The Obama Record

(January 20, 2009 – December 31, 2009) Robert P. Watson, Ph.D. Lynn University There is a lot of misinformation circulating on talk radio, at town hall meetings, in the blogosphere, and around office water coolers about President Obama not accomplishing anything in his first year in office. It is time to set the record straight with a list of Obama's initiatives for 2009. Ethics • Ordered the White House and all federal agencies to respect the Freedom of Information Act; Bush era limits on accessibility of federal documents have been overturned • Instructed all federal agencies to promote openness and transparency as much as possible • Placed limits on lobbyists' access to the White House • Placed limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administration • Signed a measure strengthening registration and reporting requirements for lobbyists • Ordered that lobbyists must be removed from and are no longer permitted to serve on federal and White House advisory panels Governance • Held many more press conferences and provided the media with far more access than his predecessor • Held more "town hall" events to inform and engage the public than previous administrations • The White House website now provides information on all economic stimulus projects and spending, along with an unprecedented amount of information on our government • Ended the Bush era practice of circumventing established FDA rules for political reasons • Ended the Bush era practice of having White House staff rewrite the findings of scientific and environmental regulations and reports when they disagreed with the results • The Obamas did not use the $100,000 authorized (to all First Families) for the refurbishment and redecoration of the White House's private living quarters; they paid for it out of their own pockets • The Obamas reused Christmas ornaments from previous White House trees rather than buy new ones • Limited the salaries of senior White House aides (salaries cut to $100,000) • Urging Congress to return to the pre-Bush practice of "Pay-Go" (whereby each dollar of spending is offset by a dollar in cuts or in revenues) National Security • Phasing out the expensive F-22 war plane (which wasn't even used in Iraq/Afghanistan) and other outdated weapons systems • Closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay • Attempting to house terrorists at a new federal "super max" facility in the US • Cut the expensive missile defense program, saving $1.4 billion in 2010 • Cancelled plans to station anti-ballistic missile systems in Poland and the Czech Republic • Replacing long-range, expensive missile systems with more efficient smaller systems • Increased US Navy patrols off the Somali coast in response to pirating • Established a new cyber security office and appointed a cyber security czar • Ordered the first nation-wide comprehensive cyber threat assessment Iraq & Afghanistan • Began the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq • Authorized the use of more unmanned warplanes/drones (Predator, Reaper, etc.) in Iraq/Afghanistan • Authorized the deployment of 17,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, which had been pending for months during the previous administration [March 2009] • Changed the US military command in the Afghan conflict • Tasked the Pentagon to reorganized US policy in Afghanistan; 30,000 additional troops are being deployed, the US is prioritizing the training of Afghan forces and civil government while developing agriculture and infrastructure, aerial bombing has been limited, etc. • Ordered the Pentagon to send additional helicopters to assist marines and special forces in Afghanistan • Increased special forces searches for, and unmanned drone strikes on, Taliban and al-Qaeda targets in Afghanistan • Ended the Bush era "stop-loss" policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date Military & Veterans • Ordered that families of fallen soldiers can have expenses covered to be on hand when the body arrives back in the US • Ended the Bush era "blackout" imposed on media coverage of the return of fallen US soldiers; the media is now permitted to do so pending adherence to respectful rules and approval of fallen soldier's family • Ended the Bush era "black out" policy on media coverage of war casualties – full information is now released • Ordered better body armor to be procured for US troops • Funding new Mine Resistant Ambush Vehicles (needed because of susceptibility of hummers to roadside explosives) • Increasing pay and benefits for military personnel • Improving housing for military personnel • Initiating a new policy to promote federal hiring of military spouses • Ordered that conditions at Walter Reed Military Hospital and other neglected military hospitals be improved • Beginning the process of reforming and restructuring the military (initiated by Bush but abandoned after the war in Iraq began) 20 years after the Cold War to a more modern fighting force… this includes new procurement policies, increasing size of military, new technology and cyber units and operations, etc. • Ended the Bush era practice of awarding no-bid defense contracts • Improving benefits for veterans as well as VA staffing, information systems, etc. • Authorized construction for additional health centers to care for veterans • Suspended the Bush-era decision to purchase an expensive fleet of Marine One (helicopters) from foreign sources • Ordered a review of the existing "Don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays in the military Foreign Policy & International Relations • Closed the Bush era "secret detention" facilities in Eastern Europe • Ended the Bush era policy allowing "enhanced interrogation" (torture) and the US is in compliance with Geneva Convention standards • Restarted international nuclear non-proliferation talks (Bush withdrew from them) and reestablished international nuclear inspection protocols • Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic Social Media Consulting, Web Presence, Call Center Technology Book A FREE 1/2 Hr. 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