I think Obama's proudest legacy will definitely be being the first black president. He was a symbol, and that, combined with his soaring but typically empty rhetoric, caused most liberals to swoon. But substantively, it was pretty much downhill since his election.
I'll start working on a report card:
1. Economy. Market did great under Obama, which means people's retirement accounts did great. That's a plus. Negatives were pretty much everything else. We now have about 5mil more jobs than 2008, or 15mil jobs than when things hit bottom in 2010. Either way, population grew by 20mil so we've actually gone backwards. Not surprisingly, labor force participation has fallen significantly, and GDP growth has been pathetic. The bottom line is that Obama thought business was the bad guy and they reciprocated. Grade: D.
2. Debt: He added more to the debt than nearly every one of his predecessors combined. Appalling. Grade: Expulsion.
3. Healthcare: His signature legislative achievement, Obamacare, has been a train wreck. It helped a few million people at the expense of everyone else. Essentially, he added a bunch more people to the already strapped Medicaid entitlement. It'll be repealed and replaced in some form. Grade: D-.
4. Foreign Policy: Obama's "Lead From Behind" doctrine while simultaneously destabilizing regimes like Libya has been an utter shambles. Killed a lot of terrorists with drone strikes tho. Grade: D+.
5. Energy: If there was one word to describe Obama's foolhardy quest to pump green energy it would be "Solyndra." We became a net exporter of energy in spite of Obama with the shale boom. Grade: F.
6. Immigration: This one's in the eye of the beholder. Liberals would approve his contra-constitutional Dreamer policy. As a conservative, I don't like lawlessness or promoting illegal immigration. Grade: F.
7. Race Relations: I don't think this needs much elaboration. Obama could have used his identity to be a unifier and healer. Instead, his rhetoric was divisive. Grade: F.
8. Social Issues. Another one in the eye of the beholder. For liberals, his actions on gay and transgender rights is a rare upside to Obama's legacy. For conservatives, its ranged from embarrassing to annoying. We've gone from Tear Down This Wall to Tear Down This Stall. Grade: D.
9. The Rule of Law. From immigration to Obamacare to many executive orders, Obama took the approach of "eff it - I'll do what I want for as long as I want and mostly get what I want even if a court goes against me in a few years." Good in short term for liberal policies. Bad in long term for fabric of our society. A bright spot for liberals is his appointment of two liberal justices who similarly believe that the law will be whatever they say it is to advance their ideology. From a conservative standpoint... Grade: F.
10. American Exceptionslism: He never believed in it and his travels abroad was a nonstop apology tour. Something liberals love, I guess. But in my view... Grade: F.
