I am proud to have been a part of the grassroots that helped elect Senator Obama to the presidency back in '08. I think he has done a great job, considering the obstacles he has faced. I’d vote for him again.
This was a great Farewell Speech.
2 Likes
Might not have been the best at running a country (bit too right wing for this commie mutant traitor) but he was one hell of a President.
4 Likes
i’ve lived through the terms of 10 presidents and a forced-birth fanatic might say through the terms of 11 since i was in utero during the final days of the eisenhower administration. i have read extensively the history of this country and its presidents and their policies for the entire history of the country with an emphasis on the u.s. civil war and reconstruction and the post wwii period. i have been a rational, thoughtful consumer of news and primary documents of the presidents of my lifetime starting 43 years ago when i was 12.
of all the presidents of my lifetime, obama ranks as the very best of the entire bunch. despite his flaws, some of which are the flaws of our entire government which were baked into the cake well before he was even elected senator from illinois, he is the best president i have personally experienced. if there is still a united states in 50 years i believe he will be ranked among the five or six best presidents in the history of the country.
i deeply regret his departure from office and would do so even if he were being succeeded by clinton, or sanders, or webb, or chafee, or o’malley. i die a little inside that he is being succeeded by such a monstrous little man that is to mislead the country for the next four to eight years. i deeply hope that he will be less horrific than i envision but i find i cannot count on being able to recognize my country by the end of his tenure however long that is.
my passport is up-to-date and i can take my retirement after one more year of teaching if it becomes necessary to emigrate. i plan to protest and lobby, i plan to stand with the underserved and repressed and to use every ouince of my white, male privilege to get as much access as i can muster to fight for those who are despised and abused and ignored in the america to come.
22 Likes
My thoughts exactly. Not the best a President could be, but probably as good as we could reasonably expect.
13 Likes
But second place is good. 
Since I’ve only lived in the US under two, and one of those for only 6 months, I’d have to put him first on my list, anyway.
I didn’t watch his speech though, haven’t watched any since the election. Too damn depressing.
18 Likes
fingers crossed
13 Likes
Agreed. I’m really interested in where he goes from here. Most of the ex-presidents in my lifetime have either been quite elderly or left office under a cloud. Obama’s got 30 or so years left, and is leaving on a high note. (Doubly so if he turns Chelsea loose.) Depending what he decides to do next, his legacy as an ex-president could be more far-reaching than his presidency.
10 Likes
?
1 Like
There is some talk on the tubes today that he may commute Chelsea Manning’s sentence before he leaves office. Besides it being the right thing to do, I see it as a “fuck you” to the incoming right wingers.
16 Likes
Duh. Brain not working. I saw that.
4 Likes
I do hope that he follows the Jimmy Carter model of doing good things to help the world. Not that others didn’t try, but Jimmy Carter really has done so much.
15 Likes
Obama staffers and associates have reported that he’s recently sent memos around which said, essentially, “I know that this is a rough time, and I know that you’re scared and confused and concerned. Right now, I’m still President, and I have certain duties to maintain during the transition. But after Jan. 20, I’ll be a citizen again, and I’ll be standing right along side you.” I think he’s going to fight hard. I hope he will.
13 Likes
He’s a great example of “a vocally Christian politician who somehow is also a kind and decent human being.” Maybe one of the only ones. What would JC do? Build some houses for poor people, probably.
14 Likes
8 Likes
Farewell to two excellent fathers, patriots and human beings. I didn’t care for many of their policies, but considering the administrations that bracket theirs, it might as well have been Camelot.
5 Likes
But without the sex scandals and new wars. (I’m not sure whether you’re talking about King Arthur or President Kennedy but my response stands for either.)
7 Likes
Shouldn’t that be Obama-Daitōryō?
1 Like
And work to eradicate the guinea worm.
2 Likes
The Kennedy administration was more like Cumalot
I was talking about Arthur, though I’m aware of the other “Camelot”. Both were myths anyway.
2 Likes
