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Opinion: Americans Weigh In on Obama's First Year Print Text Size Sphere (Jan. 20) -- Forget about the Washington pundits and the political class, what do Americans around the country think about President Obama's first year in office? To help get an answer, AOL News solicited comments through Seed.com and selected a sampling of responses. (The following were edited for length and clarity.)
 

Not the Change We Wanted

Jeremy Barns, Alabama

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One year ago, we elected a new president. We were promised change we could believe in, and people were left chanting, "Yes, we can." Now that the honeymoon is over, where do we stand at the end of the first year of President Obama's term? As a bill collector from Alabama, maybe I don't have the political savvy to know everything that's going on, but a year into Obama's term, I am forced to realize he really hasn't accomplished anything of value.

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In fact, more often than not, he is plunging this nation further into debt and deeper into political partisanship. He seems out of touch with the security issues facing our nation. Whatever accomplishments you may see, to me he has only managed to increase the levels of government control and decrease transparency in government operations.

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This isn't the change most Americans had in mind.

 

Politics Daily:One Year Later: He's Doing All Right, Considering

A Lost Opportunity

Jeffrey Taylor, Arizona

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President Obama had a unique opportunity to lead America with his control of both the Senate and the House. How did he manage to blow it? He simply did not listen to the people and find them jobs. Without income, everything comes to a standstill. Passing reforms means nothing to people if they cannot put food on the table.

Susan Walsh, APPresident Barack Obama speaks at the White House during an event honoring National Mentoring Month on Wednesday.

Can he get himself out of trouble before midterm elections? I don't think so. When people are scared they will vote for whomever they believe can solve problems. The American public, unfortunately, has short-term memory loss and will probably put the Republicans back in charge of Congress, setting up a three-year struggle between the president and Congress.

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Triumphs and Letdowns

Jelena Woehr, Colorado
 

For many young progressives like myself, President Obama's first year in office has been marked by both triumphs and letdowns.

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Within his first 100 days in office, President Obama supported women's rights by signing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and fulfilled a campaign promise by ordering the closure of U.S. detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay. A date was set for the cessation of combat operations in Iraq. Obama immediately lifted his predecessor's ban on funding stem cell research.

 

Yet, at the end of President Barack Obama's first year, many of his ambitious goals remain incomplete. I've been discouraged by
setbacks during President Obama's first year, but I've also seen the president display impressive grit, courage and perseverance. I supported Barack Obama in 2008. I continue to support President Barack Obama today and I look forward to his next seven years in office.

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An 'F' for Frustrating

Richard Keller, Delaware
 

While others are rating the first year of Barack Obama's presidency as "D" for disappointed, I would consider it more a "F" for frustrating. So much promise came out of the election and inauguration that it soon became tough to watch as the year progressed.

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It was a promise of unity for a fragmented country; a hope that things would finally turn around after years of financial and global stresses. But that promise and hope hasn't fully come to form. True, there have been some glimmers in areas of economics and foreign affairs; however, those accomplishments have been overshadowed by the continuing partisanship of the country.

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President Obama will now have the next 11 months to prove that he can unite the nation and provide the hope and promise he spoke of in the election. If this can't be done by the midterm elections, the frustration may continue until the country elects a new president.

Not the Leader We Need

 

Jordan Henderson, Florida

One year ago, we were assured that President Obama would finally bring the nation together. No longer would there be a Democrat or Republican America, but simply a United States of America working in unison to bring about the change we all craved so much. We would be much safer by his diplomatic efforts and ending President Bush's tactics in fighting terrorism. We could also expect transparency from his post-racial presidency.
 

How has he done so far? He gives himself a B+. It seems an F+ would be more appropriate. Indeed, it is difficult to think of a single issue he has handled well. He has shown his inexperience in handling national security. He has failed to bring transparency in handling health care. His injecting himself into the Henry Louis Gates debacle showed that he certainly is not post-racial, even if much of the rest of the country is.

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The one thing he has followed through on since his campaign is blaming his predecessor. This falls far short of the leadership the world now needs.

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View From Abroad

Wendy Gould, Indiana
 

I spent much of Obama's first year in office living and traveling out of the country (Southeast Asia, to be exact). That includes the day he was elected, as well as his historic inauguration. On both those days I witnessed eye-opening behavior by non-U.S. citizens: uninhibited cheering and faces full of hope. That hope, the one that Obama built his campaign on, still remains in the hearts of those outside of the U.S.

 

Over the course of his first year, I watched the global perspective of the U.S. change in a way that almost shocked me. In fact, there is no doubt that the world view of the U.S. has changed in a positive way since Obama took office, and that is something that historians will take note of and something that the current U.S. family should take note of.

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Back in the U.S. I do recognize a sort of waning approval of Obama by Americans. But that doesn't change the fact that the world has taken notice and that their views of the U.S. has improved since his inauguration. That proof lies in his unprecedented talks with the Middle East, his courageousness in stepping up to the Haiti crisis and, yes, his well-deserved Nobel Peace Prize.

