updated and bumped
I wanted to add something about this race. I’m 100% behind Ms. Coakley, but the scene outside Sonoma restaurant the other night, an upscale, wonderful wine bar that I’ve been to many times, is indicative of the heat right now coming from the right. A video of a “reporter” getting pushed to the ground by someone on Coakley’s staff, which means to me the point was to get something just like this captured on tape. But the race’s most important moment recently came in the debate from State Sen. Scott Brown’s, which I believe channels the mood of voters across the country right now. When David Gergen asked if Brown was ready to scuttle health care for the next 15 years, because that’s what is believed to be the fate if it’s not passed now, Gergen also invoked the Massachusett’s Senate seat currently in play as “Teddy Kennedy’s seat.” Brown countered that it wasn’t Kennedy’s seat it is “the people’s seat.”
The headwind Coakley is currently feeling has its foundation in that very sentiment. In off-year elections there is always an ambivalence about incumbents, but this year it goes to anyone who is seen as part of the Democratic establishment. With the economy and the thought of a giant health care bill, especially one as bad and to most people, mysterious as the Democrats have currently concocted, it’s making people turn away from anyone with connections to who’s responsible. Coakley is establishment and it’s playing against her.
This quote, via Greg Sargent, who has the memo on the emergency in Massachusetts:
“It’s a little frightening how much traction he’s been able to get so quickly…” – Martha Coakley
Democrats are “having trouble moving independents.”
The other issue is that conservative groups are moving in and spending big money on negative ads. One group is Club for Growth. In this atmosphere, the economic message could be deadly in the last days. There will be massive political indictments if Scott Brown continues to close.
The title of this post has been changed, the post edited with an update up front.
Yes, the reports are all sounding awful. Scary.
I’ll bet anything that the base-demoralizing White House takes no responsibility whatsoever if she looses.
I will worry for them.
its insane for obama to not head to ma. this is teddy’s seat. it is imp. to liberals across this country. all hell will break lose if this seat is lost to the right wing. all hell. struggling in ma? lets all do what we can for coakley.
the sexism is rampant online about coakley. comments sections on news sites are intolerable. in the nyt i sae remarks like “why dont u run for pta martha!” or “gee u run your mouth way too much,” etc.. im glad bill clinton is going to ma friday. if its close election day i can see reid and lincoln not running again. heck if coakly stuggles to win kennedy’s seat in ma what are the odds for reid? lincoln?
coakley and brown final debate. both get their hits in. coakley hits brown on social policy esp womens issues. hits him over authoring amendment to prohibit contraceptionf or rape vicitms when he was in state sen. coakley calls the open seat kennedy’s seat, brown gets applause and says the seat is the people’s seat. she hits him for backing bush policy on social issues. some commentators say brown came off like a frat boy.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/01/12/coakley_brown_play_on_voters_fears_in_final_us_senate_debate/
Complacency, arrogance and perhaps out of touch? A day after the final debate Coakley zips off to Washington for a fundraiser at a wine bar.
..The invitation names 24 “sponsors,” who raised at least $10,000 for Coakley’s campaign. One sponsor is the political action committee for Boston Scientific Corporation, a leading medical device and medical technology company. Another 17 of Coakley’s sponsors are registered lobbyists in Washington, 15 of whom have health care clients. The remaining sponsors include the wife of a lobbyist, a non-lobbyist lawyer at a lobbying firm, and a former Pennsylvania lobbyist.
This group delivered at least $200,000 for Coakley in the final week of her campaign, and so it’s worth taking a look at their clients. Heather and Tony Podesta, perhaps the most high-profile Democratic lobbyists these days, represent pharmaceutical companies Eli Lilly, Amgen, Genzyme, Merck, Novartis, and Roche. Insurers Cigna and HealthSouth are clients of Heather, while medical device giant General Electric is a client of Tony.
