President Obama was elected on the message of hope and change. As recent events of his presidency unfold, we are learning more and more that his campaign promises are being broken. The message of change he once represented is really just "more of the same" that we experienced under former President Bush.
How did I arrive at this point? Well, I actually listened to the debates and the promises he made that helped get President Obama elected into office. I pay attention to his policies and what he has done throughout his short time as President. Need I remind you, President Obama accused Senator John McCain of being "more of the same", but in fact, President Obama has been quick to conform to the standards of the very political system he promised to reform.
John Stewart is one of the best comedians to scrutinize our nation’s politics. Most know that he is very liberal in his own ideology, however does a very good job of holding members of both parties equally accountable for their actions.
For instance, just the other day Stewart compared the remarks President Obama made regarding withdrawing from Iraq to remarks former President Bush made regarding the same subject. Upon comparing the two different speeches, from two different speech writers, from two different presidents, during two different periods of time, the message was almost exactly the same. Let me say that again... exactly the same.
The President who promised a speedy withdraw from Iraq has instead informed us he was going to keep about 35,000 troops in Iraq who would serve in the same advisory capacity the troops overseas are currently serving in. Broken promise number one.
Secondly, President Obama chastised the Bush administration for putting the nation into a large deficit during his time in office. The bailout package increases the deficit in one year what it took Bush five years to achieve. However, it was President Obama who promised financial responsibility and accountability. Broken promise number two.
President Obama also promised to reform pork spending, ear marks, pet projects, and wasteful spending during his campaign. However, with the federal budget at the threshold of his desk for signing, he has opted not to review each line item to remove wasteful spending. In fact, he has argued that because the budget bill was debated during Bush’s presidency, he should not be held liable for any pet projects and ear marking contained in the bill. Isn’t this the man that campaigned for change and yet he refuses to change the status quo? Sounds like broken promise number three to me.
But he has done some good. My wife and I will benefit from the $8,000 refundable tax credit for first time home buyers (which was originally a $7,500 loan from the government under Bush). So essentially, President Obama has helped me pocket a free $8,000. But when I think about this free money and how much my taxes will increase under the Obama administration, I begin to wonder at the end of his term, if my bank account will still be in the black or if it will be in the red (just like the state of our nation).
But hey, everything is okay so long as you and I don’t have to pay for it right now, right? Just our children and their children.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment