Orethapedia

Obama has been able to make progress on the major problems facing the nation. Today, 64% say they have a favorable view of Obama, including 34% who say they have a very favorable view. In October last year, only about half (49%) had a favorable view of Obama, including only about two-in-ten (22%) who viewed him very favorably.

Here is a list of many of President Obama’s accomplishments as President. Every one of them has a citation, so no one can dismiss them out of hand.

1. Within his first week, he signed an Executive Order ordering an audit of government contracts, and combating waste and abuse.   http://1.usa.gov/dUvbu5
2. Created the post of Chief Performance Officer, whose job it is to make operations more efficient to save the federal government money.   http://n.pr/hcgBn1
3. On his first full day, he froze White House salaries for the duration of the Great Recession.  http://cbsn.ws/2aNMqNN
4. He appointed the first Federal Chief Information Officer to oversee federal IT spending and efficiency. http://www.cio.gov
5. Held the first-ever first online town hall from the White House, and took questions from the public. http://bit.ly/2atEVct
6. Became the first president to stream every White House event, live.  http://1.usa.gov/kAgOP5
7. Established a central portal for Americans to find service opportunities.  http://www.serve.gov
8. Restored the 30-day time frame for former presidents to review records and eliminated the right for the vice president or family members of former presidents to do the reviews, giving the public greater access to historic White House documents, and curtails the use of executive privilege to shield them. http://1.usa.gov/gUetLb
9. Improved the Freedom of Information Act and issued new guidelines to make FOIA more open and transparent when processing FOIA requests.  http://1.usa.gov/gjrnp2
10. Streamlined the Department of Education’s procurement policies and made them more transparent. http://bit.ly/1r9oQvh
11. Provided the first voluntary disclosure of the White House Visitors Log in history.  http://1.usa.gov/hQ7
12. Signed a law to completely reform NSA Data Collection program and keep phone records in the hands of the phone company.  http://bit.ly/1dG34vD
13. He pushed through and implemented an auto industry rescue plan that saved as many as 1 million jobs and possibly the entire auto industry. http://bit.ly/ibhpxr   http://bit.ly/gj7mt5
14. Through his investment in GM, returned to the company to its place as the premiere car company in the world.   http://lat.ms/zIJuQx
15. In February 2016, GM was in such good financial shape, they gave a share of the profit to each worker, with checks up to $11,000.   http://detne.ws/1mk7Jry
16. Doubled funding for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, to improve manufacturing efficiency.  http://bit.ly/eYD4nf
17. Increased infrastructure spending after years of neglect. http://bit.ly/f77aOw
18. Signed the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, which helped millions of Americans avoid preventable foreclosures and provided $2.2 billion to combat homelessness and stabilize the housing market. http://bit.ly/
19. Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, saved at least 300,000 education jobs, such as teachers, principals, librarians, and counselors that would have otherwise been lost.  http://1.usa.gov/ez30D
20. Provided funding to states and the Department of Homeland Security to save thousands of police and firefighter jobs from being cut during the recession. http://bit.ly/g0IKWR
21. Signed bill to provide extra training for local police forces, especially with regard to active shooter situations.  http://bit.ly/2cvFlRf
22. Ordered all federal contractors to pay a minimum wage of $10.10 per hour, leading the way to a national increase. http://wapo.st/1iaU5kd  As a result of this decision, a number of large employers, including Disney and Walmart, have increased their minimums.  http://bit.ly/2c3iwF5
23. Ordered the completion of the International Trade Data System, a digital trade record book, by 2016. This move will streamline and simplify the process through which small- and medium-sized businesses set up the export of US goods.  http://bit.ly/1nwSRF4
24. Signed bill to expand opportunities and to promote greater Native American tourism.  http://bit.ly/2dTIQmo
25. As of August 2016, Unemployment drops below 5% for the first time in eight years and without a significant bubble, remains below 5% all year so far. 4.9%   http://on.msnbc.com/1TKFCPQ
26. As of October 2016, there have been 80 consecutive months of private sector job growth.  http://1.usa.gov/1Xhizho
27. In April 2016, new unemployment claims hit their lowest level since Nov. 1973.  As of September 2016, they remain at 43-year lows. That means lower than at any time during  President Reagan’s Administration.   http://yhoo.it/2eaIPbf http://nyti.ms/1YhZEBk,
28. Since February 2010, when unemployment peaked, 15.6 million non-farm private sector jobs have been created.  http://1.usa.gov/1Xhizho
29. Oversaw a reduction in the federal budget deficit by two-thirds since taking office. http://bit.ly/1xKMmjY
30. Reduced the federal budget deficit from 9.8% of GDP in Fiscal Year 2009 under Bush, to 2.5% of GDP in FY 2015.  http://bit.ly/2cI4ABV
31. Signed the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act, closing many of the loopholes that allowed companies to send jobs overseas, and avoid paying US taxes by moving money offshore.    http://1.usa.gov/bd1RTq
32. Thanks to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, inflation in the healthcare sector dropped to its lowest point in 50 years.  http://on.wsj.com/1E6cYjF
33. Created an airline passenger bill of rights, preventing airlines from stranding passengers on tarmac for hours, requiring them to return to the gate within three hours or face stiff fines.    http://bit.ly/2c3jAZi
34. Blocked a monopolistic merger of Staples and Office Depot, to preserve at least some competition.  http://bit.ly/1kcY2Kv
35. Stock market has reached record highs, restoring most of the economic losses felt during the Bush Recession.   http://bit.ly/1z4FAtL
36. Promoted and signed a bill to established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and implemented it.  http://1.usa.gov/j5onG   http://bit.ly/fnTayj
37. Oversaw the most sweeping food safety legislation since the Great Depression.   http://bit.ly/2aiIPaS
38. Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, cut taxes for 95% of America’s working families.  http://bit.ly/eSEI4F
39. Tax rates for average working families are the lowest since 1950.  http://bit.ly/f74pD8
40. Signed and implemented the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act, to improve nutrition in schools and make children healthier.   http://1.usa.gov/GAXkSk
41. Changed overtime rules to make it far more difficult for employers to avoid paying overtime to workers. http://politi.co/1KHfiBe
42. Changed fair housing rules to make more affordable housing available to more people.  http://cnn.it/1JcR3qB
43. Took steps to treat opioid addiction as a health issue rather than purely as a law enforcement issue.  http://bit.ly/2ccokd3
44. Signed bill establishing a Sexual Assault Rights Act by working with Democrats in Congress.  http://bzfd.it/2ejelVd

and for extra credit:

#45 Medicare costs actually declined slightly, for the first time in decades in 2011, according to the Congressional Budget Office. http://1.usa.gov/oMxpTh