Category: Barack Obama

Donald Trump has been compared to Barack Obama at certain points since the day he took office in US foreign policy.

According to the conjuncture, policies, foreign policies, general changes and trends aside, the foreign policy of the two presidents of the big cities so early to evaluate, not very easy and healthy, but in particular I can make this assessment clearly together.

Overview of the US in the Middle East. When we say the Middle East, especially nowadays, the number one issue we face in Syria and Syria axis. The second is its relations with Israel. Third, his relations with Saudi Arabia. The future of Iran-US relations and nuclear weapons.

Like Obama, Trump’s priority in the Middle East would be ISIS, which he himself repeated many times. Even though Trump says Obama will take tougher measures to combat Daesh, the difficulties he is facing in implementing domestic policy issues and some of the commitments he has made internally undermines the prospect of the United States to carry out a Syrian operation to be carried out by the US military himself. On the other hand, in the context of ending ISIS in the Obama period, American troops were not sent to the region and the struggle against ISIS was used as a priority by using some forces in the region. In other words, I do not think that Obama or Trump will have very different attitudes at the ISIS point due to both conjuncture and international bilateral relations.

The second issue is relations with Israel. Obama, perhaps in the past fifty years, was a president who had the most distances to Israel among US presidents and even progressed from Israel to the point of the solution process in Israel. Trumpilebilir’s early friendships with Netanyahu can be considered as an effective factor in terms of bilateral relations and Israel. In addition, Israel is one of the first countries to visit abroad, and Trump will follow a more pro-Israel policy on Israel. However, the fact that the tension points in the region are further north and that the Israeli-Palestinian issue is not a priority in American foreign policy at this moment does not give me the idea that it will bring huge differences at this point.

The third important dialogue is relations with Saudi Arabia. Under the Obama period, the military trades, trade and oil dialogues, Saudi investment in the US have led the region to a very hot US-Saudi relationship. Trump’s first visit to the Vatican, Israel and Saudi Arabia during the Trump period shows that these relations will maintain the warmth and that the relations will go up in an increasing momentum.

In short, it is possible to see that Trump and Obama administrations do not have a great difference in three basic points and that the conjuncture will not cause a great change in the expected Israeli position. However, this is not the case with Iran. Iran-US relations have spread over a period of fifteen years using the United Nations P5+1 initiative during the Barack Obama period. This process led to the release of Iran’s blocked funds, on the other hand, to delay the Iranian nuclear uranium enrichment project and spread it over a long period of time. However, the Trump administration is not really the case. Donald Trump, in his speech, talked about the Iranian approach he had made before hand and talked about tearing Obama’s covenant in relations with Iran. Therefore, the clear and different perspective of Donald Trump in Iran is the most important and distinct approach to the Middle East when the Obama and Trump periods are evaluated in the US foreign policy.

Trump’s problems in domestic politics, developments in Syria, but above all, the reality that military tensions with Iran will never be like Iraq or Syria, and it will become a much bigger and global event.

In a fast-paced, hectic life filled with accomplishment and meaning, the first African American former lady of the United States, Michelle Obama has appeared as one of the most compelling and iconic women of our era. Her insightful, intimate, inspiring memoir, reveals her as an influential and powerful woman since she served as a role model for many people in the world with her words, actions, and legacy.

The first African American lady of the United States to serve in that role. Michelle created the most inclusive and welcoming in the White House’s history, while also being a powerful advocate for education for children around the world, girls and women in the United States, raised awareness of the importance to pursue healthier lives for families, spoke up about gender equality and provided a glimpse of her husband Barak Obama with his leadership qualities as a powerful leader with his highest repute across America.

Along the way, she aced Carpool Karaoke, showed us a few dance moves, and lived life under the glare of publicity. From sitting down with Oprah and doing push-ups with Ellen DeGeneres, she’s a woman full of positivity, warmth, and strength in an era it shaped her as a role model for our generation.

Michelle herself, humbly mentioned that she is just an ordinary woman who has lived an extraordinary life. Michelle Obama said in Becoming, “In sharing my story, I hope to help create space for other stories and other voices, to widen the pathway for who belongs and why.” Just by the opening of Michelle’s memoir, I feel her, I hear her, and I visualize myself just doing some push-ups in the gym, just an ordinary task by ordinary standards. Her memoir reveals who Michelle Obama is, welcoming and conversational.

Through her admirable qualities, courageous action, mesmerizing storytelling, and work deep of reflection, Michelle Obama encourages readers into her fascinating life, recounting the experiences that have shaped her with, insight, motherhood, and to her time spent at Chicago’s South Side to the White House. With lively wit and unerring honesty, Michelle explains her disappointments and her triumphs, both private and public, on her own terms and in her own words – telling her entire story as she has lived it. Warm, Wise, and meaningful, Becoming is an unavoidable memoir by a notable figure, attributed to the deeply personal core of a woman’s soul which contains securely defied expectations that inspires us to look up to.

“There’s power in allowing yourself to become known and heard, in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice. And there’s grace in being willing to know and hear others,” mentioned Michelle Obama concluding her remarkable memoir. It reveals perspective is how we become. We mustn’t give up. We mustn’t be cynical. We must live life with purpose, and maximize our human potential with optimism because, in the end, we should always believe things that are possible, then we become. If this isn’t an outstanding summary that encapsulates what we should all strive to be, then I’m not sure what is.

Defining Leadership through Michelle Obama

What makes a good leader? It may seem like a simple question yet it continues to encourage debate among many intellectuals in the field. Many of us may have our own leadership definitions based on our experiences and knowledge. To me, a good leader is one who possesses the qualities of honesty, empathy, and resilience, and is able to inspire people for generations to come. One person that I believe exhibits all these qualities and more is Michelle Obama.

Advocacy and Initiatives: A First Lady’s Impact

Michelle Obama was the First Lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. During her time in the ‘spotlight’, Michelle almost single-handedly brought attention to and elicited change for various social issues, ranging from poverty to children’s education (‘First Lady Michelle Obama’, 2015). She was also a strong advocate for public health and believed that children should be encouraged early on to lead healthy lifestyles. In 2010, Michelle led the war on childhood obesity in the United States by introducing the ‘Let’s Move!’ campaign, an initiative designed to promote physical activity and raise a healthier generation of kids (‘First Lady Michelle Obama’, 2015). She was able to successfully bring together key players from the public and private health sectors, academia, and sports industry to work together to combat childhood obesity (Lee, 2017).

Michelle was also passionate about healthy eating and campaigned for improved access to healthier foods (Lee, 2017). To lead by example, she planted vegetable gardens on the White House lawn and worked behind the scenes with companies like Walmart to not only reduce the price of healthier foods but also improve their nutritional content (Lynch, 2016). As such, Michelle’s ability to motivate and inspire others to action demonstrates her resilience and commitment leadership skills. She was able to use her influence as First Lady to lead in admirable ways that have caused her followers to identify her as a leader and support her decisions wholeheartedly.

Authentic Leadership: A Genuine Approach

I believe Michell Obama adopts a predominantly authentic leadership style. To put it simply, authentic leadership relies on the concept of genuineness. This approach to leadership focuses on building trust and integrity through sincere and honest relationships with followers (Leroy, Palanski & Simons, 2012). Authentic leaders show their true selves to their followers and are highly self-aware of their strengths, limitations, and emotions (Klenke, 2007).

A key aspect of Michell’s leadership is how she modeled the behaviors that she would like to see in her followers (Gardner et al., 2005), to show them that she was not asking them to do something that she herself was not prepared to partake in. For instance, the 2010 nationwide campaign led by Michell against childhood obesity was titled ‘Let’s Move!’ rather than ‘You Move!’, suggesting that Michel herself was ready to be active. ‘When I do these things, I’m thinking, if people see me – the First Lady – with my shoes off, running around with kids, sweating . . . making a fool out of yourself, then maybe more moms and dads will say, ‘I can do that, and that actually looks fun’ (‘First lady making strides’, 2011). Beyond the public context, Michelle also lived and enacted her arguments in her daily habits (Brar, 2019). For example, in an interview on the Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2012, Michell spoke about her daily exercise routine, including how she gets up as early as 4.30 a.m. every morning to work out for an hour. Michelle displayed her private life in public to show that for her, her talk and action are not distinct. Rather than appearing as a detached leader who is disconnected from what they preach, Michelle personified the choices and struggles of living a healthy life, thereby increasing identification with her followers. Authentic leadership encompasses the whole leader and is not a role that can be put ‘on’ and ‘off’, rather it requires consistency and performance that is consistent between word and deed (Shamir and Eilam, 2005). If people see their leader as honest and ‘true’, followers are more likely to trust and align themselves with the leader’s goals (Bishop, 2013). Michelle’s particularly defining leadership traits include her truthfulness and humility. Throughout her time as First Lady, Michelle often spoke openly about her personal life and did not shy away from relating her own experiences (Lynch, 2016). For instance, in an interview with CNN in 2013, Michelle opened up about her childhood and college days. She, however, refrained from mentioning that she went to Princeton University for her higher education, instead simply stating that she attended college, something more relatable to the general population. Furthermore, during a speech at YMCA in 2010 to promote her campaign against childhood obesity, Michelle related her own experiences with her children, stating that her daughters were ‘starting to get off track with their weight before she received a wake-up call from her family pediatrician (Black, 2010). Michelle did not share this personal story out of judgment of her children, rather used it as a tool to demonstrate her motivations for wanting to enact change, thereby developing her position as an authentic leader (Leroy, Palanski & Simons, 2012). By speaking as a parent, Michelle personalized the issue and was able to connect with American parents who could relate to her experiences. Authentic leaders seek to show that they share things in common with their followers and that they are not ‘higher’ than them (Avolio et al., 2004). As such, Michell’s ability to be truly empathetic and relatable allowed her to come across as a very ‘real person to her followers, who in turn, shared her commitment to her goals and ideas (Covelli & Mason, 2017).

