One Lesson from the Elections

Dear Friends,

There are many lessons that can be learned from the latest elections.  The one lesson that it is critical for President Obama and the Democrats to learn is that if you don't fight for what you believe in you cannot expect people to fight for you.  President Obama fought harder for bipartisanship than he did for his signature accomplishments like health care reform and financial reform.  It is clearly not enough to pass important legislation.

President Obama did not take the lead on health care reform.  He left the negotiations to Congress without making it clear what he wanted.  He never even tried to get single payer or the government option.

On the issue that was most important to the American people, President Obama let Congress pass a stimulus package that was too small and too full of tax breaks instead of fighting for a real stimulus package that would really produce jobs.  Again, President Obama sat on the sidelines and let Congress craft the legislation.  As far as the public knew, President Obama didn't really care what happened to the economy because he wasn't out there campaigning for an appropriate stimulus package.

On issues that President Obama campaigned on like Don't Ask Don't Tell were essentially left off the table.  President Obama had the support of the majority of the American people, and he squandered the opportunity because he refused to campaign for it.

It is entirely possible that he would have lost some votes or that some of his legislation would have been filibustered in the Senate, but President Obama kept sitting on the sidelines, negotiating against himself and working for bipartisanship that was never going to happen.  The Democrats should have made the Senate Republicans actually filibuster bills that would have helped the average person instead of just letting the threat of a filibuster stop them.  Instead the Democrats would agree to waterdown the legislation and still never get any Republican support.

President Obama never tried to get control of the conservative Democrats who were permitted to oppose his legislative agenda with impunity.  I was appalled that he supported Senator Blanche Lincoln when she was challenged in a primary by a candidate much closer to President Obama's stated positions. 

The huge grassroots support that President Obama enjoyed as a candidate who preached change and hope was not support for bipartisanship.  It was support for someone who would fight for what he believed in and not be corrupted by Washington DC.  Unfortunately, President Obama fought for bipartisanship by throwing what he campaigned for under the bus.  It was President Obama's approach to governing that caused the huge defeat that the Democrats suffered in the last election. 


Why should I enthusiastically support President Obama and the Democrats when they refuse to fight for what they claim to believe in?  They don't have to win every battle, but they must fight for what they believe in.  If President Obama doesn't demonstrate that he is willing to fight and campaign for what he believes in, he should not expect to get enthusiastic support from his base especially when he calls us "whiners".

Thanks for reading and please comment,
The Unabashed Liberal