oh shit, we "liberals" made the WH mad again

[kpete]

I'd love to hear it

by digby

This is funny. Apparently there were some words exchanged yesterday at a White house meeting with liberal groups:

Tensions between the White House and its liberal allies came to a head last night at the weekly Common Purpose meeting, where progressive leaders and National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling had a tense exchange about the debt deal, two Democratic sources said.

Yesterday, Sperling faced a series of questions about the White House's concessions on the debt ceiling fight, and its inability to move in the directions of new taxes or revenues. Progressive consultant Mike Lux, the sources said, summed up the liberal concern, producing what a participant described as an "extremely defensive" response from Sperling.

Sperling, a person involved said, pointed his finger back at liberal groups, which he said hadn't done enough to highlight what he saw as the positive side of the debt package -- a message that didn't go over well with participants.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0811/Tense_moments_at_Common_Purpose_meet.html

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/id-love-to-hear-it.html

[readmoreoften]

1. We come with concerns and they tell us we're not propagandizing well enough.

Idiots.

[Whisp]

5. you were there?

what was Sterling wearing?

[roguevalley]

12. read it again.

[DeSwiss]

80. At this point I'm just putting ''them'' all on IGNORE. Saves time and my sanity. n/t

[Jakes Progress]

104. They don't bother to read. Just on auto.

[Name removed]

17. Deleted message

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

[DURHAM D]

26. Inappropriate.

[Name removed]

56. Deleted message

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

[MattSh]

67. Does it matter?

:banghead:

[guruoo]

92. Video, audio, complete transcript, another source, for corroboration would be nice nt

http://cdnimg.visualizeus.com/thumbs/f1/47/obama,shoes,bottom,men,people,president-f147d0f5402b8158be6c58108264733e_h.jpg

[Chorophyll]

88. That would be Sperling, with a "p." nt

[frylock]

91. were you?

no? then stfu.

[FiveGoodMen]

6. The beatings will continue until morale improves

Or until we turn the tables.

[DainBramaged]

69. That saying says it all

[Doctor_J]

19. Yup. We're not happy enough about the shit sandwich we were fed

[sudopod]

58. But it had Grey Poopon! nt

[liberation]

111. But shit sandwiches are easier to digest, I mean shit is already digested, so that's a positive

also the bread even though it is stale it is still apt for human consumption. Plus it is authentic sourdough from San Francisco, brought by Pelosi personally on her plane a few weeks ago.

I can see why this administration would be so disappointed with progressives. Here they are going out of their way trying to provide us with an easy to digest meal with a West Coast flair... and us progressive ingrates bitching about the awful smell of the meal. Kids in Africa are starving, don't you know?

[Laelth]

79. Spot on, readmoreoften.

They're mad that liberals aren't carrying their water, even when liberals are getting screwed (pardon my language).

-Laelth

[trumad]

2. Sorry Sperling!!

We're not your Monkey!!

[Enrique]

3. well a sugar-coated Satan Sandwich is better than a plain Satan Sandwich

how's that?

[leveymg]

32. Wouldn't that be a satan doughnut?

:9 :donut:

[nc4bo]

4. Boy - I think we've all been accused of the very same thing

right here - probably on the first 2-4 pages on DU.

How are any of us going to cut through and stamp down all of this horsesh*t?!

Ok - let's all be grateful for crumbs. We may have gotten nothing at all. What did we get, really?

[RandomKoolzip]

7. The ONLY positive side to the debt deal was that the ceiling was raised.

Everything else was a fucking nightmare - and not just for liberals.

[marew]

68. Amen!!! n/t

[ProSense]

8. "Sperling, a person involved said, "

Love, Ben Smith, Politico.

Well, at least the media shills have a plan!

[roguevalley]

14. and you see that where? It appears my friends that we exist for them

and not the other way around. welcome to republicanville.

[Moosepoop]

83. "And you see that where?"

First five words of the last paragraph excerpted in the OP.

