Barack Obama: 4 Years In Review

[EnragedMaldivians]

Again, it isn't theft if you consent to it.

I don't consent.

Do you consent to sex by being married?

There needs to be a whole legal and policing infrastructure in place so that your property and money are protected in the first place. That infrastructure costs money to maintain.

You want the benefits of that infrastructure without paying for it. Which kind of sounds like theft.

[Laerod]

Ignored? I was under the impression that Congress stopped him from shutting down Guantanamo Bay by collectively refusing to house the prisoners there anywhere else.

Yeah, but then a significant number of the charges of failure that are levelled at Obama can be directly attributed to the GOP's obstructionism.

Not that one. This one happened during the time the Democrats controlled both houses.

[EnragedMaldivians]

Yeah, but then a significant number of the charges of failure that are levelled at Obama can be directly attributed to the GOP's obstructionism.

Not that one. This one happened during the time the Democrats controlled both houses.

But they didn't control the senate with a supermajority, which allowed the Republicans to obstruct by making use of the filibuster. Which they did. To an unprecedented degree.

[Gauthier]

Yeah, but then a significant number of the charges of failure that are levelled at Obama can be directly attributed to the GOP's obstructionism.

Not that one. This one happened during the time the Democrats controlled both houses.

The nonexistent time?

President Obama DID NOT control Congress for Two Years!

The Big Lies of Mitt Romney V: Obama Had A Super-Majority In Congress For Two Years

[The Republic of Lanos]

Not that one. This one happened during the time the Democrats controlled both houses.

The nonexistent time?

President Obama DID NOT control Congress for Two Years!

The Big Lies of Mitt Romney V: Obama Had A Super-Majority In Congress For Two Years

So those Democratic majorities didn't exist?

[Mavorpen]

The nonexistent time?

President Obama DID NOT control Congress for Two Years!

The Big Lies of Mitt Romney V: Obama Had A Super-Majority In Congress For Two Years

So those Democratic majorities didn't exist?

For roughly four mouths.

[Condunum]

Technically, it was a negative claim, but the burden of proof is on him, considering it is the original claim.

And he is wrong.

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

Providing for the general welfare is a duty of Congress.

The interpretation of "general welfare" is up for debate.

Also, "shall have Power to" does not imply a duty; it implies a right.

No, it implies a power, not a right. Yes, I used the wrong word, but that's not the issue here.

And how is it up for debate? The have the power to provide for the general welfare. That's basically saying that they have the power to provide for the people what necessities they ask for that aren't blocked by another part of the constitution.

Again, it isn't theft if you consent to it.

I don't consent.

Do you consent to sex by being married?

As mav said, shitty analogy is shit.

The only way you could possibly construe this to make sense is that you get to have sex with her, but she doesn't get to do the same with you. Somehow.

[Laerod]

Not that one. This one happened during the time the Democrats controlled both houses.

The nonexistent time?

President Obama DID NOT control Congress for Two Years!

The Big Lies of Mitt Romney V: Obama Had A Super-Majority In Congress For Two Years

Did I say Obama, or did I say Democrats? Did the GOP shoot down closing Guantanamo, or did the Democrats?

[Divair]

Again, it isn't theft if you consent to it.

I don't consent.

Do you consent to sex by being married?

What a crap analogy.

[Pope Joan]

Obama was just sworn into his second term as President.

I think this is a good time to review what he has done over his past four years.

I think he broke a lot of his promises. He campaigned on ending the wars, yet we are still very much a nation at war. He has also ignored his promises to shut down Guantanamo. I'm happy he finally came out and supported gay marriage though.

What do you think?

Where did he say he would end wars? He was one of the few who boldly (and correctly) opposed the invasion of Iraq as having nothing at all to do with combating terrorism. Fine. But as far as I know he always supported action in Afghanistan because it did in fact directly impinge upon the capacity of a state to support international terrorism.

I'm with him on both counts.

He has also brought the NLRB back to its original purposes, which means it no longer devotes its energies to persecuting injured workers.

He has made most aspects of government much more open. We have access to information that we never had before. This includes what the NRA hates, info about those trying to buy assault weapons.

[Laerod]

Obama was just sworn into his second term as President.

I think this is a good time to review what he has done over his past four years.

I think he broke a lot of his promises. He campaigned on ending the wars, yet we are still very much a nation at war. He has also ignored his promises to shut down Guantanamo. I'm happy he finally came out and supported gay marriage though.

What do you think?