An important and perhaps, an understated component of authentic leadership is how leaders deal with their own weaknesses and criticism. Goffee and Jones (2005) explained that strong leaders are not only aware but can accept their weaknesses, enabling them to handle criticism and opposition without becoming defensive. During the 2011 Super Bowl, the Obamas’ faced heavy criticism for their party menu that included cheeseburgers, pizza, and ice cream. However, instead of denying her weaknesses, Michelle argued that life was about balance and the ‘occasional treat’ for special occasions. In doing so, she publicly acknowledged that she was not the perfect role model for health and portrayed her more ‘human’ side. When authentic leaders are transparent and honest about their weaknesses, they transfer credibility and trust to their followers, thereby fostering a more effective relationship (Quinn, Spreitzer & Brown, 2000). If Michelle seemed flawless, her followers would have trouble identifying with someone who was so superhumanly ‘perfect’. Instead, by reframing her weaknesses as an aspect of humanity rather than a flaw, Michelle was able to generate trust and augment her position as an authentic leader (George, 2004).

Personal Reflections: Transformational Leadership in Practice

On self-reflection, I believe my leadership style most closely resembles transformational leadership. This style of leadership focuses on motivating, guiding, and inspiring followers to see what they are capable of, and in the process achieve the objectives and goals of the leader (Liu & Li, 2018). For context, I work part-time as a security guard in a shopping center. Earlier this year, we had new recruits that joined our team. Being one of the more experienced members of the team, I was tasked by my supervisor to train the new recruits while on duty. My first action was to sit down and get to know these individuals on a personal level. I asked about their backgrounds, hobbies, goals, and even their personal concerns about starting a new job. Rather than adopting an authoritative approach to leadership, I expressed empathy by trying to put myself in their shoes to understand their concerns. Throughout their training, I encouraged these individuals to ask as many questions as possible, no matter how basic. When there was a simple task that I could easily do myself, I chose to delegate it to the new recruits to present them with an opportunity to expand their skills and improve their confidence. In retrospection, I believe I was able to engage well with these individuals and empower them with the skills and confidence to perform their duties to the highest order, consistent with a transformational leadership approach.

Comparative Analysis: Authentic and Transformational Leadership

There are a few differences between the two leadership styles that I have identified. While transformational leaders (TL) focus on motivating and helping their followers to develop into leaders themselves, authentic leaders (AL) are more concerned with building trust and legitimacy with their followers to improve performance (Banks et al., 2016). Furthermore, TL is generally required to be inspirational, creative, and charismatic, whereas AL does not necessarily need to possess those qualities to be effective (Banks et al., 2016). With that being said, there is considerable overlap between the two leadership styles. Both TL and AL act as role models for their followers and lead by example. Additionally, both leadership styles strongly emphasize leader self-awareness and fostering a supportive environment for their followers (Celik, Akgemci & Akyazi, 2016).

Conclusion: Emulating Authentic Leadership in Professional Practice

Overall, this assignment has given me valuable insight into my leadership style. Whilst I am comfortable and confident with my approach to leadership, I believe I can emulate some of the strategies of Michelle Obama’s authentic leadership approach in my future practice. Given the importance that the physiotherapy profession places on health behavior change, Michell’s approach to modeling healthy behaviors herself to her followers would be very helpful to me in not only facilitating positive health behavior change but in also fostering trust in the patient-therapist relationship. As the American author John Maxwell once said, ‘A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.

References

1. Avolio, B., Gardner, W.L., Walumbwa, F., Luthans, F., & May. D.R. (2004). Unlocking the mask: A look at the process by which authentic leaders impact follower attitudes and behaviors. The Leadership Quarterly, 15(6)., 801-823.
2. Banks, G.C., McCauley, K.D., Gardner, W.L., & Guler, C.E. (2016). A meta-analytic review of authentic and transformational leadership: A test for redundancy. The Leadership Quarterly, 27, 634-652.
3. Bishop, W.H. (2013). Defining the authenticity in authentic leaders. The Journal of Values-Based Leadership, 6(1), 1-7.
4. Black, R. (2010). Michelle Obama is under fire for mentioning their daughter Malia’s weight during obesity remarks. Retrieved from https://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/michelle-obama-fire-mentioning-daughter-malia-weight-obesity-remarks-article-1.194037
5. Brar, F. (2019). Michelle Obama shared a glimpse of her #SelfCareSunday at the gym. Retrieved from https://www.shape.com/celebrities/celebrity-workouts/michelle-obama-fitness-self-care
6. Celik, A., Akgemci, T., & Akyazi, T.E. (2016). A comparison between the styles of transformational leaders and authentic leaders in crisis management. International Journal of Academic Research in
7. Business and Social Sciences, 6(2)., 183-196. https://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/michelle-obama-fire-mentioning-daughter-malia-weight-obesity-remarks-article-1.194037
8. https://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/michelle-obama-fire-mentioning-daughter-malia-weight-obesity-remarks-article-1.194037
9. https://www.shape.com/celebrities/celebrity-workouts/michelle-obama-fitness-self-care
10. Covelli., B & Mason, I. (2017). Linking theory to practice: Authentic leadership. Academic of Strategic Management Journal, 16(3), 1458-1544.
11. First Lady making strides one year into ‘Let’s Move’. (2011, February). Retrieved from https://www.kunc.org/post/first-lady-making-strides-one-year-lets-move#stream/0
12. First Lady Michelle Obama. (2015, July). Retrieved from https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/administration/first-lady-michelle-obama
13. Gardner, W. L., Avolio, B. J., Luthans, F., May, D. R., & Walumbwa, F. (2005). ‘Can you see the real me?’ A self-based model of authentic leader and follower development. The Leadership Quarterly, 16(3), 343–372.
14. George, B. (2004). Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering secrets to creating lasting value. CMA Management, 77(8), 6.
15. Goffee, R., & Jones, G. (2005). Managing Authenticity. Harvard Business Review, 83(12), 86-94.
16. Klenke, K. (2007). Authentic leadership: A self, leader, and spiritual identity perspective. International Journal of Leadership Studies, 3(1), pp. 68–97.
17. Lee, B.Y. (2017). 10 ways Michelle Obama promoted physical and mental health as First Lady. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2017/01/15/michelle-obamas-top-10- accomplishments-as-first-lady/#64e42ff01889
18. Leroy, H., Palanski, M. and Simons, T. (2012). Authentic leadership and behavioral integrity as drivers of follower commitment and performance. Journal of Business Ethics, 107(3), pp. 255–264.
19. Liu, H., & Li, G. (2018). Linking Transformational Leadership and Knowledge Sharing: The Mediating Roles of Perceived Team Goal Commitment and Perceived Team Identification. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1331.
20. Lynch, M. (2016). 7 education initiatives led by Michelle Obama. Retrieved from https://www.theedadvocate.org/7-education-initiatives-led-by-michelle-obama/
21. Quinn, R., Spreitzer, G.M., & Brown, M.V. (2000). Changing others through changing ourselves: The transformation of human systems. Journal of Management Enquiry, 9(2), 147-164.
22. Shamir, B., & Eilam, G. (2005). ‘What’s your story?’ A life-stories approach to authentic leadership development. The Leadership Quarterly, 16(3), 395-417.
23. https://www.kunc.org/post/first-lady-making-strides-one-year-lets-move#stream/0
24. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/administration/first-lady-michelle-obama
25. https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2017/01/15/michelle-obamas-top-10-accomplishments-as-first-lady/#64e42ff01889
26. https://www.theedadvocate.org/7-education-initiatives-led-by-michelle-obama/

The hardships and difficulties of racial discrimination have touched individuals from varying societal angles and classes. This menace did not spare president Barrack Obama as he states in his speech ‘A Perfect Union.’ Even though Obama was the first African American individual to be elected as the president of the United States, he had his share of being discriminated against throughout his long journey to office. Obama delivered the speech on March 18, 2008, at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The speech was a response to criticisms of his relationship with Reverend Wright, who had made inflammatory sediments towards the government and race relations in the United States. Moreover, Obama addressed the broader issue of race and racial discrimination in his speech. Through the use of logos, pathos, ethos, kairos, audience, and purpose, among other rhetorical techniques, Obama adequately justifies the need for unity in the country and how the union will grow stronger as one.

The use of logos is quite effective in Obama’s speech. He displays objectivity and achieves the element of logos. The senator methodically explains the problems with race within America and gives logical, reasoned resolutions to the issues. The speech starts with a solid argument based on the importance of racial unity in the country; and how it will help the union grow stronger as one. Through specific examples, Obama presents historical evidence of racial segregation against African Americans throughout history. Besides, he uses the incident between Ashley and the black man as evidence of a union that can grow stronger.

Moreover, Obama appeals by explaining his racial history in an attempt to cement the importance of racial unity. He begins with a preamble of the United States Constitution (‘We the people, to form a perfect union’) and states that even though this was the goal of the founding fathers, “the document they produced was eventually signed but ultimately unfinished. It was stained by this nation’s original sin of slavery (Obama, Para 2) and other racially directed injustices. Obama achieves logos by including himself in the ongoing chronicle of racial discrimination in America. He notes that ‘I am the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas. I was raised with the help of a white grandfather I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles, and cousins, of every race and every hue” (Obama, Para 6).

Even though Obama presents his passion and involvement in America’s racial relations, the exigency of the speech becomes apparent when he mentions his former pastor Jeremiah Wright. Conservatives had claimed that Wright was a black racial extremist, and since he used to attend his church, people stained his name. As a result, Obama had to hide their face and distance himself from his former pastor while providing a broader discourse on the country’s race relations. In consequence, while the criticism directed Pastor Wright and their relationship with him served as the exigency of Obama’s argument, the urgency to detach himself from the pastor and call for American racial unity served as a kairotic moment.

