What Change?

If you think back to the 2008 Presidential election you'll remember a lot of vague promises from the candidates, especially from the Democratic nominee Barrack Obama. His main platform was “Change”. He traveled the nation speaking about all the different ways he was going to change our nation, and how our nation was all out of sorts. Well Obama rode the winds of change to a victory placing him as the President of the United States of America.

Four years later President Obama's first term is coming to a close, and he is seeking reelection to continue his platform of change. The only problem is most of the population is finding themselves asking, “What change?” Only four presidents who were running for reelection have failed in our nations history, and what they all had in common was a lot of failed promises. According to an article by Michael Medved of The Daily Beast, if the Republicans want to continue the formula to beat incumbents they need to point out Obama's failures. One of Obama's greatest disappointments in office was one of his greatest promises. The promise he made to bring our nation together and dissolve the lines drawn by partisan separation has fallen terribly short. It seems as if we are just as divided as we were four short years ago.

Even Obama supporters can't possibly say that he has truly started to make an impact on bipartisanship in Congress. One of Obama's “greatest achievements” is his healthcare bill, but if you look closer you'll find that it passed through Congress without one single Republican vote in either house. Where's the agreement and unity in that? Even descending popularity polls show that the American people are becoming weary of the Obama administration and the lack of change in our nation.

There have also been several other promises proposed by Obama during his presidential campaign in 2008 that have yet to be fufilled. Some of the issues including, healthcare, taxes, and the growing national debt have been getting worse before better. The national debt has nearly tripled since the Obama administration has taken office, and doesn't seem to be getting smaller any time soon. Lately an issue that has everyone in America upset is skyrocketing gas prices. It's empty promises and failed attempts to improve our nation that leave Americans reflecting on what was promised as change.

Most Americans can't even really tell you why they voted for Obama let alone the actual issues inside his platform. I think Americans need to learn from these last four years that we cannot simply base our vote on popularity, eloquent speaking, and especially not based on a single vague word. I hope that more people will do their homework on the candidates in the 2012 election and make an informed decision about who they like best, not who the media or friends favor.