So many people were full of hope that Obama would truly be a transformative president. That by sheer force of his charisma and personality he could change Washington. The media fueled those unrealistic expectations. Obama was compared to Lincoln and FDR, often to both at the same time. I remember someone at Time magazine writing a column stating that Obama's intellect was so far ahead of that of most people that he was almost doing us a favor by choosing to run for president. What a load of hogwash!!!

The truth is that Obama was a very bright and ambitious politician with a wafer thin resume. He was like a Rorschach test, voters ascribed to him traits that more often reflected their own expectations than reality. Of course they were bound to be disappointed when he turned out to be an average centrist Democrat.



As for voting in 2016, do these people think that they would be better off with a Republican president? They should vote, but this time with eyes wide open.

And I believe you summed things up very well. I recall a discussion with a Republican Cousin of mine in 2008. She knew I was a Democrat but, was surprised when I told her that I was not particularly enamored with either Obama or Clinton. She being convinced that I had joined the ranks of the GOP voters asked why and I responded "because they were much too conservative for my tastes".

I will vote for the Democratic Nominee in the General Election no matter who it is, until then I support Bernie Sanders.

Meaning that his speeches were mostly about vagaries, hope and change, etc. Gems like "we are the ones we've been waiting for" and "this was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal". Who talks like this? To me, sometimes he sounded more like the leader of a cult than a presidential candidate. Reminded me of the snake oil salesmen of yore. I rather have a down to earth politician who tells it like it is, than an almost Hollywood version of the "perfect" politician. Although I must admit that Obama and his people ran a very effective campaign, they marketed the "product" to great success.

All things considered, he's performed better than I expected. Then again, my expectations weren't very high.

He is a superb speaker. I watched him at an event here in St. Louis for Claire McCaskill in October of 2006 (if memory serves) and as my wife and I were heading back to the car, I said to her, that he is running for President. I was certain at that point and when the campaign officially kicked off, I believe it was all over but the shouting. I just didn't see HRC winning the nomination, nor do I see that this time around, but I have been wrong before and will be again.

particularly to a man who is his mid 70s and wasn't even a Democrat until he decided to run for president. Barring some unforeseen circumstance, Hillary in all probability will be the Democratic nominee.

she may very well be the nominee.......or she may not. Time will tell.

Last edited Sat Jun 13, 2015, 05:01 AM - Edit history (1)

best things the Democratic Party has stood for.

He would be 75 by election day next year. That IS mid 70s.

I had very strong reservations, but I did work for him once he won the nomination. Not only was he slick, his campaign during the primary was often dirty, even though that would be hard to prove. You would not believe how party officials in Illinois rammed him down our throats. Anyone who expressed reservations was greeted with anger and disbelief. I am told that the same thing was being done before and during the caucuses in Iowa.

He was the candidate of choice, ever since his keynote speech in 2004. That is why he was chosen to give that speech. He never had a seriously strong election opponent until he ran for President.

I like Obama. He has put up with some unbelievable crap and insults from his opponents. Much of it is racist. I admire how much he has gotten done, given his opposition. But did I expect more? I don't know. I thought his first term, with his emphasis on bipartisanship, was weak. I will always respect what he has accomplished overall, and I would vote for him again.

Suffice it to say that I got to know a lot of people who worked and volunteered in various parts of the country. The caucuses in particular were quite dirty. So was the pressure put on AA elected officials who had chosen to support Hillary. Only a few were brave enough to speak about it, like the late Stephanie Tubbs-Jones for example.

Yes, some of that was fueled by the media. That's about all I agree with you on.

While he only had a few years as a state legislator and four years in the Senate, that only represents part of his credentials not taking into account anything he did before (of course with Hillary Clinton you and her supporters are quick to bring up all the good deeds she did before her entering politics). You are minimizing his credentials to bash him. Reminds me of the 3 am commercial Hillary Clinton in 2008. You are pretty much parroting the same line 7 years later. Nothing really changes does it?

He had a very thin political resume, that fact will never change.

But nitpick all you want. Again you and your ilk are hypocrites as you state all of Clinton's deeds before she became a senator, but dismiss Obama's. It just goes to show the deafening arrogance and pompous ignorance of her supporters.

Obama had just completed the second year of his first term when he announced his candidacy. Facts are facts........

The whole country does not have even the bit of understaniding of its own government.

We dont elect a dictator, there is a major limit to what a president can do.

And, this president has faced BOTH:

The most united and completely oppositional opposition party in our history
A pathetically weak, cowardly and directionless home party

IN ADDITION to a media that openly advances the memes of the opposition party.

