President Obama, for many students, is the first president they were able to vote into office. Rallying behind candidate Obama’s message of Hope and Change, many eager, young idealists envisioned a new era in American politics; unfortunately, it’s almost four years later and things look almost the same.

Our financial sector is broken and remains unfixed and there have been no attempts to reinstate common sense restrictions such as Glass-Steagall, which separated commercial and investment banking for decades and could have possibly prevented the financial meltdown had it not been repealed in 1999.

American soldiers continue to fight and die in both Iraq and Afghanistan, making these the longest two conflicts the U.S. has been involved in. As our country turns its eyes to Iran and the hawks in Washington begin to beat the drums of war, many students wonder if they will ever spend a day of their adult lives in peacetime.

Is there a foreseeable end to the War on Terror or is it a fight that our children and grandchildren will inherit?

Is the warrantless monitoring of American citizens under the Patriot Act and having unmanned drones in domestic airspace simply a feature of normalcy in the future?

More stimulus measures and bailouts are in the works for corporations, while college students suffer under the burden of student loans — debts many cannot afford because of their inability to find adequate work in this economy.

President Obama has made great strides on some social issues and his administration did nab bin Laden, but securing the youth vote this election will take leadership and concrete legislation to balance the budget, prevent inflation and improve the economy. We’re no longer interested in Hope, Mr. President, we are interested in having a future.