Barack Obama
I am hard on our politicians because supposedly, they work for me.  I say supposedly because
some of those simpletons do not work at all.  Anyway, I am hard on them without ever considering
race or gender.  I do not discriminate.  If you’re wrong, you’re wrong.  

Some Black African Americans voted for Barack Obama because he’s Black.  Oh what a
mistake.  I did not.  I voted for Obama because he was the only viable person on the ticket.  I’m
an avid voter.

It is always a mistake to favor someone based on anything other than his or her qualifications
because people are and can be illiberal towards one another.  There have and always be women
against women, men against other men and the same with Blacks, whites, Asians, Mexicans,
Muslims, Jews etc.  Even people with the same religious denominations as well as siblings.  People
do not always agree with one another.  Of course, people have different opinions no matter what
color or gender they are, they are going to fight; sometimes.

Anyway, when I watched Obama last night my heart went out to him.  

America has always had a white male holding the reins and as an avid voter, I’ve helped put
them there.  

Poor Obama
I always saw him as an intelligent man that could see the forest before the trees.  But… hmmm.  
When the Dems first began pushing healthcare reform, I kept watching the opponents and I could
not help but to think that they are a bunch of dumb protesters.  Now don’t get me wrong, I could
have easily been one of them.  Yes, I could have.  I say that because 99% of them did not have a
clue what they were opposing.  They had - and still don’t – have any idea how the bill would
effect their current health care.

The majority of people – outside of those that wrote some of the recent healthcare bills – have
no idea how the plan will change our future healthcare.

I didn’t vote for Obama because he’s Black.  I voted for Obama because I thought he could
change our Country.  But…  But, I was wrong just as Obama was.
Keeba's Commentary
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Barack Obama
President Obama gave his first interview since Republican Scott Brown won the Massachusetts Senate election in a
surprise blow to Democrats. Here's a transcript of the exclusive interview:

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC ANCHOR: Mr. President, thanks for doing this.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you so much.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Looking at that clock, one year ago, you were just about to take the Oath of Office.

OBAMA: Yes.

STEPHANOPOULOS: And now you get this anniversary present from the voters in Massachusetts.

OBAMA: (LAUGHTER)

STEPHANOPOULOS: Robert Gibbs was saying that you were surprised and frustrated by the vote. Is that accurate?

OBAMA: Well, I think not last night, but certainly I think a lot of us were surprised about where this was going, about a
week ago.

STEPHANOPOULOS: So you saw it coming by then?

OBAMA: By that time, we did. And here's my assessment of not just the vote in Massachusetts, but the mood around the
country.
The same thing that swept Scott Brown into office swept me into office.
People are angry, and they're frustrated. Not just because of what's happened in the last year or two years, but what's
happened over the last eight years.
You've got really hard-working folks all across the country, who have seen their wages flat line and their incomes flat line.
They feel more secure than ever. Then suddenly you've got this bank crisis in which their 401Ks are evaporating, their home
values -- their single-biggest investment -- is collapsing.
And here in Washington -- from their perspective -- the only thing that happens is that we bail out the banks.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But you're in charge, now.

OBAMA: No -- well -- absolutely. No, keep in mind the point that I'm making here.
It was the right thing to do for us to salvage the financial system, and I make no apologies for that, at all. But we knew at
the time how politically toxic that was.
What it gave people a sense of is, "We're spending all this money, but I'm not getting any help."
And, "Gosh -- I wanted Obama to come in there to start making sure that I was getting help; not the big special-interest and
the institutions."
Now if I tell them, "Well, it turns out that we will actually have gotten TARP paid back and that we're going to make sure
that a fee's imposed on the big banks, so that this thing will cost taxpayers not a dime," that's helpful. But it doesn't
eliminate the sense that their voices aren't heard, and that institutions are betraying them.
And I think that's been expressing itself all year. And they've gotten increasingly frustrated over the course of the year.
So I take complete responsibility for the fact that -- A -- we had to salvage a financial system that could have made things
much worse. We had to take the steps that we did at the beginning of the year, in order to stabilize the economy.
And I am actually glad to see that the economy's now growing again, and we have the prospect of a much better economy
in 2010. But that doesn't negate the anger and the frustration that people are feeling.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But a lot of the Republicans say that the anger goes beyond the bailout. The financial bailout.
I was talking to Michael Steele this morning -- the Republican National Committee Chair. He says it's repudiation of your
entire agenda.

