Obama’s legacy: Politics of anger, fights, division, by Anita Kumar.

Before he was even sworn into office, Obama proclaimed that his successful election itself had altered American politics. “Change has come to America,” he said the day he was elected president.

Now entering his final months in office, Obama acknowledges that he was not able to “fix our politics.” …

Instead, partisanship and dysfunction have grown worse. … Fist fights at campaign rallies. A major presidential candidate called a bigot and bully by members of his own party. And Americans downright pessimistic.

Republicans and Democrats refuse to compromise, sometimes even talk. Congress has become more unproductive with lawmakers failing to pass budgets or even consider presidential appointments. And most Americans have little to no confidence in the federal government to tackle the problems facing the nation in 2016…

There’s plenty of reasons for the dysfunction: millions of dollars of unaccountable money in politics; districts that ensure most lawmakers don’t face competition; parties that have become more extreme; highly partisan media outlets and an atmosphere that no longer stops campaigning for governing.

All that racial healing! Seriously, electing a community organizer with radical friends and a Muslim background, steeped in political correctness — it is hardly surprising. The old question arises: evil or stupid?