The fourth wall : a Penn State Mont Alto student periodical. (Mont Alto, PA) 2004-????, April 01, 2012, Image 5

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    The Fourth Wall
page 5
MICHAEL PERSCH
This coming election
has already caused many vot-
ers to look back on the term
of President Barack Obama
and try to reflect on his suc-
cesses and failures. Many are
already well aware of some
of his major achievements,
such as the assassination of
Osama Bin Laden. Many also
debate whether he has been
good for the economy and
the work force. In the words
of Obama himself, “In times
like these, questions have
always arisen about whether
or not America’s best days
are behind us.”
With every Admin-
istration there are countless
other improvements for the
country that are not posted on
the front page. These over-
looked policies can give vot-
ers a better idea of what a
president may stand for and
have to offer. The successes
that will be explained range
from global security to the
nation’s economy. Even
though all of these may not
affect us, they are the steps
used to mold the country.
One of Obama’s vic-
tories came after he hosted a
Nuclear Security Summit in
April 2010. The purpose of
the summit was to organize
efforts to secure the global
supply of nuclear material
against trades with terrorist.
The Summit invited all of the
countries with nuclear mate-
rial except for Iran, North
Korea, and Belarus. Accord-
ing to ‘therawstory.com’, a
news organization based in
Washington D.C., several
months after the summit was
held Belarus announced they
were surrendering their nu-
clear supply. Belarus has ex-
pressed interest in nuclear
power which uses non-
weapon grade enriched urani-
um which the US supports
and they have been invited to
the next summit meeting in
South Korea later this year.
There was also a $3.4
billion grant in 2009 made by
President Obama’s admin-
istration. This grant was giv-
en to various energy compa-
nies in order to try updating
our aging power grid and in-
stall new ‘smart’ meters and
other technologies to im-
prove efficiency. According
to The White House this in-
vestment created thousands
of jobs to help against the
recession, stimulated the
wind and solar industry, and
brought more security to our
power grid.
Additionally, Obama
has been seeking to increase
United States’ exports. In
March of 2010 The White
House reported that it was
launching a National Export
Initiative to promote business
abroad. This initiative would
make more money accessible
through an organization
called the ‘Export-Import
Bank of the United States’.
The White House said that
these initiatives will “double
exports, open new markets,
and level the playing field.”
Even though these
acts directly affect every
American in different ways,
they are small steps in the
right direction. According to
CNN, as of February 15,
2012 Obama’s approval rat-
ing has risen to 50%, and
there is also a rise in the
number of people who think
the country is headed in the
right direction. These are all
very positive indicators that
the country is starting to pull
itself out of the “Great Re-
cession” and may maintain
its global dominance. Per-
haps these are goals that
could be achieved if Presi-
dent Obama is given another
four years in office.
Student Poll:
Mitt Romney is insane.”
-Anonymous, Sophomore
lege...
reelection.”
-Anonymous
-Anonymous, Sophmore
the lesser of the evils.”
-Tyler Mock, Freshman
tion.”
-Anonymous
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