OBAMA: Well, I think if he's suggesting the people voted against credit-card reform, so that credit card companies can't
take advantage of people, or prevention of housing fraud reform, or that they were voting against national service, or they
were voting against the 4 million children who have health insurance now because of the steps that we've taken... I don't
think that's a plausible point.

STEPHANOPOULOS: He's probably talking about healthcare.

OBAMA: Well, and if he's talking about healthcare, then I think what I'd say is, "Talk to all those people out there right now
who have lost their healthcare during the course of this year because they've lost their jobs." Or all the small businesses
have seen the premiums that they're paying going up 20-25 percent.
The reason I tackled healthcare wasn't because this was my personal hobbyhorse. The reason I tackled it was during the
course of the campaign, I traveled all across this country and I kept on hearing heart-breaking stories about families who
were bankrupt because they got sick. If they had health insurance, suddenly insurance companies were doing things that
were just plain wrong, and were leaving folks in an extremely vulnerable position.
And I was talking to businesses who said this was unsustainable. And, by the way, when I got here and I looked at how we
were going to get control of our long-term debt, I realized that there was no way for us to control our long-term debt unless
we reformed how our healthcare system works.
So there is no doubt that that is something that we had to do. Not because of what I hear in Washington, but because of
what I've heard out in the country.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But even your allies are saying you're going to have to listen to the message of the voters in
Massachusetts? Listen to Evan Bayh, yesterday.
He says, "If you lose Massachusetts," and that's not a -- and that's not a wakeup call, "there is no hope of waking up."
He says basically Democrats have to reach out -- especially independents and moderates. Slow down the agenda.
Because Americans just aren't buying what the Democrats are selling."

OBAMA: Well, look. I have tremendous respect for Evan, and he comes from a very tough state in Indiana.

STEPHANOPOULOS: He was on your short list for Vice President.

OBAMA: Well, he was -- which is why I say I've got a lot of respect for him.
And what is absolutely true is, during the course of this year, what you have is a situation in which we've got to take a lot of
steps quickly that we know are unpopular, but were necessary.
And if you ask the average person what was our stimulus package, they'll tell you, "The bank bailout."
And I can say, "Well, no -- actually that started before I was sworn in, and we've managed it very well." But it doesn't negate
that sense on peoples' part that nobody is looking after them in an extremely tough situation.
So the reason I say that we are not surprised by what happened in Massachusetts is because I'm frustrated, too.
I'm frustrated by the fact that over the last decade, we have not seen the kind of progress for middle class families that are
needed. That's what I promised to deliver in the campaign.
It's not something that I believe we can get done in a year. But it is something that I think we are starting to make progress
on.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But you also made a fundamental decision in this first year, to push through the bulk of your agenda
right away. Some would say, "Focus instead on the economy. Our system can't handle too much."
You took that on in your inaugural address. You said then, "There are some who question the scale of our ambitions -- who
suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans."
Looking back now, don't those critics have a point?

OBAMA: Well, the question is, "What could we not have done?" And I think that a lot of people would say, "Health care's
the one thing you didn't have to do."
Most of the other issues that we took on were not ones that I chose. I didn't campaign on saving the financial system.
Here's the problem, though. If we didn't take on healthcare, then when were we going to take it on? And if we don't take it
on, then when are we going to say to families when -- 2 years from now; 3 years from now; 4 years from now -- their
premiums have gone up 30-40%? And have eaten into their wages. And in some cases, their health care's been dropped
altogether
What am I going to say to the small businesses who just decide, "We can't afford to provide healthcare to our employees?"
And what am I going to say to the American people when we start talking seriously about how we get our medium- and
long-term deficits under control?
So we've got big challenges. Fundamental challenges. Not just around healthcare, but around the fact that we have an
energy system that is archaic and involves us sending billions of dollars to other countries.
We've got an education system that's starting to lag behind. And we've got a financial regulatory system that is completely
inadequate to control the excessive risks and irresponsible behavior of financial players all around the world. At some point,
we've got to take those on.
Now part of the problem we've got is that a process in Washington to actually solve problems, to talk about them in honest
ways, to think about people first and not the special interests and the lobbyists who have disproportionate power here. That
system is broken and when people, during the course of us taking on one of these problems like health care locks this
process, it doesn't make them feel -- it doesn't make them feel real optimistic.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But you're not on the campaign trail, now. You're right here in the White House. You're the head of
this system. You promised transparency, putting the health care debates on C-span. It didn't happen. People said he
promised to get rid of earmarks. They look at the health care bill and see all these carve outs for Nebraska, for Louisiana.
They say you're not living up to your promises.

