On November 4, 2008, Barack Obama was elected as the 44^th president of the United States. The country now looks forward to January 20, 2009 to see what he is going to do. Often a president’s success is predicted by his first 100 days, so as the country looks on to see what Obama is going to do, speculation is arising as to what those crucial days will be like.

Obama knows that he is coming to power in a country desperate for change and hopes the people realize that it may take more like 1000 days than 100 to make improvements.

Two things are for sure, he will be replacing the Bush Administration’s cabinet with his own, and he will be reviewing executive orders. An executive order is a type of law written by the executive branch that bypasses congress; however it can be removed or allowed to remain in effect by the next elected president.

 “I would call my attorney general in and review every single executive order issued by George Bush and overturn those laws or executive decisions that I feel violate the constitution,” Obama said while campaigning. One executive order that is predicted to be overturned is the ban on embryonic stem cell research that was passed by both the Bush presidents, but was discontinued during the Clinton administration. Other orders are sure to be changed, but it is impossible to say which.

On the campaign trail, Obama advocated the removal of troops from Iraq and he will be expected to lay out a clear plan on how he intends to do so. During his campaign, John McCain said that he wouldn’t mind 100 more years in Iraq, and Obama used that to state a clear plan to exit. His website reads “The removal of our troops will be responsible and phased.”

 A large part of his plan is preparing the Iraqi government to be ready to rule themselves in a fair and democratic manner, so that when the troops finally are removed, Iraq will be stable enough to support itself.

As a key factor in his victory it is assumed that Barack will do something to tackle America’s struggling economy, and find ways to stop unnecessary wastes of money. With the Lehman Brother collapse, the take over of Frannie Mae and Freddy Mac, and the 700 billion dollar bailout, Americans want a change that they hope to see soon. Obama intends to cut taxes on nearly 95 percent of all Americans, and while that may not be put into action in his first days, it is expected that a plan will come out on how to implement it.

Obama has stated that with his first 100 days he would like to produce a national health care plan. In 2005, the latest government data available, almost 47 million Americans were without health care and it is Obama’s intention to do something about that promptly. “We need a bill…by March or April…” Obama’s campaign, said. It is crucial to get it out quickly so the people can have a strong positive outlook on the future of Obama’s presidency.

As the world prepares for Obama’s presidency there is a guessing game of what will be done and when things will start to change.  But with his promise for change, America is expecting to see something different in the next few months.