Note by Evans Liberal Politics owner Paul Evans: Blackwaterdog is an ardent admirer and supporter of Barack Obama and has not waivered in the face of increasing criticism of the President. While Evans Liberal Politics has taken a somewhat more critical tone, almost hard line progressive, you might say, except about some social issues such as abortion, when I read this article at Daily Kos, I knew right away I had to republish in on Evans Politics.

Blackwaterdog presents a really good case that a lot of positive change HAS taken place, although he ignores the glaring issues of the surge in Afghanistan and the giveaways to the health industry which comprise the current health care legislation. Still, what he has said is important, and it did affect me. It brought up my old pride as a Democrat and an American, that we have accomplished so much in a year. And, yes, it DID make me glad I had campaigned so hard for Obama. I felt an upwelling of emotion as I watched these videos. And I knew that this deserved a wide audience and that I wanted to republish it. So without further ado, here is the video scrapbook of Obama's first year:

Blackwaterdog: Hello and Happy New Year

Throughout 2009 we heard a lot about all the stuff that Barack Obama didn't do – While at the same time he was doing too much. And the campaign promises he broke - While actually having a good ratio of kept promises (http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/promises).

So this first day of 2010 is a good time to look at the facts and see some of the things president Obama has done – while not doing anything at all. This is only a fracture of a very productive year, and subjective list of things that made me happy about this president, even if - or actually because - it was such a tough year.

Before I begin, just a quick reminder of where we were a little less than 12 months ago:

The economy was shedding 700,000 jobs A MONTH.

The financial system was on the verge of collapse and the Dow wandered around 6000-7000.

In the final quarter of 2008, the economy shrank by 6.3%. In the first quarter of 2009, the economy contracted by 6.1%. A second Great Depression was coming.

Climate Change and Clean Energy were almost dirty words.

The US was involved in two horribly managed wars.

US image around the world was at all-time low.

Enters Barack Obama.
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This is how it started:
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"...Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real, they are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: They will be met...

...We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together.

...We will restore science to its rightful place and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its costs.

We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age...

... We'll begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hard- earned peace in Afghanistan...

...With old friends and former foes, we'll work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat and roll back the specter of a warming planet...

...We will not apologize for our way of life nor will we waver in its defense...

...Our challenges may be new, the instruments with which we meet them may be new, but those values upon which our success depends, honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism -- these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history.

...What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character than giving our all to a difficult task.

.....This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed, why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall. And why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath...".

Economy and Social Progress
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The Recovery Act:
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The $787 billion bill is the biggest RA in history. According to the CBO as of December 1, the RA Saved or Created up to 1.6 Million Jobs, added up to 3.2% to the Growth of Real GDP and reduced the Unemployment Rate by as Much as 0.9 Percentage Points. More about the effect of the RA later.
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The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act:

legislation to fight pay discrimination against women and ensure fundamental fairness to American workers.

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Protecting kids from the influence of Tobacco companies:

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Expansion of Veteran Benefits: Increase the VA budget, help fund the post 9/11 GI Bill and dramatically increase funding for veterans health care:

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One of the most moving moments of the year: signing the Hate Crimes Bill, 11 years after Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming teenager, was kidnapped and beaten to death, and James Byrd Jr., an African-American, was dragged to death in Texas:

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Oh-Oh, a wise Latina is now Supreme Court justice:
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Foreign Policy and National Security
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The US is once again the most admired country in the world:

Brand America is now ranked #1 by global citizens, according to the GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media, a division of GfK Custom Research North America. Results from the 2009 Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index(NBI), which measures the global image of 50 countries, show the United States taking the top spot as the country with the best overall brand, up from seventh last year.

"What’s really remarkable is that in all my years studying national reputation, I have never seen any country experience such a dramatic change in its standing as we see for the United States in 2009," explains Simon Anholt, NBI founder and an independent advisor to over a dozen national governments around the world. "Despite recent economic turmoil, the U.S. actually gained significant ground. The results suggest that the new U.S. administration has been well received abroad and the American electorate’s decision to vote in President Obama has given the United States the status of the world’s most admired country."

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The $2 Trillion Man - How Obama saved brand America:

As 2009 winds down, the pundits are already beginning to tally what Barack Obama has achieved during his first year in office. Even his more well-intentioned detractors contend that, though he may have made a high-profile speech or two, the new U.S. president can boast of few concrete achievements in foreign policy. Obama himself accepted the Nobel Peace Prize as a "call to action," rather than a reward for his work, and gave himself only a "B+" grade during his recent interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Yet in one sense, Obama achieved more in the first 11 months of his presidency than his predecessor managed to in eight years. My research clearly shows that he has begun to restore America's good name, an intangible asset with highly tangible (read: lucrative) consequences. As head of state, Obama has boosted the value of "Brand America" by just over $2 trillion, up from $9.7 trillion in 2008 to $11.8 trillion this year. That means U.S. goods, services, people, and even the country's landscape are about 20 percent more enticing to the global market than they were in 2008...

