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The legacy of Barak Obama
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Jan 10, 2017 23:05:46   #
JFlorio Loc: Seminole Florida
 
And you need to use quote reply so we know who your dumbass is talking to. Better yet quit talking and reminding us how stupid you are.
poppabear42 wrote:
You need to wipe the poop out of your eyes, ears, and your mouth...

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Jan 11, 2017 00:08:09   #
kenjay Loc: Arkansas
 
slatten49 wrote:
Soapboxie»US Politics

Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States, the first born outside the continental U.S., and the first African-American President in history. He is also the 17th President to win re-election. He also won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2009, just nine months after his election. As his Presidency draws to a close, it's important to look at his accomplishments.

Like all U.S. Presidents, his two terms have had their ups and downs. There are those who believe he was the worst President ever, and some who believe he's one of the better Presidents. Here is how I see his legacy.

Affordable Care Act...

Also known as Obamacare, this lengthy piece of legislation's standing is where the majority of his legacy will always stand, much like Social Security for FDR and the Civil Rights Act for Lyndon Johnson, just to name a few. This is the signature bill of his time in office, and its successes, and failures, now and forever, will affect how President Obama will always be viewed historically as President.

The bill is not without issues, from the definition of full-time employment to the delays of implementation, first for the employer mandate, then for the delay of the employee mandate, to various court challenges of its many aspects. And that states, and insurance companies, have dropped from the program adds to its issues. Broken promises such as "If you like your health care, you can keep it" (rated by the Washington Post as the lie of the year in 2013) have hurt this legislation.

On the plus side, more Americans are covered than before, costs (for some) are dramatically down, and children can be covered until 25. On the downside, the employer mandate was for full-time employees, defined as over 30 hours a week, meaning more people are working part-time than ever before. And people get fined for not getting insured.

The act was also under fire during the primary by Socialist Bernie Sanders, for not going far enough, and by the entire right for overextending the authority of federal government. Should this law be dismantled, or even further stripped, history will not look as highly on the Obama Presidency.

Arab Spring...

Name a country in Central and South America. You'll find that at some point in our history, since James Monroe, that we have either invaded or meddled in their affairs, even overthrowing governments, such as Panama (twice), and backing rebel factions. Since Truman, whenever communism rears its head, we have a history of trying to change the regime. The Middle East is no different, whether it was backing the Shah in Iran to supporting the group that would become al Qeada in Afghanistan against Russia or Desert Storm, even Iraqi Freedom. Arab Spring was our latest attempt to "fix" other nations' "bad" governments.

Arab Spring funded rebel forces in Libya, the Muslim Brotherhood, and civil war in Yemen and Syria. Some of these forces would join with a rising terror threat called Islamic State, a group that would overrun parts of Syria and Iraq.

While Iraqi Freedom might have helped set the stage for IS, Arab Spring provided this group with military assets and money. On a related note, had we not helped overthrow Libya dictator Gadhafi the Benghazi consulate attack might not have happened as al Qeada might not have risked the ire from him due to someone again drawing the ire of the US on him.

Scandals...

Fast & Furious was a gun-running operation that sold assault weapons to various factions of the Mexican mob and resulted in the deaths of two Border Patrol agents. His IRS targeted conservative groups more than other political fundraising groups. He traded five prisoners for a deserter. Ed Snowden revealed the NSA had expanded the Patriot Act. The VA was found to provide poor care for war veterans. The General Services Administration spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a lavish training conference. His former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton did all of government business on an unauthorized, and poorly protected, private server. He also claimed, falsely, that the Benghazi attack was the result of a protest about a video on YouTube as opposed to al Qeada.

In his defense, the volume of scandals pales in comparison to many of his predecessors. And with the exception of Hillary's Email-gate, as far as can be proven, his administration is rather open. The most "transparent ever" claim is dubious, but his is much more open than the Cloak and Dagger operation of his predecessor, and lacks the chicanery that was common in the Clinton administration.

"Shovel-Ready Jobs"...

In 2009, Barack Obama pushed for a stimulus program that would boost the economy and provide alternative energy, thus easing American dependency of foreign oil. These jobs, he declared, were "shovel-ready". After Solyndra, the largest beneficiary of the stimulus, declared bankruptcy, along with four other beneficiaries, he was forced to admit there were no shovel-ready jobs. Somewhat ignored in this was that Solyndra had helped fund his campaign.

With that said, 63 of the 68 companies that received money from the Department of Energy are still in business, so the program hasn't been a complete wash. But it also has failed to improve a sluggish economy, something the stimulus package was purported to do. In fact, it was about as successful as the Bush stimulus.

Divided We Fall...