Having the exigency identified and a kairotic moment present, Obama appeals to pathos through a well-informed presentation of racial injustices that exist in America hence further cementing the necessity of racial unity. Obama notes how the judicial system has not solved the menace completely and how dire need for more comprehensive and exhaustive measures. In addition, Obama opines that “Segregated schools were, and are inferior schools; we still haven’t fixed them, fifty years after Brown. Board of Education, and the inferior education they provided, then and now, helps explain the pervasive achievement gap between today’s black and white students.’ Effectively, Obama appeals to the emotions of his audience and the entire United States population to emphasize racial unity.

Through logic and reasoning, Obama strongly appeals to ethos to suggest but not force modes of change for Black and White Americans. Precisely, the senator appeals to ethos by placing himself as a character in the racial history of the United States. Despite being of a mixed-race background engulfed by racial discrimination, the senator was a polished political icon with first-class education; therefore, he qualified to make his claim. And forcefully, he does. The senator urged blacks to embrace the burdens of the past without becoming victims of the past’ (Obama, Para ). Obama has a great experience with the challenges facing Blacks as he met prejudice while studying at Harvard. Besides, the senator experienced similar problems as he had his American Citizenship questioned. This explains why there is little buckling as the senator makes his claims. Ideally, there is no group of individuals who can claim that they know the key to racial equality. So why a senator running for president should tell us this? Through reasoning, Obama evades this predicament by offering great suggestions instead of promising legislation. Precisely, the speaker avoids overstepping his boundaries while submitting concrete claims. Obama appeals to ethos to urge and demonstrate the need for racial unity in the United States.

On March 28, 2008, Obama rose to the podium in a sensitive circumstance and under enormous pressure. This was after his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, provided the exigency for this speech by ascertaining that the American government discriminated against blacks racially. This called for a response from the aspiring president, and with great force, confidence and rhetoric, he did. The speaker placed himself in the middle of his racial rhetoric. He appealed to pathos through the enlightenment of examples of racial injustices. This was in an attempt to cement the importance of Racial Unity in America. Finally, the speaker capitalized on the sentiments mentioned above to propose but not dictate ways of change for the country.

Works Cited

1. Obama, Senator Barack. ‘A perfect union.’ The Black Scholar 38.1 (2008): 17-23.

Argumentative Essay

A leader that has made a significant contribution to many individuals and the world and become a role model for many people.

Early Life:

• Date of birth: 4 August 1961, aged 57.
• Mr. Obama was born and brought up in Hawaii, however, lived in various countries throughout his childhood.
• The exposure of different cultures enhanced Mr Obama’s understanding and appreciation for other people’s faiths, beliefs and rituals. This contributes to his passion for equal rights for all people regardless of nationality, race or religion.

Education:

• Mr. Obama studied Law at Harvard University.
• Mr. Obama also studied at various different universities, further developing his education.
• His significant and recognised work in politics began in 2004, this led to his election as president of the United States of America (USA).

Career:

• Mr. Obama was the forty-fourth president of the USA.
• His duration in office began in 2009 and ended in 2017, serving two terms as president.
• Mr. Obama was the first African American president, therefore making history.
• Mr. Obama represented the Democratic party.

Contribution to The World:

Within his two terms in office, Barack Obama contributed to the lives of many individuals, communities and the world as a whole. He made positive changes, through his initiatives and determined mindset. Approximately a year after his election, Mr. Obama began delivering “change” (B, Obama) to the public. For example, cuts to taxes for working-class people and families, whilst increasing tax payments for higher income earners. This work represented Mr Obama as a person that could relate to different class citizens. In 2009, Mr Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize due to “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples” (Nobel Prize, 2009). This was a significant award as it globally recognised Mr Obama’s contributions, as a spokesman for the members of the public in regard to human rights. He described receiving this “honour with deep gratitude and great humility” (B, Obama. Nobel Prize, 2009). Due to Mr Obama receiving this highly esteemed award after such a short amount of time as president, it emphasised his determination and commitment to “change”, portraying his contributions which have led to this lasting impact.

Traits and qualities:

Barack Obama is an inspiration leader and a respected role model as he possesses essential leadership qualities. He focused on change, equality and commitment. When Mr. Obama was elected in 2008, he committed to creating “hope” and developing the “change that has come to America” (Barack Obama). Due to the fact that “change is never easy, but always possible” (Barack Obama). This quote highlights his determined and positive mindset, further reiterating his qualities and characteristics. Mr. Obama faced many challenges during his leadership in regard to horrific events that occurred in the USA, challenges from other politicians, countries and members of the public. However, he modelled resilience, for example “The future rewards those who press on. I don’t have time to feel sorry for myself. I don’t have time to complain. I’m going to press on” (Barack Obama). Mr. Obama has said “Keep exploring. Keep dreaming… Never stop believing in the power of your ideas, your imagination, your hard word to change the world” (Barack Obama). Through these examples, it becomes apparent that Mr. Obama is a role model that gives hope to people. With positivity, calmness, and focus he believed one could achieve their goal.

Another achievement made by Mr. Obama, using these skills, were his efforts to end the war with Iraq. The process to end the war was long, however he displayed persistence, calmness and exceptional negotiation skills, with success.

Mr. Obama uses these abilities in various situations. He demonstrates how people are able to achieve success through use of these qualities. This reveals Mr. Obama’s ability to relate to various personalities, acting as a role model and influence for all. As a result, it has become evident through the listed and various achievements, Mr. Obama has made a significant contribution to the USA and the world. Thus, being an inspirational leader that is respected by the vast majority. Many young children aspire to be like Mr. Obama through the positive impacts, he has made.

How these inspiring traits and qualities were developed:

A significant contribution of how Mr. Obama acquired these traits, was due to his upbringing. His exposure to many cultures aided his understanding and accepting nature. He also spent much of his childhood with his grandparents who taught him the values and morals of life. The significance of family was highlighted by Mr. Obama in his present-elect victory speech in 2008; where he thanked “the family that made me who I am” (Barack Obama). However, throughout his time as president, his passion of human rights grew. His active participation in social justice issue displayed how some characteristics are cultivated overtime.

Summary:

As a result, it is evident that Barack Obama is an influential leader, that has made a significant contribution to the world, due to his aspirational traits and qualities. Through these qualities, such as his caring, determined and positive mindset, Mr. Obama has proven to be an outstanding leader and role model for the younger generation. Mr. Obama acquired these traits and qualities at a young age through learned behaviors. However, his commitment and wide-spread work globally, have allowed him to cultivate and strengthen these overtime.

The speaking abilities Of the 44th US President Barack Obama, his ability to Win the hearts of the audience and inspire listeners with a bright speech allowed many authors to describe him as the greatest speaker of his generation (Wilson 8). Namely, the skill of public speaking helped him achieve the top of the career ladder in the political hierarchy of the United States.

According to Ekaterina Haskins, a professor of rhetoric at the University of Iowa, in his speeches, one can catch the echoes of the great speeches of the past – this creates a sense of continuity, determination, and historical significance (Haskins as cited Terrill 363-384) He certainly studied the work of his predecessors and is well versed in the oratorical heritage, from which he draws inspiration for his speeches. Obviously, he sees himself as the heir to the achievements of Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King and conveys this in his speech messages to the American people, inspiring them to support him and follow him (Terrill 363-384).

On March 18, 2008, a candidate from Philadelphia Obama delivered a speech that gave hope to black Americans, This was a comment in response to a Statement by his friend and pastor from Chicago, Jeremiah Wright, who accused the US government of crimes against blacks. ‘God damn America… for killing innocent people,’ he proclaimed in a sermon from the podium, and it could destroy Obama’s candidacy. It should be noted that after the primary, Obama initially had a slight advantage. At that time, there were reports in the media that former Obama pastor Jeremy Wright was condemning US policy in his sermons. Obama’s promising presidential campaign has come under threat. Trying to discredit him, opponents suggested that he agreed with his former pastor. Obama had to publicly challenge Wright’s views and speak out on the important issue of racial and religious issues in public life. Relying on his oratorical talent, Obama delivered a memorable speech on the progress America has made since the civil rights movement in the 1960s and brought this historic moment closer when black got the opportunity to run for president. Obama made it clear that he does not agree with some of Wright’s views, but he cannot fully refuse the priest, whom he treats almost as a family member, just as he cannot refuse his white grandmother, who has repeatedly openly expressed dislike for black people. He called for separating religion from politics, as prescribed by the Constitution developed in Philadelphia more than two hundred years ago (Wilson 14-18). ‘The profound mistake of Reverend Wright’s sermons is not that he spoke about racism In our society,” – Obama said in his speech. ‘It’s that he spoke as if our society was static; as if no progress had been made; as if this country (Obama)]

Obama talked about the time when blacks were forced to be slaves for whites – a time when they did not even belong to the second class and were treated like goods that could be sold on the market. He also talked about the time until the 1960s, when blacks were not allowed to sit on the same benches as white and were forced to take back seats on the buses.

In that speech, Obama promised to create a more perfect union. He wanted to fulfill a promise made fifty years ago by his associate Democrat Lyndon Johnson. Speaking after the signing of the Civil Rights Act of July 1964, Johnson said he hopes to close the springs of racial poison’ (Bowen).

In his speeches, not just a technique is felt, but a natural position, natural methods, and natural speech. In his speech A More Perfect Union, delivered in Philadelphia, Pa., on March 18, 2008, as part of a presidential campaign, Obama appeals primarily to ordinary voters, both African Americans, and whites, to those who are affected by social problems of the American society, caused by racial divisions, persistent latent segregation, inequality, poverty; he is speaking of himself as a simple citizen, the son of a black woman and a white man, stresses that he is married to a black American, in whose veins there is the blood of slaves and slave owners (Obama), and then he successfully proceeds to the idea of unity in diversity. Barack Obama points to the unity of the American people and calls for overcoming racial and class contradictions. It should be noted that the use of implicit markers also contributes to the expression of the idea of unity: the pronouns of the second person ‘you’ and the first person plural of ‘we,’ as well as their possessive forms. It is also interesting that Obama did not start by talking about himself – he started talking about ordinary Americans. It was a brilliant technique. Moreover, Obama positioned himself not as a candidate from the establishment, but from the people. This speech determined the fate of the entire Obama campaign. It frankly talked about how racial hatred disfigures lives and challenges the highest ideals of the nation.

