The anticipation is in full swing, as coverage is already in the works to honor Barack Obama’s first 100 days as not only the 44th President of the United States, but also the first-ever African-American to be elected in the White House.
According to the Associated Press-GfK poll, people want a leader with compassion, integrity, and the ability to put America back on track. “He presents a very positive outlook. He’s very well-spoken and very vocal about what direction should be taken” said Chreyl Washington, a 35-year-old independent voter who runs a chocolate shop in Gardner, Kansas.
Obama has been compared to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for most believed that his inauguration in January is part of God’s plan — finishing where the civil rights leader off with the issue of economic justice. “President Obama is concerned of other families because he is a loving husband and father to his family. Indeed, I do believe that he wants to help parents to provide a better quality of life for their children and families” said Antoinette Harrell, one of the co-founders of Gathering of Hearts who is also working on the Poor People’s Campaign. She calls the campaign, which will start in Lambert, Mississippi June 19, and “the unfinished business of Dr. King.”
“President Obama comes with peace and love, and that’s the difference” Harrell continued. “There’s no way to leave God out of our lives. President Obama is concerned for all families as well as his own. I love a President who has compassion and listens to the concerns of the people.
“I must continue to do the work: feeding [and clothing] the homeless. I think we should listen to the works of Dr. King. We are doing ourselves injustice by focusing on just one of his speeches, ‘I Have a Dream’. There are so many great speeches, sermons, and lectures of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Why would you cut education when we need to educate the children? These are the issues Dr. King should discuss with President Obama. Dr. King would say to Obama, ‘We need to educate the children, we need health care, to take care of the poor and needy’.”
However, Republicans such as John Boehner went on the offense. The House Leader Rep. from Ohio told RTT News Wednesday that despite his stimulus bill, Obama has still failed in creating jobs and restructuring the economy. “This Sunday, we come to National Debt Day. National Debt Day is the day during the fiscal year when we have spent all of the revenue coming in to the federal government” he stated at a Washington press conference. “And so after Sunday — every dime that is spent, every new program that is approved — the money has to be borrowed from our kids and grandkids. This National Debt Day is three and a half months earlier this year than it was last year because of the stimulus bill.”
Several other factors into the AP-GfK poll could also mean bad news for the President. Over ninety percent has stated that the economy should be the main issue, the highest ever in a AP poll, while sixty percent has said that it has been for them and their families despite being hopeful of the economy improving, as over one-third has someone in the family who lost a job recently. However, sixty-four percent has approved of Obama performing his Presidential responsibilities, three percent down in February.
Knowing that there are no quick fixes and easy ways while going though another tough time for our nation, President Obama remains steadfast to go the distance with the challenges that lie ahead. “I will be held accountable” he said during his first weeks in office. “You know, I’ve got four years. … If I don’t have this done in three years, then there’s going to a one-term proposition.”
Besides Dr. King, Obama has also been compared to Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was President during the Great Depression as he also began to start reestablishing the economy with “confidence and courage.” “Together we cannot fail” FDR said at the start of his first 100 days. Now, as he reaches his 100th day Wednesday, Barack Obama will continue to rebuild America and prove it is time to make a change, and that time is now.
