Liberals and Liberal bloggers upset with Obama's centrist team

bozack

Diamond Member
Jan 14, 2000
7,913
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So I was reading the paper today and happened upon this article in the boston globe titled Obama defends experienced, centrist team...

Here is the link:

http://www.boston.com/news/nat...rienced_centrist_team/

So now a few weeks ago here I remember saying that I felt Obama was focusing too much on the old liberal guard and rehashing too much of the former Clinton administration, and at that time more than a few came out to say that my conservative bias was blinding me to reality and that because of this I wasn't getting "it" with regards to his selections...

So I just had to chuckle a little when I saw that not only am I "not getting it" but it seems that the many who helped move along Obama's grass roots efforts aren't getting it either as they voiced the same criticisms...the obvious being that they are pro Obama and also presumably liberal so using the conservative bias argument doesn't fly.

Personally, as conservative as I am I would have much rather seen him go outside the box and try something different with fresh faces and truly new ideas, and it seems like people on the other side of the policy fence who supported Obama from the outset tend to agree.
 

bozack

Diamond Member
Jan 14, 2000
7,913
12
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Originally posted by: MotF Bane
Good to see centrists, not extremists from either side.

thats status quo though...one could argue that nothing new happens unless you get someone with a different agenda/viewpoint.

As I said above, things would have been more interesting if he had picked a more interesting group of people...don't know if I would have liked it as ideologically there would have been differences, but at least it would have been something new, the only thing I now find interesting is to see how much if any change we really experience.
 

OCGuy

Lifer
Jul 12, 2000
27,224
37
91
Anything that makes liberals upset is OK in my book.

:thumbsup: for Obama.
 

MotF Bane

No Lifer
Dec 22, 2006
60,801
10
0
Originally posted by: bozack
Originally posted by: MotF Bane
Good to see centrists, not extremists from either side.

thats status quo though...one could argue that nothing new happens unless you get someone with a different agenda/viewpoint.

As I said above, things would have been more interesting if he had picked a more interesting group of people...don't know if I would have liked it as ideologically there would have been differences, but at least it would have been something new, the only thing I now find interesting is to see how much if any change we really experience.

Would you prefer extremists? :/
 

Steeplerot

Lifer
Mar 29, 2004
13,051
6
81
Originally posted by: MotF Bane
Originally posted by: bozack
Originally posted by: MotF Bane
Good to see centrists, not extremists from either side.

thats status quo though...one could argue that nothing new happens unless you get someone with a different agenda/viewpoint.

As I said above, things would have been more interesting if he had picked a more interesting group of people...don't know if I would have liked it as ideologically there would have been differences, but at least it would have been something new, the only thing I now find interesting is to see how much if any change we really experience.

Would you prefer extremists? :/
Highly doubtful there are any left "extremists" on the national stage that would even have the option of getting a position that high.
I mean, who? Social Democrat Bernie Sanders? He is pretty much a regular Dem anywhere else in the world. Only other I could think of is Kucinich, if you would call a old-school FDR type Dem a extremist, which is laughable. (although sadly Dems in that variety are rare as hell anymore) Senator Wellstone is dead so he is out, Cynthia McKinney commited political hari-kari, and Dems hate Nader (Not that he would have anything to do with Dems anyhow)
Democrat choices have been pretty vanilla flavored since the Clinton Big-Tent era of centrism.

As a bit more left-of-center then your average progressive nowadays I am fine myself with centrist Democrats in the cabinet, they are miles above a bunch of hard-right religious extremists that have been running the show for almost a decade now making a total mess of things.
 

Zebo

Elite Member
Jul 29, 2001
39,398
19
81
I like what Jeremiah Wright had to say about him recently about him being the target now. Look you can't become president in this country unless you are a centrist. Bush was a centrist no matter what the left says with NCLB and medicare stuff and immigrant worker bills among other things. Heck Teddy Kennedy wrote Bush's education bill. He blundered into iraq but is that left or right or just dumb. Anyway sure the ideologues like Wright are going to be upset with him because he can't and won't deliver a radical agenda. I'll be surprised if they really even do UHC.
 

Steeplerot

Lifer
Mar 29, 2004
13,051
6
81
Originally posted by: Zebo
I'll be surprised if they really even do UHC.

If we could get UHC like every other civilized country out there I would be satisfied that the centrists did a good job. That is more then I expect also.
 

Perknose

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
Forum Director
Oct 9, 1999
46,827
10,545
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Originally posted by: bozack
So I was reading the paper today and happened upon this article in the boston globe titled Obama defends experienced, centrist team...

Here is the link:

http://www.boston.com/news/nat...rienced_centrist_team/

So now a few weeks ago here I remember saying that I felt Obama was focusing too much on the old liberal guard and rehashing too much of the former Clinton administration, and at that time more than a few came out to say that my conservative bias was blinding me to reality and that because of this I wasn't getting "it" with regards to his selections...

So I just had to chuckle a little when I saw that not only am I "not getting it" but it seems that the many who helped move along Obama's grass roots efforts aren't getting it either as they voiced the same criticisms...the obvious being that they are pro Obama and also presumably liberal so using the conservative bias argument doesn't fly.

Personally, as conservative as I am I would have much rather seen him go outside the box and try something different with fresh faces and truly new ideas, and it seems like people on the other side of the policy fence who supported Obama from the outset tend to agree.

C'mon Bo, you're not fooling anyone. If he'd picked non-centrists we all know that you and all the other anti-Obama boyz would have been screaming like schoolgirls done wrong. :roll:
 

Rainsford

Lifer
Apr 25, 2001
17,515
0
0
Originally posted by: Ocguy31
Anything that makes liberals upset is OK in my book.