OBAMA: Well, look, there's no doubt that when I look back in the course of this year, what I'm constantly balancing is how
do I move on these big agendas and at the same time, try to reform a system that has a lot of bad habits built up into them.
So am I satisfied with the progress that we've made on changing how Washington works, absolutely not.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Could you become complicit?

OBAMA: Well, I think that if I had to make the same choices this year about do we have to get a strong economic recovery
package passed, even though that means that there are going to be some things that people stick in there at the last
minute that I don't like. Do we have to make sure that we are saving the financial system so it doesn't collapse, even though
how it was originally structured was not my preference. Do we have to tackle health care and do I believe that the end
product of insurance reforms that we've been fighting for for decades, essentially a patient's bill of rights on steroids, that
makes sure that people don't lose their insurance when they get sick and make sure that kids can stay on their parents'
health insurance until they get their own insurance. Was fighting for those things worth it, even though there are some
compromises that have to be made along the way, then I would say yes.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But it sounds like you're saying -- no second thoughts on your fundamental strategy?

OBAMA: Well look, what I would say is that first of all, I wish we had gotten it done faster because I think that if we had
gotten health care done faster, people would have understood the degree to which every single day George, health care is
part of a broader context of how am I going to be able to move the middle class forward in a more secure and stable way,
and I think that what's happened is, is over the course of this year, there's been a fixation, an obsession in terms of the
focus on the health care process in Congress that distracted from all the other things that we're trying to do to make sure
that this economy is working for ordinary people.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Is that going to continue, though? You're now in a situation, coming out of Massachusetts, you don't
have 60 votes in the Senate right now. What is the strategy on health care going forward?

OBAMA: Well, here's my belief, that this is not a problem that's going to go away. This was a problem whether or not we
did health care this year. If we hadn't taken on health care, then what people would be asking right now is, why is it having
promised to do something about that during the campaign, that we're seeing millions of people who have lost their health
care and their premiums go up.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But they're saying now, they want your health care plan to go away. It's just not popular; the majority
are opposed.

OBAMA: Well, here's what I know is that when they actually find out what's in the proposals for insurance reform, for
making sure that we're making health care more affordable, those specific provisions are actually very popular.

STEPHANOPOULOS: You made that speech in August.

OBAMA: Well, and one of the things that I have learned in Washington is you have to repeat yourself a lot because
because unfortunately it doesn't penetrate. But I am determined to make sure that the issues that are making middle class
families, ordinary Americans less secure and less stable are fixed.

STEPHANOPOULOS: So how do you do it now? This strategy that a lot of people have talked about getting the House to
pass the Senate bill. Speaker Pelosi yesterday seemed to say that this was kind of a non-starter.

OBAMA: Well, here's , here's one thing I know and I just want to make sure that this is off the table. The Senate certainly
shouldn't try to jam anything through until Scott Brown is seated. People in Massachusetts spoke. He's got to be part of
that process. So ...

STEPHANOPOULOS: Number one ...

OBAMA: That, that's point number one. I think point number two is that it is very important to look at the substance of this
package and for the American people to understand that a lot of the fear mongering around this bill isn't true. I would advise
that we try to move quickly to coalesce around those elements of the package that people agree on. We know that we need
insurance reform, that the health insurance companies are taking advantage of people. We know that we have to have some
form of cost containment because if we don't, then our budgets are going to blow up and we know that small businesses
are going to need help so that they can provide health insurance to their families. Those are the core, some of the core
elements of, to this bill. Now I think there's some things in there that people don't like and legitimately don't like. If they
think for example that there's a carve out for just one or two particular groups or interests, I think some of that, clearing out
some of that under brush, moving rapidly...

