Obama one year on
January 21st, 2010 at 2:35 pm by David FarrarLosing Massachusetts the day before his first anniversary as President makes it somewhat bitter for President Obama. But how has his first year gone?
Personally I don’t think Obama has done an awful job. I think his biggest mistake was the size of the fiscal stimulus, leading to a a truly horrible fiscal deficit. In his defence, Bush left him a huge deficit as it was – but he has made it worse.
On foreign issues, I don’t have huge gripes. He is not bolting out of Iraq, but decreasing troop numbers at much the same rate Bush would have. His surge in Afghanistan was the right thing to do. Like most of his predecessors he has made little progress on the Palestinian issue, but he has not become an Israel basher (I suspect his Chief of Staff moderates him here. Emanuel actually did volunteer service with the IDF duing the first gulf war).
He is showing some rationality with trade issues, as opposed to his pre-election rhetoric. And again Bush often went protectionist also.
His healthcare legislation has been a disaster. Even with massive compromises and watering down, it may not pass, and if it does pass it won’t solve the real problems.
I think Obama’s problems come down to three major things:
- Expectations. On TV yesterday that had a live focus group of 40 Massachusetts voters. They asked them to raise their hands if Obama has met or exceeded their expectations, and not a single one did. And this is in a blue state.
- Priorities. Obama’s fiscal stimulus did little bar increase the deficit massively, and turn the country into deficit hawks. Unemployment went well beyond his worst forecasts, and Obama was seen as too focused on other issues such as healthcare, cap and trade, foreign policy etc.
- Experience. I said before the election that Obama was inexperienced as he basically had just two years of experience as a legislator, and no executive experience at all, and it is showing. Bush left him a mess, and the credit crisis occurred, but regardless the presidency of the US is always going to be pretty much the toughest job in the world, and Obama is coping about as well as any first time Senator would – not that well.
Now there is some good news for him. His poll ratings are averaging 50% approval to 44% disapproval, which is up from a month ago. They are still historically very low – the only ones lower were Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan on their one year anniversaries.
He is still personally liked, if not respected, as AP reports:
But while nearly nine in 10 people like President Barack Obama personally, he earns decidedly mixed reviews in a new Associated Press-GfK poll judging his first year in office, a verdict darkened by a stunning repudiation of his party in the Massachusetts Senate race yesterday. …
Even three-quarters of Republicans say they personally like Obama.
The AP poll gives us net approval ratings for Obama on various issues:
- The economy -1%
- Iraq +10%
- Healthcare 0%
- Terrorism +15%
- Environment +22%
- Federal Deficit -16%
- Energy +23%
- Taxes -4%
- Immigration -6%
- Afghanistan +7%
- Foreign Relationships +26%
- Unemployment -1%
- Gas prices -4%
The mid terms are looking to be focused on the economy, the deficit and jobs. It is quite possible now that the GOP could retake the House. The Senate is most unlikely though.
Too early to speculate much on 2012. Obama may be a one term President, but these are in his favour:
- The economy should pick up
- He has three years
- The Republicans have to find an electable candidate
- Now they no longer have 60 votes in the Senate, they can blame Republican blocking tactics for lack of progress on some issues
- He may do a Clinton and head towards the centre more
What are the chances of the GOP taking the House in 2010? In August Nate Silver said it was a one in four chance, so probably more than that now. The Republicans lead in the generic ballot by 1%. However history has taught us that the party not in the majority normally does significantly better than its poll ratings a year out – so I’d say the chance of GOP taking the House is at least 50% now.
Tags: Barrack Obama, United States
January 21st, 2010 at 2:45 pm
By promising everything to everybody Obama was sealing his downfall. “Change you can believe in” appealed to the cargo-culters who want something for nothing, and their hysterical joy on Obama’s election victory is directly proportional to their present feeling of disappointment. It’s a telling indictment of the vacuity of the MSM that he was allowed to get away with it.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 2:59 pm
The hope he offered (or people saw) was pretty much impossible to deliver on. A hellishingly difficult job at the best of times, in his case made harder by inheriting a number of worse than usual messes.
