President Obama is 10 months into his Presidency, with more than 3 years remaining, and yet:

[ProSense]

Primarying Obama from the left ?

The above Daily Kos diary is interesting, but seriously, what the hell are some people thinking? The Dems will be fortunate to hold on to their House and Senate majorities in 2010. Historically, the trend is massive losses. Obama will likely come out fine regardless of how 2010 plays out. Again, why the hell are people focusing on an election three years out?

[JuniperLea]

1. The "Anti" crowd has un-rec'd you already!

Good... line 'em up...

[donheld]

44. Looks to me like

someone finds all new threads and automatically unrecommends them.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

2. why the hell are people focusing on an election three years out?

They're freeper trolls.

[old mark]

58. Because many people believe the GOP bullshit that 'publicans will gain in 2010.

We can gain seats if we vote, but if we sit home and piss and moan, we certainly will lose and deserve it.

The GOP is the stupid party, folks - let's not give them the election because they really are smarter than we are.

Complain all you want, but vote first.

mark

[joeybee12]

3. Crap...I rec'ed when i wanted to unrec...

...maybe because they think Obama needs to listen to his constituents instead of Wall Street?

[liberalmuse]

4. Yeah. We have our own lefty teabaggers.

Which is too bad, because I believe President Obama is probably the best this sorry ass country full of fucking idiots is going to be getting for a long, LOOOOOOOOONG time.

[MNDemNY]

10. Ain't that a shame.

just a damn shame.:D :rofl:

[OnionPatch]

60. I hear ya.

When loyal Dems like me are frustrated to the point of giving it all up, I can't see how we're supposed to have all this hope for the next election.

[AllentownJake]

17. I love the new Tea Bagger analogy

When we take over the party and have the party leaders kissing Thom Hartman's ass so he doesn't say something bad about them, you get back to me about there being left wing Tea Baggers.

Here is what is going to happen in 2010 if the democrats fuck up. The moderates will all scream about the dumb leftist and how they are ruining everything and half the battered wife syndrome progressives will say, you know what the moderates are right and we will be margianilized further and yelled at more about 2012 and how we are to blame for everything.

It is the democratic party way.

[hansont]

56. Calling progressives who want real change "tea baggers" is intellectually dishonest

[JuniperLea]

21. Indeed...

They are doing their best to fuck him over already... idiots.

It's been one short year after a long 8 of BushCo screwing things up... but this jolly band of cretins thinks the magic negro should have solved all those problems already.

Brilliant. Fucking brilliant.

[DCBob]

46. So true.

These idiots are killing the golden goose.

[Kdillard]

5. Dems apparently really want Republicans back in control. It

Was not enough to have 8 years of Bush to teach us anything about unity and what a lack of it will cost us.

[noiretextatique]

7. tell that to the blue dogs

and the caucuser lieberman.

[conscious evolution]

26. Actually,we want the Democrats back in control

Not people who pretend to be democrats.

[girl gone mad]

43. When were they ever not in control?

:shrug:

[MNDemNY]

6. "Obama will likely come out fine regardless of how 2010 plays out"

Are you fucking kidding?? Do you not care at all about the 2010 elections?? If, (and I do not agree with the scenario) we do lose control of the House and /or the Senate It certainly will have a major effect on Obama's re-election chances. To say otherwise is simply ignorant. I think you need to ask Obama and his people why they seem to be focusing on re-election, he/they have not exactly been generous spending that political capital, now have they? Why are they saving it if not for "3 years out"??:-(

[AllentownJake]

15. You are surprised by this because...

Seriously, you are shocked?

[MNDemNY]

16. Beyond "shocked" I'm infused with the anger of ages!!!

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :spray:

[JuniperLea]

40. I'm sorta sorry I missed that!

Ignored must be really funny in that post!

:rofl:

[ProSense]

18. Everyone has to perform. Clinton was re-elected

despite the loss of nine Senate seats in 1994. Congress has to perform. They can't simply expect to ride Obama's coattails to victory.

Yes, the focus should be on 2010 and those who are actually running.

[AllentownJake]

19. Yes, the focus should be on 2010 and those who are actually running.

Must be bizzaro world today...I actually agree with Pro on something.

[niyad]

8. maybe because we need to remind him to listen to the people who voted for him?

[MNDemNY]

9. No, the meme today is that YOU did not listen to him.

All along he said he'd be a "right of center, war waging, corporatist" you just chose not to hear him.

