I do not agree with President Obama on every issue.
For example, I do not know where the War in Afghanistan is going.
I do not know why we just didn't lift the embargo altogether on Cuba.
I hated his speech to the Jewish lobby after he won the nomination.
I didn't agree with his selection of Hillary for SoS.
In hindsight Obama was right on Hillary.
I believe that he was wrong on Joe Biden. Even in this tough fight one cannot count on Biden for help. He is more likely to create controversy rather than calm fears. And it was certainly wrong to choose Sebelius. She has no presence. Is not forceful enough and is likely to be forgotten as soon as she is off your set.
Recognize that Obama has already done more good in less than a year than most Presidents did in 4 years. And he is doing it in the most hostile environment ever. For those who unfavorably compare Obama to LBJ, please do remember that if LBJ had today's media environment to deal with, or today's self-serving, destructive Republicans as opposition, he would not have been able to do squat diddly squat.
Obama has no friends in the media. Bush had Fox, Clinton had CNN, Obama has no established media outlet to push his message. Every minute you hear them asking, "Has he lost the message?" Of course he is losing the message. The media reports what is sensational. They are after ratings. The polls show that a majority of respondents continue to believe blatant lies. Is that a failing of Obama? Or of the media?
We gave Clinton 8 years. We gave Bush 8 years. Our tolerance level for Obama is so, so low. We have been bitching against Obama from day one. I remember writing that, "it is only 3 weeks!" It seemed as if we were never prepared to allow Obama to serve. We bought into and amplified every rightwing talking point. Research needs to be done to see which site has generated the most anti-Obama headlines. I would not be surprised to find that the left-wing blogs are very competitive with even the most hateful Republican sites.
This uproar about the Public Option is so very interesting.
Does it appear as if there is "waffling" on the importance of PO? Yes. The language is not as unambiguous as it could, or should be. Is that reason for us to be throwing up our arms and declaring the President to be soft, a traitor? Absolutely not! I heard Lawrence O'Donnell state that Democrats have done nothing - NOTHING - in the last 16 years to advance the cause of HCR. So now we have a President who in the midst of some of most oppressive set of circumstances that a President could find himself, and against all the accumulated wisdom of those who cautioned and counseled him against taking up this fight at this time, against whom some of the most hateful things have been said, a man whom they are even attempting to deny the right of a US citizen, putting his Presidency on the line for what he believes in and we are prepared to throw him overboard rather than fight and work with him. Even though we are farther into this process to reform Health Care than we have ever been.
So we may not even have 51 votes in the Senate to get PO. Public opinion is shifting against PO. What do we do? How do we do? Do we abandon the President or do we fight with him? Do we continue to make calls, email, knock on doors? Or do we come here to spill our bile, to grandstand and join the army of naysayers?