I do not think that the media should continue the disastrous policy of giving the president a pass under the guise of wanting to be helpful to the administration or "doing everything possible to make sure this administration succeeds," as Chris Matthews promised. The Iraq war sailed through with little resistance from the public. Journalists were fired for refusing to be boosters for that invasion and now the journalists who went along with it are whining about how they were forced to parrot everything the Bush administration said.

It is time that the media stop trying to make news. Chris Matthews is one of the worst offenders. Not only did he shirk his duty as a reporter, he went so far with his cheering on of the invasion of Iraq by talking about how sexy George Bush looked in that "Mission Accomplished" flight suit, how Bush was the new Ernest Hemingway because he could throw a ball from the pitcher's mound to a catcher, he said that only left wing nuts do not like Bush and support the invasion of Iraq. His man crush on Bush was a bit extreme, but he was not the only one who helped ostracize and marginalize those who were outspoken about the truth of the occupation. Now the media are in full support of bashing the war, but they are not acknowledging their complicity.

Regardless of how much people love Obama, he will take charge of the executive branch and he needs to be held to account in a way that Bush wasn't. Doing Obama a favor is not the same thing as doing the public a favor. We need honest reporting, not deference to Obama. I am not saying that the media should bash Obama in order to make up for giving Bush an easy ride for the majority of his two terms. I am saying that they owe the people honest reporting.

Obama ran for president and he won. He should be expected to do his job competently from the moment he takes office. An enduring part of his campaign was that this country is in deep trouble and its problems require immediate attention. I could not agree more. The financial markets, the housing market, failing industries, military occupations on two fronts, and the energy crisis will not wait until the media decide that Obama should be expected to perform competently. Naturally, Obama will not be able to fix everything all at once, but he has sold people on the idea that he has what it takes and that he has sufficient experience and knowledge to be ready on Day 1. He should be held to that promise.

I wish Obama would use his term to push for the end to the ghettoizing of womens' health care and a new era of the rights of gay people. Since Obama's victory is hailed as the culmination of years of struggling for equal opportunity for blacks. Many white people who had little to gain by black people getting equal rights put themselves in harm's way and risked being social outcasts. High black voter turnout in California for Obama is thought to be one reason why Proposition 8 passed. As a black woman, a black gay woman at that, I am ashamed that my people would not only refuse to stand up for the rights of others, but would actually vote to codify discrimination. I know Obama said that he was not in favor of Prop. 8, but I feel that he could have been more vocal about his opposition and urged his supporters to reject anti-gay ballot initiatives. But, Obama has said that he is against gay people having the right to marry, so maybe he was actually in favor of Prop. 8. If he feels that he has a mandate to be a progressive, then I wish that he would move to repeal DOMA, Don't Ask, Don't Tell, the Solomon Amendment (which, as a Columbia alum, he should know would force our campus to have the ROTC when so many students do not want it there and forced law schools to let the JAG Corps to recruit on campus).

Obama should move to repudiate his position on FISA, which is a decidedly anti-progressive measure. He should urge the repeal of the Patriot Act. He should close Gitmo. And, he should instigate war crimes investigations against members of the military and the Bush administration. If the International Court of Justice wants to try Bush & Co. for war crimes, Obama should not block it. If he has a mandate, then he should act on it and restore our position in the world.