Often times a President gets blamed for things he had no control over. Think George H.W. Bush getting hit over the economy. He didn't want dozens of dot.com businesses to burst their bubble, causing massive unemployment. But the Dot.com bubble hangs over his administration as much a cloud as the Vietnam War darkens LBJ's Presidency.

In Barack Obama's case, the rise of the Tea Party and its opposition to his policies wasn't something he desired. Nor would I claim that the chaos mongers in Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter are things he desired. And certainly not the rise of mass shootings over the past two years.

But his rhetoric, and unwillingness to condemn the riots and anarchy these two groups caused hasn't helped. And his blaming the weapons for the mass shootings seems to encourage this behavior. At the least, his alienation of whole groups in America with his speeches certainly hasn't aided efforts to curb these groups.

And his inability, and his "take it or leave it" attitude, to work with Congress has continually fueled the Washington gridlock. Every President has had trouble with the opposing party. (Heck, LBJ couldn't get his own party to back the Civil Rights Act....) But neither side was willing to work out the differences.

Common Core...

This doesn't include Common Core, which at least wasn't No Child Left Behind and received input from actual teachers, while the Iran nuclear deal has Rob Deer feel to it. (For those unfamiliar with baseball, Deer was a professional ball player known for either hitting home runs or striking out. There wasn't much middle ground.) The home run would be that Iran becomes civilized and joins the international community. The strikeout is that Iran will develop nukes and use them. (Smart money is on the latter, btw) The normalization of Cuban relations could be an improvement. And then there's the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which doesn't really have a downside.

In truth, this sums up the Obama Presidency. For every accomplishment, there's a "Yeah, but..." And there's many things that don't have an upside.

So where do I rate him? To put him on the bottom is an insult. To say he's worse than the scandal-ridden administrations of Ulysses S. Grant and Warren G. Harding is insulting. He doesn't merit inclusion with other bottom feeders such as Herbert Hoover (Great Depression), Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, Millard Filmore, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor (all four had a hand in setting up the Civil War), and James Polk (he invaded Mexico...), or Andrew Johnson (nearly impeached by his own party), or Benjamin Harrison and George W. Bush. (I'd rank him the 10th worst, tied with Jimmy Carter.) And this is the usual suspects regarding worst Presidents ever.

He definitely doesn't belong on Mount Rushmore (Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Teddy Roosevelt), nor does he compare with the others in the top 10 (names such as FDR, Andrew Jackson, Woodrow Wilson, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, JFK, LBJ, and Reagan).

In my opinion, he rates somewhere in the middle. We've had worse Presidents, we've had better.
Soapboxie»US Politics br br Barack Obama is the 4... (show quote)

He ranks at the bottom with Woodrow Wilson, Andrew Jackson and Jimmy Gubar.

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Jan 11, 2017 00:17:10   #
kenjay Loc: Arkansas
 
poppabear42 wrote:
628;
You need to wake up! and many of you other dead minded what ever, should grow up, because without a single doubt, that George Walker Bush, is by far, the worst excuse for being called man, or president, that ever took the oath of office. I can understand that the job of being a president is a powerful, but not an exactly defined job. It is comparable to raising children, because neither actually come with instructions, or a hand full of precise, or hands on manuals, because there are too many exclusive, and first time situations, and decisions that have to be made, and dealt with whether you are a president, or parent.
So, the quality of a president, or parent is to make the best decisions that you, as a president, or as a parent can, to protect the country, or your child, the only difference between the two is that as a parent, and you are fortunate enough to have a partner to help with those decisions, it should make your situations easier to deal with. But, if you are not fortunate, or unfortunate enough, to have a partner to help, you do the best that you can, and have faith in God.
Here is that difference between being a president, and being a parent...As president, they have the good fortune of being guaranteed to have partners, through the election process, because like the president, they all were elected to be the partners, by the people of this country, just like president. The reason there are so many partners, is to assist, and help the president make all of these unforeseen, and maybe even deadly situations, that can hurt, or even worse, destroy this country.
Being the president, and depending on his partners to do the jobs of assisting, and helping him to carry the weight of the unknown, and totally unforseen situations of this country, and it has to be pure hell, to be left all alone, to carry that weight, practically all by himself, it would scare the hell out of anybody that I can think of, especially d.j. tramp, but that is why the tramp wants the luxury, of having every member of his family assisting, and helping him to make all of his decisions for him.
Even he, does not want to put his trust, and presidential fate in the hands of the notorious "DO NOTHING" repukeblicans, but, at least he has a choice, even if his choices are going to be even worse than the repukeblicans, if that is possible. But this only clarifies, and defines his punkness, and "HO" like ways. And Putin is going to use him just like he is the tramp's pimp, or a two bit ho, the only problem with Putin pimping the tramp, is that we all will suffer. Personally I wish that Donald J. Trump would just vanish into purgatory where he lives...He just might be a Russian spy.
However, President Obama should be commended, and appreciated, for being the first president in history to run this country by himself, even when the partners that were elected to assist, and help him, were doing every damned thing in their power to betray, hinder, or obstruct every damned thing he tried to do for this country, when they weren't on one of their unearned vacations, but they've been on vacation for sixteen years anyway...The proof of that is when they helped, and supported George Walker Bush put this country, and the world in total turmoil.
So, for the ungrateful whatever, that even had the nerve to deny him a place on Rushmore, it just compounds your utter ignorance...His should be the largest face on that rock.