He’ll begin his speech by referring to the founding fathers, whom he also, in fact, calls ordinary people, speaking of them as a group of men gathered ‘two hundred and twenty-one years ago in a hall that still stands across the street,’ ‘with these simple words’ putting the beginning of ‘America’s improbable experiment in democracy (Obama). He further speaks about the dream of various people – from farmers to government leaders – those who crossed the ocean in search of a new, better life, implementing the Declaration of Independence which, however, was tainted by the shameful phenomenon of slavery, the Consequences of which have not been overcome. In the next part of his speech, Obama talks about the evolution of the struggle for racial equality, for aligning the declared ideals and reality, and so he goes on to talk about his election campaign, the main task of which he sees in that ‘to continue the long march of those who came before us, a march for a juster, more equal, more free, more caring and more prosperous America’ (Obama). Describing in detail the acute social problems associated with the racial ‘legacy’ of the past, Obama calls for uniting to combat inequality today and expresses a firm belief in the success of this struggle (albeit not too fast), subject to joint efforts. He also emphasizes that moving in this direction is the only alternative for further improvement of the union (Obama). Then he again goes on to particularize acute problems, briefly dwelling on conceptual lines of action to correct the situation, and concluding his speech with a justification for nominating his candidacy for the presidency – heartfelt faith In the current generation of Americans, their desire to improve the country’s real democratic foundations, and their ability for changes. As a result, Obama made the most serious revolution in the picture of Americans’ electoral preferences since the time of the Kennedy brothers (and maybe even more serious): he again attracted young people to the polling stations. Moreover, he began to enjoy great popularity among undecided voters (those who do not support either Democrats or Republicans and focus more on the personal qualities of the candidate).

The key concept of analyzing Obama’s political speech m IA More Perfect Uniön can be the term ‘strategy,’ which can be described as a specific orientation of speech behavior in a given situation in order to achieve the goal of communication. In this context, let us note that one of the main components of any election campaign is the rhetoric of the candidate for the desired post. Hence, politicians, in their speech behavior, turn to persuasion strategies. Based on the classification and terminology proposed by the researchers, the strategy of persuasion can be divided into two parts: argumentative and agitational (Nzekwe 80-87, 198). Each Of them is implemented through the tactics of contrastive the tactics of pointing to perspective, the tactics of promise, and the tactics of call.

Obama mostly uses an argumentative strategy in the first part of his speech and an agitational strategy in the second. However, in the second part, he also skillfully uses argumentative strategy, and this combination ensures that the speeches have the effect that, we must assume, was made by the speeches of the founding fathers, and later of Abraham Lincoln and, in recent history, Martin Luther King. In general, Barack Obama’s presidential discourse constantly contains basic political patterns of American national-cultural identity, such as the national idea and the uniqueness of Americans as a nation.

Obama uses standard, well-known techniques, but he combines them so skillfully that he manages to achieve the incomparable influence of his discourse on the public. The list of his techniques •ean be supplemented by an inter-discourse function, WhiCh consists of frequent appeals to the experience of predecessors and their discursive practices. Thus, a strong link is established between the past and the present, and the continuity of generations is emphasized. As Ryan Holiday rightly points out, this Obama speech appeared to be a turning point. Instead of distancing himself from the voters, Obama addressed them directly. By doing so, he not only neutralized the potentially fatal conflict but also created an opportunity to strengthen his position. Using the power of a negative situation, he gave his campaign additional energy, which eventually led him to the White House (Holiday 45-48). Indeed, contrary to the advice and ‘rules’ in political PR, Obama decided to act actively and use the negative situation of racial tension in society as a reason to appeal to voters. He is not afraid to cover in his speech the most acute latent social conflicts of modern American society; he gives the impression of perfect sincerity, honesty, and frankness. Thanks to the arguments that create the effect of obviousness and notoriousness of certain facts, Barack Obama influences the consciousness of the listener, forcing him to believe in the truth of what was said, or agree with his own opinion.

Even the most educated and erudite audience will better perceive the information submitted in a simple manner, which was confirmed by the history of the political upheavals of the times of the Declaration of Independence and, subsequently, of the Civil War and the abolition of slavery. Obama’s message was as simple as possible, and all his other ideas just complimented and detailed it: ‘working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds, and that in fact, we have no choice if we are to continue on the path of a more perfect union (Obama).

In his speech about a more perfect union, the essence of the political philosophy of the new democratic administration of the USA was reflected. This speech brought together the experience of representatives of different races, showing a deep understanding of the long-standing disagreements between them, rooted deep in the subconscious, and putting Obama himself as the embodiment of common hopes for unification. With such rhetoric, it is not surprising that Obama turned out to be a ‘ ‘man of the decade’ who was called the ‘new Gorbachev’ (Sharma and Gielen 31-44). The world in the presidency of George W. Bush lost not so much an ideal role model as the leader – namely, the leader, whom people follow by their own will, and not by coercion. Obama appeared to become that leader. America almost all over its history was perceived as a symbol of opportunities and hope, as an example for the whole world. The world looked at America as a country of possibilities, but at the same time, it saw that racism in this country did not disappear, that black and Hispanic people were unequal to white Protestants. However, America, with the election of a black president, to some extent returned to the world the well-known ‘American dream,’ which promises everyone, regardless of origin, the opportunity to realize their desires, ambitions, and aspirations in life with a strong-willed effort. Obama showed this dream to voters in his A More Perfect Union speech.

Barack Obama is one of the best speakers of our time, véhose author’s s&le is based on the virtuoso manipulation of various linguistic means, as well as convincing people of the truth of his position, which he uses to exert the necessary influence on his target audience. All his speeches have a clearly constructed strategy in terms of the use of speech techniques. And the fact that he successfully overcame the election races of 2008 and 2012, once again becoming president of the United States, suggests that such a communicative strategy is correct.

Works Cited

1. Bowen, Mae. ‘This Day in History: President Lyndon B. Johnson Signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964.’ The White House. President Barack Obama. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/blog/2()15/07/02/day-history-president-lyndon.
2. Nzekwe, Justin C. The Art of Oratory: Effective guide to Communication and Speech Making. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016.
3. Obama, Barack. The Essential Barack Obama: The Grammy Award- Winning Recordings by
4. Terrill, Robert E. ‘Unity and Duality in Barack Obama’ ‘fA Moie Perfect Union.’ Quarterly Journal of Speech, vol.65, 2009, pp. 363-386.
5. Wilson, John K. President Barack Obama: A More Perfect Union. Routledge, 2009.

His path to the presidency

Barack Hussein Obama Jr. was born on August 4, 1961, in Honolulu, the capital city of Hawaii.

His father, Barack Hussein Obama Sr., did not play a significant role in Obama’s life, while he was growing up. He was an African American man with Kenyan roots and married Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, in 1961, however, the couple ended up getting divorced only a few years later. In 1982, Obama Sr. died in a car crash and since Obama had had little to no contact with his father during his lifetime, he was not aware that he did in fact have 7 half siblings until he was of age (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, p. 471).

Education

Obama’s mother saw her son’s potential and continuously worried about Obama’s education. Convinced that the education he was already receiving at a public primary school, located in Jakarta, was insufficient, she started teaching her son proper English at home, in an attempt to open doors for him in the future. By the time Obama was ten years old, she arranged for him to live with his grandparents back in Hawaii, to ensure that he would get the best education possible (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, pp. 471-472).

Despite the advantageous state of affairs, Obama also went through difficult times in his youth. Like any adolescent, Obama struggled to discover his own identity. Being the only African-American student in his class, he often felt lost and never felt like he truly belonged to either the black or the white community. Moreover, he was increasingly confronted with the prejudices that a disturbingly large proportion of the white population tends to have against African-Americans, which undoubtedly worsened the situation altogether (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, pp. 471-473). In order to come to terms with his heritage, he tried to live up to the expectations of what he considered the ideal African-American man. With his own father being out of the picture, Obama was more or less forced to look up to other men that he thought embodied the exact stereotype of an African-American man and found many of his role models in pop culture. As a result, young Obama took some focus away from school and instead focused heavily on sports. He became an avid basketball player and spent a lot of his free time at the beach or partying, like any rebellious teenager (cf. Mendell 2007, pp. 44-45). However, the situation threatened to get out of hand when Obama turned to alcohol and drugs, due to a lack of more suitable coping strategies. Nevertheless, it is important to mention that he overcame this rebellious phase rather quickly and returned to being his old self in a relatively short amount of time.

As a young adult, Obama’s dedication earned him a scholarship to Occidental College, which caused him to stay in California for a while before he eventually moved to New York, where he received a Bachelor’s Title in Political Science in 1983 as a student of Columbia University (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, p. 472).

The racial factor

Equality and social justice have always been a matter of great concern to Barack Obama. In order to fully understand the reasons for Obama’s triumph in the election and his motives as a politician, it is inevitable to understand the issues that African-Americans had- and still have to deal with on a regular basis. Although the situation has undoubtedly improved in certain areas, nobody can claim that America is a country in which the black and the white population can coexist in a peaceful manner.

Many critics claim that it is due to the racial inequality in the country that Obama was backed up by such a huge number of supporters during the campaign and the election process, and saw Obama’s victory as an unprecedented sign that the American citizens were more willing than ever to integrate people of color into society. Furthermore, experts were convinced that the advancement prospects for African-American citizens would enhance drastically.