[Dr Robert]

11. bitterness is a dish best not served at all

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Dr Robert]

24. you certainly have a way with words...but wouldn't you rather be happy?

[niyad]

42. oh, no, I heard him just fine, thank you very much, including not just waging more war in afghanista

but also about things like "transparency", openness, etc. so do not tell me what I did or did not listen to (or possibly see what I wrote in my journal about him in january of last year--THAT would make the pom-pom squad's little heads explode.

[AllentownJake]

13. It is Stupid

Wait till November 2010 for that kind of talk.

[Cha]

14. There's a lot of this going on and this guy at least

admits it.. From your link..

"Many Kossacks, myself included, are critical of Obama on a number of fronts.
Upon some valuable critical self-reflection, I found many of my criticisms unfair or lacking in perspective in context. After that reflection, I came to several conclusions."

more below the fold:

math4barack's diary :: :: First, President Obama is a very good President. Second, it is far from clear that other electable candidates would have been more progressive than he has been in office. It is an assumption to say that other electable Democratic candidates would have been more progressive if they had won the Presidential election. Third, I have strong disagreements with President Obama in a couple of areas. Fourth, legitimate, reasonable criticism, in my opinion, should not rely upon rumors, anonymous sources, and stretched parsings of President Obama's words.

Quite honestly, the criticisms of Obama on international policy don't make sense, particularly those accusing President Obama of being a war-monger. President Obama opposed the war in Iraq from the start. It is a fringe view that equates the immoral, unethical war in Iraq with the war in Afghanistan. One never had any moral justification. The other never lacked moral justification. We are at a point now where all reasonable and responsible people who occupied the Presidency of either party would arrive at the same conclusion: draw down in Iraq at some responsible rate, sharply define and narrow the mission in Afghanistan and do what is necessary to achieve that mission.

Criticisms on the domestic front are more serious. I would identify three areas where I would be quite critical of the President (keeping in mind - who would have done better that could have actually won): health care reform, war crimes prosecution and the economy.

In terms of health care reform, honesty requires me to admit that the primary problem is the Senate, not the President. If the President had a decent Senate, then we would get the reform we need. Nevertheless, in my view, the President ought to have drawn a line in the sand declaring the public option a non-negotiable. Moreover, he should have insisted that the public option be open for all. I believe that he, then, should publicly pressure the conservadems (Lincoln, Lieberman, Nelson, Landrieu) on supporting the public option or at least the health care reform bill with a public option. I believe that calling them out or applying pressure to them by campaigning negatively against them is appropriate."

[DJ13]

20. Has it dawned on the Obama defenders that people have a right to be angry?

Look around, do you see trillions spent to help the average person like weve seen spent on the banks?

Every day life gets harder,credit is more expensive (if you can get it), people are losing homes and jobs at rates not seen for decades, and every time you turn around the costs of most everything keep increasing while wages are declining.

Sure Obama is only in his first year, but has that stopped him from already securing the future of the banks?

What about the rest of us?

Do we really have to wait for another election year before this administration turns their attention towards the average person?

[JuniperLea]

22. Uhhh... Bush helped the banks...

How limited that thinking is... :eyes:

[DJ13]

23. And Obama has too

How far do you want to go with this line of thinking?

[JuniperLea]

25. What did you want him to do?

Let the entire country fail?

The country was in ruins... still is... it took 8+ years to get to this point, and you expect Obama to work magic in one scant year? Really?

I suppose you are far smarter than he is too... :eyes:

[DJ13]

28. Crack down on Wall Street instead of coddling them

You know, return to the laws FDR put in place to prevent our banks from speculating.

That should have been a no brainer after taking office in dealing with the current economic crisis.

Seriously, look around you at the state of our country and ask yourself what HAS he tried to do to help the average person.

I can count dozens of ways he has helped the big Wall Street firms with no questioning if we can afford it, but any help for the average person requires months of study and debate about costs, foot dragging, and ultimately concessions to conservatives that results in no help actually happening.

[ProSense]

32. "HAS he tried to do to help the average person." Your being pissed at Wall Street doesn't mean

He hasn't

BIGGEST. TAX CUT. EVER...:

Chris Hayes had a similar observation.

On the politics side of the ledger, Ben Smith notes Obama's emphasis on the tax cuts in the bill. I'm not necessarily a fan, though politically it's true that every single Republican member of congress can now be accused of "Voting against the biggest tax cut in history" come next election." Clearly, this hasn't escaped the White House's notice.