[Melinda]

70. Strange how you pull the"Anonymous" canard over & over whilst DU archives are filled with your

reliances on anonymous sources again and again. Archive search author ProSense + keyword Politico. Odd, indeed.

[SusanaMontana41]

9. This is what happens when we try to hold his feet to the fire,

as he told us to do. That's worked so well ...

[SammyWinstonJack]

34. He never really meant that and we were fools to believe he did.

[FiveGoodMen]

41. Amen to that!

[SusanaMontana41]

51. Yup. >sigh< n/t

[MessiahRp]

99. Completely 100% true.

He said that as a way to assuage fears of his base. We're supposed to send letters, make phone calls... be angry from afar. It's easier to ignore us that way. Then he can exclude us from the table and cozy up to his friends from the Republican party and CEOs as they decide for him what stance to take.

Hell it was well publicized that he negotiated with McConnell and Boehner without even inviting Reid or Pelosi into discussions. Not a shock at this point who he truly represents (hint: it isn't us).

[liberation]

114. Or maybe this administration uses a different dictionary

apparently terms like "hope," "change," "transparency," etc... seem to have radically different meanings from the ones described by the more widespread definitions among English speakers in the world.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

10. "..highlight the positive side of the debt package"? Like trying to pick up turd by the clean end.

These lackey apologists would be hilarious if they weren't so monumentally pathetic.

[GreenPartyVoter]

15. lol

[MissDeeds]

18. Best post of the day!

:rofl: :rofl:

[SusanaMontana41]

20. Awesome post! n/t

[nc4bo]

23. +100 nt.

[QC]

24. !!!

:rofl:

[hifiguy]

25. Blammo!

So true, so true. :rofl:

[Divernan]

27. I defer to the Obama defenders for their expertise with this problem.

And of course I'm only referring to highlighting the positives.

[katnapped]

36. Don't make me whip out "THE LIST"!!!!

You'll be sorry!!!!!

[Divernan]

37. Oh noes! ! ! Not "THE LIST"!

[Agony]

29. Oh Snap!!!

[FiveGoodMen]

42. Good analogy!

:rofl: :thumbsup:

[Donnachaidh]

43. nah -- calling the turd *organic* is tghe WH version of positive aspects n/t

[KelleyKramer]

50. + 1000

[scarletwoman]

52. Beautiful!

:yourock:

[NMMNG]

53. ROFL

:rofl:

[mitchtv]

54. hahahahaha!!!

got it!

[Dappleganger]

55. DUzy worthy!!

:yourock: :applause:

[lonestarnot]

61. ROFLMAO!

:rofl: Reminds me of something bushilter would do.

[mrdmk]

64. Dude (roflmao), you found the words for my feelings n/t

[Firebrand Gary]

66. Still laughing, just too too funny!

I needed that laugh.

[libmom74]

82. +100

[Tatiana]

89. HILARIOUSLY apropos! n/t

[ProfessionalLeftist]

93. Well said! LOL! n/t

[AllyCat]

96. DUzy!!!

[Little Star]

97. Funniest thing I've read in a long time! lol

[ej510]

110. Lol!

[Bluebear]

118. !

[Chimichurri]

11. That's like when Dubya said we have to assess what went right in defending the actions of Katrina.

[dana_b]

13. oh no - not the pointed finger!!

the "positive side of the debt package" - well, we didn't default, that's true. For now SS/Medicare/Medicaid are intact BUT they should NEVER have been on the table to begin with so yeah, we didn't default.

[EFerrari]

31. .

[dana_b]

33. MWUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

and it's blue! so he must be a Dem.

[Stinky The Clown]

16. Sounds like a DU meetup

[C_U_L8R]

21. oh chicken poop

don't try to tell us it's chicken salad

[eShirl]

22. Good.

[bvar22]

28. About time they noticed.

At THIS point, the White House can Eat Peas for all I care.

Back At Ya

[dgibby]

38. You know they'll be served with caviar, right?

In the meantime, ours will be served with really cheap catfood.

[Liberalynn]

98. the "Wally World" store brand no doubt!