Nonetheless, it cannot be denied that there are still various problems that need to be addressed. To this day, the living conditions of African-Americans are still fairly poor compared to those of the white part of the population, if one considers the fact that a large part of the black population of America is living in ghettos. Unfortunately, the lives of those living in ghettos oftentimes revolve around criminality, drugs, and poverty, and it is nearly impossible to get back on your feet again, once you have moved into such an area or were born into these circumstances.

At this point, it is also appropriate to mention that African-Americans are still paid far less than white people on average and that the unemployment rate of the latter is only half as high (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, pp. 4472-73).

Early career

Obama was widely aware that most African-Americans did not receive the benefits of an upbringing like his own and were not fortunate enough to be given the same opportunities. Determined to see first-hand what impact racial injustice had on the lives of the poorer part of the African-American population, he decided to work in the social sector, once he had graduated from university. Back then, this was a decision that entailed a great risk, given the fact that Obama was working for Business International Cooperation at the time, where he would have had a great chance of promotion. Instead, he chose to work as a community organizer at a ghetto on the South Side, a job that would have a long-lasting impact on Obama (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, pp. 472-473). Years later, Obama would even go as far as saying that he learned more during his time as a community organizer than at any other point in his life. Every other form of education he had received up until this point had been purely theoretical and Obama quickly came to the conclusion that he would have to let go of some of his more idealistic visions, because he realized that, no matter how well educated you thought you were in a certain field, reality oftentimes looks different (cf. Mendell 2007, p. 68).

He realized early on that a lot of white people do, in fact, not differentiate between race and social class and represent different viewpoints than the African-American citizens themselves, when it comes to racial equality issues.

At this point, it is fitting to mention that a large part of the white population living in the USA is convinced that African-Americans do not face any kind of discrimination due to their ethnicity. Over 90% of African-Americans, on the other hand, disagree with this statement. When Obama was working for the Developing Communities Project as a community organizer, he was taken aback by what was happening right before his eyes and was more determined than ever to fight for racial equality for the rest of his life.

This time in his life defined Obama’s character in another significant way. Due to the fact that Developing Communities Project was led by church communities, young Obama, who had, up until this point, questioned the existence of a god altogether, gained insight into what was happening within the black church and developed an interest in Christianity. What inspired him most about the black church, especially the black church of Chicago, was its positivity and strong faith in god. His growing interest in religion was further underpinned by a Reverend called Jeremiah Wright, whose sermon proved to be a turning point for Obama, as it fully converted him to Christianity (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, pp. 473-474).

Despite his growing faith and his appreciation of the church itself, Obama also saw firsthand, how religion can be used as a tool or weapon and how easily the pastors of churches were able to exert a considerable amount of influence on the political conditions in the South Side African-American communities (cf. Mendell 2007, p. 68).

Desperate to learn more about his origin, Obama decided to take some time off and travel to Kenia. During this time, Obama got a better understanding of his heritage and learned to think of it as an asset rather than something negative. It was during this five-week stay in Kenia that Obama made contact with the black part of his family for the first time.

After he had gained clarity about his heritage, Obama returned to America, where he began studying at the Harvard Law School in 1988. He was, again, fortunate enough to receive a scholarship (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, p. 474). At this point, it is also worth mentioning that Obama became the very first black president of the renowned Harvard Law Review (cf. Mendell 2007, p. 104).

After he had graduated with magna cum laude about a year later, all doors were open, but instead of taking on a job as a lawyer, like everyone expected him to, he resumed his old position as a community organizer in Chicago (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, p. 474). Going back to Chicago had been his plan throughout his Harvard studies, as his ultimate goal- at the time- was to become the mayor of the city, since he believed that this was the office, in which he could influence the lives of the people living in Chicago most efficiently (cf. Mendell 2007, p. 92).

In 1992 Obama became the leader of a particularly important project, called Project Vote. The project’s aim was not only to do educational work but also to help register as many poverty-stricken African-Americans as voters as possible since there was a presidential election coming up. The project drastically improved the situation by increasing the number of African-American voters to over 150 000 (cf. Mendell 2007, p. 103).

In the same year, a new chapter in Obama’s private life began: He married Michelle Robinson, who was working as a lawyer at the time and had also only been able to study at Harvard University because she had been granted a scholarship. Together they started a family. Their first daughter, Malia Obama, was born in 1998, followed by Natasha in 2001.

In the following years, Obama had two other jobs. He worked as a civil rights lawyer for several years, before eventually obtaining a job as a lecturer in 1993. During this period, he was also working on his first book, Dreams from my Father. The book was successful enough to stay on The New York Times Best Seller list for multiple months and had a major impact on his life. Obama gained a lot from the success of the book, as it helped him to build a platform for himself and attracted many supporters, who would later become his allies and voters. In addition, a huge weight was lifted off the shoulders of the Obama family: Due to the high sales figures of the book, they no longer had to worry about their financial situation.

Although his career was already going incredibly well at that point, Obama wanted an even higher position and tried to defeat Bobby Rush in an election for a seat in the US Congress in the year 2000. This election was a major defeat for Obama. Rush, who is also African-American, was fully backed by the people of Chicago, due to the fact that he was already an important part of the black civil rights movement and was formerly a Black Panther.

Despite the poor outcome, Obama learned a few valuable lessons from this particular defeat. He lost the election because the people of Chicago had serious doubts about whether or not Obama was even black enough to defend their rights and distrusted him because of his high educational level (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, pp. 474-475). Those rumors, however, did not revolve around his ethnic background, but instead around his upbringing and overall demeanor. A large part of Chicago’s black community did not think of Obama as part of their community, because of his elitist education and claimed that he acted and talked like a white man (cf. Mendell 2077, p. 132). Obama realized that he had to be able to fully rely on the black community in order to succeed in his career and that he had to further deepen his connections within the world of politics.

It quickly became obvious that Obama had learned from his past mistakes, as he made it a paramount concern to gather a tight group of African-American consultants and followers when he ran for his next election. Obama applied for a seat in the Senate of Illinois, which was vacant back then, although he had previously been eager to become mayor of Chicago. He won the election, which got him into the Senate straightaway, and was successful to be reelected twice.

This campaign did not only get him a higher position job-wise as well as a better political reputation but once again improved his public status. This was mainly due to Obama’s oratorical talent, which he was able to show off in Boston, at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. It was the speech “The Audacity of Hope” that made Obama the face of the Democrats and put him in the spotlight more than ever before. (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, pp. 474-475).

In 2005, Obama became a US Senator. This was the last significant occupational step Obama took before he made the decision to run for president in the year 2008 (cf. Waldschmidt-Nelson 2018, p. 475).

In February 2007, Obama announced his candidacy for the 2008 Democratic nomination for the U.S presidency. Later on, in June 2008, Obama got enough Democratic delegate Votes to become the main party nominee for the presidential race. In November he defeated the Republican presidential nominee John McCain. Obama to become the first African- and the 44th American President of the United States. This moment was very memorable in American History because Obama made it possible for all African Americans to put their mind to anything they want to become or achieve.

But Obama had three advantages that enabled him to win. First, he was able to contrast his consistent opposition to the war in Iraq with Clinton’s vote in 2002 to authorize the war before later turning against it. Second, Obama ran on a theme of change and Clinton on a theme of experience. Third, while fighting Clinton, He strongly out-organized Clinton in those contests, winning fourteen of seventeen caucuses..

Obama broke a Barrier in History. He united America during his 8-year presidency term. He accomplished many things which will affect the world forever. In his first 100 days in office, he expanded health care insurance for children and provided legal protection for women seeking equal pay. He got Congress to pass a $787 billion stimulus bill to promote short-term economic growth, and he also cuts taxes for working families, small businesses, and first-time home buyers. He loosens the ban on embryonic stem cell research and improved relations with Europe, China, Cuba, and Venezuela. These are his many achievements as president. (Gill)

1 year into his Presidency Obama is awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize for his accomplishments. Obama made a lot of accomplishments during his first term of presidency. In March 2010, he signs his health care reform plan, known as the Affordable Care Act, into law. In May 2011, he allowed a covert operation in Pakistan that leads to the killing of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden by a team of U.S. Navy SEALs.(Gill)

After his 4-year term is up, Obama started running for his second term. In November 2012, he won his second presidential campaign against Republican Mitt Romney. He received nearly 5 million more votes than Romney. Obama broke a barrier again becoming the first African American to become reflected. During his second term, Obama made many more accomplishments(Gill).

In June 2013, Obama reduced the federal deficit by raising taxes on the wealthy. The following year, Obama orders sanctions on Russia because of its annexation of Crimea. This caused a lot of complications in the White House. Which led to Republicans gaining control of the Senate. Republicans controlled both houses of Congress during the final two years of his second term(Gill).

In 2015, Obama has two major Supreme Court victories this year. The Affordable Care Act’s tax subsidies are upheld, and same-sex marriage becomes legal nationwide. Also, Obama and the five world powers (China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United Kingdom) reach a historic nuclear deal with Iran. And Obama launches his Clean Power Plan to reduce greenhouse gases and emissions. In 2016, his final year in office, Obama tackles gun control. He also broke another barrier by becoming the first sitting African American U.S. president to visit Cuba since 1928.

Finally, in 2017, Obama delivers his farewell address in January in Chicago. During his last day in office on January 19, he announces that he will commute the sentences of 330 nonviolent drug offenders(Gill). Barack Obama became an inspiring figure in American history even before his inauguration. His achievements in office have led him to break many barriers in history and have made him one of the most transformative presidents of the past hundred years. After serving two terms, he has impacted America even to this day. We are living in a more flourishing country because of him.

