Analysis: Afghan war among challenges for Obama

[unhappycamper]

Analysis: Afghan war among challenges for Obama
By Chuck Raasch - Gannett News Service
Posted : Tuesday Oct 27, 2009 14:25:23 EDT

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama told wealthy donors in Florida on Monday that his critics have a “selective memory” about what he’s accomplished in his first nine months in office.

The president took credit for pulling the economy back from “the brink of a meltdown,” citing a $787 billion economic stimulus package that he said has resulted in the largest investments in energy, research and education in history, and the biggest spending on infrastructure since the interstate highway construction of the 1950s.

“Not only did we steer the economy away from potential catastrophe,” he told donors at Miami’s Fontainebleau Hotel, “but we also laid the groundwork now for making sure that our kids are going to be able to compete in an international, global marketplace.”

The president may be correct in claiming his critics have political amnesia. But unemployment — which may be the most important barometer of the 2010 elections — keeps inching up toward 10 percent, with economists predicting it will stay there for some time.

And a year after he was elected president, Obama still faces five challenges that, cumulatively, are no less significant than what confronted him in January:


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_obama_challenges_analysis_102709w/