Obama - What is your opinion so far on his Presidency

[Icarus27k]

To be fair, voters didn't know about the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 [the law referred to in my post just above yours] because voters are simply ignorant of Congress.

If you can unlock the riddle as to why voters vote the way they do, then my hat is off to you, because it's difficult to do. We still don't know why voters voted the way they did in the 1998 midterm election, or the 2002 midterm, or the 2006 midterm. I doubt that any piece of legislation that Congress passed had something to do with the election outcome.

What piece of legislation exactly was so unpopular that it caused voters to punish the Democrats for passing it? Health care reform? Opinion polls on that before the election were more evenly split than unpopular. Examples:

Newsweek poll, conducted Oct. 20-21: 44% say it was good for the country in general, 46% say it was bad for the country in general, and 10% either had a mixed opinion or were unsure.
Kaiser Family Foundation poll, conducted Oct. 5-10: 42% had a favorable view of it, 43% had an unfavorable view of it, and 15% were unsure.
ABC News/Washington Post poll, conducted Sept. 30-Oct. 3: 47% support, 48% oppose, and 5% were unsure.

Source: Health Policy


There haven't been that many polls on the subject of the stimulus package from early 2009, but I found two. They're pretty evenly split, especially the newest one.

Newsweek poll, conducted Oct. 20-21: 42% think it was good for the country in general, 45% think it was bad for the country in general, and 5% were unsure.
USA Today/Gallup poll, conducted Aug. 27-30: 43% approve, 52% disapprove, and 5% were unsure

Budget/Taxes

The Wall Street reform law? This one is pretty popular.

USA Today/Gallup poll, conducted Aug. 27-30: 61% approve, 37% disapprove, 3% unsure.
CNN poll, conducted Jul. 16-21: 58% favor, 39% oppose, 3% unsure.

Source: Business News


Yeah, you're exaggerating. A historic beating for no real proven purpose. But even if the public was uniformly against the laws, it would just mean the public is wrong. Just like when the public was wrong to punish the members of the 89th Congress after it passed great legislation like the creation of Medicare and Medicaid, and civil rights laws.

 

[ironsides]

Today 11 November is Veterans Day. Do you know where your president is? With his feeble flame of "hope" thoroughly doused here in the United States by last week's elections, President Obama has set out around the globe in search of throngs still enthralled by his flowery rhetoric.

He found them, of course, in Indonesia this week by telling them about how Americans must stop mistrusting Islam.

So that is why your president is halfway around the world instead of being here in the United States to celebrate the sacrifices American soldiers, sailors and airmen have made around the world to keep the real, still-burning flame of freedom alive.

Obama honored our veterans from afar by laying a wreath during a ceremony at an Army base in South Korea last night. That is a distance from here matched only by the chasm that has opened up between him and the voters who elected him two years ago.

This aloofness of his really is becoming a problem.

Not that Obama doesn't appreciate the sacrifices of veterans. He absolutely does. Just ask the Indonesians. He was in Jakarta for their Heroes Day this week to honor their veterans "who have sacrificed on behalf of this great country."

"This great country," of course, being Indonesia.

bout sums it up.

 

[Icarus27k]

Of course, you realize that he's in South Korea for the G-20 summit, right? That's kind of important, and reasonable people should take offense if he doesn't go.

 

[ironsides]

Could have sent a minion. He has more important things to do here.

 

[Icarus27k]

Nothing would symbolize the weird, nationalist fetish that some Americans have better than if you're suggesting he should forgo the G-20 to stay here for Veterans Day.

Could have sent a minion. He has more important things to do here.

Oh, well there you go. No, Obama should go to the world economic meeting that is meant to address the economic crisis, instead of staying home for some ceremonial event (which, while important to some, can just as well be recognized over there as it can here).

 

[ironsides]

The President is in office to do our bidding, not what he wants. That is his problem he takes to many vacations, (40 aircraft, one for the pet, a fleet of ships not to mention family and security.) Guess he thinks he may as well take advantage of the situation while he can, in 2012 he knows he is out.

