Barrack Obama as a Human Being

Like most Americans, I will remember a November day in 2008 as one of the greatest in American history. Not only were the days of suffering through the worst presidency in modern times coming to an end, when a Republican president not only placed our nation in two unwinnable wars, but left office with our nation in a near depression, and a growing division between our nation’s people, there was new hope as a brilliant Black man who loved his country was about to take office. George W. Bush’s failures tore families apart, including the dissolution of marriages and the separation of children from parents. President Obama ran on one word, “hope,” and I believed him, as did tens of millions of other Americans. He seldom disappointed.

A Working President

Unlike his predecessor, Barrack Hussein Obama didn’t plan a vacation after his inauguration, he had work to do. He spent days and nights seeking solutions that would save our nation’s failing economy, and save the lives of good and brave men and women fighting wars thousands of miles away from their homes and families. Through his words and actions, it became obvious to every loyal American that our nation would be moving in a new direction, the direction would be forwards into the 21st century.

President Obama saved us from another depression, worked to remove our military from Iraq, killed the architect of 9/11, passed our nation’s first healthcare system for all, and reunited many of our nation’s people by giving us hope we could believe in. All this while facing Moscow Mitch McConnell’s “party of no,” created just after his inauguration in late January of 2009.

No One is Perfect

However, he made mistakes, proving that he was human. What impressed me most was his admissions. He wished he had taken several different paths during his two terms as our 44th President.

He also impressed me because he never once bragged about his accomplishments. Great men need not boast about their successes, while failed men lie about their successes hoping to appear great.

Regrets, We’ve All Had a Few

One situation in which he wished he had taken a different path is related to Iran.

In 2009 and 2010 there was a movement in Iran organized by students in the universities, primarily the University of Tehran, to adopt policies that existed in the western nations. They sought more freedom and less domination by their Islamic leaders. Mr. Obama recently admitted that he wished he had been more supportive of the Iranian people.

“When I think back to 2009, 2010, you guys will recall there was a big debate inside the White House about whether I should publicly affirm what was going on with the Green Movement because a lot of the activists were being accused of being tools of the West and there was some thought that we were somehow gonna be undermining their street cred in Iran if I supported what they were doing,” Obama said. “And in retrospect, I think that was a mistake.”

“Every time we see a flash, a glimmer of hope, of people longing for freedom, I think we have to point it out. We have to shine a spotlight on it. We have to express some solidarity about it,” he said.

I have one complaint and will admit that I will never forgive the President, although my admiration for him in most areas will remain forever.

Hiding the Truth From the American People Creates America’s Greatest Disaster

In October of 2016, a meeting took place in the Oval Office. Less than one month before the election, the FBI, NSA, and other members of our nation’s security agencies asked President Obama to invite the Vice-President, his Chief of Staff, and the leaders of both political parties, Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi, Moscow Mitch McConnell, and Paul Ryan to receive the results of an investigation which lasted several months. It was confirmed by all that Russia had been deeply involved in efforts to interfere with the results of our coming election. Their intent was to secure a victory for Donald Trump. They were using social media and any other available agencies to discredit Hillary Clinton and offer false praise to Trump.

Although I firmly believe that the American people had a right to know, these few men and one woman, led by Moscow Mitch McConnell, decided that you and I did not have a right to know the truth, that this could greatly influence the outcome of the November 8th election. (Sometimes the truth hurts, but it also can prevent disasters.)

You Don’t Trust Your Government and They Don’t Trust You

The roots of this decision can be traced back to our founding fathers. Most of them believed that the people of the New Nation were incapable of making big decisions, including choosing their leader. The 12th Amendment creating the Electoral College was ratified on June 15, 1804. I continue to believe this joins a failure to establish term limits for all branches of government by the men who first led our country as their greatest mistakes. The division between our nation’s people and the existence of red and blue states are considered by most Americans to be the result of removing the popular vote as the determination of who will lead our nation. Most of our nation’s people believe that every vote should count.

Because our government lacks faith in the people in the past, they have decided to rule over us rather than serve us in the 21st century.

Governments Hide Their Mistakes

President Obama and the others involved will never publicly discuss their failure to inform our nation’s voting public. If they had done the right thing, our nation would never have suffered the damage caused by the worst, illegitimate president in American history.

What this all reveals is that our government no longer works as designed. They don’t trust us to know everything about our government. This is another reason for us not to trust our government. They no longer serve the electorate, they make their own decisions, ignoring the needs of the majority.

President Obama simply proved he was human. He believed that taking no action was the right decision for the country’s future. He was wrong, and that also proves he is human.

By James Turnage, Novelist

Sources:

CNN: A rare moment of public self-criticism by a former president

Bartleby: Strengths And Weaknesses Of Barack Obama

National Achieves: Electoral College History

Top and Featured Image Courtesy of Marc Nozell’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License