I have seen the same concern being expressed about Obama over and over again: "I don't want someone who will compromise, I want someone who will fight!" I agreed for a long time.
I have a daily calendar with wonderful quotes from different women every day. Yesterdays quote was very interesting to me. It was a quote from Daniele Vare, and Italian diplomat. She said,
Diplomacy is the art of letting someone have your way.
I think that maybe this is what Obama means by "compromising." See, the other problem I used to have with him is that he was so vague, that you couldn't really tell exactly where he stood. The last couple of months, however, he has gotten more and more specific, to the point that if he compromises too much, people are going to be able to call him out on it. A few example positions, from his website:
Obama will immediately begin to remove our troops from Iraq. He will remove one to two combat brigades each month, and have all of our combat brigades out of Iraq within 16 months.
Comprehensive benefits. The benefit package will be similar to that offered through Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), the plan members of Congress have. The plan will cover all essential medical services, including preventive, maternity and mental health care.
Barack Obama supports a system that allows undocumented immigrants who are in good standing to pay a fine, learn English, not violate the law, and go to the back of the line for the opportunity to become citizens.
Support Job Creation: Barack Obama believes we need to double federal funding for basic research...
It seems to me as if Obama already has his mind made up about what he wants to do. Many people say that one of Obama's biggest strengths lies in pulling people together from all different backgrounds and ideologies to get things done. I think this is more a testament to his diplomacy than any sort of compromising.
In short, I'm no longer worried when Obama talks about "compromise." Just replace the word compromise with diplomacy. After all, "diplomacy is the art of letting someone have your way."