No matter how well intentioned a US president is it must be extremely difficult to make real progress with so many powerful groups pushing and pulling in all directions. And that contributes to his healthcare gambit which looks like being a fail, I guess it was his best opportunity to go for it in his first year but looks to be to big a hill to climb.
One small irrelevant quibble – he has been praised for his oratory skills but I don’t like the sound of him making speeches, it seems to be unnaturally inflected.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 3:00 pm
The biggest mistake he made was promising he would bring “change to Washington” and “change the tone of politics”. End the bitter partisanship bickering, the back-room deals, the lobbyists’ influence, etc. Yeah right – just the opposite has occurred. Sure, the Republicans have been obstructive, but what did he expect? It is not rocket science that the opposition’s job is to “oppose”.
Mr Obama could learn from some of the things John Key has acheived, in terms of cross-party initiatives and a slightly more “inclusive”, business-like way of getting things done than usual.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 3:01 pm
The verdict on Obama will come down to one word. Jobs, ( and not the black turtleneck wearing kind either)
If Obama can get unemployment in the US heading down from 10% in the next 12-18 months, he will be seen as a success, anything else and he is likely to regarded as the President who saved Wall Street, but let the rest of the economy burn….
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 3:14 pm
DPF, I don’t really know enough about US politics to judge – but this Obama commentary of yours seems to be very insightful, balanced and knowledgeable.
Thank you for that. Its good to read such a thoughtful piece.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 3:25 pm
I think Pelosi and Reid have really helped screw him up. especially pelosi. shes a nut job.
He ran on transparency. But now he’s in office – there is none. That pisses people off.
He is indecisive too.
He’s also constantly running, not governing.
He had to cut back the minimum number of troops his general in afghanistan asked for.
at the end of the day – he’s pushing a philosophy that doesnt work.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 3:34 pm
I agree with dime, that Pelosi is your typical fruitcake socialist, she makes the Dear One look good. Sort of feel sorry for Obama, he seems to be a nice guy but his mates are as greasy as butchers pricks, shifty bastards the lot of them they will be nothing but trouble.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 3:56 pm
Agree with Dave Mann on that one, nice work.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 4:29 pm
-Irony Warning-
We are seeing the prophecy play out. Like Jesus Christ on his entry into Jerusalem, Obamas entry into the White House was met with joy and adulation.
Now the mob has turned and Obama will be crucified for the sins of others (Bush Administration) only to be resurrected and win a 2nd term.
Praise the Obama.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 4:37 pm
I dont rate him one bit, some good points DPF, but dont agree with the general feeling… Yes for sure, very very very hard to succeed coming into what he came into.
But he came across as an arrogant prick, and pricks like him get there beans….
And on top of it all, the fact he accepted a Noble Peace Prize, just confirms he is an arrogant fuck….. Who on this blog actually thinks Obama deserves a Noble Peace Prize?????? Nada, no one, zip……..
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 6:25 pm
Dime is right on – particularly about Pelosi & transparency.
There has been no change in terms of transparency, in terms of lobbyists on Capitol Hill, in terms of repealing the constitutionally dodgy Patriot Act and wiretapping laws that Bush brought in. The new boss has been exactly like the old boss.
However the Republicans have been worse than just opposing. They bag every single initiative and idea the Democrats have, without offering any alternatives. Their opposition is disingenuous. The GOP needs serious reform and go back to their roots, otherwise it will be a disaster if they retake the branches of US government.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 6:45 pm
Like this?
Republicans Oppose Obama Deficit Panel
Top Republicans on Wednesday were hostile toward President Obama’s plan to create a bipartisan commission on cutting projected deficits.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 7:17 pm
This is scary stuff. I don’t know if it holds in the states, but unexpected elections (like a byelection over here) often go against the incumbent party but are not reflected in subsequent general elections, eg Labour’s loss of Timaru in Lange’s first term.
