Obama's Real Opposition

[GePap]

Originally posted by Blaupanzer
I love having the guys who backed the other candidate try to tell us what our mandate is. If bush had a mandate in 2004, and you all said he did, then Obama has a bigger one now. That mandate is to move national policy back toward the middle class in stead of being for the upper class.

QFT

I think Obama's pick of Emanuel as his chief of staff speaks volumes about how he might behave with regards to congress - he got an experienced congressional operator known to sometime step on toes but who gets things done, and who bears a significant amount of responsibility for the fact that there is a Democratic house right now.

Also not taken into account is that Obama comes from the Senate, while Clinton and Carter were both governors coming from the outside. Obama has had personal experience with all his fellow Senators, which should help him in that regard, plus he knows personally how that club works. Of course Emanuel has experience on how the other club works.

Finally, not only is the question of how Obama will work with the leaders of a Democratic Congress, but also what kind of opposition will the Reublicans become? Will they try to wk with Obama and the majority were possible, or will they turn back to their tactics of 1992-94 in which they became obstructionist.

[GePap]

Originally posted by MrFun


Like Republicans have never done their fair share of infighting.

The Bush years showed how disciplined the Republicans were, to the extent that house republicans only really broke with the President when it came to the bailout vote. Prior to that they swallowed their ideological pride and constantly voted for big government spending because Bush wanted it.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by GePap


QFT

I think Obama's pick of Emanuel as his chief of staff speaks volumes about how he might behave with regards to congress - he got an experienced congressional operator known to sometime step on toes but who gets things done, and who bears a significant amount of responsibility for the fact that there is a Democratic house right now.

Also not taken into account is that Obama comes from the Senate, while Clinton and Carter were both governors coming from the outside. Obama has had personal experience with all his fellow Senators, which should help him in that regard, plus he knows personally how that club works. Of course Emanuel has experience on how the other club works.

Finally, not only is the question of how Obama will work with the leaders of a Democratic Congress, but also what kind of opposition will the Reublicans become? Will they try to wk with Obama and the majority were possible, or will they turn back to their tactics of 1992-94 in which they became obstructionist.

Yeah, Emanuel is known to engender bipartisanship by mailing an opponent a dead fish.

[GePap]

Originally posted by MrFun


Yeah, Emanuel is known to engender bipartisanship by mailing an opponent a dead fish.

Did I mention "bipartisanship" ANYWHERE in that post you quoted?

Obama doesn't need the Republicans in the House at all, anymore than Bush needed the Dems. (and the Dem. majority is greater than any the Republicans had during the Bush years). At the same time, a skilled House operative would know how to get votes, no matter where they came from.

[Naked Gents Rut]

will they turn back to their tactics of 1992-94 in which they became obstructionist.

God, let's hope so...

[MrFun]

Originally posted by GePap




Did I mention "bipartisanship" ANYWHERE in that post you quoted?

Obama doesn't need the Republicans in the House at all, anymore than Bush needed the Dems. (and the Dem. majority is greater than any the Republicans had during the Bush years). At the same time, a skilled House operative would know how to get votes, no matter where they came from.

Relax, Mr. Tighty Pants. I support Obama's choice for Emanuel as Chief of Staff but I'm still a little weary. My joke was in reference to your remark about how Emanuel and Obama may behave toward Congress.

[Bosh]

Stop trying to tell jokes, please please stop.

[Berzerker]

Originally posted by Lancer
Funny thing is, I think Obama is going to need the Repugs before this is over. They are more centrist.

when they're out of power

[Lancer]

Yes ok, but still.

[Dinner]

Originally posted by Blaupanzer
I love having the guys who backed the other candidate try to tell us what our mandate is. If bush had a mandate in 2004, and you all said he did, then Obama has a bigger one now. That mandate is to move national policy back toward the middle class in stead of being for the upper class.

Yep, I can do nothing but laugh when the people who said Bush's 51-49 election was a mandate who then turn around and claim Obama's 54-46 election isn't a mandate. Especially given that Obama won the election by more then 190 electoral votes.

Have you seen the twists and turns Karl Rove has done on Fox News? He's now claiming Obama ran on a Reagan conservative platform so the election is really a victory for conservatives. WTF? Just a week before Rove was claiming Obama was a socialist and might be a communist. These people have no shame.

[Dinner]

There are virtually no centrist Republicans left in Congress. The moderates/centrists got massacred in the last two elections.

[Ecthy]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
A mandate is that which is perceived as a mandate. In 1980, Reagan was perceived as having received a mandate although only 25% of registered voters voted for him. (Lots of folks stayed home that year.)

Obama received 31% of potential votes. Not sure if this counts registered or total entitled voters.

[Swissy]

Originally posted by Oerdin

Have you seen the twists and turns Karl Rove has done on Fox News? He's now claiming Obama ran on a Reagan conservative platform so the election is really a victory for conservatives. WTF? Just a week before Rove was claiming Obama was a socialist and might be a communist. These people have no shame.

Rove is partially correct. Obama took the tax issue away from McCain by putting numbers on it: 95% will get tax break, only $250K per year plus people will get increases. McCain never qualified his tax-cut statements. It was another masterstroke on the part of the Obama campaign. It just going to be interesting to see if he will stick with it.

The Obama is a socialist claim is based on the 2003 Chicago NPR station interview with Obama. In it he calls the Constitution a negative document as it is mainily prohibitations on what government cannot do to people. He said real change cannot happen until the Constitution becomes more positive and says what government must do for people.

[GePap]

No, Rove is still wrong. Calling for tax cuts is a perennial ploy. Can you name me a single Democratic presidential candidate that ran on a platform of higher taxes as a campaign promise?

The conservative thing to have done is promised everyone lower taxes (as McCain did), blather on about rising tides, and talked about the evils of government (also a McCain staple). Obama did not do either of the last two.

Also, the socialist claim comes from his "Joe to Plumber" discussion and him metioning the term "redistribution" fo wealth. Until that was widely publicized by the McCain campaign the "socialist" label had not been used.

[Kidlicious]

Obama also ran on a higher minimum wage platform, which definitely isn't conservative. But I agree with Swissy, you make himself look very conservative to people who care about that sort of thing.