When I saw that the president expressed some hopefulness that the Republicans will be easier to work with after the midterms, I just kind of laughed. I mean, there is absolutely no chance of that happening. None. And I can see how this one quote can be seen as undermining one of the Democrats’ best arguments during this campaign. If the Republicans are a viable alternative, and if voting for them will actually make them stop acting so insane, then maybe we should vote for them. But, having said that, can we give the man a break?
It’s one quote. It wasn’t supposed to be a part of some overarching message strategy. And don’t you think it would be problematic for the president to say that he won’t be able to produce anything if the elections go the way we all know they are going to go? Whether the Republicans seize control of one or both chambers, or they merely whittle down our majorities, it’s pretty clear that the president will have to trim his sails over the next two years. He’ll basically be riding a wild bucking horse, trying to keep it from careening into the creek and breaking its legs. And that’s if he can keep from being tossed off the horse completely, as Clinton almost experienced. Our country is screwed because we are not going to do well in these midterms.
Responsibility for that should be spread around widely, but we deserve our share because of our role in nitpicking the president to death. Complaining about him being off message is just the latest example of our obsession with being unhelpful. You know what the real problem is? The real problem is what the Republican candidates believe and pretend to believe. The real problem is that they are insane and/or paid to act insane. If the president loses an opportunity to make that point, it isn’t the end of the world. It’s like getting tackled three yards behind the line. The play didn’t work. It’s 2nd and 13, not time to punt.
There are things Presidents are more or less obligated to say, and we are more or less obligated to ignore.
This was one of them.
How about those miners, huh?
I always wonder why progressives always seem to take Obama at his word when he makes some kind of statement about bipartisanship. He is a politician, after all, and a community organizer to boot. He may talk big about wanting a new politics of bipartisanship, but he certainly didn’t complain very much when the totally partisan health care bill landed on his desk. Or the financial reform bill. One of these days, internet progressives are going to figure out that a lot of what Obama says is meant for middle America, not for us. And middle America likes the idea of bipartisanship and a President who tries to reach across the aisle. This is part of the reason why Obama is still the most popular political figure of either party.
He’s not President of the Democrats. He’s President of the United States.
From his victory speech in Nov. 08:
“…Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House – a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, We are not enemies, but friends…though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn – I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.”
And what did he get for that? He got spit upon by the Republicans.
Figuratively of course.
and your point? Perhaps I should have also said he’s not President of the Congress. He’s President of the United States meaning all citizens!! In addition to Democrats, there are thousands, if not millions, of American citizens who are Independents, not of a Party, or are even registered Republicans who do not consider the republican members of Congress as representative of them in the last 2 years. However, like it or not, (and most don’t) they ARE members of Congress and therefore the President has an obligation to attempt to work with them since they are the elected representatives of those American citizens.
Responsibility for that should be spread around widely, but we deserve our share because of our role in nitpicking the president to death. Complaining about him being off message is just the latest example of our obsession with being unhelpful.
Can you please explain this? Are we just supposed to completely ignore that NYT Magazine article? At what point can Obama acknowledge that the GOP has turned the asylum over to the inmates? At what point can he admit that there is a good chance that, if the GOP does take the House, that Issa will try and impeach him? At what point do we plan ahead so we have good candidates ready to challenge Senate seats in Maine(because Snowe is gonna get teabagged), Brown in MA, Kyl in AZ and Ensign in Nevada?
Can you change the title, please? I find it sexist…
On the story, I agree. Who cares? Go make a phone call to some stranger to tell them to vote early.
you prefer kvetching?
Yeah, that works.
Stop ‘complaining’.
Well, he could have just avoided this entirely rather than making an obviously silly statement.
Exactly. This wasn’t necessary. It was going out of his way to say something stupid and counterproductive. I’ll never understand how he thinks.
zomg! Obama has betrayed us! You’re punching hippies! WON’T SOMEONE THINK ABOUT THE HIPPPPIIIIIEEEEEESSSS!!!!
hippie puncher!
hippie puncher!
hippie puncher!
lols
God bless “true progressives”.
You are including yourself in the nit-picking? What’s with that?
June 6, 2012:
AP – As former President Obama was hauled away from the Senate chamber in handcuffs after the impeachment verdict, he could be heard mumbling to the Republicans lining the aisles, ”… but we can still work together, right?”
President Obama… clueless.
I don’t know what information his communications team is giving him, but I can’t believe the President doesn’t know that some republicans are talking about investigations, even impeachment, if they get control of the House. Those discussions are all over the media.
So…. I seriously wonder what his strategy here is. Say in advance they’re reasonable so when they’re not it will discredit them ??
I know for one thing that he intends to put the republicans on the spot when it comes to fiscal responsability. He said so a few times. I think he can’t wait to debate Paul Ryan on the budget. He can’t wait for the republicans to finally be completely honest about their objective: dismantling of government entitlement programs. WE know about this but the general population doesn’t; they still haven’t realized how far the republicans want to go. Bohner said it himself: “we don’t think the population is ready to hear about the solutions” (paraphrasing).
I don’t know either. Whatever his intentions, he comes off as some poor sap that just can’t bring himself to live in the real world.