Does this capture the Obama presidency?
“model of a modern American President. A liberal one at first but now it seems I have a centrist bent …”
“Centrist”, sadly, seems defined in rather conservative terms as there has been such movement to the right in the Overton Window due to decades-long investment by such true patriots like the fossil-foolish, global warming denier Koch brothers.
Someone wrote me the other day:
The Republicans clearly understand that “playing the ref” works on Obama.
It’s like he wants to prove that he isn’t what they say he is, wants it so badly that he over and over does things to show them that he isn’t like that, so when he does they double down, do even more. And he just doesn’t get it that they’re playing him.
He seems to think that if he gives them even more, moves more to the right, they’ll stop saying bad things about him.
Give the big companies more, they’ll back off.
Punch another hippie, they’ll finally let him be “one of us” in the big leagues.
The community organizer, elected for “change”, who seems to have put — too often — bipartisanship before doing the right thing when it comes to seeking legislation.
- With the stimulus package, lets put in tax cuts because the Rs will like it, won’t they?
- How about pre-compromising on climate legislation by giving away the farm by promising support for clean coal, nuclear industry expansion, offshore drilling, free permits to polluters, etc without requiring any signatures on the deal?
- Not pursuing single payer (okay, a bit further than he would have gone) or, sigh, even single-payer in the health care bill?
- Speaking about cutting Federal labor force, asserting that ‘lower-skilled workers’ seem to be paid too much while higher-skilled workers are underpaid rather than defending how the Federal government remains a bastion where people, who show up and do their work well, can earn a livable wage.
- And so on … and so on … and so on …
There is much to admire in President Obama (despite what Fox watchers and Palin-istas might think) and there are real, tangible achievements by the President and his Administration. Yet, it does seem he has a ‘centrist bent’ as he struggles with serious problems and serious naysayers not interested in cooperating on any issue …
The video, below, captures some of this in Rogers & Hammerstein style …