In 2008 Barack Obama won the hearts of the under-30 crowd with his celebrity-appeal and the promise of hope and change. Young people fell in love with the idea of voting for the first African American president that would bring about a better future–more jobs, cheaper health care for all, and more affordable college costs.
It’s now four years later and are young Americans better off? No. But that hasn’t stopped Hollywood superstars like Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Katy Perry from campaigning for the president.
That’s why Students Against Barack Obama, a project of American Majority Action, created this video, “Forever Young: Obama’s Great Youth Depression,” to depict the fiscal reality young Americans are living in. We chose the song “Forever Young” by Jay-Z–one of Obama’s top celebrity fundraisers–to show that president Obama’s policies are leading Young Americans down the path of dependency and eternal childhood.
Young adults–or as Obama would call them, “kids under 26”–on the verge of starting their lives want freedom and adulthood, yet Obama’s policies have left half of young Americans stranded in their parents’ homes.
Young people simply can’t afford the costs of living under this president. Obamacare increases the cost of youth health care plans by 45 percent, tuition and fees for four-year public universities have increased by 20 percent, and gas prices have more than doubled.
And, young people can’t find the jobs after college to cover the increased costs. Under President Obama, youth unemployment has averaged 17.5 percent””worse than under Jimmy Carter and far worse than the oft-blamed George W. Bush. A total of 397,000 youth jobs have been lost and income for young Americans has dropped 6 percent.
Young Americans have never been more economically miserable than the last four years, yet that isn’t stopping the president from pandering to them””he needs their vote. Young Americans must be smarter than to believe in Obama’s bogus promises again. He has had four years to lead America into recovery and has failed.
In a few weeks young Americans have the opportunity to ensure they don’t get four more miserable years. They need a role model who will lead America into true recovery and back down the path of fiscal responsibility. Young Americans won’t see jobs, higher incomes, or more affordable costs unless they choose to fire Obama on November 6th.
By Celia Bigelow, Students Against Barack Obama (SABO). Celia –age 22–is the founder of Students Against Barack Obama, a project of American Majority Action. You can contact her at celia@am-action.org.
