Thanks Obama. You'll be missed. Profoundly. Obama’s Top 50 Accomplishments 1. Passed Health Care Reform After five presidents over the course of a century failed to create universal health insurance, signed the Affordable Care Act in 2010. More than twenty million Americans have gained coverage since the passage of the law, which provides subsidies for Americans to buy coverage, expands Medicaid eligibility, and prohibits insurers from denying coverage to people with preexisting conditions. The uninsured rate has dropped from 16 percent in 2010 to 9 percent in 2015. The law also mandates free preventive care, allows young people to stay on their parents’ policies up to age twenty-six, and imposes a ban on annual and lifetime caps on benefits. 2. Rescued the Economy Signed the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009 to spur economic growth amid the most severe downturn since the Great Depression. As of October 2016, the economy had added 15.5 million new jobs since early 2010 and set a record with seventy-three straight months of private-sector job growth. The unemployment rate, which hit a sustained peak of about 10 percent in 2009, has dropped to 4.6 percent as of November 2016. 3. Passed Wall Street Reform Signed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in 2010 to re-regulate the financial sector after its practices caused the Great Recession. The law tightens capital requirements on large banks and other financial institutions, allows the government to take them into receivership if they pose a threat to the economy, and limits their ability to trade with customers’ money for their own profit. Dodd-Frank also created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to crack down on abusive lending and financial services. By the end of fiscal year 2016, the CFPB had handled nearly one million consumer complaints and taken actions that resulted in $11.7 billion in relief for more than twenty-seven million consumers. 4. Negotiated a Deal to Block A Nuclear Iran Led six nations in reaching an agreement with Iran that requires the country to end its nuclear weapons program and submit to a rigorous International Atomic Energy Agency inspections regime in exchange for lifting global sanctions. The deal—which resulted from first toughening sanctions against Iran—also blocked Iran’s pathways to building a bomb, slowing down the development time for a weapon from three months to one year if Iran were to break its commitments. 5. Secured U.S. Commitment to a Global Agreement on Climate Change Provided key leadership to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which produced the 2015 Paris Agreement, a commitment by 197 nations to reduce global carbon emissions and limit the global rise in temperatures to below 2 degrees Celsius. 6. Eliminated Osama bin Laden In 2011, ordered the Special Forces raid of the secret compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, in which the terrorist leader was killed and a trove of al-Qaeda documents was retained. 7. Ended U.S. Combat Missions in Iraq and Afghanistan After an initial troop surge in Afghanistan, brought home 90 percent of the nearly 180,000 troops who were deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan when he took office, leaving only a small contingent of forces to assist the Iraqi and Afghani militaries against insurgents and the Taliban. The withdrawal from Iraq created the vacuum that ISIS has filled. But, recently, without redeploying ground troops, the U.S. has helped the Iraqi military in reversing ISIS’s gains. 8. Turned Around the U.S. Auto Industry In 2009, injected $62 billion (on top of the $13.4 billion in loans from the George W. Bush administration) into ailing GM and Chrysler in return for equity stakes and agreements for massive restructuring. By December 2014, the car companies had repaid $70.4 billion of the funds, and the Center for Automotive Research estimated that 2.5 million jobs were saved. 9. Repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’ Ended the 1990s-era restriction and formalized a new policy allowing gays and lesbians to sersve openly in the military for the first time. 10. Supported Federal Recognition of Same-Sex Marriages Decided in 2011 that the federal government would no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act, which restricted federal marriage recognition to opposite-sex couples. In June 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down key portions of the law as unconstitutional, allowing married same-sex couples to finally receive federal protections like Social Security and veteran benefits. 11. Reversed Bush Torture Policies Two days after taking office, signed an executive order banning the so-called “enhanced interrogation” techniques used by the CIA under President Bush and considered inhumane under the Geneva Conventions. Also released the secret Bush administration legal opinions supporting the use of these techniques. 12. Established Rules to Limit Carbon Emissions from Power Plants Finalized a “Clean Power Plan” in 2015 through new EPA regulations, setting the first-ever carbon pollution standards for existing power plants. When fully implemented in 2030, the new rules will result in a 32 percent reduction in carbon emissions compared to 2005. 13. Normalized Relations with Cuba In 2014, took steps to open diplomatic and commercial ties with Cuba, ending the failed Cold War policy of isolation. In March 2016, direct mail flights to Cuba resumed for the first time in fifty years. American tourists may also now freely visit the country. 14. Put Medicare on Sounder Financial Footing Slowed the growth of health care spending through cost-saving measures enacted as part of the ACA, ensuring the solvency of Medicare’s principal trust fund through 2028. 