STEPHANOPOULOS: So start again with a smaller core package.

OBAMA: Well, look, I'm not going to get into the legislative strategy. First of all, my job is to as president, is to send a
message in terms of where we need to go. It's not to navigate how Congress&

STEPHANOPOULOS: It's to set direction.

OBAMA: It's to set direction and the direction I think that has to be set is to identify those core elements of this package
and to get that done. At the same time as we recognize that what I've been doing since day one, I'm now here a year --
every day what I've been worrying about is how do I get this economy back on track? Now that hasn't always been
publicized. It has sometimes&

STEPHANOPOULOS: Is that your fault?

OBAMA: Well, what I would say is that in this environment, in this political environment, what I haven't always been
successful at doing is breaking through the noise and speaking directly to the American people in a way that during the
campaign you could do. You know I'd I'd just get, I wouldn't be here and I wouldn't be bogged down with how are we
negotiating this provision or that provision of a bill. I could speak directly to people and hear from them about...

STEPHANOPOULOS: But that's going to happen as long as health care is still being negotiated.

OBAMA: Which is which is why I think it's important to go ahead, get something done. I noticed that some of the
Republicans are saying well, we actually wanted to do health care. We just didn't want...

STEPHANOPOULOS: Michael Steele said that to me this morning.

OBAMA: Exactly. So now in fairness, I think it's important to remind everybody that part of this process was having
conversations with Republicans for months and asking them what exactly they wanted to do and what their solutions were
to these problems.

STEPHANOPOULOS: You going to call them back in?

OBAMA: Well, I think that if they have clear plans, and clear ideas in terms of how to move forward on certain issues, I'm
always open to that.
Look, I have every interest in seeing a unified country solving big problems. That is something that is very much in my
interest because if that happens, not only do I have a successful presidency, but more importantly the country is
successful.

STEPHANOPOULOS: But we're not there right now. How much of that is your fault that republicans and democrats haven't
come together?

OBAMA: You know, we have a political culture that has built up over time that has gotten more and more polarized. My
hope was a year ago today when I was being sworn in that reversing that process was going to be easier partly because we
were entering into a crisis situation and I thought that the urgency of the moment would allow us to join together and make
common cause. That hasn't happened. Some of it, frankly, is I think a strategic decision that was made on the side of the
opposition that...

STEPHANOPOULOS: But they say you made a strategic decision to hand over your agenda to democratic leaders in
Congress.

OBAMA: Well, let me finish -- let me finish the question. The -- I think that some of it had to do with a sense that the best
political strategy was to simply say no. I think part of it had to do with the fact that you've got a lot of old habits and
ideological baggage in Congress that have built up over time and people just aren't accustomed to working together. I mean,
the Senate is a classic example of an institution that works only if people are talking, listening to each other, giving ground...

STEPHANOPOULOS: How do you make that happen?

OBAMA: Well, you know, it is my responsibility to try to reset the tone. And I'm going to have a State of the Union speech
and one of my goals, I think, I spoke about this on King's birthday, the fact that I felt disappointed that we had lost some of
that sense of common cause that existed a year ago and that I have not been able to change the tone here in Washington.
I am going to keep on trying though. And the reason I'm going to keep on trying is, because if we can't do that, if all that's
taken place back and forth between the parties is vitriol and accusations, then what's going to end up happening is that
we're going to just keep on in a direction in which families are losing ground and they become further and further
disenchanted with the possibilities of politics and government can solve any problems whatsoever.
Now, here's what I'm not going to do though, George, because I think this is very important and it goes to a lot of the
questions that you've asked. What we can't do is simply say we're going to stand pat and avoid big problems because
they're just too hard politically.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Stay the course.

OBAMA: That -- that is part of the advice I think that was given last year to me. Was, look, Washington is too polarized, it's
too hard, the special interests are too powerful. You can't get a health care bill through because the insurance companies
will spend millions of dollars of advertising against it; you can't do energy because big oil is going to be opposed; you can't
try to solve the education system because whether it's the teachers' unions or this group or that group, they're going to be
disenchanted and you're just going to make your own base angry. I mean, on each of these issues, the conventional
political wisdom is don't take it on. Because when you take it on, it gets ugly, people get mad, there's a lot of distortions in
the system, and your poll numbers will go down.

