Obama among the most consequential US presidents

In a recent Vox article, Dylan Matthews calls President Obama "one of the most consequential presidents in American history." The observation was reportedly first made by renowned economist Paul Krugman in Rolling Stone last year, and it is being echoed by political observers who cite Obama's long list of achievements since taking office.

He will likely best be known for implementing the national system of health insurance called the Affordable Care Act, a measure opponents dubbed "Obamacare." Though the law had large gaps and the initial rollout was plagued with problems, Obama succeeded in enacting legislation that several of his predecessors, including Truman, Kennedy, and Nixon, could not.

The president also helped the country avert a sustained economic crisis by rolling out The Recovery Act of 2009, and in a related action, drove reforms on Wall Street to safeguard against the behaviors that contributed to the crisis.

See President Obama throughout his tenure in the White House:

Additional domestic initiatives have included repealing the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy against homosexuals in the military, fighting for wage equality, pledging reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, and ensuring that millions of undocumented immigrants do not get deported.

In terms of foreign affairs, he has opened diplomatic talks with Cuba, agreed to a tentative nuclear deal with Iran, and sent the orders that successfully killed Osama bin Laden. While everyone may not agree with the direction of his policies, most would acknowledge that Obama succeeded in accomplishing many notable goals.