On scale of 1 to 10 where 10 is excellent and superb, what score would you give President Obama?
Why does he deserve this score?
KWASI
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what i've clearly stated and can back up would probably gain me more negro enemies than the already caucasian enemies that my comments would have if i had said that obama is my hero. after all the shucking and jiving around by so-called black leadership, i've come to conclusions that there is going to be some irreconcileable differences in the ranks of the black masses that will cause us to split up into factions because those of us who have so-called made it would rather go with and help the enemy maintain his hold on damn near the entire world, while those of us at the opposite end of the totem pole are gonna have to gather ourselves together the best way we know how and deal with all our problems once and for all.
uhuru!
I spent 6 weeks in South Africa this summer, and the second most popular topic after the World Cup was the interest in President Obama. His election is seen from afar as the ascendence of Black political progress in the USA. If he is defeated in congress with a Republican majority, and then defeated at the polls in 2012, we will lose ground that may not be recovered for several generations. The attack on Black political leaders everywhere will become open season. What we are seeing with Rangel, Waters, and Johnson is just the opening act.
Black people need to understand that politics is not a single event that we celebrate and go home. Any victory is simply the first battle in a long effort to make things better for us. Many small battles must be won every day. As during the Civil Rights movement, there are too many FREE RIDERS, and not enough FREEDOM RIDERS on our bus to freedom.
President Obama has faced unprecedented opposition -- from within the Democratic Party and from Republicans. There is no need to discuss the Republican opposition. They have just said "No" with unprecedented unity in opposition to anything that he proposes. The opposition from Democrats has made his job more difficult than it has to be.
The job of President of the USA is different than Prime Minister in a Parliamentary System, wherein the Prime Minister is the leader of his party and whatever coalition he needs to support the agenda. In this environment, partisanship is the rule. In the USA political model, even though we have two major parties, the President's job is to be a consensus builder, in forging a leadership strategy. That is how he gets re-elected. Clinton had to reform welfare, balance the budget, and support NAFTA in the face of a Republican controlled congress to get re-elected.
Facing unified Republican opposition, President Obama found himself with a blessing and a curse. He had dominant majorities in each house of congress (the blessing), and he was cursed with the "big tent" phenomenon that represents the Democratic Party. There was no unity among Democratic Progressives, Union Supporters, Universal Health Advocates, End the War Advocates, and Blue Dog Democrats (Republicans masquerading as Democrats). Forging a consensus within the Democratic Party was his biggest challenge. The result is that everything he accomplished in his first two years was watered down -- the Stimulus Bill was too small and did not create enough jobs; the Auto Industry bailout gutted the union gains; the Healthcare Bill had no Public Option and limited impact on costs; the War strategy in Iraq was labeled an extension of Bush; and the War Strategy in Afghanistan labeled a giveaway to our enemies with a July 2011 withdrawal forecast; the housing crisis destroyed the Black middle class; and Wall Street reform is little more than a slap on the wrist while the rich get richer. That he got these bills through the logjam at all with limited results is a testament to compromise within the Democratic Party. He can point to limited success on all major initiatives. He has not suffered one defeat. For this I give him a 10.
The result of all these (victories) is chaos within the Democratic Party. The messaging is conflicted, candidates are indicating they don't want him campaigning for them, and the Republicans are winning the enthusiasm battle. Somehow, the Democrats are unwilling or unable to put forward a national strategy. This is the President's job as leader of the party.
I give him an 8 on results because on Labor Day, he began to demonstrate what only he can do -- fire up the base. This is absolutely necessary if we don't want to return to Republican rule in November. I certainly don't.
What this means for Black people is that we must observe and learn something from the discipline and political resolve of our President. No politician can deliver complete victory on every campaign promise. The reality of political compromise guarantees that the outcomes will be less than the extremes of either party want. What he can do is fight for "the possible." I am disappointed at Black Progressives who don't seem to understand how to forge compromises that get some of their agenda accomplished. They seem to insist on an all or nothing position on every one of their issues, then resort to pouting and criticizing the President. Are they going to join the Republican Party? Can the Green Party win an election anywhere? Is secession from the union an option? We must find a way within the Democratic Party to accomplish as much as we can.
My position is that this election can destroy his presidency, or give him enough support to fight another day. The very worst thing that can happen is if Black people sit on the sidelines and watch the Republicans gut the first Black President. The realistic question to ask is "How could anyone have gotten 60 votes for better outcomes?" The Republicans have had a simple strategy, "Just say No, and watch the Democrats destroy themselves."
We are an important constituency within the Democratic Party, and we can become king makers in coalition with the Hispanic vote. Together, we can keep the Republicans out of office. If we sit on the sidelines, we will drift all the way back to pre-Civil Rights irrelevancy. Then the Hispanic coalition will become the "deciding constituency" within the Democratic Party. Every one of us should do all we can to get out the vote for Democrats within our Black circles of influence. By doing so, we can save the majorities in both houses. If we don't, then "no vote equals no voice."
At that point it doesn't matter how we rate President Obama. The only rating that counts is the one that is recorded at the ballot box.