Works Cited Page

1. “Barack Obama: How an ‘Unknown’ Senator Became President of the USA.” E, www.e-ir.info/2014/12/12/barack-obama-how-an-unknown-senator-became-president-of-the-usa.
2. Gill, Kathy. “The Political Career of Former Senator and US President Barack Obama.” ThoughtCo, ThoughtCo, 23 Oct. 2019, www.thoughtco.com/barack-obamas-political-career-3368167.
3. Moberg, David. “Obama’s Community Roots.” The Nation, 29 June 2015, www.thenation.com/article/obamas-community-roots/.
4. “OBAMA, Barack.” US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives, history.house.gov/People/Detail/19276.

Introduction to Barack Obama’s Political Legacy

Having received the assignment to characterize one of the political leaders of the 21st century, nothing really occurred to me for a very long time. Not because in our century there are no truly legendary leaders, whose activities can be proud of not only their country of origin, but the whole world. First of all, because so many events are happening now that it is extremely difficult to concentrate on one thing. Nevertheless, I chose one of the most popular politicians of our time – Barack Obama.

Public Perception and Political Divides

US President B. Obama, elected in 2008 and re-elected in 2012, still receives mixed assessments both in his own country and abroad. American society is split in half with respect to its president. The conservative half and the Anglo-Saxon nucleus judge him sharply, rejecting most of his domestic and foreign policy initiatives. For the “neocons,” as non-conservative ideologues in the Republican Party, he is a traitor to US national interests. The liberal half of the United States as a whole assesses him positively, but sometimes ambiguous.

Many traditional liberals consider his policies a rejection of ‘left’, especially in matters of gender and racial and ethnic policies, as in the global vision of the new world order. Indeed, Obama is developing liberalism in the direction that some American researchers call progressive.

Progressive Policies and Liberalism Under Obama

Naturally, among the huge number of achievements or, at times, unfulfilled promises, the most important event was the official legalization of same-sex marriages, because since 2008, during the presidency of Republican George W. Bush, supporters of same-sex love were in an even more difficult position, because the new president its policy was largely based on religious norms.

Thus, until the beginning of the XXI century the problems of the gay-lesbian community remained an area in which the country’s top leadership was not ready to make radical changes, and only during the 2008 election campaign did gay rights first become one of the central topics of debate between the two main contenders to become a candidate for Presidents of the US Democratic Party. Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama repeatedly appealed to the LGBTQ+ community.

Barack Obama’s Leadership Style and Public Image

First of all, it is important to determine what type of leaders Barack Obama is. Populist, democrat, supporter of authoritarian or all the same moral leadership? Well, in order to find an answer to this question, we need to turn to what each person sees in absolutely any leader, namely – image.

The appearance of Barack Obama, of course, played a crucial role in creating his political image. In fact, the fact that the African-American became president confirms that overcoming ethnic barriers, old prejudices, misunderstanding is possible. The fact that Barack Obama is an African American blew up the American public, created intrigue around the presidential candidate, heightened the attention of colleagues and voters.

If we talk about appearance, then it can be argued that Obama, like John F. Kennedy in his time, won the election precisely because of his appearance and natural charisma. In addition, he has an ideal age: not very young, but at the same time not too old. Such a “golden mean” between relative youth and old age has not been associated with energy, assertiveness, confidence and vitality. Therefore, Barack Obama, using his assertiveness in speeches and emotional techniques, is very popular among ordinary Americans. Indeed, an open, kind smile attracts glances, creates a positive mood, disposes to itself.

A significant role in the visual dimension of the image is played by photographs that often appear in the media. Many photos of a democrat have a hidden meaning, which is easy to decipher, giving the president’s image certain, beneficial characteristics. In many photographs, Barack Obama is depicted standing in front of a huge crowd with his hand raised up. Such photos create the impression of a strong, confident leader, crowd leader, or an idol, followed by people.

If some of the images reveal Obama as an idol and the sovereign, then another part of the photos shows him completely from the other side. In one of the photos, the president of the United States is depicted as an ordinary person playing basketball – traditionally the favorite game of African Americans. The hidden meaning is to show that the relationship between Obama and other blacks at the ethnic level is not broken. A special place in the visual dimension of the image of Barack Obama is occupied by photographs of his family, which open to the audience of Obama the husband, Obama the father. One of the photographs shows the quivering and tender relations that have survived between Barak and his wife after many years of marriage. Photos showing a friendly family of the president show him a good father, and a good father for children in the mass consciousness should turn into a good father for the nation.

Obama’s Communication Skills and Public Engagement

The next criterion for assessing leadership qualities is of course the skills of speaking and attracting people’s attention with the help of

Fred I. Greenstein in his book “The Presidential Difference: Leadership Style from FDR to Barack Obama” said that the goal to influence the crowd rationally, and not emotionally, lies at the heart of Barack Obama’s verbal communication. Barack Obama speaks very emotionally, with a huge positive message. His speeches can ignite the coldest audience. Obama was able to charm even politicians, businessmen and journalists – people who by virtue of their profession got used to treat absolutely everything with suspicion and skepticism. In speeches of Barack Obama there is little specificity, but there are a lot of common phrases, emotional slogans, appeals. None of Obama’s speeches gave a specific action program, a specific country development project or a plan to get out of the crisis, but the 42nd US President Bill Clinton, for example, considers Obama to be the greatest speaker since Kennedy [1].

The speeches of the president are built on promises and on phrases that people want to hear, and this effectively affects the mass consciousness. Obama promises to bring his people to a brighter future, revive the “American dream”, make education more accessible, provide people with housing and support the middle class. It should be noted that these promises are especially relevant in the current situation of the financial crisis, but there would be nothing special about them in a different situation. H. Samy Alim and Geneva Smitherman in their book “Articulate While Black: Barack Obama, Language, and Race in the U.S.” claim that in his speeches, Obama says a lot about himself: “I don’t think that I’m any special, for example, in love for my mother, in love for my grandmother and grandfather”, “The fact that my father is pitch black, and mother “White as milk is practically not deposited in my mind at all,” admits such youth mistakes as alcohol and drug use: “I am a person who lives a normal life, and it so happens that sometimes I make mistakes.” Sharing his personal experiences with the people, the democrat has to himself, makes it clear that he is an ordinary person, just like everyone else, and this attracts people [2].

Challenges and Controversies During Obama’s Presidency

Ron Walter`s article “Barack Obama and the Politics of Blackness” mentions that in recent years of President George W. Bush in the United States, there was a decrease in confidence in the current president, a massive condemnation of his actions, general disillusionment with the White House policy occurred, and uncertainty about the future arose. In addition to this negative situation was the financial crisis, which revealed shortcomings in the US economy. Disappointed in the politics of the Republicans, America was waiting for something new, and Barack Obama offered it in a timely manner. Against the background of the current historical situation, he turned out to be the most successful candidate for the presidency, destroying stereotypes and glorifying the legendary “American dream” [3].

Speaking about the contextual dimension of the image, one should also take into account the legal education of Barack Obama, who graduated from Columbia University in 1983, and from Harvard University Law School in 1991. According to voters, lawyer by education Barack Obama should know the price of his words, which is important for a politician. It should also be noted that in his youth, Barack Obama lived for some time in a very poor quarter of Chicago. This fact of his biography, becoming public knowledge, caused respect among the poor segments of the US population. This was reflected in the results of the 2008 elections: there was only a poor margin in favor of Obama, among other categories of the population the difference in the number of votes given for him and for his main rival, McCain, was insignificant.

Well, of course, any leader, no matter what field of activity he is engaged in, proves his promises by his actions. For me, as a representative of the younger generation, the most important achievement of Barack Obama is the official recognition of same-sex marriage.

According to a public opinion poll conducted by CNN in February 2015, the majority of Americans (63%) support the legalization of same-sex marriage across the country. It should be noted the contrasts of public opinion associated with regional differences and commitment to a particular political party. So, as of March 2011, single-sex marriages were supported by about 59% of the population of the Northeast United States, 56% – the West, 40% in the Midwest and 34% in the South. Among Democrats, 57% are in favor of same-sex marriages, while the share of Republicans is 23%, and among the undecided 51%. There are also age differences, for example, 64% of people under the age of 30 have a positive attitude to marital equality, while among people of the older generation (more than 70 years), those are only 27%. Since 2013, all national polls show support for same-sex marriage by most Americans. Also, one of the polls showed that every third American who supports same-sex marriage, previously held opposing views, but changed his mind [4].

Conclusion: Evaluating Obama’s Impact and Leadership

As a result, we can say that Barack Obama, throughout his career, has shown himself to be a very educated, experienced, and extremely liberal leader. The results of his moral leadership are seen primarily in “Obamaker”, a US federal law signed by President Obama on March 23, 2010. The legislative basis for health care reform, which has become one of the largest projects in US history since the mid-1960s, of course, legalization of same-sex marriage and in general, global liberalization of both foreign and domestic policies of the United States of America.

Naturally, the results of the edge of a strong deviation in the “left”, namely, Obama’s policy towards the EU led the Old World to a crisis and strengthened the position of the right in Europe. The influx of migrants, caused by the destabilization of the situation in the Middle East, weakened the European Union and markedly cooled the attitude of its inhabitants towards the United States. A striking example of this is BREXIT.

The UK made its choice, despite the admonitions of Obama, who had come specially to Foggy Albion to discourage the British from leaving the EU. Part of the result of the American strategy of weakening the European Union was the freezing of negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. Obama didn’t do anything else in another part of the world: the Trans-Pacific Partnership, so desired for him, which should have made the US economic leader of the region, also hung in the air.

The black page of the Obama administration was the attack of April 15, 2013 at the finish of the Boston Marathon. As a result, three people died, and 264 were injured. It was the first terrorist attack in the United States after the events of September 11, 2001. It was committed with the participation of the brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev. Russia warned the United States three times about the danger that young people could pose, but the information of the Russian special services was ignored by the American side.

