Rate the Obama Administration's first year...

[Skip Intro]

Poll question: Rate the Obama Administration's first year...

[scheming daemons]

1. Too many people are rating this past week, and not really the past year

....

[ProSense]

3. I don't think that's it.

There are some people who have considered Obama a failure since November 2008.

[LWolf]

11. Yes.

He began failing the moment he began making appointments, aligning himself with the problems, rather than with fresh solutions.

[ProSense]

19. "He began failing the moment he began making appointments"

Absurd.

[LWolf]

22. That habit of labeling anything one can't argue with as

"absurd" (or any other derisive label) is ineffective and not worthy of respect.

He began failing the moment he began making appointments. Appointing a squad of centrist/corporatist/dlc/3rd way/"new" Democrats was a banner announcing the path he was choosing for his administration. The wrong path.

A path that does not, has not, and will not lead to "change we can believe in."

[ProSense]

24. IMO, absurd. n/t

[LWolf]

28. That's better. Everyone has opinions, and many

fall back on that when they can't offer up anything of substance to support their point. For example, many of my students, and their parents, tell me that they don't "believe" in evolution. In their opinion, there is no such thing.

Many opinions are worth less than the manure I'm shoveling out of horse pens today.

[ProSense]

29. "That's better." Did you think it was someone else's opinion? n/t

[LWolf]

30. No. It's just better that you acknowlege it as opinion, instead of stating it as fact. nt

[ProSense]

31. Oh brother. n/t

[Hansel]

34. Some even longer than that.

There were some people who begrudgingly put on a game face of supporting him who couldn't wait for him to even be perceived as slipping up so they could start bashing him and say "I told you so" because they haven't gotten over the fact that their candidates lost the primary. There are supporters of two candidates who fit in this group and one of them is not John Edwards supporters.

Some were so desperate they were posting garbage from right wing rags almost from day one. And some of them aren't even trying to disguise it any more as they post openly congratulatory banter amongst themselves and lament on how much better it would have been if the rest of us would have had the good sense to support their candidate. Perhaps Skinner could make a "Mission Accomplished" avatar available to them so they can use it during their gloating sessions.

I am disappointed in some of the things he's done not so much policy wise, since he was very clear about what his policies were going to be and how hard it was going to be to enact him, but because of his lackadaisical leadership style so far. He hasn't shown the leadership I expected, although I think he is beginning to wake up.

I am even more disappointed in the spinelessness of our congress. Obama doing a spine transplant on every member of congress who needs one might be even more than even "the one" his opponents mockingly referred to to as the "Messiah" can do.

With everything that he had to deal with this year and with the hyperbolic sniping from some on both the right and the left, I give him a B+. Our standing in the world is significantly better, he averted a economic meltdown and he got further with health care than any president ever. He also ranks high in national security which is a major feat for a Democrat. I think he should have focused more on putting job legislation out there and daring the Republicans to vote against it.

I think with a little stronger leadership and more masterful use of the bully pulpit he could have done better. He has this in him and let's hope he finally gets that and the Supreme Court fascist decision on campaign finance hasn't made that a moot point.

[HughMoran]

45. Doesn't matter

It just doesn't.

[Tesha]

33. I gave him an F, and I'm considering the entire year.

On several different issues, he didn't just ignore my positions, he
(or his designees, such as Rahm) went out of his way to give my
positions the Presidential finger stuck in my eye. So I'll now
happily return the favor.

Tesha

[timeforpeace]

2. The past week was the culmination of the events of the past year. Almost perfectly so.

[scheming daemons]

4. The Supreme Court ruling was because they're afraid of Obama

It's a sign of their desperation.


Massachusetts was just an anomaly caused by a bad candidate and a perfect storm of events for Scott Brown.


Air America has been broke for years... it just finally came to a head


And the DOW is dropping because Obama's taking on the banks... which is a GOOD thing.

[timeforpeace]

7. Newborn kittens are not afraid of Obama. Get a grip.

[Hamlette]

5. the poll should read "Rate Obama against any other president ever."

Looks like beople are rating him by what Jane says she could have accomplished if she were in power.

Of course she's not, and she never will be, because she's not willing to do the heavy lifting of actually governing.

[timeforpeace]

8. Why?

[Hamlette]

9. becauase its relative?

presidents aren't kings, can't do anything/everything they want

when I read questions like yours, I wonder if all the Obama haters are republicans or don't have a grasp of how government works

[Milo_Bloom]

10. What scale do we use?

On what is good for the country.. then bush gets an F, Obama a C, FDR and A.

On getting their agenda done? bush gets a B+, Obama an F and FDR and A.

I gave him a D overall, because on any scale and in almost any comparrision he is failing. His particular brand of compromising is enacting and attempting to enact legislation that is NOT GOOD for the country (Credit card reform that really isn't reform, the health insurance recovery act of 2010, stimulus package that did more for big business and big banks than PEOPLE, continuing wars all over the world).. and even when he claims to want something, he ends up giving away the parts of the legislation that actually might have impact (public option, etc..).

bush's policies were a disaster, but he managed to get them through a democratically controlled senate... hell, he even got a war bill against a country that didn't attack us through a democratically controlled senate.

