Give Obama and Democrats Break
Nicholas Kristoff who has been very critical of President Obama now has a change of heart. Too little too late? Democrats did this exact same thing to Al Gore in 2000 nit picking him to death, creating cynicism and turning voters against him.
Let us remember that when Obama came into office the economy was broke and we didn't even have a cash register. What a way to start a Presidency!
Bill Clinton put it very succinctly at a campaign rally in Washington.
“I’d like to see any of you get behind a locomotive going straight downhill at 200 miles an hour and stop it in 10 seconds,” Mr. Clinton told a crowd in Washington State
Nicholas Kristof after 'highlighting' Obama's many failures, otherwise known as 'holding the President's feet to the fire", now asks us to Give Obama a Break
Too little too late. If only you would have understood the depth and darkness of the opposition, sir.
Kristof writes in todays NYT.
The sourness toward Mr. Obama reminds me of the crankiness toward Al Gore in 2000. We in the news media were tough on Mr. Gore, magnifying his weaknesses, and that fed into a general disdain. So some liberals voted for Ralph Nader, and George W. Bush moved into the White House.
Nevermind that in spite of the narratives foisted upon us by a media in decline, that Obama's approval ratings are still higher than Reagan's at this same time in his election cycle.
Mr. Clinton also noted that the midterm elections are not a referendum. “Let’s make this a referendum on everything that’s bothering you about life right now,” he paraphrased the Republicans as saying, before adding: “It is not a referendum. It. Is. A. Choice. A choice between two different sets of ideas.”
Obama was correct when he told John Stewart that many have focused on the 10% of a certain policy that they don't like, while ignoring the 90% of policies that are damn good.
While we are focusing on this election where Democrats will likely lose the House it is imperative, that we start work immediately to embolden good democratic policy arguments and build a strong foundation for these ideas. Creative, and innovative media, Liberal think tanks. Messaging. Everything we can do to not make the same mistakes we made over the last two years, ie: letting the opposition define us.
We can take back our country in 2012, and we should focus on that goal like a laser starting now. Whatever it takes! Yes We Can!