Outline
This essay discusses President Obama’s administration policies on foreign and domestic issues, the challenges he faces, the strengths he can utilize, and what he needs to do in order to deliver the promises he made to the American people and the international community at large.
Thesis Statement
Despite many challenges, President Obama has the capacity to deliver on the changes he promised the American people, and the people of the world.
Introduction
President Barrack Obama faces the most daunting challenges a leader can hope for, both at the domestic and international front. Issues of an economic slump that have hit the world for the last two years, deterioration of security in Afghanistan and Iraq, and major tensions in the Middle East, not to mention the opposition his policies have begun to attract from the republicans, are among the major challenges. Despite all these, President Obama can deliver on the changes he promised the American people, and the people of the world. He can utilize the strengths he has in the support and well-meaning of the people in his country, as well as the international community. He has also received enormous support from governments around the world who are willing to work with him. He can also benefit a lot from the votes of the democrats’ majority in both the lower house and the senate to support his policies. It will be an uphill task for him but he has demonstrated his decisiveness and swift action in implementing policies, which will work to his advantage.
The President faces major challenges in Afghanistan and Iraq where the Taliban guerrillas have engaged the NATO and government forces. The Guerrillas have ties to the Al Qaeda terrorist group, which was a major concern for the USA in the last regime. It also has its headquarters in Pakistan which is nuclear-armed. The situation has been made worse by terrorist actions in India. The Obama administration also has its work cut in the Middle East conflict between Israel and Palestine. The Palestine National Movement is torn apart and nonfunctional, which is a major challenge to peace negotiations and the ruling party is intolerant to talks with Israel that might lead to recognition of the latter as a sovereign state. The Middle East conflict is tied in many ways with the war in Afghanistan and Iraq, which makes them more complex in the adoption of a favorable foreign policy. The major and more complex of Obama’s problems is the economic meltdown being felt the world over. This has led to a loss of jobs in the country with an unemployment rate of 72% and 1.9 million jobs lost in the last four months of 2008. Home sales and foreclosures were at their highest in the last quarter of 2008 and predicted to fall even more by 2010 unless something is done to restore consumer confidence in the economy.
Foreign policy priorities
In light of the above challenges, Obama was very realistic in his policies, both during the campaign and in his inauguration speech. He acknowledged that it will be a matter of hard work and hard choices for the Americans and the world. He said he will require the support and goodwill of especially the people of the East, whom he urged to form mutual relations with the United States of America. His first foreign policy was on the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq. In order to effectively adopt a policy that will help restore order and peace in the region bearing in mind the fragile situation, he appointed as security advisors, well informed and intelligent people. In regard to this, he named special ambassadors to the Israeli-Palestine conflict and other sensitive parts in the Middle East like Pakistan and Afghanistan. He also ordered military advisers to draft a responsible withdrawal plan on his first day in office. To show his commitment to diplomacy to the world, he ordered Guantanamo prison shut down within a year. Further, he banned the use of enhanced interrogation methods by CIA agents and other USA personnel, bearing in mind this was the place where terrorist suspects were imprisoned or detained.
On Obama’s foreign policy in the Middle East started in his first day in office, he called on the Egyptian President, Israeli Prime Minister, Jordanian King, and Palestinian President to end fighting in the region and start peace negotiations. He offered US help in stopping the smuggling of arms into Hamas fighters from Egypt. He also promised reconstruction of the Gaza strip once the fighting stopped and negotiations were underway. He demonstrated his commitment by the appointment of a special envoy to the Middle East, and in personally attending the swearing-in ceremony of the state secretary and the special envoy. During the ceremony, he renewed his call for the two states of Israel and Palestine which was to coexist in harmony.
The President also faces the uphill task of reversing the current economic situation, and bring it back on the path to recovery. His economic policy began with a trillion-dollar stimulus package appeal to fix the economy. This, he was doing on the reality of a trillion-dollar deficit in a federal budget shortfall for years to come. The package targets to combine increased spending and tax cuts. The package includes business tax breaks such as a $16 billion kitty for the business to use 2008 and 2009 losses to credit profits for the past five years. There is a $1,000 tax cut for 95% of working-class households and programs such as alternative energy sources and other public facilities. This is meant to arrest massive unemployment and increase spending to revive the economy.
Obama lobbied for the plan by meeting various groups to drum support. He met with the senate and house republicans separately in capital hill and urged them to put politics aside and support the plan. The $825-billion plan received approval from congress. He introduced a daily briefing on the state of the economy, foreign policy, and national issues from his senior advisors, and gives very keen attention to the economy. Despite all the favorable ratings from both the media and the public, Obama does not relent and looks at the situation realistically. He has also received a fair amount of criticism for his policies from the republicans and the experts, especially with his recovery plan. He listens to them and even engages those criticizing him urging them to help his administration to horn these policies and to implement them for the good of all.
However, there are things the Obama administration could do to strengthen their policies and increase their chances of success. His foreign policy on the closure of Guantanamo Bay should be reinforced with the appointment of an independent and nonpartisan commission by congress to assess the county’s counterterrorism policies and threats in order to maintain America’s commitment to the rule of law and openness and justice and fairness. The recovery plan should also include programs to encourage spending on the tax cuts by the citizens.
Conclusion
President Obama has the capability to deliver on the changes he promised the American people and the people of the world. He has the advantage of the goodwill of Americans and people around the world. However, he faces many challenges such as insurgency in Afghanistan and Iraq, conflicts in the Middle East, and a bleak economy. His administration has adopted major and bold domestic and foreign policies which are guaranteed to succeed due to his commitment to them. These include the trillion-dollar economic stimulus package and his plan to withdraw troops from Afghanistan and Iraq, while still ensuring security through the use of diplomacy. All he needs to do is seek support from many quarters for his policies and learn from loopholes to be successful.
Reference
CQ Researcher. (2009). The Obama Presidency: Can Barrack Obama Deliver the Changes He Promises? CQ Press.