"Obama could have been a great, popular and heroic president"

[Better Believe It]

Weekend Edition
November 6-8, 2009

Chump Change
Can You Hear Us Now?
By DAVID MICHAEL GREEN

David Michael Green is a professor of political science at Hofstra University in New York


Obama is one of the most articulate politicians in American history. And yet, his communications strategy is the absolute worst I’ve seen since Carter. In fact, what’s most stunning about it is that his team seems to have dismissed all the lessons learned over the last three decades – especially from masterful Republican administrations – about how to market presidents and policies from the White House. This is no longer rocket science, if it ever was. How can a guy this sharp be so clueless and, thus, adrift?

Obama is also one of the smartest people ever to sit in the Oval Office, but he has demonstrated astonishing levels of cluelessness about what the public wants, about the nature of his opposition, and about what makes a presidency successful. He doesn’t understand that the public will follow you if you lead them, especially if you do so with passion. He doesn’t get that the conservative movement is a lethal cancer seeking to commodify, monetize and profitize every aspect of America, and therefore is committed to the destruction of all else, including this administration, despite even that it is essentially staffed by Goldman Sachs. He doesn’t understand that the most successful American presidents were the ones who brought a vision to the table, and fought for it.

Obama could be Lincoln – or better still, FDR – if he wanted to be. He has chosen instead to be Buchanan. Faced with crisis scenario after crisis scenario, the candidate of ‘change’ repeatedly and instinctively homes in on the weakest, most centrist, most useless response possible. His stimulus bill probably stopped the economy from continuing its free fall, but it leaves the country stuck in months or even years of unyielding recession at worst, and jobless recovery at best. His healthcare bill helps in some important ways, but does nothing to hold down costs in a society that utterly wastes one dollar out of every three it spends in this area, and it does nothing to make healthcare more affordable for most Americans. He seems to have some interest in a global warming bill and a banking regulation bill and maybe even doing something about civil rights for gays. But in none of these areas is there any sense that he will do what is morally necessary. Likewise, with Afghanistan, all the indicators seem to suggest that he will opt for some numbingly anodyne middle ground.

The guy is a leaky bucket at a time when the boat has been swamped. He’s an pressureless fire hose when the house is in flames. A tattered parachute when the ground is coming up fast. A rusty musket as the Huns come over the ridge. At a time when America needs a bold, powerful and wise leader in the White House – principally to undo the damage of the bold, powerful and sociopathic guy who was just in there – we have instead Mr. Rogers’ pet gerbil. Complete with cardigan sweater and barbiturate-laced water supply. Obama seems to want nothing more than to be liked. In the neighborhood called Earth.

It didn’t have to be this way. He could have been both a great president, a popular president, and a heroic president. All he had to do was be willing to treat the people who already hate his guts as political enemies. All he had to do was be willing to treat the people who live to fleece the country as treasonous thieves. All he had to do was to speak clearly, act boldly, and lead a broken country down the bright shining path toward repair that is obvious to anyone who is willing to look. But since that group excludes most Americans right now, this notion of bold leadership is especially essential.

He doesn’t get that people want leadership from the president, that they absolutely demand that in a time of crisis, and that they will drop you like so much depleted uranium if you don’t bring it during a time of big, multiple crises. Like now. This guy is fast wearing out his welcome.

Please read the complete article at:

http://www.counterpunch.org/green11062009.html

[liberal N proud]

1. Can we see what the rest of his Presidency offers FIRST?

My God, they burying his administration while it is still young.

:wtf:

[izquierdista]

13. I'll give you a preview

Three more mushy years, just like this one.

[phantom power]

24. +1

[FrenchieCat]

34. -2

[phantom power]

37. en guarde -- +3 !

[FrenchieCat]

43. + 1 Magic Negro......

Coming up...as soon as I figure out if such a phenomenon exists!

















Just checked.
Not it doesn't. :eyes:

[DRoseDARs]

183. a/0 Point, set, match. Your move...

...oh wait you can't. Divided by zero, universe imploded.



;)

[tblue]

40. The best indicator of future performance is past performance.

People waiting for The Real Obama to pop out of a cake are gonna be waiting a long time.

I read his autobiography. I did not find one iota of speaking truth to power, of boldness, of fight. None. What we see is what we get.

I like him, but I sure hope he grows into the job.

[NYCGirl]

47. No "boldness" or "fight"? He's a black man who is President of the United States,

for God's sake! You don't think that took some boldness or fight?

And, he was the first black president of the Harvard Law Review. I'm sure that took some boldness.

[tblue]

70. Because he's black, we should lower expectations??? He gets a pass???

We can't judge him by the job he does or the content of his character?

That, my dear, is the soft bigotry of low expectations. I expect a lot of him regardless of his skin color.