Obama enjoys overwhelming majorities in the house and senate and can't get things done without taking all the teeth out??? Please, that's just sad.

[mikehiggins]

6. B- he's doing a good job compared to what we had, and what we

might have ended up with, but he could do a lot better.

Has to apply himself more. Focus. Not get so distracted.

[asdjrocky]

12. A year and still no real Health Care Reform?

Gitmo still open, more contractors than ever in Afghanistan? DADT just a tease for the LGBT community? Rick Warren at the inaugural? Timmy boy?

What grade can I possibly give him.

I had high hopes and now I know the truth. It's so sad all you can do is laugh to keep from crying.

[jefferson_dem]

13. A+

if only to counter-balance one delusional ingrate on the other extreme.

[azmouse]

15. I voted A+ for the same reason.

[jefferson_dem]

16. Seriously.

Honest constructive criticism is cool. But any supposed "Democrat" who gives Barack Obama an F for his first year is not living in reality, is afflicted with a serious self-identity crisis or confusion, or both.

[azmouse]

18. Obama deserves the A+ just for putting up with the shit from his own party.

[ProSense]

20. BUT!!! But,

he works for us. We are allowed to call him a "failure," "liar" and "wimp." We're allowed to whine perpetually and denounce every achievement as "weak" and every announced policy as "smoke and mirrors."

Add: bitter irrational assholes to the list of people who believe the President is a failure.

[jefferson_dem]

21. Sure.

Anyone is allowed to spew on - all about their hate-filled fantasies.

And the sensible among us should point it out when they do.

[Fla Dem]

36. The roses only changed to shit when he began to move away from his base.

No other president came into office with as big of a ground swell behind him as Mr. Obama. But he felt it was more important to court the favors of the Liebermans, Snows and Baucuses of the senate. Those who would flip him the bird before they would work with him. No he turned his back on those who put him where he is and wasted a year.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

43. We need 60 votes because the Republicans are filibustering everything!

When are you going to come to grips with that notion? You can't steamroll someone and then ask them to vote for you!

[Hansel]

35. True true.

Although there needs to be a grade one thousand times more potent than an A+ to fully succeed at this.

Edit to add: I gave him a B+ because I was being honest. I should have known better considering the lack of objectivity and honesty that dominates with the hyperbolic "the sky is falling" crowd. I wish I could change it to an A+.

[NorthCarolina]

14. Quick! DU this poll please. eom

[Catshrink]

17. C but only because of the dog

otherwise I'd have given him a D.

[Dinger]

23. D, Sotomayor Keeps It From Being An F

[ProSense]

25. Yup, that was the only positive thing Obama accomplished. Everything else: F. n/t

[Aramchek]

26. when did Democratic Underground become Anti-Democratic Underground?

what a damned shame!

[SergeStorms]

42. At the very same time......

our Democratic President and Legislators started to care more about what right-wingers thought about the issues than what the people who elected them to office thought? At the very same time they abandoned their campaign promises in order to offer concessions to the opposition without even putting up a cursory battle to stand firm on their promises? :shrug: That would be my take on it.

And I wouldn't consider it "Anti-Democratic Underground", I'd consider it more a "Why did you abandon us to appease the opposition" Underground. A "What the fresh hell are you DOING Underground". :)

For the life of me, I can't figure out why there was such a rush to abandon the left just to appeal to the right. Can you answer that for me? A little backbone and sticking to your guns might have been nice. Instead we got instant cave-ins to the right. That's NOT what I, and the majority of Americans, voted for.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

44. Why? Because we need 60 votes and the last 5 Democrats in the Senate are conservative.

That's why. When you have a minority party that will filibuster EVERYTHING, you need to get every vote you can, and you don't do it by moving further to the left.

[silenttigersong]

27. President Obama

is steering a ship full of vipers,snakes, and greedy, rat bastards: therefore I give him an A-,he does still have the nothing to lose option........so as he said in his campaign "make me do it" he is now becoming more populist true to his campaign,furthermore some of his financial advisor's answer to him not vice- versa,remember he is the President,but I believe that many show a bias and lack of respect because (the electorate)are used to white men being in charge.Keep your enemy's close!Not ready to attack someone who inherited a shit sandwich.:

[FrenchieCat]

32. That's OK....cause the Pres. Walmart that you will help elect in 2012

Will do way better.

Good luck, low grading suckers! :hi:

[vaberella]

37. To rate him a D and an F is utter stupidity. Fuckin' stupidity.

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/promises/browse/

[jefferson_dem]

39. Just shows that "teh stoopid" is not monopolized by the nutjobs on the right.

These poll results are an embarrassment to the DU community.

We should be ashamed.

[uponit7771]

40. AMEN!!!

[Grand Taurean]

38. "C"

He needed to take on the big banks first and foremost.
Economic recovery is NOT going to happen until then.

[Greyhound]

41. Is this poll an object lesson in the dangers of removing a baseline?

The belief (and maybe the reality) is that all you have to do is not be as bad as the last guy and that's good enough.
:dilemma: