President Barack Obama recently passed a milestone in his presidency, he has just completed his first 100 days in office. The news programs have been busy putting together reports regarding his accomplishments and shortcomings, critiquing his government’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as trying to predict what his next courses of action may be.
As a president, he has already made history by becoming the first Black American president. He has broken the mold and should be celebrated because of it. However, simply making history is not enough. Our country is mired in an entanglement of red tape, legal pillaging of the system by special interest groups and business, and a recession that has a far reaching, international ripple effect.
But what opinion can be formed of the actions of a president whose full government was not set into place until a few days ago? Is 100 days truly enough to be able to say that he has done too little, enough, or too much in regards to various agendas?
President Obama’s first order of business was to insure that the government would be able to get back on track and stop the financial bleeding caused by the recession. Something that he has done remarkably well by issuing mandates which effectively overturned the midnight deals that the then outgoing Republican president George W. Bush initiated prior to his White House departure. For that, I am sure that we are all grateful to him.
He has proven to be a president who listens to the logic and needs of his constituents. Which is why his move to overturn the ban on stem cell research was met with much applause by those who support the study. Therefore, one can consider him to be a learned man of the 21st century, who understands the needs of the past and the possibilities of the answers to those needs existing in the future.
It is interesting to note however, that for all the accomplishments of Pres. Obama, no matter how small in impact due to the short time he has held the office, the Republicans who started all these problems to begin with, seem to be complaining the most that he is not working fast enough to resolve all the issues on hand.
President Obama is working towards fixing the problems that the previous administration saddled him with. But, just like with any problem in life, finding the proper solutions will take time. What is definite is that he will stumble, falter, and fall along the way but from what I have seen, this is one president who will not let anything get in the way of his carefully crafted plans for the country. He has his eye on the bigger prize all the time and I am highly confident that, given enough time and resources to work with, he shall pull the country out of the quagmire that it currently finds itself in.
Our current president has a rock star image. Something that has helped his popularity across the world and helps move his foreign policies forward. He has shown the world that as the new image of America, he is not to be feared nor ignored. Instead, they should always take the olive branch of listening and understanding that he offers them. He is a president who is always willing to meet others halfway. That is why I admire him a lot and believe that he will accomplish even more during his next 100 days in office.