Just Remember After Two Years and No Bold Change by the Repugs

[JCMach1]

Obama gets elected in a landslide as Obamanomics has turned the country around.

I am just saying.

The mistake that Dems and Repugs have made in the last 3 cycles had nothing to do with ideology and everything about fighting to deliver something that is different and will work.

Rewind to Kerry 2004- Runs as 'the war hero' when the majority of Americans want us out of Iraq... disconnect

Rewind Obama 2008- Runs as an agent of change, but embraces a bi-partisan leadership-style... once again disconnect.

Midterms 2010- Repugs offer bold change from the Obama direction...

Get it? Especially for Independent voters, ideology was always second. They just wanted to see some strong movement period... full-stop.

Here is where Obama can learn from the last two years. Be bold on things that matter. Let them shut the government down if they are being little shits (it worked for Clinton). And yeah, occasionally trumpet your bi-partisanship when it doesn't really matter. It will make the Repugs look like technocratic dweebs... Feel the orange glow already??? Oh yeah, and Obama will have to be bold on foreign policy (one place a President doesn't need Congress much).

If Obama plays it right, he wins 2012 walking away. HE just better bring his gloves, it's time to fight.

[theaocp]

1. K&R, but he won't

I anticipate Obama learning all the WRONG lessons, thinking the country IS center-right and will paint himself into a corner over the next two years. I hope I am proven wrong.

[vi5]

2. I'm not going to hold my breath...

If he was so cautious, "bi-partisan" and middle of the road the first 2 years, with his party in control of the house and the Senate there is nothing that would ever lead me to believe that he'll suddenly go long and be bold on anything in the lead up to his re-election. If this first 2 years brought us the Catfood Commission and No Child Left Behind Part 2, and lots of "Hey Republicans, tell me what you want and we'll do it and put it in this bill even though we know you're not going to vote for it anyway" then there's absolutely nothing that leads me to believe this next 2 years, with more Republicans in charge and an eye on moving to the center for his re-election will be nothing but exponentially less bold and less daring and less aggressive.

[JCMach1]

3. If he rolls over, he loses...

It's that simple.

It's not so hard, for example let them have 2 more years of taxbreaks for the Rich, but let them propose the trade-offs to pay for it.

Then, eat their lunch when they try to go after Social Security and Medicare.

[vi5]

4. I agree, but....

He just doesn't have it in him to "eat their lunch". Like I said, he's the one that set up the "bipartisan" defecit commission that's going to gut Social Security and Medicare. Whatever he's said in speeches about only wanting to "modify" them slightly, he still put a bunch of defecit peacocks in charge of coming up with recommendations. If he doesn't listen to them then he looks silly for putting it together and not bothering to listen to the results and take action. If he does listen then he's complicit in the gutting of those programs and will be held just as accountable.

And that's not even taking into account that the House under Boner's control will take the recommendations, and the Senate with barely a majority and at least 2 or 3 flippable spineless Dems will also vote to take the recommendations.

[JCMach1]

5. I agree, that he hasn't shown himself to be able to stomach this sort of approach so far

he is going to have to get a stomach for it very quickly.

Once again, two elections in a row, we have had huge/wide partisan waves that are VERY VERY shallow.

[EmilyAnne]

6. I disagree because the general public will still see the Democrats as the ruling party.

The Republicans can waste time coming up with all sorts of bogus plans to balance the budget, save the American economy, give every grandma a brand new Rascal, whatever.

They know that none of it will pass, so they can look like they're busy trying to fix America while the mean old Democrats obstruct all their brilliant ideas.

They will run in 2012 on a platform that blames the Democrats for legislative gridlock.

[JCMach1]

7. If Obama is smart, he can easily turn that on them...

[pstokely]

11. Truman did it in 1948

nt

[EmilyAnne]

14. That's a depressing comparison.

Truman was ruthless and very personal in his attacks on Dewey.
Dewey was extremely mild mannered. Plus, he wanted to expand social services (public housing, health care, education) and Truman used this against him, counting on the selfishness of the electorate.
Plus, the "do-nothing" Congress was both chambers, not just the House.

Yuck.

Still, I do hope you are right as far as Obama being able to brand the House as obstructionist.

Grrr...

[EmilyAnne]

13. How? The only way would be very strong message control

When it comes down to it, to the average American, Obama is in charge because he's the President and the Democrats control the Senate.

[GOTV]

15. It would be silly to say Obama is not smart but ...

... I don't know that he would "turn that on them". I think Obama had many opportunities to turn Republican words and actions against them that he never took. Mostly when Obama had the opportunity to visibly oppose GOP priorities he talked instead of bi-partisanship.

He's smart but he's just not that good at this. Either he doesn't know how to do it or he's just philosophically opposed to governing that way. All we can hope is these mid-term results shake him out of his bi-partisan fantasies.

[vi5]

8. Or worse yet....

They convince enough spineless dems to cross over. Then their horrible legislation will be enacted, have disastrous results and it will still get blamed on the Dem controlled Senate and the Dem controlled White House.

[JCMach1]

9. Let them have Lieberman already...

[Arkana]

10. If they victimize him with a bunch of open-ended fishing investigations

they will hand him a second term, just like they did Clinton.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

12. You Nailed It

"Obama gets elected in a landslide as Obamanomics has turned the country around." But you must accept the corollary. If it doesn't turn around he will not be reelected.

Those are the stakes.

[wisteria]

16. Disagree. Too much change and nothing positive from it hurt us.

As for Sen. Kerry,when he ran, he spoke about the Iraq War mistake and how we needed to end it. If you remember, the Bush team scared people into staying the course.