He Was Our Man in Washington
by Owen Symes

A fair-minded but highly critical interpretation of president Obama and his brand of "hope and change," grounded in a reality that goes beyond the headlines.

He Was Our Man in Washington provides a detailed narrative of the years of the Obama administration gravitating around six key topics: the War on Terror, the Great Recession, marginal struggles, the Affordable Care Act, climate change, and Indigenous issues, that sit at the intersection of the other topics. Each chapter begins with a brief account of the historical context within which the Obama administration acted. The result is a fair-minded but highly critical interpretation of president Obama and his brand of "hope and change," grounded in a reality that goes beyond mere headlines.

Reviews:
Overall, although the book acknowledges improvements in health insurance availability and progress on civil rights issues, its assessment of Obama’s record is generally highly critical, indeed...Written topically rather than chronologically, this history of the Obama years effectively focuses on six key areas: foreign policy, the economy, health care, civil rights, climate change, and Indigenous relations/oil pipelines. On most of these, the book argues, the president effected little change...The book is supported by an impressive network of endnotes, and it presents a well-researched argument...a solid policy assessment of the Obama presidency...And although the argument is clear, its tendency toward digression sometimes results in a loss of focus. Extended discursions, including entire subsections, expound on the failures of free market capitalism or the origins of human-made climate change, for example, which provide historical analysis that’s far beyond the scope of the Obama administration...A thorough, if meandering, recollection and critique of a presidency. ~ Kirkus Reviews

I went into HE WAS OUR MAN IN WASHINGTON with the idea that author Owen Symes was going to give us a look at the presidency of Barack Obama---and in some ways he did. What the book ultimately does, however, is look at the America that made it possible for Obama to even RUN for office, what he was able to (and not able to) accomplish and how far his message of 'hope and change' really went.

The history in this book is amazing, allowing us to see the America that dealt with slavery and other ills, how Obama thought he could fix the problems of a nation and its people---as well as the realities he faced.

As Symes writes in the book even with his accomplishments in some ways Obama fell short of even his own expectations as well as those who supported him. What we learn is that one man cannot change a system the way some might hope. Even the one holding the office of the presidency has their limits.

A fascinating look at the world that gave birth to the Obama Presidency and that which has followed, HE WAS OUR MAN IN WASHINGTON is an informative read. ~ Cyrus Webb, author of Words I Choose to Live By

He Was Our Man in Washington: A History of the Obama Years joins a host of other books about the Obama era, but offers a difference - it narrows its inspection to six key struggles and actions which marked Obama's legacy. Thus, it holds the opportunity to provide in-depth insights where more general Obama discourses only lightly touch upon these issues.

The six areas of focus are the War on Terror; the legacy of the recession of 2007; marginal group struggles; the Affordable Care Act; climate change; and Indigenous peoples' struggles. Each issue receives its own section and numerous chapters which outline various aspects of these concerns, often criticizing the impact and effects of presidential choices and approaches to the problems: "Obama's policy in Libya was the loudest example of a typically quiet approach. Across the African continent, AFRICOM spent the two terms of the first black president dotting the landscape with outposts, bases, forward supply positions. Local airfields allowed US spy drones to operate, local troops made use of US equipment and training to hunt down their enemies (or topple their government, as was the case with Mali), and US special forces spread themselves across Africa, engaging in some 546 "activities" over the course of 2013 alone, a 217 percent increase from 2008. The sustained expansion of this battlespace over the course of Obama's presidency, occurring as it did almost entirely out of the public's view, bodes ill for the future."

Readers anticipating a one-sided laudatory review may be stymied by this critical treatise, but those who want a more even assessment of not just the pros but the cons of this administration's decisions will find He Was Our Man in Washington offers much food for thought.

Another important fact is that this book comes heavily footnoted with research supporting both the history and the author's analysis. This attention to detail provides not just facts, but more materials for further reading, for those who would pursue source materials and statistical references.

The result is a fine, in-depth survey of a wide range of topics, from civil rights to the environmental and political issues which received decisive action and influence from the Obama administration.

Political science readers who would go beyond surface reports to truly understand political process and influence will find He Was Our Man in Washington a well-researched and thought-provoking analysis, especially well suited for classroom discussion and debate, as well as individual study. ~ Diane Donovan, Mid West Book Review

He Was Our Man in Washington: A History of the Obama Years is a historical retrospective of the Obama administration (2008-2016). Chapters focus upon six major topics interconnected with the administration's policies: the War on Terror, the Great Recession, the problems of the margenalized, the Affordable Care Act, climate change, and problems affecting indigenous Americans. He Was Our Man in Washington neither lionizes nor demonizes the Obama administration; instead, every effort is made to critically evaluate the administration's results, while acknowledging that hindsight is 20/20 while decisions made in the moment do not necessarily benefit from such clarity of vision. He Was Our Man in Washington is expertly researched, thoroughly accessible, immensely fascinating, and highly recommended. ~ John Burroughs, Mid West Book Review

[This book] is a fresh and most welcome perspective. It is a provocative study for anyone wanting to get a better comprehension of the Obama administration. ~ Norm Goldman, Bookpleasures.com

Here is a comprehensively researched, well-argued, and balanced evaluation of Obama’s presidency. Given the hostile caricatures promoted by the Trump regime and its spokespersons, Owen Symes has produced a valuable assessment of hopes and promises, strengths and failures of an important chapter in US history. ~ Richard D. Wolff, Professor of Economics Emeritus, University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Owen Symes is a rising young star who has created a masterful social history of the Obama years. This book clarifies the underlying contradictions of the Obama administration, linked to global capitalism. The clarification of Obamacare and other policies for health and human services is especially helpful. As we move forward, Symes’s analysis helps us shed our illusions so we can avoid making the same mistakes all over again. ~ Howard Waitzkin, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Sociology, University of New Mexico

I spilled blue Gatorade on this thing, hung it out to dry, and it’s still the best book on Obama in my entire collection. ~ John Dilascio, creator of the QueerPOTUS YouTube channel

In a stunningly perceptive debut, Owen Symes delivers a masterful, unique perspective in his non-fiction “He Was Our Man in Washington: A History of the Obama Years.” Owen stretches the relevance and impact of Obama’s tenure in the White House well beyond those eight years, bringing critical historical perspective from decades, even more than 150 years, into the full understanding of his presentation. Owen Symes brings a deceptive level of experience into his analysis of the Obama administration, adding a much larger historical context than today’s ‘soundbite’ prone conveyors provide. ‘He Was Our Man in Washington: A History of the Obama Years” is a vitally important offering in the historical tapestry of America’s executive leadership. ~ John Busbee for The Culture Buzz