STEPHANOPOULOS: So you'd you make all the same choices today?

OBAMA: I -- look, have I made mistakes through the course of the year? Absolutely. I mean, I don't think there's been an
interview in which I didn't talk about some mistakes...

STEPHANOPOULOS: It's usually about communication though.

OBAMA: ... about ...

STEPHANOPOULOS: It's not about policy.

OBAMA: I don't know how we avoid taking on these big problems. Let me just give you a very simple example, just so you
get a sense of why these things are so important.
If you ask the American people about health care, one of the things that drives them crazy is insurance companies denying
people coverage because of preexisting conditions. Well, it turns out that if you don't -- if you don't make sure that
everybody has health insurance, then you can't eliminate insurance companies -- you can't stop insurance companies from
discriminating against people because of preexisting conditions. Well, if you're going to give everybody health insurance,
you've got to make sure it's affordable. So it turns out that a lot of these things are interconnected.
Now, I could have said, well, we'll just do what's safe. We'll just take on those things that are completely noncontroversial.
The problem is the things that are noncontroversial end up being the things that don't solve the problem. And this is true on
every issue. The same thing is going to be true -- we're about to get into a big fight with the banks. Not only...

STEPHANOPOULOS: On that bank fee.

OBAMA: Not only on the bank fee issue, but also because we think it's very important to have a consumer finance
regulatory authority that is willing to actually enforce the law so that people aren't getting gauged on ATM withdrawals or
they're not getting gouged on their credit cards or their mortgage doesn't have some fine print that comes up and bites
them. The banks are adamantly opposed to it. Now the minute we decide to put forward a proposal like that, I guarantee
you there are going to be a whole bunch of ads and a whole bunch of talking heads saying this is big government regulation.
You know, part of the Obama agenda, et cetera. Well, yes. What we are saying is, is that banks shouldn't be able to take
advantage of consumers and we should have somebody who can actually enforce that. But it's going to be a fight and it's
going to be controversial

STEPHANOPOULOS: We're just about out of time, I just want to wrap up a couple things.
You're not advocating that the House pick up the Senate bill.

OBAMA: I think it is very important for the House to make its determinations. I think, right now, they're feeling obviously
unsettled and there were a bunch of provisions in the Senate bill that they didn't like, and so I can't force them to do that.
Now I will tell you, and I've said this before, that the House and the Senate bill overlap about 90 percent.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Right.

OBAMA: And so, it does seem to me that there should be a way of, after all this work and all this pain, there should be a
way of taking what's best in both bills and going ahead and getting that done.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Let me ask you about Haiti. Our Martha Raddatz had a report yesterday, where she showed the
U.S. military being greeted by shouts of joy on the ground in Haiti. And what was interesting about it, the people there
thought the U.S. government had come to takeover and they were really happy about it. Martha Raddatz described it as a
"please occupy us" atmosphere.
Is that where we're headed?

OBAMA: No. We are being very careful about working with the Haitian government. We're being very careful about working
with the United Nations, which already had peacekeeping forces on the ground, to deal with the immediate emergency,
search and rescue, and relief. There's going to be a longer-term agenda, which is how do you reconstruct a nation that was
already incredibly impoverished...

STEPHANOPOULOS: It's been flattened.

OBAMA: ... that's now been flattened, and a government that -- you know, basic records have been destroyed. I mean,
imagine if suddenly Washington just collapsed. Now, there may be -- you know, some people would like that...

STEPHANOPOULOS: (INAUDIBLE)

OBAMA: That's right. But the truth is, is that just the basic instruments of government in that country are gone. We've got
to help Haiti stand back up.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Can we afford it?

OBAMA: Well, I think we can't afford not to do it because Haiti is our neighbor. I think the world looks to us as the world's
sole superpower, even though sometimes they complain about us, even though they snipe at us, deep down I think they
understand that to those to whom much is given, much is expected. And I think the world understands that we have some
unique capacities, in terms of helping out people. I want to make sure that when America projects its power around the
world, it's not seen only when it's fighting a war. It's got to also be able to help people in desperate need. And ultimately
that will be good for us. That will be good for our national security over the long term.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Finally, I assume this has been about the most packed year of your life.

