Œlîe Jlortlanh ©bseruer
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May 13. 2009
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INION
President Obama's First 100 Days
D
High marks
all around
by M arc H.
M oriai .
R estore c o n fid e n c e -
check. Pass a stimulus bill -
check Reset American lead­
ership abroad - check. Take
action to shore up the fal­
tering banking and auto industries -
check. Get a new puppy - check.
Ever since Franklin R oosevelt
passed a dizzying number of bills dur­
ing the first KM) days of his presidency
in 1933, commentators and others
have used that time frame to grade a
new president's early performance.
Now it’s Barack Obama's turn and
by most accounts, he has made a re­
markable first impression. On a scale
of 1-10, 1 would give him a solid 9.
There's always room for improvement.
But, looking ahead to the next
100 days and the massive
challenges facing our nation,
1 don't see the President's job
getting any easier.
P re sid e n tia l lea d e rsh ip
cannot be fully m easured
against a check list of prom­
ises made and promises kept. We
need to also look at the decisions our
Commander-in-Chief makes during a
sudden crisis, as well as the steps he
takes to ensure that his policies ben­
efit every citizen.
The President's swift action to pro­
tect A m ericans on the high seas
against Somali pirates and his mobili­
zation of government resources to
prevent the spread of swine tlu qualify
as effective actions against unfore­
seen enemies. But, much more must
be done to ensure that the President's
economic and social policies are as
inclusive as possible. Let me briefly
touch on three areas of concern.
First, while 1 applaud the President's
aggressive tackling of the economic
crisis, including passage of the $787
billion stimulus package, 1 believe he
needs to lead an interagency effort
that also involves unions and the
construction industry to ensure that
the green jobs seen as key to the re­
covery do not by-pass black America.
Second, this Administration must
do more to reinvigorate the nation's
commitment to civil rights which has
been eroded over the last eight years.
Just this month we learned that Su­
preme Court Justice David Souter is
retiring in June, giving the President
his first opportunity to place his
stamp on the High Court.
We trust he will pick a successor
who shares his own progressive
views on civil rights, equal opportu­
nity and color-blind justice.
In addition to a new Suprem e
C o u rt ju s tic e . P re sid e n t O bam a
faces a tough battle over his nom i­
nation of Maryland Labor Secretary
T hom as P erez to head the civil
rights division o f the Justice D e­
partment. Opposition is already lin­
ing up to challenge the President's
c h o ic e
o f P e re z
and
the
A dm inistration's plans to more ag­
gressively tackle em ploym ent dis­
crimination, hate crimes, voter sup­
pression efforts, racial profiling and
a host of other civil rights issues.
Finally, w hile we applaud the
President's attention to racial and
gender diversity in filling W hite
H ouse and cabinet positions, we
believe that more must be done at
the sub-cabinet and agency levels
to ensure that his adm inistration
"looks like America" from top to
bottom.
With high marks all around and a
public approval rating of 68 percent,
we congratulate the President on an
impressive first 100 days. In the next
100 and beyond, we urge him to stay
focused on serving all the people in
pursuit of his progressive agenda for
change.
Marc H. Morial is president and
chief executive officer o f the National
Urban League.
Farwell to New Orleans’ Mayor Ray Nagin fell short of the challenge
by J udge G reg
M athis
Three and a half years ago.
New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin
was forced to deal with some­
thing very few elected officials
have to face - a natural disas­
ter that killed thousands and
caused billions of dollars worth
of damage.
The nation watched in hor­
ror as Hurricane Katrina hit the
city, causing massive flooding,
and we wondered why the gov­
ernm ent was so slow to re­
spond.
Nagin, like all of those in
power, struggled to manage the
devastation Katrina left behind.
Nevertheless, much of New Or­
leans stood behind him, elect­
ing him to a second term in 2006.
That term will be over in a year
and very few New Orleans resi­
dents will be sad to see him go.
Nagin isn’t being voted out:
city rules prohibit a mayor from
serving more than two terms.
But, if Nagin was up for re-elec­
tion, it is pretty unlikely that
he’d win. A recent poll showed
his popularity among black resi­
dents hovering around 36 per­
cen t, w hile his p o p u la rity
among whites was a mere 5 per­
cent.
Why do residents dislike him
so? The city’s stalled rebuild­
ing efforts have a lot to do with
it. New Orleans has had a hard
time bringing
The new m ayor - whoever
To be fair, the problems in
N ew O rle a n s are n o t a ll that may be - has a long road
N agin’s fault. M ost existed ahead. The next mayor will im­
long before he entered office. m ediately have to establish a
H ow ever, his m anagem ent strong w orking relationship
style and in ab ility to w ork with both the City Council and
w ith the C ity C ouncil and the state governm ent, create
G overnor’s of­ and im plem ent a plan to re­
fice leave resi­ build New O rleans and man­
d e n ts h o ld in g age the never-ending red tape
th e sh o rt end that is FEM A and the federal
governm ent to bring m uch
o f the stick.
