Your degree of support for President Obama?

[kentuck]

[Curtland1015]

1. I told myself when he got elected I would see what he had accomplished at the "half way point"

Two years in. If he hasn't achieved anything signifigant by THEN, I'll give.

[gateley]

3. That's fair -- it IS awfully early for an administration that has to

deal with all the horror the previous administration bequeathed.

[davidwparker]

17. Congress is in the majority with a filibuster proof Senate. He is also head

of the party. There should be no problems getting things done.

[gateley]

24. There SHOULD be no problems, I agree, but I think it's

often way more complicated than we imagine it to be. Not as cut and dried as it appears.

ALTHOUGH, Dennis certainly made a lot of this stuff sound doable, so I could be way off base here.

[davidwparker]

30. Hmm. Then why is it the (R)'s get their way while in a deep minority?

There is an answer to this question if you think about it.

[gateley]

32. I'm going to give my answer for everything "Money. It's always the Money."

But I'm standing by to be educated. :hi:

[davidwparker]

36. I'll see your 'money' and raise you 'power'. They go hand in hand.

[gateley]

37. Agree. nt

[ipaint]

4. He lost me when he started covering up bush admin torture.

When he decided we didn't need to see the truth.

[yodoobo]

2. He's not perfect, but he is the best man alive for the job

We are so incredibly fortunate, that after the tragic disaster years of the Bush regime, that one of history's greatest leaders emerged to bring us out of our modern dark ages.

[gateley]

6. I agree that he's probably the best man for the job at this time.

Although at times in Health Care I wish Dean or Sanders or Kucinich was at the helm, and in banking that some other kick-ass guy or woman was in charge, but overall I've been consistently impressed with how well suited for the job he is. He brings what many others couldn't have -- at least not to the extent he has -- I'm thinking of the level of enthusiasm, support and respect from around the world.

[maglatinavi]

40. gateley

I thought and think Hillary was the best choice... Universal health Insurance would be a reality now... why waste the power of the majority now??? I support basically any Democrat, but he is really pissing me off with his pussy footing...:puffpiece: :puffpiece: :puffpiece: :kick: :kick: :kick:

[gateley]

42. I think she (or Biden) wouldn't have put up with as much crap

as Obama has... I envision Biden stomping on to the Senate floor and pulling an LBJ with those people. Both he and Hillary have a history with these people, and that would have been a plus (obviously I was for Biden, but am liking Obama a lot).

Yeah, I get tired of what looks like his pussyfooting, this is where we could use a Biden or Hillary to lay down the law. But his style is different than theirs (obviously). I HOPE the end will justify the means. If not I'll be re-thinking my view and lose a lot of respect for him.

Out of curiosity, why do you think if Hillary had gotten the nod we'd have health care by now? The Republicans have always had it in for her (and of course Bill), and I think they would have been digging in their feet just as much as they have been with Obama. Look what they did to her when she tried before.

[AllentownJake]

7. You've got to be fucking kidding me?

One of history's greatest leaders.

Here are some of America's greatest leaders:

George Washington
John Adams
Thomas Jefferson
James Monroe
Abe Lincoln
Theodore Roosevelt
Franklin Roosevelt

The only thing he's managed to do is get elected. He can't even control 60 Senators in his own damn party and he's one of the greatest leaders we've had.

He may evolve into a great leader, but he isn't even on the same page with Jimmy Carter yet.

[Jeep789]

14. Perhaps you can find an FDR to actually run.

Obama was definitely the best choice (that had a chance of winning) from the pack. I personally would have preferred Dean or Kucinich but neither stood a chance of winning.

Nothing wrong with pressuring Obama to do the right thing but we also need to support him whole heartedly when he does do something right.

[AllentownJake]

19. That isn't the point of my response

One of history's greatest leaders. Just because America is mired in mediocrity doesn't mean I should celebrate it as great.

[davidwparker]

20. Howard Dean took himself out to run be DNC chair. I think he could have

won. But, that was a path not taken.

[Skittles]

47. VERY debatable

[yodoobo]

22. Those are all great men

Unfortunately they are dead at the moment and most ineligible for 3rd (or 5th) terms.

[AllentownJake]

28. Don't call something great

till it proves it is great.

[yodoobo]

35. We already have the proof.

But the biases and tides of current events blinds most of us.

History will be the ultimate judge.

[AllentownJake]

38. Well Tim Couch was a great College Quarterback

He wasn't inducted into the NFL hall of fame.

I hope he turns out to be great. Until he does something great, I will not be calling him such.

[gateley]

25. We don't know yet if he can control the 60 Senators. I'm waiting

with bated breath, though. We'll see.

[angryfirelord]

5. Still early in my opinion

While I believe he's miles ahead of Bush in terms of intelligence, public speaking, and acceptance of criticism (no more free speech zones), he still has more work to do. While I can nitpick issues, some of the big ones for me that I would like to see accomplished are an end to the Iraq & Afghanistan wars, a restoration of the economic regulations that were removed in the 80s & 90s, restoration of civil liberties (such as repealing most of the Patriot Act) and some spine towards supporting a public option. I think he's certainly on the right track and has a lot of stuff on his plate, but I can't give him 100% yet.

[gateley]

10. Well put. I'm tempted to cut and past your post and re-post it as mine!

And welcome to DU, angryfirelord! :hi:

[angryfirelord]

31. Thank you!

And go right ahead!

