AP: PROMISES, PROMISES: Many Obama pledges unkept

[adamuu]

PROMISES, PROMISES: Many Obama pledges unkept
Jan 14, 1:47 PM (ET)
By PHILIP ELLIOTT

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama ends his first year in office with his to-do list still long and his unfulfilled campaign promises stacked high.

From winding down the war in Iraq to limiting lobbyists, Obama has made some progress. But the president has faced political reality and accepted - sometimes grudgingly - compromises that leave him exposed to criticism. Promises that have proven difficult include pledges not to raise taxes, to curb earmarks and to shut down the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba by the end of his first year.

"We are moving systematically to bring about change, but change is hard," Obama told a town hall crowd in California. "Change doesn't happen overnight."

That was in March.

During his two-year campaign, Obama thrilled massive crowds with soaring speeches, often railing against an Iraq war that now is seldom mentioned. His presidential comments now are often sober updates on issues like terrorism and the economy, a top priority now that emerged as a major issue only in the campaign's final weeks.

Obama's campaign ambition has been diluted with a pragmatism that has been the hallmark of Year One - without much of the progress he had hoped.

A look at some of the promises:
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THE ECONOMY, TAXES AND DEFICITS
-snip-
FOREIGN POLICY
-snip-
TERRORISM
-snip-
HEALTH CARE
-snip-
OTHER ISSUES
-snip-
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs explained that by saying:

"Even the toughest rules require reasonable exceptions."

[Richardo]

1. A lot more objectivity here: 502 promises, 91 kept, >50% in progress, 14 broken

http://politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2010/jan/14/rating-obamas-promises-1-year-mark/

Of 502 campaign promises, a PolitiFact analysis finds Obama has fulfilled 91 and achieved at least partial success with another 33. More than half of his promises have had enough progress to be rated In the Works.

He's put much of his foreign policy agenda into action, taken steps to reduce the American presence in Iraq and send more troops to Afghanistan, and his sweeping health care reform plan is on the brink of passage. The giant economic stimulus bill that passed in February made good on a host of promises on green energy, education and transportation.

Yet Obama has found change can come slowly, even with his party in control of Congress. Overall, PolitiFact's Obameter has rated 14 promises as Broken and another 87 Stalled.

AP is way too slanty for me.

[midnight]

2. The issue is not how many promises, but the priority of the list...

It is in this countries national interest to provide the best possible roads,bridges, schools, hospitals, ect.... but if people are going to be blocked via ability to pay, then the system is not in the best interest of national security.... Bailing out criminals furthers this threat to our countries national security.... We need to re-direct our priorities..... ASAP