So, if you have a bit of decency, or respect
628; br You need to wake up! and many of you othe... (show quote)

You are actually the worst excuse for a man I doubt you even walk up right. At best you are a high functioning moron.

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Jan 11, 2017 00:20:13   #
kenjay Loc: Arkansas
 
poppabear42 wrote:
You need to wipe the poop out of your eyes, ears, and your mouth...

Stop projecting moron and keep your poop in your face.

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Jan 11, 2017 00:21:20   #
kenjay Loc: Arkansas
 
poppabear42 wrote:
Damn!!!!You are sicker than I thought

Well you are not rational come back after your meds kick in.

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Jan 11, 2017 00:56:03   #
lindajoy Loc: right here with you....
 
JFlorio wrote:
Notice I spelled dyed, died, Freudian slip or wishful thinking? You decide.


I noticed but no need to clarify, both work.....

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Jan 11, 2017 03:50:54   #
Coos Bay Tom Loc: coos bay oregon
 
I'll hand it to you also that you believe in your assessment of President Obama. The economy did improve by the will of the American people but imagine if the automakers went under and the banks all collapsed. . Now it is your turn to shine. I hope we do but things are not starting well
JFlorio wrote:
I'll give you this Tom, you're a true believer. If you were to say Obama was president when the American people worked the country out of a recession despite Obama's policies you would have nailed it. I'm not being a smart ass here either. The ACA is a job killer because of the many regulations, over 17,000 pages. Now we all know regulations from Washington don't generally reduce costs. Matter of fact they increase costs. The full time job definition in the ACA is a fulltime job killer. However; many overlook the Dodd Frank law which is the biggest job killer written. Just like the ACA we were sold and told a pack of lies. This bill was sold as a check on Wall Street. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Wall Street Banks are growing under Dodd Frank. So how is this bill a jobs killer? Ask yourself; "Why has the economic recovery been the most sluggish since the Great Depression?" The answer is that there are more small businesses failing than being started. Small business has always been the backbone of job creation. What does a small business need most? Capital. The Dodd Frank regulations are so onerous the small community banks can't decipher or keep up. The regs make it too expensive for the community bank to compete. They cannot. Small business used to get loans from the local community bank. Not anymore. Common sense can show the negative effects of this bill we have been lied to about. Before Dodd Frank 75% of checking accounts were free. Today; 39%. Ask yourself why, and then do some research....or not.
I'll give you this Tom, you're a true believer. If... (show quote)

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Jan 11, 2017 09:36:06   #
JFlorio Loc: Seminole Florida
 
The automakers wouldn't have gone under. They would have restructured their business under the bankruptcy laws. Why do you think raping the bond holders and shutting successful dealerships down was O.K.? Government and big bank greed was the cause of the housing crisis, yet Democrats give them a pass. The big banks, the banking side are insured and should never have been bailed out. What's not starting out well? How so?
Coos Bay Tom wrote:
I'll hand it to you also that you believe in your assessment of President Obama. The economy did improve by the will of the American people but imagine if the automakers went under and the banks all collapsed. . Now it is your turn to shine. I hope we do but things are not starting well

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Jan 11, 2017 10:01:38   #
Mikeyavelli
 
Obama couldn't tell you what he did, he reads whatever the international left puts on his teleprompter. On his own, the man stutters and speaks with a jumbled syntax. He's below average intelligence with the ability to lie straight faced. Good riddance to obama, America's enemy.

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Jan 12, 2017 07:17:11   #
ed4short Loc: New Hampshire
 
I absolutely agree with sandy 628

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Jan 13, 2017 02:57:41   #
Coos Bay Tom Loc: coos bay oregon
 
JFlorio wrote:
The automakers wouldn't have gone under. They would have restructured their business under the bankruptcy laws. Why do you think raping the bond holders and shutting successful dealerships down was O.K.? Government and big bank greed was the cause of the housing crisis, yet Democrats give them a pass. The big banks, the banking side are insured and should never have been bailed out. What's not starting out well? How so?
I don't think any thing was ok and yes unregulated bankers did every shady thing they could to make big bucks fast. As far as things not going so well--unless it is all fake news There is a lot of trouble ahead.

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