Pounding away at the wrong target in the wrong way: The progressive way

... Obama or Congressional Democrats offered up something really worth fighting for, then we would. Who can get enthused about this milktoast "reform"?

Yah, in the long run it might lead to a national system like every sane country has ........ but we're already over half a century past due for that, and we'll all be dead before it finally happens.

"And so it goes. Right-wing presidents inherit whole armies of blitzkriegers, those willing to organize and fight unquestioningly for the reactionary cause with indefatigable enthusiasm. Progressive presidents inherit quitters and critics: progressive critics, for whom stubborn political realities are but an inconvenient bummer to be decried."

Blaming all those ignored and hoodwinked by the Hoper from Audacity - the guy who has recently dismissed and ridiculed these same people who constituted his base during the campaign - for his own failure to even show up for the job they hired him for. That takes some gall, Carpenter.

This is ironically similar to blaming Obama's doldrums on Progressives; for NOT pressuring Obama ENOUGH to consider their demands - a ploy recently used by a number of Obama appologists. You know: the old FDR legend when he supposedly said "make me" to civil rights activists. You were one of those who wrote that line, weren't you PM?

Well which is it?

"And so it goes. Right-wing presidents inherit whole armies of blitzkriegers, those willing to organize and fight unquestioningly for the reactionary cause with indefatigable enthusiasm. Progressive presidents inherit quitters and critics: progressive critics, for whom stubborn political realities are but an inconvenient bummer to be decried."

Carpenter, you are so wrong about progressives being quitters. The Netroots Nation conference in Pittsburgh this week proves it!

And what's wrong with critics? Why do you think it wrong to criticize Obama for being a kinder, gentler version of Dubya/dick who only brings change you can believe in that remains the same. If you want to blindly follow lemmings over a cliff, then join the Republican Party.

By the way Carpy, you recently offered your own solution. Are you still hoping for more far right thuggish and disruptive behavior at town hall meetings?

Buzzflash, when are you going to fire this clown? He is giving you a bad name.

This was in an era when Congress didn’t simply rubber-stamp presidential decrees, as they are more wont to do now -- and probably will end up doing with the healthcare bill, though in this case it’s alright. But back then we probably also would have had, for instance, committees visibly investigating Obama’s placement in Afghanistan of Blackwater thugs. Is there such an investigation now?

Let me add this. People who complain about Obama behaving in a bipartisan manner are making fools of themselves. As Howard Dean told Ron Reagan yesterday, bipartisanship is what the American people want -- there is no doubt of it, and it’s part of what made Obama a wonderful candidate -- so Democrats should give it to them. If the Republicans reject the bipartisanship, that’s their problem -- besides which, they are irrelevant and Obama knows it. They neither can write nor prevent the legislation. The difficulty Obama faces consists of senators such as Max Baucus, Kent Conrad, and Evan Bayh. And these guys get a bum rap, too, because, for all I know and for all probably most of the people cursing them know, they are doing exactly what their in state constituents elected them to do. They are not elected ‘at large’; they are not, ideally, the president’s pawns; he has to ‘persuade’ them into at least not filibustering. That’s why it takes so long to get this done.

(And, we learn from Brent Budowsky, Harry Reid saved our butts by calling an end to the manner in which some of these anti-government senators apparently were negotiating.)

Must not be any likelihood of obscene profits from Big Pharma anymore - or else Windows 7 needs a huge transfusion of Bill's Bucks to fix the usual suspected problems Windows always seems to have.

HOW ABOUT LEAD!!!

Obama presented himself as a leader, promising to fight for the little guy, and the people turned out in droves, sufficient in number to wipe out the Diebold factor in the election. And then, as another commenter here notes, turned his back on us once he got the key to the Oval Office Executive Rest Room. He stepped aside to let the Congress of Corporatist Whores take over as leader in realizing his agenda. He threw us to the wolves who eat Congress-critters for breakfast. And now you want to bash people for not following a follower???

As yesterday's photo op in Montana demonstrated, Obama has the ability to be a leader. Even those two who stood up and asked sharp questions about his plans did so in a respectful manner, and maybe even went home with some new thoughts about health care reform. I was watching MSNBC after the Fog and Phoney Show ended, and the NRA welder felt that Obama answered his question. I didn't detect that the answer was disingenuous in any way.

What this demonstrates is Obama has got what it takes to lead, which in a nutshell is to convince people to follow him. He just has to get Rahm off his ass (like Dick Cheney seems to think that lame-ass Dubya did to him) and actually LEAD the nation like he promised he would.

Maybe then he will get the kind of support Carpenter is now demanding.