There is two diaries claiming obama is a blue dog. Lets dispel this notion
Any president of any party even the republican party is going to be more moderate than the most conservative or progressive person of his party.
So compare Obama to his peers (other presidents) to determine where he is at ideologically.
Obama is the most pro gay right president ever. That's not some bullshit I pulled out my ass its a fact he has done more to promote equality than any administration ever. The Last president was trying to ban gay marriage and probably won in 2004 because of that issue and how it basically fired up his base of bigots.
The President before that signed don't ask don't tell into law.
Name me one serious contender in 2008 that was more pro gay rights then Obama. I'll wait...........................
I'll bet you that the next democratic president will be for gay marriage because the base wont vote for a nominee that is against it.
Obama is no blue dog. Blue dogs didn't want health care at all. No bill period. To be honest Jane Hamsher and her ilk have more in common with blue dogs than Obama on that point.
Don't mistake Pragmatism for conservatism its not the same. Obama inherited a fragile sinking ship. So what did he do? He hired people that we all knew before and that businesses trusted. Why? Because he didn't want to rock the boat drastically when the economy was so fragile. You hate him for that, I totally get it. That doesn't make him a blue dog his concerns were just different from yours.
On Health Care Just because he didn't threaten too veto a bill with out a public option that doesn't make him a blue dog. He just obviously thought that a public option would kill the bill so he compromised on that issue.
He thought that everything else in the bill was more important than the public option. You hate him for that too. I totally get it. But that doesn't make him a blue dog
What would make him a bluedog is if the Deficit commission came back and it cut Medicare and social security with out raising taxes and he backed that bullshit in the name of fiscal conservatism he would be a blue dog then. Cause thats what Blue dogs Do
But on every issue Obama has moved the ball in the "right" direction at least from a progressives point of view. How that could be denied is beyond comprehension.
And the one issue where he has moved in the opposite direction the Afghan. War he is only doing what he promised you he would do.
This is a moderate country. And to be honest its not that moderate, I mean a good majority thinks Muslim means terrorist. That same majority also thinks marriage should be between a man and women. And that same majority also wants no public funding for abortions and restrictions on abortions used with private funding. We are in a battle right now and if we keep knee capping our generals we will lose this war for the heart of this country.
And if that happens you will wake up in a America were social security is a thing of the past the number of uninsured is somewhere in the 70 million range, there will be a flat tax where everybody pays the same poor people and rich people and, our idea of a major legislative win will be reducing the cuts in the school lunch program.
Wake up there is a war going on which side are you on?