Obamas legacy and a confused future
This president
might have inherited two wars but has bequeathed seven to his
successor. An astounding 26,171 bombs were dropped last year or approximately three
per hour
Arshad M. Khan
President Obamas farewell address focusing on the state of our democracy offered a lofty perspective coupled with a homily on the responsibility of citizenship. Thrown in were elements of legacy seized upon by numerous commentators from the left and right.
The trouble is an aloof president on a lofty perch is unlikely to get much of anything done in the rough and tumble of American politics. One can recall the vivid counterexample of Lyndon Johnson and his personal arm-twisting to push through his Great Society programs.
This president came into office in the wake of two disasters: an economic crisis caused by neoliberal policies of deregulation, and wars inherited from the neocons and George W. Bush. The first was handled with a gentle touch no fraudsters went to jail of weak regulation and copious financial largesse; the second with a surge in Afghanistan and eventual withdrawal of forces from Iraq.
The result has been a tepid economic recovery, its weakness allowing it to continue the expansion not sufficient as yet to cause the usual contraction in an economic cycle. Median U.S. household income after undergoing a reduction has returned to the 2008 levels: $58,827 in 2008 to $58,221 in 2016. On the other hand, income inequality worsened as a disproportionate share of gains went to the top one percent.
President Barack Obama cut his political teeth in Chicago. Its fitting then that he chose that city to deliver his farewell speech as President, soon after its homicide rate hit a 20-year high under his watch. Chicago is a city traumatized by death. Obama is the man it raised up high in hope. An Amazing Journey for him it may well have been, but how amazing was it for everyone else remains a matter of debate. The Presidents approval rating comes in at a record high of 60 percent. As with all Presidents it is only set to continue rising with time. Though it is to his lasting legacynot popularitythat we must turn, for these days even reality TV stars have proven popular. But legacy is the stuff of history.
From Blowflys 1988 satire First Black President to Nass 2008 track Black President, within my lifetime the idea of a black president has gone from laughable fantasy to serious reality. How important this is in historic terms to an integrated future cannot be understated. Clearly much remains to be done, although todays equivalent of me in 1988disenfranchised angry and radicalno longer has an iron wall segregating their imagination from the possible. The only visible role models I encountered back then were educated, articulate Islamist separatists. In this sense, President Obamas precedent is an unquantifiable positive in legacy terms.
Obamas evolution on equal marriage culminated in his 2012 affirmation that same sex couples had the right to be married. And though the decision was ultimately made by the Supreme Court, the Presidents vocal support was undoubtedly crucial. With this one decision, millions of lives have been emancipated, but better yet is the millions to come who will experience true liberation: never to know what it felt like to be so stigmatized for their sexual orientation.
The number of Americans who believed climate change to be a top priority plummeted under Obama from 38 percent in 2007 to 28 percent in 2013. Against these odds, and with Republicans controlling both Houses, Obama managed to commit the U.S. to the Paris Climate Deal. This obliges the worlds nations to ensure the global temperature rise remains less than two degrees compared to pre-industrial times. If implemented properly, the Paris accords have the potential to herald the end of the fossil fuel era. The effect that erratic weather, rising sea levels and dwindling fresh water flows have on food supplies, migration patterns, and war makes this a truly magnificent achievement for our planet.
Talking of precedents, Obamas term was a time for First Ladies to shine. Whatever your views on Hillary Clinton, it is hard to imagine any future First Lady being expected to serve as mere window dressing. And no First Lady has proven she has a right to be heard as well as Michelle Obama. Granted, Michelles eloquence is not Obamas achievement, but her prominence says much about the mood for gender equality under his presidency.
That view also shows in Obamas only two appointments to the Supreme Court. Both were women. Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayorthe Courts first Latina judgetripled the number of female justices to three.
Yes, being female is no assurance of a good judge, just as being black is no guarantor for a good president. Glass ceilings should not be shattered for mere tokenism, but by people of merit. Talent should be accepted from wherever it hails. But with only one female supreme court judge, it was clear that talent was not coming from wherever. Rather, it was coming from a very specific somewhere.
To bring millions of people into healthcare was always going to be a difficult move. Obamacare is roundly unpopular, with voters. Even the majority of its supporters prefer it to be reformed. Its errors, and the backlash against it could be explained in part by its lack of cross party scrutiny and support.
