Obama's 100 Days: A Blueprint for Success

The rating of a US president’s first 100 days in office has become a must see media show in the coliseum of modern journalism. President Obama was no exception. A recent Pew poll showed Obama’s approval ratings for the first 100 days in office higher than Reagan’s. Unlike Reagan, who did not face the biggest recession since the Great Depression, Mr. Obama encounters unprecedented challenges in both the domestic and international fronts with a scattered but determined opposition, which seems to be slowly regrouping.

With a renewed and [innovative] sense of urgency, the White House has strived in the first 100 days to make government more accountable and transparent. The impetus of Mr. Obama’s message, amplified by his weekly radio addresses, frequent press conferences including a live network show appearance gained traction in the public’s perception. There was consensus among Obama’s supporters that the administration tried, and modestly accomplished, to steer away from business as usual, at least in the exceptionally high strung corridors of government. But if success is measured by perception, intent becomes the distinctive mark by which an administration is successfully appraised. President Obama’s first 100 days in office have been characterized by a new tone, a synchronized dance, a national dialogue much too different from the previous administration, whose pigeonhole approach to domestic issues contributed to their demise.

However, many suggest that the “house upon a rock” that Obama’s White House is trying to edify is too much too soon for the immense challenges we confront. Mr. Obama faces many obstacles on his uphill battle to fix Washington and America’s image in the world, and some of these sand blocks are within his own party, whose loyalties lie more with electoral demographics than with the President’s vision.

In the international arena, Mr. Obama’s new foundation found some adherence. In his trips abroad he provided an opening for dialogue between US and Iran and other regimes, including Cuba. His decision to close Guantanamo, release torture memos, put demands on Israel, set a date for pulling troops from Iraq, send more troops to Afghanistan and kill three Somali pirates are clear measures that change is taking place, albeit slowly and cautiously.

In the domestic front, things were slightly skewed for this administration. The passing of the stimulus bill, which set the tone for his economic agenda, was met with ebullient criticism. Reactions to the banking and the auto-industry bailouts were not unreasonable and the administration’s failure to cap Wall Street bonuses diminished their leverage among the American people to deal with the overall recession.

But Mr. Obama’s first 100 days showdown is over, and the real work of government has just begun. Finding common ground for all his measures will be hard, and even though change is part of our everyday parlance, the ‘house upon a rock” vision needs walls and a roof.