15. Protected DREAMers from Deportation Took executive action in June 2012 to protect undocumented young people brought to the U.S. as children (so-called DREAMers) from deportation and allow them to apply for work permits. 16. Established Net Neutrality Directed the Federal Communications Commission to issue a rule classifying internet service providers as a public utility and forcing them to treat all web traffic the same, regardless of source. After years of litigation, a federal court upheld the FCC’s rule, meaning providers can’t favor certain websites or block others. 17. Protected Two Liberal Seats on the U.S. Supreme Court Nominated and obtained confirmation for Sonia Sotomayor (the first Hispanic person and third woman to serve on the Court) in 2009 and Elena Kagan (the fourth woman) in 2010. They replaced David Souter and John Paul Stevens, respectively. 18. Boosted Fuel Efficiency Standards Released new fuel efficiency standards in 2011 that will increase fuel economy to the equivalent of 54.5 miles per gallon for cars and light-duty trucks by model year 2025. 19. Kicked Banks Out of Federal Student Loan Program, Expanded Pell Grant Funding As part of the 2010 health care reform bill, signed a measure ending the decades-old practice of subsidizing banks to provide college loans. As a result, all students began getting their federal student loans directly from the federal government. More than half of the savings ($36 billion over ten years) is dedicated to expanding Pell Grants to lower-income students. 20. Improved America’s Image Abroad With new policies, diplomacy, and rhetoric, reversed a sharp decline in world opinion toward the U.S. (and the corresponding loss of “soft power”) during the Bush years. Favorable opinion toward the United States rose during Obama’s first term in ten of fifteen countries surveyed by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, with an average increase of 26 percent, and have stayed high ever since. ... http://washingtonmonthly.com/magazine/januaryfebruary-2017/obamas-top-50-accomplishments-revisited/
Asks why someone thinks Obama is a good president... Then dismisses any and every reason. Although, I guess you can't expect a fair non-partisan analysis from someone that argued FDR was a bad president.
Most are outright lies or things that aren't actually good things. When the very first thing on the list is bribing enough Democrats with pork in order to pass awful legislation that barely made it to the end of his term without collapsing......well you just know it's going to be a hilarious list. I mean, then another is something that is often blamed on Bush when people point out that pulling out of Iraq was a bad thing.....and yet here it is again listed as an Obama accomplishment. C'mon, this list couldn't have been intended to be taken seriously.
17. Protected Two Liberal Seats on the U.S. Supreme Court Nothing more says party over country than this statement.
20. Dominated Bigotexx's Emotions for Eight Years... and counting. Obama dominated Bigotexx's emotions like nothing that's ever been seen on this BBS previously. A maestro performance by Barack Hussein Obama. 21. Brought Out the Closet Racists, White Nationalists, White Supremacists, and looney Wingnuts Obama also was king at bringing out looney right wing conspiracy theories from birth certificates to Jade Helm. Obama was DOMINANT at getting closet racists and looney wingnuts to expose themselves to the light of day. Obama's mere presence made White Nationalists and White Supremacists come out of the woodwork to present false equivalencies and nonsense with a rage that we haven't seen since George Wallace ran as the White Supremacist candidate for President. Obama also, by pure Obama black magic, made wingnuts forget they were Americans and had them siding with ex-KGB agent Vladimir Putin over American Democracy. We'll not soon forget.
There are some things on this list in which I disagree w/ how they were done - but the overall intent and outcome of his administration was positive. Many forget what position this country found itself 8 years ago. The question I ask myself to determine whether a presidency was successful is, "Are we better than we were 8 years ago." The answer is yes, largely. Could he have done things differently and more effectively? Absolutely, and Obama would be the first to tell you this. I think he was terribly ineffective in some areas, but I'm not sure what he could have done differently to change some of these things. His foreign policy was a bit of a mess though. A more concrete plan in place would have strengthened our place in the world. The last accomplishment I think is incredible, considering the past and potential follies of other presidents. Many may disagree w/ some of his policy decisions, but the fact that his presidency was scandal free was a relief.
I'll give him credit for number 1 - it isn't perfect but it gets the ball rolling. However, number 2? Ben Bernanke was a George W Bush appointee and the legislation Obama signed in 2009 was drafted in 2008 and was largely the work of congress. Obama also had nearly everyone of his jobs-related bills struck down by Republicans (what job-related legislation did he craft, again?). So there is no way you can assign a "rescue" of the economy to Obama. And number 7? WTF?
He was great for the oil industry and fracking! And also for #8 he developed Tesla to revive American innovation in autos.
What are some objective standards by which to judge the success of a presidency? It's hard to convince Republican voters that these really count as accomplishments when there is so little bipartisan agreement on anything.
