Filed under: Capitalism, Democrat Corruption, Economy, Freedom, Politics | Tags: "In Over His Head", More Cowbell, The Education of a President
President Obama, even Democrat pundits admit, is toxic in the campaign. He does not have Democrat candidates clamoring to have him campaign with them; yet he nevertheless is omnipresent. An interview with Peter Baker of the New York Times that appeared on Tuesday, was titled “Education of a President.” The president, Baker says, finds himself vilified by the right, castigated by the left and abandoned by the middle.
Obama said he had no regrets about the broad direction of his presidency. He let himself look too much like “the same old tax-and-spend liberal Democrat.” He realized too late “that there’s no such thing as shovel-ready projects” when it comes to public works. It’s not enough to be supremely sure that he is right if no one else agrees with him.
When Obama secured the nomination, Baker says, he told an admiring crowd that someday “we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began to provide care for the sick and good jobs to the jobless; this was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal; this was the moment when we ended a war and secured our nation and restored our image as the last, best hope on earth.”
“I make no apologies for having set high expectations for myself and for the country,” Obama responded, “because I think we can meet those expectations.”
Baker had spent time previously talking with nearly two dozen of Obama’s advisers. The basic mantra among them: “Obama inherited the worst problems of any president in years. Or in generations. Or in American history. He prevented another Great Depression while putting in place the foundation for a more stable future. But it required him to do unpopular things that would inevitably cost him.”
It is an interesting interview. The extent to which Obama is surrounded by sycophants and true believers is probably not unusual. Presidents choose aides who agree with them. What I found fascinating was that they seemed surprised that Republicans did not support their policies and help to form a “bipartisan” coalition, by which they meant agree with them. Bipartisanship to their minds is all one way. Their policies were quite splendid, and it was baffling to them that Republican leaders resolved to stand against Obama. Dick Durbin (R-IL) said “The American people have a limited attention span. Once you convince them there’s a problem, they want a solution.”
Democrats simply do not know what it is that Republicans stand for. They assume that Republicans just stand for tax-cuts which they want to give to rich people on Wall Street and corporate CEOs. Ideas of limited government, freedom, individual responsibility and individual choice simply do not penetrate the progressive mindset. The American people need controlling by the wise people in Washington. Republican extremists like those Tea Party people are dangerous. Who knows what they might do if not properly regulated?
Obama said:
“We probably spent much more time trying to get the policy right than trying to get the politics right. There is probably a perverse pride in my administration — and I take responsibility for this; this was blowing from the top — that we were going to do the right thing, even if short-term it was unpopular. And I think anybody who’s occupied this office has to remember that success is determined by an intersection in policy and politics and that you can’t be neglecting of marketing and P.R. and public opinion.”
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The right wing extremists understand that if you repeat an incorrect fact enough time, it will be accepted as truth. Our town has just had the road south from town rebuilt. Due to the road running along a steep hillside, it routinely flooded and the road surface was very poor. The construction workers in our area have 25% unemployment. This shovel-ready project provided jobs for my many of my out of work neighbors.
Republicans don’t stand for limited government, freedom, individual responsibility and individual choice. Limited Government ??? Just look back at Reagan and the Bush’s under whose administrations the number of bureaucrats in Washington increased dramatically. Freedom ??? Lots of folks are now free to live in the street after Bush II turned Wall Street into a casino. Individual Responsibility ??? My retirement income ( 401K ) now has been trashed by the players that made millions in that casino. Individual Choice ??? What about a woman’s right to choose ?
Another repeated lie is that people are so angry because of what the President has done. The vast majority are angry with the gridlock in Congress. The Republicans are the major players in that game. Read the President’s interview in Rolling Stone magazine. You will then understand that the progress that has been made is due to compromises made in a sincere effort to get Bi-partisan support. Of course the Boner dude believes that orchestrating failure will enable his party to then blame the Democrats. Significant progress has been made. Recent college graduates that are unable to find work, let alone health care coverage will now be able to be covered under their parent’s coverage. Doctors that get paid by drug companies to put their names on trade journal ads that were written by drug company ad agencies will now be listed online with their names and how many pieces of silver they received to be whores.
As I have explained, a lot of your post is not based in the facts. Of course in this misinformation is repeated often enough, folks will believe it is factual.
Comment by 4positivepolitics October 14, 2010 @ 8:08 pmIf you had a “shovel-ready” project in your town that actually was completed and employed people, you are unusual. That almost all of the so called “stimulus” was wasted has been well documented.
There were problems on Wall Street with financial instruments consisting of sub-prime mortgages bundled by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The sub-prime mortgages were sold to people whom under normal prudent banking rules would not have qualified for a mortgage. This began under the Carter administration, and banks were forced under Democrat Congresses to make more loans to low-income people. This is also well documented.
Bush made some mistakes, but just before Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats took over Congress in December 2006, Unemployment was 4.4%, real GDP growth averaged 3% a year, the S&P 500 stood at 1418,and every year of Bush’s presidency real (inflation adjusted) income per person went up. By the end of 2005, the average person was making 9% more in real terms than before Bush became President. These are facts from official government sources. The House of Representatives controls financial matters. Presidents can only propose. Bush called for reform of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac 17 times in 2008 alone. The Democrat Congress refused. TARP, the one financial rescue plan that Bush pushed through, was a success, and has mostly been paid back. Obama spent more in his first year in office than the entire cost of the War in Iraq that he complains about so much.
The Democrats completely control the House and the Senate. Obama likes to complain that the Republicans wouldn’t cooperate, but he passed whatever he wanted passed. Republicans couldn’t do anything about it. To Obama, “bipartisanship” means that the Republicans have to agree with his policies. And sorry, they don’t agree.
I do not write anything unless I have the facts to back it up, and I do rely on official statistics, not puff-pieces in Rolling Stone. Sorry about your 401K retirement income, but welcome to the club. Everyone got screwed, you are not alone.
This particular piece is based on the interview linked in the article. Read the interview. You get my opinions, but I reflected the interview accurately.
Comment by The Elephant's Child October 14, 2010 @ 11:10 pm