Barack Obama: The president, The man

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   Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years ago

   I did not vote for Obama.  He clearly and articulately expressed his policy intentions during the campaign and to me they collectively sounded like a recipe for economic disaster and government growth on an unprecedented scale; not exactly what we needed after the economic disaster and unprecedented government growth dumped on us by W.  True to his word, and with the aid of a Democrat super-majority in congress he has started down the road of government expansion and budget deficits that will cripple the U. S. economy for years to come.
   
   He does however, possess strong, positive personal characteristics that make him an admirable man and an effective leader.  First among these is integrity.  Unlike our previous two presidents, Obama is a man who can be taken at his word.  His personal detractors have to dig very deep to find any signs of unethical conduct, and the things they do come up, such as the real estate situation in Chicago, pale in comparison to the transgressions (including criminal behavior) of his two recent predecessors. 
   
   My hope is that the Obama presidency will be remembered as one in which a decent man stayed out of trouble, and did the best he could to improve the awful situation he inherited.  I also hope it will be remembered for falling short of it's aspirations to give an already bloated government even more control of our lives.

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      Eaglekiwiposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks for  taking the time to share your views ,however I am very interested in how you think Governing could be improved in the USA.
      I personally do not expect any one man to solve ALL the nations problems or please all the people, all the time.
      
      But what things could he (or they) be doing differently and I should point out I am neither Democrat or Republic, merely a new immigrant contemplating the who ,what, and wheres

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   dennisemattposted 14 years ago

   You DIDNT vote for Obama? You must be white!!!!
   kidding..
   that was well said.

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I, like Obama am actually half black.

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         dennisemattposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Oh.? well. cool

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         nicompposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         which half?
         
         JUST KIDDING!!

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            Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Bottom half - I can't believe I waited so long for such an obvious setup.

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   RooBeeposted 14 years ago

   
   
   Damn, Ron Montgomery, why you gotta be all smart and logical like that?

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Nice kiity.....

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   Colebabieposted 14 years ago

   I voted for Obama. It was the first time I ever voted. When I put my ballot through the machine and the light blinked green everyone started clapping for me.  I attended a Watch Party on campus election night. It was the most amazing thing ever. It will be a part of my history and a moment I'll never forget. Yes Ron, I admire his integrity and during a time of great criticism and difficulty he is doing what he was hired to do, leading the country.

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      The election itself was full of reasons to celebrate.  The peaceful transition of power is something a lot of us take for granted because to us it's a given.

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         RooBeeposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Excellent point. We are fortunate in that way and many, many others.

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            Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Yes, fortunate that anyone would want the job given the "vetting process".

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   RooBeeposted 14 years ago

   I'm happy to say that I voted for him, too. I won't go in to all my reasoning, as I'd surely just be repeating stuff that's been said a million times in these forums alone.
   Besides all of the intelligent (IMO) reasoning behind my decision, um, McCain/Palin? uh - uh.

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Me no like them either.  McCain angry.  Palin bad.

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   fortunerepposted 14 years ago

   i am not even going to go there

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7. 61

   Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years ago

   EK,  I agree whole-heartedly that no one person or small group of people can turn things around for us.  A president's most important function is to provide leadership and energize the citizens so that THEY can make changes.  In this area, Obama has already started well by communicating frequently (his detractors say too frequently) with the public and showing himself to be trustworthy.  Integrity and effective two-way communication are the keys to a successful presidency.  The president has to be trusted by other world leaders as well as his fellow countrymen in order to inspire and help unite us in our efforts to tackle the tough problems.
   
   Presidential endeavors undertaken without integrity or adequate public support and understanding inevitably fail. Evidence of this is found in the results of our two wars in Iraq.  In the first case the senior Bush was truthful and thorough in his reasoning for making what is always a tough decision.  World leaders and the American public understood the necessity of this drastic action and gave the necessary support to enable a good (not perfect) outcome.  W on the other hand, was less than honest (I believe criminally so) with the public, and wreckless in his dealings with other world leaders.  The disaster that followed was entirely predictable, and was in fact predicted by more thoughtful individuals.
   
   Right now I agree with the president that healthcare and insurance issues are at the top of the list of things that need to be addressed.  It is insane that the wealthiest Americans (along with wealthy citizens of countries with government allocated health care who can afford to visit here) get the best care available, the indigent get ER care only, and the rest of us in the middle pay though the nose for insurance that rarely covers much of the expenses.  It is a massively complicated issue that has confounded us for years.  I understand the urgency in seeking a solution, but thankfully cooler heads have prevailed in this case, and the president's plan will not be rushed through congress. 
   
   I think the place to start lies in the development of two seperate plans.  First a temporary, emergency plan should be formulated that quickly brings care to those who urgently need it.  My inclinations are usually to be wary of big government programs to deal with important long-term issues, but we do have a national emergency on our hands that should be dealt with in the same way we do a war.  Direct massive resources (economic, intellectual, industrial) to deal with the threat at hand with the goal of a quick, well-defined victory and subsequent dismantling of the plan after the emergency is over.
   
   The second step would be to formulate a sustainable long term plan that takes the best of what we have, such as free-market inspired technological innovations and quality of care innovations driven by competition; combined with new ideas to address the shortfalls of our current system.  The government should take a minimum role in this long term plan, focusing more on where it should not interfere than on where it can try to help. The best ideas will come from providers, patients and informatics specialists, not politically motivated officials.

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   Anam Cara999posted 14 years ago

   Obama has an integrity I think people from many countries see.  This cannot be a bad thing politically, either.

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      It's certainly something we haven't had to offer for 16 years.

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      earnestshubposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I believe that Obama is trying to do the right thing, his whole being shouts integrity, but that cannot be seen for the economy with Tim Geitner in Barry Obama's Treasury I will be pleasantly surprised if the perpetrators of the dicey paper will not retire with the American household purse.

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   Ghost32posted 14 years ago

   My wife and I voted McCain-Palin but could see well in advance it was a lost cause.  On the plus side, I wouldn't be writing full time on HP without Obama.  Prior to March 28 of '09, I drove big rig water trucks in the gasfield drilling boom in western Colorado.  That boom went un-boom, beginning immediately after the election, until we had to get out of Dodge (we moved to Arizona) while we still had SOME cash left in savings.  With the DRILL HERE DRILL NOW! approach of McCain-Palin, there is no question that I'd still have been trucking, not typing.
   
   So in that sense, thank you, Mr. President.
   
   Ron, you're right; that was a great setup.  Me, I'm all white, which unfortunately does include the bottom half.  Pam is 1/4 Choctaw, but I don't know how to work that into a good laugh.

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      1/4 choctaw and 3/4 lockjaw?  I know, it needs work.

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    Lady_Eposted 14 years ago

    Interesting comments Ron.
    
    I don't live in the US, but I hope someday soon Obama will make Health Care free for everyone in America as we have in the UK. Fingers crossed...

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