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Words Into Action

Nana-Adwoa Ofori, Massachusetts
 

As a first generation American, it was instilled in me from childhood that America was a country filled with endless opportunity. I watched my Ghanaian parents accomplish amazing feats and beat obstacles. Although their experience taught me resilience and optimism, I had developed a notion that there were limitations to "endless opportunity" in America.

 

I believed that the racial history of U.S. was too long and painful and the hope of an African-American president would be a dream deferred that the next generation might have the opportunity witness. But on election night in Brooklyn, I saw families, friends, loved ones and strangers cheer and dance together in the streets. I saw tears of joy and the promise of hope on each face.

 

President Obama hit the ground running within his first few days of office. He has proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that his campaign messages were words he has put into action. There is still so much to be tackled, but I am hopeful that the remainder of his presidency will be a fruitful and historic one.

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Smoke and Mirrors

Buzz Venhuizen, Minnesota
 

Do you feel like I do when it comes to politics today? Politics and politicians are all smoke and mirrors, and lights and makeup.

 

I own a small business in small rural town in Minnesota called Mora. Just like every other company in the nation, we are hurting from the downed economy and are dreaming of getting back the nation we once knew only just a few years ago. And just like everyone else, we saw history made as the first African-American was elected as president.

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But where is the "change" we were promised? I feel "change" was the smoke, "small-business initiatives for rural America" the mirrors and promises of "straightening out our economy and adding new jobs" the lights and makeup.

 

I'm sure President Obama does want our country to succeed. However, I can't help but feel that all this stimulus money going out to create or save jobs, the health care reform bill, the bailouts and many other so called "changes" benefit President Obama's buddies and contributors first. I have no proof of any of this. All that I have is a realistic view of just how hard it is still, one year later, to run a small business.

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A Teacher's Grade: Solid B+

Karen LoBello, Nevada

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President Obama has given hope back to the United States during his first year in the White House.

 

He is polishing America's image, badly tarnished by the previous administration. His conciliatory approach is opening new doors globally and allowing us to once again hold our heads high. He prevented what could have spiraled into a depression. His stimulus spending kindled the economy. He spearheaded the passing of long-overdue credit card protection laws. "Cash for Clunkers" bolstered car sales. Green jobs were created and our infrastructure, finally, is getting desperately needed attention.

 

As a teacher in Nevada, I appreciate the role model that Barack Obama has been to our youth. An affable, well-respected leader is a nice change. He's not perfect, but given the unrealistic expectations he faced a year ago, I'd give him a solid B+

Change Is Still Possible

Travis Boyer, Pennsylvania
 

 

Hope and change: two principles upon which President Barack Obama's road to the White House was built. After one year in office, the American people can still cling to the hope that the state of the nation will change under Obama.

 

As a college student from Pennsylvania, we are taught to believe that we are the change in the world. Maybe we are naive and inexperienced, but we still hold out hope that the world is not as rotten and vile as our parents have portrayed it to us.

After one year in office, Obama has fallen short of his lofty goals. Granted, it was unrealistic to expect change in one year. It was foolish to believe that a change of administration would produce instant satisfaction.

However, one man cannot accomplish it all by himself. The power for change lies within the people who believe that they can be the change they want to see in the world.

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Laying the Foundation

B.J. Keeton, Tennessee
 

Living in rural Tennessee, working as an adjunct English professor, one would think I automatically lean toward being an Obama-ite, what with all the leftist, liberal stereotypes among liberal arts colleges and their faculty. But while I certainly did vote for Obama, I do not think he is the Golden Child many in the mass media claim he is.

His first year in office, for instance, has been surprisingly dull after the lofty promises and sensationalism we dealt with during the campaign. "Yes, we can!" has a seeming addendum of "at some point in the next three years!"

But I'm OK with that. The first year of a president's administration always lays the foundation for the good (or bad) work to be done for the rest of the term.

 

For his first year, Obama hasn't done much. But that doesn't mean he won't in the next three.

 

Minor Miracles

Ernesto Aguilar, Texas

 

Obama adopted a wrecked country, courtesy of George Bush and Dick Cheney. Pile on to that terrorism, a global financial meltdown and those within his own party either putting their fingers in the till or stabbing him in the back and it's any wonder Obama didn't just throw in the towel.

Whereas the ham-fisted GOP approach helped fashion the political juggernaut into the Party of No, Obama presented a vision where the public would have health care, voters would be respected and America would no longer be seen as the purveyor of torture.

Courageous or foolhardy?

 

Either way, Obama must be credited with being willing to say things needed to change. In re-election-conscious Washington, such admissions are minor miracles.

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Nowhere to Go But Up

Cheryl K. Chumley, Virginia
 

President Barack Obama's approval ratings have fallen below the 50 percent mark. Why so low?

Obama's campaign pledges for open government are gone by the wayside, his reaction to a terrorist attack against this nation is woefully placid and his promise to return a bipartisanship atmosphere to the political process is laughable. The economy continues its free-fall, despite administration assurances that printing more money, spending more tax dollars and partially taking over the auto industry would restore the nation to financial health.

 

Still, there is a bright spot for 2010: Obama's ratings have fallen so low that perhaps now there is only one direction they can head.Filed under: Opinion, Only On SphereFollow Sphere on Facebook and Twitter.