From Civil Rights to the Patriot Act, most landmark pieces of legislation succeeded by appealing to both sides of the house. This ensures they were built to last. The Affordable Care Act should never have been a unilateral initiative. But even Republicans accept they cannot simply now cancel the act without presenting a reasonable alternative. The GOP anticipates a three year delay to guarantee that any replacement has longevity.
At least Obamacare has kickstarted a debate around more accessible healthcare. And even by Conservatives estimates it boosted health cover by 14 million people. That much at least is a good thing. Bank it.
Gun control would only ever have seemed achievable if tragedy struck. A series of incidents from Tucson, Arizona,, through Aurora Colorado, including the children at Sandy Hook, and culminating this month at Fort Lauderdale shook the nation. Sadly, even these multiple mass shootings were insufficient for Obama to be able to build the alliances needed to make this happen. His bill failed at Congress. So the President went as far as he could without Congressional approval, issuing an unprecedented 23 Executive Orders on gun control.
2016 was the year in which many icons breathed their last. Among those was the dictator Fidel Castro. By most accounts, Cubas human rights have gotten worse since Obamas overtures. Any economic gains from increased trade with America go mainly to Cubas military regime. But business and tourist ties are now too deep to reverse. Cuba is less free than many places, but it is no Iran. Having economic mechanisms already in place will be crucial to any next stage of major reforms, tied explicitly to the U.S. embargo. Cubas Gorbachev cannot arise unless the foundation already exists for him or her to exploit. Amid understandable grumblings from older Miami-based Cuban dissidents, Obama may have unwittingly chosen a wise year in which to soften ties. Castros passing is the perfect opportunity for reformersand the embargo is the perfect leverage to pressure for internal democratization.
That was the good. What remains is to consider the bad, and the ugly. So to adapt a line from that iconic movie, there are two types of men in this world: those who lead, and those who dont. And there is so much in Obamas legacy indicating his trouble with leadership.
On the war front, the surge failed in Afghanistan. At 15 years, the longest war in U.S. history continues as the Taliban display increased strength. Playing the ethnic card, as the U.S. did, unseated the Taliban quickly but delegitimized the central government in the eyes of the Pashtun population. It holds on ethnic plurality and an easy majority when including their kin in Pakistan across a notoriously porous and artificial Durand Line marking an ignored British colonial border. Afghanistan was part of the Mughal Empire, like India and Pakistan, before the British arrived.
The writer is a former Professor based in the US. Educated at Kings College London, OSU and The University of Chicago, he has a multidisciplinary background that has frequently informed his research.
Troops were withdrawn from Iraq at the latters behest but Special Forces are now back fighting IS/Daesh. In fact Special Forces were deployed in 138 countries globally in 2016.
This president might have inherited two wars but has bequeathed seven to his successor. An astounding 26,171 bombs were dropped last year or approximately three per hour. These are wars fought from the skies, safer in terms of U.S. military casualties, but by their nature, deadly on civilian populations.
Attempts to undermine the Trump presidency continue unabated. A dossier leaked to the press claimed the Russians had a hold on Trump through evidence of deviant sex, and in addition were going to offer profitable deals to the Trump organization. A simple question: Why would they need to offer financial inducement if they already had a hold on Trump?
Prepared by Christopher Steele, a former MI6 operative, for apparently Democrat and Republican opponents of Trump, the dossier contains almost no evidence of its assertions and was soon proven to be false. Mr. Steele meanwhile is in hiding. He believes his life to be in danger.
If all of the above is not enough, the Justice Department has announced an investigation of FBI Director, James Comey, by the Inspector General for his handling of the Clinton email affair just before the election.
While little can be remembered about Vice President Joe Biden other than plagiarism when he ran for president plus a capacity to endure the rudest insults and disrespect from Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, he has been awarded the Medal of Freedom by his dear friend Barack Obama the nations highest civilian honor, becoming as depleted in value as the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to his boss. Bemedaled, he was dispatched to Ukraine. What could be more urgent than more trouble for Trump?
In the meantime, the odious and politically naive continue their confirmation hearings, proving to be either gutless or reversing Trumps policy pronouncements in the case of Rex Tillerson, the Secretary of State nominee. He is already issuing ultimatums to China and Iran seemingly unaware of their close relationship with Russia.
The old joke remains truer than ever: In America anyone can be president and anyone usually is.
