This diary isn't tied to any specific current event, it's just a reminder of how much of a big deal President Obama's Obamacare achievement already is. Dissatisfied progressives may not appreciate just how hard it is for a president to even have a signature achievement, much less one that was worthwhile. But if we look back on the previous Presidents, you have to look back all the way to Johnson's Civil Rights Act to find a comparable success.
Look below the fold for my take on the previous Presidents's (attempted) signature achievements; they're a mix of failed attempts and modest victories...
Basically, it is difficult to do something big, and the political costs are great. But if you're going to suffer political losses in the mid-term election, make it worth the cost. President Obama paid the cost for health care reform...but this is the biggest policy achievement by any President since Johnson's Civil Rights Act! Compare this to Obama's predecessors...
President George W Bush tried to privatize Social Security and enact immigration reform. Both of these went down in flames, and his own party has become even more rabidly anti-immigrant than before. Heck, Bush's awesome ability to collapse the stock market has effectively killed the notion of privatizing Social Security forever (we can hope).
President Clinton tried to enact universal health care. This went down in flames. He did succeed in enacting the Assault Weapons Ban, but this modest victory led to a lasting backlash that continues to this day. The AWB, along with the gay marriage issue, basically handed Congress over to the Republicans for over a decade.
President George HW Bush tried to ban flag burning. No, really. No wonder he didn't get reelected...it was really hard to see what it was he really stood for. Certainly not "No new taxes".
President Reagan's signature achievement was...umm...he fired a bunch of air traffic controllers? Despite Reagan's legendary status among conservatives, you have to reach pretty hard to find something great to say about what he did. He picked easy fights, basically, or simply ignored the law when he lost the legislative fight.
President Carter's signature achievement was the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel...but this was after the mid-terms and this was back then partisan bickering ended at the nation's borders. President Carter's conflicts with Congress even within his own party were awful and prevented effective legislating.
President Ford's signature achievement was pardoning Nixon.
President Nixon's signature achievement was needing to be pardoned.
Now compare this long list of failures and meek victories with what President Obama achieved--Obamacare, which will finally bring desperately needed health care to millions of americans, and finally prevent getting a chronic illness from being a life sentence of poverty and debt for oneself and one's family.
Yes, President Obama and the Democratic Party took a deep political hit for it in 2010. But it was WORTH IT.
P.S. - If you have some other ideas for what any of these President's "signature achievements" or attempted signature achievements should be, I'm all ears. In particular, I know Ronald Reagan did a lot of things (few of which I'd consider praiseworthy), but I can't think of much that he did before the 1982 midterms--other than firing the air traffic controllers and getting shot.