We probably won't even get the canned just the dry. ;)

[eleny]

30. The amount I donated to O's campaign in '08 will now go to liberals in '12

The Progressive Change Campaign
Feingold's Progressives United
Alan Grayson's campaign for Congress

[dgibby]

39. Mine will go to the local foodbank. They need it a whole lot worse. n/t

[eleny]

44. I just dropped off a bunch of things to our local food bank

They sure do need it this year. The donations are way down. But we also need liberals in the Congress, too.

:hi:

[RagAss]

45. Mine goes to Amnesty International.

[Armstead]

35. Sounds like DU.....Maybe we should send some mods there to referee

[Le Taz Hot]

72. Referee?

You're talking about OUR mods, right? :rofl:

[dtexdem]

40. Oh no! What have we done? How can we be so bad?

Hey, maybe we should just stop talking to, or supporting, the current denizens of the WH. That should keep them happy.

[Remember Me]

46. This so perfectly illustrates one of the Obama admin's fatal flaws --

the insistence that they've done a good job at something even while they've completely, totally, utterly blown it. Or gave it away, as an even more common practice. Obama has done this before -- gotten upset because we were unhappy with his POOR performance, where he was apparently very satisfied with himself that he had performed at all, never mind how poorly it was, how much damage he'd done in the process, etc.

I'm reminded of the old Nursery Rhyme: Little Jack Horner sat in a corner ... Stuck in his thumb, pulled out a plum and said, "What a good boy am I."

I think this is a highly refined form of narcissism.

[FiveGoodMen]

75. Different theory:

Obama has been colluding with the right since the beginning.

They graciously allowed him to win without putting up serious opposition (knowing the public would elect a Dem after 8 years of Bush-fatigue).

His main purpose in office is to keep the left out of the way.

He pretends to be against the GOP's latest atrocity until the 11th hour when he throws up his hands and says, "There's nothing I can do," at which time the pukes get their every wish.

Finally, since some on the left still feel a personal loyalty to Obama, he chastises everyone for not cheering loudly enough, knowing that will get us fighting among ourselves rather than putting up a united front against the traitors.

[russspeakeasy]

103. Damn you, FiveGoodMen...quit making sense.

Your last line in particular....excellent... :toast: :woohoo:

[Remember Me]

117. Nah. I don't think that's it.

Tho I certainly could be wrong, so I'm less disagreeing with you than merely exploring other possibilities.

I think he's not as liberal so many of us hoped; I think compromise and "getting along" and bringing opposing sides together is THE goddamned overriding motivating force for him NO MATTER WHAT IT COSTS; I think he doesn't like to stand up to powerful people; I think he's far more interested in and obeisant to the moneyed class than we'd understood (and I continue to worry about people with connections to the University of Chicago); and --

I also think it's not impossible that he was/is being blackmailed or threatened. Some other DUer posted that they thought "someone" took him aside once he won and showed him more photos from Dallas Nov. '63 and suggested that he could either meet a similar fate or do what needs to be done. Just as I think -- as much from the way she acted as anything else -- that Pelosi was threatened by Bush family interests out of being in any way interested in pursuing impeachment or other actions against GW.

[Bluebear]

47. What is sperling's screen name here?

[Odin2005]

49. Check your PM Box.

[Name removed]

63. Deleted message

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

[Odin2005]

48. You can shine up shit, Sperling, but it's still shit.

[rhett o rick]

57. They aint seen nothin yet. nm

[steve2470]

59. fwiw, more info from that article:

UPDATE: Two other people, one in the room and one briefed on the meeting, said the tenor of the meeting more broadly was not confrontational, and indeed that it ended with applause for Sperling. Attendees were pleased, they said, that the White House had rebuffed attempts to cut Medicaid and had stuck by its position that cuts to entitlements would have to be accompanied by changes to the tax code to produce new revenues.

[cui bono]

101. So they rebuffed their own offers at cutting Medicaid? Or are they saying that is the ONLY

thing that was rebuffed since Obama himself was the one who brought up SS and Medicare.

I'd like to know who these "two other people" were who claim this meeting ended in "applause for Sperling". Hard to believe that spin.

