Obama's New Year's message reminds everyone we've got a lot of work to do in 2019
Barack Obama doesn't have to say much to inspire the masses. A simple message like the one the former president tweeted on New Year's Day often does the trick.
"In 2018 people stepped up and showed up like never before," Obama wrote. "Keep it up in 2019. We've got a lot of work to do, and I'll be right there with you. Happy New Year, everybody!"
The replies are exactly what you'd expect, ranging from "Thank you for keeping your voice out there to give us a little bit of hope" to "It soothes my soul to hear from you, our last sane leader" to "You, sir, are a breath of fresh air."
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Though Obama didn't share a detailed list of what he hopes liberals can accomplish in 2019, one can only imagine it includes ending the government shutdown, denying President Trump funding for his border wall, tackling climate change, enacting federal gun safety legislation, and fielding strong contenders for the 2020 presidential election.
Even with Obama's promise that he'll be "right there with" people, that's quite the slog ahead. And it feels particularly daunting to notice the contrast between Obama's feel-good message and the barrage of New Year's tweets from Trump, including a classic all caps post that began, "HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE, INCLUDING THE HATERS AND THE FAKE NEWS MEDIA!"
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In the same tweet, Trump also directed those "SUFFERING FROM TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME" to "JUST CALM DOWN AND ENJOY THE RIDE." Of course, because this is the internet, the phrase "calm down and enjoy the ride" began trending on Twitter, thanks in part to Trump critics who pointed out why it's beyond bizarre to hear a president embrace that mantra as a governing philosophy.
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If we're choosing between "We've got a lot of work to do, and I'll be right there with you," and "JUST CALM DOWN AND ENJOY THE RIDE," we'll take the former any day.
Rebecca Ruiz is a Senior Reporter at Mashable. She frequently covers mental health, digital culture, and technology. Her areas of expertise include suicide prevention, screen use and mental health, parenting, youth well-being, and meditation and mindfulness. Rebecca's experience prior to Mashable includes working as a staff writer, reporter, and editor at NBC News Digital and as a staff writer at Forbes. Rebecca has a B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College and a masters degree from U.C. Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism.