Regardless, the Tea Baggers, anti-evolutionists, climate change deniers (or, at the very least, those who acknowledge the reality but want the poor countries to pick up the tab), anti-abortionists and, simply, a huge array of reactionary pet projects are going through an incredibly successful phase.
What happens in the US affects us all, so it’s going to be an interesting ride.
I’m not surprised at Obama’s fall, and he bought it on himself by overpromising domestically and allowing himself to be promoted as antiwar when the truth is the opposite.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 7:48 pm
every time the left call them “tea baggers”, it just makes them fight harder. hope they keep doing it.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 7:50 pm
DPF
The man has failed to lead. He has let Pelosi and her tribe, aided and abetted by Reid have far too much say in legislation. The TARP and healthcare should have been drafted by Obama’s people not by Nancy P.
He is not calling the shots in my view. The Democrats on The Hill are not in fear & dread of POTUS. clinton had the same problem. He was far better off when the Dems were not full bore in control of the Hill.
See http://bit.ly/4ohhpM and http://bit.ly/RxDRl and http://bit.ly/2534a, for just a few examples
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 7:56 pm
I’m not sure you can blame him for the Health Care debacle as I seems ridiculous that you should need 61 votes to get anything passed in the Senate. Because he has been forced to compromise those on the left are now cranky with him.
Imagine if you needed that sort of majority in the NZ parliament- nothing would ever get achieved.
In any other country he’d be classed as a right-winger so I’m not sure how the Republicans are going to be able to fight him from the centre.
Adam Smith- I agree with you totally. Best thing that could happen to him is that the GOP win the house.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 8:06 pm
Luc
The Republican win in MA would be akin to National winning Mangere – your Timaru 1985 by-election analogy is too weak. Labour’s loss of Timaru barely dented their majority – the GOP winning MA strips the Dems of their filibuster proof majority which has a far more dramatic impact on the majority party than a single seat by-election loss in the NZ context. The GOP have not won an open Senate race in MA since 1952 (the 1972 win was a the re-election of a GOP incumbent)! The reversal of the vote from Obama’s winning margin statewide in 08 or Kennedy’s re-election margin in 06 is the largest in over 50 years!
An excellent analysis David. Its midnight here in the US – more comments tomorrow.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 8:20 pm
“In any other country he’d be classed as a right-winger”
You’re joking…….right?
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 8:47 pm
Well, let me be a bit different. Obama rates an EPIC, Epic Fail that is. Undoubtedly the most over-rated and incompetent POTUS in our lifetimes. Yes, he had zero experience of anything other than utterly corrupt (even by US standards) Chicago machine politics, so why wasn’t this a factor in the election ? Pete George, pin pricking, like Obama offered “concessions” like that so the Republicans would form a fig leaf, they wouldn’t get any say, just get to be blamed. He’s partisan past the norm, he’s corrupt and his group are corrupt (Gerald Walpin anyone, black panther intimidation ?), he’s diplomatically inept (insulting the Poles, kowtowing left and right, DVDs of the wrong zone for Gordon Brown, not that I personally am critical of that, but…), and as others have pointed out, he’s asleep at the wheel !
Yes, the economy was tanking, due to years of poor control and understanding that can’t only be laid at the feet of GWB as popular as that notion is; GW’s attempts to reform Fannie & Freddie in about 2006 – 7 were stymied by Democrats. And you’d have to say that if it was possible handle the economy worse, then he (although much blame lies with the legislature, and that because Obama is “voting present” yet again) is doing so, a pork laden “stimulus” that’s nothing of the sort except for those with their snouts deeply in the trough. Foreign policy, well, is just Bush redivivus, though true, he could have done worse.
