I remember, 8 years ago, being dismayed by some of the things Bush did on his first day in office...one of which, if memory serves, restricted aid to foreign NGO's who even whispered the word abortion.  I imagine there are folks on the right who are dismayed by some of Obama's first day actions as I was back then.

I, on the other hand, am particularly heartened by two things he did.

1.  He started the process to shut down Guantanamo.  I haven't read all the articles, but I know there are folks out there concerned that we'll let some terrorists go.  My humble opinion is that Guantanamo (and Abu Ghraib) have been far more effective recruiting tools for new terrorists than the number of prisoners we have incarcerated without representation or due process.

2.  He rolled back Bush's "Executive Privilege" extension whereby the heirs of a President or Vice-President could essentially block release of records forever by citing executive privilege.  Obama took it back to the way it was pre-Bush.  Only the sitting President has that authority.

I could go on...but it's late, I've got to cook myself some dinner and I'm tired after 3 doctor appointments today...(a good day for me too since it included a walk and some great time with a good friend).

Here's an LA Times article about Day 1 in Obama's first term.  You'll get the picture.

Leave a Reply