Economic Policy Using a scale between zero and five, I evaluate President Obama’s performance with concern to the nation’s economy. While assessing Obama’s performance in the arena of economic policy, I account for the president’s policy aimed at the citizen, the nation as a whole, and the promotion of international commerce. Each topic is assigned a point value between zero and one, based on two factors—first, for the egalitarian nature of the president’s initial stance on the topic and, second, for the efficacy of his enacted or proposed policies regarding that topic. Obama’s chief success in the economic domain is that of job creation, which has been on a steady incline since the recession. Though the president cannot be held entirely …show more content…
Finally, Obama’s proposals to expand trade display a global benevolence that should be lauded, regardless of the reticence of political supporters, as they attempt to supplant the xenophobic notions that are rampant in the United States; the global scope of his economic concerns earns him one point. However, several of his trade proposals have met opposition from both parties in Congress, which cuts my assessment of its potential efficacy down to half a point. It should be noted, though, that while his trade proposals may not ultimately be reflected in his performance, they have begun a political dialog and swayed the public to a more amiable view of international relations than the one most commonly adopted over the past fifty years. President Obama receives three-and-a-half out of five points by my assessment, though perceptions of his performance in the economic arena will inevitably change after he leaves office. Though Obama’s administration has not been defined by excessive action, the public perception of Obama’s indomitable character stems from his strong rhetoric. In fact, as much as Obama’s public perception hinges on his mellifluous rhetoric, he may be able to convince the populace that he is an economic policy guru by …show more content…
Though the early Obama administration attempted to maintain a reserved and hands-off approach in the realm of foreign policy, that stance would vastly change over his two terms; recent events have forced him to take military action and become highly involved abroad. Therefore, I will assign President Obama one point based on the beneficence of his intentions at the outset of his regime, after which I will evaluate the prudence of his foreign policy decisions and determine whether it deserves to be assigned one or zero points. The three generalized topics of foreign relations assessed here are that of Obama’s peacekeeping and peacemaking endeavors, his military action, and his attempts at expanding international commerce. President Obama has undertaken several efforts to reaffirm ties with formerly hostile and sanctioned countries. The enactment of Obama’s peacekeeping mission abroad, though noble, displays his naïveté. Opening a dialog with Cuba has been the first step in mending the half century long broken relationship as well as providing a stepping stone to create a network positive international relations. For mending fractured relations and decreasing global perceptions of U.S. hegemony he earns one point. However, Obama’s naïve expectations in regard to negotiations with Iran expose that his learning curve still very much exists in the area of foreign relations.