Nothwithstanding the usual snarky and patronizing posts from several in this thread or the implied racism (Aunt Jemima is/was a pancake mix, hence the "flipflop" reference) I am truly an independent and who I have voted for pretty much bears that out. The definition of a political independent is someone who votes on issues and not party; who votes relative to the current political circumstances, not as what my grandfather called "yellow dog democrats." As someone who has spent his entire 46 year career in the business world I put forth the singular point that when judging any presidency, its all about the metrics. Let's take a look at Obama's numbers: job creation> +11,641,000; unemployment> down 4.8%; job openings> + 103 %; medium household income> +5.3 %; real weekly earnings> +4.1 %; home prices> + 20%; poverty rate> -.5 points; corporate profits> +57%; S&P 500> +166%; uninsured> -15.2%; U.S.- Mexico border crossings> -35%; unauthorized immigrant population> -6%; U.S. coal production> -38%; wind and solar power> +369%; CO2 emissions> -11%; U.S. crude oil production> +77%; new car mpg> +20%; violent crime rate> -16%.
There are some negatives as there always are with any presidency; i.e., food stamp recipients> +33%; federal debt held by the public+128%; health insurance premiums> +43%; hand gun production> +192%. A couple of neutral metrics depending on your viewpoint: Guantanamo prisoners: -83%; U.S. military casualties> Iraq-283, Afganistan-1751.
No president is perfect. As an independent I voted for W twice as governor and once as president but when he blew out the budget and started an unnecessary war, that was it for me. There are roughly 40% of us who vote for the individual based on current circumstances as well as qualifications. History says that most presidents even if they run from the right or left, tack to the center once elected. They may be either slightly left or right of center, but that's where they usually end up.
By the way, the metrics I've stated herein come from a variety of sources including The Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Census Bureau, National Association of Realtors, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, S&P Dow Jones Indices, U.S. Treasury, Office of Management and Budget, Congressional Budget Office, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Kaiser Family Foundation, U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Dept, of Commerce, F.B.I., BATF, National Shooting Sports Foundation.
Every president will ultimately be judged on his record. Barack Obama's will stand up well as it is judged by history.
Finally, yes I voted for Hillary. It was a binary choice. My first choice was John Kasich but given the choice on the ballot, it was an easy choice for me.
