I will greatly miss Barack Hussein Obama when he ends his term later this year. I am already missing him greatly, just watching those people running to replace him. Irreplaceable. No doubt the greatest President in my lifetime. I enthusiastically voted for him twice, and would do so again and again if they hadn't passed the 22nd amendment .
The right man, right time.The only other President in modern times that is even in the same league would be FDR. No one else even comes close.
Recently there have been some great articles about Obama's foreign policy successes - The Obama Doctrine - not only should we be thankful for all that Obama has done in foreign policy - extricated us from two very corrosive, terribly painful & tragic wars, but we should be thankful for all the "stupid shit" he didn't do.
It takes guts and intelligence, patience and tough-mindedness not to succumb to the blather, the bluster, the chatter, the easy sound-bite.
There is also a great article about Obama's economic policy over the last 8 years. Obama inherited a wreck of economy, and slowly, steadily he has guided us out of the disaster. Small, determined steps forward.
Kevin Drum also takes us thru the "long hard slog" of health care reform. Democratic Presidents since JFK have tried to advance health care for Americans. Obama with a razor-thin majority in his first 2 years passed Obamacare. Incremental progress. Major legislation. As Joe Biden was once quoted as saying: "A big fucking deal!"
And Obama has achieved all this with total opposition from the GOP. They have not lifted a finger, not done their jobs for 8 years. Maybe it is not a coincidence that a bloated Con Man is now on target to win the GOP nomination. The GOP has abdicated their responsibilities as a viable political party.
We live in a divided country. Brutal, political stalemate. It has been a slog much of the time. But Obama has been strong, steady, far-sighted. Also funny, smart, super-intelligent. Amazing. I truly love the man and what he has achieved for our country. I do wish I could vote for him again, and again. I will settle for Hilary to carry forward. Hope she seeks Obama's counsel often during her term.