The invitation names 24 “sponsors,” who raised at least $10,000 for Coakley’s campaign. One sponsor is the political action committee for Boston Scientific Corporation, a leading medical device and medical technology company. Another 17 of Coakley’s sponsors are registered lobbyists in Washington, 15 of whom have health care clients. The remaining sponsors include the wife of a lobbyist, a non-lobbyist lawyer at a lobbying firm, and a former Pennsylvania lobbyist.
This group delivered at least $200,000 for Coakley in the final week of her campaign, and so it’s worth taking a look at their clients. Heather and Tony Podesta, perhaps the most high-profile Democratic lobbyists these days, represent pharmaceutical companies Eli Lilly, Amgen, Genzyme, Merck, Novartis, and Roche. Insurers Cigna and HealthSouth are clients of Heather, while medical device giant General Electric is a client of Tony.
http://tinyurl.com/ycjwh8d
It would seem that a week before a election, that someone in a close race would be staying in her state and doing retail politics; shaking hands, kissing babies, trying to get on every single TV and radio station.
I hope that she wins, but if politicians can’t understand the current political environment, then well….
And I won’t mention (too much, since I mentioned it several times) the use of Bush/Cheney in the debate, let alone her Bush/Cheney/Limbaugh political ad. It is no longer effective, if Democrats can’t understands this either, then well…
I have updated the post, which I’ve stated, but you might want to check out what was added.
DUH HELLO?! Is this such a shocker that this looks increasingly like a horserace? For months the writing has been on the wall. Independents have moved away from Obama and his programs. Many Democrats have expressed reservations about the Obama agenda. And of course, Republicans have been locked out completely. Yet, the Democrats continue doing what they’re doing. Nothing has slowed them down. The 2000+ page healthcare reform debacle is just one of the issues in which people feel ignored. It has become increasingly unpopular and it is becoming clear that most people don’t want it and yet Obama, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi push on. People feel as if the Democrats are trying to ram their programs down our throats and have been feeling helpless to do anything about it. Now the people have the opportunity to do something and it looks like they may actually make their voices heard loud and clear. I don’t expect Coakley to lose but if she does, I won’t be heartbroken. If that is what it takes to shake the Democrats out their arrogance, so be it.
The rightwing blogosphere has supported an effort by Brown to raise a million dollars on Monday, and he claims he made it.
“Thank you! $1,303,302.50 raised!”
http://www.brownforussenate.com/red-invades-blue
Coakley just thought she was going to coast to a quiet victory; she was so out of touch with the mood of the country and even her state, that she, and the Democrats have been blindsided. It’s a very sad statement about this administration. The mood is decidedly anti-Democrat right now around the country–Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are almost universally derided on both sides in comments sections. The economic situation is creating a lot of anger; people are sick of corruption on the part of banksters, the lobbyists who have strangled our politics, and the politicians who seem to be in their pockets. That brings us to this story at Common Dreams, about Obama and “deep lobbyist pockets”….
Published on Tuesday, January 12, 2010 by Raw Story
Obama Received $20 Million from Healthcare Industry in 2008 Campaign
Almost three times the amount given to McCain
by Brad Jacobson
While some sunlight has been shed on the hefty sums shoveled into congressional campaign coffers in an effort to influence the Democrats’ massive healthcare bill, little attention has been focused on the far larger sums received by President Barack Obama while he was a candidate in 2008.
A new figure, based on an exclusive analysis created for Raw Story by the Center for Responsive Politics, shows that President Obama received a staggering $20,175,303 from the healthcare industry during the 2008 election cycle, nearly three times the amount of his presidential rival John McCain. McCain took in $7,758,289, the Center found.
The new figure, obtained by Raw Story through an independent custom research request performed by the Center for Responsive Politics — a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that tracks money in politics — is the most comprehensive breakdown yet available of healthcare industry contributions to Obama during the 2008 election cycle.
