Change did not end when Obama was elected, it's only begun.

Governor Dean made that comment yesterday and it sort of stuck in my mind. A lot of folks act as if once Obama was elected, the job was finished. He would complete the job of changing this nation. They were wrong. The election was only the first step. Barack Obama is surrounded by the establishment. He gets his advice from Rahm Emanuel, who made a fortune on Wall Street in one short year. He takes economic advice from Larry Summers and Timothy Geithner, two Wall Street whores. He listens to ex-Bush commandos for advice on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We still have Robert Gates and all the same Generals running the show. Our job has only begun.

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# Signed executive orders to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, within a year, ban torture and end the CIA’s secret overseas prisons and define treatment of Detainees.
# Reversed restrictions on stem cell research.
# Signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. Reducing discrimination based on gender, age, religion, or race.
# Signed an executive order reversing the ban that prohibits funding to international family planning groups that provide abortions. Gag rule revoked (Mexico City policy).
# Creates the White House Council on Women and Girls "to provide a coordinated federal response to the challenges confronted by women and girls and to ensure that all Cabinet and Cabinet-level agencies consider how their policies and programs impact women and families."
# Signed a Presidental Memorandum extending federal benefits to same-sex partners of federal workers and announced support for the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act of 2009.
# Reverses U.S. position on LGBT Issues at the UN: At the "Durban Review Conference," U.S. supports language condemning “all forms of discrimination and all other human rights violations based on sexual orientation.”
# Signed executive order requiring federal contractors to offer jobs to current workers when contracts change.
# Reversed a Bush order requiring federal contractors to post notice that workers can limit financial support of unions serving as their exclusive bargaining representatives.
# Signed executive order preventing federal contractors from being reimbursed for expenses meant to influence workers deciding whether to form a union and engage in collective bargaining.
# Created a foreclosure prevention fund for homeowners.
# Expanded eligibility for the refinancing portion of the Making Home Affordable plan to help Americans struggling with distressed mortgages refinance at lower interest rates, even if they owe up to 25 percent more than their homes are now worth.
# Established a credit card "bill of rights".
# Expanded loan programs for small businesses.
# Extended and index the 2007 Alternative Minimum Tax patch.
# Expanded eligibility for State Children's Health Insurance Fund (SCHIP).
# Expanded funding to train primary care providers and public health practitioners.
# Created a new White House task force on the problems of middle-class Americans, and installed Vice President Joe Biden as its chairman.
# Appoints Vice President Joe Biden to Oversee Stimulus Plan Payouts.
# Granted a reprieve to Liberian immigrants facing imminent expulsion.
# Directed military leaders to end war in Iraq.
# Allowing Caskets to be photographed when the return from Iraq with family approval.
# Released nine previously secret internal Justice Department memos and opinions defining the legal limits of government power in combating terrorism.
# On Arab TV Network, Obama Urges Dialogue.
# Gave a speech in Cairo engaging the Muslim and Arab world.
# Bars independent contractors from conducting interrogations of terror suspects.
# Granted Americans unrestricted rights to visit family and send money to Cuba.
# Ordered the release of nearly a quarter of a million pages of records from the Reagan White House that were kept from the public during a lengthy review by President George W. Bush.
# Restored funding for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne/JAG) program.
# Released presidential records.
# Required new hires to sign a form affirming their hiring was not due to political affiliation or contributions.
# Pushed for enactment of Matthew Shepard Act, which expands hate crime law to include sexual orientation and other factors.
# Invites gay families to the Easter Egg Roll as part of the Obama administration's outreach to diverse communities.
# Created a White House Office on Urban Policy.
# Increased funding for the NEA.
# Appointed an assistant to the president for science and technology policy.
# Funded a major expansion of AmeriCorps.
# Banned lobbyist gifts to executive employees.
# Investment in all types of alternative energy.
# Enacted tax credit for consumers for plug-in hybrid cars.
# Support for high-speed rail.
# Provided grants to encourage energy-efficient building codes.
# Extended unemployment insurance benefits and temporarily suspend taxes on these benefits.
# Created the White House Council on Automotive Communities and Workers to help auto industry workers transition to new manufacturing opportunities, including jobs in alternative energy.
# Stopped raids on medical marijuana dispensers.
# Nominated Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court of the United States. If confirmed, Sotomayor would be the first Hispanic to ever serve on the Supreme Court.
# Appointed more than 60 openly LGBT persons to positions in the executive branch.
# Issues Presidential Proclamation for Pride, proclaiming June 2009 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month.
# Signed a mercury reduction pact with 140 other nations.
# Signed the Weapons System Acquisition Reform Act to curb wasteful spending by the Pentagon. Intended to price contracts and budgets lower; may potentially save billions of dollars in defense.
# Signed the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009, which serves to protect two million acres of land and creates a new system of land conservation for the Bureau of Land Management.
# Phase out government payments to crop producers making more than $500,000 a year and eliminates subsidies for cotton storage to help trim the U.S. budget deficit.
# Cut funding for a proposed U.S. nuclear storage facility at Yucca Mountain.
# Restored Endangered Species Act Provision requiring U.S. agencies consult with independent federal experts to determine if their actions might harm threatened and endangered species.
# Orders The Chesapeake Bay Protection and Restoration "to protect and restore the health, heritage, natural resources, and social and economic value of the Nation's largest estuarine ecosystem and the natural sustainability of its watershed."
# Signed the 2009 Omnibus Public Land Management Act designating two million additional acres of public wilderness areas the highest level of government protection from logging and other forms of commercial use and development.
# Signed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act which will expedite the search for cures and treatments for millions of Americans living with paralysis caused by spinal cord injury, stroke, MS, Parkinson's and many other diseases and disorders.
# Established The Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record, a new system for updating medical records of servicemen and women both during and after their military careers.
# Established the White House Office of Health Reform
# Created new and stronger safety standards to safeguard the country's food supply.

and

# Got his daughters a new puppy!

All his accomplishments seem negligible in contrast to the present debate. I give him credit for all that you mention but if he fails with healthcare reform, I'm afraid it will all be seen for naught.

Why should anyone forget the good that has happened, especially compared to the nightmare of the past 8 years we all suffered through?

I think that is where most folks are right now? If the Democratic Party surrenders this issue to the insurance companies and the Repubs, forget all the other accomplishments. This will demoralize a large chunk of our Party. Just look around. Perhaps we should just brush it off and continue but it will not be easy.

;)

:-)

Just like today, when Sebelius came out in support of the "public option". They were forced to come out for the public option because of the outrage from the base of the Party. If they think the blue dogs are important, wait until they lose the base. Then they will see how strong they really are.

I just don't want people to forget about all the good he's done, especially overturning so many lousy Bush policies. We needed that, and I will continue to applaud his efforts.

We all here knew that that would have to be the case...my concern is that they knew that in short order they would drag Obama out to sea where the waters are very deep