An Open Letter To President Obama

Dear Mr. President,
As a first generation American, and a Veteran who served his country when the war was fought in rice paddies, I voted for you twice. In your tenure as President, I've watched you manage to accomplish many great things, even when confronted daily with unparalleled, partisan obstruction. Many of your policies were instrumental in bringing this country back from the precipice of the financial collapse of 2008. You managed to bring the perpetrators of the greatest attack on America since Pearl Harbor to justice. You managed to bring health care to millions of Americans, where it was unavailable or who before, were unable to afford it.

That being said, I'm reminded of the passage; "Those who fail to learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat it". Yes, you saved America from financial collapse, yet none of those on Wall Street OR in Government agencies who shared responsibility for the collapse have had to pay for their crimes. In fact, since then, they've only become bigger and emboldened. Since then, legislation and regulations designed to prevent such things from happening again have been removed. Lobbyists for these institutions and subversives in Congress have allowed the dismantling of these crucial financial safeguards...and history again is repeating itself as I write this letter.

Now, you're pushing very hard for a very bad trade deal. A deal that's great for other countries, a deal that's great for corporations and the rich, but in all seriousness, a death sentence to hard working middle class Americans who can ill afford to suffer the low wages and job losses this TPP deal will bring. I've been around for 60+ years, and I've yet to witness ANY trade deal in place that has benefited America's working class. As I see it, NAFTA was the first nail in the middle class coffin...TPP will be the final nail. This isn't just opposition rhetoric...these are hard to swallow FACTS from the hard hit working class.

Yes Mr. President, It's good in most cases to look forward and not dwell on the past. But when the negatives of history are destructive, irrefutable and remain present...looking past them so nonchalantly is not a good idea. And while you're in your last years as President, I ask that you revisit your decisions to "not look back", and to correct the issues that remain as a cancer on this nation. Holding Wall Street responsible for their criminality, subversion of our system of Government by corporate lobbyists, and the perception that our Supreme Court has been bought by the oligarchy... and we the people are left hopelessly holding the bag.

Yours Truly,
A First Generation American and Veteran