It feels a bit like the primaries at DU, except that Obama's opponent is invisible.

[FrenchieCat]

There are some that say that Obama is screwing up big time and is shifting rightward in his actions in the last month since the election. Other folks are saying that this will make it hard of Obama to be re-elected in 2012 as he is reneging on many of his campaign promises.

I am responding to those various posts that I have read on DU, in where the posters have voiced their total disgust with the incoming administration before it is actually confirmed and sworn in. I am reiterating here my previously posted responses to the various gripes that have vocally been heard here and elsewhere.

Additionally, I would hope that Obama is not yet campaigning for re-election in 2012. I would prefer that he concentrates on coming up with solutions to the problems that he will face during his first administration once he is inaugurated.


POST ELECTION MYTH: Obama ran on the promise of repealing the Bush Tax cut on those who earn over $250,000. Currently he has reneged on that promise, and has chosen to allow the Bush tax cuts to expire in 2010 instead.

POST ELECTION FACTS: Obama did not run on the "promise" of repealing the Bush Tax cuts, but rather he ran on the promise of giving the middle class tax cuts. He did, during the campaign, offer to repeal the Bush tax cuts as the way to pay for those Middle Class tax cuts. Since the Middle Class tax cuts will be paid for within the large stimulus package (made possible by the economy taking a nosedive) that is currently being formulated, allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire in 2010 should be acceptable. He promised to return to fair progressive taxation, and I don't doubt that allowing the Bush Tax Cuts to expire will do just that, without Obama's first action in office being to "increase" taxes, period. Further, Pres Elect Obama has not determined which he has chosen; repeal or allow expiration. He has stated this clearly.



POST ELECTION MYTH: Obama ran on the promise of taxing oil companies via a windfall profit tax, and now he is backing away from that promise because now that he has won, he is on his knees bowing to the oil industry.

POST ELECTION FACTS: Obama did at one point suggest that he would enact a windfall profit tax on oil companies due to their large profits at a time that Americans were paying a record +$4.00 per gallon at the pump. This was his alternative to his opponents who had offered to suspend the gas tax for a limited period. However, since the economy fell apart in mid September, the price of a barrel of oil has fallen from $147 to under $50 now. The price at the pump has fallen by more than 50%. As early as October of this year, the Obama economic team realized that by the time Obama took office, the profits of the oil companies will have fallen to a point that attempting to tax profits would amount to not much. The October budget numbers that Obama campaigned on starting October DID NOT include a windfall Profit tax as part of any revenue included. Those who proposed to cut the gas tax would have also reviewed their promise, so Obama adjusting his plan due to the facts on the ground is what should be expected of any rational thinking person.



POST ELECTION MYTH: Obama plans to propose taxing health benefits, although he trashed John McCain's plan of doing just that.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x4577159
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/12/01/democrats_may_tax_health_benefits/

POST ELECTION FACTS: Obama does not plan on taxing health benefits. There has been a news story that implies this (link is above), but it is piece of Sen. Baucus' health care proposal, which is not Obama's health care proposal. Obama is working with Ted Kennedy in fashioning the health care proposal that will resemble what he proposed while campaigning, and that plan has not yet been written. Currently, public comments are being accepted by the Obama transition team as input and I would suggest that those concerned about the Health Care plan that will be proposed to participate as well as contacting Sen. Kennedy directly.
http://change.gov/newsroom/entry/join_the_discussion_daschles_healthcare_response/



POST ELECTION MYTH: Obama is not going to go single payer in his health care proposal, and progressives should fight this. Single payer is the way to go, and there is a clear mandate to get this done due to the economic disaster we are currently facing. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1208/16092.html

POST ELECTION FACTS: Obama did not run on a platform that included Single Payer Health Care as a proposal, and Ted Kennedy's proposal will not be a Single Payer Health Care plan.

Beyond the fact that voters did not vote for such a plan, that Republicans would fight this with every fiber of their being, the hard truth is that government cannot afford what it would cost just to transition into a single payer plan at this time more than any other due to the economy and the growing deficits. There are too many industries tied to health care that would be put out of business if a Single payer proposal was enacted, which would further erode the tax base revenues to the government currently generated by the health care industry.

Single Payer Health care is something that can realistically be arrived at gradually if we enact Universal Health Care....and proceed progressively from there. Considering what Obama promised; Universal Health care by the end of Obama's first term, this is what is doable in a relatively short period, and this is what American voters bargained for, since this is the proposal that Obama ran on. This is the plan Ted Kennedy is working on.



POST ELECTION MYTH: Obama in keeping Sec. of Defense Gates is signaling that he is not that interested in keeping his 16 months pullout of Iraq proposal as was made during the campaign. Plus, he is now warmongering in respect to Afghanistan.

