The election of 2008 couldn't have come sooner for many Americans. The United States was coming off one of the worst recessions in the country’s history, and Americans were eager for a change. The incumbent republican president George W. Bush had seen his approval ratings dip to the low 30s (“Presidential Approval Ratings -- George W. Bush”), and democrats could feel a victory was coming. They nominated the young dynamic Illinois senator Barack Obama, a leader who many Americans placed their hope in to change the direction of the country. Obama was a historical candidate, one of the youngest presidents ever. He would also become the first African American president in United States history, perhaps a sign that race relations in this …show more content…
It is probably the best way to measure the success and growth of a country’s economy. In the past century on average, the United States economy grew annually at roughly 3.1%. This number is generally considered the basemark for economic success, with anything above it denoting an above average economy, and anything below it signifying a below average economy. Every single president since Herbert Hoover during the great depression of the late 1920s and early 1930s has managed to create at least one year of above average economic growth, except for one. The economy under president Obama failed to hit the 3% mark for any of his eight years as president (Gillin). This is a rather unprecedented level of economic stagnation, and one that no modern president besides Obama has managed to fall to. Obama was not a particularly good president when it came to labor participation rates either. During his presidency, the labor force participation rate fell to its lowest in over 35 years (“Unemployment”). Many people argue that Obama was dealing with the aftermath of a recession and thus his economic performance should be judged more favorably. This is a contradictory statement, as it is easier to improve something that is bad than it is to improve something that is already successful. Also, the United States economy historically tends to have a large boom after a
Many people would never have thought to see the day in which an African American would become President. The man chosen to make a difference would be Barack Obama, senator of Illinois. In his presidential campaign of 2008, Senator Obama gave an impactful speech, known as “A More Perfect Union”, to the country. His purpose was to widen the race divide that the nation as a whole has been avoiding for years. In his address, senator Obama uses parallelism, an urgent tone, and his purpose to his effective speech.
The most important element of a short story is Characterization as it drives the story as a whole. Characters involved in a story are responsible for creating different types of conflicts, struggles and tensions which in turn affects resolutions. Characterization is the core element that emphasizes the rest of the four elements as everything else eventually streams from character: plot, setting, theme and the point of view. There are no Conflicts without characters. A story only has meaning as the interaction among develops.
It is ambiguous as to how President Barrack Obama shapes our politics in terms of our political regime, but it can be determined through the present outcomes of his leadership today. In The Politics Presidents Make, by Stephen Skowronek, describes that there is a life-cycle of inaugurated presidents through the history of the United States. A political regime is defined as a full cycle of presidents that induce change in our politics until it is repeated again. Through this, it is possible to determine where President Obama would stand in our political time. Skowronek also mentions four leadership categories in which past presidents are placed in: politics of reconstruction, politics of disjunction, politics of
Barack Hussein Obama was elected the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday, sweeping away the last racial barrier in American politics with ease as the country chose him as its first black chief executive. The election of Mr. Obama amounted to a national catharsis- a repudiation of a historically unpopular Republican president and his economic and foreign policies, and an embrace of Mr. Obama’s call for a change in the direction and the tone of the country. But it was just as much a strikingly symbolic moment in the evolution of the nation’s fraught racial history, a breakthrough that would have seemed unthinkable just two years ago.
Bush, George Herbert Walker (1924- ), 41st president of the United States (1989-1993), president at the end of the Cold War between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). Bush also organized an unprecedented global alliance against Iraq during the Persian Gulf War of 1991, but he was less successful in dealing with U.S. domestic problems and was defeated after one term by Bill Clinton in the 1992 election.
The election of President Obama marks the most noteworthy political accomplishment for African Americans in the United States during the post-civil rights revolution, thus bringing about a change in the country’s social and political landscape that was steeped in racial discrimination since the founding of this great nation. Because social and political conditions are subject to constant change, President Obama’s
The debate on whether college athletes should get some type of compensation has been an ongoing one. A documentary which aired on the EPIX channel entitled “Schooled: The Price of College Sports”, shows the evolution of college athletics and how it became what it is now. With the creation of the term “student athletes” in the 1950s by Walter Bayers, student athletes were forced to give their labor for the sake of the NCAA. The term, as expressed by some of the interviewers in the documentary, is an evil term because it allowed universities and colleges to stand behind the term and neglect the student athletes. As the NCAA and the universities start to amass insane amount of revenue from the sweats of these said student
In a claim that has set a significant degree of precedence for the executive branch, George Washington states, “The Constitution is the guide which I will never abandon.” However, it can be concluded that former President Obama does not share this view of the Constitution. When referencing executive orders, the Constitution states, “He (the president) shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” Because there is a great distinction between executing the laws and changing the laws, President Obama usurped the Constitutional powers of Congress.
