Waiting for Change

I'm not a big fan of the instant analysis culture we live in. I can't stand watching news coverage of a breaking story when the reporters on the scene and the studio commentators have no idea what's actually happening, but they're glad to guess. They seem all too eager to simply talk over video, while admitting they have no idea what's going on. So, if you don't know what's going on, what can I possibly gain from listening to you? Why can't we just wait a few minutes, perhaps even hours, get the story right, then launch into premature analysis? I've given up on the idea of contemplation, reflection, and critical, thoughtful analysis filling the airwaves.

Because of my dislike for knee-jerk analysis that requires virtually no thought and marginalizes time as an enemy, I feel somewhat hypocritical making judgments on the Obama Presidency, as it is still in a stage of infancy. But clearly my hesitancy is not shared by those in the media, and there is perhaps no greater evidence of this than the insane amount of coverage that was given to his first 100 days in office.

I knew it was coming, but I was still overwhelmed by how much was made of the first 100 days of his administration. The internet, TV, an radio programs were filled with commentators assessing how successful the President had been in advancing his policy agendas. We were told of the seemingly endless amount of polls documenting how many Americans approved of his first 100 days. Folks were eager to make pronouncements about his historical legacy, comparing him to Presidents from the past, after this fraction of his term in office. It seemed odd to make such a big deal of a time period that represents about 7% of the four years he was elected to serve. How much can we expect anyone to achieve in this small amount of time?

So I tread carefully in my assessments of the early stages of the President's time in office, making sure not to make any statements or generalizations that might be construed as judgments on his entire term. But that being said, I do think it is important to take a look at what's happened, and perhaps more importantly, what has not.

While those on the right, and even some close to the center, did their best during the campaign to portray President Obama as a far-left radical, Socialist, and the like, those of us on the left knew that if elected, President Obama would be a center-left President, with an emphasis on the center part of that descriptor. His voting record gave no indication to think anything else. But we were hopeful that once in office we would see a changed man who would put less emphasis on consensus as a divine mandate. We held out hope that he would take advantage not only of his victory, but of the Democrats' new-found control of Congress, to push through an agenda that was reasonably close to progressive. It's only been 5 months, but we're still waiting.

So far we can only see the President as an extension of the 1980s New Democrat movement that produced folks like Bill Clinton. Democrats love Clinton and view him with a less-than-critical lens that fails to recognize all that Clinton's administration did. This list of hits includes dismantling welfare, supporting every pro-business and anti-labor trade agreement, escalating the incarseration rate of non-violent drug offenders, continuing the deregulation of the financial industries, and a widening of the income gap.

If we look at just a few of the important issues of the day, we see that President Obama has done little to nothing to usher in the age of change he promised. Troop levels are on the rise in Afghanistan and our presence there, in Iraq, and elsewhere in the region is not ending anytime soon. The healthcare changes the President is advocating are limited and weak, to put it mildly. He has ceded control of the debate to the for-profit insurance companies, beginning from a point that concedes that the end result will still leave them in charge. He has poured more money into the financial institutions that were the catalyst for the financial meltdown we find urselves in. He has refused to take on the military's don't ask tell policy because it's not the right time - maybe if every single interpreter is dismissed from the ranks the time will be right. And he has all but given up on real, meaningful, transformative environmental policies that might actually make a difference.

I am willing to give the President more time, and make an assessment on his performance that is based on a longer time period. But, for now, I am not happy that the President we have is the one I thought I we would have when I voted for him in November.

I don't love Bill Maher; I find him to be a bit smug and a lot sexist. He often oversimplifies issues, and his position as a sorta Libertarian, sorta leftist, while categorically different, is dangerously similar to intellectually vapid position of being liberal on social issues but conservative on economic matters. But I do find his program entertaining, and every once in a while I find his points intelligent and amusing. That was the case on Friday when he outlined some of the issues I mentioned in expressing his disappointment in the President's first several months in office.



While I don't really love Bill Maher, I do love Rachel Maddow. She is intelligent, thoughtful, respectful, and one of the few folks on any cable news network that doesn't believe that screaming makes your points more valid. Last week Maddow discussed President Obama's failure to act on a campaign promise to end don't ask don't tell in a manner only she can.

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