POST ELECTION FACTS: Sec. Gates is accelerating the plans to withdrawal of troops from Iraq even now. He appears to be in si-nc with Obama's proposed plan. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28022197
In addition, Sec. Defense Gates' current deputy staff will be replaced by Obama appointees, another sign that the Pentagon will not remain "as is", and that Obama will have a strong hand in controlling what goes on there.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/01/AR2008120102891.html?hpid=topnews

Obama's plan for Afghanistan aren't new at all, and he has been consistent on his proposal in reference to this war.


POST ELECTION MYTH: Where is the Change that we can believe in? Obama is not a progressive and that can be proven by the personnel he is bringing into his administration; all Clinton retreads who are strict Center Right folks and who were part of the problems we currently face. Old Boss meet the New Boss is the same boss, etc....

POST ELECTION FACTS: Obama is a progressive, as his life story and track record indicates.
He is someone who saw poverty first hand up close as some of his first memories while living in Indonesia, is of minority status, helped organize the poor on the South Side of Chicago, attended Trinity Church for 20 years, married a Robinson originating out of South Carolina, attended Columbia and Harvard (two of the oldest established liberal universities in the United States), who has family living in huts in Africa, who not only represented some of the undeserved as a Civil Rights Attorney but taught Constitutional law, ran project Vote out of Chicago to get Mosley-Braun Elected (first Black female Senator), chose to lives in Hide Park, represented the South Side of Chicago for 8 years in the State house, has never been a member of the DLC, was adamantly against the Iraq war, and ran a campaign that was anything but status quo. Strictly speaking, Barack Obama is simply not a Centrist nor does his ratings by various progressive institutions on his Senate votes indicate such.

Meanwhile he has appointed to high ranking cabinet/advisory positions, 4 African-Americans, 7 women, Hispanics, several Jews, and Gay folks as well. In addition, he has just begun, and is not near finished with his appointments (I know, diversity no longer matters unless it does).

In addition, to bring brainy realists, many who served in the Clinton administration, and some who have admittedly made prior errors can be effective, as they are more likely to have learned from mistakes in philosophies that they may have subscribed to. Considering that there will be a new leader at the top driving the agenda, blaming all that has happened on those he has chosen, when we know that the problems that we face were caused by a number of factors and timing, not all directly related to certain individuals who have been out of the picture for some time (8 years in some instances) is ignorant. That is like blaming Clinton for 9/11 although it occurred under Bush's watch.

If Obama has got folks fooled, well that's mighty artful of him. Means he's playing a great game of political poker thus far....and will get far before being assaulted by the Corporate media (hopefully, he'll get his FCC pick in before they can strike any blows).

Meanwhile, Obama Teams Are Scrutinizing current Federal Agencies. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x4577291

putting out strict rules on lobbyist activity
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/11/11/1669889.aspx

So to believe that this man is somehow not a progressive when he is still more than 45 days from taking office is simply absurd. In fact, staying away from labels at this time would bode better in order to get a progressive agenda put through congress (strictly my opinion).



POST ELECTION MYTH: Obama has not named any progressives to his administration, and it appears that progressives will not have a seat at the Obama table. We must fight this, and we shall not be silenced.

POST ELECTION FACTS: Obama has named progressives to his administration, although he has not yet named Dennis Kucinich to a cabinet level Post. Of course he is not finished, and a holding pattern prior to making judgment on who is what within those he named is strongly recommended.

Obama has tapped Melody Barnes, of the progressive think tank Center for American Progress, to serve as his domestic policy director; Patrick Gaspard, a political organizer for the Services Employees International Union, or SEIU, as his politics director; Ellen Moran, of the liberal fund-raising group EMILY’s List, which backs pro-choice women candidates, to run his communications shop; and Phil Schiliro, a former aide to Sen. Tom Daschle, to serve as the White House’s liaison with Congress. http://washingtonindependent.com/20365/progressive-circle-forming-around-obama

In addition, Susan Rice is more than progressive enough on world affairs. Another good sign is that Samantha Power is on the Transition Team, and will have a voice on who in addition is selected to complete Obama's national security team.



POST ELECTION MYTH: Obama worshipers are telling the "real" progressives on this board to STFU. Criticism is good for Democracy, and they are squelching dissent which is stunning.

POST ELECTION FACTS: Obama is not perfect by any means, but as a "real" progressive, I believe that we can debate issues and even political personalities without calling folks out of their names, and accusing those who support Obama in all of his endeavor thus far, as well as not accusing those who have real issues with some of the folks that Obama is appointing and some of the stance that he is taking. I believe that we can all have discussions using real facts, as we are all on the same side, and I think that most of us can probably agree that Obama is a vast improvement over Bush in every way, and that he is a blessing compared to what McCain would have been.

Let us look forward toward his inauguration and celebrate the fact that we will all continue to pay close attention to what is proposed during his term in office, and that we should make our voices heard in instances when he does great stuff as well as when he fucks up (which will happen). :)