You Choose the Resolution

I’ll be choosing the following resolution: “That Barack Obama's presidency has been, on balance, good for America”. Seeing that my opponent has already debated on this topic--and as pro--I’ve decided to take the stance as the instigator. I would like to thank my opponent for accepting this debate and giving me the opportunity to debate with someone with significant experience. Observations:O1: Pro must prove that Barack Obama’s presidency has benefitted the U.S. during his stay in office. On the other hand, con must prove otherwise, by presenting evidence to substantiate that Barack Obama’s presidency has either brought little / or no change to the U.S., or alternatively, it has harmed the U.S. Since complex terminologies aren’t involved, definitions won’t be necessary Let the debate begin! My premise will be based on Obama’s steps towards economic reformsBarack Obama boosted the economy of the U.S. during his stay in office by doing the following: Taking steps to end the 2008 Recession, Stabilizing the housing market, and lowering the unemployment rate. 2008 Recession:President Obama joined the House during the the time America was under difficult economic pressure. One of the main causes for the failing economy was the housing crash and irresponsible financial management of major finance corporations. For example. the credit spread surge after the fall of the Lehman Brothers company, which created a $600 billion default (4). Steps taken towards solving this issue was the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The stimulus package consisted of the following: “$787 billion of tax cuts and spending, with the total split roughly one-third tax cuts, one-third government investments, and one-third aid to the people most directly harmed by the recession and to troubled state and local governments (1).” Multiple families (struck by the recession) received the benefits: $200 billion in tax reductions and unemployment insurance. Also, with the help of the Federal Reserve and FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) Barack Obama’s administration was able to initiate a thorough auditing and financial investigation procedure of 19 largest financial corporations of the U.S. The procedure was aimed at preventing market downfalls by analysing shortfalls of financial commodities because of the lack of the needed capital to finance them, and advising these corporations on how to handle this issue. This process eventually helped to increase the institutions’ private capital and ensure that their entities don’t exceed their financial limits (1). Other steps taken to ensure financial responsibility was the establishment of the Dodd-Frank Act. A package that also aimed at protecting taxpayers by ending bailouts of failing institutions and preventing financial crimes as part of the consumer protection policy (2). Ex-senator Christopher Dodd and sponsor of the act told in an interview with the WSJ, “Ithink the [Financial Stability Oversight Council] is important, I think the too-big-to-fail [wind-down authority] is important. A major officer at a bank called a few weeks ago and said, ‘I never thought I’d make this call to you… but I want to tell you: We’re a better bank today because of your law.’ And of course I don’t get those calls every day, but also if you look at how banks are doing, they’re doing tremendously well and I think that’s important” (3). Source: [1]:https://www.whitehouse.gov... [2]:https://en.wikipedia.org... [3]:http://www.wsj.com... [4]:https://en.wikipedia.org...(finance) Stabilization of housing market:As of today, the housing market is proven to be more stable and less inclined to risk, as compared during the 2008 Recession. With the help of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), mortgage insurance became reasonably lower, $900 subtracted from mortgage fee. This legislation is aimed at helping families save colossal sums of money to help make housing more affordable. According to the FHA, the plan consists of the following: “FHA is reducing annual FHA mortgage insurance premiums by 0.5 percentage point from 1.35 percent to 0.85 percent, an average savings of $900 annually for new borrowers. Lowered premiums will help more than 800,000 homeowners save on their monthly mortgage costs and enable up to 250,000 new homebuyers to purchase a home. These steps will help support home sales, lower housing expenses for affected households, and help bring more balance to the housing market” (1). In addition, the FHA emphasizes on consumer rights and protection. Meaning, proper documentation and underwriting procedures from insurance companies. According to the FHA, to this day, they will keep the insurance premiums at 0.85% (1). Sources: [1]:https://www.whitehouse.gov... Decrease in unemployment:According to the Department of Labor, as of 2014, 142,000 jobs were created and the unemployment rate decreased to 6.1%! In the same year, the private sector created 10 million jobs in the past 54 months. Additionally, 134,000 private businesses flourished / were created (1). Furthermore, in 2016, the unemployment dropped to 4.9% (2). Source: [1]:http://www.politicususa.com... [2]:https://soapboxie.com...;