Obama risks losing liberals with talk of cutting budget

[Better Believe It]

Obama risks losing liberals with talk of cutting budget
By Zachary A. Goldfarb and Peter Wallsten
April 13, 2011

President Obama faces a growing rebellion on the left as he courts independent voters and Republicans with his vision for reducing the nation’s debt by cutting government spending and restraining the costs of federal health insurance programs.

Key liberal groups, which helped elect Obama in 2008, are raising concerns that he has given up political ground to Republicans, allowing the message of reducing government to trump that of creating jobs and lowering the unemployment rate.

The fundamental problem in our country right now is unemployment and a jobs crisis, not a deficit crisis,” said Deepak Bhargava, executive director of the Center for Community Change, an advocacy group for the poor. “It appears the president is fighting on the wrong terrain and is conceding that the only thing we should be talking about is how to bring down the deficit.”

Justin Ruben, executive director of MoveOn, said many of its 5 million members “worked their guts out” to help elect Obama. But, after the recent string of dealmaking with the GOP and the president’s apparent willingness to compromise on entitlements, he said the base could well stay home in 2012. “If the president and the Democrats don’t stand up to Republicans, I don’t see people coming out and doing the work that it would take to get them elected,” Ruben said. “If they came out to vote, these die-hards might vote for the president, but whether they open their wallets and their hearts and their address books and hit the pavement, that’s a totally different thing.”

Please read the full article at:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/obamas-speech-on-debt-reduction-a-first-step-in-broader-effort-white-house-says/2011/04/12/AFitkvRD_story.html

[villager]

1. a demographic he seems to care little about losing...

n/t

[jefferson_dem]

7. He hates them...

Obviously.

[villager]

9. "Diffidence" might be a better word.

n/t

[dennis4868]

2. Analysis: Budget deal only reduces real discretionary spending by around $15 billion

http://hotair.com/archives/2011/04/12/analysis-budget-deal-only-reduces-real-discretionary-spending-by-around-15-billion/

[Scuba]

3. Ya think?

[Shagbark Hickory]

4. Wouldn't matter if he did. Swing voters care about the debt for some reason. nt

[Contrary1]

5. That should read "Obama risks losing even more liberals with talk of cutting budget". n/t

[OhioChick]

6. That was my initial thought n/t

[katnapped]

8. Asif he cares... n/t

[mmonk]

10. That's because people need not continue to suffer on the premises

of a lie that we spend too much on the American people and that is why we have the deficit and spending on them needs further cutting.