America has lost sight of Obama's accomplishments

I hear from many people that the president is terrible and that it is time for a change.

I hear that no matter who the Republican nominee is, he or she is going to win in 2016.

I am often asked as a member of the White House Press Corps if the president actually does anything.

It is true that I am a Bernie Sanders/ Elizabeth Warren-type of liberal who also sees the great abilities of Hillary Clinton. I think as many Americans also think that "America is on the wrong track." Citizens who answer the pollsters about the "right track or wrong track" believe differently than I do. I think America is on the "wrong track" because we have lost the values that made us strong, and we have lost sight of what President Obama has actually accomplished.

This week will feature the State of the Union address, a time where by law (Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution) the president tells Congress and the rest of America what shape we are in as a country. All presidents in recent times articulate their vision about how to move the country forward. Usually the president travels after the State of the Union to promote the programs he has just announced. This year is no exception, except that President Obama traveled to promote new programs before this year's State of the Union. Many of these programs will make America stronger. Despite the naysayers, the president actually has made huge differences in our country.

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We can start by looking at the record. Approximately 11.2 million private-sector jobs have been added in the last five years. This was from an economy that was teetering on the brink when the president was elected in 2008. I often hear from my GOP buddies that President Obama just propped up the economy with public-sector jobs. Even Business Insider has said Obama's growth in the public sector has been restrained compared to Ronald Reagan.

The Affordable Care Act: President Obama got it done. President Clinton tried. He put first lady Hillary Clinton in charge and had the Democratic National Committee behind him with "health care that is always there," and he could not get it done even when he had momentum and a Democratic Congress behind him. For all of its problems (and the act is far from perfect), Americans can purchase health care and get some money to help pay for it if they can't afford it. When I hear people carping about the Affordable Care Act, I ask, "Where is the Republican bill?"

Immigration is just another of the president's accomplishments. President Bush 43 tried and, despite his best efforts and a Republican Congress, could not get movement on his plan. President Obama took the risk and wrote an executive memorandum. Some of us wish he had gone further, but with almost five million people who are already living and working in the United States, President Obama went out on a limb and got what needed to be accomplished done. For the people who don't like what President Obama did with the stroke of a pen, I ask, "Where is the Republican bill?" Plain and simple, a bill to address immigration in the U.S. does not exist.

This president has big and bold ideas. During the last two weeks, he went on the road to outline his plans for manufacturing, broadband and community college tuition. China made plans to lay fiber in the country in the late 1990s. At that time, Congress was arguing about private companies verses public institutions laying fiber. That time has passed, and America is now behind in speed of broadband in much of our country. President Obama sees that and wants to make a difference and get it done quickly.

This week, before the State of the Union, the president is proposing a new tax code. It will be fairer. It means people who escape taxes by putting money into trust funds and not paying taxes on inherited money will now have to pay. It means that capital gains taxes will be back to the level of the GOP idol, President Reagan. He proposes bringing it to 28 percent. President Obama will also propose that the biggest financial firms pay their fair share and not be able to use their financial muscle and borrow so they can escape paying taxes. All of this is fair, and all of this means the president is actually engaged and working for all of us. Republicans need to give him a break or get their act together and propose things that will help the majority of us, not just a treasured few.

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