Four years ago, I left the Republican Party of which I was a lifelong member and became an independent. Not long after, I supported Barack Obama in the 2008 election for president. I made this decision determined to look at the issues not as a Republican or a Democrat, but as an American.
It is through that lens that I consider my choice in the 2012 election. Like many other voters who crossed party lines to vote for Barack Obama in the last election, I have watched the 2012 campaign carefully and listened closely to what the candidates have said. I believe that President Obama should be re-elected.
Very few American presidents have been truly prepared to assume that job. Four years ago, Obama, a relatively inexperienced public servant, became the 44th President of the United States during one of the most difficult times our country has faced. The nation’s economy was on the brink of collapse. Our image overseas was tarnished, and our military was bogged down in two unpopular wars. I supported Obama then because I thought that he was unflappable. I saw him as a man with a keen intellect and a cool analytical head. I believed he would also be able to inspire those who had suffered most from a recession unparalleled since the Great Depression. In doing so, I reasoned, he would go a long way towards reuniting a nation deeply divided.
Obama was elected and took office, building on a number of stabilization programs initiated by the Bush administration. He took many other vital steps that reestablished our economic footing, including saving America’s automobile industry.
In the last four years, and despite the global downturn, America has come back from the brink. While pain is still being felt in far too many sectors of the economy, from a macroeconomic standpoint the situation in the United States is better than it is among our allies. According to the International Monetary Fund, today the United States is poised for 3 percent growth, which would make our economy the strongest of the other richest economies, including Canada and Germany. Other influential studies, cited in a recent column by Fareed Zakaria, show that debt in the U.S. financial sector, relative to GDP, has declined to levels not seen since before the 2000 bubble. And consumer confidence is now at its highest levels since September 2007. The housing market is also slowly coming back. While there is still an enormous amount to do to assure a recovery, the president deserves credit for a steady hand during this dangerous and unpredictable time.
In the last four years, President Obama has also had to contend with a rapidly changing international environment. He ended the war in Iraq, was the first Democratic president to ratify an arms control treaty with the Russian Federation, and rallied global leaders to put nuclear security at the top of the international agenda. The Obama Administration has also been responsible for decimating the top leadership of al-Qaeda and introducing biting sanctions on Iran. Today the president has significant experience in managing foreign relations, experience that GOP candidate Mitt Romney and his running mate, Paul Ryan, do not have.
As a result of this campaign I am more confused than ever about what Mitt Romney stands for. I know little of his core beliefs, if he even has any. No one seems to agree on what they are, and that’s why I do not want to take a chance on finding out.
Given Romney’s shifting positions, he can only be judged by the people with whom he surrounds himself. Many of them espouse yesterday’s thinking on national defense and security, female/family reproductive rights, and the interplay of government and independent private enterprise. In this context, Barack Obama represents the future, not that past. His emphasis on education is an example of the importance he places on preparing rising generations to assume their places as innovators and entrepreneurs, workers and doers, and responsible citizens and leaders. He recognizes, as many of us do, that access to opportunities must be open to every American, regardless of race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. This is not an entitlement, but a sound investment in the future.
Barack Obama’s record as president has not been perfect, and there have been frustrations for all of us during this time. Nevertheless, I believe that he deserves four more years in the White House. If the voters on November 6 give him that chance, we should expect and demand, if necessary, that members of both parties work closely with him to find a way to avert the “fiscal cliff” and other pressing and possibly destabilizing problems.
As I said in 2008 and will say again: “Unless we squarely face our challenges as Americans—together– we risk losing the priceless heritage bestowed on us by the sweat and the sacrifice of our forbearers. If we do not pull together, we could lose the America that has been an inspiration to the world.”
SusanEisenhower 
Very well presented ( no surprise) and I will send it around. I hope you get a wide distribution on this message. Best regards, Bob
Bob Hanfling bhanfling@hanfling.com
THANKS FOR SUMMING UP WHAT SO MANY OF US IN THIS COUNTRY FEEL, SUSAN!!
YOUR REFLECTIONS ARE ALWAYS SPOT ON ! LET US HOPE THAT OUR FELLOW VOTERS FEELS THE SAME WAY!
PAUL J. HANSEN
I completely agree and will be voting for President Obama again also.
Kudos, Susan. This is a terrific and thoughtful endorsement, and I hope it does some good. I’m sending it to a number of people. Romney and Ryan would be disastrous for the country, and as you wisely point out, the people around them are as bad or, in some cases, worse. At this point, I’m cautiously optimistic about an Obama victory, in spite of the poisonous attempts by state Republican administrations across the country to stifle voting. They should be ashamed – except they have no shame.
