I don't know anyone in the White House press corps personally or professionally. So I'm posting this here with faint hope that somehow someone from the corps stumbles upon it, finds it rather odd him/herself and questions the White House on why this is so.
First, a little background via Digby after the jump:
Good stuff:
President Barack Obama used his Saturday radio address to slam Republican "obstruction" in Congress, accusing the GOP of standing in the way of job-saving economic programs and saying, "Gridlock as a political strategy is destructive to the country."
Obama unleashed a torrent of criticism against the Republicans – accusing them of blocking votes on bills that would save jobs for teachers, lift a $75 million liability cap for oil leaks like the BP spill and help people buy their first home.
"All we ask for is a simple up or down vote. That’s what the American people deserve. Just like they deserve an up or down vote on legislation that would hold oil companies accountable for the disasters they cause – a vote that is also being blocked by the Republican leadership in the Senate," Obama said. "We should remove that cap. But the Republican leadership won’t even allow a debate or a vote."
I like it. Unfortunately, the White House is also still actively intervening in primaries to help Blue Dogs who routinely join that Republican obstructionist agenda, so it's hard to know how sincere those words are. Howie posted a depressing piece about the Democratic party activating the OFA in Utah's primary on behalf of incumbent Jim Matheson, a disgusting Blue Dog who even refused to attend the Democratic Convention because he didn't want to be see in his party's company. (Of course Obama embraced Joe Lieberman who went even further and addressed the Republican convention, so obviously there's no penalty for being publicly disloyal to the party even when it has nothing to do with policy.)
What's interesting here is that this Matheson guy has a challenger: Claudia Wright. And yup. She's a progressive. I mean, just click on this page and look at her stance on things:
Supports a Medicare-for-All approach to health care that provides access and affordable health care to everyone.
Supports every woman’s right to make her own decision about birth control and pregnancy.
Supports incentives to produce high quality health care at a reasonable cost.
And this:
Supports a long term comprehensive plan that uses existing technologies, incentives, and a federal carbon tax.
Supports a strategy of investing in the protection of Utah’s water, wildlife, and working farms and ranches by creating and enforcing emissions controls and emission reduction strategies.
Supports Utah leading the nation in wind-power jobs, including the domestic manufacturing of wind-power equipment.
Not in love yet?
Supports immigration reform that is both honest and compassionate.
And this:
Supports public funding of political campaigns.
Supports a cap on campaign contributions.
Supports independent ethics commission.
Supports "Fair Boundaries" initiative.
Need more?
Supports the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Gay and lesbian adults should have the right to openly serve in the military.
Supports the repeal of the Marriage Act. People should have the right to marry whomever they choose.
Phew~ I need a cigarette...
But get this...the White House is going after her to get another Blue Dog elected!
What the fucking fuck?!?
Perhaps this is just another one of their 11 dimensional chess moves. I'm too stupid to see any logic behind it. I just want to know...and would love someone in the media with access to the White House to ask the following:
Why do you blame the Republicans for obstructing progress when you're throwing your weight behind the likes of Joe Lieberman and Blue Dogs who are just as much, if not more, responsible for derailing your agenda?
I think Digby goes there (and rightfully so) when she writes:
That OFA message is terribly misleading. The stimulus was the only vote Matheson took in support of the president's agenda. This makes it sound as if he's been a stalwart supporter and it's just ... a lie. If there's one thing we should demand of the White House and Party if they intervene in primaries (which they shouldn't do in the first place) it's that they don't pull that crap on their own voters. They can make the case that Matheson has seniority or that he's more likely to beat the Republican if that's what they think, but this is really dishonest. He is not an ally of the president unless the president is ready to concede that he's working behind the scenes with Republicans to tank his own agenda. (Well ...)
Sad.