America One Year On: In Defence of Barack Obama

Who would want to be in Barack Obama’s shoes? Whilst it must be fun to have a Boeing 747 at your beck and call, flying on it pretty well free of charge, the novelty soon wears off. And although dashing around the globe collecting Nobel Prizes and saving climate conferences has to be the buzz of buzzes, he has to wonder whether two trips to Scandinavia equate to one trip too far.

Obama's reputation and popularity abroad is still high 11 months into his Presidency, but back home, things aren’t so rosy. Supposed allies like Senator Joseph Lieberman suddenly act like attack dogs as the healthcare bill rests on a knife edge in the US Senate. The economy still won’t move in the right direction for millions of Americans. More than 30,000 American troops will soon be deployed to Afghanistan in what will surely become Obama’s war. And the American voter is showing signs of impatience and dissatisfaction with the President because there are no results on any of these fronts.

A Gut Reaction to The Obama Inaugural Speech

Considering this bleak outlook, I wonder whether Europeans have a better grasp on the reality of politics than our American cousins, recognising that this is “the art of the possible”. In reality, what could Obama do in a year to improve America’s situation markedly in all these areas? Did Americans truly believe the current economic depression would end instantly, that universal healthcare would become a reality for all Americans, and that foreign entanglements would end in victory? The sad fact is that such high expectations could not be met, and the blame is surely not Obama’s.

Let’s look at big picture issues. Obama took the reins in January this year when the commercial world was suffering the worst economic depression since the 1930s. He decided to do something about the 47 million uninsured Americans who had no access to healthcare insurance and relied on limited federal facilities. America was at war in Iraq and Afghanistan with no developed strategy for a quick exit. The policies of the Bush administration had estranged America from pretty well all its former allies, especially in Europe.

By my reckoning, Obama has done pretty well. The American economy is showing signs of improvement. The first Obama health-care bill will be just a start, but a new law has to be incremental. Too many Americans are hidebound by the ideology of self and have to dragged into accepting an ideal that all citizens should have the right to medical treatment, regardless of economic circumstances.

As for Afghanistan, Obama has now made it his war. However, he has made it clear there is no blind acceptance in fulfilling demands of US military commanders, and Obama has engineered an in-built exit strategy. He has a different approach than that of the previous gung-ho administration. One wonders about the extent to which Obama will press a policy of buying the Afghanistan poppy crop at market prices and to trade with farmers so they are encouraged to grow other crops at similar prices.

Finally, America has patched up relations with its allies. Obama may not like British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, but Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is enjoying a better relationship with Foreign Secretary David Miliband than that between their predecessors. Obama seems to be building coalitions, although this week at Copenhagen will test his patience and political skills.

Governing is never easy, and this is especially so in America where separation of powers means a President needs a deft hand and strong persuasive powers, even when his party enjoys a majority in both Houses of Congress. This year, Obama has demonstrated that he has a pretty clear understanding of Washington politics and its workings. He has also charmed his way onto the centre of the world stage.

I am encouraged by this start, but there is a long time to go until the 2010 mid-term Congressional elections, and there are dangers for Obama, foreign and domestic. Sadly, all wheels could come off his bandwagon by November.