[NYCGirl]

71. I'm talking about achieving amazingly DIFFICULT THINGS through boldness

and fight. You don't think what he did was difficult?

[tblue]

76. Of course it was. I just want him to fight for US as hard as he fought to get elected.

I think he owes us that. Don't you?

[NYCGirl]

79. Campaigning and governing are two different things. The GOP is great at

campaigning, but they can't govern. We don't want to imitate that.

[Dreamer Tatum]

147. +1 and YES, well said, and TRUE

[treestar]

191. Do you expect anything of anyone else, or do you pin your hopes

entirely on the President? You're the kind that the right wing rightfully (can't believe it, but your forcing me into it) says thought Obama was "the Messiah." Now that you see he's human, you're "disappointed."

And you're deflecting. A black man who manages to get elected President did have to have more going for him and to work harder for it than a white man. Are you pretending complete equality has been reached?

[Doremus]

171. I think for him, an act of boldness or several acts of boldness of the kind

necessary to extricate us from the quagmire, would be his death sentence.

Sorry to say but I think he's being allowed to continue only because he's NOT bulldozing.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

51. Your avatar is my favorite on DU.

Every time I see you post I fight the urge to post about your avatar.
I lost that fight today :(

[tblue]

82. Thank you! He makes me smile every time I look at him.

Assuming he's a he.

[Fire1]

55. I voted for a president not a martyr. You don't need a different

kind of president. You need a different system of government.

[tblue]

65. Could be.

[Cha]

66. You know shit.

[izquierdista]

93. And I see a lot of it

Mostly of the 'bull-' variety.

[Hutzpa]

96. It must be disconcerting for you and your ilks

having him in that White House...right? :shrug:

[izquierdista]

112. Less disconcerting than having Dimbulb Dubya in

I was hoping the "Change I could believe in" was going to be more than incremental.

I'm still disconcerted that Goldman Sachs is STILL running the Treasury Department, troops are STILL in Iraq and Afghanistan, and DADT is STILL on the books.

[Hutzpa]

122. Maybe McCain/Palin would have shut down Goldman Sachs,

provides jobs for millions of Americans, pass the Health care bill, fix DADT, DOMA,
bring the troops home, close Guantanamo. They could have fixed everything by now.

It's a shame you voted for Obama, right, and you didn't voted for this right(?) how
dare he takes this much time when McCain could have done all of these in 6 months.

[izquierdista]

123. Blinded

You have been staring too long at the sun shining out of Obama's ass.

[Hutzpa]

132. Resorting to vulgarity, I see....

how more pathetic can you get?

[treestar]

189. LOL

McCain would have caught binLaden by now and won both wars and have started to bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran by now!

[GCP]

155. +2

[atreides1]

19. Why wait?

The last time we waited, we got two wars, the patriot act, which by the way is still the law of the land, tax relief for people who didn't need it, a crappy economy, and a myriad of screw ups.

I don't want to wait, I'd like to see something now, the stimulus isn't working like it was supposed to, banks are being shut down, people are losing their homes, and health care seems to have been stopped by a vocal minority.

How long do we wait??

[Better Believe It]

35. We're keeping our powder dry for when we really need it.

[FrenchieCat]

39. Well, you will just have to wait.....

cause that's how it works.

It took a long time to get to where we are,
and I certainly didn't elect Obama thinking
he was going to pull a rabbit out of his ass
and kiss the national booboo and make it all better.

There is a reason Bush was a giant failure....
part of it is that there was lasting damage done.
Lasting means it can't be made to go away by simply
going to the polls, or by snapping your fingers.

If it was that easy, we wouldn't have cared so much
about the destructive policies put into place by the Bush admin
in the first place.

[Armstead]

62. The destructive policies put in place by Reagan/Bush1 AND Clinton befofre W

That is a core problem that the democratic leadership -- including Obama -- either fail to recognize or ignore.

Jobs and heavy industry are gone from America largely because of "free trade" globalization pushed by Bush 1 and Clinton. Wall Street collapsed the economy as a result of Clinton-era financial deregulation. Our economy has become concentrated in the hands of a few due to the willingness of Clinton to go along with mega mergers.

Just blaming republicans for the mess is only a partial answer. They had plenty of help from Democrats. It is time to stop that, and fight for the true reform that is needed.

[liberal N proud]

77. Maybe you would like more of the bu$h years?

[ej510]

84. You are who Green was talking about when he said,

when did being better than Bush was good enough.

[liberal N proud]

88. And those who complain about Obama will be responsible for the next

republican controlled government.

Isn't the M$M and the right wing bigots attacking Obama enough, that we have to attack everything he does as well?


:wtf:

[ej510]

109. Obama and the corporacrats will be responsible for that.

The blue dogs moving further to the right. If you act like a repuke the people will elect the real thing.

[Dr Fate]

186. "Centrists" never take personal responsibility for their constant failures.

