Obama a Success Under Circumstances

Hassan Ali

The question many voters will have on their mind in the next 10 months is “Does President Obama deserve a second term?” The answer to that question, I’m sure, will be one voiced at many kitchen tables across this country. To really answer that question, the American people will have to give the president an opportunity to show that he does deserve a second term.

Let us not forget that the President came into office with many challenges, two wars overseas and an ailing economy, but he managed to keep our economy from declining and get our troops safely home.

I’m not able to list the entire President’s accomplishments in this article, but I’d like to share with you the ones I think are important. The President’s accomplishments are numerous and I think people who want to give him a chance will have to do some personal research.

I think one of the president’s biggest accomplishments in his first term was the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The health care reform legislation ushered in changes to the health care system not seen since FDR’s term. The Act will result in 30 million more Americans getting health care coverage as well as stopping insurance companies from denying health insurance due to pre-existing conditions. A great benefit to college students is that it allows them to stay on their parents’ health insurance until the age of 26.

The President also signed the repeal of the military’s discriminating Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Policy last fall. For the first time in the last 15 years, American men and women are able to serve their country without having to hide who they are. Along with the repeal of DADT, the president ordered his administration to stop defending section three of DOMA, the federal marriage legislation that defines marriage between a man and woman, which stops LGBT couples from federal benefits.

The president managed this under tremendous circumstances. When Republicans took control of the House last spring, the first words uttered out of Senate Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell’s mouth were that the Republican’s number-one priority is to make sure that President Obama is a one-term president. Apparently, helping the president fix the economy is not one of the top priorities of the Republican Party.