I'm not expecting anyone to respond to this post. I just need to post. I have had it with our wuss of a president. 24 months ago I voted for change and now all I get is the status quo as dictated by Republicans in the Senate. Today, it was the tax bill that extended tax cuts to the rich even though it will cost $700B over 10 years and is not supported by any economist as being stimulative or creating jobs. It is simply the desire of the rich not to be taxed like they were in the 90s.
Add to this health care reform that didn't include a public option. And financial "reform" that didn't do away with too big to fail, limit bonuses, or repeal the repeal of Glass Stegal. Oh, and today the US dropped its demand that Israel stop evicting Palestinians from the west bank and stop building settlements for right wing zionists.
When does that "change" part begin? When did it become necessary to have 60 votes to get anything done instead of just a majority? When did the President give up on the idea of actually making Republicans filibuster a bill for days, weeks on end while explaining to the American people why a public option is a good idea, that breaking up banks is necessary and why a non-stimulative tax break for the rich isn't a good idea?
When did this inspiration candidate become such a timid leader?
There is a narrative to our adult lives politically and economically. It's one that begin in the late 70s and continues today. It is a theme of deregulation of major industry, bubble, speculative economies, increasing dominance of both parties by special interests, a concentration of wealth to unheard of levels and growing leverage on our country by the Chinese and middle east oil producing countries. Statistics show none of this has helped middle class and working Americans. Instead it just gets worse and worse.
When is this going to end? Will it ever end? And if not now, when Barry? When are you going to stick your heels into the ground and say, fuck no?! The people elected you president, not Rand fucking Paul or John Buttfuck Boehner.
Remember when Bush The First said no new taxes and then raised taxes? His base left him after that and Clinton won. Today was that for me and Barry. He's lost me and I think others. There is no faith left in this guy and his co-opted administration.
I'd love to be wrong. But you have to prove it to me. You've got less than 24 months.
6 comments:
or else what? Palin or Romney in 2012? The challenge from within whom Ariana picks? Sitting it the fuck out? Moving to Canada? Stop paying attention? I'm not quite sure what you're threatening- what comes after "or else"?
We're all frustrated with politics and the country's "direction," and Obama is caught up in it- but all of it ain't all bad- TARP has been paid back and then some- we're almost done with combat troops in Iraq, and he increased troops in Afghanistan (both of which he promised to do during the campaign, even though I disagree with the latter decision), and he did get health care passed, however watered down and at great political cost. Financial reform legislation went through as well, if still somewhat gutted but better than nothing.
Maybe better than nothing is the best we can expect. Today was bad and makes no economic sense- Republicans can go to their country club base and tell them they saved the third homes in Vermont. Obama made the deal to extend unemployment benefits because, and I'm going to take him at his word, real people stand to get thrown out on the street if he didn't make a deal with the scorched earth GOP. And it is a scorched earth policy these fuckers are employing, if lower and lower and lower taxes is your idea of a policy. When Fareed Zakaria asked George Schultz, not exactly a right-wing fundamentalist, what was the first thing he would do to help the deficit, he said eliminate the inheritance tax. I'm not joking.
His hostage analogy didn't really work, but his bind is severe(since when do we negotiate with kidnappers and give them the ransom?). I understand your frustration- it's hard to imagine LBJ or FDR saying, "Well, I just couldn't convince Mitch McConnell or John Boehner." Really? These bozos? Because there is no convincing them. That assumes they're open to argument. Their irresponsibility is staggering. Give our boys their third homes or we'll throw the unemployed bums on the street at Xmas. And somehow, no matter how clearly Obama makes that point, it just doesn't seem to resonate widely enough to put pressure on the GOP.
And please don't cherry pick and then rant. I'm frustrated, too. The man has struggled on multiple fronts, including his inability to sell his accomplishments and the ways in which he has kept his campaign promises.
I hope the next two years are better, too, but I'm not sure how pointing an unloaded cyber gun at his head clarifies anything.
