Comparing Obama's First Year to the Gippers

Jay Cost penned a good article in the March 22nd National Review. He has a great comparison of Ronald Reagan and Obama titled Rowing Upstream. Cost explains

"The political difference between Reagan and Obama is that the former gave the public what it wanted"

Very true. The Gipper gave us the Economic Recovery Tax Act while Obama gave us bailouts. Now we have the Healthcare B/S that the majority of Americans hate. One can easily say Obama's first year is a failure. Cost writes

The contrast between Reagan and Obama presents an interesting puzzle. Why was one so successful in achieving his principal domestic-policy reform while the other has failed to date? After all, both entered office with large victories; Reagan defeated Jimmy Carter by ten points, while Obama defeated John McCain by seven. This question becomes all the more curious when one considers that Obama’s party has majorities in both chambers, while Reagan had to deal with a House of Representatives controlled by the opposition.

Wasteful bail outs and Healthcare passed, but Obama has not accomplished much else. Both are dividing the electorate and when compared to Reagan's ERTA shows how little Obama has done. Reagan ran on tax reform and followed through on it with ERTA. No one can figure out where Obama stands. He hasn't ended the war or closed Gitmo. He has flipped on healthcare via public option and Cadillac plans. The left may be claiming victory, but it is clear that Obama so far has been ineffective as a leader. And just think, they called Bush the divider....Obama is the Great Divider.

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