Ready for those "first 100 days" report cards? - By Tom Hayes

Summary:
Some reports suggest that despite numerous successes and his warm reception at the Summit of the Americas, U.S. President Barack Obama is under pressure to do more about Cuba in particular. Yet Hugo Chavez wants to be our friend, now, and Raul Castro has just made a speech in which he said that Cuba is ready to talk to the U.S. about virtually every topic, explicitly including political prisoners (one of the major sticking points for decades.)
When the inevitable flood of "first 100 days" summaries come out, the marks are going to be better than any in recent memory. There's a lot of work remaining, particularly on the President's big three priorities (Education, financial and economic reform featuring green jobs, and Health Care reform) but the Obama administration is clearly working in high gear. Most of the doom and gloom will come from domestic detractors, and much less from elsewhere in the western hemisphere where we're clearly seeing the result of Obama extending his hand in friendship.

Former harsh critics and foes see it as politically expedient to unclench their fists; cooperation is increasing for the first time in nearly a decade. In a time of unprecdented uncertainty, hope is flourishing abroad and at home.
Read the rest of the article at Democracy for America.