Things do not look promising for next year's gubernatorial election or congressional elections-- for house or senate.
It's not too late. Obama could either straighten out Pelosi and Reid, and get them moving. Today, the news headline, reported by the Wall Street Journal print edition, is "democrats say early health-care vote isn't likely"
It's hard to understand how the Democrats can think that they can just put this on a side burner. Extending the love analogy, this is like going through a lot of heavy foreplay and then telling your lover you feel like playing poker or going shopping. This can only further hurt the Democratic party and its chances for the 2010 elections. Americans gave incredible power to the Democrats and their leader, Obama, and even if Plouffe is right, and he is following through on his long term, big picture commitment and vision, there is a lot more at stake here.
The American people were abused for eight years-- brutally lied to, defrauded, subjected to incredible corruption, left economically raped and traumatized. They want things made right, not kept "as usual." That's not change. The changes Plouffe describes are all well and good, but they don't get to the core of the needs Americans have now. We gave power. We want it used. That means going to the congress with the majority votes given and passing a shitload of serious, solid legislation. That means taking the bluedogs Rahm Emanuel had a major role in putting in place and getting them in line, on board with the program. That means passing health care reform legislation even more robust than Obama talked about, since he never expected to have the house and the senate. It means cleaning up Guantanamo, reversing the Patriot act. It means throwing out every Goldman Sachs insider in government, just like the people of New Jersey did.
Love is blind for a while. It can even tolerate unfaithful dalliances-- like Obama's cheating on the American people by appointing Geithner, Summers and other wolves in the hen house.
But un-requited love turns to pain and bitterness and anger. That's what's happening in America. Obama needs to give back some of the love and show that his cheating on the American people is over. That means he needs to replace some of the people who have shown they put Wall Street over main street. And he needs to be a man and take charge of the congress, because they can't do it without him.
Some on the far left and far right will say that there are not many differences between the Democrats and Republicans. During the election, those people voted for Nader, McKinney and Barr. There are a whole lot more of those people now. The latest polls show that there are more independents than Democrats and less than 20% who identify themselves as Republicans. Obama cold win a lot of those people back.
Huffington finishes her review, reporting and observing,
I asked Plouffe if the president had read the book. "He read a couple of sections in it," he replied, "and even discovered a couple of things he didn't know."Well, if the president wants to make sure he doesn't let down the millions who believed he really would change the rotten system, he should read the The Audacity to Win from beginning to end -- and rediscover a whole host of things he knows, but seems to have forgotten.
Then he can complete the journey from The Audacity of Hope and The Audacity To Win to The Audacity to Govern.
I agree. The Democrats in congress have long shown major problems losing their keys and their spines-- they've lost the keys to getting things done and they've rarely found the courage to take tough stands and take on those nasty, tough Republicans. Obam needs to become an audacious LEADER. Consensus is good. Bottom up participation is good. But even the most bottom up operations and organizations must have a leader.
Seneca, the Roman Stoic philosopher, wrote, --It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult." Obama needs to take that idea and lead the Democrats with daring, and he will find that America's love for him will grow greater than before. But if he fails to audaciously lead and govern, his fulfilling the promises Plouffe lists will not do the job and the Democrats will fail disastrously, come November 2010.
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