Another positive outlook which has improved since Obama’s presidency, is that he has inspired people of other ethnicities to be successful in anything they do. Obama has made great strides by breaking racial barriers that America had put in place (Sojka, 78). His influential leadership shows that anyone of any race can obtain higher positions of power and reach for bigger goals. Coming from a single parent home Obama showed that you can overcome obstacles in early childhood, attend college, become a lawyer, senator, and a two term president. Barack Obama guaranteed the launch of a new era in American politics (Sojka, 79). He is the epitome of the American dream by
For many years, American Presidents were viewed as being white and powerful leaders. Why were they only white? Is it because Americans felt Blacks were not smart enough to run a country on their own? African Americans were viewed as less dominate people and have been discriminated because of the color of their skin. In 2008, Barack Obama was elected President of the United States making him the first black president ever. In this paper, I will discuss how Barack makes a change and if America can accept him as our first black president.
Race has played a central role in politics of the United States of America. In America, the Issue of race surfaces in various sectors. After winning the 200 elections, George W Bush was advised to work on improving his minority votes if he wanted to win the next elections. In 2008, race was a major issue in the in the presidential campaigns involving the then-candidate Barack Obama. As a candidate, Barack Obama wanted to establish himself out of race put this was not possible. The notion that white voters hold the popularity status while the minority races play a secondary role, found itself in the center of the US politics in 2008. Even before the recent political environment. Race has existed in the USA and some of its roots can be traced
Many remember when President Obama was elected, and also remember his re-election, but in a surprising address to Africa, President Obama says, “Nobody should be President for life.” In Ethiopia President Obama stabbed at Africa’s power by stating that long-embedded leaders to step-down. He used his own political standing and stature as the first American president with African roots to shape Africa’s politics. “I actually think I’m a pretty good president. I think if I ran, I could win. There’s a lot that I’d like to do to keep America moving. But the law is the law, and no person is above the law, not even the president,” Obama told diplomats. Although he has been energized by his recent successes, he still faces deep opposition from “Americans
The 2008 election was documented as a vital landmark in the history of the United States (Verney, 2014: vii). President Barack Obama was elected as the first (self-identifying) Black American/African-American person to call the White House home. The occasion sparked huge popular and scholarly interest, not limited only to America but academic conversations throughout the world. His election instigated a fast spreading ideology that the United States had become ‘post-racial’ as a Black man now occupied the highest office in the country. His reelection in 2012 further sustained this idea of a ‘post-racial America’ (Banerjee, 2013:1). The Economist called the triumph post-racial and wrote that Obama would come to embody the hope that America needed
Barack Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii on August 4th, 1961. He went to Harvard Law School. After his graduation, continued his legal work as a civil rights lawyer and a professor teaching constitutional law at the University of Chicago. He was elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1996. He served there for three terms (1996-2004). Later on, he started his campaign in 2007 for the presidential election in 2008. He won the presidential election against John McCain, his Republican opponent and started serving in the office in January 20, 2009. He became the 44th President of The United States of America. He is more well-known for being the first African-American who ever served in The White House.
Beginning with the arrival of the first humans in North America through the aftermath of the War of 1812, America was formed through a collision of cultures in the 16th century. Throughout Unit 1 colonies thrived to settle in the New World of North America. The Age of Exploration consisted of Europeans colonizing in North America and learning how to interact with the Native Americans who already inhabited the land. Colonists began to create civilizations along with governmental systems. Conflict arose among the colonies due to power and property. Major wars broke out due to the English wanting to start a new nation and become independent of Britain. A new nation had formed called the United States through revolutions and creations of governments. The French and Indian War, Revolutionary War, and the ratification of US Constitution were the most significant historical turning points on account of them shaping America and laying a foundation to further US accomplishments and without these events the United States would not be independent from Great Britain or unified under one name.