And the electorate knows it; look at his impact on recent important elections, four appeals on the stump, 1 win, and 3 dramatic losses. Great speechmaker, he’s boring, has an awfully artificial and fake set of trite cadences and sayings (let me be perfectly clear…), and doesn’t say anything concrete.
He has a chance, but frankly I don’t think he has it in him. He’s not shown any interest in improving, he’s not a serious President and is a near perfect example of the Peter Principle. He might have been a good “community organizer”, but apart from being the “dream candidate” (and he is in a dream it seems), hew has none of the skills, intelligence, or abilities necessary to be a good President.
fail, EPIC Fail.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 10:01 pm
I think it is clear as evidenced by the Tea Party, who are polling higher than both the Dems and GOP as preferred party, that Obama is toast.
Americans do not want their country hijacked and the constitution trampled on by Marxists with a openly socialist agenda, not that Bush was any better, he wasn’t. He was a corrupt buffoon.
The stimulis overkill, the pork, Healthcare, Cap n Tax scam etc all contributed to Obama having the worst polling of any president in his first year The average American is not that stupid.
They could see the country was headed for debt fuelled disaster until Scott Brown rode into Dodge.
Obama was wafer thin on substance from day 1 and surrounded himself with highly dubious leftists that seek to control every aspect of peoples lives. Helen Klark would have slotted right in.
Let that be a lesson to John Key.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 10:31 pm
Luc Hansen >Regardless, the Tea Baggers, anti-evolutionists, climate change deniers (or, at the very least, those who acknowledge the reality but want the poor countries to pick up the tab), anti-abortionists and, simply, a huge array of reactionary pet projects are going through an incredibly successful phase.
That’s odd… I think of creation “scientists” and climate change believers as being pretty much cut from the same cloth. Both are faith based, both will jump through hoops to justify their belief system “scientifically”, and both resemble cults. But one is associated with the religious far right. While the other is associated with Obama, Rudd, and Nick Smith.
Vote:January 21st, 2010 at 11:51 pm
“In any other country he’d be classed as a right-winger”
“The new boss has been exactly like the old boss.”
Such a lot of dumbfuck New Zealanders with their views so obviously framed by the pathetically uninformed bullshit of the local mainstream media. What a bore.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 12:15 am
” Sort of feel sorry for Obama, he seems to be a nice guy ”
Try this-
http://frontpagemag.com/2010/01/21/lies-of-obama/
Nice enough for a pathological liar.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 12:41 am
Ge a life Redbaiter. I explained the similarities between Obama and GWB, and my dissatisfaction in his Presidency. Without clear points of rebuttal your point is irrelevant.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 12:53 am
George Bush wasn’t much of a Conservative but he was a class act compared to this lying Kenyan POS.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 4:56 am
Obama campaigned as a post partisan centerist and has governed as a reliably partisan card carrying liberal. He was always an empty suit into which white American guilt over slavery could be marvellously assuaged by the mere act of voting for what appeared to be an intriguing, eloquent black man who wouldn’t scare the horses. It is difficult for Obama supporters to remember that until the market meltdown that began in the 3rd week of October, McCain-Palin held a lead in all the major swing states just above the MOE. Obama merely stayed above the fray and uttered safe Presidential sounding remarks and McCain took the hit for the financial turmoil.
By presiding over the largest expansion in Federal spending in recent US history (outstripped only by the massive military spending necessitate by WW2), by encouraging the government takeover of GM and bailout of key banks, by promoting a stimulus bill that was a pent up liberal pork barrel wish list and by outsourcing the legislating of the more radical liberal agenda to the highly partisan and uber liberal House and Senate leaders, Obama quickly revealed his true ideological colours. His inexperienced was compounded by stacking his White House staff with a who’s who of bare knuckle Chicago pols (Emanuel, Axlerod, Plouffe, Jarrett) – this team have made rockie mistake after mistake the most vital and crucial of which was to misread the mandate given Obama by the voters. The American electorate now sees through the lies, spin and is sick of the arrogant disdain with which this team has treated the health care town halls, the tea party protests and the results of the 09 elections. Promises of a new era of transparency has seen the reverse – the most tawdry and egregious back room deals to keep afloat a piece of legislation that sinks further and further in popularity in all polls.