They blame the "far left" boogie man, as usual.

[Dr Fate]

185. True in the sense that- Liberals always get blamed for centrist failures.

LOL! Liberals are always "responsible" for not backing up the centrists & conservatives who ignore and oppose them.

"Attacking" vs. disagreeing with or making strong demands on the people we got elected are not the same.

But dont worry, when the "centrist" strategy fails, as it always does, just blame those who dared to "complain" about that strategy.

[Fire1]

80. To hell with a "bank." The stimulus should have been much

larger, true enough. Health care has not been "stopped" and if there were more JOBS, people would still be in their homes.

[liberal N proud]

91. The stimulus would have been much larger and targeted people if

The GOP wasn't so loud and the M$M didn't feed the people full of the propaganda. Then add in the blue dogs.

Obama had no chance.

[Fire1]

113. I totally agree. They bitched about what we DID get. n/t

[Peregrine Took]

50. He didn't capitalize on his honeymoon period when the most daring

proposals can be put forward.

[tblue]

81. I think he saw what Clinton did with DADT and decided to proceed with extreme caution.

He either didn't have the confidence or he didn't have the will to do what we wanted him to do. I think there was a huge opportunity lost, as you said.

[Cha]

73. Yeah, but look at the ones who

are doing the "burying".. The perpetually disgruntled who wouldn't know something good if it were standing right in front of them.

The ones who always want what they can't have so they bring their whining hate to crap on the good fortune of America.

They'll be pissing and moaning for 8 years.

[dionysus]

102. "The ones who always want what they can't have so they bring their whining hate" +10

[impik]

107. No, i will not read the rest of this crap

Such a load of BS.

[TwilightGardener]

2. Those four years went by so fast, I didn't even realize they happened--

wait, what year is this?

[jezebel]

3. Am I in Freeperville? nt

[tblue]

72. Yes, you either love everything Obama does or you're a Freeper.

Come on. We're adults here.

[dionysus]

95. ok, an adult would realize the OP is a clown who posts 3+ smear pieces a day

it has nothing to do with "you either love everything Obama does or you're a Freeper." when the person posts against the guy 100% of the time.

[polichick]

101. Wiser to stop demonizing the messenger and READ the article. nt

[dionysus]

114. i read that pile of steaming shit. you can side with one of the most obvious trolls DU has ever had

if it validates your continuing distaste for the adminstration. god he is playing you guys for suckers.

[polichick]

115. I don't pay attention to the poster, but the post. I agree with the points made...

...in this article.

[salguine]

131. If it were up to me, anyone on DU who ever again uses the word "freeper" on

anyone who doesn't completely agree with them would get tombstoned for it. Same goes for "troll".

[BklnDem75]

181. If I had super powers...

I'd fly on a cloud pony so I wouldn't have to wait for Obama to give me mine. :sighs:

[uponit7771]

4. My goodness, ...

[Gidney N Cloyd]

5. "masterful Republican administrations" ?

I'll give Reagan his due as 'The Great Communicator' but over 30 years, that's...one.

[Better Believe It]

17. Read the complete article so that you can understand the writers points.

Your comment is in reference to this?

"Obama is one of the most articulate politicians in American history. And yet, his communications strategy is the absolute worst I’ve seen since Carter. In fact, what’s most stunning about it is that his team seems to have dismissed all the lessons learned over the last three decades – especially from masterful Republican administrations – about how to market presidents and policies from the White House."

"Americans want their leaders to lead, oddly enough. Voters are incredibly lazy about understanding politics, in between their bouts of rage at the lousy politicians selected by those darned... lazy voters. That laziness means that they will follow you if you lead. They’ll even follow you, for a while anyhow, if you’re ideas are insane. George W. Bush is the paradigmatic case. Americans didn’t want the war in Iraq. They didn’t really even want the massive tax cuts. But he hammered those policies home, using every technique of the bully pulpit to masterful effect, and he got what he wanted, even when he lacked a majority in Congress. He might have gotten his Social Security theft bill through Congress as well, had he not already established himself to the electorate as a liar and a disaster-inducing idiot. (Bush should get on his knees and thank Darwin that he failed on that front. Seniors would likely be lynching him now if his bill had passed.)"

[Richardo]

6. Wow, his term's over already?

OK, bring in the next guy! Or gal!

Does David Michael Green post in GD-P? He should, he'd feel right at home.

[ej510]

7. Obama has been weak, the repukes and corporacrats have punked him at

every turn. He has no backbone whatsoever at least he hasn't yet. I see no fight or desire in his eyes.

[Captain Hilts]

26. I think that has happened a couple of times. But I think he has a learning curve. nt

[dionysus]

103. ROFL you see what you want to see, i'll tell you that.

:rofl:

[Aramchek]

8. once again you choose not to follow posting rules just to lash out at Obama

lame.