Barrack Obama has been a flat good president, he has done as much as anyone could do with literally no support from his own party and absolute resistance on everything from the opposition party.

He isnt the problem, the asshats in congress are.

People are doing the same thing w bernie now, too.

No matter how much Mr Obama may have let down black voters (a subject about which I'm not willing to argue), the GOP alternative is an order of magnitude worse. No matter how empty a suit Mrs Clinton may turn out to be (a subject about which I'm not willing to speculate), the GOP alternative is worse. It may not be dramatic, but cold potatoes are better than no food at all.

-- Mal

So, at the moment, I am actually kinda happy with him for being able to accomplish what he has done.

As for the question if it is worth voting for Clinton after Obama, I say heck yeah.
The Republican option would just gut them even more.

However, initially backing Clinton? Well, that's up to them to decide. At the moment, there are quality primary alternatives to Clinton, be it Sanders or O'Malley. I will vote for any of them come General Election.

neither one cares how many blacks die overseas as part of endless war.

Neither one cares about young black men being executed by police

both support wall street and their free trade deals which hurts working people.

On economy,war,and police killings no difference between obama,clintons,and republicans.

I support bernie sanders and refufe to vote for any corporate DINO's again.

and they get to chose between
Clinton vs. Cruz
or
Clinton vs. Perry
or
Clinton vs. Huckabee

They may have an epiphany regarding where their vote may be better served.

They just won't bother to show up to vote.

Clinton isn't my first choice, but no way am I going to abstain if she wins (even though I live in Texas and my vote likely won't count for much). Of course, Texas is slowly going purple, so you never know...

It's a shame that some of us black folk buy into the false narrative that Obama doesn't have a record. It's simply untrue.

I think people expected this man to walk on water and fix all that is wrong with urban America. It's wrong to expect that, but oh well.

The party as a whole is ineffective, Obama has gotten pretty much nothing done except for helping corporations. I think a lot of people believe that the black voters are willing to overlook the fracking, TPP, assault on labor, arctic drilling, drug prosecutions, and the rest of the "business as usual" that's been the hallmark of the last 7 years. They're fully aware that the .1% has gotten almost all of the "recovery". And of course another Clinton presidency will provide no change whatsoever. She actually said out loud that she'll be even more accomodating to Boner and Ryan and McConnell than Obama is.

Clinton will get enough crossover votes from moderate republicans and republican women to win easily, but the party's going nowhere with this platform.

bunch of people saying there has been NO CHANGE - no HOPE when much for our people has been accomplished.

As for not getting much done, he HAS gotten a lot done and progress has been made on a lot of progressive issues during his Presidency. The lack of getting other stuff done can mostly be laid at the feet of Republicans in Congress and statehouses whom have been hounding his policies legislatively and judicially.

He would have received more credit for the recovery.

because of what Obama couldn't get done. President Obama has tried hard to get things done and having a Republican Congress (either one chamber or both) the majority of his presidency has made things difficult. There have been times when I vehemently disagree with him on issues (like the TAA and TPP) and I will fight to stop those (as will many other DUers). That certainly doesn't mean I don't support him. I will continue to support him until his last day in office.

Now as an aside, the DUers who publicly (and falsely) stated I don't support Obama enough (you know who you are) should take their words and stuff it.

like filler between ads .

I'm a 45 black American and I can tell you that no one in my family or our friends are disappointed in President Obama. He is not perfect because he's a human being and even human beings make mistakes. Let me be clear. No matter what you people say about him are pretend to know what black men and women think. We will never abandon him. We will complain about what he is doing if we disagree, but we will never abandon him or be disappointed in him.

I think what some people forget is just what a mess on all fronts he had to confront when he became President. If that weren't bad enough, what seems to be left out of this discussion is the relentlessly negative role that the Congress played. There was no good faith whatsoever in the Republican Senators or Congressmen, and the Democratic leadership--especially in the Senate--was spineless. In addition, because he is the first African-American President, he carried the additional burden on his shoulders of needing to be seen to have made every possible effort to reach out to both parties in Congress. I think he spent far too much time trying to work with Republicans in his first two years in Congress, but nevertheless, the fact that he got health care reform passed is a tremendous achievement, and one against terrible odds. What I fault him for is his disappointing lack of respect for civil liberties when it comes to government spying, and his reliance on an economic team whose members were among those responsible for the deregulation of the banks and, ultimately, for the crash of 2008.

Despite my disappointment in him in some respects, I think that he is one of the most intelligent Presidents that we have ever had, and also one of the most honest. In addition, he and his family have done us proud when they have traveled abroad.