I’ve found your posts most interesting and am happy to be on your distribution list.
_____
I do hope that Obama wins – what a truly scary world it will be if he does not… And four cheers for Susan in being brave enough to say this and in public: it can’t be an easy thing to do and is all the more admirable for it….
You nailed it Susan. The luck of the Irish is with Barack, he will win.
Len Batterson
Susan,
As usual you are spot on. IKE would be proud of you. What the Gov. lacks and what
IKE and the Prez. have is CHARACTER. Justice Stewart defined pornography as “you know it when you see it”. Certainly do not see it with the Gov. You must listen to the IKE- JFK tapes re: the Cuban Missile Crisis —— so amusing and so endearing. Shall relay your
message to many friends.
Carter Cunningham
Those tapes I would love to hear. I do not recall reading them in the May-Zellikow book. A cogent piece of arguing. I am thoroughly flummoxed in anticipating how this election will go. I change my mind (I never go as far as offering predictions) every day. Can you imagine if this storm had hit next Mon/Tues?
Mike Mosettig
This is an amazing essay, thank you so much for writing it. It is thoughtful and wisely considered, fair and honest. Kudos on a great piece.
Obama/Biden 2012
Again, Susan has captured the appropriate tone and logic for my sentiments. I have encouraged my friends to read her thoughts carefully. Especially my younger family members; it is their future we are talking about. The Republican Party I supported for so long has abandoned me. The proposed government nterference with deeply held personal views regarding women’s health, the reckless foreign engagement theory of the NeoCons, the abandonment of our veterans, the total lack of awareness of the wars we were sent to falsely and didn’t pay for, and the false premise of economic management espoused by the Party are hard to rationalize. Please, be very careful who you vote for on Election Day. President Obama has shown a determined and steady course. And he hasn’t had much help at all these last two years! It is important to stay the course.
Susan,
You have a new fan. I have often wondered what your grandfather would say about the evolution and current state of his party. Character is the measure of every man and woman-without it, there is no core. Romney hopefully will learn this soon.
Thank you,
Marla Miller, RN, MSN
Susan, you just spoke for me. I am voting for President Obama and VP Biden
Superbly written in TRUE “Susan” Form. (Honest and Straight to the Point).
Just so absolutely apparent to many…yet, the right defends going back in time to replay a dark, not to distant past. How soon America forgets… the choice is clear… Thanks Susan , finger on the pulse, down right, TRUTH…!!!
Thank you for writing this. When so many people seem to ready to criticize Obama for what he has not done, it is important to remember the staggering amount he did do
As one of Ned’s nephews now with my own young family, I appreciate this piece very much as it articulates a thoughtful “big picture” perspective barely present in the binary election discourse. The biggest most important problems our country faces are shared by the global community. The complexity and interconnectedness of our globalized world demand forward, open, collaborative, and complex thinking and action. For me, Obama and his administration clearly have demonstrated an ability to address and operate under these circumstances – despite imperfections and disappointments. I respect Romney’s career in business, but have been totally turned off by his politic-ing and inability to demonstrate authentic leadership especially with respect to an updated and relevant republican agenda. Aside from not knowing truly what he personally stands for, I do not feel that Romney has positioned himself – or the republican party – as at all capable of post-financial crisis / Great Recession global leadership. He has defaulted to old line, outdated rubric.
Susan–Bravo–Obama is a class act and so are you. We did not leave the Republican Party–the party left us. You expressed your reasons for supporting the President and I agree –but I am also especially anxious about the “women’s issues” and the possibility of adding another conservative justice to the Supreme Court if Romney wins.
How disappointing – I still Like Ike.
For Mr. Cunningham to suggest that President Obama has character is simply astounding. His actions over the course of the previous 4 years make it abundantly clear the charter member of the “choom” gang is bereft of character.
Can you imagine Ike bowing to a Saudi prince and apologizing for America?
Can you imagine Ike commenting about police matters in other states?
– Cambridge (Gates)
– Florida (Zimmerman)
Can you imagine Ike attacking the press? (remember the flack he got about cutting our defenses when he knew, thanks to U2 flights, that the US was secure? He didn’t respond. He was presidential.)
Can you imagine Ike making an enemies list of his opponents contributors?
Can you imagine Ike hitting the talk show circuit, partying with pop stars in the wake of an American ambassador being killed?
While the press is doing their level best to provide cover for Mr. Obama and his administration’s inexcusable behavior during the Benghazi consulate attack – read the timelines – the news is slowly getting out.