:eyes:

[NNN0LHI]

60. Politico, the replacement for Talon News quotes "a person involved", and DU is outraged again

This is getting surreal.

Don

[EFerrari]

65. On the other hand, anytime Nancy invokes the founders at the podium

I get the idea she doesn't want me to think about the actual bill under consideration. lol

[Lorien]

62. What "positive side"?

not giving the baggers the last 2%? Idiots.

[xchrom]

71. recommend

[LondonReign2]

73. Damn you liberals!

For not highlighting the shit sandwich!

[harun]

108. Liberals have been right about all policy issues the last 10 years yet somehow

every time they don't listen to us and go the wrong way we get blamed?

What kind of deal is that?

[we can do it]

74. Highlight the Positive? Dow Dropping Like a Lead Balloon

most of the country - both parties- think debt deal is bad for the economy and jobs.....dammit why can't we see the positive side....

[Fire1]

76. I agree with Sperling. n/t

[leeroysphitz]

77. The Whitehouse still has liberal allies? n/t

[Fearless]

85. Bush/Cheney had conservative stalwarts too. LOL. n/t

[harun]

107. Who knew?

[BNJMN]

78. Operation Chaos? Anyways ---> 'UPDATE:'

"UPDATE: Two other people, one in the room and one briefed on the meeting, said the tenor of the meeting more broadly was not confrontational, and indeed that it ended with applause for Sperling. Attendees were pleased, they said, that the White House had rebuffed attempts to cut Medicaid and had stuck by its position that cuts to entitlements would have to be accompanied by changes to the tax code to produce new revenues."

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0811/Tense_moments_at_Common_Purpose_meet.html

So much for the unquestionable veracity of political blogs.

[DeSwiss]

81. K&R n/t

[Fearless]

84. Well fuck them all.... corporate enablers... n/t

[peace frog]

86. Here's an update from the same article:

UPDATE: Two other people, one in the room and one briefed on the meeting, said the tenor of the meeting more broadly was not confrontational, and indeed that it ended with applause for Sperling. Attendees were pleased, they said, that the White House had rebuffed attempts to cut Medicaid and had stuck by its position that cuts to entitlements would have to be accompanied by changes to the tax code to produce new revenues.

"Attendees were pleased" ?? More like, the WH plants in the audience were *pleased* and applauded. :eyes:

[fascisthunter]

87. boohoohoo

[ProfessionalLeftist]

90. There is no 'positive' side to the debt package...when someone is skinning you alive

...there is no positive side to that.

[Daemonaquila]

94. Note to WH: You just don't get it.

We're not your propagandists. We're not your cheerleaders. We even stopped drinking the kool-aid. So quit whining and start doing your jobs unless YOU want to be the reason for a Bachman/Palin administration.

[midnight]

105. True..

[liberation]

113. Oh, I think they get it alright

the problem may be that some of us don't get we're being trolled big time.

[democrank]

95. But...but...sweetie

I know your boyfriend beats you black and blue, and maybe he did choke you a couple times, but remember....WAY DOWN DEEP HE LOVES YOU!

[William769]

100. K&R.

[cui bono]

102. You've got to Accentuate the Positive! Come on everybody... sing along!!!

Pick your version and belt it out!

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_videos&search_query=accentuate+the+positive&search_sort=relevance&search_category=0&page=

[Hubert Flottz]

106. That's like asking the people on the Titanic to say a few words in

behalf of the big iceberg.

[LanternWaste]

109. Well... now it's official

Well... now it's official-- everyone is yelling at everyone. Everyone is pointing fingers at everyone else. Everyone is guilty except for the demographic we ourselves belong to of course-- we are righteous and exempt from valid criticism (except the problem is, everyone says that too).


All in all, that's rather productive. :shrug:

[liberation]

115. Life is not a continuous successions of false equivalences

sorry.

[ej510]

112. Don't you guys realize the President is doing the best he can do.

:sarcasm:

[liberation]

116. Oh poppycock!

Obama can condescend progressives much better than this.