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/01/12-9
See the Chart at Open Secrets:
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/sectors.php?sector=H
There’s a history here:
On Healthcare Reform In Illinois, Obama dealt with lobbyists
But as candidate, he faults Clinton for ties
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/09/23/in_illinois_obama_dealt_with_lobbyists/
ASSOCIATED PRESS)
By Scott Helman, Globe Staff | September 23, 2007
When Barack Obama and fellow state lawmakers in Illinois tried to expand healthcare coverage in 2003 with the “Health Care Justice Act,” they drew fierce opposition from the insurance industry, which saw it as a back-handed attempt to impose a government-run system.
Over the next 15 months, insurers and their lobbyists found a sympathetic ear in Obama, who amended the bill more to their liking partly because of concerns they raised with him and his aides, according to lobbyists, Senate staff, and Obama’s remarks on the Senate floor.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/09/23/in_illinois_obama_dealt_with_lobbyists/
A little more history:
http://edgeoforever.wordpress.com/2009/08/08/the-lobbyist-in-chief/
Obama Owns Health Care; But Who Owns Obama?
http://edgeoforever.wordpress.com/2009/09/14/obama-owns-healthcare-reform-but-who-owns-obama/
Polls:
Jan 12 Rasmussen Reports — Coakley 49, Brown 47
Jan 10 PPP (D) – Coakley 47, Brown 48
Jan 10 Boston Globe — Coakley 53, Brown 36
In Massachusetts, the Democratic candidate has carried each U.S. Senate election over the past 20 years by an average margin of 33 percentage points. So even if Brown loses, the message will have been sent.
The Update is right on the money. You hit every note perfectly.
The Dems have been in power for a year and no matter what the polls say they do not inspire confidence. They are not leading. Indeed, they seem completely befuddled, and on the defensive. People may want change.
Moreover, the vaunted 60-vote filibuster proof majority, has been turned out to be a useless joke in their feckless hands, since the President does not have the spine to confront Lieberman, Nelson or any errant right wing senator.
nzanh says:
13 January 2010 at 9:37 am
I will never root for a Repug., but I share your sentiments. But as I also said in an earlier post, I’m sure even a loss here and they will not wake up. They will never take responsibility.
Just imagine, a year ago Democrats ruled the world.
Now we are fighting for our political lives IN MASSACHUSETTS.
The President apparently isn’t all that into leadership – he thinks he’s in a popularity contest and he desperately wants to win that one. He’s even taken to courting some Republican lovelies.
I usually agree with Ramsgate; but here are a few things I dont get about nzahn’s post:
“nzanh says:
13 January 2010 at 9:37 am
“Independents have moved away from Obama and his programs. Many Democrats have expressed reservations about the Obama agenda.”
Just what is his agenda beyond trying to get pretty much anything he can call HCR?
“And of course, Republicans have been locked out completely. ”
The Republicans weren’t and aren’t locked out. They refuse to participate. They are threatened by their own leadership if they do try to work with Democrats.
“People feel as if the Democrats are trying to ram their programs down our throats and have been feeling helpless to do anything about it.”
What programs beyond the pitiable health care reform are the ones the Democrats alone have been “ramming” anywhere?
djjl says:
13 January 2010 at 10:38 am
He’ll never learn.
But his popularity is on the decline. He’s down to 46%.
Maybe when he’s at 39%? Who knows?
Ouch. Talk about giving your opponents ammunition against you!
I don’t know anything about this writer [RealClearPolitics] but he does bring up a legitimate point, I think.
When the Dems decided to announce they would delay certification of this race, it was a huge mistake. Democrats are getting so desperate, they look bad. Someone needs to get control of the party. Rangel reports they are deadlocked on Health Care Reform in Committee negotiations [RollCall]. Are Dems revolting against their own party on this thing, in order to save the party in November? Just wondering.