Ike would be appalled. For that reason alone, I am dumbfounded as to how any relation of Ike’s would support Obama. Can you seriously imagine Ike ignoring the pleas for help of Americans under siege? Obama has continually demonstrated his disdain for America’s military, and its power.
Thank you. I believe the voters are still as intelligent as they were in the last election. Your words are proof.
Now, name five things President Obama did to help our country.
Susan, you express great wisdom behind your decision to support President Obama. Fingers crossed he gets another four years to help shape a less divided U.S.
Kaya, Mr. Obama has not done anything to help our country. The economy is worse than it was when he took office. Unemployment is worse if you account for all of the people who have had their 99 months expire and didn’t find jobs. The Fed is monetizing our debt – round 3 of Quantitative Easing – inflation is being kept artificially at bay – except for gas and food prices. He is ruling by fiat, pandering to the poor for votes. Look at the growth in the number of people on food stamps since he took office. Look at the disbursement of “Obama phones” in Ohio. Mr. Obama has denigrated the country’s status with all of our traditional allies and pandered to the Muslim Brotherhood. He has indulged in crony capitalism of the worst variety with GM, GE, Solyndra … the list goes on. His Justice Department is guilty of heinous behavior – coddling black panthers caught on film at polling places, shipping guns over the border without any kind of plan or cooperation with the Mexican government, engaging in thuggish behavior to those who support his political opponents – Gibson Guitar. They have turned a blind eye toward voter fraud and have the temerity to sue states who want to require and ID. At the same time, they are doing all they can to NOT implement laws designed to ensure that the military is enfranchised. The list goes on. This man spent 20 years in a church spewing black liberation theology and somehow didn’t witness any of the many vile things Jeremiah Wright was spewing? By his own admission (in his biography) he spent his time hanging out with Marxists – and continues to be in bed with SEIU, Bill Ayers, Bernadette Dorn, and other sterling individuals. He is the least well-vetted presidential candidate ever. His mentor Frank Marshall Davis was a communist. His mother a marxist, his maternal grandparents were marxists. He is a despicable, empty suit, completely ill-suited for the office he holds. He can’t even be bothered to attend most of his daily security briefings. He reflects badly on the United States and demeans the Presidency. No, I’m afraid, Mr. Obama has done nothing but harm the interests of the United States. He is truly the first President who considers himself a world citizen rather than the foremost advocate of the United States. He seeks to reduce the stature of the United States in order to bring it into his notion of equality.
This a well thought out piece and i HOPE more Americans will make such informed decisions on Nov 6. Its one thing to listen to the never-ending pandering on cable news, its also another thing to make a personal decision based on facts on the ground, which is what you did. There is so much at stake in this election….Thank you and I hope many people will read this article.
The True Heart of Americans were very well articulated in this article.
It’s a dumb decision to me. Read some real history. Think long term, before the dollar becomes worthless. -John Gibson Parker lll, transportation economist. You give Obama sole credit for everything. Obama is great actor. I would consider voting for him if he fired everyone of his advisors.
Dear Martin,
None of what you say is true. Please investigate some news sources other than Fox News and its acolytes.
Dear veryslowwriter, Is this the best you can do? Assert that what I have said is not true, without citing anything to support your contention? Is it not true that we have been at 8% unemployment for Mr. Obama’s entire term? Is it not true that under Mr. Obama’s administration the Justice Department dropped its charges against the New Black Panthers? Is it not true that the DOJ Fast and Furious program was conducted without the approval or coordination of the Mexican government and that it resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Mexican citizens and a US Border Patrol agent? Did not President Obama issue an executive fiat stipulating his own version of the Dream Act, without the consent of Congress? Did not the DOJ raid Gibson guitar? Did not the Obama Administration destroy legal precedent by favoring the union demands over preferred stock holders in re-organizing GM? Perhaps you should consider doing a little investigation and explain how these, or any of the other events I cited are false? Ad Hominem is par for the course, I suppose. On a side note, some actual journalism has actually started to surface on CBS, with respect to the Benghazi affair.
I guess if you can ignore that “pesky” $ trillion deficit all of this sounds like utopia. The “growth” of jobs and “lowering” of unemployment are merely opportunistic spins on the topics and not at all accurate.
God help us all!
Thank you so much for how articulately you have laid the case. I consider myself a moderate liberal, and I am so distressed at how the extreme conservatives have hi-jacked the Republican party. It is certainly not the party that my parents grew up with, nor is it the party I grew up with. Thanks for throwing your name and political weight in support of President Obama; he deserves it, and we all need it.