[ej510]

23. I know some here believe being critical of the President is hating

him, but it is not we want him to succeed. We do not want him to half ass it on every piece of legislation instead fighting for the right piece of legislation. compromise on most things, but fight for the most important. He needs to stand firm for something.

[Aramchek]

36. BS. the OP has it out for Obama regardless of what he does

his postings are meant to attack and offend.

[azmouse]

44. +1

[ej510]

49. His postings are meant to hold Obama accountable.

[Aramchek]

52. ridiculous! Obama doesn't read DU. The posts are flames for those who support Obama here

you know, the majority?

it's an extremely petty Modus Operandi, and I'm a little surprised it's been going on as long as it has.

[Laelth]

57. David Michael Green's credibility as a leftist (a progressive) are not in question here.

Barack Obama's policies are.

:dem:

-Laelth

[Baltoman991]

59. Bullshit!!!

His post here and all his other posts are OPINION pieces, written by those who never stood nor ever will stand with Obama during this fight.


His posts, along with the OPINION pieces posted daily from him, are written by those bitter souls who instead of holding Congress responsible for this bullshit, hold Obama responsible for not becoming a dictator.

In short, his posts and the OPINION pieces he posts daily are written by people with pure hatred in their hearts for all things Obama.

[dionysus]

90. i'll celebrate when he gets the well earned 'stone

[Egnever]

195. +1

[dionysus]

97. ROFL

:spray: if you beleive that, i have a bridge for sale...

[dionysus]

100. bullshit. and you're one of the ones who constantly say he sucks.

[dionysus]

104. how can he "half-ass" legislation written by the legislative branch? apparently you have no inkling

of how govt works. it's quite obvious.

[azmouse]

9. waaaaaah!

[TwilightGardener]

16. LOL!

[redqueen]

29. Hahahahahahaha

[Lord Helmet]

31. +1

[Peacetrain]

10. Oh geez.. out with the black crepe again..

[Better Believe It]

11. To the first 4 posters. Please read the article before you comment on it.

You surely didn't carefully read the entire article, or even brief excerpts, carefully in two minutes.

And after you have finished reading the article, I'd like to read your responses to the points raised by the author.

That's fair, don't ya think?

[dionysus]

106. no one buys your transparent act. jesus christ, you really think you fool anyone here?

all you do is toss read meat to the 5% of DU who never could and never will stand the guy.

[ShortnFiery]

12. Scary true and surprisingly hilarious: WTFU Obama and push a robust Public Option!

"At a time when America needs a bold, powerful and wise leader in the White House – principally to undo the damage of the bold, powerful and sociopathic guy who was just in there – we have instead Mr. Rogers’ pet gerbil. Complete with cardigan sweater and barbiturate-laced water supply. Obama seems to want nothing more than to be liked. In the neighborhood called Earth."

[Hello_Kitty]

14. Yeah, that's why a recent poll showed 40% think he's "too liberal"

While 7% think he's "too conservative".

[Better Believe It]

21. That's because, as the writer pointed out, Obama has allowed himself to be defined by Republicans!

" Obama, on the other hand, has allowed himself to be defined by others, not least of which including a now revived and revanchist Republican Party, blood dripping from its fangs, a very hungry look gleaming in its eye.

So, for example, most Americans now think Obama is a liberal, despite the fact that he is actually quite conservative (except if you count as liberal spending a ton of money to clean up the regressive right’s multifarious messes).

And most Americans do not consider themselves liberal."

[phantom power]

27. The final 3 paragraphs are good warning.

Where we go from here could be very, very ugly. The GOP right now is in the process of alienating and crushing every last scrap of moderately sensible politics from within its ranks. That means that American voters will very likely have the following choice in 2010 and 2012: On the one hand, a discredited do-nothing Democratic Party that promised change and didn’t deliver; and on the other, a rabid, ultra-regressive GOP that is itself promising change from the failed former would-be change-providers.

Before you guess who would win that contest, bear in mind that this is likely to be happening under still dire economic conditions and a shrinking national standard of living.

You may be forgiven for thinking that that scenario is all too reminiscent of a certain European country in the 1930s.

[phantom power]

15. "successful American presidents were the ones who brought a vision to the table, and fought for it"

:thumbsup:

[livetohike]

18. Read the whole article and this Green is an idiot

Anyone who resorts to calling a President who has been in office less than 10 months a fool, clueless and the myriad other analogies this writer makes doesn't deserve the time it took me to read this.

[earthside]

30. It's a warning ...

... dismiss Green's analysis at your own peril, Demcratic strategists and activists.

It is quite revealing that in just ten months in office, Obama and the Congressional Democrats have gone from the change agents to the "incumbent establishment."

The country wants much more change than Pres. Obama has ever completely understood ... and the alliance with Goldman Sachs is the nail that may indeed close the coffin in 2010.

