What I Like About President Obama

In light of how negatively I feel about the new healthcare reform bill, those who have deposited it upon us and the unseemly way in which they did so, I thought it would be a good exercise for my spirit to come up with this list.

1) I like that he is an African-American president. For all that we have yet to do in solving problems that exist between races in our nation, we can't deny that a man who would have had almost no rights at all here 150 years ago, simply because of the amount of melanin in his skin, is the leader of the free world. I thought that when he was nominated, I thought that when he was elected, and although there are very few circumstances under which I would ever vote for him, I think that still.

2) I like that, even if the modern media spin machine doesn't allow it to be said, he has shown some pragmatism in learning that not everything President Bush did in the War on Terror was wrong and acting accordingly. He extended certain Patriot Act provisions. He won't transfer some especially dangerous Guantanamo prisoners to countries that can't guarantee those prisoners will stay locked up. He's allowed the CIA to target terrorist leaders with Predator drone strikes and taken out several of them.

3) I like the fact that, as an African-American president, he is an excellent role model as a husband and father for American men, especially those who might take their cues from music videos, movies and men who hold themselves to a far lower standard. The most powerful black man on the planet speaks in standard English (sometimes quite eloquently), went to college and graduated, goes home to his wife and kids when he finishes work, wears a coat and tie to the office, is married to the mother of his daughters, doesn't call women "hos" or worse, sports gold only on his wrist and ring finger, bears no ridiculous tattoos, consistently shows respect to his wife when speaking about her or appearing with her in public and not only doesn't disdain reading books, he actually wrote two.

4) I believe that this example can endure long after his time in office and I believe that it may very well be not only the best thing President Obama will do for our country, but also something for which he would be justifiably honored and well-remembered.