LBJ: How to get votes in the Senate.

[denem]

LBJ was a master of twisting arms. Here's what he said about threats:

Psychologically you scare them. Well hell, its like the fellow always telling me in Congress, 'Go on and put the monkey on his back.' Every time I tried to put a monkey on somebody's else's back, I got one. If you're going to try to psychologically scare them...you're liable to get your bottom shot at.http://www.hpol.org/jfk/cuban

I hear comments about Obama's 'milquetoast administration', that doesn't call out Senators, at least in public. How stupid is that? School kids and idiots telegraph punches. Grow up.

[denem]

1. Unrec'd but nothing to say? Typical.

[ret5hd]

2. i unrec'd for whining about unrec.

[denem]

4. That's fine. It's not the unrecs, it's the cowardice that gets me.

How may times has "threaten them" been posted. Hmmm

[FormerDittoHead]

3. How about scaring them by threatening to withhold gov't projects from their states?

Pick a state that won't be going blue for quite some time, something in the SouthWest.

Then YANK EVERYTHING THE FUCK OUT AND PUT IT IN A BLUE STATE. ELIMINATE the pork. Move the gov't run whatever. MAKE 'EM SCREAM and then tell them that THEY'RE the ones who wanted to end gov't programs....

Then ask the other Senators who wants to be NEXT and then how will they be voting for the public option???

Do you think LBJ or Republicans wouldn't do that???

[Captain Hilts]

6. Yep. No more funding from DNC, etc. Play tackle football. nt

[Captain Hilts]

5. LBJ pushed Medicare and voting rights through a reluctant Congress. A master. nt

[ashling]

7. Its fine to say that Obama should be more forceful, etc., but

he in suggesting that he do what LBJ was able to do, you are forgetting (or ignoring) that LBJ had 15 years of experience, had been a master majority leader (totally unlike what is there now) and knew where all of the bodies were buried ...

all of that gave him the power and the ability to use it when the opportunity was there to push for the Great Society measures: voting rights, medicare, Head Start, et al.

[Anarcho-Socialist]

8. I Rec'd just to be nice

[Clio the Leo]

9. LBJ didn't have a Congressional Budget Office to answer to......

..... someone said that on one of the MSNBC shows this week and I've been waiting to use it ever since. :)

(so thank you for giving me that opportunity)

[question everything]

10. No Internet, YouTube, Facebook, digital phones and cameras and twitting

that would keep everything anyone was saying or doing plastered across the world and going viral.

Sometimes negotiations need to take place behind closed door to come out with a final decision. And we are a representative democracy. We elect members of Congress to represent us, not to ask us at any turn how high to jump.