[emphasis mine in blockquote below]
Democrats Show Contempt for the Governed
Democratic Party officials are openly declaring that they will refuse to seat the duly elected senator from Massachusetts, for no other reason than because they don’t like how he will vote on a specific piece of legislation–even though the people elected him to vote that way. The pledge not to certify Scott Brown is an assault on representative government itself.
This is a development that turns the Massachusetts special election into something much bigger and more basic. The issue in Massachusetts is no longer just the fate of the health care bill. The issue is: who is in charge here–the politicians or the people? Are they our representatives–or our rulers?
Note the justification offered for the plan to block Brown from voting on the health care bill if he wins: the idea that this is “Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat” and therefore shouldn’t be used to vote against Kennedy’s agenda. To this question, Brown provided the best answer in Monday night’s debate: “With all due respect, it’s not the Kennedys’ seat, it’s not the Democrats’ seat, it’s the people’s seat.”
The Democrats’ arrogant sense of entitlement to power is part of a larger pattern: a systematic expression of contempt for the governed. The Democrats have turned against democracy.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/01/13/democrats_contempt_for_the_governed_99863.html
Oh, my. Sam Stein [love him!] has a great article at Huffpo on the Democratic Party’s plan to “sell” the Health Care Reform Bill–once it’s signed into law. Hm. They’ve already got it SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED, IT’S YOURS.
But, reading in to the article, you discover that most of the people the Dems would utilize to “sell” the done deal, won’t be as ready to “preach it” as they think. Unions, for instance.
Don’t you think this is really bad strategy on the part of the Democratic Party? People oppose this bill in large numbers; so, if it’s signed into law, and the Dems continue to try to “sell” it, doesn’t that just remind voters that it was the Democrats who pushed it on them? If Dems do this all the way into November, this could have a blowback effect.
Not smart politically. Spending all their political capital on a bill no one likes, could be a big boon to Republicans.
What do you think?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/13/white-house-dems-planning_n_421532.html
DJJL @ 10:46 AM
“I don’t expect Coakley to lose but if she does, I won’t be heartbroken. If that is what it takes to shake the Democrats out their arrogance, so be it.”
I share these sentiments with Noogan, as explained in my post above.
Noogan
Here is the author’s web site:
Note he has a LOT of STUFF available for those heading to a Tea Party:
http://www.intellectualactivist.com/
Sep 12, 2009
The tea party movement is quite possibly the biggest spontaneous, grass-roots movement for liberty since—well, since 1773. So TIA is trying to help that movement in the most effective way we can think of: by providing intellectual ammunition.
The most exciting part of this guide is a set of posters created for us by TIA illustrator John Cox. But you can also find a series of articles on liberty and its intellectual foundation, as well as PDFs you can download and print out to create literature and signs for use at tea party rallies or town hall meetings. “
Ramsgate says:
13 January 2010 at 11:00 am
DJJL @ 10:46 AM
“I don’t expect Coakley to lose but if she does, I won’t be heartbroken. If that is what it takes to shake the Democrats out their arrogance, so be it.”
I share these sentiments with Noogan, as explained in my post above.
I agree with those sentiments as well. I thought you were agreeing with it all. Thanks for taking the time to explain.
Noogan
That piece from Real Clear Politics is misleading on the Ma vote. Read it and read the author’s bio, and read the article he references – written by the business editor of the Boston Herald.
Does anyone sense Party fatigue setting in? If you elect a Democrat and he follows the same war plan and foreign policy as his Republican predecessor what difference does it make who you vote for? When you vote for the Democrat who promises to “reform” the health care system and what you end up with is a bill written by big Pharma and the insurance industry, who cares who you vote for? When you vote for a Democrat who promises to close the Guantanamo military prison and signs an executive order to that effect and then reneges on that promise, who cares who you vote for? Does it really matter who you vote for if the same policies and plans are carried out by whomever, Democrat or Republican, is elected to office? Who cares? Peace
Does anyone sense Party fatigue setting in?