 

[Icarus27k]

Right, the President should do our bidding. My bidding is for him to go to the G-20 and actually try to do something about the interconnected world economy.

 

[ironsides]

G-20 is not important, they are going to discuss currency issues, everyone will hold ground and nothing will be done. There I have summarized his job there. What a waste of money.

Now for something important to his administration.


By by Nancy.

Democrats pressing Pelosi to step aside - Yahoo! News

 

[Icarus27k]

The economic summit trying to address issues related to the the world economic crisis that just occurred a couple years ago is of the utmost importance. Every US President would, and should, be there, just like how every US President goes on foreign trips.

By by Nancy.

Democrats pressing Pelosi to step aside - Yahoo! News

As for this, I will bring it up again in a week or so when Pelosi wins the vote of the House Democratic Caucus.

 

[damngrumpy]

I love it when people criticise when they have no clue as to how the world works.
If Obama didn't go to the G20 which will end in nothing happening, it would make
some other things happen. First the banks and financial institutions would read
into it that America was in more trouble and the economy would suffer more not
to mention the other nations would make decisions that would impact adversely
to the interests of America perhaps. Obama was handed the biggest pile of
economic crap ever handed to anyone when Bush left. And this nonsense that
the recession was on when George came to power in just that it was nonsense.
Yes there were a few clouds, but the economic policy Bush implemented put the
whole economy in doubt. Obama has made mistakes true, everyone does. The
idea that the banks and financial institutions should not be bailed out is flawed.
For example, GM in trouble, owned GMAC its auto finance agency, that also owned
Di tech.com a company heavily into mortgage risk debt. If they had not done a bailout,
Di tech might have gone under. So What? Well there is those leveraged fund,
derivatives, and some estimate the fallout from those could be as high as 961 trillion
dollars. If money at risk on paper comes due, you will have a recession or a depression
that would last 20 years. Don't think so? Japan did much the same as America did,
and when their problems hit home, Japan fell into a recession they are still in. That
recession started in 1982. Obama did the right thing even though I and millions of
others don't like it. Doing the right thing has a price, but if the economy turns around
the now Divided Republicans will be the ones on the run. Just like by elections in this
country, mid term elections don't count for much in Presidential years, there is a long
way to go yet. As I always say six weeks is an eternity in politics.

 

[ironsides]

The economic summit trying to address issues related to the the world economic crisis that just occurred a couple years ago is of the utmost importance. Every US President would, and should, be there, just like how every US President goes on foreign trips.




As for this, I will bring it up again in a week or so when Pelosi wins the vote of the House Democratic Caucus.

Ok,

 

[petros]

I still don't understand how a red bolshevik is different than a blue bolshevik.

 

[ironsides]

The G20 conference is meaningless, the U.S. is not going to accept what Brazil, China and others would like, were surly not going to devalue the dollar. President Obama and his wife have caused more controversy with their ignorance of others customs than it is worth. We are not Japan, and we still have the financial resources to get out of this providing Bernanke doesn't just flit our money away. The most dangerous man in U.S. goverment.

 

[TenPenny]

Today 11 November is Veterans Day. Do you know where your president is? With his feeble flame of "hope" thoroughly doused here in the United States by last week's elections, President Obama has set out around the globe in search of throngs still enthralled by his flowery rhetoric.

Your President is probably in the same place as my PM is, at international meetings.

I know, it's popular to make an issue out of every fart, and if you're certain posters on here, it's popular to make an issue out of the size of the thighs of the First Lady.

But in the end, this pettiness makes you look every bit as silly as the pettiness about how many times GWB played golf.
It suggests that you have nothing of substance to say.

 

[Goober]

The G20 conference is meaningless, the U.S. is not going to accept what Brazil, China and others would like, were surly not going to devalue the dollar. President Obama and his wife have caused more controversy with their ignorance of others customs than it is worth. We are not Japan, and we still have the financial resources to get out of this providing Bernanke doesn't just flit our money away. The most dangerous man in U.S. goverment.