I too plan to support Jimmy Carter 2.0 -the Bin Laden Killer. I feel that though President Carter 1.0 was the only contemporary president to have no fear when addressing the USA, Obama is the next closest thing to someone in control who tries his hardest to do what is right and say what is true. The entire party he is running against needs to be divided. The Southern Democrats have taken hold of the GOP and they are willing to do anything they can to TAKE control of DC or find a perfect SPLIT in America leaving us a country divided.
Susan, President Obama has my vote…and so do you. People will see this. Thanks for the ammo.
Kudos, Susan as always!!! Powerful piece on political science & choice in AMERICA!! I have such a personal connection to grandfather as I caddied for IKE @G-burg Country Club in ’60’s & met him many, many times across street from my house @his G-burg College office(offtimes w/Nelson Rockefeller in tow!! Rejoinder to Martin, who never could have listened to Ike’s “military industrial complex” warning(1960). If he thinks trillions $$$$ spent on F-16/25 fighter jets, nuclear subs&aircraft carriers, “innumerable boots on the ground” & the bottomless pit of defense spending (lobbyists included) can protect us from ONE TERRORIST, where in the HELL IS THE BRIDGE that he’s been living under for the last 52 years??!!
There’s only one reason why you shouldn’t vote for Obamney. That is NDAA.
There are many other issues at play, but seriously. How could anyone vote for Obama after creating this Executive Order that so blatantly violates the freedoms and rights of American citizens?
How could anyone support Romney in light that he would have voted for it as written?
Regardless of any of the other issues, personal liberties need to be protected. Above all other items, this is one of the core roles of the President.
Say no to Obamney 2012! Lesser of two evils is still evil. 4 more years of war under Obamney guaranteed. More drone strikes killing thousands of innocent people?
Time to wake up.
Don’t be afraid to vote your conscience in November. The “establishment” has the majority of America fooled to believe that there are only two candidates. As long as we continue to argue amongst ourselves with “red versus blue” they will continue to win.
For those who support Romney because they believe he has a plan to get rid of the deficit you are sadly mistaken. He proposes continuing deficit spending for the next 30 years with large increases in the near term to give tax cuts to millionaires. Only Obama has proposed decreasing the deficit, like for his last budget years which show decreasing deficits after the last Bush budget year when he took office. (Budget years have a 9 month lag.) .
As an Australian, I hope your man Obama gets over the line … further, I hope his next term is explosive with real change that puts the focus on the people at home and making their world a better place.
Wishing you well
I am thankful to see some one say the truth.Obama did say what the efects of his first term would be like in the beginning .I do recall those words.I believe that he can turn this mess around.IT will take 2nd term,stand by our pres.
Thank you so much for saying this!
I am so grateful to find someone in politics that has common sense and thoughtfulness.
I will definitely forward this everywhere I can.
How do you believe that”pesky $ trillion deficit”came to be?
Could it have been because of…Ooooooh I don’t know…TWO WARS that the previous administration had financed and left for US, yes Mary, every one of US! to pay for?
Could it have been the economic crisis that the previous administration left us with?
Or…could it have been the housing market fiasco that Mr Bush created when he de-regulated the banking industry for his friends on Wall Street?
Or maybe, just maybe, it was all that AND the failing job market too.
What do you think it might have been to create this deficit Mary? Because I for one would like to know just how you think we got here.
Ooooooh yes! I forgot!
President Obama also had to PAY to catch the people responsible for the $716,000.00 Medicare fraud cost. Just wanted to add that figure to your calculations, in case you were confused and thought that that amount is what was cut from Medicare…because I heard that nasty little fib also.
So please enlighten us if you will regarding this $ trillion deficit.
I’m waiting….
FAIL … YOU FAIL … Since Obama took office has our economy really improved? By printing money to bail out banks and GM, and to expand our government we’ve devalued the real dollar. This only patched a hole not fixed it, and it’s patched by newly printed money with nothing to back it up but our lowered credit rating.
If our debts were called – we’d have no way to pay the money we owe. It’s a shell game, and one debt-collector call away from collapse.
Has our image overseas improved since Obama took office? We’re so much more respected around the world than we were before? Do you think Mexico has a better relationship with us? You don’t hear about US/Mexican relations much – our closest neighbor. Fast and Furious was going to make us look better in their eyes right? Canada? Canada has much greater respect for the US now? Cutting the Keystone Pipeline cost jobs not only in the US but in Canada. Egypt, Syria, Libya and Iran … yeah they LOVE us there don’t they? Pakistan and Afghanistan — yeah they waive American flags and sing our praise don’t they? We have a great “image” … not to mention the great respect of our allies in Israel – yeah we’ve made sure we’re not tarnished there either.
