Obama Should Stay a Liberal

Mr. President: Stay Faithful to Your Base
By:Mobasshir Poonawalla
Our President is under attack—from all sides. Many democrats and progressives are concerned that President Obama has failed to fulfill his campaign promise of bringing “change” to a once Republican run America. He has adopted many of Bush’s policies and has moved closer to the right than anyone might have anticipated one year ago—and its making progressives squirm uncomfortably. Republicans on the other hand are having a field day lambasting President Obama’s unpopular policies. Ironically, Obama’s most unpopular policies are actually those that he has adopted from Bush when he took office. If President Obama can just refocus on maintaining his promise of change and stay true to his democrat roots, he will become reasonably irreproachable again amongst most Americans, the Far Right and its faux (no pun intended) patriotic ‘concerns’ notwithstanding, who want this country headed in the right direction again.

It is a simple fact that the GOP is slowly dying. It took just eight years of bad policy and bad leadership under the party’s last administration for it to alienate much of the American people from its “time-tested conservative ideologies.” Because of how unpopular Bush’s policies were, President Obama was propelled into the White House riding the wave his movement created calling for hope and change.

Eight years ago however, the political scene looked much more different. The American people had just elected a moderately conservative ‘Joe’ with big ideas and a soaring approval rating. The nation’s economy was booming. People were living ‘the American Dream.’ But things went terribly wrong: tragedy struck.

After 9/11, the President’s true Neo-Conservative self emerged and he decided to invade Iraq. He lied to the American people, made up stories about WMDs, and waged his new abstract war on ‘terror.’ It seemed like a scene straight out of Star Wars—Bush expanded executive powers, stomping out civil liberties, and suspended habeas corpus. Americans were taught to fear and seek refuge in the republic to keep them safe. Then Abu-Graib and Guantanamo Bay surfaced, along with accounts of US sponsored torture. It could not have gotten any worse—but it did. The bubble Bush’s bad economic policies created burst. The economy tanked; and the nation was veering dangerously close towards the possibility of a second depression.

Then came presidential candidate Obama. He created a new movement and it was quickly gaining momentum. Across America, whispers of “change” could be heard. Soon the movement became a tidal wave—a wave of support for this young new Democrat who was going to bring “change” to the White House. People hoped for the things that Obama promised and the imagery he conjured up became the aspirations of America. People were jumping on the new hope train by the thousands (reminiscent of Cat Stevens’s peace train and the unpopular Vietnam War). His promises to regulate Wall Street, restore constitutional civil liberties, and get out of Iraq, all gave Americans hope—and gave him the Oval Office. All of these strictly liberal ideals were what the American people wanted and what they were promised. But did they get what they wanted? Did the American people actually get the same Democrat they voted for on election day?

First few days in office—President Obama has ostensibly moved to close Guantanamo Bay, ban any US sponsored torture, and create an emergency stimulus package to help save the rapidly contracting economy. He gives an unprecedented speech to the Muslim World in Cairo, talks about a pull-out from Iraq, and completely changes America’s perceived tone to the international community. Under Bush, only three countries approved of America and its leader: Nigeria, India, and Israel—all of them with Muslim minorities that are oppressed and discriminated against. Now with President Obama in the White House, America jumps to first place as “the best countries in the world.” His approval rating hovers at 75% in Europe. And he wins the Nobel Peace Prize.

It is obvious that Obama has said and ostensibly done things in both the international and domestic arenas to make him one of the most popular presidents in recent time—but what has he tangibly done and actually accomplished? From the moment he stepped into the spotlight, candidate Obama was attacked by the Republican Attack Machine (RAM). He as painted as a devout liberal, and to appease the growing concern that he would embody the same one-party politics as his predecessor, but in the opposite end of the spectrum, Obama made a huge folly—he promised the impossible. From that point on, Obama promised to be bipartisan, to be willing to work together with Republicans, and to compromise with them over key issues. Once he took the presidency, embodying all of the hope and liberal policies America needed then more than ever, he gave his voters what they wanted—mostly in words. His actions however, reflected his desire to fulfill his campaign promise of bipartisanship; he took on some of Bush’s bad policies and pulled back on some of his own.

Today, Guantanamo Bay is still open, and the Obama Administration is currently applying pressure on Britain to conceal what kind of torture one specific detainee, Benyam Mohammed, went through under the CIA. In fact, the President took many steps to ensure that members of the past administration could get away with crimes against humanity, including staying the release of Guantanamo Bay pictures. We are still bogged down in Iraq, and reserve ‘the right’ to bomb another. Forty-thousand troops are being mobilized for possible deployment to Afghanistan. Regulation of big banks after such a cataclysmic meltdown is virtually invisible. And civil liberties are being stomped out right and left, behind closed doors. And almost all of these regrettable actions the President has taken are because of RAM pressure, pressure that we had thought we ousted with the ‘06 and ‘08 elections.

Most Americans still love the President and want the best for him, his administration, and the Nation. However, the President is still being haunted by a seemingly easy to make campaign promise from over a year ago. Promising to work with those who have promised to make you fail is a catch-22. We still hope for the man who taught us to hope—we hope that he can free himself the desire to paint himself a Moderate, and truly bring America the change it needs. The American people voted for a Democrat so he can be a Democrat and act like a Democrat. His firm stance on healthcare is commendable, and should be used for all his policies. We had eight years of Bush. We don’t need another eight. Mr. President, leave the right wing policies behind. Earn your Presidency; earn your Peace Prize. Republicans gave you neither.