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The '''Obama Administration''' is the Executive Department portion of the U.S. government under liberal, [[Democratic Party|Democrat]]  President [[Barack Hussein Obama]]; it began on January 20, 2009 for a term of four years.  [[File:Obama-poll.jpg|thumb|330px|Excitement for Obama was very high before people understood his plans; enthusiasm has plunged as criticism becomes sharper and strong opponents grow more numerous than strong supporters]] Shortly after taking office President Obama's popularity sagged, his party weakened and opportunities for celebrating achievements dissipated. Contentious town-hall meetings criticized the injustice of his health care proposals, [[Barack Obama and United States Unemployment|unemployment grew]], the stimulus did not stimulate, Democrats bickered more than usual, grim forecasts of failure came from his generals in Afghanistan. Accused of socialism, he was branded in Congress as a liar. He was criticized first for not making his case, and then for overexposure, as he deliberately put into the shadows everyone in his cabinet.  Obama’s inexperience in domestic and foreign affairs worsened his troubles. Nothing worked right--he was embarrassed by winning the Nobel Peace Prize before any of his goals had been accomplished.

The '''Obama Administration''' is the Executive Department portion of the U.S. government under [[progressive]] liberal, [[Democratic Party|Democrat]]  President [[Barack Hussein Obama]]; it began on January 20, 2009 for a term of four years.  [[File:Obama-poll.jpg|thumb|330px|Excitement for Obama was very high before people understood his plans; enthusiasm has plunged as criticism becomes sharper and strong opponents grow more numerous than strong supporters]] Shortly after taking office President Obama's popularity sagged, his party weakened and opportunities for celebrating achievements dissipated. Contentious town-hall meetings criticized the injustice of his health care proposals, [[Barack Obama and United States Unemployment|unemployment grew]], the stimulus did not stimulate, Democrats bickered more than usual, grim forecasts of failure came from his generals in Afghanistan. Accused of [[socialism]], he was branded in Congress as a liar. He was criticized first for not making his case, and then for overexposure, as he deliberately put into the shadows everyone in his cabinet.  Obama’s inexperience in domestic and foreign affairs worsened his troubles. Nothing worked right--he was embarrassed by winning the Nobel Peace Prize before any of his goals had been accomplished.

At the one-year mark in Jan. 2010, a majority (54%) of voters believe the nation is on the wrong track.  Included among that 54% are nearly all Republicans (91%), a majority of Independents (61%) and one-in-five Democrats (18%).  Only 13% of Americans say Obama has done better than they expected, including just 27% of Democrats, while 45% say his performance has been near to what was expected.<ref> See [http://www.zogby.com/news/ReadNews.cfm?ID=1800 Zogby poll Jan. 20. 2010]</ref>

At the one-year mark in Jan. 2010, a majority (54%) of voters believed the nation was on the wrong track.  Included among that 54% are nearly all Republicans (91%), a majority of Independents (61%) and one-in-five Democrats (18%).  Only 13% of Americans say Obama has done better than they expected, including just 27% of Democrats.<ref> See [http://www.zogby.com/news/ReadNews.cfm?ID=1800 Zogby poll Jan. 20. 2010]</ref>

Expectations of a Republican revival, a wild pipe-dream in the spring, became more realistic as the party won gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New  Jersey, and the Democrats continued in disarray in New York, Texas and California. Even more dramatic was the win by Republican [[Scott Brown]] of the Senate seat in Massachusetts, which became a referendum on Obama's policies.

Expectations of a Republican revival, a wild pipe-dream in the spring, became more realistic as the party won gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New  Jersey, and the Democrats continued in disarray in New York, Texas and California. Even more dramatic was the win by Republican [[Scott Brown]] of the Senate seat in Massachusetts, which became a referendum on Obama's policies.

Obama's "[[Recovery Summer]]" of 2010 provided further economic disappointment for Americans with rising unemployment numbers, [[GDP]] growth estimates revised downward and a further decline in Obama's job approval numbers.  However Obama was able to maintain a steady schedule of [[List of Obama First Family Vacations|vacations]], parties and weekend get-aways at [[Camp David]].

 

Obama's "[[Recovery Summer]]" of 2010 provided further economic disappointment for Americans with rising unemployment numbers, [[GDP]] growth estimates revised downward and a further decline in Obama's job approval numbers.  However, throughout it all Obama was able to maintain a steady schedule of [[List of Obama First Family Vacations|vacations]], parties and weekend get-aways at [[Camp David]].

==Economic Policy==

==Economic Policy==

The Obama administration is currently following what fiscal conservatives and libertarians call [[Obama administration fiscal policy|ruinous fiscal policies]] and [[Obama administration monetary policy|reckless monetary policies]]. Economists debate in August 2009 whether or not the recession has hit bottom and when the overall economy will start moving up again; the consensus is that unemployment will remain high into 2010.

The Obama administration initially followed what fiscal conservatives and libertarians call [[Obama administration fiscal policy|ruinous fiscal policies]] and [[Obama administration monetary policy|reckless monetary policies]].

[[File:Varvel-11-19-09.jpg|thumb|330px|left|Gary Varvel pokes fun at VP Biden's outlandish claims]]

[[File:Varvel-11-19-09.jpg|thumb|330px|left|Gary Varvel pokes fun at VP Biden's outlandish claims]]

===Historical backdrop===

===Historical backdrop===