Assessing the Hope and ChangeThe honeymoon is definitely over. President Obama's approval rating has taken a downward turn. Pollster.com numbers show his approval rating has dropped from 67 percent in January 2009 to an average of 48 percent at year's end. What is startling is that's the lowest approval rating of any president at this point in a presidency since polls began during Roosevelt's time. A recent CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll shows that many African-Americans, initially supportive of Obama in record numbers, are losing some of their zeal for his presidency, like the rest of the country. When asked how they personally felt about Obama's presidency, only 42 percent of black respondents said they are thrilled. The year that began with such expectations of hope and change has not been a very promising one. Record foreclosures, stock market crashes, high unemployment, unimaginable bailouts and astronomical federal budget deficits are just some of the daunting challenges the country has had to face. Combine those with wars and terrorism and you don't have much room for hope and change. What did Obama promise besides hope and change? First, there was health care reform. We have been bombarded with the congressional maneuvering and overt deal brokering that continues in Washington as a new year unfolds. Even Obama would admit that whatever his concept for health care reform was, the eventual legislation that emerges will not match his vision. Implementation will take years, not months. If the plans are flawed or go awry, as Social Security certainly has, the defects and debt will endure for years to come, resulting in more legislation to remedy the problems. Next, Obama promised to address foreclosures. He initially created a $10 billion dollar fund to help homeowners refinance or sell their homes. The price tag is now at $75 billion. Banks still have the final approval and many homeowners report that red tape and runarounds result in frustration and disqualification from the programs.
Obama also said he would close the Guantanamo Bay Detention center (Gitmo) and he has been trying. Once again, reality played against vision. The problem is what to do with the approximately 240 detainees held at the facility. Obama issued an executive order that the facility should be closed but the plans for housing the prisoners elsewhere are still in flux. Once again, the perception is that Obama and his administration haven't succeeded in doing what they said they would. Campaigning Obama said he was against the war in Iraq because the real threat was in Afghanistan. He then spent months pondering what to do with both wars. His indecisiveness has given the Republicans much fodder for criticism. He announced more troops for Afghanistan without much detail on funding and an end date for the war in Iraq. But with threats from Yemen, Iran and Pakistan looming on the horizon no one can say the current administration has a better option. For a major part of his presidency it appears Obama has left the troubling dilemma of terrorism 'on the back burner' while he pursued health care reform. The thwarted Christmas Day attempt to bomb Northwest Flight 253 in midair has brought that challenge back to the forefront, but Obama has come across as unprepared. His response seemed late and added to the sense that he is focused on other priorities. The presidency, albeit a powerful position, is not a dictatorship or a monarchy. We are fortunate enough to live in a democracy with checks and balances. Any president has to have support for his vision; if he doesn't, the result is compromise, stalemate and sometimes failure. It is not surprising that the hope and promise Obama garnered in early 2009 has started to erode. The thrill isn't gone, but it is beginning to wane. REPRINTED FROM THE COLORADO SPRINGS GAZETTE DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS.COM
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