:thumbsup: for Obama.

This liberal is all in favor of his picks. Unlike you people (and apparently your counterparts on the far left), I never bought the idea that Obama was some huge liberal. He's a reasonable centrist, which is exactly what we need right now.
 

alien42

Lifer
Nov 28, 2004
12,854
3,287
136
Originally posted by: Rainsford
Originally posted by: Ocguy31
Anything that makes liberals upset is OK in my book.

:thumbsup: for Obama.

This liberal is all in favor of his picks. Unlike you people (and apparently your counterparts on the far left), I never bought the idea that Obama was some huge liberal. He's a reasonable centrist, which is exactly what we need right now.

yup, Obama ran the Harvard Law Review from the center, no reason to think he won't run the country the same way.
 

quest55720

Golden Member
Nov 3, 2004
1,339
0
0
Originally posted by: TheRedUnderURBed
Originally posted by: Zebo
I'll be surprised if they really even do UHC.

If we could get UHC like every other civilized country out there I would be satisfied that the centrists did a good job. That is more then I expect also.

Are we going to guard the boarders and control illegals like ever other "civilized country" out there that has UHC. Unless that happens UHC will bankrupt this country in record time.
 
Feb 10, 2000
30,029
67
91
I guess I don't see the irony. I have always felt and said that Obama would run the country as a centrist, and his cabinet picks bear that out. The only reason I could see Bozack (the same man who said he hoped Kerry would be impeached if elected in 2004 and who obviously has a completely anti-Obama sig) being disappointed by Obama's picks is that they don't provide a basis for much Republican faux outrage.
 

babylon5

Golden Member
Dec 11, 2000
1,363
1
0
Originally posted by: quest55720
Originally posted by: TheRedUnderURBed
Originally posted by: Zebo
I'll be surprised if they really even do UHC.

If we could get UHC like every other civilized country out there I would be satisfied that the centrists did a good job. That is more then I expect also.

Are we going to guard the boarders and control illegals like ever other "civilized country" out there that has UHC. Unless that happens UHC will bankrupt this country in record time.

We wont' see UHC unless something drastic happens, for better or worst.
 

Deliximus

Senior member
Aug 11, 2001
318
0
76
UHC is not Obama's plan. Obama wants children to be covered. I see good reason for such a measure. every kid should worry most about their education/family and their parents should have heavy assistance in regards to their children's health.

Obama has been centrist in most of his ideals. It has been the campaign rhetoric about certain non-issues (abortion for example) that make him SEEM to be on the extreme left. He is a few notches left of center and Bush is a few leaps to the right. Then again, 'centrist' in America means "right' when placed in the world's perspective.
 

Perknose

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
Forum Director
Oct 9, 1999
46,827
10,545
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Originally posted by: JEDIYoda
You know I went to a Handel`s Obama sing a long the other day......

Looking forward to it this Christmas!
 

chess9

Elite member
Apr 15, 2000
7,748
0
0
Originally posted by: TheRedUnderURBed
Originally posted by: Zebo
I'll be surprised if they really even do UHC.

If we could get UHC like every other civilized country out there I would be satisfied that the centrists did a good job. That is more then I expect also.
6


The insurance companies have too much money to donate to congress for UHC to pass. No way it's going to pass in this economy either. Maybe second term, but I doubt it.

The biggie coming up on health care is what Obama does about the Medicare supplement act that was passed with AARP's huge endorsement about 6 years ago and is a huge waste of taxpayer money. Health care insurors like Humana have made billions on that boondoggle. They get something like $800 a month per Medicare patient to take over their care. Seniors like me who rarely go to the doctor are making them money hand over fist.
This was done by the Republican Congress and our Republican President. Yet, you never hear conservatives say a word about it.

-Robert
 

Dari

Lifer
Oct 25, 2002
17,133
38
91
The OP obviously doesn't "get it". He's been tone-deaf to countless people here saying Obama's a centrist and is now as giddy as a teenage girl upon hearing that some of Obama's friends are upset at him. Grow up.
 

Skyclad1uhm1

Lifer
Aug 10, 2001
11,383
87
91
So basically he wants to gather an experienced centrist group, so he can be a president for 95% of the people, rather than picking a small extremist group to be the president for the extremist 5%. Bush did that already, it didn't work out well for the country. So what's wrong with Obama not doing that?

Seriously, extremists divide the country, centrists unite it. That small groups of extremists on both sides don't want to be a part of it, fine. That means they will probably say and do stupid things to distantiate themselves from it, annoy the normal people, and thus further unite them. Quite fitting for the United States, don't you think?

 

bozack

Diamond Member
Jan 14, 2000
7,913
12
81
Originally posted by: Don Vito Corleone
I guess I don't see the irony. I have always felt and said that Obama would run the country as a centrist, and his cabinet picks bear that out. The only reason I could see Bozack (the same man who said he hoped Kerry would be impeached if elected in 2004 and who obviously has a completely anti-Obama sig) being disappointed by Obama's picks is that they don't provide a basis for much Republican faux outrage.

Like I said, it is a bit of a disappointment from my point...good thing he has four years to hopefully provide that fuel for the fire...only time will tell.
 

bozack

Diamond Member
Jan 14, 2000
7,913
12
81
Originally posted by: Perknose
C'mon Bo, you're not fooling anyone. If he'd picked non-centrists we all know that you and all the other anti-Obama boyz would have been screaming like schoolgirls done wrong. :roll:

Perk I wouldn't deny that, however the difference is in that situation the loonbag lefties would have been happy and at least my side would have something interesting to bitch about...now it is just a waiting game to see how good or bad things do become.