July 4th Edition Topics: Barack Obama

There’s no question that naming the 44th President of the United States as a bona fida reason to be proud of the country is a post to which some may concur and others may scoff. But I felt the former president is deserving of a spot on this list not only because of the things he accomplished in office, but the things he accomplished ideologically, the precedent for a more progressive America his presidency set.

Mr. Obama’s leadership on the pragmatic level was rocky in its successes. The Republican Party attempted to obstruct him on nearly everything he had ever proposed, even with regards to stances you’d expect more moderate Republicans to find common ground with. Nonetheless, Obama’s biggest achievement, the Affordable Care Act, under which millions of Americans are now insured was passed and affirmed as the law of the land by SCOTUS. Not once…but twice. And even though Mitch McConnell is hard at work in his attempts to dismantle Obama’s legacy on the healthcare crisis, the Senate Majority leader is facing real obstacles as the American people rally in support of government involvement in our healthcare system.

So while I have my fair share of criticisms of the last president, even as a progressive, and an equal share of criticism of the “Obama coalition” for not being more proactive on the pavement (which probably would have helped Hillary get elected), I consider Barack Obama to still have the potential to go down as one of the best presidents we ever had.