Some say that the Nov. 2 election is a referendum on President Obama\u2019s first two years in office. If that\u2019s so\u2014voters have a lot to contemplate. The President himself\u2014and all the President\u2019s men and women\u2014have done a lot of things well: 244 things, according to a report compiled recently<\/a> by Robert P. Watson, Ph. D., who is a presidential historian and Professor of American Studies at Lynn University.<\/p>\n

Watson describes his motivation for creating the list this way:<\/p>\n

“Like all presidents, Barack Obama has made mistakes. But, as a presidential historian, I have been struck by claims being put forward by Obama\u2019s many critics and the news media that he has accomplished little when, in fact, his presidency is easily one of the most active in history.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Watson’s\u00a0 list has generated some controversy\u2014from the right and from the left, too. It has been criticized for exaggerating and for listing some things as accomplishments that sound more like suggestions, intentions or even wishes. Other items on the list strain one\u2019s credulity. [Does holding the first Passover Seder in the White House qualify as an accomplishment, as Watson lists it?] And some seem redundant, making the total of 244 seem slightly inflated. To his credit, though, Watson adds commentary\u2014some critical\u2014to some items on his list.<\/p>\n

Of course, people who dislike President Obama because he\u2019s a Democrat, or because he\u2019s different, or because he\u2019s not progressive enough, or because they\u2019ve labeled him as a \u201csocialist\u201d simply reject the entire list as propaganda. And one can argue, naturally, that progress is an eye-of-the-beholder phenomenon: If you don\u2019t accept the premise of the legislation or policy, you won\u2019t call it an accomplishment at all. Watson lists \u201cincreasing the number of drone attacks in Afghanistan\u201d as an accomplishment. It\u2019s not, if you think the war in Afghanistan is a waste of time, money and lives.<\/p>\n

One thing is indisputable: President Obama has been busy. Unfortunately, one of the things the President has not done well is to communicate about and convince voters of the goods that have been delivered. In the nasty, negative atmosphere of this year\u2019s election cycle, for example, how many people know that under President Obama, 95 percent of Americans have received a tax cut?<\/p>\n

Is the list an accurate reflection of an earnest, ambitious presidency, or is it the work of a true believer, shilling for the president he adores? Or is it both? You\u2019ll have to decide for yourself. Here are some excerpts for your consideration. \u00a0For the full picture, please check the full list <\/a>as compiled by Watson.<\/p>\n

Ethics<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Placed limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administration (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Companies and individuals who are delinquent on their taxes or owe back taxes are no longer allowed to bid for federal contracts (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Developed the \u201cDon Not Pay List\u201d with data on contractors and recipients of federal funds who are deemed to be ineligible because of fraud and abuse (2010)<\/p>\n

Governance<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era practice of having White House staff rewrite the findings of scientific and environmental regulations and reports when they disagreed with the results (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Limited the salaries of senior White House aides (salaries cut to $100,000) (2009)<\/p>\n

National security<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Announced his intention to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Cut the expensive Reagan era missile defense program, saving $1.4 billion in 2010 (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Instituted a new Nuclear Posture Review, revising US nuclear deterrence policy to encourage more nations to join the 1996 Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (2010)<\/p>\n

Iraq & Afghanistan<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Began the phased withdrawal of US troops from Iraq (2009); continuing the withdrawal (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Tasked the Pentagon to reorganize US policy in Afghanistan; the new policy includes 30,000 additional troops deployed, priority training of Afghan forces, developing agriculture and infrastructure, limiting aerial bombing, etc. (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era \u201cstop-loss\u201d policy that kept soldiers in Iraq\/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date (2009)<\/p>\n

Military & veterans<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era \u201cblackout\u201d imposed on media coverage of the return of fallen US soldiers (2009) * <\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era \u201cblack out\u201d policy on media coverage of war casualties (2009) * Note: Full information is now released for the first time in the War on Terror<\/em>)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era practice of awarding \u201cno-bid\u201d defense contracts (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Authorized construction of additional health centers to care for veterans (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ordered a review of the existing \u201cDon\u2019t ask, don\u2019t tell\u201d policy on gays in the military (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Fulfilled campaign promise to have combat troops (90,000) out of Iraq by August 31, 2010 (2010)<\/p>\n

Foreign policy<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Closed the Bush-era \u201csecret detention\u201d facilities in Eastern Europe (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era policy allowing \u201cenhanced interrogation\u201d (torture); the US is again in compliance with Geneva Convention standards (2009) * Note: Obama has permitted some controversial interrogation techniques to continue<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Restarted international nuclear non-proliferation talks and reestablished international nuclear inspection protocols (2009) * Note: Bush withdrew from non-proliferation talks and dismantled the inspection infrastructure<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Reengaged in the agreements\/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions (2009) * Note: These were suspended under Bush<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Restored the US commitment to the UN population fund for family planning; overturned the ban on providing funds internationally for family planning (2009) * Note: The family planning efforts were suspended under Bush<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Sent envoys to the Middle East and other parts of the world, reengaging in multilateral and bilateral talks and diplomacy (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Renewed loan guarantees for Israel (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ordered the US to finally pay its dues to the United Nations (2009)<\/p>\n

Economy<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants\u2026) (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Authorized the US auto industry rescue plan and two GMAC rescue packages (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Authorized the housing rescue plan and new FHA residential housing guarantees (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Authorized a $789 billion economic stimulus plan (2009) * Note: 1\/3 in tax cuts for working-class families; 1\/3 to states for infrastructure projects; 1\/3 to states to prevent the layoff of police officers, teachers, etc. at risk of losing their jobs because of state budget shortfalls<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Authorized the \u201cCash for Clunkers\u201d program that stimulated auto sales and removed old, inefficient, polluting cars from the road (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Authorized the federal government to make more loans available to small businesses and ordered lower rates for federal loans to small businesses (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 In November 2009, Obama extended unemployment benefits for one million workers<\/p>\n

