Grade Obama's leadership on the big three issues

[joeprogressive]

Regardless of any of his numerous small accomplishments, the mid-term elections and ultimately the 2012 presidential election will be decided on how people feel Obama has handled the wars, the economy and health care. Grade him based on your expectations and given the fact that Democrats had majorities in the house and senate. Grading him in relative terms to Bush is pointless as Obama would receive straight A's.

My grades for him:

Wars: C-
Economy: C+
Health Care: D-

[secondwind]

1. Given the snake pit that is Washington, D.C. these days, and the recession,

three straight A's. Son of a bitch is doing everything he can, to keep this ship of state steady.

[joeprogressive]

3. Fair enough, but I guess I expected much more

and time is running out. If we can't accomplish anything meaningful with our current majorities it will be even more difficult as we bleed seats in 2010.

[RichGirl]

12. Really....did you expect....

That he would be as viciously attacked on a daily basis as he has been? Did you expect this campaign questioning his legitimacy? His place of birth? Did you expect that while he was speaking to congress could be called a liar, out loud by a member of our government?

Apparently you expected that the huge mess that Bush left him with would become sunshine and lollipops in less than a year.

Maybe it's your expectations that you need to revise.

[joeprogressive]

13. The vast, I mean vast majority of Liberals I talk with on a daily

basis are profoundly disappointed with him. This is not the change we voted for. All of those things you mentioned are horrible but they are mere distractions that should not have been major roadblocks to his agenda. He did not lead when he had the opportunity and now I fear that small window has closed. Therefore, I will hold on to my lofty expectations while weak Democrats sell our ideals down the river.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

23. you mean the birthers scared him off any Health Care push? Oh, I see.

And Orly taitz forced him to increase the number of targets in Afghanistan!

And Glenn Beck caused him to appoint Geithner!

Now it all makes sense.

[Hepburn]

2. Obama is not the change I voted for...n/t

[Phx_Dem]

21. You're so original with that tired overused line.

YOu probably wouldn't recognize change if it bit you in the ass.

[Hepburn]

28. No, but I do recognize asses...

...welcome to my IGNORE list...<click>

[Cha]

43. Yeah, it's like they're knee jerkin' brainwashed..

[watercolors]

4. THREE A'S FROM ME!!

He is working on all this issues so hard and if we are to grade any one, it should be congress! They are our problem!

[joeprogressive]

5. So there is no room for improvement on the three issues?

I would like to be a student in your class of low expectations where everyone gets an A.

[secondwind]

7. it's not a question of low expectations.....rather, perhaps, I am including

his efforts, and again, the snake pit that is Washington,D.C., our economy isn't the best, but I'm willing to bet your 401(k) would have tanked by now if John McCain and Bimbo were in the WH.

We would have had food riots, bread lines, higher unemployment, a global economic meltdown, etc. The list is endless. So, yes,three straight A's

[joeprogressive]

11. Yes, I shudder to think what life would have been like under McCain/Palin

but I expect 10 times more from Obama than I would have from any republican.

[Zynx]

6. Wars: C, Economy: B+, Health Care: B-

This was not graded on a curve.

[joeprogressive]

9. I could have gone higher on health care

However, given the expectation factor, I had to seriously down grade. The same is true when grading on the wars.

[zulchzulu]

8. My grades...

Wars: Incomplete
Economy: Incomplete
Health Care: Incomplete

Why? Because each of these issues are incredibly complicated and the top two were inherited from Bush. The Health Care isn't done yet since nothing has been signed yet.

[joeprogressive]

10. True, not the final exam but I am not asking you to grade the final

outcome, but merely his leadership to date. We can keep kicking this can down the road but the mid-terms will occur before these issues are completely resolved.

[Hansel]

33. +1

[nevergiveup]

14. OK

Wars: C
Economy: A
Health Care: A+ if he actually gets a health care bill through this corrupt entrenched wimpy congress.

[joeprogressive]

15. Yeah, I would have to say that with a Democratic majority in congress,

and given that the majority of Americans 55-65%, physicians (75%), AAFP, AMA and AARP all supported the public option; this watered down gift to insurance companies is a huge disappointment.

