1) Economy - The economy has certainly rebounded, and even though we have a long way to go before it is back 100%, even Newsweek announced that the recession was over. I know it wasn’t easy dealing with the AIG fallout, and even dealing with something as mindless as the First Lady wearing $500 sneakers in the time of the recession (and at a food bank no less) couldn’t have been fun either. But the President did a B+ job with it (points off for AIG not being handled as smoothly as it could have been), and I don’t think anyone else could have gotten us out of the worst part any better.

2) Health Care - I was happy to see that Obama thought enough of the importance of health care (and listened to the demands of Americans across the United States who marched to get the word out) that he held a prime time press conference on the subject. Even taking into account that in general there isn’t a lot of agreement on any issue on both sides of the aisle, it is still sad that there hasn’t been a great plan presented that everyone can get behind. I see that Obama is trying to sell a plan that isn’t clicking with as many members of the public nor lawmakers and that’s not okay since each hour that passes and a plan isn’t approved, more and more lives are at stake. Add to that the talk of taxes potentially needing to be raised when Obama said no increase in taxes, and this health care fight is far from being over. C

3) Gay Rights - Obama disappointed me when he didn’t immediately move to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. I understand the politics regarding it, and I certainly understand he had more time sensitive issues to get to when he first took office, but I thought that this would have been one of his milestone early achievements. I was happy to see that he marked Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month with a White House reception and said he wanted to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, but I only give him the grade of B.

4) International Affairs - A huge point of pride for me was seeing how well-received President Obama was overseas. Whether it was participating in the G8, discussing nukes in Russia or meeting (along with the First Lady) with the Pope, the great press and real work that took place overseas, I’d like to think, helped to thaw the ice left by President Bush, and for that I give him an A.

5) Domestic - On a personal note, just from talking to fellow Generation O-ers (and even people my age that didn’t vote for Obama), everyone agrees that it feels wonderful being happy that we have a cool and smart President. I had one friend tell me that she was researching which new country to live in during the Bush years, and now she doesn’t even dream of leaving America, as her sense of duty to her country has been restored. As trivial as toned arms and cute adorable daughters can be, the fact that the Obamas are brightly coloring the fabric that makes up America is a point of pride for a lot of Americans and in terms of domestic PR, I have to give Obama an A+.

My life: Here in Seattle, I am involved in volunteering for four campaigns, and it is a very exciting time for me as the August 18th primary will whittle each race (among others Mayor, various City Council positions, and King County Executive (a position last occupied by HUD second-in-command Ron Sims)) to two competitors. In previous elections, I did phonebanking (for Obama, John Kerry and Al Gore) but being a Volunteer Coordinator for one campaign and a Legislative District Coordinator for another gives me an even more unique and interesting perspective of the political process than I ever had before. It is my hope that the learning experiences that I gain from working on these campaigns is not unlike the great experience I had blogging for Newsweek.com, something I can’t thank the website or the staff enough for.

Before I sign off, one final note: August 4th is President Obama’s birthday. Happy Birthday Mr President!

-Mica Powers