In June 2013, a scandal broke out with the participation of the former employee of the CIA and the NSA, Edward Snowden. He gave the newspapers The Washington Post and The Guardian information about the mass surveillance of the US and British intelligence services over Internet users, as well as politicians and officials. Snowden fled the United States and sought asylum in Russia. Hillary Clinton became the person involved in the scandal with a leak of state secrets: the FBI accused the former secretary of state that she conducted business correspondence through a personal box. Probably including it cost her the presidency and hit the tangent on Obama’s own reputation.

The black page of the Obama administration was the attack of April 15, 2013 at the finish of the Boston Marathon. As a result, three people died, 264 were injured. It was the first terrorist attack in the United States after the events of September 11, 2001. It was committed with the participation of the brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev. Russia warned the United States three times about the danger that young people could pose, but the information of the Russian special services was ignored by the American side.

In June 2013, a scandal broke out with the participation of the former employee of the CIA and the NSA, Edward Snowden. He gave the newspapers The Washington Post and The Guardian information about the mass surveillance of the US and British intelligence services over Internet users, as well as politicians and officials. Snowden fled the United States and sought asylum in Russia.

Hillary Clinton became the person involved in the scandal with a leak of state secrets: the FBI accused the former secretary of state that she conducted business correspondence through a personal box. Probably including it cost her the presidency and hit the tangent on Obama’s own reputation.

But despite all these fundamental obstacles, there is still a huge amount of Americans who love Barack Obama and recognize his pronounced cultural and moral leadership.

In this paper, I will argue that the victory of Barack Obama, which is considered historic, can not only be largely attributed to his highly effective political campaign, but also to his personality characteristics. In other words, Obama’s characteristics played a major role in his victory in the 2008 U.S. Presidential Elections. Barack Obama’s personal characteristics such as that being perceived as highly intelligent, having good oratory skills and his practical and inspirational style of leadership gave him an edge over John McCain.

Research Question

Through this essay, I aim to answer the following research question:

How did Barack Obama’s perceived personality traits lead to his victory in the 2008 U.S. Presidential Elections?

However, before moving ahead on describing how Obama’s personality traits helped him win the elections, it would be first better for us to understand the relationship between personality traits and politics.

Theoretical Context & Research Design

I aim to use the theory of trait ownership as the theoretical context for this essay. This is mainly because, according to Hayes (2005), the theory of trait ownership provides explanations about the origins of trait perceptions of presidential candidates and how these perceptions affect the voters’ choice. As a result, since this essay aims to answer how Obama’s perceived personality traits led to his victory in the elections, the theory of trait ownership can be viewed as the most suitable when answering this research question. To answer the question, previous studies examining the role Obama’s personality traits played in influencing the voters’ choice were reviewed.

Data Analysis

For years, there has been a debate in the field of political science about the role that candidate characteristics play in influencing voters’ decisions. For example, for some voters, personal qualities are deemed more important than ideology or the style of political campaigns, while for others the ideologies and key points in political campaigning are much more essential than candidates’ personal characteristics (Hardy, 2014). This debate is further aggravated by the fact that the literature fails to define which candidate characteristics may have a larger influence on the election. However, despite this, there is some research, which indicates that candidate characteristics do play a role in vote preference. The most notable work that explains the relationship between personality and politics would be that of Greenstein (1992), who states that personality, as construed in political psychology, takes into consideration only the non-political personal differences and excludes political attitudes and opinions.

One of the major reasons that could be cited to explain why a candidate’s personal characteristics were crucial in influencing the elections of 2008 is provided by Winter (2011) who examines Obama’s personality traits using the Big Five Personality Traits. This author states that a candidate’s personality is made up of a system of different components, namely social context, traits, or publicly visible stylistic behaviors, cognitions, and motives. The author adds that these components of the personality of political leaders play a crucial role in determining the outcomes of political leaders in elections. Applying these four components to the case of Barack Obama, the author states that Obama’s social context (his childhood background of being a lower-middle-class kid, his racial background), which also includes his personal contexts such as life stage and family played an essential role in making him gain an edge over his opponent in the presidential election. For example, Obama’s personal context or his characteristic of being a family man were considered highly attractive to voters in a country where the concepts of “family” were in flux (Winter, 2011).

It is not just the social context, though. Obama’s personal traits and cognitive aspects also played a huge role in depicting him as the one who had the advantage of emerging as a leader of an election which was considered an “election of change” because of various factors, such as an unpopular incumbent in the form of President George W. Bush, a sinking economy, and failure of the war on terror. A lot of previous studies (Immelman, 2008; Wayne, 2010; Hardy, 2014) examining the personality traits of Barack Obama have concluded that these characteristics of the candidate played a huge role in his election as the US president in the year 2008. For example, some studies (Winter, 2011; Wayne, 2010; Immelman, 2008) have termed Barack Obama as an extremely “disciplined thinker”, very “intelligent” and “efficient”, a “charismatic leader” and a “good listener” who has an “attractive style” of leadership that is “totally inspirational and practical”. In his work, Winter (2011) also stated that Obama’s personal characteristics such as having high emotional stability, his legendary calmness, his openness to experience, conscientiousness, and high levels of intelligence made him extremely popular among many groups of voters such as youngsters, ethnic minorities, and intellectuals, all of which most certainly contributed to his victory in the elections.

Another important characteristic that allowed Obama to “strike” a chord with the voters would be his excellent communication skills. Apart from his strong personality, Obama was always perceived as a good “communicator” by his voters. According to Johansson (2010), the excellent communication skills of Obama helped him to create an emotional connection with many voters, which largely worked in his favor. The author adds that this characteristic was particularly lacking in Obama’s opponent Republican Senator John McCain. Due to his excellent oratory skills, Obama was perceived by many voters as a person who was “speaking from the heart” – a skill that McCain found difficult to master and hence found difficult to carve out the message of “change” in the way that Obama was able to manage because of his excellent communication skills. There is no doubt that Obama’s election campaign was also crafted in a way that depicted him as a leader of change. But it was Obama’s ability to act in the way a really good potential presidential candidate was expected to act that made many people more attracted to his style of leadership. Obama also attracted the types of voters, especially young people, who are less interested to be involved in politics – a feat achieved by no other presidential candidate in any election in the history of presidential elections in the United States (Johansson, 2010).

However, it is worth noting that even though the personal characteristics of Obama played a huge role in influencing the results of the 2008 U.S. Presidential elections, it is also the communication environment that helped to amplify the characteristics of Mr. Obama to influence the voters. For example, in his work, Hardy (2014) states that candidates’ characteristics are mostly the categorizations of how the candidate responds to his or her environment. The author adds that the communication environment, which the author refers to as the environment which is shaped by political campaigns, the news media, and the concerns and conditions that are of utmost importance to the voters also amplifies certain characteristic traits of a candidate which the voters find highly attractive and ultimately support. This, in turn, gives the candidate an edge over his or her opponent. One good example of how the communication environment amplified certain characteristics of Obama would be his leadership traits. In addition to being a good listener and an intelligent person in general, Obama’s leadership traits of being an inspirational leader, and the specific factor of communication environment that the USA needed an inspirational leader that will save America from an ensuing economic crisis, also played a huge role in influencing the results of the 2008 U.S. presidential elections. As Hardy (2014) further points out, during the elections, the issue of the War on Terror was not the most important issue to American voters. Rather, it was the country’s dwindling economy that grasped their attention for the most part. This is one of the reasons, the author argues, that Barack Obama was elected against his senior, the Republican candidate John McCain. When it came to handling the economy, Obama’s personal characteristics of being an inspirational leader and his perceived ability to inspire change became more important to the voters than the military leadership credentials of John McCain (Hardy, 2014). Would the War in Iraq have been the most important concern to American voters, John McCain could have won the elections because he had the leadership credentials to handle military issues in a better manner compared to his junior Obama (Hardy, 2014). Therefore, excluding the leadership qualities of Obama in the 2008 presidential election would be a mistake, because these leadership qualities were, in fact, one of the most decisive factors that led to Obama’s victory in the elections.

Conclusion

As can be seen from the analysis above, and through the application of the theory of trait ownership which states that candidates’ perceived traits affect voters’ choice, it could be concluded that Obama’s perceived characteristics had a positive impact on the voters and helped him to win the elections. For example, from the analysis above, it is clear that Obama’s characteristics such as his social context, which included being a family man, personality traits such as being highly intelligent, having high emotional intelligence, excellent communication skills, and, importantly, his inspirational practical leadership style gave him an edge over his opponent and contributed greatly towards his victory in the 2008 presidential elections. However, it is also worth noting that the communication environment can also amplify some of the characteristics of the candidates, which can make some of them more attractive or important to the voters, making the candidate look best suited to handle central issues of the campaign and ultimately win the election. There is no doubt that political campaign strategists may find it difficult to discern the specific role the candidate characteristics play in influencing the election results. Nonetheless, the candidate traits are important and can even become dominant in certain environments. This is when they may influence the voter’s choice to such an extent that the candidate wins by a landslide.

As we have seen during Presidential elections our two-party system is extremely important during voting elections. American citizens either side with one party or the other during elections based on the beliefs and values they believe are important to them and the American people. Democratic and Republican ideas on how to change America for the better are similar yet very different. Americans ask many questions such as, are they honest and straightforward forward, or do they manipulate the system to advance their own agendas? Do our leaders serve as role models inspiring our citizens to live up to a higher moral standard or do they lower the bar through their actions? As we will see in the next paragraphs Democratic and Republican values are quite unique.

