Yes, yes…we all know that Obama gave away the store to the health insurance and pharmaceutical companies. And this week, he gave part of the country to the oil companies. His offering up of offshore drilling, on top of his support for nuclear energy, shows that once again he gives the middle finger to the liberal wing of his party (his base) while bowing to Republicans.
Yes, yes…he WILL get corporate cash for conservative Democrats running in tight races, and you can argue that that ultimately benefits the Democratic Party. But where’s that money for alternative energy again? No seriously, some was part of the stimulus, green energy jobs and all, but can we at least have an update with this disastrous news?
No, no…the national narrative is how centrist this president is.
But is he centrist, or a loser. Starting the energy negotiations by giving the other side exactly what they want is like starting health care negotiations by taking national single payer off the table. It dooms the process to a pro-corporate bonanza where the environment and the average folk get fucked. Are we not so, so sick of this story. The easiest conclusion to reach is that Obama is a corporate whore who cares way more about the health of the Democratic campaign coffers than the values of the Democratic voters, or the health of the country.
But a story on the Young Turks gives an argument for a painful level of weakness. Painful and disheartening. It wasn’t even the main part of the story, but an aside. Here is the gist of it:
Obama has capitulated on the terror suspect trials. This is not new news. But over a year has passed, and he is still negotiating with Republicans on the closing of Guantanimo. We still imprison people, without trial, and totally against not only the founding values of our nation, but of Western Civilization. It is unacceptable, and cowardly to negotiate the human rights of people.
Worse, the people in the Justice Department who have spoken out have been marginalized. In fact, the Attorney General, Eric Holder, is no longer invited to meetings to discuss the detainees and their trials.
Think about this – our nation’s top law enforcement officer is not involved in deciding the fate of our nation’s most controversial prisoners. Obama is letting politics determine the fate of these men, not the rule of law. Republican talking points about terrorists being let loose in Manhatten are being weighed more on the scales of justice than our system of justice.
And this is what I don’t get – what is to be gained by giving in to ridiculous talking points about turning terrorists loose in American neighborhoods? Which corporate interest is served by this? Which lobbyists are going to enrich Democratic campaign coffers if we scuttle the rule of law in this country? It is easy to see who gains from weak health, energy and banking reform. But what does Obama, or the Democratic Party gain from caving in to Republicans over justice for detainees?
Cenk of TYT says that it is because Obama is a consummate politician, and can’t help himself. He is drawn to the middle of any issue as if by magnetic force. This may be true. He also says that it makes Obama look incredibly weak. This I totally agree with.
But IS he totally weak? It is demoralizing to think so. But what conclusions can we draw from the capitulation of the principle of rule of law?
- Obama doesn’t give a shit about rule of law. He does not care about our system of justice and will be happy to do great damage to it.
- Obama cares more about politics than policy. He winces at the thought of no justice in America, but wants to be seen as centrist more than principled.
- Obama has no principles of any kind. There is no position he will stand on, because there is no position he values enough to be encumbered by caring.
- Obama is stupid. He is just not smart enough to win a political fight with Republicans over any issue. He and his staff just trip all over themselves and the Democratic Leadership, and fuck up everything they touch.
- Obama is actually pretty conservative, and agrees more with them than he does with “us.”
- Obama is weak.
- All, or some of the above.
For number one, there is some evidence. “Look forward, not back” was his mantra as he took office. He practically bent over backwards to assure Republicans that nobody would be held accountable for illegal actions. He could have said “hey, I’m not on a witch hunt, but where laws were broken…what am I gonna’ do?” Combine this with the detainee news and it looks bad.
For number two, there is a lot of evidence. Put what was said above and add the health care debate, the corporate capitulation and the tee shirt he wears everywhere that shouts in big letters I AM A MODERATE! Obama’s obsession with bipartisanship, and his attempt to out-triangulate the Clintons screams politics at every situation. Obama thinks that the only ground that counts is the middle ground – on every issue. Even issues that don’t make corporations richer and more powerful than they already are.
For number three, I hate to think it. But, if you ask me to identify core principles that Obama adheres to…I’m still thinking…no, nothing yet. By the way, being principled doesn’t mean you don’t compromise. But you still demand some things that you believe in. What does he believe in that he has stuck to? Loyal Democrats will argue for health care reform, but I think he did not pass reform, just a bandaid. And, the only thing that Obama was not willing to negotiate away was a bill that had “health care reform” at the top. The content didn’t seem to matter to him, no matter what he said previously.
For number four, I don’t see a lot of evidence. Listen to the man talk. Think back on the campaign – how nimble he was, eloquent but not too ivory tower. I don’t see stupid.
For number five, I could be swayed. He certainly gives Republicans and conservatives way too much of what they want, in my opinion. But he doesn’t talk like a conservative, and they hate his guts, or appear to. If he is conservative, then he is an awesome liar and con artist.
For number six, I don’t see it on the whole. He appears weak when dealing with conservatives, but he has no problem bitch-slapping liberals around. Remember, it was Obama that killed the public option in half an hour or meetings with the Senate. It was Obama who killed the prescription drug reimportation amendment, getting 30 Democratic senators to vote against it. He flew Air Force One to Ohio and got Dennis Kucinich to bow his head. He can certainly kick ass on progressives when he wants to.
Probably, the answer falls on number seven. He is less principled than we had hoped, not as liberal as we want, not as strong as we want (at least against Republicans), and an absolute political animal. And if he has an obsession, it is with the political center.
Here’s what Obama is definetly not: a president who cares about progressive ideas, or the liberal voters who swept him into power. The youth vote, the progressive vote, the votes for Ralph Nadar (which many say cost Al Gore the 2000 election) all went to Obama. We’ll see with immigration reform how the Hispanic vote goes. If Obama kisses up to Republicans on that one, he can kiss Latino voters goodbye too.
And for all of Obama’s clever corporate money grabbing for the party, Democrats can kiss those votes goodbye as well.
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