[nevergiveup]

20. I guess we have different perceptions

of the present situation. You call the the bill a "gift to insurance companies" and "huge disappointment". Under the present circumstances in Washington I call it a miracle. If 90% of Americans favored a public option the Repubs would still vote against a public option and this includes Lieberman and probably a couple weak-kneed centrist Democrats. The bill will probably result in a lot of desperate folks getting some basic health care. If this is true then we should all be happy for those folks and celebrate the little victories even though the final bill wasn't the reform we wanted.

[katandmoon]

16. FAIL on all three.

[Tippy]

17. He's doing all he can.....

Wars......... B-

Economy...... A+

Health Care.. A

[Knight Hawk]

18. My Grades

War.....D Economy C - Health Care B.........will grade again in 6 months

[Phx_Dem]

19. A, B, B

[msongs]

22. A+ for wars, he has 2 going on and 2 more coming. war he IS great at nt

[bornskeptic]

24. Wars B+, Economy C, Healthcare A

[some guy]

25. okay

wars:
as junior Senator from Illinois, he voted in favor of funding the occupations of Iraq & Afghanistan. As Presidential candidate he stated he would shift the emphasis of the "war of terror" to Afghanistan and did mention Pakistan.

Incursions into Yemen are a bonus.

Grade A+

economy:
He was quick to favor The Bush administrations push for a bail out of the big banks during his campaign of the Presidency, so it didn't really surprise me much that he would be a champion for wall street.

Grade A

health care:
there wasn't really anything in the campaign that indicated results would be the cock up they seem to be going to be.

Grade B

I had pretty low expectations, and am not really surprised he turned out to be a pro-corporate cipher. It would be near impossible for any other sort of candidate to get elected in this collapsing fascist empire.

Any one expecting an FDR type presidency from Obama was naive to the realities of corporate power in this nation.

edit fro clarity.

[CLANG]

26. B B F

[impik]

27. Z, Z and Z.

There, problem solved.

You lost any credibility at "small accomplishments".

[freddie mertz]

29. Wars: D-, Economy: D, HCR: F. nt

[seeinfweggos]

30. a+, a+, a+

great first year mr. President

[Exultant Democracy]

31. if we replace wars with foreign policy (an put a bush curve in) A-, C-, D-

if we leave it at wars B-, C-, D-

[ShortnFiery]

32. Here ya go: D- , D and D.

Wars: D- (not an "F" only because we have not bombed Iran ... yet!)
Economy: D
Health Care: D

[IndianaGreen]

34. He gets F on the war and health care, and a D- on the economy

The jury is still out on the economy, but time is rapidly running out. The wars and this health rip-off that is being passed as reform, are major failures.

[nsd]

35. A, B, B

[Milo_Bloom]

36. D, B-, D-

[Vidar]

37. Triple F.

[shadesofgray]

38. All F's not just because he's failed but because he's deliberately paving the way

to keep on failing for the next 3 years.

[last1standing]

39. I think your grades are very accurate.

Despite what all the cheerleaders think though, I would give him a solid "B" in foreign affairs. He's made some very good moves in that respect. Too bad for Obama that no one votes for foreign affairs.

[glen123098]

40. Wars: D- Economy B+ Healthcare D

[amandabeech]

41. Those of you who gave Obama decent grades on the economy must have good jobs.

Did you forget that a huge percentage of us either have no job or are working short hours in some shitty job? Are you happy with the continued high rate of outsourcing? I guess so. Me, me, me, me, me even here on DU.

[TheKentuckian]

42. I give...

Wars: C- (I'd give him an F- for entrenching us in AfPak to no good ends but he at least has pro-real America rhetoric and hey Afghanistan was a known commodity and maybe we'll get out of Iraq on schedule).

Economy: C---------------------------------- (1st priority always is "the stakeholders" not the people but the budget was pretty good and the hobbled stimulus probably kept things from falling completely into the abyss). Overall, this might be the biggest potential F with the economic team and corporate balllicking but I'll give credit where due.

Health Care: D- (corporate profit care makes my blood boil but giving a little credit for SCHIP)

[LWolf]

44. Wars: F.

Health Care: F
Education: F-
Economy: D

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

45. This would be a grade for the first quarter...

Foreign Policy: B
High marks for re-engaging the world as our ally, lower marks for not being clear about the future of Iraq/Afghanistan

Domestic Policy: B-
World economic meltdown seems to be averted, but needs work on job creation and relief for homeowners.