The ARRA:

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, abbreviated ARRA (Pub.L. 111-5), is an economic stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009. The Act of Congress was based largely on proposals made by President Barack Obama and was intended to provide a stimulus to the U.S. economy in the wake of the economic downturn. The measures are nominally worth $787 billion. The Act includes federal tax cuts, expansion of unemployment benefits and other social welfare provisions, and domestic spending in education, health care, and infrastructure, including the energy sector. The Act also includes numerous non-economic recovery related items that were either part of longer-term plans (e.g. a study of the effectiveness of medical treatments) or desired by Congress (e.g. a limitation on executive compensation in federally aided banks added by Senator Dodd and Rep. Frank). The government action is much larger than the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, which consisted primarily of tax rebate checks.

Add to that the home buyers credit, cash for clunkers and student financial aid.



Does all of this add up to more or less than the TARP?

[JuniperLea]

35. Well done!

Way to shine a light on ignorance!

:patriot:

[JuniperLea]

34. Point to point...

Do you understand the monumental task of reinstating the Glass-Steagall act? Yes, it's a no-brainer, but is it available in instant form? No. It could take years to get that puppy back on track. There's no way that can be a quick fix.

Your paycheck and mine are larger, that was an instant help to a lot of people... but how soon we forget, huh?

You're dreaming... wake up and whiff the cappuccino... reality is all around you... all you have to do is open your eyes and stop with the unrealistic expectations.

[DJ13]

37. Has Obama tried?

Seriously, you can believe what you want, but you're blinded to his inactions by an ideal that only exists in your head.

[JuniperLea]

38. Stealing with props from ProSense...

He hasn't tried? Really?

BIGGEST. TAX CUT. EVER...:


Chris Hayes had a similar observation.

On the politics side of the ledger, Ben Smith notes Obama's emphasis on the tax cuts in the bill. I'm not necessarily a fan, though politically it's true that every single Republican member of congress can now be accused of "Voting against the biggest tax cut in history" come next election." Clearly, this hasn't escaped the White House's notice.


The ARRA:


The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, abbreviated ARRA (Pub.L. 111-5), is an economic stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009. The Act of Congress was based largely on proposals made by President Barack Obama and was intended to provide a stimulus to the U.S. economy in the wake of the economic downturn. The measures are nominally worth $787 billion. The Act includes federal tax cuts, expansion of unemployment benefits and other social welfare provisions, and domestic spending in education, health care, and infrastructure, including the energy sector. The Act also includes numerous non-economic recovery related items that were either part of longer-term plans (e.g. a study of the effectiveness of medical treatments) or desired by Congress (e.g. a limitation on executive compensation in federally aided banks added by Senator Dodd and Rep. Frank). The government action is much larger than the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, which consisted primarily of tax rebate checks.


Add to that the home buyers credit, cash for clunkers and student financial aid.



Does all of this add up to more or less than the TARP?

[snot]

67. how does the biggest tax cut ever help

not only the unemployed but the retirees whose savings were decimated and independent contractors whose incomes have dried up and who are not elibigle for unemployment?

[bikingaz]

76. Tax cuts - In 2008 he said that tax cuts do not work

What changed?.
If they really work, then he lied during the campaign. And instead of giving us a tax cut, he sent money to the banks.
If they don't work, why are tax cuts proposed?.

[PVnRT]

62. Squeaky wheels get grease

No, I didn't expect him to "solve everything in a year," nor have many of his critics on the left. Does that mean we're supposed to just shut up and wait and see if he gets to other things? Or keep up the pressure to remind him what so many who supported him in the election want him to do?

I'm sick and tired of people like you and the OP simply marginalizing everyone rather than applying critical thinking.

[BklnDem75]

66. Get over it

A guy can only do so much in so little time. Reasonable criticism is fine, but that's far from what you and the whine brigade are doing. Guess what, you're not the only one sick and tired. We all have our thresholds. Deal with it.

[PVnRT]

71. Wow, you've convinced me

Typical of the cheerleader crowd. Shut the fuck up and get in line. Don't ask for the things you want until given permission, right?

[BklnDem75]

74. Awww, did I take your wittle rights away?

Typical of a douche. Suggest someone be reasonable and they cry foul. Go ahead, cry a river and drown in your bitterness.