You've missed the point entirely. The Republicans won. Special interests have won. Sitting out? They won, Sonny. I won't be sitting out anything.
Obama has lost the narrative. You yourself said as much. He can't effectively tell his side of the story. This is crucial for any leader.
I have no idea what cherry picking you are referring to. Yes, he has several half victories to his credit. Clearly no one is all that impressed by them. Great, tarp worked and we got health care for almost everything. So why are bankers still enjoying massive bonuses and health care costs still sky rocket? Americans aren't impressed and I don't blame them.
We have had a crisis like no other. Yet where is our job creating new new deal? Where is the forward thinking infrastructure building, clean energy jobs creating new new deal??? Bailing out banks isn't enough. We need a game changing program that puts people back to work and makes our country stronger.
I look forward to being proven wrong during the next two years. But that cyber gun is not empty. It already hit the democrats hard in the mid terms. I'm afraid Obama doesn't understand he's been shot, though.
You've missed the point entirely. The Republicans won. Special interests have won. Sitting out? They won, Sonny. I won't be sitting out anything.
Obama has lost the narrative. You yourself said as much. He can't effectively tell his side of the story. This is crucial for any leader.
I have no idea what cherry picking you are referring to. Yes, he has several half victories to his credit. Clearly no one is all that impressed by them. Great, tarp worked and we got health care for almost everything. So why are bankers still enjoying massive bonuses and health care costs still sky rocket? Americans aren't impressed and I don't blame them.
We have had a crisis like no other. Yet where is our job creating new new deal? Where is the forward thinking infrastructure building, clean energy jobs creating new new deal??? Bailing out banks isn't enough. We need a game changing program that puts people back to work and makes our country stronger.
I look forward to being proven wrong during the next two years. But that cyber gun is not empty. It already hit the democrats hard in the mid terms. I'm afraid Obama doesn't understand he's been shot, though.
so good you had to say it twice...
the cyber gun was the one you pointed at Obama's head- prove your worth to me or else- or else what? I thought that was plain. You still haven't answered the question- or else you'll support a challenging Democrat in 2012? OK.
You sound like all this should be easy- it isn't. Do you want the man to wave a wand and make these job-producing, shovel-ready projects to magically transform the American economy and then to put all the greedy bankers in jail and then to save the environment with green jobs that will, and... well, really?
As always, it's black and white, winners and losers, good guys and bad guys, and nay a shade of gray allowed. As I tried to offer in the previous post but which you so roundly rejected as pathetic trifles, mistakes have been made. Please don't patronize me and say I missed the point. I get it. You are very, very mad at President Obama. He better make it happen or else. And if I don't see it as the impending apocalypse and demand his head on a stick I simply don't understand it. Got it. Now tell me again how I misunderstood your "point."
No, that's not it. Its that as things stand it appears that its already over. The 42 or so Republican senators have broken Obambi. This despite the initial enthusiasm for the Obama presidency and huge majorities in the house and senate. The GOP senators outmaneuvered him and time after time he capitualated. In fact, not once did Barry even try to call them on their fillibusters. He never used his bully pulpit effectively. His teams communication skills have been awful.
And the infrastructure not being shuvel ready argument also misses the point. Its right about now that those projects would be coming on line and putting people to work. And guess what? We still need those jobs bc a) real unemployment is still close to 20% and b) we're still addicted to terrorist supporting oil producing companies. Apparently you cant solve these long term problems because, well, it takes too long.
And its not about a magic wand, its about having the vision and and skills to take this country to a better place in spite of the powerful forces of the status quo who are working against you. Barry has demonstrated over his first two years that he doesn like fighting. He wants to negotiate with Senators who won't negotiate.
finally, that cyber gun isnt meaningless. See the lack of turnout among your people recently as an example. Assuming Obama wants a second term, he IS going to have to start showing some spine, stop being such a cool aloof "leader" and start taking his case PASSIONATELY to the American working and middle class. If he does not he is politically dead. Bang, bang.
And that awful +30 year narrative grinds on.
that should read "terrorist supporting oil producing countries."
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