Obama’s achievements against all odds

An Asian politician once said the possibility of a Jew, an Afro-American or a woman becoming president of the United States was highly remote if not inconceivable. The president will always be a white male, preferably of Anglo-Saxon descent. Well, Barack Obama not only shattered the myth of eternal preference, he apparently performed well enough in his first term that he was re-elected for the second round. And now, by all indications, Hillary Clinton is making a determined effort to break the third myth. “How would you like to see a woman president of the United States?” she asked a cheering crowd of Democrats, mostly women. But a Jewish president, who by a perverted logic, might just want to go ahead and establish a Palestinian state? I don’t think so. Besides, I don’t believe the Jews in America would want to rock the boat especially when they’ve not only had it so good; they have had almost every US administration just where they want them.

It is unfortunate that of late Obama has not been getting a good press, or that there were conspiracy theories regarding his place of birth and upbringing, especially after he sent back to England the Jacob Epstein statue of Winston Churchill which had been given on loan to George Bush by Tony Blair. It is disturbing that incidents of racism have risen in the United States ever since he was elected president which have, to an extent, inhibited his progress.

The main opposition in his own country comes from a stellar cast of seasoned conservatives some of whom are borderline racist with an empathy bypass, who are weighed down by the barnacles of distrust. The comment of Republican State Senator Jake Knotts of South Carolina, which was personal, was a perfect example of how many white Americans, including politicians, feel about Afro-Americans, Native Americans, Asians and Hispanics. “We’ve already got one raghead in the White House, we don’t need another in the governor’s house.” It was so risibly, toweringly awful, so pretentiously, mercilessly patronising, it disenchanted a lot of people everywhere. However, when compared with George Bush who thought nothing of killing 500,000 people in a matter of days and destroying a country that housed a once ancient civilisation, Barack Obama comes across as a humane, compassionate person who was appalled and deeply moved when he learned about the tortures the CIA employed on prisoners suspected of committing terrorist acts.

Many Americans and Pakistanis have criticised Obama because he, on occasion, comes across as somebody who is indecisive, and as a man who went back on some of his campaign promises, like shutting down the medieval detention camp of Guantanamo Bay, where unspeakable atrocities were committed. A lot of people in Pakistan dislike him not just for tilting towards India but also for increasing the drone attacks initiated by George Bush against the people of North Waziristan, as if the bombings were part of a plan to continue the foreign policy of the Republicans. But I believe Americans will remember his achievements after he completes his term. They run into over a hundred and fifty.

The most important, as I see them, are bringing to an end the archaic hostility of America towards the leaderships in Cuba and Iran; health care reform; ending the war in Iraq; recapitalising banks; investing heavily in renewable technology; providing payment to wronged minority farmers; expanding health coverage for children; boosting fuel efficiency standards; turning around the US automobile industry; introducing Wall Street reforms; improving the food safety system; and avoiding scandal. Can any Republican president match that? Or any Democrat president before him for that matter?

Published in The Express Tribune, April 19^th, 2015.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.