🇺🇸📚🔍 Obama, Him Kine Taim an’ Da Kine Choices He Had Fo’ Make: Oral Histories Fo’ Pull Back Da Curtain
Da first out of 470 interviews of da Obama administration officials an’ oddahs who wen’ stay inside da debates of dat taim giving us da new, fresh kine look inside one consequential presidency. On one day wen’ had choke drama at one international climate change conference early in his administration, President Barack Obama wen’ confront one high-ranking Chinese official who wen’ give what da American delegation thought was one weak kine promise. Mr. Obama wen’ dump da promise. No good enough.
Da Chinese official wen’ blow up. Mr. Obama wen’ look at him steady, an’ he wen’ say, “Well, Senator Kerry no da president of da United States.” 🎤🇨🇳🇺🇸
Dat moment of sharp relief, one showdown with one stubborn foreign official by one young American president who wen’ still tryna find his way, comes alive in one new oral history project on da Obama administration released on Wednesday. 🗣️📅🌐
Researchers wen’ talk story with 470 Obama administration veterans, critics, activists an’ oddahs who wen’ stay in da middle of major events back then, including Mr. Obama and da first lady, Michelle Obama, collecting in total 1,100 hours of recordings. 🎙️👥⏱️
“Dere goin’ be choke new insights dat come from dis study, plenny of which goin’ change our understanding of da Obama presidency and da period from 2008 to 2016 more generally,” said Peter Bearman, da guy who wen’ start Incite an’ da head investigator for da Obama oral history project. 🧠📈📖
Oral histories of past presidencies wen’ become valuable resources for historians an’ researchers in recent decades. Da Miller Center at da University of Virginia wen’ do dis kine projects going back to Jimmy Carter’s presidency. Da Columbia project wen’ get organized with da support of da Obama Foundation. 🎓📚🌍
Da focus on climate change in da first set of interviews also wen’ highlight da larger trade-offs Mr. Obama wen’ make between competing priorities. For example, how he wen’ put off major legislative action on climate change in favor of health care at da start of his tenure in 2009, maybe even dooming chances for da sweeping measure he would eventually support. 🌍⚖️💊
By da time he wen’ turn his attention to a clean energy plan in da form of a cap-and-trade system dat would create market incentives to reduce greenhouse emissions, Mr. Obama’s political capital had been drained. Da bill he pushed wen’ make it through da House but not da Democratic-controlled Senate. 💵🏛️📉
“With Obama, I was just so absolutely hopeful,” remembered Carol M. Browner, his White House coordinator for energy and climate change policy. “I just felt like, we’re finally here on climate change. And we were. Then the Senate would never take up the bill.” 🏛️💔🌳
Da oral history organizers wen’ make sure for interview dose who wen’ no like what Mr. Obama was doing, like Bill McKibben, one longtime environmental activist and writer who wen’ help found 350.org, one global grass-roots organization. 🎤🌍🌲
“But his advisers insisted dat Mr. Obama did care and said he regretted his early failures. Just before going out to da East Room of da White House in 2015 to announce his Clean Power Plan imposing caps on power plant carbon emissions, he told Gina McCarthy, his Environmental Protection Agency chief and later Mr. Biden’s climate adviser, that he was determined to take action for the sake of his two daughters. 🏦👨👧👧💪
“I promised to do something on climate,” he told her. “I didn’t get it delivered in my first term. And this is so meaningful.” 💬🌍💡
So, dat’s da kine history we getting now, folks. Full of da kind choices, da kind moves, an’ da kind stuffs Obama had fo’ go through during him time as president. 🤔📚🇺🇸
NOW IN ENGLISH
🇺🇸📚🔍 Obama, His Time and the Choices He Had to Make: Oral Histories Uncover More
This is the first of 470 interviews with Obama administration officials and others who were part of the debates of that time, offering us a fresh look at a consequential presidency. On a dramatic day at an international climate change conference early in his administration, President Barack Obama confronted a high-ranking Chinese official who offered what the American delegation saw as a weak promise. Mr. Obama rejected the promise. It wasn’t good enough.
The Chinese official became upset. Mr. Obama stared at him steadily, and he said, “Well, Senator Kerry isn’t the president of the United States.” 🎤🇨🇳🇺🇸
That moment of sharp relief, a standoff with a stubborn foreign official by a young American president who was still finding his way, comes to life in a new oral history project on the Obama administration released on Wednesday. 🗣️📅🌐
Researchers interviewed 470 Obama administration veterans, critics, activists, and others who were in the middle of major events back then, including Mr. Obama and the first lady, Michelle Obama, collecting a total of 1,100 hours of recordings. 🎙️👥⏱️
“There will be many new insights that come from this study, many of which will change our understanding of the Obama presidency and the period from 2008 to 2016 more generally,” said Peter Bearman, the founder of Incite and the head investigator for the Obama oral history project. 🧠📈📖
Oral histories of past presidencies have become valuable resources for historians and researchers in recent decades. The Miller Center at the University of Virginia has conducted similar projects dating back to Jimmy Carter’s presidency. The Columbia project was organized with the support of the Obama Foundation. 🎓📚🌍
The focus on climate change in the first set of interviews also highlights the larger trade-offs Mr. Obama had to make between competing priorities. For example, he postponed major legislative action on climate change in favor of health care at the start of his tenure in 2009, possibly dooming chances for the sweeping measure he would eventually support. 🌍⚖️💊
By the time he turned his attention to a clean energy plan in the form of a cap-and-trade system that would create market incentives to reduce greenhouse emissions, Mr. Obama’s political capital had been spent. The bill he advocated passed the House but not the Democratic-controlled Senate. 💵🏛️📉
“With Obama, I was just so absolutely hopeful,” remembered Carol M. Browner, his White House coordinator for energy and climate change policy. “I just felt like, we’re finally here on climate change. And we were. Then the Senate would never take up the bill.” 🏛️💔🌳
The oral history organizers made sure to interview those who did not agree with what Mr. Obama was doing, like Bill McKibben, a longtime environmental activist and writer who helped found 350.org, a global grassroots organization. 🎤🌍🌲
“But his advisers insisted that Mr. Obama did care and said he regretted his early failures. Just before stepping out into the East Room of the White House in 2015 to announce his Clean Power Plan imposing caps on power plant carbon emissions, he told Gina McCarthy, his Environmental Protection Agency chief and later Mr. Biden’s climate adviser, that he was determined to take action for the sake of his two daughters. 🏦👨👧👧💪
“I promised to do something on climate,” he told her. “I didn’t get it delivered in my first term. And this is so meaningful.” 💬🌍💡
So, this is the history we are being presented with now, folks. It’s full of the choices, actions, and events Obama had to navigate during his time as president. 🤔📚🇺🇸