I'm not a Republican, but a decent bit of those "achievements" are dubious. I think Obama was certainly better than W Bush, but that is a very low bar. He has been almost turned into a deity by the people who like him and his major failures have been kind of ignored. He was able to ride a solid economic recovery since he came in right at the bottom. I will give him credit he did call the bottom of the market. My worthless opinions quickly going thru the top 10 on that list 1. Healthcare - Yes he got his reform passed, but he did it in such a fashion that I don't think it is going to stand the test of time. Parts of it will live on, but much of it is going to get shot down with the incoming administration and Congress. I think if he wasn't so heavy handed and overly ambitious with his approach then he might have been able to get some more of the combative Republicans on board. The Republicans went Operation Shutdown a la Derek Bell after they were rebuked during the election, but I think Obama could have done a bit more to reach across the aisle on these reforms. The Republicans have continued to fight the ACA over the entire course of Obama's term and now it looks like it is in serious jeopardy with this complete party switch in govt. 2. Economy - He simply didn't rescue the economy. He came in at the right time and didn't do anything too crazy. 3. Wall Street Reform - I can't begin to tell you every aspect of Dodd Frank, but it was extremely onerous and never really fixed the "too big" problem with "too big to fail". Sure it repealed the deregulations under W Bush, but I don't know what it did other than make it stupidly hard for me to get a home mortgage. Wells Fargo was still able to scam me out of money even after this act. I ****ing hate that bank. It made me learn about how much better credit unions were for mortgages and loans. Oh and it also limited my max pay as a trader to 90%. Some other traders got limited to 80%....no real guidance from the govt was ever given on that but whatever lol. 4. Iran deal - It was good and it was good we had a president that didn't conform to the rhetoric and propaganda that the US had put out there for decades about Iran's nuclear ambitions. 5. Global Climate deal - It isn't bad to promote environmentalism and protection of our environment, but I don't know what this accomplishes. China and India are still spamming tons of coal plants. Also, we have to recognize the bulk of our reduction of carbon emissions was from switching to natural gas due to the fracking revolution. Someone please correct me if I am wrong there. If Obama was able to have developed nuclear power like his energy secretaries had wanted then I think his anti-carbon achievements could have been much greater and longer lasting. Currently, nuclear power plants are at risk of being shuttered which would increase carbon emissions. Hopefully Trump's stupid ass is actually serious about doing this in a responsible fashion. 6 and 7. bin Laden, Iraq, and Afghanistan - Yes he got rid of him, but he gave ISIS carte blanche after pulling out of Iraq and assuming the Iraqi govt was going to be responsible and competent. He was put in a horrible situation by W Bush, but staying in Iraq to help mediate Sunni/Shia divisions and getting out of Afghanistan would have been the best course. Also, his support of "rebels" (which amounted to Islamists and mercenaries) in Libya, Egypt, and Syria has been an abject failure. Somehow Obama has got a free pass on his train wrecks in the Middle East simply because we weren't committing troops. To this day he still doesn't seem to understand how bad he messed up Libya. Our proxy war in Syria and desire for regime change has been a pretty spectacular **** up as well. Lastly, the expansion of drone use has been questionable at best and they have terrorized innocent civilians. 8. Auto Industry - Yes he bailed out some dysfunctional companies and it worked out in the end. I don't know if non-union industries would get this benefit, but whatever....it worked out. I can't really call it a hallmark achievement. Also, it's hard to say whether or not their lenders could have worked a deal out on their own. I don't think it was totally necessary for the govt to backstop it. I think the companies could have gone thru traditional bankruptcies and reorganizations and perhaps emerged stronger, but whatever. 9. and 10. Repealing DATA and recognizing same sex marriage - This was one of the bright spots for Obama. He wasn't encumbered by the Republican morality bs they have. He has been a leader on LGBT issues and he has promoted a general climate of tolerance and acceptance which is excellent to see.
I'm pretty sure this is meant as a joke. He gave Iran the nuke and his Healthcare law alrdy is such a ****ing mess that 70% want it repealed. The economy is a nightmare right now. The author knows these things.
The three most useful metrics to determine the success of a president are 1. Healthcare premium costs going up or down? 2. How many Filipino presidents **** talk the president? 3. If Putin approves
The economy is a nightmare right now.... K Iran got the nukes? How do you debate these people with a straight face? Help me Lord.
I think the most important metric of Obama's legacy at least for conservatives is whether or not Putin approves it. How do I know this? Because right wingers even on this message board wank off to Putin whenever he makes jabs at our president. I think that's a pretty reasonable assessment of how conservstive judge Obama today right?
Holy crap!!, what a shitlist. If he gets direct credit for all of that the it's only fair he also get credit for trump winning the election, repubtards winning everything and becoming majority, global warming, new cold war, fake news, Orlando, San Bernardino, Charleston, Boston, and other terrorists attacks against America and American assets during his presidency, etc... I mean he's so amazing that I'm giving him credit for the amazing **** I took this morning! Best one of the new year to Obama's credit!