\u2022 Credit card companies are prohibited from raising rates without advance notification or arbitrarily if customers are paying bills on time (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Signed a bill to extend unemployment benefits set to expire (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Signed historic Wall Street reform bill (2010) * Note: Designed to reregulate and end abusive practices and promote consumer protections<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Signed the HIRE Act to stimulate the economic recovery (2010) * Note: The bill includes: tax cuts for small businesses who hire someone unemployed for at least two months; small businesses can write off their investments in equipment this year; etc.<\/em><\/p>\n

Taxes<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Negotiated a deal with Swiss banks to permit the US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era policy of offering tax benefits to corporations who outsource American jobs (2009) * Note: The new policy promotes in-sourcing investments to brings jobs back to the US<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which provides small tax cuts for 95% of \u201cworking families\u201d (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ordered the closing of offshore tax safe havens (for individual and business tax evaders) (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Reduced taxes for some small businesses to stimulate the economic recovery (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Extended the Home Buyers Credit for first-time home buyers (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Called for the repeal of the capital gains tax for small businesses (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Proposed rolling back the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans (2010)<\/p>\n

Budgeting<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Established a National Performance Officer charged with saving the federal government money and making federal operations more efficient (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Overturned the Bush-era practice of not listing certain federal programs in the federal budget (2009) (2010) * Note: Bush did this (so did Reagan) in an effort to hide programs and make the budget look smaller; such \u201coff budget\u201d items are now included in the annual budget<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Full appropriations for war are now included in the budget (2009) (2010) * Note: Bush did not list many of the appropriations for Iraq, Afghanistan, and War on Terror<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Funds for emergency appropriations are now included in the budget (2009) (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Proposed a three-year freeze on federal discretionary spending beginning in 2011 (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Established a bipartisan commission on the future of Social Security, tasked with submitting proposals to preserve and strengthen Social Security (2010) * Note: In the face of Republican opposition, the powers of the commission were watered down<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Cut $20 billion from federal budget and has pledged to cut at least this much every year (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Freezing all discretionary spending for next three years, except on national security (2010)<\/p>\n

Healthcare<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Removed Bush era restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Expanded the SCHIP program to cover health care for 4 million more children (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Established an independent commission to make recommendations on slowing the costs of Medicare (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Reversed some of the Bush-era restrictions that prevented Medicare from negotiating with pharmaceutical firms for cheaper drugs, allowing government to again competitively bid (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Authorized the FDA to finally begin regulating tobacco (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Historic healthcare reform bill signed – $940 billion over 10 years (2010) * Note: 32 million additional Americans will receive healthcare coverage and costs will be lowered for most Americans, but many of the goals are phased in over four years<\/em><\/p>\n

Energy & environment<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Ended the Bush-era policy of not regulating and labeling carbon dioxide emissions (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Announced that the federal government would reengage in the long-delayed effort to clean up \u201cSuperfund\u201d toxic waste sites (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Announced the long-term development of a national energy grid with renewable sources and cleaner, efficient energy production (2009) * Note: Much of Obama\u2019s energy reform was killed by Senate Republicans<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Rights<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Instituted enforcements for equal pay for women (Lilly Ledbetter Bill) (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Signed the first major piece of federal gay rights legislation that includes acts of violence against gays under the list of federal hate crimes (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Reversed the Bush-era practice of politicizing Justice Department investigations and prosecutions against political opponents (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Pushing for some of the 9\/11 perpetrators to be tried in federal court (2009) * Note: The process has moved at a snail\u2019s pace and, in the face of opposition, Obama has remained quiet<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Allowed the State Department of offer same-sex benefits for employees (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Proposed that the Pentagon repeal the \u201cDon\u2019t Ask, Don\u2019t Tell\u201d policy; placed a \u201cfreeze\u201d on current efforts to remove alleged homosexuals from the military (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 After organizing studies on the topic in 2009, tasked the Pentagon to eliminate \u201cDon\u2019t Ask, Don\u2019t Tell\u201d (2010)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Education<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Increased funding for school construction (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Increased funding available for student loans (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Expanded the national youth service program (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Streamlined the federal student loan process to save $87 billion over the next 10 years (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Initiated a \u201cRace to the Top\u201d competitive federal grant program for states who develop innovative policies (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 The federal government will offer direct student loans, cutting out the cost of private banks (\u201cmiddle man\u201d) who increase the costs in order to make a profit (2010)<\/p>\n

Disaster response<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 FEMA once again reports directly to the president (2009) * Note: Bush removed FEMA (prior to the Hurricane Katrina disaster) from this status<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 Ordered that funds be released and red tape be streamlined for the ongoing Hurricane Katrina recovery effort in the Gulf Coast (2009)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Timely and massive relief effort in response to the January 2010 earthquake and ensuing humanitarian crisis (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 After the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a freeze was placed on new deep water projects (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 After a slow start in responding to the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the White House is promoting a long-term plan to reconstruct the damaged Gulf and negotiated with BP the establishment of a multi-billion dollar trust fund for victims of the spill (2010)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Extended national flood insurance program for those in need during current economic crisis (2010)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

p<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some say that the Nov. 2 election is a referendum on President Obama\u2019s first two years in office. If that\u2019s so\u2014voters have a lot<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5646,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[273,10],"tags":[698,762],"yoast_head":"\n