Bingo, which is what we’ve actually been talking about for months, with the health care exhibit A. It was partly what my post on mutiny was all about.
Imhotep says:
13 January 2010 at 11:22 am
Party fatigue is an understatement. Peace.
Party fatigue: And the answer is…..? Peace
France. -:)
Obama is a disaster for Democrats: “Party Fatigue” is Here.
Drew Weston:
“Obama described these “Cadillac plans” as if they are perks provided to Wall Street bankers (whose bonuses, last I looked, the President hasn’t similarly decided to tax out of existence), the “Cadillac plans” the President is referring to are nothing of the sort. No one knows exactly how many millions of working and middle class Americans will be affected by this new tax, particularly as health care costs continue to rise and more and more plans price into the range defined as “Cadillac.” A few nights ago I was having dinner with three professors of public health at a prestigious university, and I asked them whether the plan they had selected for their own families would fall under the category of a “Cadillac plan” whether they worried that it would eventually be eliminated if this legislation were enacted. None of them knew, but the sheepish consensus was, “I sure hope not.”
What is clear is that some and eventually all PPOs (preferred provider organizations) will fall prey to the tax, and PPOs are the primary alternatives to the cheap, bureaucratic plans that most people get out of as fast they can if they’ve ever been in one and can afford to escape it. The advantage of a PPO is that it allows people to see a doctor “out of network” if their network doesn’t have good care or has long waits. It allows them to call a specialist because they’ve already had three bouts of kidney stones and don’t want to waste their time–and weeks of agony–waiting for their primary care physician to make the inevitable referral–for which they’ll have to stand in line again.
Throughout the President’s first year in office, many in the chattering class have suggested that the White House is probably doing something right if it’s drawing fire from both the right and the left, as it is on health care reform.
From a policy standpoint, that is sophistry. Last I looked, the “golden mean” between the public interest and the interests of the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries was called corruption. FDR didn’t stand equidistant between Wall Street and Main Street during the Great Depression.
And from a political standpoint, it is equally sophistical–and disastrous for Democrats–for two reasons.
First, George W. Bush won his first election (or came close, anyway) by appealing to people in the political center. He won his second by bringing out his base. No one has ever won an election by bringing out the other side’s base.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-westen/why-president-obamas-taur_b_421181.html
Thanks to those who investigated the writer I previously quoted. I’m not a “tea party” member. That said, I don’t restrict what I read based on my own personal political perspectives. I read a wide spectrum of opinion, from left to right and thereby better see the political shifts. If I post a “tea party” supporter or a wingnut, or a liberal, it doesn’t necessarily mean that I fit neatly into those boxes. I don’t.
But I do not have faith that this Health Care Bill is going to be good for the American people. I would have preferred a single-payer, government-run healthcare system, taxing everyone equally, and providing equal access to health care from whatever doctor they choose. I’ve benefitted from military health care nearly all of my life, and I’ve always had the best health care available because of it. It’s government run healthcare.
I’m speechless. I literally don’t know what to say except that I just noticed that comments were back on the main page. Yippee!
We’ll have a better idea after the SCOTUS decision likely soon:
http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=8B811860-18FE-70B2-A84D447CBD611957
“If the justices, a majority of whom have demonstrated a willingness to strike down campaign finance restrictions as unconstitutional violations of the First Amendment, reverse the case law in question, it could allow power companies to spend millions on ads accusing congressmen who supported climate change legislation of trying to increase electric rates and urging votes against them, or unions to buy airtime to support primary challenges to conservative Democratic senators who opposed the labor-backed Employee Free Choice Act. ”
IMO, something has to be done about the money access…..or nothing will truly change – just change how they weasel the money (even making it look on the surface like it’s come from the little people all hopped up on hope and change )- hope’s about to run out and change doesn’t seem much on the way…..yet.
“Obama is a disaster for Democrats”
Wonder if Dr Dean has gotten cable yet?
