Barack Obama Is One Of America’s Most Successful Presidents, Columnist Argues

Barack Obama’s approval rating is currently hovering around the 42 percent mark, but that hasn’t stopped a New York Times columnist from insisting that he is one of the most successful presidents in American history.

Paul Krugman, who in the past has been critical of several of Obama’s initiatives, wrote the piece for Rolling Stone magazine, which was entitled, “In Defense of Obama.”

In the article, Krugman surmised, “Despite bitter opposition, despite having come close to self-inflicted disaster, Obama has emerged as one of the most consequential and, yes, successful presidents in American history.”

Krugman didn’t stop there though, and he continued to endorse the president’s legacy by insisting that he shouldn’t be compared to the expectations that came with his inauguration.

“No president gets to do everything his supporters expected him to… I don’t care about the fact that Obama hasn’t lived up to the golden dreams of 2008, and I care even less about his approval rating. I do care that he has, when all is said and done, achieved a lot.”

This then provoked CNN to hold a seven minute long discussion on the topic, with their segment, “Obama: One of the Best Presidents?” This was hosted by anchor Don Lemon, who, alongside his two guests, Ron Brownstein, a Senior Political Analyst for the network, and Crystal Wright, an editor and publisher who works for Conservative Black Chick, discussed Obama’s legacy.

You can check out footage of their discussion below.

During their conversation, neither Brownstein nor Wright actually came anywhere near to agreeing with Krugman’s insistence that Obama will be regarded as one of the best presidents in American history.

However, Brownstein did concede that he believes Obama will eventually be recognized as a significant leader of the country though.

“Saying one of the most successful ever is pushing it. I think history will see Obama as a consequential president, both politically and substantively.”

Brownstein also noted that it will be the success of the Affordable Care Act that will ultimately decide if Obama is viewed as having been a triumph in the White House.

“He does have the potential… to expand coverage to over 20 million people without health insurance by the end of his term, maybe even 25 million without health insurance. If that endures, I think that is an enduring lasting change in the American safety net that he will be remembered for.”

Wright was firmly against Krugman’s analysis though, and she even declared, “I think the President will go down as one of the most unsuccessful presidents when it comes to foreign policy and Obamacare.”

Do you believe that Barack Obama is one of the most successful presidents in U.S. history?

[Image via Noticiassin]