THE "CHANGE THINGY" IS DOING WELL

On my way home this evening, I saw a Barack Obama "Change we can believe in" bumper sticker and I had to smile. Why? Because, recently, in one of her Tea Party event speeches, the two year Governor of Alaska (who resigned her position), Sarah Palin, had the audacity to question how that "change thingy" was working out for us. Well, Sarah, a lot better than you would want us to believe. Clearly, you hope that the President will quit trying, which is certainly something you have some experience doing.

First, after eight years of a President who had alienated us from the rest of the world, to the point where we had the lowest standing in the history of our country, we are now once again respected by the world. I am pretty sure that the reason for the change is that the world once again can trust us and knows exactly where we stand. We have a President that challenges the world to change, not one that threatens with invasion. You get respect by being a partner that you can trust, not by trying to put fear in the hearts of others. This is certainly foreign policy change that we can believe in.

Second, we are in the midst of an economic turnaround. Whether you want to blame the economic down turn on poor policies of the previous administration, fighting two wars, or George W. Bush being asleep at the wheel, Barack Obama inherited one lousy economy. Yes, he spent, but those moves seem to be having a positive impact. The Dow is up, GM has repaid it's loan, and the general consensus is that the recession is over. We all may not be feeling the good times yet, but we should in the next six to twelve months. So, we have economic change we can believe in.

Third, domestic policy initiatives will have a positive impact for decades to come. While my conservative friends have an issue with health care reform, it is virtually the same legislation that the Republican front runner for 2012, Mitt Romney, passed as Governor of Massachusetts. Admittedly, the bill is not perfect (I firmly believe in single-payor), but it's a start that's been overdue for a century. Now, the President has started an initiative to enact legislation to overhaul regulations and policies in the financial industry. This should prevent future issues with sub-prime mortgage investment vehicles and possibly some of the ridiculous compensation policies for investment bankers. While the jury is out, the fact that we are even addressing these topics, as well as energy policy, make the domestic initiatives of this administration change we can believe in.

Is Barack Obama the greatest president in the history of the United States. Only time and historians will tell. But, the fact that he has the audacity to confront issues of the present day and is attempting to enact change, arguable is making him the best person for the job at this time. So, Sarah, while you are "reloading", taking a stance of "hell no", hosting an interview show where you don't do the interviews, and staring in a "reality" TV show, America is moving forward with real change that will make us great again and change I STILL FIRMLY BELIEVE IN!