When you stray too far from the political centre of any true democracy, the voters of said democracy will assert their voice and use the ballot box to correct the imbalance. Obama has managed to alienate the vital swing Independent vote further and faster than any President in the last 2 centuries. His inexperience in fighting in truly competitive campaigns means he is ill equipped to cope with rejection and failure – unlike Clinton who had come back from defeats as Gov of Arkansas and the setbacks he suffered during the 1992 Democrat primaries. FDR learned quickly that there is a limit to what can be legislatively achieved in a single session of Congress and so enacted his reforms in a more piecemeal fashion and he had much bigger majorities to play with than Obama.
Imagine that Clark had overreached so far that National won a by-election in Mangere. A result like that would send shockwaves through the NZ political scene even though the loss of a single seat during any of the term of the 5th Labour Government would still have enabled them to pass legislation.
I do believe that David has been too light on his criticism of Obama’s foreign policy results. I support him in staying the course in Iraq and Afganistan. However he has signalled vague and almost contradictory goals in Afganistan – telling the left the troops will all come home in July 11 but telling the generals to do what is best according to conditions on the ground. His reneging on the missle defence promise in eastern Europe has embolden Russia with no apparent quid pro quo and has alarmed reliable allies such as Poland and the Czeck Republic. His weakness and waffling over Iran (even the length of time it took him to come out and support the popular street uprising) has sent a clear signal to the regime that has seen no appreciable results in preventing their quest for nuclear weapons. His twin appearances in Copenhagen were a bust – the Chicago Olympics being the first to be eliminated and he being easily outmanouvred by the Chinese over a new Kyoto style protocol. His Asian trip was widely panned except that he added the Japanese emperor to the Saudi King on the list of world leaders he bowed to. His interference in Honduras put him alongside his socialist pals Chavez, Castro and Morales – thankfully the Honduran establishment stuck to the letter of their constitution and there was eventually a peaceful transition to a duly elected new President. Obama repeatedly insulted the US’s closest ally Britain whilst trying desperately to engage in talks with thugs and despots. His forays into the Middle East (admittedly a graveyard for US Presidential hopes for substantive influence) have borne no fruit. His weakening of US surveillance could see a repeat of the underpants bomber and his trying of the 9/11 conspirators in a criminal court (as opposed to the military tribunal that KSM had already plead guilty before) gives Al Qaida a world stage from which to trumpet its ideology. The list goes on and on.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 5:39 am
Ha ha apologies for the Freudian slip; I meant to write the Tea Partiers! But it reminds of when the Tea Partiers called Rachel Maddow, and I quote, “a tea-bagging dyke.” As the lady herself said, “How does that work?”
Anyway, while a lot of the criticism of Obama is justified, rants like that of KIA above are pretty much meaningless drivel (why does that not surprise me?)
I don’t have too much time so, briefly:
Obama did the right thing in pumping in cash after the financial crisis (which I believe would have happened no matter which party was in power at the time) and the argument from my side is that he should have gone the full nationalisation route, righted the ship then sold the good companies back to the privateers. History has shown that governments invariably do very well adopting that course. And he should have embarked on an extensive infrastructure programme that would have kept umemployment much lower. Keynes had it right. If the mad-headed Tea Party had had their way, the US by now would be falling over and most of the world along with it. I suppose it would have had to find a war.
Americans need healthcare – the current system heaps tragedy upon misfortune – and the fact that Obama may fail totally there is an indictment of the political system of the US. It is becoming so polarised as to be ungovernable. WTF is wrong with 51 votes in a 100 member house – isn’t that democracy?
