President Obama Visits Sunny Southern California for Town Hall Meetings and Jay Leno Visit

Today marks President Barack Obama's first visit to California since taking up the presidency in January. While he won California in November, the venue of today's meeting was Costa Mesa in Orange County, an area long known to be a Republican strong hold but which in recent years have been more moderate. I think the fact that he chose to go to Orange County on this first visit is a testament to his delivering on his campaign promise to be a non-partisan leader of American people.

The president was grilled with questions ranging from the AIG inflating the pocketbooks of their executives, to the housing and mortgage crisis, to people finding work, to whether he will run for re-election in 2012, and more.

I thought he handled the questions smartly, responding to the re-election one by stating that "If I could get done what I think needs to get done in four years, even if it meant that I was only a president for four years, I would rather be a good president to take on the tough issues for four years than a mediocre president for eight years."

Even as opposition criticize him for focusing on too many things at the same time, the president once more ensured the need to not move at a snail's pace. He stated that "I know some folks in Washington and Wall Street are saying we should focus on only one problem at a time. But that's just not the way it works. You don't get to choose between paying your mortgage bills or your medical bills." Education is important, as is the need to fix the banking and mortgage industry, as is health care, energy, and all those things that tie back to the economy failing.

I don't understand why some people keep mentioning that he's trying to do too much. America did not get to this mess by previous leaders doing too much. It got here by them, at least the last administration, doing too little for the immense problems facing the nation and the world for that matter.

My wish is that the president succeeds in his endeavor to heal the millions of people who are hurting either by losing their homes, their jobs, having no health care, losing their livelihood via investments gone awry, or whatever else. California, a strong force in US and world economy, is important if the president is to succeed. His green job and energy agendas are in par with governor Schwarzenegger.

As Obama speaks in OC today, some California teachers were receiving pink slips in the mail, symbolizing that they may not get their jobs in the next school year. Why then should the president not focus on education? The problem is magnitude and comes from various angles, thus it must be tackled from all directions.

On a lighter not, the president will appear on the Jay Leno Show in Burbank tomorrow after another town hall meeting in downtown Los Angeles.

Sources:

www.kcbs.com

www.cbs13.com