OBAMA: It has.

STEPHANOPOULOS: The most fulfilling?

OBAMA: Yes. And let me just sort of share with you some general reflections about this year. When I was sworn in, we
didn't know if the financial system was going to collapse. We weren't sure how bad the job losses were going to be. They
turned out to be much worse than anybody had anticipated. There were reports of a possible terrorist attack the day of the
inauguration.
The amount of uncertainty was enormous. And walking through that door, you know, we immediately were confronted with
just stacks of tough decisions that had to be made. During the course of this year we've had to make some decisions that
were unpopular. We've made some mistakes. I've personally made some mistakes.
But what I can tell you is, a year later, I've never been more optimistic about the possibilities of America. I'm certainly a lot
more optimistic than I was a year ago. And the reason is, is this country's shown its resilience. It took a body blow, and yet
people are out there still starting businesses, they're still raising families, they're still coaching little league.
And, you know, I get letters, 10 a day from families. And a lot of them are heartbreaking stories. But a lot of them are just
saying, you know with all the problems that we have and maybe I disagree with you on something, I'm still praying for you,
I'm still optimistic, I still think that we can come together.
If we can get through 2009, as tough a year as it was, where a pandemic flu ranked about eighth on my To Do list and
ended with a attempted terrorist attack and then a cataclysm in our neighborhood -- in Haiti. If we can come through 2009
and still not just be standing, but all kinds of good things happening out in the country, then I am very optimistic about
where we can go.
What I haven't been able to do yet -- and this was what I was hired to do -- is to close the gap between the values of the
American people and the values of Washington, and the values of Wall Street. The values of our big institutions.
These values -- the American people's values are sound. They're right. You know, people take responsibility for their lives,
they work hard. They're doing right by their families. Our institutions aren't matching up to those values. And my job over the
course of this year has been to see A, if we can just solve the immediate crisis. But now I've got to spend a lot more time
just focused on how do we get those things to align.
And, you know, If there's one thing that I regret this year, is that we were so busy just getting stuff done and dealing with
the immediate crises that were in front of us, that I think we lost some of that sense of speaking directly to the American
people about what their core values are and why we have to make sure those institutions are matching up with those
values. And that I do think is a mistake of mine. I think the assumption was, if I just focus on policy, if I just focus on the,
you know this provision, or that law, or are we making a good, rational decision here --

STEPHANOPOULOS: That people would get it.

OBAMA: That people will get it. And I think that, you know, what they've ended up seeing is this feeling of remoteness and
detachment where, you know, there's these technocrats up here, these folks who are making decisions. Maybe some of
them are good, maybe some aren't, but do they really get us and what we're going through? And I think that I can do a
better job of that and partly because I do believe that we're in a stronger position now than we were in a year ago.
That also means, by the way, that we can spread out what we do so it's not so cram packed. It doesn't mean I back off the
agenda of health care, or energy, or education, or financial regulatory reform, or dealing with our deficits. But it does mean
that it doesn't have to be all on top of the other piled on. And we've got a lot more time to explain to people why we're doing
what we're doing. We have a lot more time to answer critics who argue that we're not doing the right thing.
But the bottom line is this -- at the end of this year I can say honestly that not only has this been the busiest time of my
life, but I also think that I've never been prouder of the country, and more optimistic about the direction that we can go in the
future.

STEPHANOPOULOS: I'm getting signaled here but how about your family? How was the year for them?

OBAMA: They've been great. That's been a constant that I am stunned by. Is how poised, cheerful, well-adjusted the girls
have been. You know, they entered into a new school halfway in the year. They haven't missed a beat. They haven't gotten
an attitude, they haven't started acting like any different than they were back in Chicago. And Michelle, I think, has been
stellar. And the fact that I have dinner with them every night -- that's been the greatest blessing of the year.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Mr. President, thanks very much.

OBAMA: Thank you, appreciate it.
Poor Obama
Watching him last night and the days prior, made me think what in the world was he thinking?  Didn’t he know
that the majority of people are stupid?  Didn’t he realize that although his slogan was “Change”, that The People were
only half listening?  Didn’t he realize that The People weren’t in for big change?  Didn’t he realize that people like me do
not necessarily adapt to change although that’s what his maxim was - Change?