With 10.2 percent unemployment and a deep recession continuing, if Obama and the Democrats in Congress don't get on the correct side with the people and propose some genuine, real, fundamental change for the economy, like busting up the mega-banks, then it is probable that 2010 will be a blood bath for Dems.

The point is don't wait until Obama is Pres. Buchanan -- heed the warning now.

[Better Believe It]

32. So you think all of us DU'ers were a bunch of idiots in 2001?

"Anyone who resorts to calling a President who has been in office less than 10 months a fool, clueless"

So those who called George W. Bush names early in his Presidency are also idiots according to you.

Well, that would include just about all of us on Democratic Underground, excepting yourself of course.

So in November of 2001 I suppose you rallied around Bush or at least had little or nothing negative to say about his Presidency and most certainly didn't call him any names .... after all, he had only stolen the Presidency for 10 months.

[redqueen]

41. "So those who called George W. Bush names early in his Presidency are also idiots according to you."

Um, no... because there's a difference between Obama and bush (despite the fact that some around here enjoy believing otherwise).


This article is a joke... thanks for the laugh. :)

[Aramchek]

53. what was your username in 2001? did it get tombstoned??

[Laelth]

58. +1 Good point. n/t

:dem:

-Laelth

[redqueen]

78. Hahahahaha...

God, that says so much.

[Laelth]

85. Glad you like the sig. line.

I have had to change it recently, I am sorry to say.

Peace.

:dem:

-Laelth

[redqueen]

89. I don't.

Here's a hint: read my reply to the post you referred to as a "good point".

[Laelth]

99. I am not your enemy, redqueen.

I am sorry if you wish to make me an enemy.

:dem:

-Laelth

[redqueen]

105. I don't consider people I disagree with to be 'enemies'.

I found your agreeing with what to me looks flatly laughable to be funny.

And then I corrected your misinterpretation of my laughing. That is all there is to it.

[Hutzpa]

152. YES YOU DO!

you sent me a private message, then block me because you didn't like my response.

Hell, you probably have put me on ignore so you're not going to see
this post....:rofl:


:hide:

[redqueen]

157. LOL... no I don't!

I just didn't want any more messages from you cause you were being MEAN!

*PTHBHTTHBHTHBHT!*

:P

[Hutzpa]

159. a truce...

:hide:

[redqueen]

163. You offer a glitter thingy as a truce?

:rofl:

So your method is to annoy people into a truce? Is that it? :7

[Hutzpa]

164. ok there you go

this might make you feel better,




or this;

[redqueen]

167. I like that second one...

the hair?/headpiece? on that top pic always freaks me out. It looks like a big hairclaw or soemthing. :scared:

Anyway... okay, truce. :hug:

[Hutzpa]

170. wooooooopeeee

:hug:

[dionysus]

92. well, you sure are now, so you probably were then.

[phantom power]

20. "In 2010 and again in 2012, they will be smashed by angry voters demanding that something be done"

Yep

[Name removed]

22. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[redqueen]

45. ...

:thumbsup:

[Captain Hilts]

25. I don't buy into this. Not so early. FDR was the Master and not a fair standard.

Different times, different standards.

[Autumn]

28. I miss the passion he had when he was the

candidate, I haven't seen that in his Presidency so far. I would like to see some opposition to the other side too. This has truly been a time of crises and I would like to see a little more urgency.

[azmouse]

42. Now that I can agree with a lttle bit.

I watched the show on Obama's rise to the Presidency yesterday and his speeches were amazing. I'd like to see a little more of that fire from him now.
That being said I really do think he's doing all he can and the strain of the job may not allow for such passion. Maybe a little restraint is a good thing right now. I just don't know.

[Autumn]

48. That show was amazing.

:thumbsup:

[impik]

176. His health care speech in congress was

One of his best speeches ever. You can't expect that a candidate, who is free from any weight on his shoulders and can just fly with the crowd, will be the same as a president. Especially a president who really have the whole world on his head, and he doesn't spend his days talking to huge enthusiastic crowds. You campaign in poetry, but you govern in prose. It's more true than ever.

[Beacool]

54. Campaigning is not the same as governing.

Carter also ran a good campaign. To me his myriad speeches were just that: speeches. I preferred a person who may not be as great a public speaker, but who is a hard worker, keeps her nose to the grindstone and has a steel set. Someone recently blogged in Huff that Hillary and Obama should have reversed jobs. She has what it takes to stand up to the Repugs and Congress, while his personality and conciliatory tone would have been put to great use as SOS.

[Autumn]

56. Right, there is a big difference,

I like Biden, but I do think Hillary would have been a better choice as VP. Yeah she is one tough lady and she would make a great President.:thumbsup:

[Beacool]

61. Yes, she would have and she should have!!

I got no beef with Joe, he's a nice guy. He would have been a good VP for Hillary too. I just thought that it was interesting what that blogger wrote at Huff, I had never thought of it myself. But Obama would have probably been a good SOS, he's patient and a good listener.

