We have speculated a lot here on Obama’s methods, intent, and being touchy feely treehugging DFH’s….his heart.
I just watched him speaking in Green Bay on health care, and he was, as much as I have ever seen him so……pissed.
He was stern looking, he was loud, and he was biting his words off.
He is, as much as he ever does….Yelling Louder.
I think it is safe to say that he knows he is in a fight. And unlike his fight against the weak ass and stupid CongRepubs on the budget or supplement that were easily and effectively dismissible….I think he knows that this time he has a truly formidable foe.
Everyone in the Blogosphere has wondered what will happen when he comes up against a real fight….and we are about to find out.
The issue on the tv is now being universally framed as compromising DOWN FROM the Public Option. Iow, by not starting negotiations from insisting on Single Payer, by not taking a strong stand from the get go….by only beginning to fight when the Public Option is under attack, we most likely will NOT even get the Public Option. And certainly not without a fight.
The Insurance companies and the AMA and Big Biz are now stiffening the spine of their outright bought Repubs and, most importantly after the electoral realignment… twisting the arms of their bought and/or heavily compromised Dems. Unlike in the fight for the budget and stimulus. This is a fight to the death, this is a ‘pull out all the stops’ fight.
And Obama knows it. Now. And Obama IS starting to fight. Now. Finally. After trying once again for some utopian bi-partisanship. Bowers pretty much destroys that utopia here: The Purpose Of Bipartisanship
It is a lofty and worthy and fitting with Obama’s political nature….cautious, goal, but it won’t feed the bulldog on health care.
Perhaps, just perhaps, we are about to see Obama have to really fight. He is out ‘campaigning,’ he has mobilized, finally, Organize for America to build public support, he and Rahm have Pelosi on board in the House, where the Progressive Caucus is also finally fighting the Blue Dogs.
But as we all know, the real battle will be in the Senate. Where faux, one sided, Comity and Collegiality rules under the overcooked (as opposed to iron) pasta fisted Harry Reid is always willing to blow accommodate the Republicans who used him as a doormat during the Bush Years. And continue to wipe their feet on him, knowing that all they have to do is say “BOO” to get Harry to fall on his knees…..before these powerless, archaic, and downright evil Bush enablers that ran our country into the ditch.
Obama know seems to know he is in a fight.
Does he, heh, realize he is in a fight with Harry? That Harry will take the side of the “Interests?” We are about to find out….but we will have to watch closely, since Obama has yet to have to get really tough. Now he does.
He has staked all of his nascent presidency on getting real health care reform passed. This is his issue. This IS what he has been keeping his powder and political capital dry for. This IS why he won’t step up on torture. This IS why he has given in to the MIC and Intel Community on every single issue that touches them. So that he won’t be painted as Soft on Terror and allow ‘them’ to attack him from that flank.
This is his issue, this is his first real test.
We are about to learn a lot.
And whether you ‘like him’ or not……if we don’t want “The Interests” to win this fight and gain momentum for every fight to come, we need to help “him.” Because he, as weak as we think his method of fighting is…..is the ONLY ONE fighting against them.
It is time for us to put cynicism and ‘dislike’ aside, it is time for US to fight, not FOR him…..but against “The Interests.” It is the only way for US to win. Right now, as much as it may irk some of us, the only way we can even come close to getting Change is to fight against the same Interests he is going to have to fight against….The Ruling Class. Like it or not, he is our only Champion.
He might be stepping up, he may be Yelling Louder…..will we?
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I’m ready to see that fire from him now, on this issue. Let’s go.
And from everybody else too, whoever gives a rat’s ass.
to Buddha’s ear!
I don’t dislike the President, but I don’t understand how he cannot see bipartisanship with these thugs is impossible no matter how many of them he appoints.
I want to believe and I stand with him if he starts fighting!
We’ll see…
…some of Obama’s stands, especially WRT to not proceeding full speed ahead with prosecuting bush. But, IMHO, I believe the reality is that he has a firmly entrenched, united group of GOP’ers and GOP’er-lite “Dems” who are determined to fight him every step of the way on every progressive issue, and he knows he can’t fight them and win on every issue.
He’s faced it already a few times. The nomination of Judge Sotomayor isn’t going to be as easy as it should be with a President who has a majority in the Senate. I believe the GOP’ers would/will oppose anyone that Obama nominates to the SCOTUS–just because…
It’s going to be an uphill battle on the healthcare issue. Besides the GOP’ers and the GOP’er-lites, there’s the money and propaganda of the insurance companies paying off Congress critters, and running commercials to scare citizens into opposing healthcare reform.
Apparently there are so many battles to fight with the minority party, who somehow still seem to be able to obstruct just about everything, and extremely weak “leadership” like cave-in Harry Reid on his side (?), that it’s not going to be easy for Obama to move forward. Sigh…
One branch of government clearly moving in the right direction:
Now where is Obama saying that he will veto any health care overhaul that doesn’t include a public option?
Then it’s on to the Senate.
And, by the way Pelosi et al. – a “public option” is not a we-might-get-around-to-it-in-7-years-if-HMOs-continue-to-screw-Americans law.
per Huff Post
Obama to be the whip, herder and chief advocate. Without his loudest, strongest voice congressional inertia will WILL be leveraged to the utmost and nothing will happen.
And it’s likely that any scheme proposed by Obama will be wildly opposed by the existing insurance giants and their many representatives in Congress. Public option, single-payer or whatever.
Personally I think he should take this opportunity to go with a maximal single-payer plan. He’s got the approval, he’s got the mindshare. It’s time.
But just because something is progressive, or optimal or simply makes sense doesn’t mean it’s likely to happen. So I expect that the Obama plan will be a public option, made as optional and triangulated as need be to assure passage by his stated October goal-line.
The Chinese will have a base (and possibly a maglev train) on the moon before we get a decent, truly universal and equitable healthcare system here in the USA.
Yeah, gloomy and despondent, but then I just read this article in the Guardian UK: (emphasis mine)
We can do better than this.
Last night I watched an old movie called “Destry Rides Again” with Jimmy Stewart and Marlene Dietrich.
Stewart’s character Destry reminds me of Obama.
See what you think:
I had at my porch steps male ferals who were louder than him and sprayed when they had the chance. Obama is the eloquent one, but not loud.