Wars: Obama promised to intensify the war there, and although he took his time, he has done so. I warned all and sundry that this man was a warmonger who talks better than the previous warmonger, and I was right. There was no good reason to wage war on the general Afghan or Iraqi populations, and there is no course to be stayed. The troops should all come home but, of course, they won’t. Not for a while and a few more thousand innocent civilians murdered.
The underpants bomber debacle is an example of how weak-kneed Americans have become, ducking at the sound of a car backfiring, when one crackpot who had been dobbed in by his own father made a hash of his big moment. Now tourism in the states will nosedive because of even more stringent screening and bullying. Just get the troops out of Muslim lands and stop supporting criminal dictators and let the populations sort it out for themselves. Stop buying their oil and kill two birds with one stone: save the people from our dictators and save civilisation from catastrophic global warming.
And why oh why do so many in the US have so little faith in their domestic courts? Anything to do with Florida in 2000? Ah well, I guess they know better than me on that one!
The best thing I can say about Obama is that he kept out some others who would have been so much worse, possibly bordering on evil (and I include his Secretary of State in that list).
Finally, don’t you wanna-be-yanks understand that there is no left wing in the US. Their centrist is our extreme right.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 6:25 am
Omigod, I see they are calling themselves a teabaggers party. How weird. Could be a fun party!
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 7:56 am
Did everyone see the SNL skit on Obama? It caused a big stir over there:
Vote:
January 22nd, 2010 at 8:46 am
Luc
You so dont get America its hard to know where to begin with you.
I have no objection to pumping in cash – the problem is what the Obama Admin choose to pump the cash into. Rather than a list of shovel ready projects that would actually generate jobs, it funded a boondoggle wish list of projects that the left wanted for years that would either not create jobs or create very few. The GOP made numerous suggestions to improve the stimulus to make it more targetted and thus effective for its core job creation purpose and they were blithely told hey we won rack off. That’s why no House Republicans and only 2 Senate Repubs voted for it.
BTW – of the three techniques used to combat severe recessions (Keynsian pump priming, deficit reduction through tax hikes or private sector stimulus through tax cuts) guess which one results in the quickest recovery in GDP and reductions in unemployment – you guessed it: tax cuts. The stimulus was supposed to stop unemployment rising above 8% and we’re over 10% and holding. The White House jobs saved/created by the stimulus website is a joke with even mainstream media outlets like the Boston Globe and WaPo reporting the huge numbers of bogus jobs listed in state after state. Fully 25% of the 800,000 jobs said to be created were proven by various MSM outlets to be made up.
Ditto with health care. No one denies that the health care system needs reform just not THIS reform. It will do the exact opposite to what Obama said it would (ie raise premiums not lower them, increase the deficit not lower it and restrict care over time rather than extend it). Once again, had Obama chosen to follow the path he promoted on the campaign trail (a new post partisan atmosphere with health care negotiations on CSPAN for all to see) he could’ve worked with the best legislative brains on both sides of the isle and come up with a package of genuine reforms that would make a difference. No – he assumed (like Luc does being a true believer in Big Governmen solves all) that a government run takeover was the only way to go. This being the goal of the left for decades the leadership listened to the base and not the people and in the end the people have said – enough – we dont like this particular reform being promoted. Massschusetts is probably the most reliably liberal state in the US and even there, 56% of voters told the exit pollsters that health care was the No 1 reason for voting for Brown vs 26% saying the economy.
Americans have plenty of faith in their courts. They just dont want to see enemy combatants captured on the field of battle treated like some car thief and read their rights and given the right to a trail. I dont recall the Americans in any war until now ever extending the rights of US citizens to enemy POWs. Once a war is over, each side exchanges prisoners. Its not rocket science. My prediction – another consequence from the people speaking so loudly by electing Scott Brown – no show trials in New York.