[Hutzpa]

134. Simple

CAMPAIGNING and GOVERNING are two different approach, entirely.
The sooner people realizes that the better it will be for their
hyper tension.

[Autumn]

139. Thanks for your concern,

but I don't have hyper tension.

[Hutzpa]

141. You may not

but those that constantly snide, whine and bicker are giving themselves
hyper tension, because things are not going to move any faster than they
are right now, the wheels of government turns very slow and especially
when the President is faced with forces who are determine to keep him
from achieving anything.

[Autumn]

143. What!! You mean to tell me that there are people

that constantly snide, whine and bicker on DU?:rofl: :rofl: I am shocked. This President can do a lot. He has the important people backing him up. But he has to do it and not play nicey poo with the enemy. He has capital, he should go shopping. edited to add a word.

[Hutzpa]

148. C'mon sweetheart

we know he has the right people backing him up, but according to DU, he is not doing enough,
McCain/Palin would have been a better deal than him and his smart folks, also according to
some we would have had everything Bush left him done by now, see...

[Autumn]

154. You know sweetheart , I have NEVER seen anyone

on DU ever say that McCain/Palin would have been a better deal. I have never even heard anyone say that in real life, and I have a lot of republican relatives. A lot of what I do hear is people saying he has left too many of the bush policies in place, and I agree with some of that.

[Hutzpa]

156. You probably haven't

been reading enough threads or posts.

[Autumn]

165. I'm doing a DU site search, but haven't found

anything yet.:shrug:

[Hutzpa]

166. Keep looking

might come up under your name.

[Autumn]

168. No, but with that phrase your name comes up

often .Of course, to be fair, it is just accusing posters of thinking that way. Perfect example in your post. Interesting.

[Hutzpa]

172. blah... blah... blah...

:rofl:

[tblue]

33. Agree 99%. He could grow into those shoes, but he'd better hurry.

If he was not so charismatic and have such an appearance of strength and brilliance and purpose, we'd be sunk. Maybe, sadly, he's doing all he can do. I don't think so at all. He's a good president, but the times call for a great one.

[Blue-Jay]

38. .

[AspenRose]

169. WHAT DID YOU DO TO KERRY'S HEAD?!?

:rofl:

[Beacool]

46. "we have instead Mr. Rogers’ pet gerbil."

I'm sorry, but that one made me laugh.

:rofl:

I know, I know........

:spank:

[Autumn]

60. That was funny,

shame on us.:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Of course I did so like Mr. Rogers. I would watch him with my Daughter all the time. He was quite the hero.

[Beacool]

64. I liked him too and also Shari Lewis.

She went to the first Clinton inauguration. Remember Lamb Chop?



:D

[Autumn]

68. My God yes , I had

forgotten her.:D

[polichick]

110. Kinda mean, but it did make me smile. I sure got the point. nt

[Beacool]

133. Me too!!!

:7

[CakeGrrl]

177. Of course YOU'D find the humor in it

I'd book you passage in a time capsule so you could take a real nice ride down memory lane and find your true happiness again, but funds are tight right now.

:evilgrin:

[Laelth]

63. +1 David Michael Green is right, as usual.

This, however, was my favorite of his essays:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2008/11/24">What to Do When Your Party Sucks

:dem:

-Laelth

[Cha]

67. Another stupid fail push article from

the one who is not to be believed.

[emulatorloo]

69. Counterpunch is about as tiresome as they come. I am so sick of the overheated rhetoric

exaggeration, etc on both sides.

[Armstead]

83. What is tiresome is the refusal to acknowledge the basic truths...Therefore....

...the basic warnings and expressions of opposition to the status quo have to be repeated to the point of tiresomeness.

The same "tiresome" progreessives made warnings during the 90's about things that have since come to pass.

Perhaps instead of automatically dismissing them now, centrists might actually benefit from having a dialogue.

[emulatorloo]

117. Hyperbole doesn't help anybody's argument, whether it be Counterpunch or Michelle Malkin

I just want rational discussion. I would love to see Obama do some things differently, However, can't we get at the "truth" without the hysterical bullshit and character attacks on Obama?

[Armstead]

150. This article is hyperbolie...But "rational" attempts at discussion get ignored

I agree there should more ragtional discourse.

However, we live in an overheated political and cultural environment. To an extent that's unfortunate, but hyperbolie from all sides has always been part of the public discussion.

However, the problem is that even rational attempts to get "centrists" to discuss too many issues with progressives get ignored.

[dionysus]

118. the article basically calls obama a clueless fool, a dismal failure. if this is your "basic truth",

you have totally jumped the shark.