Where did he say he would end wars? He was one of the few who boldly (and correctly) opposed the invasion of Iraq as having nothing at all to do with combating terrorism. Fine. But as far as I know he always supported action in Afghanistan because it did in fact directly impinge upon the capacity of a state to support international terrorism.

I'm with him on both counts.

He has also brought the NLRB back to its original purposes, which means it no longer devotes its energies to persecuting injured workers.

He has made most aspects of government much more open. We have access to information that we never had before. This includes what the NRA hates, info about those trying to buy assault weapons.

He made a promise to end the Iraq war in a way that the military felt would be appropriate. Funnily enough, that's a promise he kept.

[Howdoyoudoland]

He's done horrible, 0/10, incredibly awful President.

[New England and The Maritimes]

Stock market up 700%, unemployment cut by a third, poverty down, foreclosures basically vanished from the scene, medical coverage expanded, real incomes up, more manufacturing growth in one term than we've had in the past decade and a half or so. Yeah, I'd say he did pretty well.

[Howdoyoudoland]

The interpretation of "general welfare" is up for debate.

Regardless, it allows for redistribution of wealth.

...No it doesn't.

[Khodoristan]

He's done horrible, 0/10, incredibly awful President.

Proof.

[Mavorpen]

Regardless, it allows for redistribution of wealth.

...No it doesn't.

Source?

[Divair]

Stock market up 700%, unemployment cut by a third, poverty down, foreclosures basically vanished from the scene, medical coverage expanded, real incomes up, more manufacturing growth in one term than we've had in the past decade and a half or so. Yeah, I'd say he did pretty well.

Shame he isn't pushing for same sex marriage in his 2nd term. The legacy he'd leave behind with that..

[Divair]

Where did he say he would end wars? He was one of the few who boldly (and correctly) opposed the invasion of Iraq as having nothing at all to do with combating terrorism. Fine. But as far as I know he always supported action in Afghanistan because it did in fact directly impinge upon the capacity of a state to support international terrorism.

I'm with him on both counts.

He has also brought the NLRB back to its original purposes, which means it no longer devotes its energies to persecuting injured workers.

He has made most aspects of government much more open. We have access to information that we never had before. This includes what the NRA hates, info about those trying to buy assault weapons.

He made a promise to end the Iraq war in a way that the military felt would be appropriate. Funnily enough, that's a promise he kept.

Strange that people forget that.

[Howdoyoudoland]

He's done horrible, 0/10, incredibly awful President.

Proof.

We've got more debt, we're still at war, the economy is barely dragging itself along at this point, government is more divided than it's been in 2 decades (at least), the nation is more divided than it's been in 2 decades, etc.

I could go on, you know.

[Howdoyoudoland]

...No it doesn't.

Source?

In what way can you possibly stretch the concept of "General Welfare" to mean "Wealth Redistribution"?

It's asinine.

[Mavorpen]

Source?

In what way can you possibly stretch the concept of "General Welfare" to mean "Wealth Redistribution"?

It's asinine.

So then it allows for wealth distribution.

[Salandriagado]

Proof.

We've got more debt, we're still at war, the economy is barely dragging itself along at this point, government is more divided than it's been in 2 decades (at least), the nation is more divided than it's been in 2 decades, etc.

I could go on, you know.

True, but it's improving as quickly as is sensible; beyond his ability to stop; it's doing great; nothing to do with him; and nothing to do with him, respectively.

[Divair]

We've got more debt,

Not important as long as we keep growing.

we're still at war,

Yes, the plan was to leave in 2014. Always has been.

the economy is barely dragging itself along at this point,

2.6% growth and hundreds of thousands of jobs per month is not "barely dragging".

government is more divided than it's been in 2 decades (at least), the nation is more divided than it's been in 2 decades, etc.

This isn't his fault. Blame the GOP.

[Western cuba]

I've been a bit disappointed, but most of that is due to congress being too arrogant to actually do there job. It made me sick when congress decided to leave the fiscal cliff debate still standing and leave capital hill for vacation near the deadline.

The only thing I ever really was opposed to during Obama's term was his intervention in Libya, but that's probably because I'm a dove.

If I was Obama I would press for an amendment pushing for same-sex marriage. (I know this is hotly debated, so before I go further I want everyone to know I'm not homosexual).

[Howdoyoudoland]

In what way can you possibly stretch the concept of "General Welfare" to mean "Wealth Redistribution"?

It's asinine.

So then it allows for wealth distribution.

If there were a clause that specifically said, "And allows for Congress to confiscate and redistribute wealth without justification as they see fit"? Sure, then it probably would.

It doesn't.