I love this community. This is a group that is ultra supportive on a personal level (I have experienced this personally with one diary). We are united in alot of ways.
But, we all have opinions. You know what they say about opinions, and this is a blog site - where opinions fly.
However, I want to point out that there is a difference in how we should all approach governance versus politics. And it seems we are getting a bit caught up in the politics.
I understand this. It's one of the GOP's biggest faults (and they have many). They are a political blitzkrieg. Everything is about winning the next election. Everything. They have no interest in governing. None. The most rightwing faction of the GOP (now with new Tea Party flavor for additional extremist enjoyment) doesn't believe the federal government should do or spend anything. The rest of them live for politics as if it's their cult.
Because they are a cult. They have their own churches, their own schools, their own websites, their own text books, and - of course - their own broadcast outlets and celebrities. And it's all about destroying the opposition and winning for power and money. Automotons motivated by power, bigotry and greed.
So, if you want an example of what happens when "all politics all the time" meets governance, you need only look at the previous administration. What did that do? A city drowned. An economy trashed. An illegal war. Financial freefall. More poverty. More discrimination. Less regulation. Less "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."
President Obama is change. He is something different. I don't agree with his priorities on everything, but his goal was to be post-partisan, and that's not the same as non-partisan. And this is different than his progressive instincts versus the conservatives. This means he wants government to do what it was built to do: Compromise and move forward. President Obama is about governance when it's time to govern and politics when it's time to campaign.
Now, losing sucks. I know it. But, history said we were going to lose the midterms. And, frankly, we lucked out a bit - we kept 2/3 of the elected part of the government. It could have been far worse. But losing sucks. It sucks for Republicans and it sucks for Democrats. So you get mad, and you want to blame somebody. And it really sucks when you had such an impressive win the last time.
But, regardless, the President still has to govern. And, if you know anything about collective bargaining, getting anything better than 50% of what you want is an impressive feat.
I'm not defending him entirely. Nor am I defending the Dems in Congress. There should have been a vote on the tax issue before the election. They should have voted on DADT before the elections. There are moments when the President should get tough and fight. I don't think the rich deserve a tax break. But if that's all to get all the other stuff in the bill, why is that so horrible? That's the way government works.
But, the President is not the Congress. He has to deal with the hand he is dealt in Congress.
It's easy to say that this is President Obama's fault because he "caved." I think the fault lies with how the Democrats campaigned. This congress and this President did amazing things over the past two years. Did we get everything we wanted the way we wanted it? No. Does anybody? No. Should they? No. That's not Democracy.
But disagreeing with President Obama doesn't mean he's a centrist. It doesn't mean the Republicans own him. It means you disagree. Get a grip on that. "Epic fail" does not describe this Presidency. It describes my first marriage. Honestly - you'd think he switched parties or backed the invasion of yet another country in the Middle East without cause!
DADT didn't pass the Senate yesterday because of Joe Manchin, Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid were the ones that didn't bring up the tax extensions on our terms before the election. President Obama didn't do it.
Does he have issues? Yes. This Whitehouse doesn't message quite the way they should at key moments. When they do, it's awesome. Remember the President in front of the GOP congressional leaders taking them to school on healthcare reform?
The problem with the Republicans is they are a political power machine and not a governing machine. And they will implode this time around just like they did in 2006 - and probably more quickly. They are about to play a tough game of "You're Not Conservative Enough" with each other. That's the price for doing a deal with the Tea Party.
We progressives love to argue with each other. It's in the nature and culture of the Democratic party and progressive politics. But - and those of you my age or older know I'm right about this - if we primary President Obama, we will lose the government in 2012. All of it. History is very clear on the consequences of a serious primary fight. That party always loses. Always.
The politics will come in time. The dynamic will get in gear, the President will draw his lines in the sand, the GOP will look stupid and there will be wins and losses, threats and vetos. President Obama will campaign with the spine he always had.
And frankly, the worst possible outcome of all this is if the cretinous Republicans we have right now get it all back. That won't just mean policies we disagree with. They will do actual damage. Cannabilizing President Obama like this just helps their cause.