:eyes:

[emulatorloo]

120. It is basically the same things that Limbaugh and his ilk say.

The hyperbole and bullshit level is really getting to me.

[Armstead]

151. No it is saying he has potential for greatness, but is squandering it

The author sees great promise in Obama, but is disappointed.

"Obama could be Lincoln – or better still, FDR – if he wanted to be. He has chosen instead to be Buchanan. Faced with crisis scenario after crisis scenario, the candidate of ‘change’ repeatedly and instinctively homes in on the weakest, most centrist, most useless response possible."

One may agree or disagree with that assessment. However, it is not a blind bash job.

[dionysus]

116. counterpunch lost me with an article on how terrible al gore is. they're a bunch of fools.

[branders seine]

74. SO FAR

this is all too true. :-(

[polichick]

121. I think that way too - "SO FAR." There's time to turn it around if he wants to. nt

[branders seine]

184. Is what he "wants" even relevant the way things actually work.

I think he'll keep doing whatever his masters tell him to do.

[philly_bob]

75. REC I share the disappointment -- but he still has time. Cockeyed optimist. /nt

[xchrom]

86. kick

[dionysus]

87. you never fail to sink to new flamebait lows.

[firedupdem]

111. It's allowed so why would he stop? My 6 yr old nephew knows how

to copy and paste. Ridiculous. The president walks into a shit hole less than a year ago and he's failed because he hasn't cleaned it up? Hell, it took many years to fuck it up! If it was that easy to fix, it would have been done already! These posts are just dumb.

[polichick]

94. This is exactly how I see it and I hope and pray that the president soon understands...

...what an opportunity he has to turn this country around. k&r

[SKKY]

98. What this guy doesn't get is that Obama isn't interested in being like those before him...

...he's charting a new course- or trying to at least by insisting on bipartisanship. What I haven't heard mentioned is how there is a very real posibility that this could mean the end of the 2 party system in American politics. And I'm fine with that.

[polichick]

108. There is no bipartisanship, only Dems caving to Republicans. nt

[ej510]

119. THANK YOU!

Time after time after time again.

[SKKY]

124. Well, what is your definition of bipartisanship then?

Dems getting what they want, all the time? I mean really. Politics is the art of compromise. We get something, they get something. I know we haven't seen compromise for 8 years, but the Republicans are giving up things they want as well(Like, NO health care reform, for example).

[polichick]

125. The point is, ONLY the Dems are compromising. Republicans are standing fast...

...against everything. We're watering our bills down to accomodate them, but they vote no anyway. It's idiotic.

[Jennicut]

127. No, we are watering down our bills for other Dems.

The Rethugs are irrelevant until 2010. We water down bills for the more conservative parts of our party....and Olympia Snowe who is actually about where Max Baucus is on the ideological scale. The Rethugs don't even consider her a Repub. We wanted the bigger tent, we won the districts with more moderates and conservatives in them. We deal with the consequences now. Who brought Clinton down in 1994 besides himself? Newt Gingrich? I don't believe so. It was Shelby, Boren, Nunn. They refused to pass CLinton' stimulus. Byrd gave Clinton a hard time on gays in the military. Clinton faced pressure on health care (which does not even come close to proposals now).
Bush dealt with mutiny in his party by threatening them through Cheney. I have no answers as to what to do. I doubt some of the conservadems care if they lose their seats, they want the power and money that comes after retirement.

[polichick]

129. We don't need to water them down for Dems - polls show people in...

Blue Dog districts are with us on healthcare ~ conservadems are only caving for insurance interests and should be called on it by all of the leaders, including the WH.

[Jennicut]

130. You think they care about the people in their districts/states? Joe Lieberman cares about me?

:rofl:
I wrote him an email and he basically slapped me in the face with his answer. Threats from the WH? Do people like Joe Lieberman or Max Baucus really care? I think Joe will retire anyway. He is not looking to good for 2012 here in CT.

[polichick]

138. Like I said, those whoring for the industry should be called out by ALL of our leaders. nt

[SKKY]

153. I was going to make the point that about the blue dogs and moderates..

...but it's already been done by others, so, yea. What they said.

[polichick]

158. I addressed that in #129

[ej510]

137. Compromising with repukes even though they vote against every bill!

:rofl:

[Autumn]

160. I heartily recommend your

post. It is time for them to quit doing that.

[Jennicut]

126. "This guy is fast wearing out his welcome"

Hyperbole is "in" these days though, huh? Obama must have a horrid approval rating and people must really, really hate him then.

[dionysus]

128. left wing tea baggers. and you wonder why republicans can win elections.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

135. What I really love is that he uses Lincoln as an example of a decisive president

When in fact, at the time of his actual presidency, Lincoln was thought of as wishy washy. He was no abolitionist and he really did seek middle ground.

[Jennicut]

142. Well yeah, Lincoln fought to keep the Union together!

He was a total pragmatist but why bother with facts?

