These last few weeks have been consequential ones for the Obama presidency and the 2012 campaigns. Both the SCOTUS SB1070 decision and yesterday's Affordable Care Act decision went the president's way. The president broke the logjam on immigration reform with his courageous decision to grant temporary legal status to DREAM eligible youth. Polls continue to show him winning the election, and there was some evidence this week that he may be gaining ground in the battlegrounds, potentially making Romney's challenge even harder.
But I think the lasting political impact of these last few weeks will be on the perception of Obama as a leader and the overall efficacy of his first term. We've seen a president these last few weeks; one taking decisive action for the nation, overcoming significant opposition, sticking to his guns and battling for his core beliefs. Mitt Romney, on the other hand, has been largely invisible, and when he has popped up on the national stage has sounded strangely incoherent and baffled by the changing landscape of the race. His performances have been anything but reassuring about his own style of leadership.
The validation of the ACA opens the possibility for the president to make a much stronger case for the positive impact of this time in office. He has dramatically improved the American health care system; has made the border safer and the immigration system better; is winding down, peacefully, our military involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq, and has overseen and nurtured a critical moment of modernization and democratization in North Africa and the Middle East. On his watch, America has adopted a far-sighted national energy strategy that is reducing our dependence on foreign sources of energy while making prudent investments in a better and cleaner energy future; he has helped lead the world through a tumultuous global financial period, avoiding a world financial collapse; his aggressive actions have all but destroyed al Qaeda, and bin Laden is no longer a threat to the world; he took a far-sighted and momentous civil rights step by embracing marriage equality; and he has mobilized the global community to confront Iran in unprecedented ways, bringing them to the negotiating table and further isolating and weakening them on the global stage.
Lots being discussed regarding the Supreme Court's decision to uphold Obama care. TPL will address soon how the law will benefit Latinos. Stay tuned! Meanwhile this article by Simon Rosenberg puts it all in perspective. President Obama has had several achievements most importantly saving us from a depression created by the reckless Right!! Please take the time to read this and pass it on. Visit The Progressive Latino website (www.theprogressivelatino.com) and tell your friends about us! United We Can - Junto Podemos!!!