Now don’t get me wrong, I know and recall he said ‘change’ but I, along with a number of other people were not fully
prepared.  However, I will not take the blame for not taking Obama at his word.  He said he would reform healthcare.  
Yes, he said it, but, what he did not say, was that only he, congress and the senate would understand it.

Didn’t he realize how slow we were?  Oops, are.  Hasn't he lived in America long enough to see how stupid we are?  

During his campaign, Obama talked to us in words that we could easily comprehend.  He said he wanted to reform
healthcare to keep us from paying increased healthcare premiums.  We could understand that, but what in the world could
a 500+page healthcare document tell us?  

Didn’t Obama realize we are lazy and that too many people do not have internet access?  Didn’t he realize that those
of us who could find the document, would lose interest after the first 2 to 300 pages?  (Especially if we were not able to
find information directly pertaining to us.)

Why couldn’t he make sure the bill was written with speculative scenarios.  I mean, honestly even those with several
college degrees aren’t able to comprehend the bill.  

Didn’t I say that we are lazy?  (Remember the old adage: send them to school with books, and they’re still dumb?)

It would have been easier for the Dems to get the healthcare bill passed if it were outlined with a Q&A or scenarios
such as this:

Scenario #1
I am a single mom with 3 children making $50,000 per year.  Currently, I pay $800 per month in premiums
for my children and me.  Will my premiums decrease or increase?  Is it based on my salary?  When can I
expect a change in premiums?

Scenario #2
I own a company with more than 1,000 employees.  Will my employees premiums increase or decrease?  If
my employees premiums decrease, will I be expected to pay the excess?  How will this effect my taxes?

Scenario #3
I am on disability and married without children.  Currently, I pay $200 per month in premiums and
$40.00 per prescription.  My spouse pays $400 per month in premiums and over $200 in prescription costs
per month.  Will our premiums and prescriptions decrease or increase?

Scenario #4
My company has over 500 employees, do I have to participate in the healthcare reform plan or can I opt
out?  And if I do opt out, is there a penalty?  If any, how much is the penalty?

Scenario #5
I’m over 65, and receive Medicare and Tricare.  Currently, I pay $200 per month for healthcare insurance
Will it decrease or increase?

You get the gist.  Use real life scenarios such as I live in Massachusetts and truly want to keep my current insurance
plan and do not want or need the government to touch any part of my health insurance.  How will this effect me?  

I honestly believe that the reason that the Dems keeps losing seats is because they’re supporting a bill that The People
can’t easily comprehend.  Oh, and the other reason: some people just hate change although they voted for it.  (sigh!)

Normally I don’t speak for everyone and/or the majority, but this time I am.  I just don’t think people understand it and
because of that, people are scared.  And the people that once embraced Obama’s “Change” are now running for the
hills.  …running for the Greedy Old Party.  Perhaps those that were avid republican voters changed their minds due to a
change they could not  and will not adopt.
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I hate change!  Yes, I hate change but I, like the other 69,456,897 people - we voted for it.

Poor Obama
I do not know what happened in Massachusetts.  Whether it's 1) the voters were sorely and/or
sourly against healthcare reform, 2) voters were against voting for a female or 3) State Attorney
General Martha Coakley spent little time campaigning.  I don’t know for sure, but wonder if it was
a mixture of all three along with # 4 and that is Scott Brown’s resemblance of a good-looking
Democrat who factually had a campaign banner that resembled the same color as the Democrat's
logos.  I don’t know for sure the reason it turned out the way it did, but it is certainly popular yet
scientifically unfounded to know the discernment of a voter.  (shaking my head!!!)

I honestly don't believe that ANYONE in America knows exactly what and why the voters chose
the Republican [Brown] over a Democrat [Coakley.]  Shoot, for all I know, it could have been
some more Republican-shenanigans.  Hey, it happened before and who says it won't happen
again.  Please, some of those politicians will do anything and everything to win.  

Okay, so enough of my silly conspiracy theories, but I do wonder and/or, I can stick with my
original theory and that is that Bill Maher was right when he said America is getting stupider and
stupider.  (Yep, I'm willing to bet the farm on the later.)

