What President Obama 's historic week means for his legacy . 
"At the end of the day , we 're part of a long-running story ," Obama told the New Yorker 's David Remnick in one interview . 
More than any other period in his presidency , the past week 's rapid succession of once-in-a-lifetime moments closed the gap between President Obama 's day to day travails and his larger place in history . 
Now consider what the paragraph version of Obama 's presidency looks like as of now , with the key terms for next week 's social studies midterm highlighted in bold . 
It will move more and more to the forefront once there 's a new president dealing with the 247 reality show that is the White House and Obama settles into the more non-partisan , ceremonial role his surviving predecessors occupy today . 
"Progress on this journey often comes in small increments , sometimes two steps forward , one step back , propelled by the persistent effort of dedicated citizens ," as Obama put it in his response to the Supreme Court 's same sex marriage ruling Friday . 
Obama 's election as the first black president -- powered by landslide margins with black and Latino voters and historic turnout by younger voters -- was hailed as a historic moment , but it was eclipsed almost immediately by the massive challenges that landed on his desk and the intense backlash his policy responses provoked on the right . 
In politics , it 's often discussed as a matter of partisan scorekeeping , as it was after Obama 's two elections . 
Future events can cloud domestic achievements as well -- one prominent Republican strategist made the case to me this week that Americans would tie Obama to the decline of the middle class if the last decade 's stagnant incomes harden into something permanent . 
"The first black president , President Obama took office amid the Great Recession , stabilized the economy with a stimulus and auto bailout , passed universal health care and Wall Street reform over fierce opposition , and implemented a suite of regulations aimed at combatting climate change . 
Progressives spent a century trying to achieve universal health care , but it was Obama 's specific coalition that delivered the votes to pass it in 2008 and defend it in 2012 . 
The avalanche of news sparked a discussion of two emerging views on Obama 's legacy -- one focused on his policy accomplishments , the other as a symbol of underlying changes in the country that will long outlive his presidency . 
The process often plays out in real time -- remember when the BP oil spill was "Obama 's Katrina ?" 
This week 's gay marriage ruling and Obama 's speech in Charleston provided a glimpse of a hazy future view of his presidency less about any specific domestic policy achievement but about a broader suite of changes in the country that took place independent of him , but were encouraged or exploited by his presidency . 
Obama had a role in all these moments , but he would be the first to admit they were powered by deeper forces beyond his control . 
Democrats will likely view Obama 's record as a blueprint for the exercise of presidential power much the same way Republicans do Reagan 's record today . 
Obama 's record is robust , but in the end he may become best known for embodying what Bloomberg 's Francis Wilkinson dubbed "the week the 21st century really began in America ."
"At the end of the day , we 're part of a long-running story ," [TGT] told the New Yorker 's David Remnick in one interview . 
More than any other period in his presidency , the past week 's rapid succession of once-in-a-lifetime moments closed the gap between [TGT] 's day to day travails and [TGT] larger place in history . 
Now consider what the paragraph version of [TGT] 's presidency looks like as of now , with the key terms for next week 's social studies midterm highlighted in bold . 
It will move more and more to the forefront once there 's a new president dealing with the 247 reality show that is the White House and [TGT] settles into the more non-partisan , ceremonial role his surviving predecessors occupy today . 
"Progress on this journey often comes in small increments , sometimes two steps forward , one step back , propelled by the persistent effort of dedicated citizens ," as [TGT] put it in [TGT] response to the Supreme Court 's same sex marriage ruling Friday . 
[TGT] 's election as the first black president -- powered by landslide margins with black and Latino voters and historic turnout by younger voters -- was hailed as a historic moment , but it was eclipsed almost immediately by the massive challenges that landed on [TGT] desk and the intense backlash [TGT] policy responses provoked on the right . 
In politics , it 's often discussed as a matter of partisan scorekeeping , as it was after [TGT] 's two elections . 
Future events can cloud domestic achievements as well -- one prominent Republican strategist made the case to me this week that Americans would tie [TGT] to the decline of the middle class if the last decade 's stagnant incomes harden into something permanent . 
"The first black president , [TGT] took office amid the Great Recession , stabilized the economy with a stimulus and auto bailout , passed universal health care and Wall Street reform over fierce opposition , and implemented a suite of regulations aimed at combatting climate change . 
Progressives spent a century trying to achieve universal health care , but it was [TGT] 's specific coalition that delivered the votes to pass it in 2008 and defend it in 2012 . 
The avalanche of news sparked a discussion of two emerging views on [TGT] 's legacy -- one focused on [TGT] policy accomplishments , the other as a symbol of underlying changes in the country that will long outlive [TGT] presidency . 
The process often plays out in real time -- remember when the BP oil spill was "Obama 's Katrina ?" 
This week 's gay marriage ruling and [TGT] 's speech in Charleston provided a glimpse of a hazy future view of [TGT] presidency less about any specific domestic policy achievement but about a broader suite of changes in the country that took place independent of [TGT] , but were encouraged or exploited by [TGT] presidency . 
[TGT] had a role in all these moments , but [TGT] would be the first to admit they were powered by deeper forces beyond [TGT] control . 
Democrats will likely view [TGT] 's record as a blueprint for the exercise of presidential power much the same way Republicans do Reagan 's record today . 
[TGT] 's record is robust , but in the end [TGT] may become best known for embodying what Bloomberg 's Francis Wilkinson dubbed "the week the 21st century really began in America ."