Johnson: President Obama leaves a lasting legacy of leadership, deep pride in GA-04
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04) today released the following statement as President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama prepare to leave office after two terms in the White House:
"I'm honored to have had a front-row seat for the historic presidency of our first Black President Barack Obama," said Johnson, whose decade in Congress has nearly paralleled President Obama's time at 1600 Pennsylvania.
"History will show that President Obama's steady leadership helped steer our economy out of ditch from the time when job losses were more than 750,000 per month, the bottom was dropping out of the housing market, and Wall Street was close to bankruptcy.
"Today, we've seen 82 consecutive months of job growth with 15.7 million private sector jobs created, the unemployment rate has fallen to below 5 percent, the auto industry was saved, 30 million more Americans have health insurance today than eight years ago and hundreds of thousands of people have saved their homes from foreclosure thanks to programs put forth by the President. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act guaranteeing women equal pay for equal work and marriage equality are the law of the land Don't Ask Don't Tell is not.
"President Obama ended the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, kept us out of war in Libya and Syria while peacefully removing the chemical weapons stockpile of the Assad regime, led the P5+1 nuclear accord which prevented Iran from attaining a nuclear weapons capability, removed Osama bin Laden from the battlefield, and led the way to the attainment of the Paris Climate Accord, which provides a road map to saving the planet from the dire consequences of climate change.
"I can say unequivocally and without hesitation that the vast majority of my constituents love the President and First Lady. They respect them not just for what they were able to achieve, but for the class and dignity they showed despite often ugly opposition and outright hostility. While they will be sorely missed in Georgia's District 4, the legacy of the Obamas will only grow in our hearts and minds."
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