Obama's First 100 Days: My 10 Favorite Moments

White House Adviser David Axelrod called today the "journalistic equivalent of a Hallmark holiday," which may be true, but it's still a good way to take the pulse of the new administration. It's been a momentous time for America and our new president, who has restored the faith of many in our nation and our government. Here are my personal picks for the top 10 moments from the first 100 days in office:

10. Gifting an iPod to the Queen of England. The Obamas are officially the hippest couple to ever occupy the White House. Never mind that the First Lady put her arm around the queen (gasp!).

9. Setting a date for troop withdrawal from Iraq: Aug. 31, 2010. Enough said.

8. Appointing people who know what they're doing to the administration. See: Nobel Prize winner and Energy Secretary Steven Chu; Commerce Secretary Gary Locke (a third attempt to fill the seat, but nonetheless a great choice); Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; et al.

7. Encouraging Americans to participate in their government, including opening up both the White House and the office of the Secretary of State for questions. For the first time in a long while, the administration is actually is paying attention to what the nation has to say.

6. Visiting foreign nations. (Iraq, Afghanistan, Russia, France, Germany, Turkey, etc.) It's so great to see the mostly positive response when Obama travels abroad. Oh, Canada, too. How could I forget Canada?

5. Pledging 3 percent of the GDP for science R&D.

4. Bo the dog. This cute little Portuguese Water Dog garnered more press coverage than nearly everything else on this list.

3. Economic Stimulation, to the tune of $787 billion, with $55 billion designated for the Green Sector.

2. Signing an executive order mandating that the CIA close Gitmo within the next year.

1. January 20, 2009. Quite possibly the best day of my 25 years alive. Here's an excerpt from an email my father sent me on Inauguration Day that I think sums up the cross-generational significance of this inauguration:

For those of us that are slightly older and lived through the sixties it also has a extremely profound meaning that is becoming clearer. Being of the age you are now, we watched many of our youthful heroes like JFK and Bobby, and especially Dr. King, be taken from us at their peak. They were the ones who we thought could make the changes we knew were so necessary and overdue. It was obviously so wrong for all those years that people were discriminated against for their color and always so unacceptable. But the absolute finality of the success of the civil rights movement never really came until Tuesday night.

Honorable mentions:

Advocating for High Speed Rail system.

The emergence of sports as an integral part of the daily regime. Tossing footballs around the oval office, picking the UNC Tar Heels as the winner of the NCAA tourney, and perfecting his short game on the White House putting green, among others.

What are your favorite moments from the first 100 days? Let us know in the comments section.

Originally posted at TakePart.

Follow Adriana Dunn on Twitter: www.twitter.com/adrianadunn

Comments

[DenverGinger]

Perhaps now we have accomplished all of these important things (like getting a dog and giving the Queen an ipod), we can stop treating him like a powerful political figure head not a celebrity. I supported Obama from the beginning. I may even have appreciated seeing him in a swimsuit. Now we need to hold him accountable for all of the REAL tough decissions he will and has made.

[Doric]

But Obama’s first 100 days have made clear the right-wing character of his administration and the class interests it serves.
In foreign policy, Obama has continued the militarist and aggressive thrust of the Bush administration’s policies. Obama has not only expanded the war in Afghanistan, but, in violation of international law, extended it to neighboring Pakistan. His budget proposal includes the largest appropriation for military spending in history.
In the name of “moving on,” Obama has sought to block any investigation, much less criminal prosecution, of those in the Bush administration and the spy agencies and military who ordered and carried out torture against detainees.
Obama’s response to the financial crisis has been to appropriate hundreds of billions of dollars in public funds and hand them over to the finance industry. The central focus of his actions and pronouncements has been to reassure Wall Street of his determination to protect its wealth and power.
After only 100 days of the new administration, workers and youth are coming face to face with the fact that Obama represents no change from the anti-working class, anti-democratic and militaristic polices of his predecessor. His presidency has already established the impossibility of effecting real change in government policy by means of elections within the framework of the existing two-party system, or through appeals to the Democratic Party.

[NCRedhead]

Wow...I don't agree with everything he's done either, but you sure are selectively forgetting many good steps he has taken. To say that he represents "no change" from Bush's positions is almost as sad as Limbaugh's statements.

[MelanieMatthias]

I have so many favorites it would be so hard to pick! I love our First Family so vey much!

The dance to "AT LAST!
Our First Lady feeding the hungry!
Wiping out bush orders!
How patient he is with the press, when they clearly don't understand that times have changed and he is honest and real!
The beautiful pictures that make me so proud!
The happy, safe feeling I have every day and every night!
The kitchen garden!
That smile!
The feeling I have whenever I see one of the campaign team or SS hanging out with him!

[Opygollopy]

Well said.

[Json]

I mostly agree with 1-9, but giving the queen of england an Ipod? and didn't he also give the canadian prime minister a bunch of DVD's?
I think he has been a pretty darn good president so far, but he is something of a cheesy gift-giver.

[MossyOak]

Yes, but the Queen loves iPods and he filled it with some of her speeches and photos of her past visits to America. It was a very thoughtful, personal gift and she seemed as enchanted with him and Michele. Making friends and giving gifts is good.

[HowieJames]

My favorite moment was the first address to a joint session of congress , when it all sank in ~~~

[silverball]

....i sometimes need to pinch myself....­for almost 5 decades, after going through the kennedy/nixon 1960 election campaign and the rest to follow, i'm stunned we have such a thoughtful president and first lady.....a­fter so many years of sheer arrogance (the last 8 being the worst)....­partisan politics (taking off like a rocket with bill clinton and lasting through that ENTIRE presidency!!!) and over the top after the 1994 and newt and the america's contract propoganda and the bug man, delay...(w­hy isn't he in jail yet???)...­..finally.­....FINALL­Y....someo­ne for WE THE PEOPLE....­understand­ing it as the founding fathers intended and lincoln personifie­s.....the first family is truly that and so authentic and genuine...­.pinch....

[rmajh5]

What a difference a year makes. In 2008, the man answering the questions posed by journalists looked very much like George W. Bush and left many of us shaking our heads in bewilderment. But today in 2009, the man answering the questions? Well, from my perspective, this guy named Obama sounds like a thoughtful and intelligent guy. Which doesn't mean that he is about to convince everyone in America that his ideas are the right ones with which to go. Even I am not at that point where I can claim Obama's done the job. But he sounds like he has a clear perspective on what needs to be done to bring America back and he has convinced me that we in America are right to give him enough time to prove his bona fides.

What a difference a year makes.