Obama Infrastructure: Successes and failures

Timon Singh

Since becoming President of the United States in January 2009, Barack Obama has faced major challenges in terms of the economy, unemployment and domestic issues such as healthcare. However when it comes to "Obama infrastructure", the President has faced major challenges and obstacles, some of which he has handled extremely well, others which have horrendously backfired.

Coming into power, in a bid to jump start the US economy President Obama pledged the "largest investment in infrastructure since the creation of the interstate highway system under Dwight D. Eisenhower" in order to create jobs and upgrade the nation's transport links such as bridges, roads and other public works.

Despite concerns that many states were not using the money designated to infrastructure from Obama's emergency funding as they should be, instead choosing to spend it on 'easier projects' such as road resurfacing rather than making bridges structurally sound, the stimulus package was credited with creating and/or saving 650,000 jobs and keeping workers on site during the recession.

Other schemes like 'Cash for Clunkers' were started in a bid to support the struggling American car industry, with the Obama administration injecting over $3 billion in cash incentives into the project generating almost 700,000 new car sales with a total revenue of $2.88 billion.

Despite large numbers of car sales, with the original $1 billion budget almost running out within a week, American car makers still saw a hit with many American models being traded in for more efficient Japanese models. In fact, Japanese automakers Toyota, Honda and Nissan accounted for 41 percent of the new vehicle sales, outpaced their American rivals such as General Motors, Ford and Chrysler who took a share of nearly 39 percent.

In fact, through most of 2009 Obama's infrastructure policies seemed to aid the US in dragging itself out of the recession, however this year certain policies of his administration have been met with protests and disaster, and that's not even mentioning the healthcare debate (which for the record was a great success).

Economy boosts and oil spills

By the beginning of the year, things were looking up for the Obama administration, high-speed rail funds had been promised to certain states to boost transport infrastructure in the US, renewable energy projects were finding support and the US economy had grown 5.7 percent in the last quarter of 2009, the quickest pace of economic expansion seen in the United States for six years.

While the healthcare debate still rocked Washington, President Obama pursued his renewable energy policy by announcing $8.3 billion in federal loan guarantees for the construction of two nuclear reactors in Burke County, Georgia.

As part of his plan to wean America off foreign oil, this move was seen by many as a sign of the President's commitment to renewable energy and cutting carbon emissions, something that hadn't been firmly agreed on at the Copenhagen Conference.

The Obama administration also approved wind farms and other renewable energy projects to increase the US's green credits, but then the President made a decision that seemed against his previous infrastructure policies.

Despite campaigning and being lauded as an 'environmentalist', President Obama made a decision more reminiscent of his Republican counterparts and reversed the country's stance on offshore drilling.

By opening up huge offshore areas on the US coastline to oil and natural gas drilling, the President was accused of appeasing Republicans after successfully pushing through his health care reform act. However the President was quick to counter that by saying that US reliance on foreign oil was a threat to national security saying America was being held "hostage to dwindling resources, hostile regimes, and a warming planet."

And then the worst possible thing happened - the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Described in more dramatic circles as "Obama's Katrina", the oil spill has made Obama's offshore drilling move seem reckless leading even several key Republicans to make U-turns on their personal stances regarding the practice.

While action has been swift with Congress dragging BP over the coals and the President set up a special commission to investigate the spill, this accident could forever tarnish future decisions made on energy policies.

However there have been victories in the world of Obama infrastructure. Cutting numbers of nuclear weapons, and planning missions to Mars have all been lauded, but for now oil is muddying the waters of the Obama administration.

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