Obama may be one of the coolest presidents in the history of America. He’s got awesome teeth, he’s a baller, and he’s a ninth cousin to Brad Pitt (which is pretty weird.)

He’s also achieved quite a bit, despite Congress being majority Republican. He’s had to use executive orders multiple times while he was in office so he could put his words into action. Here are a few of his achievements while he was in office:

1. He ended the war in Iraq:  Troops were ordered out of the country on December 28th, 2011.
2. Got rid of Osama Bin Laden: He was killed in 2011 when Obama ordered special forces into a secret compound in Pakistan.
3. Increased support of vets: With the influx of soldiers returning home from war in Iran and Iraq, he increased the budget for the Department of Veterans and signed a new bill offering $78 billion in tuition assistance and provided a multitude of tax credits to businesses which encouraged them to employ veterans.
4. Expanded healthcare coverage for children: Signed an act in 2009 which allowed for the Children’s Health Insurance Plan to cover 4 million more children.
5. Kept global economy out of recession in 2009 and 2010.
6. Cut the unemployment rate by almost half during his presidency (currently 5.3%).
7. Reduced the US budget deficit (-1400 to -400).
8. Saved the auto industry and 7.25 million jobs in it.

Obama made strides for many diverse groups living in America. He was the first president to legalize gay marriage. He represented minorities with an utmost amount of support.

Sophomore Vishnu Mavilla says, “Obama was a good president because he really cares about equality among racial groups in society”. Sophomore Nafisa Chowdhury says, “I think teenagers think he’s a good president because he’s quirky and is ‘relatable’. Aside from that, in terms of what he’s really done in his 2 terms, it’s a lot and he’s truly left quite a legacy in many aspects of our nation. Obama’s a great president for many reasons. For women’s rights he signed the Lilly Ledbetter fair pay act, for education he increased federal funding towards helping students seeking a higher education, he’s for cleaner energy and he showed this by reducing US oil imports by 10%”.
It’s sad that many Republicans in Congress wouldn’t even consider who Obama, who at the time was still in office, wanted to nominate as a Supreme Court justice. I think that Obama definitely was, throughout his years in office, highly disrespected. It is saddening that such a kind man, who was also one of few of the presidents who have ever had a scandal while in office, was so underappreciated.