Fortunately wiser men than Luc wrote the US Constitution and set in motion the various checks and balances that ultimately saves the nation from extremists like Obama.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 8:58 am
KIA, do you think there is much hope of either Dems or Repubs being able to climb out of the toxic partisan political hole? Or are they destined to have to keep battling with dysfunctional politics and battling lobbies?
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 9:20 am
Really depends on the leadership and the tone of the President. Pelosi and Reid’s days are numbered. Reid is well below 40% approval in NV and all GOP rivals polling above 10 points higher so he is either going to be defeated or will suddenly want to spend more time with his family. Pelosi represents a very liberal district in San Francisco so very safe even if the most hostile electoral environment. She is safe in her job for now but if she participates in another sneaky back door, appeal to the base rego at health care, there are now enough House members vulnerable that they may turn on her.
The tone has been also set from the White House. They are used to one party rule in Chicago and IL and dont get the bi-partisan thing. Obama was all talk – designed to sooth the nerves that erupted due to his radical associations coming to light (Wright, Ayers etc). If he was really serious about resetting the tone, he’d fire Emmanuel and start again.
There are plenty on both sides of the isle who work very well together particularly in the Senate. Before the war in Iraq went sour, Bush managed to get Ted Kennedy to partner him on the education reform (No Child Left Behind).
There is no denying that Congress has become more partisan even under Bush 43 but this latest stuff is of a whole magnitude higher. There is no tonic like the cold winds of electoral reality and the Dems got an Arctic hurricane force blast. It all hinges on Obama – will be do a Carter and hunker down and stick to his ideology or will he do a Clinton and tack to the centre and learn from his mistakes. There is so little in Obama’s legislative past to give us any clues. He avoided conflict where possible in the IL Senate but remained a hard core down the line liberal in almost all his votes. Ditto in the US Senate although he spent only 2 substantive years in DC and no substantive bi-partisan bills to show for his time. I think he co-sponsored an Iraq resolution with Lugar R – Indiana but that is about it.
If the MA result wont do the trick, losing at least the House and possibly the Senate in Nov sure will.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 9:43 am
I thought the real reason for health care reform and why it is so strongly pushed by the lunatic left is that it would give the Federal government total power over their population. Almost any new laws or edicts can be put in place under the banner of health care. I.E the introduction of cap and trade, it could be argued emissions must be controlled as they pose a danger to public health.
Red, fair enough, nice long list there, perhaps Mac Daddy has lied that many times he no longer knows what is right or wrong anymore.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 10:00 am
I acknowledge that getting MA is a shock, but is it really like National taking Manurewa, when there are rather large wealth differences (my perception) between Manurewa and MA? Maybe National taking…Wellington Central?
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 10:02 am
…you guessed it: tax cuts.
Did he not give tax cuts? Or doesn’t it count when he raised them on those earning $250k+ ?
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 10:14 am
This sounds like a lunatic paranoid statement. The Federal government struggles to get any power over itself.
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 10:15 am
” perhaps Mac Daddy has lied that many times he no longer knows what is right or wrong anymore.”
He’s a leftist Bob, and like all of them, especially his mentors like
Franks Marshall Davis- Life time communist
Bill Ayers- Life time communist
Saul Alinksy- Life time communist
Bernardine Dohrn Ayers- Life time communist
he subscribes to the theory that there is no right ot wrong.
Here’s a good link if you want to find out where this sleazy secretive posturing fraud really came from.
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=78106
You know you’ll never get any real information from the cadre of left wing liars and self appointed propagandists who rejoice in the collective title of the NZ mainstream media.
(BTW, always enjoy your posts Bob)
Vote:January 22nd, 2010 at 11:07 am
Paranoid my arse Petey, the Mac Daddy cabal is desperate to pass their health bill, why???. Surely it must be obvious, even to the lunatic uber left that their bill is a piece of crap but still they persist, why??. Would it not be better to attack health care bit by bit, better still start again. The designer of the bill wrote the fucking thing in prison, ask your self Petey does this sound above board??. The whole lot of them are nasty pieces of work and belong behind bars, not governing how others live their lives.
