UPDATED: This statement by Howard Fineman at Huffington Post sums up where Obama seems to be headed in my view:
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By staking his next two years on hundreds of billions of dollars of new or renewed tax cuts -- none of them tied directly to compensating cuts in government spending -- Obama is alienating his own Democratic base in a way that could make him what Carter was: a one-term, ineffective "outsider" president.
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The White House and the party spin doctors it controls are putting out press releases touting all that Obama "got" in his "negotiations" with the GOP. But most of what he "got" were more unpaid-for tax cuts to go along with the $100 billion or so he waved ahead in two year's worth of tax cuts for every family making more than $250,000 a year.
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As readers have no doubt figured out by now, I have pretty much written off the petulant Liar-in-Chief and truly hoe for a primary challenge for the Democrat ticket in the lead up to 2012. Obama lies, dissembles and fails to deliver on promises and then gets all pissy and bitchy with those who - with the benefit of hind sight - foolishly expected him to stand for something. Especially when polls show 2/3rds of Americans opposed the GOP tax break agenda. What makes it all the more aggravating is that Obama says that he "takes John Boehner at his word." Is the man a freaking idiot? Hello!! That statement makes about as much sense as Chamberlain believing Hitler's word in 1938. Many people are beyond fed up and rightfully so. Personally, I hope the Congressional Democrats find a spine and block approval of the "compromise."*
Here's a sampling of the disgust and sense of betrayal, first John Aravosis' take via America Blog Gay in the wake of Obama's capitulation to the GOP on the extension of the Bush tax breaks:
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Taking hostages. It's the only thing the President understands. He said so himself today. It's always been our working theory that the President only responds to those who are willing to stand up to him, while friendship gets you nothing. The President, Senator Reid, HRC and the apologists have three more weeks to get the DADT compromise passed. Because after that, it's hostage taking time.
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And then there's Dan Rather's analysis via MSNBC and Mediate:
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Rather, speaking on MSNBC’s Jansing & Company said an extension of those cuts will infuriate the left and lead to a Democratic primary challenge against the president in 2012: This is a political nightmare for Barack Obama as president. The more-left portion of his party hates this with a passion. And politically, within his own party, if this goes through, Barack Obama will be in a position to have his shirttail on fire, his back to the wall, and the bill collector at the door. Which is metaphorically a way of saying he’s almost guaranteed — if this goes through — to have a serious challenge in a Democratic primary for president in 2012.
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The perception of [Obama] is that he won’t fight for anything… Many of the heavy contributors to the Democratic Party are beyond shock about this happening, and are saying to themselves, ‘This guy . . . has about four to six months to turn the perception of him and the party around or we’ve got to start thinking about somebody else in 2012.’
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Taking hostages. It's the only thing the President understands. He said so himself today. It's always been our working theory that the President only responds to those who are willing to stand up to him, while friendship gets you nothing. The President, Senator Reid, HRC and the apologists have three more weeks to get the DADT compromise passed. Because after that, it's hostage taking time.
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And then there's Dan Rather's analysis via MSNBC and Mediate:
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Rather, speaking on MSNBC’s Jansing & Company said an extension of those cuts will infuriate the left and lead to a Democratic primary challenge against the president in 2012: This is a political nightmare for Barack Obama as president. The more-left portion of his party hates this with a passion. And politically, within his own party, if this goes through, Barack Obama will be in a position to have his shirttail on fire, his back to the wall, and the bill collector at the door. Which is metaphorically a way of saying he’s almost guaranteed — if this goes through — to have a serious challenge in a Democratic primary for president in 2012.
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The perception of [Obama] is that he won’t fight for anything… Many of the heavy contributors to the Democratic Party are beyond shock about this happening, and are saying to themselves, ‘This guy . . . has about four to six months to turn the perception of him and the party around or we’ve got to start thinking about somebody else in 2012.’
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AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka likewise slammed Obama's spineless sell as described in The Hill:
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The AFL-CIO's president condemned President Obama's deal on tax cuts as an "unconscionable" giveaway to wealthy interests. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka slammed the tax deal and joined the ranks of liberals who have expressed disenchantment with the president for having agreed to the two-year extension of all expiring tax cuts.
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"Two years ago, working Americans had high hopes that we would ultimately emerge from the deep, punishing financial debacle with a sharp focus on a fundamentally stronger, fairer and more balanced economy," the labor leader said. "Today, that vision has dimmed."
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"It is unconscionable that the price of support for struggling middle-class families and workers who have been unable to find jobs for months and months and months is yet more giveaways for our country’s wealthiest families,"
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka likewise slammed Obama's spineless sell as described in The Hill:
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The AFL-CIO's president condemned President Obama's deal on tax cuts as an "unconscionable" giveaway to wealthy interests. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka slammed the tax deal and joined the ranks of liberals who have expressed disenchantment with the president for having agreed to the two-year extension of all expiring tax cuts.
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"Two years ago, working Americans had high hopes that we would ultimately emerge from the deep, punishing financial debacle with a sharp focus on a fundamentally stronger, fairer and more balanced economy," the labor leader said. "Today, that vision has dimmed."
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"It is unconscionable that the price of support for struggling middle-class families and workers who have been unable to find jobs for months and months and months is yet more giveaways for our country’s wealthiest families,"
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As Think Progress reports, even former GOP Congressman, now newscaster, Joe Scarborough went ballistic over the "compromise":
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SCARBOROUGH: It is stunning to me that this president has extended Bush tax cuts to millionaires and billionaires. This progressive president has tripled the number of troops in Afghanistan. This progressive president, that you say worries about deficit reduction — just like Republicans say they worry about deficit reduction — on the week the debt commission gets skewered . . . Barack Obama and the Republicans added a trillion more dollars to that debt in one weekend. [...]
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The Republicans aren’t interested in cutting the deficit. [...]
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I would love my political opponent to take the position we’re going to extend tax cuts for millionaires that even the CBO says is not going to create new jobs. And yet they’re going to cut off unemployment benefits for families at Christmastime. Please! Please. Seriously?! That’s like Mohamed Ali fighting against Princeton’s boxing champ Alan Merryweather– it’s an easy battle
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The clear lessons from this capitulation on taxes are (1) don't expect Obama to fight for anything, and (2) don't believe ANYTHING this president says. I am beyond disgusted.
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SCARBOROUGH: It is stunning to me that this president has extended Bush tax cuts to millionaires and billionaires. This progressive president has tripled the number of troops in Afghanistan. This progressive president, that you say worries about deficit reduction — just like Republicans say they worry about deficit reduction — on the week the debt commission gets skewered . . . Barack Obama and the Republicans added a trillion more dollars to that debt in one weekend. [...]
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The Republicans aren’t interested in cutting the deficit. [...]
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I would love my political opponent to take the position we’re going to extend tax cuts for millionaires that even the CBO says is not going to create new jobs. And yet they’re going to cut off unemployment benefits for families at Christmastime. Please! Please. Seriously?! That’s like Mohamed Ali fighting against Princeton’s boxing champ Alan Merryweather– it’s an easy battle
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The clear lessons from this capitulation on taxes are (1) don't expect Obama to fight for anything, and (2) don't believe ANYTHING this president says. I am beyond disgusted.
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