SO WHAT EXACTLY DID OBAMA DO?



After the major-media gloss placed on DNC's gala for four days and nights, I sat and thought about just what torch Hillary Clinton is supposed to be handed by Obama. This theme was introduced during the convention with Obama's canonization as Lord Savior of the DNC, despite Bill Clinton's ever-haunting presence. It gave rise to some questions in my mind, the mind of a former Democrat Party voter,  about this great Obama legacy:

 

Did Obama earn his Nobel Peace Prize? Is the world a more peaceful place eight years after his election to office? Did Obama remove our military from Afghanistan and Iraq? Did he reduce our military presence in Japan and Korea? Did he work with the Russians to de-escalate mutual distrust? Did he disentangle us from NATO for which we largely pay at great expense with little reward or appreciation? Did he act effectively in the Syrian crisis? Did he have any net effect on the Israel-Palestine issue? Did Obama with Hillary Clinton actually inspire and mishandle the Arab Spring?

 

Did Obama make us less dependent on China, Indonesia and Bangladesh for our manufactured goods? Did Obama spark a new Industrial Revolution in the U.S. to provide employment and narrow income gaps?

 

Did Obama mandate increased spending on public education at the urban level? Did he significantly stop the syphoning off of public education money to charter schools?

 

Did Obama significantly improve racial relations in the U.S.? Did he succeed in reconciling the authority of government with the attitudes and actual behaviors of Black urban youth?

 

Did Obama actually provide affordable health care for all Americans? Did he reduce escalating drug and care costs? Did he take the exorbitant profits away from private health insurance companies and the pharmaceutical establishment? Did Obama initiate programs against alcoholism and other addictions nationally by more heavily regulating and penalizing those industries which promote addiction?

 

Did Obama effectively decrease gun violence? Did he effectively decrease mass murders?

 

Did Obama stand as a beacon for secular separation of Church and State? Did Obama squarely confront the threat of Islamic ideology to personal safety of women and LGBTQ people?

 

Did Obama close the gap between rich and poor in the U.S.? Did Obama significantly impact the epidemic of homelessness in the U.S.? Did he significantly impact the heroin epidemic in U.S. cities?

 

Did Obama significantly divert money from military spending to domestic social programs? Did he solve the problems of military veterans due to their poor health care systems?

 

Did Obama increase the confidence of the American public in democracy? Did he put Wall Street criminals and corrupt bankers behind bars? Did he continue to press the Supreme Court on Citizens United in any effectual fashion? Did he reduce the influence of corporate power on government?

 

Did Obama's enabling poor LGBTQ people and women to kill for the U.S. government in the military really further Global Human Rights?  Did Obama facilitate birth control for women nationally? Did he have a positive effect on overpopulation? Did Obama significantly and consistently confront the plight of women and LGBTQ people in Africa?

 

Did Obama decrease the negative impact of student loans on college education for the poor? Did he dismantle the for-profit student loan programs which help finance the U.S. government?

 

Did Obama increase air quality in the U.S. by reducing gasoline consumption? Did he support taxation of gasoline nationally? Did he diminish our reliance on fossil fuels significantly?

 

Did Obama improve the quality of American food? Did he confront major chemical companies on GMO's and insecticide usage? Did Obama have any health-promoting impact on the fast food industry through regulations?

 

Did Obama improve our national infrastructure? Are public transit systems larger and more efficient? Is national rail a growing reality for transportation of people and goods? Did Obama reduce the strangle hold of the trucking industry on transportation innovation?

 

Did Obama improve the nationwide status of our water systems? Did he put national initiatives and standards in place to improve nationwide water quality and reduce water waste?

 

Did Obama's opposition to Brexit help the EU to remain in tact? Did Obama effectively advise the EU on mass migration after enforcing immigration policy in the U.S. in response to public pressure?

 

So, what exactly did Obama do to deserve being lionized as such a great success as a U.S. President? Was being born multi-racial his greatest, unintentional accomplishment?  Will Hillary Clinton's greatest accomplishment be her birth as a biological female? It seems to me the world of personality politics has garnered Americans a stalemate at getting done what needs to be done by the President of the United States, Congress and Supreme Court. Do we need media-celebrity leaders? Shouldn't our leaders be more than salesmen and saleswomen for the global corporate agenda? Shouldn't they actually be doing something for us instead of just getting rich and famous?