Ramsgate, the “chattering class” should all be shipped off to France.
That might help. Peace
“Wonder if Dr Dean has gotten cable yet?”
hahaha!
Noogan
I don’t think any of us would ever take you for a tea party follower.
Thanks for your posts.
Imhotep says:
13 January 2010 at 11:36 am
Seriously. Really don’t know anymore.
Nothing will ever change until we have true finance reform, I. E. public financing of political campaigns but that is about to become a free for all with the imminent SC ruling. A third party, who knows?
So many ideas all of which have been talked about for years, and nothing ever really changes.
IMO, Only events — major events — bring about real change, and we missed those opportunities big time over the past year. The election of Obama was one such event, and the catastrophes that Bush left him were a heaven-sent opportunity given to HIM to restructure the country based on his precepts — the banking industry, the Middle East, health care, all of it, if he was clever.
Instead, he got the Presidency and he had no idea (no over-arching vision) what to do with it once he got it. I doubt that there will ever be such an opportunity for change again.
That Weston piece is really interesting. And, imo, he points out why Democrats and the country is in trouble with Obama’s style. This is from your link:
‘As someone who once enthusiastically supported this President and would like nothing better than to do so again, I’ve been pleased to see a change in the last couple of weeks in his willingness to step into the fray. On health care, for example, his modus operandi during his first year in office has been to exhort the Congress to pass legislation broadly described as reform but to express seemingly little interest in what form that reform was taking, leaving it to legislators and lobbyists to work out the details. For example, in a widely reported meeting with Congressional Democrats, he emphasized the importance of getting a bill through Congress, but he didn’t mention–let alone take a stand on–the two issues that have driven a wedge between Democrat and Democrat: abortion and the ill-named “public option.”‘
The other day Bill Clinton spent a few hours in the oval office with friend Obama. The meeting between the two must have gone into overtime because Obama’s speech was seriously edited down, as was the public report, and delayed twice for about 3 1/2 hours. Two days later Hillary was on her way to Hawaii and Papua New Guinea. Two terrorist hot spots. One day later “that” gossipy book about the last election was the talk of the town. Is any of this stuff related? Peace
imhotep
Why send the chattering class to the nation picked as the best place in the world to live for the 5th year in a row?
http://www.internationalliving.com/Internal-Components/Further-Resources/quality-of-life-2010
Hi daubry.
Don’t you just love it when it seems some want to blame WJC for Obama’s speech delay and suggest the HRC is so tender that she must run off to escape gossip?
Ramsgate, I couldn’t agree more. What a wasted opportunity.
“IMO, Only events — major events — bring about real change, and we missed those opportunities big time over the past year. The election of Obama was one such event, and the catastrophes that Bush left him were a heaven-sent opportunity given to HIM to restructure the country based on his precepts — the banking industry, the Middle East, health care, all of it, if he was clever.
Instead, he got the Presidency and he had no idea (no over-arching vision) what to do with it once he got it. I doubt that there will ever be such an opportunity for change again.”
djjl, I was being nice. But, since you would rather not be nice, my second choice would be to send them all to Afghanistan. They all seem to be in love with that place anyway. Peace
djjl, “tender?” Some might suggest that her head would have exploded and Obama wanted her as far out of town as possible when that happened. I do think that she should cut here winter vacation short and fly back to Haiti to stumble over the rubble though. But being very bush like she’ll probably just fly over the place at 30,000 feet and be photographed looking real concerned as she peers out the airplane window at some point next week. Peace
My guess is tha Obama and WJC were talking politics and Clinton’s upcoming work in MA. I’m sure HRC’s trip was not spur of the moment,don’t think the SOS can move that way.
I like the word fatigue, but besides being fatigued, I am confused. How did this happen to us? Is it all Obama? Or are we really a herd of cats? (Personally I would rather be a cat than a dog, but I do get the point.)