As Nagin’s fi­ n e e d e d - and p ro m ise d -
nal year in office funds to the city.
There is much work to be
wraps up, it re­
mains to be seen done in New Orleans. The city
what his legacy needs a leader who is truly up
will be. H urri­ to that challenge.
Judge Greg Mathis is vice
ridden city in 2007. Other city cane Katrina and the challenges
services, like garbage collection that followed showcased both president o f Rainbow PUSH
and street repair, seem to be his passion for New Orleans as and a board member o f the
missing the mark under Nagin’s well as his shortcomings as an Southern Christian Leadership
Conference.
management.
administrator.
The plan was drafted but fell
far short of implementation.
The city’s crime rate, which
skyrocketed after Katrina, has
residents in an uproar as well.
A major poll named New Or­
leans the nation’s most crime-
To be fair, the problems in
New Orleans are not all
Nagin 5 fault. Most existed
long before he entered office
in funds ear­
marked for the
c ity by the
federal government.
N agin ran his re-election
campaign promising to develop
a com prehensive, w orkable
plan for a rebuilt New Orleans.
See the Monster in the Mirror
America’s
double
standard on
defense
bv
E ric S toner
Washington needs to relearn
the basic moral principle of uni­
versality: What is wrong for
others to do must also be wrong
for us.
In February, the Obama ad­
ministration requested a mind-
z
|NEW S E A S O N S J
boggling $664 billion for the such things is notoriously lack­
U.S. military over the next fiscal ing in transparency.
Many expenses that the av­
year - m ore than 10 tim es
China’s official mili­ erage person would consider
defense-related - such as fund­
tary budget.
In fact, the United ing for the Department of Home­
S ta te s
spends land Security, the Department
ro u g h ly the sam e of Veterans Affairs, the Depart­
am ount on “d e ­ ment of Energy’s maintenance
fense” each year as of the nuclear stockpile, military
every other country in the world aid to allies, and the share of
combined, according to the au­ interest payments on the na­
th o rita tiv e d ata o f the tional debt that can be attrib­
Stockholm International Peace uted to past military spending
- are hidden in other parts of
Research Institute.
A nd m uch like C hina, the federal budget.
When all of these costly ex­
W ashington’s accounting for
tras are added up, the United
States’ unofficial military bud­
get tops out at more than $ 1 tril­
lion.
Ì
on F-35 Joint Strike Fighters -
at a staggering $100 million
apiece - or use that money for
food and shelter for the millions
who have been driven into pov­
erty due to the world economic
collapse?
Do we want to spend another
$2 billion each month for the
next five or 10 years to fight the
war in Afghanistan, or should
that money be used to further
research into alternative energy
and build a high-speed rail sys­
tem across our country? We
simply cannot have it all.
There are a few hopeful signs
that things may be changing on
C apitol H ill. C ongressm an
Barney Frank has been avidly
pushing for a 25 percent cut to
The truth is that the vast sums
allocated by both the United States
and China fo r future wars are a
tragic waste o f finite resources.
M A R K E T
N O W D E L IV E R IN G
Y o u r fa v o r ite n e ig h b o r h o o d g r o c e r y s to r e n o w d e liv e r s
g r o c e r ie s r ig h t t o y o u r h o m e o r o ffic e .
caxcts
w w w .n e w s e a s o n s m a r k e t.c o m
you click, we deliver, (or pull up for pick up)
To make it simple, Robert the military budget for months.
While his proposal is seen as
Higgs, a senior fellow at the In­
dependent Institute, wrote, "A radical by most in Congress, the
well-founded rule of thumb is Pentagon would still receive
to take the Pentagon's (always more taxpayer dollars after his
well publicized) basic budget cuts take effect than it did in
2001 - thanks to President
total and double it."
And who outside of pur bor­ George W. Bush’s eight year
ders would say that the “pur­ military spending binge.
Until the United States ac­
poses” of the U.S. military ma­
chine are benign or that the in­ knowledges the monster in the
vasion of Iraq had nothing to m inor and begins to dramati­
do with “natural resources?” cally cut its bloated military
It’d be hard for anyone to take b u d g e t, P re sid e n t B arack
that argument seriously while Obama’s soaring rhetoric about
our troops occupy two coun­ the need for a different, more
tries and bomb a third with un­ respectful relationship with the
manned drones on a weekly rest of the world will unfortu­
nately remain hollow words.
basis.
And if China is ever to slow
The truth is that the vast
sum s allocated by both the or reduce its military spending,
United States and China for fu­ the United States as the sole
ture wars is a tragic waste of military power in the world, must
finite reso urces, especially lead by example.
Eric Stoner is a freelance
given the spiraling financial
and ecological crises that we journalist based in New York.
His articles have appeared in
face.
The trade-offs must be laid "The G uardian," "M other
bare. Do we want to spend more Jones" and "The Nation".