Vote:January 23rd, 2010 at 7:29 am
KIA promoting crap again, I see.
Tax cuts are the least effective stimulus. GW proved it in the US and Rudd proved it in Australia. they both doled out cash (my son im Melbourne was very happy to slam his 900 bucks on his credit cards). The GOP opposed any stimulus and wanted policies that probably would have pushed the US into a new depression.
All this talk about a Chicago cabal – more crap. Every president brings in his own team.
Obamacare was not about a government takeover, just a few rule changes and provision of a Federal option as a safety net for the least fortunate, the losers, if you like. Like here, a hybrid system. I have no objections to private healthcare provision, in fact, I commend it. New figures show within the US, age sex, county and race can result in a 30 year difference in expected life span. This in the richest nation in the world. Go figure.
Losing MA was an anomaly. Local issues were paramount and, of course, it was time for a change.
KIA, I’m sorry to say, but while others here fawn over your utterances, I find you pretty ignorant.
Quantity of verbiage is no substitute for quality.
Vote:January 23rd, 2010 at 7:56 am
You should consider your last comment carefully Luc.
I don’t think KIA is ignorant, I think he adds a useful and interesting perspective. I don’t always agree with him, but more often on the degree of his view rather than what he states.
Saying someone is pretty ignorant because you disagree with them sounds kinda ignorant to me.
How do you know losing MA was an anomaly? What if the Dems keep losing?
Vote:January 23rd, 2010 at 8:21 am
Good point about MA Pete. I should have inserted “very likely” simply because in democracies worldwide this sort of result, out of election cycle, is very common. At times, yes, it can be a harbinger of more of the same, but a one-off like this does not entitle KIA to gloat prematurely.
I find his posts generally to be just negative or, at best, vague rants. It’s annoying because I would love to pin him down on specifics.
Vote:January 23rd, 2010 at 8:33 am
Your word counts on this thread are: 134, 533, 17, 206, 96
Vote:January 23rd, 2010 at 9:13 am
A hybrid system
Like one where 50% of the expenditure is from government?
That’s what the US already has. Different to our higher government proportions but still hardly Laissez-faire.
just a few rule changes
Including the core rule of compulsory purchase of health insurance, with a government penalty if one did not. A feature of the Hillary Clinton 2008 proposals that was heavily condemned by candidate Obama. Plus a degree of co-opting existing health and pharma companies so great it’s even got Barry’s far-left base gagging.
…provision of a Federal option as a safety net for the least fortunate, the losers, if you like…
Already exists. It’s called Medicaid and it was established in 1965 to provide medical care for…. the poor. You probably don’t remember that because it was enabled by ye old warmonger of your era, LBJ. If it’s not sufficiently covering enough poor people then a few rule changes could have fixed that – with far less controversy.
All in all, yet another Luc statement that sounds kinda ignorant to me.
Vote:January 23rd, 2010 at 9:30 am
Tom, you are just joining the misinformation gravy train.
The US government spends that money on subsidies to the insurers and drug companies. Now I am not against private health insurance, quite the opposite, but the situation in the US is extreme.
I agree with your condemnation of compulsory purchase of health insurance as, even worse, the govt scheme was going to be more expensive then the private ones.
Medicaid came into being for war veterans (the US has lots of those because it starts lots of wars!) and was eventually extended to the elderly. It does not apply to any other group. And even groups of veterans fall outside Medicaid coverage due to the nature of their injuries or income level.
Extending Medicaid to everyone would have been a simple option (and eliminated most private insurers in one fell swoop) but it just would not have got through that minefield called Congress where there is no such thing as a party whip.
Try again, Tom.
Vote:January 23rd, 2010 at 8:11 pm
The US needs Luc’s advice in the same way a bull needs tits.
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