UPDATE 1:
Just for the record....some folks are misunderstanding me. My problem with Obama is that I think he is doing a less than good job of communicating about this disaster....the damage it's causing, what we are doing about it, and what the longer term ramifications might be and future actions should be. That's my beef....I know there isn't a clear solution to the problem yet and I don't blame the President for not knowing it.
As I’m sure everyone here has been, I’ve been absorbing day by day the catastrophe in the Gulf and a month into it I’m finding myself disappointed in someone I have thus far not been disappointed in very often: President Obama.
First of all, I want to make it clear that I am aware of the fact that no apparent solution to the oil crisis exists as of yet, and therefore I can’t expect the President to be able to snap his fingers or push a button and fix the leak and clean up the mess. This diary isn’t really about that. No, this diary is about my perception of the administration’s response to be.
I am a political pragmatist. I allow a lot of bullshit to happen without getting too pissed off because I understand the evolutionary process of legislation, and how difficult it is to make large fundamental reforms. And I know that often times the best thing to do is to try to change the subject and keep people’s focus on something else when you have a big problem on your hands with no obvious or popular solutions, otherwise you have a log chain around your neck and can’t do anything else. But, regardless of the reality of how much attention is being paid to this disaster and what is being done to contain it and clean it up....I feel like it is being swept under the rug for the most part. I’m not glued to newspapers, broadcasts, and multiple news blogs every day like many here at Kos, but I watch Keith and Rachel most nights and read Dkos a few times per week. I’m certainly more informed than the average person (which I admit doesn’t set the bar too high), and I feel like it is Keith, Rachel, & Dkos who keep this disaster in the light of day.....and if the administration had its way, nobody would realize it’s happening. I barely ever see a clip of the President addressing it, or even a surrogate in the administration for that matter.
This spill is by far the worst ecological catastrophe I’ve seen in my life time. I may be more affected by it than some because of my spiritual beliefs. I’m not a member or believer in any organized religion....rather my "God" is the Universe itself. I believe in one universal energy that we’re all a part of and believe that we are the land and the land is us. So when I see the images of this spill it is the equivalent of a devout Catholic seeing the Sistine Chapel in ruins from a terrorist bombing. I’m sure I’m not the only person at Dkos who feels that way. I’m heart broken by the damage that this has done to the innocent wild life, the ecosystem, and the way of life of the people in that region, and am incensed by the fact that to some degree or another it is likely to spread to other parts of the ocean.
Of course I’m furious at BP and their catastrophic negligence in safety precautions, and I can’t really blame the Obama administration for them being out there drilling in the first place. That ball was rolling long before January 20, 2009. However, I feel like the President and his team are not making a big enough deal about this. Whatever he is doing behind the scenes, I think he’s doing a terrible job with the PR campaign....because he doesn’t LOOK like he is doing anything about it.
Like it or not, this presents a political opportunity that I think is being somewhat missed so far, and it can build political capital for something specific that needs done.....clean energy investment and a true commitment to walk away from dirty energy as much as possible. I can’t believe with the political cover this disaster is providing that Obama hasn’t come out and retracted his desire to continue "domestic production" under no uncertain terms. In my opinion a national spotlight needs to be aimed at this every day showing how badly it is destroying people’s lives, and the natural infrastructure we were given by the almighty, and how impossible it is to clean up and fix. And from that a rallying cry for massive investments in clean energy in the name of new jobs and protection from these kinds of INEVITABLE incidents should be echoing from every single Goddamn Democrat in perfect harmony.
Instead we’re getting what we always get...a smattering of different messages from different democrats with nothing truly coherent emanating. And most importantly, I feel like the President’s political advisors are telling him to keep this as low profile as possible so that nobody will start talking about his inability to fix it. As I said earlier, I go along with most cheap political tactics when I think they are helping to accomplish something worthwhile....but I believe with all my heart that this is a situation that needs MORE exposure, not less, and MORE of a public discussion, not less. President Obama, I don’t think this is your Katrina....you didn’t have warning that it was coming, and it isn’t a NATURAL DISASTER beyond your control. No, this isn’t your Katrina....this is just a horrible wasted moment when we could be having the most important debate of our time, but instead you’re pandering to the polls thinking that people will ultimately care more about whether "tax payers" pick up the tab or BP. If you handle this right the debate won’t be about who pays to clean it up....the debate will be about why the hell it is an oil rig instead of a wind turbine that we’re talking about. Please Sir, prove me wrong in the months ahead and allow this tragic nightmare to at least serve as a catalyst for something great. Because right now, it is just history repeating itself. I’ll be behind you, where I always am, in your corner defending you when I should, and pushing you when I must.