We could blame Ms. Coakley for not getting her feet dirty by pounding the pavement and
allowing The People to know her and her political stance, but no one knows for certain.  Perhaps
she did not pay attention to Obama’s campaign.  All I know is that the Dems are getting a beating
and at this time, I’m concerned; for The People.

Poor Obama.  He just like anyone else needs a chance to see this Nation through the “Change”
he promised during his campaign.

Poor Obama did not realize the intelligence of the people he wanted to serve.

However, I say...
Roll with it baby!!!!  GO ALL THE WAY!!!
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Yes, I said shame on those people who no longer felt engaged by Obama, because in my little space in the world of my
mind, they didn’t matter any way.  But in some small gentle way, I feel sorry for them.  And yes, they did/do matter as
they helped Obama win the presidency.  Howeverrrrrr, those people haven’t changed and they are not willing to accept
or adapt to the change Obama mentioned.  They aren’t patient and for many reasons, they do not have time to be
patient.  Who could blame them?  I mean honestly, not one congressional member, senator or any one in the White
House, is suffering the pangs that the majority of The People are facing.  And until our government stop saying they have
read our heartfelt stories and understand our plight and actually do something for us, then those who are avid voters, will
react and retract.

Those that voted for the first time will react in a way that is different from that of January 20, 2009 and those staunch
republicans that voted for Obama will retract and return to the devil they know.  In addition to those that were never
eager at all, they feel as hopeless as they did prior to “Change” and will say, they continue to feel disengaged by their
government and therefore, will stay away from the polls all together; thinking what a waste of time.  (Silly people!)

Poor Obama
I felt sorry watching him during his interview.  Although he was willing to admit his shortcomings (I applaud him) but it’s
not all his fault.  He did walk into a mess.  However, poor Obama did not take into consideration that The People have
been hurting far too long and for our government to give money to the bigwigs, well, that stung The People like a bunch of
bees.  Moreover, for Black America, the money given to those large companies was like a continuance of the previous
administration: feeding white America.  So it REALLY got to Black America; it stung even worse.  And Blacks cannot
help but feel that when white America catches a cold, Black America gets pneumonia.

No matter who they are – both Blacks and whites - feel as though we were robbed by the previous administration
and some of us, (not all) feel as though the current government is just listening and watching us but not doing enough to
apply aid.

Poor Obama
I, for one am being patient.  Yes I like Obama and feel that he is good for this Nation.  While I’m aware that The
Village Idiot robbed us in a matter of months when he took office, I am full aware that it is going to take Obama more
than a year for us to recover from the damage.  As a matter of fact, Barack Obama TOLD us it was going to take more
than a year, but oh how easily we forget.  It's sort of sad and perhaps even pathetic that some of us willingly allow our
minds and the memories of it, to be negligent.

Since The People voted for Obama, then they voted for his motto of ‘Change.’  And with that change, they will have
to recall EVERYTHING that came along with that speech: Obama said, "It’s going to take time."

Poor Obama
While watching him last night, I said to myself, 'poor guy.  The people that helped put him there, expected a miracle
overnight.'

Poor Obama
Too many or at least not enough people can see his vision.  

Poor Obama
Every night, I pray for The People, this Nation and our current administration.  And just recently - in the past few
months - I have been praying that enough people will have the patience to see what Obama has promised to do.
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January 10, 2010
Filed under Commentary, Video
Comment(s)
I think Obama is too good for America. I really do! Stupid Americans just don't deserve him.

I have a story on health care that I will share with you soon. It's regarding the job I have now and a pharmacist (who happens to be Caucasian) supporting Health Care Reform. I think you will find it interesting. Lyn
This entry was posted on January 10, 2010 and is filed under Keeba’s Commentary, Health Care Summit 2010, My Healthcare Reform
Plan, united states government, Severed Relationship and Video.  
Post comments below, or click here to send an email.
Keeba Smith is a published writer and desired screenplay artist.  She is the author of “Shades of Bright Pale,” and many other
unacquainted writings. Please visit www.Keeba.org to find out more about Keeba Smith, read additional critiques and her
unpublished autobiography, “Spirit in the Dark.”
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