Health Care: C+
Failed to create a set of expectations and stick to them. Compromise is OK when you need to get the deal done, but compromising in July for a deal still under negotiation in January is not good strategy.

Edit: If I were to give an overall impression, I would say that it's curious that a President who made his bones as a great orator and communicator seems to have such a difficult time creating a clear and cohesive narrative about his own Administration.

[joeprogressive]

47. Your explanations are well thought out and I agree with them

Your overall impression is spot on.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

49. Improvements for next year

Foreign Policy: Start phased withdrawal from Iraq by this summer with all combat personnel out by mid-2011. Lean on the Karzai government in Afghanistan to at least put a lid on political corruption.

Domestic Policy: Start squeezing lenders to refinance troubled home loans. Work w/ Congress to create block grants to states that can quickly initiate infrastructure improvement projects. Work w/ Congress to create a two-year payroll tax "holiday" for small businesses that create jobs.

Health Care: (Assuming something very much like the Senate Version is enacted) Establish a federal oversight panel with "teeth" to ensure compliance by the insurance companies. Narrow the definition of acceptable overhead by the insurance companies. Create a public program to meet the needs of individuals who remain uninsured despite the new law.

[bigwillq]

48. Good post.

A lot of truth (both good and bad) in your summary. Thanks for posting. :thumbsup:

[mochajava666]

46. Wars: F, Economy D, Health Care F

[Myrina]

50. C, D, D.

:(

[tledford]

51. Wars, F; Economy, B; Healthcare, C

[rug]

52. F D C

[green917]

53. With the caveat that he's way better than the alternative:

Foreign Policy: D

On Diplomatic engagement: C
Still "my way or the highway" when it comes to developing nations and ALWAYS looking out for Corporate globalism

On Afghanistan: FAIL
No accountability for the Karzai government, a shitload of additional troops with ambiguous (and changing) definitions of if and when they will be done there (and what done, read as:victory, will look like)

On Iraq: D
Shuffling tired, over deployed, stop-lossed troops from one mistaken war to prop up another isn't a valid foreign policy.

On Iran: C+
Less "bomb first, ask no questions" rhetoric is good but, we can't expect to make headway while demanding they comply with everything we want just to get us to the bargaining table.

On Pakistan: FAIL
drone attacks that kill civilians "mistakenly" are a huge blemish on our standing in the world

On using even more private security contractors than the Bush administration: ENORMOUS FAIL
This requires no further comment

On ending torture: C-
I'd give him a higher grade but, I don't believe entirely that we aren't using any "enhanced interrogation" in places like Bagram.


Economy: FAIL

A Corporate whore by any other name is still a corporate whore (or a Chief of Staff if you prefer)

The President's economic team looks like a former executive phone list for Goldmann Sachs...tells me everything I need to know. And, with the latest revelations about Tim Geitner and his dealings with AIG during the bailout, I have ZERO faith that this Administration will do anything to really help the people of this nation economically. It's all big business don't ya know.

Health Care: ENORMOUS FAIL

"You only fight the fights that you can win? You fight the fights that need fighting!" -AJ McAnerny, "the American President"

"You miss 100% of the shots that you don't take" -Wayne Gretzky

I could go on and on. You don't start a negotiation by putting your compromise position on the table (even if you don't think you have the votes for the more progressive position). The President has not lead on the health care reform issue from day one. He should have clearly stated his position from the get go and asked the American people and the Congress to fight with him to ensure the reform that this country desperately needs. Instead, we got ridiculous platitudes about what he might support given the right set of circumstances, and what he thought was necessary and not necessary to the bill. His position has changed almost as many times as the Bush administration's position on why we attacked Iraq. This has been the worst sort of political kabuki and it's going to cost those of us who are lower or middle class a shit ton of money in the long run and line the pockets of the bastards who got us into this enormous mess in the first place (not unlike the bank bail out in that respect).

[CBR]

54. My grades...

Wars: C+
Economy: B
Health Care: A-

[busymom]

55. B+, B-, F

[Capers]

56. FDF

[quaker bill]

57. an I for the war

for "incomplete", could be a solid B or an F, we will see next year.

a B on the economy, good but not quite good enough yet.

an A- on healthcare, alot of good stuff, with a few modest problems.