A Recap of Barack Obama's First 100 Days

The Beginning - A far different beginning from the previous two Presidents, Obama's first act as President was to call for a National Day of Renewal and Reconciliation. If you remember, Bill Clinton instituted a controversial new policy for gays in the military, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". George W. Bush's first act as President was to payback certain segments of his constituency by disallowing international US aid organizations from offering advice on birth control. Meanwhile, Obama's inauguration mimicked his first action as President. A conservative evangelical Christian pastor, Rick Warren, was asked to deliver the opening invocation while a black associate of Martin Luther King, Joseph Lowery, gave the closing benediction. During the next few days, the President would pressure his own Democratic party not to punish former Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman for his support of Obama's opponent and call meetings with Republican leaders. In fact, more criticism came from the left wing of the Democratic Party than from anywhere else. A promise of change was met without political payback and without a controversial initiative. Could we have a more different beginning to the new administration than this?

Legislation - Probably the most surprising part of Obama's first 100 days has been his desire to tackle so many problems at once. Whether that is good or bad depends on one's perspective. His agenda includes: aggressively dealing with the largest economic downturn since the great depression, tackling a huge housing crisis, a major overhaul of the US health care system, and a dramatic shift in the way the US deals with its allies and its enemies. In addition, the new administration has voiced its position on improving education, the government's role in meeting environmental challenges, simplifying the tax system, reducing troops in Iraq, increasing troops in Afghanistan, and even expressed his personal preference for a college football playoff. Notably, the deficit and immigration reform have been put on the back burner. Of course, how this all plays out depends to a great extent on the details and political realities. We have already seen this in the recovery package which included tons of special interest add-ons (also known as earmarks) against the expressed campaign promise of the new President. Some promises are obviously not so easily put into practice.

The Tone From the Top - This has clearly been a mixed bag. It didn't take long for ethics to become a topic of national discussion. From the tax problems of several of his nominees, to the exceptions made for including former lobbyists in his administration, obviously the new standard of "the most ethical administration in history" has not been met. However, that is only part of the story. The Obama family has set a new standard for openness and accessibility not seen in Washington, DC for many, many years. The immediate release of their complete tax return, the public discussion of where to send their children to school, together with his more official town hall meetings and press conferences clearly shows that some things have changed for the better in this administration. How much of this openness and accessibility is for show rather than substance is still a matter of debate - just ask some Republican leaders how much input they had on the stimulus package. Clearly, though, the American public (and citizens around the world) are impressed by the new tone coming from the White House.

The Future - So where does the administration go from here? That depends more on things that may be beyond Obama's control than those within it. How do our enemies like Iran, Venezuela, and Cuba respond to his overtures? How long does it take for the US economy to turn around? Will the economies and economic policies of other countries override what has been done here? Will the press and the public allow the administration more than just 100 days to put the country back on a more positive track? and finally ...will this administration be faced with a crisis as large as the September 11 attacks?

Here are what some others say: What experts are saying about Obama's first 100 days.