President Barack Obama: A-, B+, or lower?

Looking Back -- From 2045

Seven elections ago, in 1992, we elected George H.W. Bush, who is now considered an average to good president.  There's a consensus on this.  Sure, Bush will get a B or B- from some historians; while others will grant a C or C+; but there's a bandwidth there.

Now imagine the year 2045, seven elections into the future.  At that point the consensus around Obama will probably be uncontested.

Below, is my own estimation, imagining the view from 2045:

I note Obama's 10 greatest hits (based on the 50-greatest list published by Washington Monthly, where I got the idea (note: my #1 is not on their list).  Following my list is the original ranking (the Monthly's center-left opinion) and a somewhat reasonable Republican's view (the 25 ***s).   The latter involves a lot fewer hits than 50, of course--Rs are generally not fans of government.

For a short run-down on each accomplishment, click the Washington Monthly link, above.  This list will be just the hits themselves, without the background information.

1. The Most Graceful Presidency Ever
2. Rescued The Economy
3. Passed Health Care Reform
4. Expanded Wilderness and Watershed Protection
5. Secured US Commitment To A Global Agreement On Climate Change
6. Ended US Combat Missions In Iraq and Afghanistan
7. Passed Wall Street Reform
8. Improved School Nutrition
9. Education: Kicked Banks Out Of Federal Student Loan Program, Expanded Pell Grant Funding, and Created The College Scorecard
10. Avoided Scandal

And what grade will history assign?  My guess: in the B to A range--in the company of FDR and Lincoln.

Washington Monthly's list (reasonable Republican ranking = ***)

1. Passed Health Care Reform (***20 )
2. Rescued The Economy (***1)
3. Passed Wall Street Reform (***7)
4. Negotiated A Deal To Block A Nuclear Iran (***4)
5. Secured US Commitment To A Global Agreement On Climate Change (***23)
6. Eliminated Osama Bin Laden (***3)
7. Ended US Combat Missions In Iraq and Afghanistan (***19)
8. Turned Around The US Auto Industry (***2)
9. Repealed "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"
10. Supported Federal Recognition of Same-Sex Marriages

11. Reversed Bush Torture Policies (***18)
12. Established Rules To Limit Carbon Emissions From Power Plants
13. Normalized Relations With Cuba
14. Put Medicare On Sounder Financial Footing (***17)
15. Protected Dreamers From Deportation (***16)
16. Established Net Neutrality
17. Protected Two Liberal Seats On The US Supreme Court
18. Boosted Fuel Efficiency Standards
19. Kicked Banks Out Of Federal Student Loan Program, Expanded Pell Grant Funding
20. Improved America's Image Abroad (***15)

21. Left His Mark On The Federal Judiciary
22. Diversified The Federal Bureaucracy
23. Passed Fair Sentencing Act
24. Revived The Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division (***14)
25. Expanded Wilderness and Watershed Protection (***13)
26. Gave The FDA The Power To Regulate Tobacco (***22)
27. Trimmed And Reoriented Missile Defense
28. Kick-Started Clean Energy Investment
29. Reduced The Threat From Nuclear Weapons (***25
30. Passed Credit Card Reforms

31. Cut Veteran Homelessness By Half (***12)
32. Enacted Government Surveillance Reform (***11)
33. Expanded Overtime Pay
34. Cracked Down On Bad For-Profit Colleges
35. Cut The Deficit (***5)
36. Created The College Scorecard
37. Improved School Nutrition
38. Expanded The Definition of Hate Crimes
39. Recognized The Dangers of Carbon Dioxide (***24)
40. Strengthened Women's Right To Fair Pay (***10)

41. Secured The Removal of Chemical Weapons From Syria
42. Protected LGBTQ Americans From Employment Discrimination
43. Reduced Discrimination Against Former Prisoners In Federal Hiring
44. Won Major Victories Against Housing and Mortgage Discrimination (***9)
45. Expanded Broadband Coverage
46. Expanded Health Coverage For Children
47. Improved Food Safety (***8)
48. Let The Space Shuttle Die and Killed The Planned Moon Mission
49. Rebuilt and Fortified The Gulf Coast Post-Katrina
50. Avoided Scandal (***6)

Grading The Trump Team

Good News: National Security Advisor: From 'F' to 'A-'
Bad News: Many More 'F's than 'A's and 'B's

The Bumbler 45000 has grown tired of Trump's steady 40%-45% zone approval rating.  So, it's breaking out a new scoresheet to be updated in the months to come.  It'll track Trump's key appointments, leaving out personalities it feels aren't worth the necessary computing power.

Vice President: Mike Pence
Chief of Staff: Rince Priebus
Chief Strategist: Stephen Bannon
State: Rex Tillerson
Treasury: Steven Mnuchin - a Democrat, corporate variety: C
Defense: James Mattis - Thinking man's advisor; though civilian control of defense is best: B+
National Security Advisor: H. R. McMaster - Another independent thinker; also military brass: B+
Attorney General: Jeff Sessions
Interior: Ryan Zinke - Shot down public lands selloff; is an outdoorsman: C+
Agriculture: Sonny Perdue (nominated)
Commerce: Wilbur Ross
Labor: Alex Acosta (nominated)
Health and Human Services: Tom Price
Housing and Urban Development: Ben Carson
Transportation: Elaine Chao - former Sec. of Treasury: C
Energy: Rick Perry
Education: Betsy DeVoss
Veterans: David Shulkin - Able administrator with no axe to grind: A-
Homeland Security: John F. Kelly - somewhat independent minded: C+
UN Ambassador: Nikki Haley - former Governor: C
Budget: Mick Mulvaney - deficit hawk: C
CIA: Mike Pompeo - knowledgeable, no torture: C
Environment: Scott Pruitt
Legal Counsel: Donald McGahn
Press: Sean Spicer

All the missing grades are 'C-' and below.  They will be held for further review.  Let's give these people a chance to either be replaced, or find a way toward the light.

A note: men are over-represented in the above list (21 out of 25), as are other obvious categories (only one black American, one Latino, one Asian-American).

The easiest way forward is canning the worst and bringing in a good choice, as was done with the shockingly unfit Michael Flynn at National Security Advisor.  This would be a good time to be looking for a new Attorney General, for example.

Just 10 of 25 receive passing grades!

My Third Suggestion For The Trump Administration

Gameshows Forever

To recap my first two suggestions:
#1: A lottery contest aimed at making ObamaCare TrumpCare stronger
#2: An international contest highlighting best investments

And here's #3: The Best New Ideas Contest

Another contest!  That's because our current president has the experience in this area (slickly produced competitive television shows), so if he focused on it, he'd likely do better than, say, I would.

How does this one work?

Announce an annual contest that highlights new ideas.  Proposals can be in any field.  Also invite talent agents, HR personnel, venture capitalists, etc., to be in the audience.

Prior to the event, the field is winnowed to perhaps 50 contestants.  Then, over a week's worth of presentations (10 a day), finalists (3 each day) are selected by the in-house audience; also: 3 fan-favorites from those watching at home.

To avoid the buzzkill of young inventors choking onstage, finalists collaborate with contest personnel to each produce a short video.  These, along with some on-stage pageantry, constitute the run-up to each night's finale.

The sixth and final day would have the 18 finalists' videos screened again.  1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners would be picked.

The final day's event would take place at the White House with Trump and a few select audience members choosing the winners.

Republicans admire rags-to-riches self-improvement.  This would be institutionalizing the concept.  And in the years to come, if any winning ideas reached the big time, Trump could rightly claim that he, in fact, did create good jobs.