One of the domestic policy issues Obama addressed during his presidency was health care. Obama believed in accessible, affordable, and high-quality health care. He believed Americans should have security when it comes to health and that Americans should not become broke because they are ill. During Obama’s presidency, he passed a bill that allowed young Americans to stay on their parent’s health insurance. He also passed a law that permitted insurers to refuse health care coverage to children that were pre-diagnosed with specific healthcare issues. Medical insurance companies would also not be allowed to arbitrarily cap and cancel coverage or charge women more based on their gender. He also believed in preventative services such are pre-cancer screening evaluations, annual women’s visits, and contraception that was FDA-approved with no out-of-pocket costs. Obama also helped state Medicaid programs fund home and community-based services. Mitt Romney differed from Obama greatly in his values for health care. Romney wanted to appeal health reform he was more concerned with playing politics than supporting American families. Obamacare also slows the rise of health care costs it does so by providing insurance for millions of people and making preventative care free which means people will be able to receive treatment before it hits the emergency room. It also required insurers to cover ten essential health benefits which include chronic diseases, mental health, and addiction. Young adults can stay on their parent’s insurance until the age of twenty-six. Obamacare also caused millions of Americans to lose their employment-based health care plans because businesses found it cheaper to pay the penalty and let their employees purchase insurance plans on exchanges. Increased coverage raised overall healthcare costs in the short term. Millions of Americans also chose to pay the tax rather than pay for medical coverage. Mitt Romney believed that the Obamacare Act was more about power and the expansion of the control of government control over the economy which resulted in an attack by requiring Americans to purchase health care. Romney believed it would expand Medicaid excessively without reform and leave the states with a financial burden. Republicans were committed to repealing Obamacare. Romney also thought that Americans through a free market can advance affordable healthcare that meets the needs of patients and providers.

In this next paragraph, I am going to be discussing the policy for opening markets all over the world for American products. President Obama during his four years of the presidency made historic progress toward the goal of doubling exports by the year two thousand fifteen. Obama took steps to open new markets to American products while ensuring that other countries play by the same rules. Obama signed new trade agreements with South Korea, Columbia, and Panama that would support tens of thousands of private sector jobs but not before he strengthened these agreements on behalf of American workers and businesses. American manufacturers were creating jobs for the first time since the nineteen nineties which included more than five- hundred thousand jobs since the beginning of two thousand ten. Instead of cutting jobs or shipping them abroad many American companies use intersourcing or bringing overseas jobs back home. President Obama saved more than one million jobs which in turn prevented the collapse of the supply chain and shored up countless communities while revitalizing the backbone of the American manufacturing sector. Mitt Romney’s actions would destroy the auto industry because he and republican leaders opposed the support President Obama extended to rescue an iconic industry.

President Obama also supported middle-class tax cuts. President Obama and congress cut taxes for every working family which in turn put more money in the pockets of many Americans who needed it most. Obama also fought to stop middle-class families from seeing their taxes go up and to extend key tax relief for working-class families and for those who were attending and paying for college. Republican Mitt Romney differed with Obama’s idea on middle-class tax cuts. He supported raising taxes on typical families with children by at least two thousand dollars if it were paid for. His plan would also cut taxes for those making over three million by an average of two hundred and fifty thousand and would create incentives that would lead to hundreds of thousands of jobs going overseas at the expense of American workers.

In this next paragraph, I am going to be discussing an economy that out educates the world and offers greater access to higher education and technical training. President Obama was committed to ensuring that every child in America has access to world-class public education so that we could over-educate the world and allow America to have the highest proportion of college graduates by two thousand and twenty. Obama helped territories and states develop comprehensive plans to raise standards and improve instruction in their early morning programs and invested in expanding and reforming head start. Obama also challenged and encouraged states to raise standards so that students could graduate ready for college or a career and can succeed in the economy because there was no substitute for a great teacher President Obama helped school districts save over four hundred thousand educator jobs. Obama also took on banks to reform the student loan program saving more than sixty billion by removing the banks acting as middlemen so that we can better and more directly invest in students. President Obama also allowed the college to be more affordable by doubling the investment in Pell Grant scholarships and creating the American opportunity tax credit that was worth up to ten thousand over the four years of college. Obama invested over two and half billion in savings from reforming the student loan system to strengthen Historically black universities and colleges, Hispanic serving institutions, Tribal colleges and universities, Alaska, Hawaiian Native Institutions, Asian American and Pacific Islander Institutions, and other minority-serving institutions. Those schools play a role in creating a diverse workforce, educating new teachers, and producing stem workers for the next generation. Republican Mitt Romney had a very different view on an economy that educates the world and offers greater access to higher education and technical training. He believed that we needed fewer teachers, cops, and firefighters. He supported dramatic cuts to Head Start and the Pell Grant program. Mitt Romney thought students should shop around for the best education that they can afford and he supported the Radical House Republican Budget that would cut financial aid for more than one million students while giving tax cuts to the rich. Mitt Romney and Barack Obama had very different views on access to higher education and technical training.

Many Americans live their daily lives without hope to escape poverty and the ability to access good jobs that will allow them to support their families. As many as fifteen percent of people live in poverty and many families have jobs but are not able to afford bills. When Obama became President of the United States we were losing hundreds of thousands of jobs monthly. Democrats and President Obama took action and expanded the earned income tax credit and the child tax credit by supporting unemployment benefits and food stamps. The Recovery Act reduced poverty and also kept millions of people out of poverty. During Obama’s presidency, he invested in Promise Neighborhoods and Communities which was an approach to fighting poverty and early learning for college and careers. The Obama administration provided grants to financial institutions to allow an increase in lending for Americans that were low-income. President Obama wanted to raise the minimum wage and index it to inflation. He wanted to fight for equal pay and equal work, a strong labor movement, and access to a world-class education. Mitt Romney had a different idea of how to help Americans escape poverty. Mitt Romney wanted to raise taxes on low and middle-income Americans to find his tax breaks aimed toward the wealthiest. The Republican budget would also force us to destroy the safety net in order to help the wealthiest Americans in doing their fair share.

In the four years of President Obama’s presidency crimes such as murder, rape, and even robbery had reached a fifty-year all-time low. Obama and the Democrats fought for funding that would support cops and keep them on the street, firefighters, and even medical emergency technicians. Mitt Romney was opposed to the proposals of President Obama. Obama wanted to support emergency medical technicians, firefighters, and police officers with the best technology that would help prevent crime. Obama wanted to improve programs such as Community Oriented Policing Services program. He even created the Federal Interagency Reentry Council in the year two thousand eleven. He wanted continual fighting against inequalities in the criminal justice system. Obama was committed to ending violence toward women and supported revisiting the bipartisan Violence Against Women Act which Mitt Romney and the Republicans would undermine and strip law enforcement of the tools it needed to change the violence against women.

In this next paragraph, I am going to be discussing strengthening alliances, expanding partnerships, and reinvigorating international institutions. Some of the greatest dangers that Americans face are terrorism such as cyber and nuclear attacks, climate change, and even transnational crime. Obama understood that addressing such issues depended on collaboration with traditional allies. Obama and the Democratic administration believed that the foundation of global security causes the importance of our relationships with traditional allies in Europe and Asia and continuing commitment to their defense. Obama worked endlessly on strengthening our alliances there for tackling regional and global challenges. Obama also wanted to ensure peace and prosperity in Europe and boost the vitality of NATO which is of huge importance to the security of the continent and more. Military operations in Afghanistan helped strengthened NATO’S fighting skills. President Obama even moved forward with an approach called the “phased adaptive approach” to the European ballistic-missile defense that would protect both the United States and Europe from threats such as missiles. Mitt Romney also agreed with strengthening allies with other nations. He believed that America was strongest when we were linked together with other nations. He wanted a unified and strong Europe and wanted to strengthen security with Asia.

Next, I will be discussing free of fair and trade. Obama wanted to promote free and fair trade because expanding trade with the Asia- Pacific region is of significant importance to creating jobs and opportunities for Americans. President Obama signed the free trade agreement with South Korea that worked with partners in the Asia- Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum to create a regional economy and coordinate reform. Also, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and even Vietnam were on track to finalize the Trans-Pacific Partnership that would address new and emerging trade issues. Obama wanted to explore a multilateral trading system to reflect the role and responsibility of merging markets which is an important part of the trade agenda. During Obama’s presidency, he exported more than three times as much to Latin America than he did to China. Obama also signed trade agreements with Panama and Columbia that would boost United States exports. Mitt Romney wanted to have international trade with China. He believed that one day we would label them as currency manipulators. It was also believed that Mitt Romney would start a trade war with China and that if he declared a currency manipulator that it would start a trade war. Mitt Romney believed that China sells the United States this much stuff every year and that it was clear he didn’t want a trade war. He believed we had an imbalance of trade with China. Mitt thought China played aggressively but it could not continue to happen because it was holding down the value of their currency, stealing our intellectual property, counterfeiting our products, and selling them to the United States.

In this last paragraph, I will be discussing advancing global development. Obama recognized that global development is an important, strategic, economic, and important imperative for the United States. Development expanded markets for American products and also creates American jobs. Ending regional conflicts and countering the spread of global criminal networks are relatively important to address global changes. The president thought forward to a new strategy called sub-Saharan Africa which committed to promoting economic growth through trade and investment. Obama also provided support to the trade and investment of Africa and invested in partnership with East Africa because it would promote prosperity in the world. Obama continued to promote opportunity and development in sub-Saharan Africa by improving trade competitiveness, and diversification and making sure that the benefits from growth are because they are broad-based. Mitt Romney wanted to appeal to bipartisan tradition in United States foreign policy to confirm that he would be responsible for United States National interests. Romney also sought concerns regarding peace and partners. Romney said he would use power tools, economic assistance, public diplomacy, and military force while working with allies to address global challenges.

Although the Republicans and the Democrats differ greatly on key issues and bills for the United States they also have similar views when it comes to foreign policies. As stated previously the United States two-party system is extremely important, especially when deciding on what key values and principles are the right to support for the well-being and health of the United States. Democratic and Republican parties can be honest and straight forward and they can also manipulate the system to advance their own agendas. They can also serve as role models and inspire our citizens to live up to a higher moral standard.