Obama did say to MAKE him go left... done?

Well, I do remember Obama saying early on that the left had to come to play, and make him stay to the left on policies, force his hand.  In reality the only mass movement bullying anyone into any position is the politically-hijacked Tea Party movement - which has pushed the entire country towards some weird suicide pact.

But Occupy Wall Street... I think it's having an effect.

Obama has played brinkmanship with his base, and held out compromise to the Republicans so long he's risked complete collapse of base support.  But just as it looked over our side has done something big.  It's getting out there with a populist message.  He cannot be on the wrong side of that.  Cannot allow this anti-tea-party to get co-opted by some other force.  

He has to get out in front on this and finally has a potential mass movement pushing a strong agenda to his left, giving him space to finally tack left again without being isolated.  It's moving the Overton window.

If he really will now use the bully pulpit and let the Republicans hang out to dry as the wealth-protecting extremists they are, as he said he will do, then we could see a bit of hope again.  The Republicans have gone so far out on the ledge that there is no doubt they are just being rejectionist and the American people are open to push back against that.