Regarding the MA Senate seat. Seems like I remember MA being one of those states whose Senator as a superdelegate voted against their wishes.I don’t think Dems are really over all the treachery involved in Obama’s selection.I would be willing to speculate that they don’t have the ground game they have had in the past. It would be a shame for Coakley to lose especially for women but ignoring the rifts and anger over how things have turned out is really stupid. The establishment must think that because Hillary was a good camper and did her best for Obama that she was able to bring the party back together for the long haul and that may have been true if Obama operated anything like a Democrat during his first year but as it is the gulf seems to be getting wider.
Hi Lake Lady – always refreshing to see you here.
alphonsegaston
I do think it is Obama. He does appear to be the empty suit I feared propped up by big money.
I hate being right about this and still hold out hopes that there is something to him after all. But, that’s a change I’m losing hope of seeing.
Another comment from Noogan’s link above:
“It was nice to see the President make a decision. But it would have been nicer to see him make a good one, particularly when faced, as he has been so many times this year, with the choice between the interests of big business and the interests of working and middle class Americans–”
Hey djjl
alphonsegaston…how can we shorten your name?I have to go back and forthemember it all! Ha!It is not all Obama. It is all of them. They are not doing the people’s work and the people know it.
well looks like I made up a new word…back and forth to remember it…
Obama is the POTUS. He needs to lead. They’ve been virtually begging him to do so for months.
Try remembering it this way “alphonse gaston” – reminds me of the movie “Ratotouille.”
i think obama will need to dump biden and pick hillary for vp in 2012. if her supporters are going to sit home then he needs her on the ticket and she should have been there in the 1st place. here is some info on brown-if this right winger has traction in ma can u imagine in those swing states? obama better pray for a miracle.
http://www.bluemassgroup.com/diary/18306/who-is-scott-brown-a-george-w-bush-republican
Ramsgate says:
13 January 2010 at 12:03 pm
Instead, he got the Presidency and he had no idea (no over-arching vision) what to do with it once he got it. I doubt that there will ever be such an opportunity for change again.
——–
Ramsgate: And it’s a crying shame! A president that came into office with the wind at his back and so much good will and has no idea what to do. With a filibuster proof Senate and a majority Democratic House, he had the stature to stand up and lead and make great things happen. I know it’s anathema around here, but at least when George W. was in power, he tried to lead. Don’t get me wrong–I am certainly no fan. And he definitely lead us down the wrong path–that’s for damn sure. But once he made a decision, he didn’t waver and he LEAD. He got a lot of heat for his decisions but he took it like a man. That part I can admire. With that said, I’m am praying that Obama can in his remaining years (I do think he has plenty of time) find his footing and achieve the level of greatness that we expected from him.
Nzanh
I’m praying too – not just for a chance at greatness -I’ll take competency based on Democratic principles.
I really is something djjl.
nzanh says:
13 January 2010 at 2:17 pm
NZANH, you said it perfectly.
And, this is what makes it all so damned infuriating.
A crying shame.
One last point. We learned from the “tabloid” book that Hillary was planning her transition and imagining the people who would populate her cabinet years before she even formally announced her candidacy. She asked Roger Altman to help. That’s the vision I believe a President should have. One ought to at least have a dream of where one wants to take the country and the world, if one is to achieve greatness.
Obama, on the other hand, was like the dog who ran after the car and caught it. Once he got it he had no idea what the hell to do with it. Therefore all he could do was what the people who selected him to run — the Harry Reid’s etc, — told him to do.
Alpnonse Gaston was my first cat, a farm bobtailed, long-haired, mitten-pawed female, mother of many kittens. Her name comes from her habit (coomon to cats of course) of not coming through a door without constant backing and filing. My mother named her after a comedy team whose act was, “After you, my dear Alphonse.” “No, after you, my dear Gaston.” I have no idea who they were–movies, vaudeville stage.
You can call me Fonso.
Thank you for the lovely story of alphonsegaston. Thank you.