[depakid]

136. Green is verbose, as usual

Much of this can be explained simply though Obama's history of conflict aversion and consensus building. True that these were the wrong qualities for the job at hand domestically- though one expects that the administration will learn from their mistakes.

[jenmito]

140. Counterpunch is against Dems. The writer of the article calls Obama derogatory names

every paragraph.

[Name removed]

144. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. 
[link:www.democraticunderground.com/forums/rules.html|Click
here] to review the message board rules.

[jenmito]

146. Really? Who would YOU have liked to see in the WH?

[Hutzpa]

145. This is an attempt to tie Obama with Carter

and at the same time trying to portray Obama as weak, it reminds me of the
comment Dick Cheney made last week, you begin to see how these same talking
point are being used by the right just to prevent him from achieving anything.

We have seen their intention which is to sit back and do nothing, but when you
start seeing hit pieces like these, it makes me happy because this shows he is
reaching into places they didn't expect him to.

The saga continues.....

[Name removed]

149. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[marshall]

161. What's wrong with being tied to Carter?

One couldn't ask for better company.

[redqueen]

162. Clinton doesn't think so.

He's all chummy with Bush... Carter just gets ignored.

[polichick]

175. That chumminess makes me like Clinton much less...

Really, wtf?!?

[polichick]

174. That's the truth! nt

[impik]

173. Blah, Blah, Blah.

A big pile of nonsense.

[ncteechur]

178. I suggest that the author file his name to run for President. Until then he can kiss my ass.

[CakeGrrl]

179. Yawn. Bash. Yawn. Fail. n/t

[Better Believe It]

180. Paul Krugman: President Obama's actual actions on the economy were cautious rather than bold

Obama Faces His Anzio
by Paul Krugman
November 6, 2009

.... early this year, President Obama came into office with a strong mandate and proclaimed the need to take bold action on the economy. His actual actions, however, were cautious rather than bold. They were enough to pull the economy back from the brink, but not enough to bring unemployment down.

Thus the stimulus bill fell far short of what many economists - including some in the administration itself - considered appropriate. According to The New Yorker, Christina Romer, the chairwoman of the president's Council of Economic Advisers, estimated that a package of more than $1.2 trillion was justified.

Administration officials would presumably argue that they were constrained by political realities, that a bolder policy couldn't have passed Congress. But they never tested that assumption, and they also never gave any public indication that they were doing less than they wanted. The official line was that policy was just right, making it hard to explain now why more is needed.

And more is needed. Yes, the economy grew fairly fast in the third quarter - but not fast enough to make significant progress on jobs. And there's little reason to expect things to look better going forward. The stimulus has already had its maximum effect on growth. Even Timothy Geithner, the Treasury secretary, admits that banks remain reluctant to lend. Many economists predict that the economy's growth, such as it is, will fade out over the course of next year.

If the Democrats lose badly in the midterms, the talking heads will say that Mr. Obama tried to do too much, this is a center-right nation, and so on. But the truth is that Mr. Obama put his agenda at risk by doing too little. The fateful decision, early this year, to go for economic half-measures may haunt Democrats for years to come.

Read the complete article at:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/11/06-6

[BklnDem75]

182. More betrayal! More crap articles! It must be

[treestar]

187. David Michael Green could have been a great President

Oh wait, David M. Green hasn't managed to win so much as a state senate seat. Nor has he managed to get his head out of his ass.

[Better Believe It]

193. Perhaps President Obama should have hired him rather than Wall Street servants or

a someone like Rahm Emanuel who at every opportunity loves using his "sharp elbows" on liberal and progressives while coddling Republican and conservative Democrats.

The writer would have given President Obama both some backbone and good political advice that would actually help his presidency and working people. Obama's been hanging around the rich elite too long and seems to have lost touch with middle and poor working class people. And his aides have further isolated him from ordinary people.

But, what do you think?

I'm listening.

And try to display some civility on DU. I hope that's not expecting too much.

Thanks!

[branders seine]

188. he has not been a leader, except while ensuring that

Goldman Sachs got their trillions.

Seriously, that's the only time he talked tough in the 10 months of his Presidency.

[YvonneCa]

196. Welcome to DU...

...newbie! :)

[treestar]

190. Better Believe it could have been a great popular and heroic poster

But all he/she could do was be negative!

[Ikonoklast]

192. More Daily Hate because Obama isn't a Socialist.

He never pretended to be one, and that just pisses you off to no end.

I am a Democrat, and support the Democratic President, and will continue to do so.

I am not a Socialist, with a different political agenda from the Democratic Party, as is the OP and many of his cheerleaders in this thread.

[BlueIdaho]

194. SSDD

Same shit different day - yawn.

[Better Believe It]

197. And how do you think this anti-womens rights alleged healthcare bill will help President Obama?