The Eurozone and the Global Economy:
God forbid that the United States will but the toxic debt of the Eurozone.
From the moment that the Greek Tragedy took center stage, the leaders of the Eurozone should have pushed the Greeks out of the Eurozone. Their decision to coast along on easy retirement, lavish pensions, a burgeoning public sector, and tax evasion brought upon them the looming economic crisis which
Afghanistan:
Our leadership must get our troops out of Afghanistan, and right away. 2014 is the current drawn-down deadline.
The United States cannot "take a mulligan" on this issue, sadly, but there is no point in sinking more blood and treasure in that empire-graveyard. These wars, these military bases, our overstretched army must come to and end and come home right away.
The Debt and the Deficit:
Let the military sequester go through. Entitlements must receive real treatment, not just cosmetic touch-ups that give voters the painted impression that our leaders did something to offset the looming debt crisis eating up the investments forced upon our retired workforce.
Repeal ObamaCare. Louisiana, Texas, and Wisconsin are refusing to set up health insurance exchanges. More court challenges could be mounted, since the legislation was so prolix and overwhelmingly large, to begin with.
Education: President Obama had demonstrated the most leadership on this issue. He stood up to the teachers unions just enough by instituted "Race to the Top" and granted "No Child Left Behind" waivers. Vouchers, charters, and voluntary enrollment will open up options and engage choice, competition, innovation and excellence in our schools.
As for our colleges and universities, the United States needs to get out of the student loan business. The price of college has blossomed into a future of debt and setbacks. College graduates cannot find jobs, dragging behind them tens of thousands of dollars of debt. Public universities might need to consider public-private partnerships with major corporations or community investment.
The challenges here and abroad which started with the end of the Bush administration have continued under the four years of President Obama. The government gets bigger, the spending gets worse, and Americans feel no safer than they did from years past.