Yesterday was the last full day of the Obama regime. When historians look back on the years 2009 – 2017, many (the honest ones at least) will scratch their heads in varying degrees of bewilderment and confusion. “Why,” they will ask themselves, “did so many vote against their own self-interest, the interests of their nation and the safety and prosperity of the world?” In the end, there are many answers, but few which make actual sense or which stand up to reason.
Suffice it to say that the 8 years of the Obama regime will largely be considered a “lost decade” of possibilities for America and the world, in which multiple crises went unaddressed, fundamental weaknesses and problems were allowed to exacerbate and fester until they became disasters, and the divisions which had always been lurking below the surface and which were largely diminishing, exploded with violence and renewed vigor.
Obama’s failure to address the crisis of violent terrorism in the form of Islamic extremism has turned the Middle East from an Arab Spring into a nightmarish hellscape in which Islamic State (ISIS) runs rampant beheading Christians and other religious minorities with impunity, Bashar Al-Assad continues to bomb his own citizens who oppose his rule, and Israel, our strongest ally and the only fully functional democracy in the region is treated as a pariah and a relationship and friendship that have endured for almost 70 years are squandered and cast aside on a petty and vindictive vote in the UN.
By almost every measure of importance to American families, the Obama legacy is one of colossal failure and ineptitude, if not outright criminal negligence. More Americans are in debt, and more Americans are on welfare. Fewer families can afford healthcare, and fewer Americans are participating in the labor force now than were when Obama took office. Student loan debt has been exacerbated by the Obama administration’s irresponsible actions – soaring past $1 trillion. Wages are stagnant and income has fallen, and Obama will go down in history as the first president
Obama had the Audacity™ to give a farewell address in which he laughably claimed his administration was “scandal-free”; sadly, nothing could be further from the truth.
Obama’s DOJ made full use of the Fast and Furious program as an attempt to undermine national security and the Second Amendment. Lead by Eric Holder, allowed hundreds of firearms to be purchased by Mexican drug cartels and smuggled across the border – and then promptly lost track of them. Many of the weapons were later used to commit numerous crimes, and murders – including the murder of Americans.
Obama used his power to silence his critics in the media – most notably James Rosen of Fox News, Sharyl Attkisson of CBS, and the Associated Press – all of whom had their email and information hacked and compromised in an attempt to dissuade them from criticizing the party and president in power.
Obama’s IRS targeted conservative and Tea Party groups before the 2012 election in an effort to undermine their political efforts and to minimize their ability to influence the election.
These examples don’t even include incidents in which Obama’s Secret Service refused to pay Colombian prostitutes, Obama referring to police officers acting “stupidly”, or to the violent collapse of the “Arab Spring” into Middle Eastern chaos and violence, including the assault on the Benghazi compound and murder of four members of the diplomatic team on Hillary Clinton’s watch.
America is more divided than ever. Along race, politics, income, geography, age – no category is too small to have been immune from the poison of the divisive rhetoric and toxic partisanship. Obama promised to bring an end to the unproductive partisanship in DC; under his regime, the divide grew worse. Obama promised to heal the racial divide, but racial divisions have gotten worse and more violent since 2009. Obama promised that his proposals would not add to the national debt; when he leaves office, he will have added $10 trillion to America’s debt. Obama promised he would “restore” America’s standing in the world, and eight years later, our allies no longer trust us, our enemies no longer fear us, and no region of the world has an improved view of America that can be traced to his efforts.
The election of Obama was predicated on a flawed premise – that he could be trusted and counted on to uphold American principles and values, and preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. He has failed spectacularly on every count. By every objective measure, Obama has been an unmitigated disaster for America. It is good – not just for America, but for the world – that he is leaving office before he can make things even worse.
