The Spectacle Blog
The headline in the Washington Post suffices to demonstrate how completely Dan Balz misses the point:
Obama did not change Washington. Was there
a way around united Republican opposition?
But this is not Obama’s problem, or at least it was not the problem during the first two years of Obama’s term, when Democrats controlled the House of Representatives and had a nearly filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. During that period, Obama practically had carte blanche to do as he pleased, and what did he do? Bailouts and stimulus and health-care and — more than anything else — massive deficit spending.
It was what Obama and his Democrat congressional allies did during those two years, and not “united Republican opposition,” which determined the course of Obama’s presidency. Whatever one says about Obama’s “hope and change” agenda, its economic component was straight-up Keynesianism, and this clearly failed to solve the unemployment problem while adding more than a trillion dollars a year to the national debt. Dan Balz gives us the Democrat narrative:
The president’s advisers contend that Republicans chose the course of obstruction and intransigence from the day Obama was sworn in.
“We met an implacable opponent in the Republican leadership,” said David Axelrod, senior strategist for Obama’s reelection campaign and former White House senior adviser. “They made a decision, and they’ve been very open about it, that from Day One they weren’t going to cooperate on any major issue.”
Did Axelrod expect Republicans to endorse and ratify — to lend bipartisan legitimacy to — Obama’s agenda? Was that a reasonable expectation? And what happened to those Republicans, like former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and Delaware Rep. Mike Castle, who did embrace Obama’s agenda?
“Hope and change” made for nice rhetoric, but it failed both as policy and politics, and Obama’s attempt to place the blame on “united Republican opposition” shows the fundamental irresponsibility as the heart of the Democratic Party’s failures. To this day, Democrats have refused to accept the electoral verdict of the mid-terms, “The Republican Mandate” election in which the GOP gained a net 63 House seats to give them a total of 242 seats — the most Republicans have held since 1949, a majority 12 seats larger than the one captured by Newt Gingrich’s GOP in 1994.
The tendency of Democrats to externalize blame, to excuse their failures by reference to Republican scapegoats, is at the heart of the failure of Obama’s administration. This blame-shifting tactic may occasionally work as political rhetoric — with the help of a servile press corps, Democrats may succeed in convincing voters that those evil Republicans somehow stole the “hope and change” — but it is ultimately an evasion of responsibility. Voters on Nov. 6 will have an opportunity to end this evasion.
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Pecos Pete| 9.3.12 @ 8:55AM
RSM: Democrats will never accept responsibility for their actions. They will always blame Republicans or the weather, etc, for their failures. When, in November, they are voted out of office with the Republicans controlling the House, Senate and the presidency, they will blame racist whites, voter fraud and the electoral college.
squalis| 9.3.12 @ 10:17AM
"Did Axelrod expect Republicans to endorse and ratify -- to lend bipartisan legitimacy to -- Obama's agenda? Was that a reasonable expectation? "
I can't answer for Axelrod, but I can answer for the general electorate. That answer would be a very loud NO! That is exactly why the election of 2010 turned out as it did. I expect more of the same in 2012.
Oldefarte| 9.3.12 @ 10:40AM
The point is being missed here. Their INTENT was not to solve the unemployment problem etc, but instead to ram through their socialism agenda as quickly as possible. The non-stimulus [provided the $800bil to state and local governments enabling them to not have to lay off employees of government], welfarecare, and Detroit's bailout from TARP was simply/totally a political gift to the the labor unions!!!!!!!
JmsA| 9.3.12 @ 1:18PM
Republicans are playing a game. Democrats are fighting a war.
Oldefarte| 9.3.12 @ 1:58PM
No Republicans, Americans, taxpayers, Christians, Jews, parents etc are "fighting a war" AGAINST [RADICAL] DEMOCRATS, and what is at stake is the very survival of this nation!!!!!!
Fiscal| 9.3.12 @ 9:29PM
C'mon, McCain, you should be smart enough to know that it takes a 60% super majority in the Senate to pass anything. You've been drinking too much of the talking points KoolAid. That being said, Obama doesn't have the leadership ability of an earthworm. There is enough fault to go around on both sides which is why Congress is at its lowest rating ever.
If Romney wins, and I hope he does, then the Dems will play the Senate super majority game and nothing will get done. In fact, even if the Republicans have a majority in both houses, nothing will be done.
We don't get anything done in this country anymore unless we have an emergency -- and that won't happen for several more years. The big mistake the Republicans made was not to grab onto Simpson-Bowles when Obama didn't.
The only difference if Romney wins is that at least the federal government will be managed better and actually led.
Dai Alanye | 9.3.12 @ 11:15PM
60% required to pass anything? Bilge!
Pressure a couple of the opposition to switch or stay home, buy a few votes with favors or threats, and the job is done. It has worked that way since the beginning of the republic, and will work next year as well.
This is called political persuasion, and real presidents handle it well. Obama fails at it, fortunately for us, because he isn't a real president, merely a narcissist enjoying the perks and publicity.
Fiscal| 9.4.12 @ 6:58AM
Really? Obamacare was voted in totally by Dems and Independents. If you think that persuasion works today, you're also drinking the KoolAid. You watch too much Fox News.
spike59| 9.4.12 @ 6:04AM
and YOU should be smart enough to know that for the first two years of ObaMao's term, he got EVERYTHING he wanted from Congress-which is PRECISELY why the 2010 midterms turned out the way they did
Fiscal| 9.4.12 @ 7:05AM
Really? Besides Obamacare and the stimulus, what did he get? The stimulus was compromised with 1/3 tax cuts just to get enough votes. Do you think he wanted the tax cuts? The problem with Obama is not what he got, it is the fact that his he didn't lead -- only followed. The 2010 midterms turned out the way they did because the economy was bad not because of what was passed in Congress. Geezzz.....
ggoblue| 9.4.12 @ 7:42AM
they always leave out what really matters...THE REPUBLICANS WON A LANDSLIDE IN 2010 BY PROMISING TO DO EXACTLY THAT...STOP THIS MANIAC IN HIS TRACKS!!!!!!!
america will not throw them out for doing what they promised to do....63 days to the second wave of the tsunami....