Why did President Obama call black people who won't vote for Hillary Clinton an insult to his legacy?
I like to believe in simplicity, so I’ll answer this in a brief manner:It’s commonly known that African Americans and other minorities were denied the right to vote up and until the passage of the Civil Rights Act. There are still several cases of states attempting to impose voting regulations that disproportionately affect minorities (look at the recent court in North Carolina where the Court ruled that the law “targeted minorities with almost surgical precision”).A vote is a citizen’s greatest strength, second only to running for office. It is the means through which you may make your voice heard. And I know it may not feel that way because politics tends to breed cynicism, but your voice is powerful. If it weren’t so, then people wouldn’t have attempted to silence it.Thus it is an insult to the legacy of the first black POTUS that people who have had to earn the right to vote, a right that hundreds of thousands were killed or beaten or jailed to earn, don't exercise their vote. As is the same with any citizen who doesn't exercise their right to vote. In the paraphrased words of MLK, what we pay for isn’t the hate or the vitriol of the bad but the silence and inaction of the good. Not voting is akin to voting for the ideologies of those with whom you disagree. People fought tooth and nail to give minorities a voice. And what President Obama means more than anything else is this: use your voice and have it impact change. That’s the only way you will ever truly see a government by the people, for the people.
Why do people get mad at cogressiona; candidates for "saying what the people want to hear"?
Sometimes congress need to be prepared to listen to those people who get mad about what candidates are saying. And if congress would try to learn to listen twice as much as they speak then they might make for better communicators, instead of other way around. Gets tiring when only voice congress want to hear is their own; and will only listen to others if it is repeated back to them. But who is who. And why employ candidates if they are ignoring your message in congress and telling people what they like to hear. All rather obscure if you ask me, would not even pass for a paradox. Still hope you do some good for those people suffering in the world; while you have the chance.
Did conservatives under Obama feel like they had no voice in government, just like liberals feel today under Trump?
This is like asking the abused kid if he feels his parents don't like him just like the spoiled, rich brat up the street that was sent to private school.With the media, schools and unions under liberal control there is no possible way the left can ever not have a voice. Conversely the right has 1 TV network, a handful of AM radio stations and CB radios, so throughout 8 years of Obama’s reign we actually had no voice. Furthermore Obama did such a poor job that he cost the democrats his first mid terms which they never recovered and went on to simply executive order everything from then on so that the only voice we did have at the time (the checks and balances system) was essentially nullified and so much damage done that the nation’s GDP hit its lowest point since Truman was President (a little fact that defines his Presidency for those of us who actually like facts). Now that we have control of Congress and the White House (and the GDP is already up to 3%… nearly double that of Obama), the lefts voice is being heard incessantly. In fact it's all people are hearing unless they search for the truth.
Why won't Obama lift "don't ask, don't tell" if elected president?
All the signs were there before he got the Democratic nomination. First there was Obama having Donnie McClurkin as a part of his campaign. McClurkin has said that it is OK to hate gay people because God "hates the things that are purposed to destroy the ones He loves and are against His nature and design. He created me to be a whole man and to love one woman. Anything else is perversion of the male purpose" and Obama refused to remove him from his campaign. Second, there was Obama refusing to have his picture taken with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. Newsom had previously said that a Democratic Presidential candidate refused to be pictured with him while refusing to mention which candidate it was. Former S.F. Mayor Willie Brown later confirmed that it was Obama who did not want to be pictured with Newsom because Newsom supports same sex marriage. Third, there is the Rev. James T. Meeks who Obama has called a "spiritual counsel." Meeks, an Obama delegate who served on Obama's exploratory committee for President, helped launch a petition for the Illinois Family Institute to clearly understand "the threat of gay marriage." The Southern Poverty Law Center named Meeks one of the "10 leading black religious voices in the anti-gay movement" last year. And now, Obama is says that Don't Ask Don't Tell has to go "through a process and we’ve built a consensus or at least a clarity of what my expectations are so that it works. My first obligation as the president is to make sure that I keep the American people safe and that our military is functioning effectively." Obama has also now said that he will not commit to have his attorney general support a lawsuit against the Defense of Marriage Act, which denies federal recognition of same-sex marriages and gives states the right to refuse to recognize such marriages. Obama said he’s not sure the 1996 law would be overturned by the courts and he prefers a legislative solution. Obama's support for LGBT people is as thin as the paper his speeches are written on. It was evident months ago, and is even more evident now.
Should President Obama continue to try and shape public opinion after he leaves office and "weigh in" on issues?
Absolutely! Obama has one of the highest approval ratings of any outgoing president for a very good reason. He delivered! The economy is in great shape, unemployment is lower than it has been in a very long time. American car manufacturing has skyrocketed since he took office. From the looks of the new administration and congress, we are going to need a more moderate voice on things. GW Bush stepped back because he left the country in such bad shape. We were hemorrhaging jobs, foreclosures were at an all time high due to deregulation. Anyone could get a mortgage and it looks like we are returning to this environment. Wallstreet was a mess while the wallstreet fat cats were getting million dollar bonuses. Anything goes led to complete disaster.Any American, including former presidents have a right to voice their opinion. It's called Freedom of Speech. So why not a popular successful intelligent, president like Barrack Obama putting in his two cents if he thinks it may help the American people?
What question would you like to ask First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden?
Yahoo! Shine will be conducting an exclusive interview with First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, focusing primarily on military families in honor of Veterans Day. What question would you like us to ask? Let us know and we may include your question in our interview! Also, make sure to check back and watch the interview the week of November 7th, we’ll provide the link!
Would it behoove Republicans to approve President Obama's Supreme Court nominee rather than wait until Clinton nominates someone further to the left?
Of course it would. Their whole refusal to consider Merrick is nothing but transparent, dishonest obstructionism. The “tradition” McConnell has cited is non-existent. The idea that “the American people should have a voice” is nonsensical. The people had their voice when they elected and then re-elected Barack Obama.Personally, I think Garland seems like a good choice. IMO, the country would be best served by a court dominated by centrist justices rather than a polarized, ideological court. But given the Republicans’ stance on this, it would be fitting if it comes back to bite them, with a Hillary victory and nomination of a much more liberal judge.