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There was historic address to the Muslim world in Cairo:
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And a beautiful vision of a Nuclear-Free world:
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A date was set to end the war in Iraq:
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There was Town Hall in Shanghai, China. China?! China!
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And address to graduates of the New Economic School in Moscow:
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A loving visit to Africa:
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And this. One of the most amazingly honest speeches I've ever heard:
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Health Care
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SCHIP legislation: children's health insurance program extending health coverage to 4 million uninsured children. Obama's words before signing: "The way I see it, providing coverage to 11 million children is a down payment on my commitment to cover every single American. It won't be easy; it won't happen all at once, But this bill that I'm about to sign, that wasn't easy either."
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The stimulus money for health care dedicated more than $145 billion to investments and reform of health care systems, including $87 billion to states in just the next couple of years to maintain Medicaid programs. $25 billion to help laid-off workers afford their previous employer's health care via COBRA, $19 billion for Health Information Technology (HIT) deployment and $10 billion in additional funds for the National Institute of Health and Funding for Community Health Centers:
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Ryan White HIV/AIDS Act: Reauthorization of the landmark bill that helps provide medical treatment to more than half a million Americans living with HIV/AIDS:
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There was this excellent executive order: Obama overturned 'Mexico City Policy' from Reagan days - Allowing federal funding to international family planning groups that provide abortion services. (Mexico City Policy from the Reagan days, and as practiced under Bush, was excessive. As you know, Evans Liberal Politics is not in favor of unrestricted abortions. Note by Paul Evans)
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Oh, and that almost-accomplished greatest piece of social legislation in 45 years. While imperfect, it will cover 30 million people, and if it was done 15 years ago, my best friend, Dave, might still be alive because he would not be denied coverage based on pre-existing bullshit.
(On a side note: for people like me, who can listen to Barack Obama all day – his address to congress back in September was drool-worthy .

((COMMENT by Paul Evans: There are those who feel differently, Blackwaterdog. There have been several progressive voices joining conservative opposition to the health care reform bill. However, upon reflection, I have concluded that these progressives are wrongheaded. I know that reality is reality, and the votes weren't there for a public option. I'm not there in the White House counting votes, and I actually think they knew how the votes were going to line up on various details all along. Perhaps the "art of the possible" is all the possibility there was right now for health care reform in America right now, and what was achieved (or will be achieved), is in fact a great accomplishment. I'm just saying the whole process was loaded in advance so that basically, this was the only outcome the White House was hoping for, and the best anyone could hope for, and I myself support it wholeheartedly.))

September 29, 2009

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Education
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Being somewhat educated himself, president Obama made Education a top priority from the get go: The stimulus was one of the largest federal education bills in history. It devoted $139.24 billion to education funding over a couple of years, including:
State Fiscal Stabilization Fund of $53.6 billion to help state and local governments avert budget cuts. $39.5 billion in educational block grants allocated by student and general population measures. $5 billion for incentive grants and other purposes. $24.8 billion for School Construction Bonds. $11.3 billion for special education. $10 billion for Local Educational Agencies. $3 billion for School Improvement Grants.

Higher education funding of approximately $30 billion was distributed directly to students and their families, $15 billion for scientific research flowed partly to universities, and historic investment in community colleges to help 5 million more Americans graduate:
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Incentives for excellence: Race to the Top Fund, a program where states will compete for over $4 billion in Federal funds.
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There was a commencement speech in a place where some people really hates him:
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"Wash your hands and stay in school" Indoctrination from coast to coast:
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In small classes too: September 9, 2009
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And even one on one:
Student Reporter Damon Weaver Interviews President Barack Obama
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Clean energy, Environment and Climate Change
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Estimates on potential green energy investments in the recovery package, including the largest investment in infrastructure since the 50s, range from $70.6 billion to $113.5 billion but the bottom-line is that this package is the largest investment in energy independence in American history.
But what's even more important, is the fact that Obama completely changed US government' attitude towards those crucial issues. Things that Bush didn't even know what they mean, are now top national priority:
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Major Public Lands Protections: One of the most sweeping pieces of conservation and public land management legislation in years. Signing a package of more than 160 bills, Obama designating roughly 2 million acres - parks, rivers, streams, desert, forest and trails - in nine states as new wilderness and render them off limits to oil and gas drilling and other development:
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Clean cars mileage rules - For decades, automakers blocked higher federal gas mileage rules and the Bush administration blocked state laws seeking to establish higher standards in their states. Obama engineered a new rule that by model year 2016, the average mandated fleet fuel efficiency standard will be 35.5 miles per gallon. Add in the $2 billion in stimulus cash for advanced batteries systems and the nation should see significant fuel savings in the near future.

And, the recovery act also invests in next generation of fuel-efficient cars and trucks. And In smart grid:
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Science
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The president brought science back from the deep darkness during Bush days. His commitment to restore science rightful place creates a once-in-a-generation shift in U.S. science). (Wall Street Journal article)
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And another one of those almost forgettable major achievements:
Signing of Stem Cell Executive Order. "We will vigorously support scientists who pursue this research".
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The people's White House
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The times when the White House felt more like The Kremlin back in the days – are over. Easilly the most transparent white house ever, ended the year with the release of 25,000 visitors names but the openness was so much more visible throughout the year:
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Wounded warriors played on the president's private court:
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And kids sitting on the WH lawn, while the president reads "Where The Wild Things Are":
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There were nights of Star-gazing:
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And 10 letters to read every day:
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There's a first kitchen garden since the days of Eleanor Roosevelt:
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And Art and music are hot again:

In his first year, President Barack Obama has marshaled the largest infusion of cultural funding in decades — despite a few stumbles.

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There were heartbreaking speeches:
President Obama at Fort Hood: Greatness Before Our Very Eyes
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And moving eulogies:
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And funny appearances:
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And good punch lines:
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But even after all that, even after such an eventful year, this short and almost unseen clip, still reflect the true amazement of this presidency. Obama's final sentence here, just saying it all.
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We've come a long way. Happy New Year, everyone.
Email Blackwaterdog here.

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