[sallyseven]

39. Oh my He must be

shaking in his boots. He has been in office almost 10 months why hasn't he changed it around? Maybe because it was such a dump to begin with. I am shocked at the level of stupidity on this forum. He is doing a fine job better than you have a right to expect. The 60 senators are all trying to play President and they will suffer for it. The media doesn't help they bitch about the deficit like they never did before. Maybe a few letters to congress would be more valuable. Make them understand that he is the President and you support him. They reply to numbers.

[depakid]

8. Depends on the issue

I support policies- not politicians.

[AllentownJake]

9. +1

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

11. I don't support politicians. I support or oppose policies.

Obama is merely an executor of policies. That's his job. My job, as a citizen, is to hold him and other members of the government accountable for policies and actions.

[kentuck]

13. You are an official REAL democrat.

with a small "d". :-)

Welcome to the club.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

18. You, me, Tom Jefferson, and John Q. Adams.

"I never submitted the whole system of my opinions to the creed of any party of men whatever, in religion, in philosophy, in politics, or in anything else, where I was capable of thinking for myself. Such an addiction is the last degradation of a free and moral agent. If I could not go to heaven but with a party, I would not go there at all." --Thomas Jefferson to Francis Hopkinson, 1789.

"Were parties here divided merely by a greediness for office,...to take a part with either would be unworthy of a reasonable or moral man." --Thomas Jefferson to William Branch Giles, 1795.

“Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost." --John Quincy Adams

[Mass]

27. Thanks. I agree.

[Swamp Rat]

12. I'm still waiting...

He did give a nice speech in New Orleans, though.

[vi5]

15. Still waiting, but haven't given up....

He's done absolutely nothing so far to earn my support other than to not be incompetent and not be a raging asshole to the rest of the world. That really does sum it up as far as the only positive things I've seen him do.

He hasn't taken any actions on the wars that impressed me or earned him my support/respect.

His actions on the economy have been o.k. and I do believe helpful. But too much of it was geared towards Wall street and the wealthy, especially in proportion to the benefits the middle and lower economic ranges received. In short, too much of what he's done economically has been based on the concept of trickle down.

He's exerted not nearly enough influence in the Health Care debate and in my opinion let the whole opposition aspect get far too out of hand. If he were truly a leader worthy of my support on this subject he would have started shooting for the moon (single payer Universal) and then compromised down to something halfway decent. I do understand that in the end he's just a figurehead and the legislation is being hashed out by the actual legislators. But that makes it even less acceptable that he's remained relatively quiet and not out there pressing the flesh and explaining what HE wants loudly and thoroughly enough.

Gay rights.....don't even get me started there. There's DEFINITELY nothing in that area he's done that earned even a modicum of my support.

So yeah, he's projecting a better image for us around the world and that's a good thing. And he's still an impressive man who gives a good speech and has a good sense of humor. I still like him. I support him. I'm just waiting for him to actually do something that really impresses me and makes me think he's worthy of my unequivical support. If health care doesn't pass in a way that I like I can't say that my already minimal enthusiasm won't dim by quite a bit. But I'll wait until the end result before I start getting crazy and negative and even more cynical than I already am.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

16. I'm giving him the full benefit of the doubt

to navigate through the mess he was left with for the next year to year and a half. If he fails to achieve a
healthcare bill we can all benefit from, fails to regulate the financial industries, and escalates the useless
war in Afghanistan he will have lost my support completely and I will not vote for his second term. But
to judge him at this point on any of those issues is unfair and unrealistic given the short time he's been
in office.

[Ardent15]

21. I still support him-but if he doesn't get a public option passed...

...and doesn't start to break the corporate oligarchy's stranglehold, then he will have lost me.

[BABarackus]

23. Maybe it's because of what we had the last eight years

But, to me, this guy is on point almost all of the time. He doesn't cave in to criticism from the far right or left, he doesn't rush to unnecessary or poor decisions, and he clearly has our best interests in mind. Even if he can't get everything perfect right now, he is moving us in the right direction.

[Mass]

26. There is nobody I support 100 %. The notion is foreign to me.

This said, I am ready to support him when I agree with him, which is very often.

[Skittles]

45. those are the cheerleaders

those who would cheerlead if Obama crapped on national TV and called it an historic moment

[elocs]

29. Don't know. The proof of the pudding is in the eating, not in the promising.

Talk is cheap.

[ixion]

33. Other... I was behind him initially

but he lost me somewhere between pandering to Wall St. and continuing Bush-era WoT policies.

[Autumn]

34. I'm still waiting, I haven't given up

hope yet, but I am getting a little disheartened. He has done some things that have been very good, but other times I just shake my head.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

41. I'll make up my mind when he's been out of office a few years.

And, arguably, that will be premature. I think most people massively underestimate the time-lag on the effects of politician's policies.

I'd say that the balance of probabilities is certainly very much in Obama's favour, though.

[BlueIris]

43. Was hoping he would succeed. Still hoping.

Feeling a little less than optimistic right now, though.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

44. Not John McCain or Hillary Clinton is good enough for me

I am horrified by many of his policy directions, especially the bailouts, but I realize he is bound by circumstances.

[asdjrocky]

46. Other-

I'd like to see him really support what we elected him to do.

[bridgit]

48. Other - steady as she goes

[gleaner]

49. I chose the option ...

about health care reform and banking regulations. Those are not my only two issues. I also support ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other things he promised to do, but those two issues are a starter.

I already feel frustrated and disappointed in him. I did trust him, and I don't trust easily. He has pretty much blown whatever grace I could have given him, and if he doesn't start standing up for his own issues he has lost me.

[old mark]

50. 90%er...I think he has done a great job with the sewer he was given,

and with the complete lack of support he seems to have from the extreme left or the right.
I think he's a decent, smart man and should be reelected if he still wants to be.

mark