Obama’s ‘Arts Agenda’

During the 2008 campaign many of my earnest and passionate friends on the left kept bludgeoning me with the same mantra:  ”Obama is the first Presidential candidate to have an ARTS AGENDA!”  This fact seemed to make him immune from any other criticism with regard to minor issues like the economy or the war on terror.  Whether the “Arts Agenda” was actually significant or effective or even a good idea seemed beside the point.  Obama cared about artists and my friends in the theatre had spent way too long feeling neglected by their president.

To be sure, Candidate Obama did put forth an “Arts Agenda” which mostly consisted of increased funding for the NEA and health care for independent artists who work from project to project outside of a normal, W-2 type of job.  At the moment, the all-important “Art Agenda” is no longer found on the still-active campaign website, but it did exist at one time, and you hear reference to this President’s “Arts Agenda” cropping up in all discussions in the artistic community including the infamous NEA conference calls from last month. (more…)