[ProSense]

27. You can be angry all you want to and focus on a primary if you choose

It's ludicrous and proves that some people aren't dealing with reality.

[DJ13]

29. ......

[ProSense]

31. Nice self-portrait. n/t

[DJ13]

33. You're right

I should have used an ass for your picture.

[Cha]

47. May the ugliness that you spew be

boomeranged right backatcha.

[JuniperLea]

36. I thought I recognized you...

Not your best side, however.

[JuniperLea]

39. I just copied and gave you props for a post just above here!

I'm happy to see there are a few of us who get it.

[Go2Peace]

55. They also don't get that this is part of the process. You don't get Washington to change by clapping

[treestar]

75. Well wait a minute

What was spent on the banks was to keep them going, keep the people employed there employed, along with anyone who worked at any company dealing with that bank, etc. That was for average people. Those people were mostly average, and were helped, setting aside the few cases of egregious bonuses to higher paid people there. It was to keep the system afloat, rather than allow a disaster that would have impacted ordinary people far worse. You are just lacking in ability to see more than the surface.

And how fast can what happened in the prior years be turned around? There are no magicians.

[CakeGrrl]

30. They want President Palin, apparently.

Because they probably think there's no WAY she could beat Dennis Kucinich. They probably think the MSM will be with him every step of the way.

:crazy:

[DCBob]

45. These lefty-teabaggers are clueless.

Obama is best thing that has ever happened to this country.

[IndianaGreen]

48. Tell that to the people he is going to get killed in Afghanistan

Obama is going the way of LBJ.

[DCBob]

49. Tell that to the victims of the next 9/11.. if we follow your "way".

I think I will take Obama's way.

[IndianaGreen]

50. Easy to say when it isn't your ass, or that of your loved ones, that are in the line of fire

Obama's daughters will be of military age when this war is still raging without resolution.

[DCBob]

51. You know nothing about me...

My closest niece and her husband have both done multiple tours there. Its an ugly situation but it will get uglier if we ignore it.

[IndianaGreen]

52. The war is unwinnable!

We could send half a million troops to that country and the only thing that would change is that we would have a spike in casualties.

[DCBob]

53. Do you have secert intel on that?

Please send to the WH.

[IndianaGreen]

54. I read the British press and I paid close attention to what the British military

had to say about Afghanistan.

[PVnRT]

61. And they say the Obama critics use right-wing memes

I suppose you believed the smoking gun mushroom cloud theory, too.

[Forkboy]

64. Why, a mushroom cloud could be over us in 15 minutes!!!111

[spoony]

57. Really...EVER?

Now...if a person can't criticise Obama after so short a time in office, how can you make THAT claim in the same time span??

[PVnRT]

63. That's just fucking asinine

I guess one is either a Palin supporter or agrees with Obama all the time with nary a critical word.

[Forkboy]

65. Stupidest and laziest meme on DU.

[yurbud]

41. massive losses could be avoided if the Dems broke out of their epic dicklessness

and started fighting for us.

[kid a]

69. what does a lack of a penis have to do with this discussion?

[yurbud]

70. metaphorically. Many female pols have more of one than their male colleagues

Boxer, Maxine Waters, Barbara Lee, etc.

The point is they need to do something bold that steps on corporate toes.

[davidpdx]

59. I think we are due for some massive losses and they will be shocking

I'm predicting for 25-30 House seats and 5-6 Senate Seats. It won't be enough to lose the majority, but it will be enough to cripple it severely.

As to someone running left of Obama, I have been saying for a few days I think it will happen. There are two names floating around in my head, both prominent Democrats that ran before (I'll leave it at that). All Republicans have to do is find someone that "looks" moderate to get a close victory. Granted right now they don't have anyone, but a couple of years could change that.

The day after the midterms, the 2012 election will start. That gives us 334 days left.

[HughMoran]

73. It will be deserved

We fought tooth and nail for the victory in 2008, but too many saw utopia around the corner. We'll get creamed and the critics will say it's because Obama wasn't "progressive" or "liberal" enough. It's maddening.

[TriMetFan]

68. What happen to Clinton & Democratic Party in the....

90's will happen to Obama & this Democratic Party if the don't get their shit together. Times are a lot worst and people need help now, not promises about tomorrow!

[HughMoran]

72. A dose of reality will hit soon enough

It's going to be a real eye opener. I expect a few "mea culpa" threads starting a year or so from now. In the meantime, enjoy the poorly thought out screaming by those who have short-circuited.