Barack Obama: ‘The Jury’s Still Out’ — America a ‘Possibility’

Former President Barack Obama on Thursday wrote about the ongoing debate among leftists in the Democrat party over America’s founding ideals and the future of the country.

The former president published an updated excerpt from his book in the Atlantic ahead of Tuesday’s release date of volume one of his memoirs A Promised Land.

He cited the ongoing struggle in American history over slavery and racial division, the Civil War, voting rights, women’s rights, gay rights, and immigrants as proof that the country would continue fighting over divisive issues.

“At the heart of this long-running battle is a simple question: Do we care to match the reality of America to its ideals?” he asked, questioning whether the ideals of self-government and equality before the law still existed in the country or whether the system was set up for the privileged few.

The president acknowledged voices within the Democrat party who believed it was “time to discard the myth” of America and realize it as a “racial caste system and rapacious capitalism” and a society that was “rigged” against minorities.

He even questioned his own presidency, noting that he might have reserved his own inhibitions and feelings in order to appeal to what Lincoln described as the “better angels” of human nature.

“I don’t know. What I can say for certain is that I’m not yet ready to abandon the possibility of America — not just for the sake of future generations of Americans but for all of humankind,” he wrote.

Obama indicated he was encouraged about the future of America by the results of the 2020 presidential election.

“The jury’s still out. I’m encouraged by the record-setting number of Americans who turned out to vote in last week’s election, and have an abiding trust in Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, in their character and capacity to do what is right,” he wrote.