The Student News Site of Malvern Preparatory School

Friar's Lantern

The Student News Site of Malvern Preparatory School

Friar's Lantern

The Student News Site of Malvern Preparatory School

Friar's Lantern

President Obama: Four More Years

When President Obama presented his Inaugural address just 3 years ago, he said, “Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many, and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.” In his first term as President, President Obama has confronted these issues and many more. We must remember the times before our current President took office. Perhaps most significantly, President Obama has been a prayer sent from Heaven for those who were burdened by the economic recession he inherited from George W. Bush.

Nearly every political operative in the country has declared that President Obama has done more for the middle class than any other President in modern American history. Our president deserves our thanks for getting our economy back on track. For that in itself, America is on the course to become even more of a world power than it was before. His stances and actions regarding women, the economy, and foreign and domestic policy, as well as his honesty and ability to connect with all Americans – not just the wealthy – have earned him another four years in office, to finish what he has started so well.

President Obama cares about women. The first bill that President Obama signed into law as President was the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. This law lengthened the time in which women have to file lawsuit for fair pay. This law was extremely important, because even today women still earn seventy-seven cents for every dollar earned by a man. The law helped men, women, and families. In this time, when we see that more households are or becoming two paycheck households, more money is going into the house and the family as a whole with this policy. The policy is beneficial toward all Americans and it is highly regarded with a lot of respect.

In regards to economic policy, President Obama has been highly active in helping our economy grow and prosper. When President Obama took his Oath of Office, he knew he was facing a country that was on the brink of collapse. The country did go over the mountain and we entered into the worst recession since the Great Depression. President Obama’s policies that helped our economic situation included the Economic Stimulus Plan, the Auto Bailout, extending tax cuts for the middle class, and helping to bring jobs back to America that were lost in the recession. The economic stimulus was expensive, but necessary to stop the downturn Obama inherited – and it worked. As President, Obama has seen forty-four consecutive months of positive job creation. Our auto industry, which comprises 15 percent of the US economy, is back on the rise. For too long, the American people have seen Wall Street in its worst moments. President Obama approved Dodd-Frank, which tells Wall Street that they can be regulated and that regulators need to take their jobs seriously. Some people say it goes too far; I argue that it doesn’t go far enough. A little regulation is always good and healthy. It’s a President’s job to make the tough decisions and he did.

On foreign policy, President Obama has been particularly strong. It was the intelligence gathered in the Obama Administration that led to the death of terrorist and former Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. Also, under the Obama Administration, Al-Qaeda number two Anwar al-Aulaqi was killed via a drone strike. We have to remember that during the Obama administration, several countries in the Middle East were and still are undergoing political unrest. The domino effect started with Egypt. President Obama was one of the first political figures to call for the resignation for President Mubarak of Egypt because of human rights violations. Eventually, through a lot of pressure, Mubarak did step down and his now facing trial. Our president, with many members of the United Nations, called for the resignation of Muammar Gaddafi of Syria due again to human rights violations. President Obama issued crippling sanctions on Syria. The Syrian leadership was demolished without military intervention, and its own citizens rose against Gaddafi. President Obama safely ended the war in Iraq and left it to the Iraqis to control their own people. He has stated consistently that the troops will be out of Afghanistan by 2014 in his second term. Other nations hold our president – and our nation – with great respect as Obama’s first term nears its close.

President Obama’s domestic policy achievements include The Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act (Obamacare), deferred action on immigration, Race to the Top and many more. The Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act is beneficial for the taxpayer. Personal responsibility is the reasoning for “Obamacare.”  We cannot fully critique Obamacare – nor can its opponents – because it has not been fully implemented yet. The DREAM Act gave a path of citizenship for children who were brought here illegally by their parents. At a time when the American Dream is at risk, President Obama stepped up to the plate to attempt to fix it. Even though Republicans tried to stop him, President Obama did a deferred action program in which illegal immigrants can apply to for citizenship if they meet certain requirements. Some immigrants and their children are the next engineers, teachers, and business leaders of America. The path to citizenship should be rigorous, but not so hard that potential ingenuity and talent leave the United States. In a time where the United States is ranking low on math and reading test scores, President Obama created the Race from the Top program to encourage schools and students to achieve – and the program is working. In all aspects of domestic policy, President Obama creates policies that look out for the people.

President Obama has clearly shown that he is for the American people. He has constantly endured ridiculous claims that he isn’t American, yet he still delivers the American people results. During his tenure as president, President Obama has created 3.1 million jobs. He cares for all people not just the 47% percent. He supports all people and the beliefs that they share, including religious and social aspects of a person’s life. We need a President that cares for all people, and President Obama has consistently shown us that he has.

Voters should not consider not just what is best for them, but what is best for the country. Even if you are wealthy, one must know they cannot take their money to heaven with them. The argument is not class warfare, the argument is common sense. If one truly cares about the great nation in which they live, one would want to see the entire nation succeed – not just those already at the top of the economy. The argument President Obama makes is for the future. We have been on the right course and we need to stay on this course. If you want to keep seeing America succeed and you can vote, vote Obama/Biden in 2012. They are keeping America FORWARD!

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