim that something is “free” I do not think it appears out of thin air. Second, I understand that there are rankings of all US Presidents done by various organizations today. For the purpose of this discussion I am going to ignore them because they are based on opinions only. As we all know partisanship clouds judgement and memories are short. Last, I understand that Mr. Obama’s legacy is not going to be fully realized for another 20 years or so but since I don’t have a time machine and I am bored tonight I will ignore that fact as well.
Here are the main reasons that I consider my thesis statement to be true:
He is the first black President of the United States. This in itself is an amazing accomplishment.
He gave every single US citizen and legal immigrants access to healthcare for the first time ever. When all is said and done this could amount to as many as 40,000,000 people. No longer will poor women with lumps on their breasts just assume that their fate is certain death. No longer will someone born with a poor heart be turned away from an insurance provider. As someone in his late 30s I have seen US Presidents talk and talk and talk about implementing similar programs and none of them had the balls to do it (looking at your Clinton). Mr. Obama knew that it would be political suicide yet he didn't once cower to his opponents. I believe that “Obamacare” is the single most important piece of legislation passed since the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He came into office a month after the worst recession since the Great Depression and somehow turned things around almost immediately.
His stimulus bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) passed in 2009 had an immediate effect. Jobs were created and the private sector exploded overnight.
He ended the war in Iraq. What else needs to be said about this?
He ended the war in Afghanistan. Again, what else needs to be said about this?
Cuba. 50 years of failed policy - ended.
He allowed gays to serve in the military by repealing the “don’t ask don’t tell” policy of his predecessor. Seems like a no-brainer to us today but that was an ugly battle that he chose to fight for LGBT equality.
He stopped torturing detainees.
He killed Moammar Gaddafi.
He killed Osama Bin Laden.
He shut the "birthers" up in an epic fashion on the same week that he got Osama.
Michelle's childhood obesity project.
He cares for the environment. No to Keystone, discussion with China, aggressively boosted fuel efficiency standards in cars, declared CO2 a pollutant, etc. He also invested $90 billion bucks into green energy.
Free college. Not only will this do the obvious but it will also result in an overall reduction in tuition from other institutions.
Wall Street reform. Personally I would like to see much more of this but overall Obama’s Dodd-Frank law and Consumer Protection Act have been seen as major successes.
He repaired America’s reputation overseas. Outside of America (and pockets of right-wing Canada and/or the Middle East), the entire world loves this man. Compare this to GW Bush and what he did for America’s reputation.
There you have it. These are my main reasons for considering Obama to be the best ever. There are other bullets but these are the most significant to me. Feel free the dispute these points if you wish. I’d love to hear what others think.
Lastly, sorry to those of you who already read this. It was removed for having nothing to do with Canadian politics. I challenged the removal but as always it fell on deaf ears...even on a week where a dozen Dal facebook articles were posted here without a word about their political irrelevance.