Our troops are all 100% back home not fighting … oh wait, yes they are fighting.
I agree we’re not bogged down with two unpopular wars – just one unpopuar war – with fewer troops than what’s been asked for.
Though some of our troops can rest – because our brave men are being asked to “stand down” when US interests are under attack. I’m sure that also does not portray us as “weak” in the eyes of our enemies and tarnish our image. Somalian pirates have no tarnished image of the US either.
Financially are we really helping those who have suffered? Are we no longer a nation deeply divided? There are more Americans on unemployment and food stamps than before Obama took office. The nation is divided but it’s no longer solely on economic lines. The democrats have pinned the conservatives/republicans with titles of “war against women”, “against the poor”, “against immigration” – carving out new dividing lines. We’re no longer divided as Americans we’re fractured. I’m so happy with the way that Obama has been able to bring people together.
Is the automobile industry “saved” really? I venture to say that GM that received the lions share of funding is only one or two unpopular models and bad financing away from struggle and partnered with regulatory strangle-holds, only a few short years away from coming back begging for more money or going into bankruptcy once again. Also is something really saved if it was forced to be smaller? GM had to make massive cuts, including trimming off brands, closing dealerships, shutting the doors of plants, laying off workers and cutting incentive programs from buyers. They had to stop payments to retiree health benefits and even more. Ford had to make many of those same decisions – but did not receive the same bailout of Federal dollars, instead Ford opted for balancing loans and lines of credit. Ford is doing much better than Government motors … and has already repaid the loans.
So in 2012 if we reach 3% growth, we’re still lower than the almost 5% of 2007, and to my understanding we only gained 1.3 — right?
GDP is added? 1.7 + 1.3 = 3% that’s only a 1.3 growth above last year. That’s not a remarkable success. Not if Bush’ failed policy gained 4.92 from 2006 to 2007. If under Obama policy we are so much better than what he inherited from Bush shouldn’t those growths be much more remarkable? The most important number a nation can have is it’s GDP – and we have the same gains as an 11th ranked country like Canada – that shouldn’t be a success story – that’s a failure.
Ended the war in Iraq? What? The war isn’t over. What has ended is our involvement in the war, the war is far from being over. All Obama did was pull troops out – he didn’t “END” the conflict. There was a war there before the US entered Iraq. That war continues, without us, it is not ended because we left.
Obama did ratify an arms control treaty. That treaty weakened Americas defense against any enemy that wants to kill us, such as Iran. When they build bombs are they going to build a single bomb? I doubt that.
I don’t doubt that nuclear security is at the top of the international agenda … because now the US doesn’t have more bombs than the unknown “THEY” – because, it appears that the goal is that each country have the SAME number of nuclear bombs – no matter the size of the country, or the number of enemies.
That may make for a secure WORLD, but I want a secure AMERICA.
“Given Romney’s shifting positions, he can only be judged by the people with whom he surrounds himself.” Can we hold the 2008 Obama against the same measuring stick?
Obama surrounded himself with Ayers, and the Communist Davis and Jeremiah Wright … who speak for communism, want to attack the US internally, and speak “God Damn America” … did Obama not “shift” his position? Should Obama not be “judged by the people with whom he surrounds himself”? — or maybe he should be judged by words whispered to Putin when he thinks nobody is watching.
Wait and I’m confused … innovators and entrepreneurs, workers and doers … I thought others built that for them. That someone else made that happen.
In any case – I’m an independent conservative and I will NOT be voting for Barack Obama for a second term. He’s done NOTHING at best, and at worst made America less secure than before.
I joined the Democratic Party in 1976 and remained a Democrat until 2007. In 2007 I was in Iraq and the effects of a treasonous Democratic Party Leadership almost got me killed several times daily during the period Harry Reid stood on the steps of the Congress and said “America has lost” until President Bush got his appropriations bill passed….and the shelling stopped. When I came home, I re-registered as an Independent.
Since then, those same treasonous Democrats elevated one of the gang to president while actively negating the powers of the US Constitution.
America desperately needs to get back to the tenants of the Constitution. That will not happen under a second obama administration. Save America – vote for anyone but obama.
An excellent message
Totally agree. I think President Eisenhower would have total respect for President Obama.
Well said. I agree that Romney is a masked opposition. Really, what does he stand for? Obama, at this point, is America’s best bet.
Reblogged this on madperspective and commented:
Susan Eisenhower gives a clear view of who to support in this upcoming election.