The QE 2 - or 600 Billion that the Govt will buy up will inflate stocks, therby increasing artifically wealth, they then have more equity.
The Govt by doing so will also devalue the US Dollar making exports cheaper. Inflation is the next step. lowers the overall value of the debt is :todays dolllars" Same thing that China and japan along with others have been or are doing.

Myself - i moved out evrything but Oil/Gas and really good corporate bonds. 1 reason is i do think the Us will nail the Nuke problme in iIran. Now when the shxt hits ans surer than little gren apples wil; give a man the runs and the runs(shxts) are coming in the next year or maybe 2 I will then look at commodities or rememebering the 80's some long term high interest Govt of Canada Bonds as interest rates rise..

The US was scared of deflation and yes it is worse than inflation. Printing more dollars does devalue a currency.

Lastly - The poor will pay the heaviest price as always.

 

[petros]

The good money is in mud. A type of silicate mud that China no longer exports to Japan and a few others in need of really good mud. If you want to get rich the new gold is mud.

 

[Goober]

The good money is in mud. A type of silicate mud that China no longer exports to Japan and a few others in need of really good mud. If you want to get rich the new gold is mud.

I have been looking at rare earths but a number of companies are trying to set up and it does not bode well for them. What type of mud are you referring to?

Also watching how and if they can do the deep underwater mining near those volcanic vents - Pure metals. i understand that only 2 or so companies are trying that. Dozens of meters thick and dozens of meters wide. lots of fun waiting to see what the core results will be. Along with costs for retrieving it.

 

[petros]

Also watching how and if they can do the deep underwater mining near those volcanic vents - Pure metals. i understand that only 2 or so companies are trying that. Dozens of meters thick and dozens of meters wide. lots of fun waiting to see what the core results will be. Along with costs for retrieving it.

My favourite kind of ore. It's what makes up the Trans Hudson Orogen in SK and MB If you want a mineral rich chunk of a nearly 2 Billion year old black smoker from the birth of North America just ask.

 

[damngrumpy]

Obama has a mess to clean up and there is not going to be enough time to do it all. Like all
other things, at some point the worm will turn and when things start going right they can of
course capitalize on it. Public Relations can do wonderful things. Obama is still in the high
forties, I think if he were around 25% he would be in trouble. One victorious event, like getting
Bin Laden would change everything. Tomorrow is another day, and no one knows from day
to day what the future holds. Remember the off year, is a disaster for whoever is in office,
usually. The Presidential year could see more people out and if that happens, who knows.
If it were me, I would pound away to the poor and working people the boogie man is going to
over turn medicare and you will not get it back for fifty years.
Also the only tax breaks would be for companies bringing their plants back and those exporting
jobs would also pay more, link it to a loyalty tax, and you would be surprised. People are in
fact starting to dislike the companies as much as government. The WTO has got to Go.

 

[JLM]

Obama has a mess to clean up and there is not going to be enough time to do it all. Like all
other things, at some point the worm will turn and when things start going right they can of
course capitalize on it. Public Relations can do wonderful things. Obama is still in the high
forties, I think if he were around 25% he would be in trouble. One victorious event, like getting
Bin Laden would change everything. Tomorrow is another day, and no one knows from day
to day what the future holds. Remember the off year, is a disaster for whoever is in office,
usually. The Presidential year could see more people out and if that happens, who knows.
If it were me, I would pound away to the poor and working people the boogie man is going to
over turn medicare and you will not get it back for fifty years.
Also the only tax breaks would be for companies bringing their plants back and those exporting
jobs would also pay more, link it to a loyalty tax, and you would be surprised. People are in
fact starting to dislike the companies as much as government. The WTO has got to Go.

Yep, I think many people thought he was going to fix everything in five minutes- things have been steadily deteriorating since the 1950s so how in the hell is it going to be fixed right away?????? I say if he can improve things by 10% in his first term he'll be doing well. Also the president has very little control over the economy, it's generally crooks that control that. :smile: